Chapter 1058: Better to Lure the Tiger Out of the Mountain, Strike Through the Gap, and Ambush Black Phoenix Gathering

.......And the strongest person Su Yun could think of

Was none other than Feng Kuangsheng, the One-Word Prince of Baoji Kingdom who once, on the border, had forced Lu Ding to retreat.

But the Feng Kuangsheng of before

Did not necessarily equal the Feng Kuangsheng of now.

Feng Kuangsheng paused mid-stroke of his brush, "You want me to help you deal with Lu Ding?"

Su Yun nodded, "If King Feng is willing to help me deal with Lu Ding and rescue Sister Disaster, Su Yun will never forget King Feng's great kindness!"

Well then.

Asking someone for help and not giving a proper promise.

Just empty flattery.

Only because Baoji Kingdom owes him does Feng Kuangsheng even hesitate, otherwise he would have charged out without a second thought!!

Although facing Lu Ding again might double the pressure the Great Han places on Baoji Kingdom,

Su Yun's importance to Baoji Kingdom was irreplaceable...

Feng Kuangsheng thought for a moment, "Su Yun, do you realize that if I help you save that Disaster Mother, afterward Baoji Kingdom will be unable to stand before the Great Han..."

Su Yun understood his dilemma,

But still insisted, "King Feng, I'm already at my wits' end. Xiao Dou was killed, Sister Disaster is gravely wounded and near death. I cannot not save them. I beg King Feng to help me!!"

Feng Kuangsheng frowned.

"Wait a moment. This concerns state matters. Let me enter the palace and discuss it with His Majesty."

Su Yun cupped his hands, "I will await King Feng's reply."

Feng Kuangsheng rose with the wind and went straight into the royal palace.

In the imperial garden,

A woman with clouds of makeup scattered about strolled among the flowers, smelling the blossoms. As she walked she spoke to Nishang, who followed at her side, "Shang'er, have you decided on your lifelong match?"

Nishang linked arms with the Empress of Baoji Kingdom, "Mother, didn't you say I could choose freely who I love? Why worry about this now?"

The Empress scattered fish feed into the koi pond as she spoke, "I do support free love. I hate arranged matches too. It was because my father arranged a marriage for me and tried to send me away that I fought for this throne."

"But I only ask because of choices before you: there is Brother Yuwen Longyuan, a descendant of an old friend and bearing that old friend's bearing, and there is Su Yun, the national asset who can help Baoji Kingdom open a new chapter. Now you are stuck between the two."

"Whoever you choose, I can accept, but I will feel some regret no matter who you pick."

"Su Yun is excellent, but he has no cultivation now and the current situation is collapsing. The Overcast Mountain strongmen who once gathered around him are now dead or scattered."

"Yuwen Longyuan is excellent—rare talent and gift, and he carries the old friend's bloodline and could inherit the old friend's title and command the old troops. But if you choose him, I will always feel like the old friend stands before me, and I won't know how to face that."

That was the mild phrasing.

Put simply, the Empress of Baoji Kingdom harbored some lingering maternal feelings toward the unrevealed past life of Yuwen Longyuan.

But a person who achieves great things cannot be guided by mere personal feelings.

If her daughter married Yuwen Longyuan, it would make her feel, in a way, outshone by her own daughter.

This troubled the Empress deeply.

She intellectually knew that the Yuwen Longyuan before her was not the old friend, but he was simply too similar...

Every time she looked at Yuwen Longyuan she felt dazed.

She truly did not know how to act.

Nishang linked her arm with the Empress, sweetly saying, "Mother... why don't I just take them both?"

She was someone who dared to think and speak freely.

The Empress was taken aback.

She gently tapped Nishang's forehead, "You dare to think that? I don't even dare imagine it. Social norms are deeply rooted. Men taking three or four wives is called 'natural'; if a woman takes three or four husbands, she is branded immoral."

"You are a princess; you cannot think like that."

Nishang laughed as she swung the Empress's arm, "Mother, everything has to start somewhere. Besides, you are the Empress. If you can be the first to break precedent, why can't I? I'm not a philanderer. I just don't know how to choose."

"Brother Yuwen is someone I like, but Brother Su Yun is someone I love."

"Whichever I give up, I will be unwilling. So... how about this: imitate the emperor's way of flipping cards—on odd-numbered days I go to Brother Su Yun, on even-numbered days I go to Brother Yuwen. Why can men do what they want but women cannot?"

