Chapter 29: Back from the Dead

Ning Chen frowned, looking deeply at the old scholar.

His expression suggested he already knew what the old man was about to say.

After a moment of contemplation, he said in a low voice, "I am aware of the consequences that staging this assassination within the palace might bring."

"But I do not have much time left!"

"Not much time?"

The old scholar, Master Kong, was taken aback.

"What does Your Majesty mean? Did the birthday banquet not already buy you enough time?"

Master Kong looked at Ning Chen with confusion, but upon seeing the look on the boy’s face, he quickly realized: "Has something else happened during this time..."

"The Empress Dowager has poisoned me, and we have yet to identify the nature of the toxin," Ning Chen said with a bitter smile. "Therefore, I have no choice but to accelerate the plan."

"Poisoned?"

The old scholar froze. He stared intently at Ning Chen, his shock quickly turning into rage.

"You mean the Empress Dowager poisoned Your Majesty?"

"This, this..."

"Truly, the heart of a cruel woman knows no bounds. To poison a nine-year-old child—this is an affront to heaven and earth!"

The old scholar’s beard trembled with fury.

He certainly knew the Empress Dowager was a woman who would stop at nothing to achieve her ends, but he never imagined she would poison a defenseless child. She already controlled the entire court, and the little emperor had been playing his part so perfectly in front of her...

As he thought this, Ning Chen smiled to comfort him. "Master, there is no need for such anger. History is written by the victors. The struggle for imperial power is no child's play; there is only victory or defeat. In such matters, there is no distinction between honorable or despicable means."

The old scholar was stunned.

He looked at Ning Chen, deeply moved. For a child of only nine to possess such a mature state of mind made even him feel inferior.

"It is just that the ruse of assassination cannot be used again, and my time is running out. Now, I must rely on Lord Fan..."

"By the way, how is Lord Fan’s progress?"

Master Kong sighed. "He just sent word. The investigation is underway, but he still lacks the definitive evidence to deliver a fatal blow."

"To topple Pan Yu, we must have concrete proof!"

"But Xichuan is Pan Yu’s home turf, and since he is now the Empress Dowager’s favorite, the local officials are all his sycophants. Investigating this is proving quite difficult..."

Ning Chen frowned and fell into deep thought.

But soon, as if struck by a sudden realization, he interrupted. "Given the current situation, I cannot wait that long. We must expose this matter as soon as possible!"

"Although this was your idea, we currently lack actual evidence. I fear that rushing to expose it will only prove counterproductive," Master Kong said worriedly.

Ning Chen revealed a mysterious smile, looking at the old scholar with confidence. "Evidence is important, yet sometimes it is not..."

He leaned into the old man's ear and whispered, "Master, during the time you were away, I met someone of vital importance. With this person..."

Ning Chen detailed his plan. After hearing it, Master Kong remained silent for a long time before looking deeply at Ning Chen and saying in a low voice, "This is far too risky. Do you realize that if anything goes wrong, all those people will lose their lives?"

Hearing this, Ning Chen let out a long sigh. "Indeed, how could I not know!"

But soon, his gaze became incredibly firm.

"But is life not a high-stakes gamble?"

"That is true for me, and it is true for them as well!"

"Those who cannot share in the gamble and risk their lives with me in the depths of despair do not deserve to share in the glory when I reach the summit."

"All I can promise is this: If we fail, we go to hell together!"

"If we succeed, I will never fail you!"

The old scholar was startled.

Indeed, such is the way of the world. Especially at the center of the vortex of imperial power, how could there be room for trivial sentimentality?

"A general’s success is built upon ten thousand bones." He believed that this little puppet emperor before him was the true Son of Heaven.

He would surely become an emperor for the ages.

For the future of the Great Ning, for the people of the world, and for the young emperor Ning Chen, what did it matter if thousands or ten thousand bones were scattered?

With this thought, the look he turned upon Ning Chen became resolute.

...

In the time that followed, just as Ning Chen had anticipated, after the assassination attempt, Pan Yu’s "protection" of him became even tighter, to the point that he was almost entirely confined to the palace.

Pan Yu himself threw himself into investigating the assassination with obsessive fervor.

However, what Ning Chen did not expect was that three or four officials had already been dismissed and punished. It was clear that while the Empress Dowager was investigating the assassin, she was also purging dissenters and tightening her control over the court.

This was a critical signal for Ning Chen, meaning he had to accelerate his timeline even further.

Fortunately, Little Anzi had gained even more of the Empress Dowager’s trust due to the assassination, allowing him to help Ning Chen push the plan forward smoothly.

