Volume One: If Life Were Only as It First Met
Perilous Situation
In reality, this is a trap, but one must still go.
In today’s world, it is divided into four parts.
The Ji Dynasty is the strongest, surrounded by the three nations of Luo, Yu, and Qing, forming a tripartite balance of power. Once, only Yu could match Ji in military and financial strength, but now it can only look up in admiration.
Under the diligent governance of the sixth Empress, Qin Junlan, the Ji Dynasty is thriving and prosperous. The Chijia Army, established by the Military Affairs Office, is invincible in battle and unassailable in attack.
The Empress’s fame is widespread, and the other three nations fear her ambition to conquer the world. Therefore, to preemptively counter this threat and to strengthen its capital, Yu had planted spies in the Ji capital many years ago to uncover the Empress’s true intentions and to seize the defensive layout of the Ji capital and other military secrets.
Suyuan Tower, outwardly a brothel, is in reality the headquarters of the Shura Sect, an assassin organization led by Hong Yuan from Yu.
In the underground palace, four corpses lay coldly on the ground, killed in one strike. The wounds were deep and shallow, a clear indication of exceptional swordsmanship.
“Take them away and burn them,” Hong Yuan ordered coldly, and her subordinates complied without question.
“Reporting to the Tower Master, it has been discovered that the Empress is traveling incognito, accompanied by only one guard, with no others in sight,” reported Ye Ming, the top expert under Hong Yuan’s command.
Dressed in black with hair tied back, she bore a striking resemblance to a man, yet her features were remarkably handsome. She led all missions in progress.
This was the first official activation of Suyuan Tower, signaling the imminent start of Yu’s grand plan. They had lain dormant for so long, all for this moment, and the risk of the first mission was extraordinarily high.
“I ordered you to drive the Empress to Suyuan Tower, who allowed you to harm her?” Beneath Hong Yuan’s long eyelashes, a fierce light shot forth, silencing everyone.
“Tower Master, we only pretended to be assassins to chase the wrong person. Injuring her was an accident. It shouldn’t… arouse her suspicion,” only Ye Ming dared to speak.
“Hmph, you underestimate Qin Junlan too much. How could someone who became Empress not see through your petty tricks? This mission was already fraught with great risk. Even if she weren’t injured, we would still be under suspicion.”
“It was my failure in duty.”
“Accept your punishment,” Hong Yuan said expressionlessly. She was always impartial, caring only for the mission and its outcome.
Even though Ye Ming had followed her for many years, she showed no mercy.
Without a word, Ye Ming removed her top, revealing a pale back with faint scars barely visible on her delicate skin.
She was a renowned swordswoman of Yu, yet she always willingly risked her life for Hong Yuan.
“Tower Master, must we really…” Muxin hesitated, holding a whip, torn between her duty and her reluctance.
Although Muxin was a maidservant, she excelled in Qinggong, making her an expert in tracking and reconnaissance. She was the person closest to Hong Yuan, akin to sisters. She knew that pleading was futile, but she couldn’t bring herself to strike.
“What? Do you want me to do it myself?”
Seeing Hong Yuan’s insistence, Muxin had no choice but to carry out the order. The first whip, for disobeying the Tower Master’s order and injuring the Empress; the second whip, for exposing Suyuan Tower to risk; the third whip, for admitting fault and receiving punishment, ensuring it would not happen again.
Muxin knew the rules of the sect. The force of each strike had to be such that the wounds could be verified. Each whip had to cut deep into the flesh before stopping.
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Ye Ming endured the heavy blows of the three whips without making a sound, suppressing the painful groans in her throat.
Bright red blood soaked into the black clothing, making it impossible to discern the color, but the faint smell of blood lingered in the underground palace.
Even the four great guards, as men, could not endure such flesh-tearing whippings, yet Ye Ming remained unfazed.
Hong Yuan stood up, her long red dress flowing like a blooming begonia, radiant and dripping with beauty. She walked to Ye Ming’s side and took out some healing ointment. Ye Ming, enduring the intense pain, bowed deeply. “Thank you, Tower Master.”
