Joy of Life: Invincible Starting from Basic Swordsmanship

Chapter 21: Schemes from All Sides, Interlocking Steps

Ye Chengfeng's last words were not just casual remarks.

He was telling Zhan Doudou that he knew more than she imagined.

After returning to the palace, Zhan Doudou sat alone in the imperial study.

She kept recalling Ye Chengfeng's last words.

This left her no choice but to think about it.

"How did that bastard know?"

"Only a select few people know about this, and they would never betray me!"

"No, even if he knew, he shouldn't have said it so openly. What does it mean to say it now?"

Zhan Doudou frowned, and suddenly, a terrible thought occurred to her.

"Could that bastard really know I'm a woman?!"

This idea only lasted for a moment before Zhan Doudou rejected it again.

In the final battle, DouDou had someone summon the Eight Swordsmen.

Ye Chengfeng said, "Listen to me. I'm going to ask you a few questions, and you must answer them truthfully."

"Your Majesty, please ask. As long as it does not endanger the young master, we will tell you everything we know."

Before Zhan Doudou could even open her mouth to ask, the leading swordsman cut her off.

However, upon closer reflection, she realized that she didn't intend to harm Ye Chengfeng; she simply wanted to find out about his character.

He then asked again, "Of course, but I'm asking you, what kind of person is your young master? What are his usual hobbies?"

The eight sword attendants looked at each other blankly; they didn't understand either!

The Eight Sword Attendants were secretly trained by Yun Zhilan in order to protect Ye Chengfeng.

The Eight Swordsmen neither knew nor needed to know about Ye Chengfeng.

Zhan Doudou naturally didn't know the reason behind it and assumed that Ye Chengfeng had instructed them.

Zhan Doudou muttered to herself, "That bastard, he really was plotting against me!"

"Alright, you may leave now! Report to the Embroidered Uniform Guard tomorrow. My first task for you is to do everything in your power to wrest control of the Embroidered Uniform Guard from Shen Zhong."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The eight people responded and left.

Zhan Doudou's eyes were sharp as she watched the eight people's backs.

"Hmph, I'd like to see if you'll step in to help these eight people who have offended Shen Zhong."

Meanwhile, Ye Chengfeng and Xiaolan had returned to the inn where they were staying.

Xiaolan had been holding back her questions all the way here; she had countless questions she wanted to ask.

But I don't know where to begin asking.

"Young Master, you're just going to give the Eight Swordsmen to that young emperor like that?"

"Hehe, don't worry, the young emperor of Northern Qi understands this very well. Not only will she not be wary of him, but she will also value him highly."

Ye Chengfeng said with absolute confidence.

"Young Master, where does your confidence come from? You've clearly arranged for someone to monitor her; even I can see it."

"Would you like to make a bet with your young master?"

"How does the betting work?"

Upon hearing that Ye Chengfeng wanted to make a bet with her, Xiao Lan immediately became interested.

"It's simple. I guess the young emperor has arranged for the Eight Swordsmen to go to the Embroidered Uniform Guard headquarters tomorrow. What do you think?"

"What? How is this possible? The commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard isn't the Empress Dowager..."

Before Xiaolan could finish speaking, she suddenly remembered what Ye Chengfeng had said to Zhan Doudou when she was leaving!

Unfortunately, upon closer reflection, if what their young master said was true...

That would be even more impossible.

"I don't believe it. If the young emperor and the empress dowager are in cahoots, why would they bother placing our people in the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

"Are you sure?"

"Hmph, it's settled then. What's the stake?"

"Hehe, simple. If I win, then we'll go back to Nanqing with Fan Xian, and you can take Ruoruo to Dongyi City."

"Okay, that's it?"

"You go back to Dongyi City with her, I'm staying."

Xiao Lan would definitely not agree to Ye Chengfeng staying in Kyoto, Nanqing.

It goes without saying how dangerous the capital of Nanqing is.

