Chapter 963 – Success and Withdrawal
As the night descended, the chilly breeze of the grassland felt like thousands of tiny knives slicing against my face.
Tonight’s atmosphere was exceptionally heavy, with nearly every patrolling Guard keeping a taut expression.
At the stroke of midnight, the royal guards changed shifts once more, but this time, fresh faces filled the ranks.
The Fourth Prince donned his armor, a massive knife hanging at his waist.
His appearance mirrored that of the Northern Border King; dressed like this, he looked imposing, resembling a lion surveying its territory.
“Is everything arranged?” He impatiently asked his Confidant once again, “What time is it now?”
The Confidant replied, “It has just turned midnight; there’s still a quarter of an hour before the Ninth Prince’s scheduled attack.”
“A quarter of an hour?”
The Fourth Prince felt every second stretch out like an eternity, as he watched years of ambition about to be realized; he couldn’t wait even those fifteen minutes.
“Go check everywhere again; we must ensure everything is foolproof.”
He paced back and forth, seemingly recalling something, and called back a subordinate who had just turned to leave, “Where’s Sun Wen?”
During such a critical moment, he wished for someone to witness it with him; if Sun Wen were here, he could feel more at ease.
This strategist, who played with the political landscape of the Northern Border like a master from a small throne, was leagues ahead of his peers in the Fourth Prince’s heart.
The Confidant responded, “Sun Wen claims to be too old to see bloodshed and has already gone back.”
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince’s mouth twitched, feeling somewhat helpless against Sun Wen.
He had forgotten that Sun Wen was a frail scholar who couldn’t lift a finger or shoulder a burden.
If a bloody battle were to break out later, no one could guarantee his safety; perhaps it was for the best that he didn’t come.
“Let him be.”
After all, the grand scheme was already in motion; Sun Wen’s presence wouldn’t impact things much.
The Fourth Prince’s nature was suspicious; he couldn’t help but take a quick look into the royal tent, finally feeling reassured when he saw the Northern Border King still resting on his bed.
Time ticked away, and finally, it was the appointed time. The Fourth Prince’s heart raced like a drum, escalating his anxiety.
However—
Why was no one here?
A few of his subordinates rushed in to report, all checkpoints were filled with their men, but they hadn’t seen the Ninth Prince at all. What was going on?
“…Could it be that this old Ninth is having too much fun with his Lady, causing him to miss the timing?”
The Fourth Prince muttered under his breath, refusing to slack off; he ordered his men to maintain strict vigilance at each checkpoint.
As the promised time passed, the initially tense atmosphere gradually waned.
The Fourth Prince’s fists clenched and relaxed incessantly. Finally, he couldn’t resist the urge to rise.
Just as he took a few steps, faint shouts of battle reached his ears, and his eyes sparkled with excitement.
However, before the smile could leave his face, dozens of his blood-soaked subordinates burst in, led by none other than his Confidant.
“Fourth Prince—We’ve fallen for a trap—We need to get out now!”
The Confidant’s words sent a chill down the Fourth Prince’s spine, a dark sense of dread spreading through him.
“Wait—What do you mean?” The Fourth Prince instinctively supported the Confidant, noticing the grievous wound on his specialized protective armor, blood pouring out as he exclaimed, “What do you mean, ‘we’ve fallen for a trap’—”
The Confidant raised a hand, binding his waist with cloth to stem the bleeding, while Guards rushed in to protect the Fourth Prince.
Just as a subordinate began to explain, the battle cries grew nearer. The Fourth Prince watched as his meticulously trained private army retreated, leaving behind a trail of corpses.
The enemies pressed fiercely from outside, forcing them to fight and retreat until they were cornered near the royal tent.
The Fourth Prince’s Confidant was a steadfast Northern Border man, his face splattered with blood, eyes reddening in a near-tear state.
“Your Highness, there was never a coup—We’ve been set up—”
Even a fool could see something was off, let alone the Fourth Prince, who certainly was no fool.
“No coup—If there was no one plotting a coup—”
If the Ninth Prince wasn’t staging a coup, then his actions in repositioning the royal guards and swapping them for his own men, was that not—
After a fierce battle, the Fourth Prince lost over eighty percent of his elite forces, left with nothing but remnants of his army.
As they were about to be forced into the royal tent, suddenly, hundreds of axe-bearing soldiers surged out from the tent, cutting them off perfectly.
The Fourth Prince’s thoughts raced, he vaguely guessed something, grinding his teeth in anger.
He had fallen for the Ninth Prince’s scheme!
Watching as his men fell one by one, with enemies closing in ever-tighter, the Fourth Prince realized he was too late.
“Fourth Brother, I never expected you would commit such a heinous act—attempting a coup and patricide!”
The shouts of battle faded, surrounding them was charnel ground, blood muddying the earth, and the air thick with the stench of slaughter. The Fourth Prince stared fiercely in a direction where the crowd parted, revealing a familiar silhouette.
“Clearly, it was you who attempted a coup and patricide!”
The Fourth Prince glared, teeth clenched in fury, barely holding back his rage.
“Fourth Brother, considering the situation, do you still intend to deny it?”
The Ninth Prince sneered dismissively, surrounded by important Ministers, their gazes towards the Fourth Prince laden with complexity.
Some looked disappointed, others angry, a few indifferent, many shocked…but none trusted him.
“You exchanged the guards near Father’s royal tent, secretly replaced them with your people, wore armor and carried a blade—dare you claim you had no treachery in mind?” The Ninth Prince scoffed, “Elder Brother, I received the news early on; I initially didn’t believe it but never imagined you would really do it. So many people saw it firsthand, what else can you say? If I hadn’t arrived in time, you would have forced Father to crowning you as heir, right?”
The Fourth Prince felt a chill wash over him.
The Ninth Prince continued, “If you had no ill intentions, then why did you slaughter everyone upon seeing my people?”
The Fourth Prince retorted, “I received word that you were attempting a coup and planning patricide, so I specially arranged people to intercept…”
The Ninth Prince threw his head back and laughed, near tears, while the other Northern Border Ministers couldn’t bear to look him in the eye.
They didn’t know if the Ninth Prince had treachery in mind, but they had seen the Fourth Prince plotting a coup—irrefutable evidence.
Now caught, instead of repenting, he spun a clumsy excuse.
The Ninth Prince’s smile turned cold, “Elder Brother, you can’t slander me like this, this is a tale you should keep for Father!”
The Fourth Prince felt as if he had fallen into an ice pit, the expression in his eyes carrying a hint of fear, as if he no longer recognized this brother.
“Fourth Brother—”
The Ninth Prince stepped closer, while the others had already been subdued, the Fourth Prince found himself bound tightly.
“Ptooey!” The Fourth Prince spat towards his face.
“Fourth Brother—Don’t be angry.” The Ninth Prince kindly wiped the spit away, smearing it back onto the Fourth Prince’s face, distorting his features. With the other hand, he gripped the Fourth Prince’s chin, cold laughter escaping his lips, “Do you know how you lost?”
The Fourth Prince’s eyes widened in realization.
“Because, well, who told you to use my Confidant and Advisor as your own?”
Sun Wen?
“Sun Wen is your person?”
“Who else? My good Fourth Brother, thank you for your hard work in helping me remove so many pesky obstacles.”
