Chapter 52: Change Is Coming to Chudu

Chunhua wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and nodded silently. Ever since she had started spending time with Yun Feiyue, she realized that though Yun Feiyue appeared indifferent to everything, she was in fact more perceptive than anyone and possessed a true, genuine spirit. Chunhua truly wished well for Yun Feiyue, which was why she wanted her to leave.

She bit her lip, wondering if she should tell Yun Feiyue everything, when she heard Yun Feiyue sigh lightly, “Enough, get up quickly. It seems Chunhua doesn’t want to help me at all.”

Chunhua shook her head vigorously. “That’s not what I mean.”

“Then what do you mean? Everyone seems to know what’s going on except me,” Yun Feiyue said, crouching to look Chunhua in the eyes.

Chunhua’s heart trembled under that gaze, and at last, she spoke helplessly, “The old master is probably at the barracks. Madam returned to the Murong family at dawn for a visit, and the eldest young master hasn’t been home for days, likely out on important business. Everyone says the Yun family is about to face a great change, and so is the capital.”

A great change? The capital’s fate was long overdue for such a turn.

“Very well, I’m going to find Grandfather!”

A single rider sped through the capital in a blaze of red, leaving the once-flourishing city shrouded in clouds. Minstrels with bronze gongs wandered the streets, chanting ceaselessly, “Change is coming! Change is coming…”

—

Within the imperial city, Beichen Yi curled his lips into a bloodthirsty smile. “Sister Yue has gone out?”

“Yes, Miss Feiyue has left for the military district. Your Majesty, what should we do?” Xiaodouzi asked anxiously, eyes fixed on Beichen Yi.

Suddenly, Beichen Yi laughed heartily. “I hope Sister Yue succeeds. I would very much like to see the fall of the Gongsun family.”

“But the Nangong family…” Xiaodouzi began, but was silenced by one fierce glance from Beichen Yi, lowering his head and daring not utter another word.

Beichen Yi lifted his head, gazing at the overcast sky above the palace, where dark clouds gathered atop the gilded rooftops.

A magnificent farce was unfolding. How could the emperor of Chu afford to miss such a spectacle?

Yun Feiyue reached the barracks in less than half an hour.

At that moment, the old master, dressed in his general’s uniform, stood tall and proud, his bearing undiminished by age. Beside him, her third brother conversed quietly. As soon as Yun Feiyue entered the camp, the old master’s expression froze, then turned to helpless anger. “Who let you come here!”

Yun Feiyue rode forward to the front of the troops, smiling. “My legs are my own; I go where I wish. If you can’t stand it, Grandfather, chop them off.” With that, she handed the poison to him.

“Put that down and leave,” the old master commanded, his voice cold and stern, eyes as sharp as blades. Never before had he spoken to Yun Feiyue like this, but circumstance forced his hand.

Yun Feiyue, far from angry, merely raised an eyebrow and smiled. “So you’d have your young granddaughter stand by and watch you march into battle? You may be able to do it, but I can’t bear it.”

“This is men’s business!” the old master barked, waving a dismissive hand. “Yun Feng, take your sister away.”

Yun Feng nodded, drawing his sword. “Military orders cannot be defied. Leave, or die.”

So—it had come to this.

Yun Feiyue’s smile faded, her tone turning serious. “Grandfather, do you still remember the Yun family’s ancestral creed?”

The old master’s cold eyes swept across Yun Feiyue. Of course he remembered: Live together, die together, prosper together, rejoice together. It was a lesson for every Yun descendant to stand as one in life and death.

“Yun Feiyue is a woman. You have no place in battle. If you truly wish to help me, then leave this place,” the old master said resolutely, Yun Feng’s sword still pointed at her. The two iron-blooded men showed only helplessness in their eyes.

“Grandfather, are you sure you want my brother to fight me? Because I’m not leaving, no matter what.”

“How could the Yun family have produced such a stubborn daughter?” The old master huffed, glaring at her.

“I must have inherited it from you. Either kill me, or let me follow you.”

“…Fine,” the old master relented at last, unable to bring himself to harm the granddaughter he cherished above all. “After today, whatever the outcome, you and Yun Feng will both participate in the Tianwu Rankings.”

—

The night was cold and impenetrably dark, the camp lit by only a few swaying lanterns. The old master gave orders for two squads to launch a night raid—one on the Gongsun family, the other on the Nangong family—each led by Yun Feng and Yun Feiyue respectively.

The old master, who had originally planned to lead the attack on the Gongsun family himself, remained at the camp, awaiting news. Should anything go awry, he would mount a full-scale assault.

“The Gongsun family will have hidden cards; they won’t fall so easily. Be careful. If you can’t win, retreat,” he cautioned Yun Feiyue before she left.

“Enough, enough, don’t worry about me. I know what I’m doing.” Yun Feiyue understood well—she knew that if she left, it would be as good as death. If they lost, the Yun family would be wiped out.

If this surprise attack failed, there would be no escape from the oncoming slaughter. The combined might of the Gongsun and Nangong families was not something the Yun family could withstand alone.

The imperial guards were under the control of the Nangong family; without them, Beichen Yi was like a lone boat in a storm. Yun Feiyue could not understand how Beichen Yi, whose position was far from secure, dared to challenge the aristocratic clans. It didn’t seem as if she was worth such a risk to him.

What a troublesome man.

She first dispatched a team to poison the water supplies of both the Gongsun and Nangong families. The poison would not kill the true masters within—at most, it would cause them to faint. The purpose was not to slaughter the innocent and weak, but simply to keep them from running amok and interfering when the battle began. Such mercy was a mark of the old master’s kindness.

“Miss, do we proceed?” asked a soldier after midnight at the rear gate of the Gongsun estate.

Yun Feiyue looked at the brightly lit residence, raising her hand to give the order, when suddenly a woman’s voice—Gongsun Ziyan’s—rang out.

“Lord Shaojun, I beg you, help me. Only you can help me. If you do, I’ll tell you everything I know. Don’t you want to know Mo Feiyuan’s true face? And his weakness?” Gongsun Ziyan’s voice was tinged with laughter, yet seemed close to tears, shrieking in madness as if driven insane by her own ruin.

But—Lord Shaojun? Mo Feiyuan? Yun Feiyue rubbed her ears, peering into the shadows…