Chapter 101: Silent Action

"That’s strange. Why are they all dressed like commoners?"

One of the men took a few steps out to get a better look. He saw the surging crowd approaching, all clad in the simple attire of common folk. It was truly bizarre.

"Really? Let me see."

Curiosity piqued, several others ran to the steps at the entrance to watch. A disciplined, orderly column of about two hundred men approached, their footsteps striking the ground in perfect, rhythmic unison—*thud, thud, thud*. They moved in silence, pressing forward with the oppressive weight of a mountain.

Yet, the men on the steps remained unconcerned.

"Why are some of these people missing limbs? Hey, look, there’s one with a missing eye! Damn it... are they all beggars?"

"Looks like it. Whose household must have finished a grand banquet and is dumping the leftovers into the back alley? Look at how desperately they’re rushing."

"Hahaha, a pack of dogs fighting over scraps."

"Haha... ugh!"

Before the laughter could fade, several sharp arrows whistled through the air, piercing the throats of the men on the steps in a heartbeat. The archers were the veterans at the head of the approaching column. Each arrow claimed a life; each strike sealed a throat.

As the arrows flew, the order was given. The veterans drew their blades in unison, surrounding the building and launching their assault. It was orderly, methodical, silent, and perfectly synchronized. Before those inside the Court of Inquiry could even react, the attackers swept in like a tidal wave.

There were no war cries, no shouting—only the flash of cold steel as it fell upon heads, forcing the "enemy" to let out final, agonizing wails before death. The hoodlums and thugs inside the Court of Inquiry were slaughtered, some kneeling to beg for mercy, others scurrying away in terror. Faced with such an onslaught, none dared to resist. And none survived.

The chorus of screams instantly shattered the silence of the night, jolting Xue Huaiyi and his companions, who had been busy drinking and feasting.

Upon hearing the screams outside, Lai Wangcai scrambled under the wine table. His usual air of malice and cold cruelty vanished, replaced by sheer terror and trembling. Only one thought raced through his mind: anyone bold enough to storm the Court of Inquiry and kill must be troops dispatched by the Emperor.

Wang Hongbin also shrank to the floor, fruitlessly clutching the chair as if to shield his bloated frame. A patch of urine had already seeped through his trousers.

Xue Huaiyi had been startled at first. The sudden, widespread screaming outside meant a large force was in action. His legs, too, turned to jelly. But he could not bring himself to believe that anyone would dare touch him.

He puffed out his chest, straightened his back, and with a strange, inexplicable surge of courage, pulled open the door.

*Thud!*

The moment the door swung open, the severed head of a monk slammed against the frame, splashing blood across Xue Huaiyi’s face.

"Ouch!"

Before he could even wipe his face, a heavy kick landed squarely in his stomach. Xue Huaiyi was sent flying backward like a ball of meat, crashing into the wine table and shattering it instantly. He could only roll on the ground in agony.

*Thump!*

Zhang Yun, a clerk from the carriage firm, followed the kick with a punch that knocked Xue Huaiyi unconscious. As for Lai Wangcai, who was hiding under the table, the sudden weight of the debris caused him to faint from terror.

Watching this unfold, Wang Hongbin immediately dropped to his knees, shivering as he cried out, "Grandfather, spare me! Grandfather, spare me! I am an imperial official, you—"

Before he could finish, a kick to the chin knocked him cold.

"Pah!"

Di Shun, who had kicked him, spat on Wang Hongbin’s fat face. Then, he and Zhang Yun dragged Xue Huaiyi away. It wasn't that they didn't want to slaughter Lai Wangcai and Wang Hongbin, but the Master had explicitly instructed them not to "drive the Emperor mad." They had to leave with regrets.

But looking outside... well, it was enough. Time to withdraw.

At the command, the veterans silently sheathed their blades, reformed their ranks, and departed as quietly as they had come. They were like a black torrent, the receding tide after a surge, leaving behind nothing but corpses and blood.

Seeing that the situation was dire, Qin Tiezhong, who had narrowly escaped by jumping into a latrine, climbed out covered in filth once the sounds died down. He fled wildly toward the East District. He had to find Di Miao, because he had overheard the attackers mention "Master Di."

Di Ying was too ruthless—far too ruthless. Now, all Qin Tiezhong wanted was to secure Di Miao in his own hands, or... kill her, and kill everyone who had participated in her kidnapping. He could not let anyone know that Di Ying’s rampage was because he, Qin Tiezhong, had kidnapped Di Ying’s sister.

...

Back when the operation began, just as the veterans were forming up, Huang Siyuan, the Commander-in-Chief of the Five City Patrol, had heard the commotion and was about to lead his men to investigate.

Suddenly, he saw a man standing in the street: Di Ying.

Huang Siyuan reined in his horse, ready to dismount and pay his respects, when he saw Di Ying make a gesture in the lantern light: closing his eyes, covering his ears with both hands, and tilting his head toward the East District.

Huang Siyuan froze, then immediately understood.

He cupped his hands in a salute to Master Di, bowed slightly from his saddle, pulled his reins, turned his horse around, and with a wave of his hand, led his soldiers charging toward the East District.

Master Di was conducting an operation tonight. His message was clear: pretend to see nothing and hear nothing, and while he was at it, go guard the East District so the Deputy Commander from the Wu family wouldn't see or hear anything either.

The moment Huang Siyuan understood, he cooperated without hesitation. There was only one person for whom he would abandon his duty: Master Di. If it hadn't been for Master Di’s rescue that time, he would have lost not only his position as Commander-in-Chief but also his life and the lives of his entire family to the schemes of Wu Jianhui. Huang Siyuan remembered that debt.

As Huang Siyuan turned his horse, Di Ying returned the salute and quickly vanished into the darkness. He had returned to the capital only after clearing out the White Horse Temple and burning it to the ground.

The city gates were locked?

The young lieutenant guarding the West Gate tonight was Song Wen’s younger brother.

...

At the West Gate of the Imperial City, the elderly Empress was excited—until...

Until she climbed the brightly lit gate tower. Until the moment she thought that since she hadn't been struck by lightning, the object Zhang Jian had presented must be effective, and she could finally see the full picture of that miraculous item—the very moment she was dying to see it.

What she saw instead was...

A field of agonizing, harrowing women.

They were kneeling there, draped in various states of misery and trauma, some kneeling, some prostrate. When they saw the bright yellow figure appear on the gate tower, they stirred.

They reached out their hands, crying out in hoarse voices, "Your Majesty! You are the Son of Heaven; the majesty of the Heaven-born Dragon should protect your subjects, protect the people! But look at us, look at us! I beg you, save us, please save us!"

The elderly Empress stood silent.

Her thoughts were like the dark clouds above: churning, boiling, roaring, with no way out.