Great Song Dynasty, Shengjing.
Seven days earlier, God-Catcher Zhu Xiawu had returned injured from his secret trip to Ming.
Soon afterward, the Six Doors experts and members of the Twelve Linked Rings Dock who had infiltrated Ming fell one after another.
Even the bases that had already been hidden throughout Ming were exposed one by one and rooted out by Ming's Embroidered Uniform Guard.
With that, the plan overseen by Wei Zhongxian to stop Ming's western expedition was declared a failure.
At court, Zhao Gou, the King of Song, furiously rebuked Zhu Xiawu and Wei Zhongxian, demanding that they find a way to stop Ming or come back with their own heads in their hands.
Neither showed much reaction, but both wore deeply gloomy expressions.
After court was dismissed, Wei Zhongxian stopped Zhu Xiawu as he was about to leave and said sarcastically, "Who would have thought that Great Heavenly King Zhu, who has swept across Wulin for decades and spent so many years laying his plans, would take such a tremendous tumble now?"
Zhu Xiawu's gaze turned cold at those words. "You were the one who proposed the plan to stop Ming's western expedition. Your men failed too. What right do you have to criticize me?"
Wei Zhongxian's expression darkened. "If you hadn't been stupid enough to expose your whereabouts and beat the grass to startle the snake, prompting Ming's experts to act, how could my plan have failed?"
"You must bear full responsibility for this failure."
Zhu Xiawu said coldly, "Do you take everyone in the Embroidered Uniform Guard for useless fools? This plan was riddled with holes. Even if I hadn't been exposed, they would have uncovered it sooner or later. I simply hadn't expected Ming to send Bai Yujing and the others into action directly. My