Deduction and Speculation

Two years have passed, but Zhang Xuezhou still remembers the events of that day vividly.

That was the first time he had ever witnessed a battle between top-tier cultivators.

There is the elusive Emperor Jing, the Peacock King who manifests his power to protect, Kong Ning, Jin Chang, and even the Venerable One.

The power of His Majesty's eyes was almost irresistible; the instantaneous blindness rendered many powerless.

In a blind state, few people can clearly see the battle, and even fewer survive.

Zhang Xuezhou did not observe everything precisely; he only pieced together the battlefield scene by combining it with descriptions of Wu Chao.

"Why are you asking these questions?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"Curious!" Dong Zhongshu replied in a low voice.

"What's there to be curious about in the past?" Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand and shook his head, saying, "There's no need to investigate once the dust has settled."

"Don't!"

Looking at Zhang Xuezhou's decisive refusal, Dong Zhongshu felt that the other party was likely afraid that the court would pursue the matter further, and that they would need to use Zhang Xuezhou to investigate Zou Bugui.

Many things have indeed been decided, and many people seem to have forgotten everything.

The war in the Northern Border eventually turned into frictional clashes, almost returning to the normal routine between the Xiong State and the Han Kingdom.

No one wanted to find out the reason for the outbreak of that war, nor did anyone try to find out the whereabouts of Zou Bugui, Jin Chang, and others.

Under these circumstances, the imperial court no longer needed Zhang Xuezhou.

Moreover, since the Crown Prince had Zou Bugui but hadn't obtained any useful information from Zou Bugui, it was unlikely that he would carry out such a large-scale operation again.

Zhang Xuezhou's worries were unnecessary, but for someone like Zhang Xuezhou who was detached from the imperial court, the fact that the other party was unaware of the information might still make him feel uneasy.

When he realized that the other person had said they had a hard time these past two years, Dong Zhongshu felt he understood, and he also understood why the other person didn't want to talk about it.

"Here's what happened..."

If it were those old foxes in the imperial court, they would definitely use information asymmetry to deceive Zhang Xuezhou, or even coerce and intimidate him.

However, Dong Zhongshu upheld righteousness and cultivated himself with integrity. He clearly distinguished right from wrong and his many deeds were dignified, so there was no need to tell young people.

He murmured to himself, even using his Law Power ability to transmit his voice, mentioning some of his doubts.

"Do you have any questions?"

After hearing those words, Zhang Xuezhou's heart couldn't help but pound.

Before he could even go to Chang'an City to gather intelligence, Dong Zhongshu had already obtained relevant information.

This made him stop being perfunctory as before and keep thinking back to the events of that day.

"I suspect something has happened, but I have no evidence," Dong Zhongshu transmitted his voice. "I want to find out, but I also want to protect myself!"

"Are you in danger right now?" Zhang Xuezhou asked in a low voice.

"The emperor's heart is unfathomable; one moment a guest of honor, the next a victim of his blade—who can say for sure!"

Dong Zhongshu looked towards the direction of Chang'an City.

Grand Commandant Zhou is clearly such a case.

The rebellion of Grand Commandant Grand Commandant Zhou caused a huge uproar, not only shocking the imperial court but also affecting various parts of the Han Dynasty. Major vassal states watched with bated breath, and even hostile countries were notified.

As the greatest contributor to suppressing the internal strife of various vassal states, Grand Commandant Zhou died under an imperial edict, which could not help but shock Dong Zhongshu.

He agreed to the task assigned by Emperor Jing without uttering a word.

Dong Zhongshu was also troubled about how to handle Emperor Jing Emperor Jing's affairs and how to meet his demands.

What he needs right now is not to verify the relevant information about the academy established by Prefect Wen, but to truly understand the Emperor's mind.

Only by understanding Emperor Jing's needs could he avoid potential problems.

"Are you saying that His Majesty's thoughts are unpredictable and his mind is not right?" Zhang Xuezhou asked in a low voice.

"You need to use the phrase 'the emperor's heart is unfathomable' to describe this kind of thing," Dong Zhongshu corrected. "If you said something like this in Chang'an City and someone overheard and reported you, your head would be rolling on the ground."

"All right!"

Zhang Xuezhou learned a useful piece of information from Dong Zhongshu, which he felt was very similar to the Emperor's suspicion that Emperor Jing's behavior was somewhat mad. The comparison of the contents completely corroborated this.

This allowed Zhang Xuezhou to learn important information even before he went to Chang'an City.

He likes this secure way of obtaining information.

The fact that even someone like Dong Zhongshu could be moved to the point of being wary of Emperor Jing and have to be on guard to protect his own safety suggests that Emperor Jing is currently in a very precarious situation.

Although this is a speculative piece of information, it originates from Dong Zhongshu and is not merely a wild guess.

"Is His Majesty in good health?" Zhang Xuezhou asked in a low voice.

"Very good," Dong Zhongshu replied, "But it's too good. He seems unaffected by the events in Lingnan, which I find hard to understand. So I want to ask you about the scene when His Majesty clashed with that giant serpent with a human face!"

This is where Dong Zhongshu's real doubt lies.

He felt that Emperor Jing must have been injured before he killed the Venerable One's manifested form; it was impossible for him to have suffered no injury whatsoever.

However, the Emperor Jing he saw in the imperial palace in Chang'an City did not have any injuries.

This strange feeling left Dong Zhongshu bewildered.

Emperor Jing's unpredictable and capricious nature also made him difficult to deal with.

He didn't want to end up like Grand Commandant Zhou, so he needed to figure out the problem.

What he wanted to verify with Zhang Xuezhou at that moment was whether Emperor Jing was actually injured.

"They must have been injured!"

Zhang Xuezhou pondered for a few seconds before deciding on his answer.

"His weapons were all destroyed, and he was even attacked by the Venerable One in his death throes!"

Are you really sure His Majesty was injured at the time?

"He must have sustained some injuries!"

"That..."

A storm raged within Dong Zhongshu's heart, as if a tidal wave was crashing against his soul.

A judgment that he himself found hard to believe suddenly popped into his mind.

Was the emperor in the palace actually Emperor Jing?

If that emperor was a fake Emperor Jing, then where did the real Emperor Jing go?

Where did His Majesty go?

If Emperor Jing were injured, some things would become understandable.

At least Dong Zhongshu understood why Emperor Jing wanted to kill Grand Commandant Zhou.

For Grand Commandant Zhou, who was nearing the end of his life, this was perhaps the last remaining use he had for the other man.

One could bring himself to kill, and the other accepted it without a trace of resistance.

Just like when he killed Chao Cuo during the siege of the seven major states, the top-level schemes were incredibly elaborate, and death was used to deceive many people.

Dong Zhongshu thought about it carefully and realized that he wasn't involved in many related matters, and there was nothing he could use to make use of them, which put him at ease.

"What will happen if His Majesty's injuries fail to heal?"

When Dong Zhongshu concluded that the emperor he met during his audience with the emperor was an imposter, he couldn't help but speculate about Emperor Jing's current situation.

If it came to the point where the Emperor needed to kill Grand Commandant Zhou to set a trap, Emperor Jing was likely already on his deathbed.

"His Majesty is failing, so it's impossible to replace the Crown Prince. If the Crown Prince can't be replaced, then..."

In a scene shrouded in mist, Dong Zhongshu quickly found his direction for the future after obtaining corroborating evidence.