Prince Shu, who had been drinking, suddenly stopped. Clutching his wine cup, he leaned forward, his formerly dull eyes fixing on Ma Youliang with a vicious glare. After a moment of stunned silence, he asked hoarsely, "Master, where did this plan come from?"
Ma Youliang let the prince scrutinize him suspiciously. That was only natural. When all was already lost, someone suddenly offering a "dangerous scheme" was almost certainly someone who had been bought off to lay a trap.
But Ma Youliang smiled and continued, "Your Highness, do not be suspicious. Someone approached your humble servant..."
He paused, seemingly unsure how to explain, and merely sighed. "Even I was shocked by that person's identity."
"Even you were shocked?" Prince Shu looked startled, then relaxed a little. "Is this person's identity so unusual? Who is it? Let me guess. Could it be Prince Qi?"
Ma Youliang shook his head, and Prince Shu continued guessing. "Prince Qinghe?"
Ma Youliang shook his head again.
Prince Shu guessed several more people, all incorrectly. Finally, a flash of lightning seemed to split his mind, and he suddenly said, "Could it be a remnant of the former dynasty?"
At those words, Ma Youliang did not shake his head again. Although he did not nod either, his silence amounted to an admission.
"It really is a remnant of the former dynasty?" This time, Prince Shu was genuinely astonished. "How did they find you? Are they after me? Who is it? Could it be..."
A name surfaced in Prince Shu's mind, but he could scarcely believe his own guess.
"That Cao Yiyan, the descendant of the former dynasty's imperial clan?"
Ma Shunde had exposed Cao Yiyan's identity as a descendant of the former dynasty's imperial clan and wiped out several of his strongholds. This was no longer a