Chapter 127: Not Getting Involved |
Guan Tianqian lowered his head, and the entire carriage fell silent.
Cang Yinyue's eyes flickered as she looked toward Li Musheng. In truth, from the moment she had heard the news of Imperial Consort Ji's death, she had vaguely suspected that Li Musheng had something to do with it.
But since Li Musheng had not brought it up himself, she had simply attended to her own duties and asked nothing further.
What Cang Yinyue understood clearly, however, was that this matter absolutely could not be allowed to leak out by even a fraction. The consequences would be catastrophic.
But that being the case, what to do with Guan Tianqian standing before them became a thorny problem.
In Cang Yinyue's eyes, Guan Tianqian was not a bad person. He solved cases with uncanny skill and had apprehended countless criminals and outlaws over the years. His reputation was formidable both within Six Doors and throughout the martial world, to the point that many petty villains would tremble with fear at the mere mention of the Iron-Blooded Divine Constable's name.
But unfortunately, he now knew Li Musheng's secret, and under no circumstances could he be allowed to spread the matter.
While Cang Yinyue did not consider herself a cold-hearted and ruthless woman, for Li Musheng's sake she felt that the approach which satisfied both concerns was to plant a Life and Death Talisman within Guan Tianqian's body.
That way, his life could be spared for the time being, while also preventing him from leaking the matter to others.
But at that moment, Li Musheng looked at Guan Tianqian kneeling before him and gave a light nod.
Then he withdrew his gaze, paid the man no further attention, and waved his hand, saying, "You may go."
The moment those words fell, both Cang Yinyue and Guan Tianqian were taken aback.
To speak the truth, in the brief span of just a few breaths earlier, Guan Tianqian's heart had been in a state of extreme turmoil and unease.
This Eighth Prince who could enter and leave the palace at will to take a consort's life possessed a martial Dao cultivation that was absolutely beyond his own. He knew full well he was no match for the man, and that even his chances of escaping with his life were exceedingly slim.
Even so, while he had no desire to die, there was nothing he could do about it.
He understood clearly that in that moment, whether he lived or died had been entirely in the other man's hands.
Fortunately, Li Musheng had chosen not to silence him.
What left Guan Tianqian feeling somewhat incredulous, however, was that the man had not placed any demands on him whatsoever.
"Your Highness, would it not be somewhat unwise to simply release Divine Constable Guan like this?"
Cang Yinyue quickly spoke up in reminder.
Guan Tianqian also looked toward Li Musheng. Frankly speaking, being let go just like this left him feeling strangely unreal, with no sense of solid footing.
After all, through his years of experience he had encountered no shortage of those with vicious and treacherous natures in the martial world.
Cases of someone outwardly agreeing to spare a person's life only to turn around and strike them dead from behind were, if anything, commonplace.
He was even seriously contemplating, if he turned to leave and Li Musheng really did send a palm covertly slamming into his back, whether he could actually withstand it, and whether there was any chance he would survive.
Guan Tianqian looked at Li Musheng, feeling somewhat hesitant. Based on his impression of the man, everything Li Musheng had done up to this point did not seem to be the behavior of that kind of person.
Just then, Li Musheng glanced at him with a slight furrow of his brow, saying, "You're not leaving. Do you want me to keep you here for tea?"
"You flatter yourself."
As he spoke, he gave a casual wave of his hand, and an invisible surge of True Qi swept up Guan Tianqian and flung him clean out of the carriage.
Guan Tianqian's entire body crashed onto the bluestone-paved street below and rolled several times before he managed to stabilize himself.
The next moment, he snapped his head up and stared at the ornate carriage with its wheels turning, growing smaller in the distance. The expression on his face turned profoundly grave.
This was his first true firsthand experience of Li Musheng making a move. Yet just now, with all his martial Dao cultivation, he had not even managed to react before his entire body was seized by an irresistible force, leaving him utterly unable to break free or resist no matter how he tried.
In that instant, Guan Tianqian understood that killing him would be child's play for the man.
He had now truly experienced firsthand just how terrifyingly extraordinary the martial Dao cultivation of this Eighth Prince, who was barely twenty years of age, actually was.
Any notion he had entertained of putting up a fight or making an escape had been, without question, nothing but wishful thinking.
Guan Tianqian stood on the bluestone street, watching the distant silhouette of the carriage disappear, his thoughts too unsettled to find peace for a long while.
Only after quite some time had passed did he let out a long, involuntary breath, as though having made up his mind about something, turned around directly, and walked away.
"I am absolutely not getting involved in this."
...
Aboard the moving carriage, Cang Yinyue glanced back once, then turned to Li Musheng with an expression of worry, saying, "Your Highness has simply let Divine Constable Guan go like that. If he spreads this matter abroad, how would Your Highness manage things then, when faced with the imperial palace, the court, and His Majesty?"
Hearing this, Li Musheng studied Cang Yinyue at his leisure for a moment, withdrew his gaze from her smooth and lovely face, and shrugged, saying, "Miss Cang, you have it the wrong way around. If that day ever truly comes, the ones who should be considering how to manage things would be them, not me."
The moment those words fell, Cang Yinyue was briefly taken aback.
Li Musheng before her still wore that unhurried, indifferent air, yet imperceptibly, she felt from him a sense of absolute and unshakeable composure.
As though every affair and every person in this world amounted to nothing in his eyes.
Yet it was precisely this Li Musheng who, for reasons she could not quite articulate, held a deep and inexplicable pull over her, along with a sense of security she could not put into words.
For a moment, Cang Yinyue lowered her head and stared blankly at the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword in her hands, lost in thought for a long while without a word.
About an hour later, the two of them arrived back at the Tianjin Guards headquarters by carriage.
But the moment Li Musheng stepped out of the carriage, he found the Suppression Commissioner Yu Jin pacing back and forth before the headquarters gate without stop, like an ant on a hot pan spinning anxiously in circles.
The moment Yu Jin caught sight of Li Musheng, he rushed over as though spotting the very person he had been anchored to all along, bowed in greeting, and said hurriedly, "Your Highness, you're finally back. Just a while ago the Third Prince came here and made quite a scene, demanding to see you by name. In the end it took Commander Fu coming out in person to smooth things over and send him on his way."
Hearing this, Li Musheng rubbed his chin and said, "Commander Fu handled it just fine, didn't he? From the looks of it, there shouldn't be any problem without me getting involved."
However, Yu Jin shook his head with a helpless expression, saying, "The Third Prince was not satisfied with that. He said he would be back shortly, and that he absolutely must see Your Highness today no matter what."
"Is that so?"
Li Musheng raised an eyebrow, though he showed no particular concern about it, and said casually, "When he comes, bring him directly to my courtyard."
Hearing this, Yu Jin let out a breath of relief and nodded at once in agreement.
But then he continued, saying, "Your Highness, there is also another matter. Commander Fu left word that if you had the time after returning, he would ask you to come find him, as there is an important matter he wishes to discuss."
Li Musheng mulled it over briefly, then gave a nod.
He had Yu Jin lead the way directly, intending to go and see what Fu Qiwen had to say.