“Following me in my work, rules are above all else. If anyone dares to make decisions on their own, putting the Shura Sect in danger and causing harm to Yu, I will take their life!”
The ferocity and murderous intent in Hong Yuan’s bones made everyone fearful. She was as beautiful as a flower, yet cold and heartless.
“Is there anything else to report?”
Ye Ming dressed herself and reported the gathered information one by one. “Reporting to the Tower Master, the identities of the four spies in the Yu royal court have been exposed. They have been sentenced to immediate execution and will be paraded through the streets three days later. Should we take action?”
“Has their identity been verified with the lord?”
“It has been confirmed that there are indeed four people.” Muxin, responsible for coordinating intelligence between the two countries, usually carried out the task of delivering messages.
“Do you think it’s necessary to rescue them?” Hong Yuan returned to her main seat. Her subordinates couldn’t discern her emotions and dared not speak too much.
Muxin and Ye Ming exchanged glances and said in unison, “Rescue.”
“What use are four exposed spies?”
“But they are Yu people after all,” Muxin, simple and kind-hearted, only wanted to save her compatriots, without considering the intricacies of the situation.
“I believe they might still be useful. If they hadn’t gathered any intelligence, they wouldn’t have been discovered.” Ye Ming paused, looking at Hong Yuan, unable to discern any change in her expression.
“Continue.”
“We need the intelligence they gathered, but more importantly, we need to know how much information about Yu the Empress extracted from them.” Ye Ming’s logical thinking was clear. In contrast to others who were more inclined to fight and kill, she always maintained a calm judgment in the face of many situations.
“Then rescue them.”
With those brief words, she swept her sleeves and left.
The capital’s imperial palace, built against the mountain, was named Lanshan, after the Empress. It consisted of three palaces, six courtyards, four departments, and eight offices, all distributed in the shape of a dragon vein, hence the palace was also called Dragon City.
In the secluded parts of the deep palace, undercurrents surged. The Department of Death was the place where palace criminals were imprisoned, those who violated the law, whether princes and ministers or eunuchs and slaves, were treated equally and punished.
In the dark iron prison, dampness pervaded, and the air was filled with the mixed smell of blood and rust. Beyond twelve layers of guards lay the Death Prison, where four heavily sentenced criminals were held.
Ling Ruo, the commander of the Shadow Guard, brought four guards to extract the four death row prisoners from the iron prison.
Their bodies were already festering and unbearable to look at. Countless wounds from knives, arrows, nails, and needles left scars all over their bodies. Their scattered pupils had long lost focus; living was worse than death, and they only desired a quick end.
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Seeing Ling Ruo’s arrival, knowing their time had come, they felt no fear, only a longing for release.
These three men and one woman were the Yu spies dug out from the palace. After enduring eighty-one forms of torture, they finally awaited the Empress’s decree for their execution.
The guards placed blades against their necks. Through the skylight of the dungeon, the sharp swords gleamed with a deadly edge.
“Kill!” At Ling Ruo’s command, the four sword-wielding shadow guards raised their blades and executed the prisoners with a single stroke.
“Dispose of them secretly.”
Upon hearing this, the guards transported the bodies through a special hidden passage to the crematory and incinerated them.
Immediately after, four new serious offenders were placed back in the original iron prison, their prison uniforms marked with the word “Death.”
These four were sentenced to immediate execution three days later and a public parade.
Thirty li1 from the capital, Jidu, lies the intersection of the water cities. There are three outer city gates, each separated by a moat, with the four main gates in the east, south, west, and north forming a defense with three checkpoints, each guarded by a squad of the Red Armor Army.
The city has four main streets and thirteen alleys. The route for the death row prisoners’ public parade is Qinghe Street, one of the four main streets, which passes by the Suyuan Tower.
This was a public execution parade, not only announced in advance but also specifying the exact time.
On the day of the parade, the streets were packed with people on both sides. The Imperial Guard, with long spears connected, formed a human wall, keeping the citizens off the streets.