That evening, just as Pan Yu lay down on his bed, exhausted, he heard his confidant report, "General Pan, it is bad. Fan Dayou has returned to the capital!"

"Let him return. He is just a pedantic old scholar. What does that have to do with me?" Pan Yu said irritably, rubbing his shoulders.

"General, this time we must take it seriously. My scouts report that Fan Dayou brought a woman back to the capital with him!" the confidant whispered.

"A woman? What woman?" Pan Yu frowned, puzzled.

"My men say her name is Zhou Suruo..."

Before the confidant could finish, Pan Yu stood up abruptly, his face full of shock. "Zhou Suruo?"

"You mean the granddaughter of the little emperor’s maternal grandfather?"

"This... this is impossible. Isn't she dead?"

A strong sense of foreboding surged in his heart.

Damn it, when one’s luck is down, even drinking cold water makes one choke!

The assassin case hadn't been solved yet, and now this Zhou Suruo pops up.

He could forget anyone, but he could never forget Zhou Suruo!

He had personally killed her entire family, ordered his men to take turns violating her, and watched with his own eyes as she took her last breath in front of him!

In such a situation, how could she suddenly come back from the dead?

Regardless, this had to be verified!

Because Zhou Suruo had to die!

If the Empress Dowager discovered this, given her capabilities, his own secrets would inevitably be exposed.

At that point, he would truly have no place to hide!

After much deliberation, he decided to investigate personally.

That night, he and his confidant disguised themselves and arrived at Fan Dayou’s residence. After sneaking into the manor, he looked into a room and saw Fan Dayou talking to a woman.

"Nonsense, this is not Zhou Suruo..."

Looking at the woman in the room who bore a slight resemblance to Zhou Suruo, Pan Yu let out a long breath of relief.

Unexpectedly, as he was speaking, the woman in the room said to Fan Dayou, "Lord Fan, rest assured, I, Zhou Suruo, am a person who has already died once!"

"As long as you can help me seek justice and expose Pan Yu’s crimes, my death will be worth it!"

"Back then, it was that Pan Yu who used his power to kill my entire family and violate my sister and me. My sister, unable to bear the shame, threw herself against a wall and died. I, Zhou Suruo, endured endless suffering and changed my appearance to live until this day just to seek revenge..."

Hearing this, Pan Yu, hiding outside the room, frowned instantly, his eyes full of shock. *Wait, how does she know these things? Could she really be Zhou Suruo?*

*Right, she just mentioned changing her appearance. Could it be...*

A sinister premonition welled up inside him!

At this moment, Fan Dayou’s voice sounded: "Miss Zhou, I truly wish to seek justice for you, but your status as the daughter of a disgraced official—even if you are not afraid of death, I fear you cannot do anything to Pan Yu..."

Zhou Suruo’s voice sounded again: "Lord Fan, I know you have always been upright and incorruptible. If I did not have concrete evidence, I would not have come to you in secret."

"I have already obtained proof of Pan Yu’s crimes. Over these years, he has used his power to abduct no fewer than a hundred female relatives of convicted officials from the prisons, keeping them secretly in his home in Xichuan. This beast has essentially built a private harem for himself..."

Hearing this, Pan Yu’s heart skipped a beat.

*How could she know this secret?*

*No, the Empress Dowager must never know about this!*

He knew clearly that his abuse of power was a minor offense, but keeping a private harem was a major one. The Empress Dowager would never permit him to touch other women!

"Go, kill Fan Dayou and his family!"

The confidant took the order and left. Watching his back, a sharp, murderous intent rose in Pan Yu’s eyes!

A moment later, just as the confidant had walked two steps away, Pan Yu suddenly plunged a blade into his confidant’s back!

"Everyone who knows that I have been keeping a harem behind the Empress Dowager’s back must die!"

"Including you!"

Pan Yu frowned, gritted his teeth, and without a moment’s hesitation, burst through the window!

Looking at the two, who were pale and panicked by his intrusion, Pan Yu leveled his military saber and said in a deep voice: "A pedantic old scholar and a little bitch!"

"Go to hell..."

At the same time.

Within the Palace, in the Yangxin Hall.

Ning Chen sat up abruptly, as if waking from a nightmare, covered in a cold sweat.

Seeing this, Little Anzi quickly leaned in, worried. "Your Majesty, what is wrong?"

Ning Chen looked at Little Anzi, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and asked in a slightly strained voice, "Is everything arranged?"

Little Anzi nodded. "Do not worry, Your Majesty. Everything has been arranged exactly as you instructed..."

Ning Chen finally breathed a sigh of relief, though his gaze remained tense. "Everything hinges on this!"

"I only hope that my cousin and Fan Dayou do not run into any accidents..."