"No, absolutely not."

Xiao Lan shook her head like a rattle drum.

Ye Chengfeng chuckled softly, "Giving up so quickly?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure I'll lose. No, I definitely won't lose."

"So, young master, you lost. What was your bet?"

"That's easy. You've been eyeing my sword case for a long time. If I lose, I'll give it to you."

"real?"

Xiao Lan was overjoyed.

"Young master, if you lose, don't try to renege on your debt."

"Okay, go get some rest. We'll see what happens tomorrow."

-----------------

The next morning, the Eight Swordsmen went to the Embroidered Uniform Guard at the same time Fan Xian entered the city.

The eight sword attendants, carrying the tokens given to them by the young emperor of Northern Qi, headed straight for the Embroidered Uniform Guard headquarters.

"By order of His Majesty, the prisoner, Nan Qingyan Bingyun, is to be apprehended."

As the eight of them stepped into the garrison, the Imperial Guards surrounded them.

Upon seeing the token, the Imperial Guards didn't really take it seriously.

However, it has to be presented in a plausible manner.

"My lord, why haven't we received any notification from the Empress Dowager?"

"What? His Majesty's order isn't working?"

The other party gave an awkward smile, bowed, and said, "Of course not, but we also received orders from the Empress Dowager, and we had no choice."

Since Zhan Doudou sent eight sword servants over, she must have thought of this.

Given Ye Chengfeng's last words last night, Zhan Doudou naturally no longer needed to pretend.

Therefore, when the Eight Swordsmen arrived, they brought not only the young emperor's warrant but also the warrant from the Empress Dowager of Northern Qi.

"Take a look at this; this is also the Empress Dowager's wish."

When the deputy commander saw the Empress Dowager's order, he froze on the spot.

He didn't understand why the Empress Dowager would do such a thing.

Of course, the power struggles between important figures are beyond his comprehension.

If you can't figure it out, then don't think about it. That's the way of being an official.

"Please come with me, sir, I will take you there immediately."

After verifying the authenticity of the warrant, the deputy commander led the eight sword attendants to the courtyard where Yan Bingyun was being held.

And what about Fan Xian?

Just like in the original story, he encountered the "good show" that Shen Zhong had arranged for him.

Moreover, the people of Northern Qi were even more indignant than in the original story!

The reason is simple: in the original novel, Shen Zhong had already taken Xiao En away when Fan Xian entered the city.

Meanwhile, the prison cart carrying Sean was surrounded by the mission's guards.

"Heh, that kid Fan Xian actually listened to that?"

In a pavilion, Ye Chengfeng looked at Fan Xian, who was standing on a carriage, waiting for the challenge from the martial arts world of Northern Qi.

"I wonder if Fan Xian can hold on. This time it's not as simple as we thought!"

Fan Xian stood on the carriage, holding onto the battle flag of the Southern Qing border army!

This undoubtedly adds fuel to the fire.

A barrage of insults and abuse followed.

"Oh no, things are getting out of control!"

Shen Zhong thought to himself that something was wrong. He had never expected that Fan Xian would not have handed Xiao En over to him beforehand.

This current situation has made his previous arrangements somewhat inappropriate.

"Didn't I already have some people withdrawn? Why are there still so many people?"

"My lord, it is an imperial edict from the Empress Dowager."

"The Empress Dowager? How does the Empress Dowager know about this?"

The Imperial Guard who answered was one of Shen Zhong's confidants.

The confidant told Shen Zhong in detail about how someone had tried to take Yan Bingyun away that morning.

"What? Yan Bingyun has been taken away?"

"Not yet, sir. We're on our way."

Shen Zhong looked at Fan Xian, and the events suddenly connected.

"Our emperor is truly a master strategist."

Shen Zhong was unable to get away at this point, so naturally he couldn't stop Yan Bingyun from being taken away.

Without Yan Bingyun, Fan Xian obviously wouldn't have entrusted Xiao En to him.