Miaocheng Tian and Xuanjing Tian

With the crisis of their clan's annihilation averted, Wang Shifan immediately hosted a banquet for the one thousand soldiers of the Longxiang Army.

Zhu Youning readily agreed, and the thousand Longxiang soldiers were more than happy to oblige.

Although they had endured a ten-day trek and encountered assassins from Tongwen Hall along the way, they had suffered no casualties. Now, with free wine and fine food on offer, who would turn that down?

The banquet was, naturally, quite lavish.

Although Wang Shifan had already surrendered his military and financial authority to Zhu Liang, he was still the head of a prominent noble family; he still had wealth. Hosting a thousand people was not a difficult task for the Wang clan.

Men of the military generally had impressive capacities for alcohol, and even the accompanying civil officials were no exception. Many soldiers clinked cups, sharing tales of their most exhilarating life experiences, clapping and laughing with one another, drinking to their hearts' content.

Zhu Youning was, naturally, seated at the same table as the five Wang brothers.

The Wang family had five brothers: the eldest, Wang Shiyue; the second, Wang Shifan; the third, Wang Shihui; the fourth, Wang Shilu; and the fifth, Wang Shike. Among the five, the second brother, Wang Shifan, was the most virtuous and decisive, which was why he had inherited the family leadership.

The people at their table did not drink with such boisterous abandon; instead, they sipped elegantly, finding topics for idle chatter. After all, aside from Zhu Youning, the others all had heavy hearts.

Even though Zhu Youning had told them they would survive, no one knew if Zhu Wen might change his mind again.

The banquet dishes were countless, but Zhu Youning's attention shifted elsewhere.

He had spotted two women.

One of them had a tall, slender, and graceful figure. As for the other, she was equally charming, exuding a faint, alluring aura.

Zhu Youning only glanced at them, but his attention was immediately hooked.

It was not just because of their figures, but because of their temperament and martial arts.

Although they were dressed in common maidservant attire and their faces had been deliberately painted a sallow yellow, the aura they possessed could not be masked.

Furthermore, as they served the dishes, their footsteps were light and steady, and their breathing was rhythmic and orderly—they clearly possessed martial arts.

The identities of these two were definitely not simple!

Zhu Youning focused his gaze, and by cross-referencing his memories from his past life, he actually managed to identify them!

Xuanjing Tian, one of the Nine Heavens Holy Concubines of the Huan Yin Workshop! And Miaocheng Tian, also one of the Nine Heavens Holy Concubines of the Huan Yin Workshop!

To think it was them?

What was the purpose of the Huan Yin Workshop coming here?

One had to know that the Huan Yin Workshop was no ordinary place.

Although the name sounded like a place of song and dance, in reality, the Huan Yin Workshop was an assassination organization.

And it was an assassination organization supported by the official government of Qi State.

Based in Fengxiang of Qi State, the Huan Yin Workshop was headed by the mysterious Empress. The experts within were all young women who excelled in both beauty and talent, using their charms to seduce targets for the purpose of gathering intelligence or carrying out assassinations.

Aside from the Empress, the Huan Yin Workshop had the Nine Heavens Holy Concubines: Fanyin Tian, Miaocheng Tian, Xuanjing Tian, Duowen Tian, Guangmu Tian, Yangyan Tian, Suoluo Tian, Yanmo Tian, and Zizai Tian...

The Nine Heavens Holy Concubines were all stunning beauties with extraordinary martial arts, serving as the Empress's capable lieutenants.

Now that two of the great Holy Concubines had appeared here, it meant that Qi State had already set its sights on Wang Shifan.

It was just unclear whether they had any private connections.

Zhu Youning immediately looked at Wang Shifan and said in a casual tone, "Old General Wang, the soil and water of Luoyang truly nourish people. I never expected that even the maids serving tea and water in your residence would have such beauty."

Upon hearing Zhu Youning's words, Wang Shifan followed his gaze, feeling a sudden shock in his heart while frowning slightly.

He did not recognize these two maids at all.

Zhu Youning observed Wang Shifan's expression and immediately asked, "Old General Wang, do you not recognize these two?"

Wang Shihui broke into a cold sweat and had no choice but to stand up and speak.

"Your Highness, these two maids were just recruited into the residence by me, so my second brother is unaware of them."

Seeing his third brother's reaction, Wang Shifan immediately guessed the truth. Wang Shihui had previously told him that he had been in contact with the Huan Yin Workshop of Qi State.

Could those two maids be the Nine Heavens Holy Concubines his third brother had mentioned?

Thinking of this, Wang Shifan stood up at once and said decisively, "Third Brother, how could you easily recruit people of unknown origin into the residence? Guards! Seize them!"

Zhu Youning did not intervene, instead letting the servants of Wang Shifan's residence seize them, though he added a reminder: "Tie them tightly!"

For some reason, Xuanjing Tian and Miaocheng Tian did not resist; instead, they deliberately acted ignorant and panicked, appearing as if they had no idea what was happening.

Their reactions were exactly like two terrified maidservants.

However, even if they had resisted, it might not have mattered. Even if they could break free from the servants, there were still the one thousand Longxiang soldiers Zhu Youning had brought into the residence!

While on a mission, the Longxiang Army did not remove their armor, even for eating or sleeping. Just like now, despite the fine wine and food provided by Wang Shifan, they remained fully armored with their weapons at their sides.

Among the Nine Heavens Holy Concubines, Xuanjing Tian was particularly skilled in archery, her weapon of choice being a bow. Miaocheng Tian's weapon was an umbrella.

Because they were pretending to be common maids, they did not have their weapons with them, severely handicapping their combat effectiveness.

If they were to truly turn hostile and fight, it would be impossible for them to break through the encirclement of over a thousand men!

"Master, have mercy! This servant has done nothing!"

Perhaps realizing that force would be useless, Miaocheng Tian immediately put on a weak, helpless, and terrified act.

With tears streaming down her face, she was a pitiful sight to behold.

Wang Shifan, however, remained unmoved. Having no intention of showing mercy to the fair sex, he ordered his men to fetch ropes and bind Xuanjing Tian and Miaocheng Tian tightly.

Afterward, Wang Shifan cupped his hands toward Zhu Youning and said, "Your Highness, these two are yours to deal with."

"Hmm."

Yet, just as Zhu Youning prepared to interrogate them, an unexpected turn of events occurred. A burly man with a livid complexion rushed over at high speed.

This man was a household soldier from Wang Shifan's estate. He came sprinting over, drenched in sweat, and stumbled just before reaching Wang Shifan. Wang Shifan caught him, his voice sinking as he demanded, "What is it? Why all this panic!"

"Your Highness, Master, it's bad! The brothers guarding the warhorses are all dead! And Your Highness's warhorse is gone!"

In an instant, the faces of everyone in the Wang household who heard these words turned deathly pale.

They had never expected that Zhu Youning's warhorse would be killed. They feared that Zhu Youning would vent his rage upon the Wang family because of it.

Zhu Youning's warhorse had been under special care by Wang Shifan's men, fed only the finest fodder.

The stables were not far away, located in a small courtyard surrounded by buildings. Zhu Youning first ordered his soldiers to keep a close watch on Miaocheng Tian and Xuanjing Tian, then accompanied Wang Shifan and his party to the site.

Ever since Zhu Youning's warhorse had been brought here, more than twenty men had been stationed outside the door at all times. Yet now, not a single one of those twenty-odd men had survived; they had all become cold corpses. As for Zhu Youning's warhorse, it had vanished without a trace.