From the Ziyun Pavilion, overlooking the crowd, Hong Yuan lightly pressed her lips together, a trace of coldness flashing in her eyes.
“Sister, you…?” Mujin privately called Hong Yuan “sister.” The two were close, and Mujin knew her temperament well. Even the slightest change in Hong Yuan’s expression, however fleeting, did not escape her notice.
“Why do you think the Empress is so high-profile in informing the citizens that her nation has been infiltrated by spies from another country?” Hong Yuan sat elegantly on the terrace, her slender fingers toying with the tea set.
“Well, it’s a warning to others, isn’t it? I think she’s not doing it for her own people to see; it must be for our Yu State to see.”
Hong Yuan held the tribute tea in her hands. The curled tea leaves spun twice at the rim of the cup before sinking. Her red lips parted slightly as she said, “Is that so? Perhaps it’s a ‘catching the turtle in the jar’ situation.”
“A trap? Should we inform Yezi and the others to halt their actions?” Mujin was extremely nervous.
“No, I need to verify my suspicion.”
“But sister, the lives of our brothers…” Mujin was very anxious. Hong Yuan looked up at her, “Assassins and spies, their lives never truly belong to themselves. If you continue to be soft-hearted, I will send you back to our country and find someone else to take your place.”
“I was wrong, sister…”
Mujin lowered her head after being reprimanded. She was only fifteen years old, trained in concealed weapons from a young age, and naturally kind-hearted. She had been close to Hong Yuan for many years.
“The Empress’s trap isn’t meant to catch and kill them. Come here~” Hong Yuan picked up a cup of tea. Mujin didn’t understand the intention but blushed. She should trust Hong Yuan, just like Ye Ming. There was no right or wrong, only Hong Yuan’s orders. Her orders were law.
The grand procession of the public execution parade set off promptly at noon from the West Palace Gate, with four prison carts escorted by two squads of the Red Armor Army.
Analyzing the route, Ye Ming led eight assassins to deploy at the corner, intending to incite panic among the crowd. They lay in ambush on the rooftops, dressed in black and masked, each holding a unique explosive from Yu State called “dibao” — a device that releases thick smoke within three feet before exploding.
Ye Ming, gripping a sharp sword, watched the front intently like a hawk. As the procession approached, she raised her hand, and the others entered combat mode, holding their dibao, awaiting orders.
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The four prison carts were not far apart. When the second cart reached the corner, Ye Ming finally gave the signal.
Dibao fell from the sky, and in an instant, the crowd screamed, horses and carriages scattered chaotically. As the explosions sounded, the assassins descended from above, charging towards the prison carts, engaging in fierce combat with the Red Armor Army.
The citizens scattered in all directions, and the Imperial Guards worked to evacuate and protect them. The Red Armor Army was filled with experts, evenly matched with the assassins, except for Ye Ming, who managed to kill a few armored soldiers.
The red armor could protect the body from weapons. Although the assassins repeatedly stabbed the armored soldiers, they couldn’t inflict any damage, and instead, they were killed by spears.
“Neck!” Ye Ming lowered her voice, reminding her companions that even the toughest armor has a weak point.
However, it was difficult to fight against overwhelming odds. No matter how skilled they were, they couldn’t match an entire army. Seeing three of her companions fall and Mo Feng in danger, Ye Ming quickly rushed over and used her wrist to block a strike for him.
“Head…” Mo Feng, moved by her action, finally managed to cut through the prison cart. As a master of sword qi, Ye Ming killed dozens of armored soldiers effortlessly, but she was trying to protect her companions while completing the mission, leaving her overwhelmed.
“Don’t linger in the fight, take them and go!” she commanded. Finally breaking through the four prison carts, Ye Ming released her last dibao, issued the order, and quickly retreated from the scene.
As the smoke cleared, the Red Armor Army was about to pursue, but a young general stopped them. “The Empress has ordered: do not pursue a cornered enemy.”
Footnotes
- Li: A traditional Chinese unit of distance. A li is approximately half a kilometer or a third of a mile