The Empress shook her head helplessly, "You've even absorbed those gender equality ideas from the Great Han, but the Great Han is the Great Han and we are us... Enough, let's not discuss this."

As she spoke,

The Empress turned.

"Brother Wang, what brings you here?"

At her gaze, Feng Kuangsheng stood just outside the imperial garden; he then stepped slowly closer.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects. Su Yun requests my help to rescue the Disaster Mother. In principle Su Yun has benefited Baoji Kingdom, and when someone asks we should repay kindness unconditionally."

"But this involves Lu Ding, a favorite of the Great Han, and may draw in that cruel Elder Shui of the Great Han. I cannot decide quickly, so I have come to consult Your Majesty."

The Empress sighed, troubled.

Whether by interest or by sentiment, she should help Su Yun.

But helping Su Yun would bring the Great Han's pressure down upon Baoji Kingdom...

While the Empress was silent,

Nishang interjected, "Mother, Uncle, why worry so much? We already have enmity with Lu Ding. Our relationship with the Great Han was never good anyway."

"If Brother Su Yun asks, then we help him. As for Lu Ding... we need not kill him, just injure him."

"Our scouts remaining in Black Phoenix Gathering reported that Lu Ding has temporarily set up his main camp in the center of Black Phoenix Gathering as a transit and rest point for goblins and demonic beasts."

"I propose we use a lure-the-tiger-out plan: draw Lu Ding out, leave his central pavilion empty, and when he is away send our strongmen in. Or to be safe, Uncle can go personally to rescue the Disaster Mother and leave immediately. I think no one could stop Uncle."

Because when Lu Ding was absent, his men would be meaningless before Uncle.

If Lu Ding were actually present, he would certainly think,

How come I didn't know I had an ally like you in Baoji Kingdom?

That's too generous.

If Lu Ding did not possess Celestial Shift and the Rook-King Exchange of Shadow Army Formation, this plan might have actually worked.

Oh right, there was another prerequisite:

That the Disaster Mother had not already been killed.

The Empress of Baoji and Feng Kuangsheng listened and slowly nodded, "Very well. As long as we don't confront Lu Ding face-to-face or kill him, the Great Han shouldn't provoke us too fiercely."

The Empress suddenly thought of something and asked, "Shang'er, are you sure nothing from the Black Phoenix Gathering laboratory was leaked?"

Nishang was confident, "Don't worry, Mother. Once inside the lab, nothing left. So far, the only ones who could enter and leave were me, Brother Su Yun, and Brother Yuwen."

"When Lu Ding struck that day, the lab initiated self-destruction. All materials and data were destroyed completely. Aside from domestic backups, there is no way any of it could have leaked out."

"Do you still not trust me, or Brother Su Yun and Brother Yuwen?"

Hearing this, the Empress relaxed.

Nishang was her daughter; Su Yun was currently here, cornered by Lu Ding with no way out; Yuwen Longyuan carried the old friend's bloodline and had long cooperated with Baoji Kingdom—none were outsiders.

With the lab wiped clean,

Even if the Great Han wanted to make trouble, they'd have no reason.

Besides, if Lu Ding or the Great Han had real evidence, they would have already started their accusations.

In truth, Lu Ding had already prepared the evidence. He simply wanted to keep the western investigators eating by himself until it was impossible to cover up.

The Empress looked at Feng Kuangsheng, "In that case, go personally. Bring back the Disaster Mother, repay Su Yun, and let him settle his heart here. Keep him in Baoji Kingdom to serve our kingdom and let our human-demon hybrid citizens shine."

Feng Kuangsheng cupped his hands and bowed, "By imperial decree. I take my leave."

He was about to leave

When the Empress called after him, using his childhood name without thinking, "Nine Phoenix."

Feng Kuangsheng stopped and answered, "Sister Empress."

The Empress stepped forward gently and fixed his collar, "I've told you to settle down, and you won't. You're so old and still can't straighten your collar; I have to help you. Remember to be careful when you go out. The 749 Bureau is crafty, Lu Ding is cruel, and the Great Han is vicious. You may be brave beyond measure, but you must still be cautious. In a few days it will be the ancestral mother's memorial. We siblings should go together to pay respects."

Hearing this, Feng Kuangsheng, who bore the proud title of One-Word Prince, for once revealed a simple, guileless smile, "Understood, sister. I will be back."

.....

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