RPAGF Chapter 3 A blazing fire, a facade of prosperity
Chapter 3 A blazing fire, a facade of prosperity
Yang Yan was on the steps when a servant ran toward him from the opposite side. Just as he stepped down the steps, something unexpected happened!
"Whoa—"
A mournful neigh of a horse pierced the sky.
A lavishly decorated four-wheeled carriage, as if possessed, burst out from around the corner of the city wall.
The driver was nowhere to be seen. Two robust horses from Hexi, their eyes bloodshot and breath steaming from their mouths and nostrils, dragged the heavy carriage straight toward Yang Yan!
The alleyway is paved with bluestone, and the thin ice that forms in winter makes the surface extremely slippery.
The wheels spun wildly on the stone slabs, making a teeth-grinding screeching sound.
The walls on both sides were so high that there was no way to avoid it.
Several pedestrians on the street screamed in terror and scattered in all directions in a panic.
All of this happened too fast.
In the blink of an eye, the two horse faces, contorted with terror, were already within arm's reach, carrying immense force.
The shadow of death loomed over them instantly.
Yang Yan's pupils suddenly contracted.
He didn't panic and back down like ordinary people, or stand frozen in place.
Although he had never practiced martial arts, he possessed basic knowledge of physics and crisis response skills.
If you retreat, you'll only get hit head-on.
His body reacts faster than his brain.
Just as the horse's head was about to strike his chest, he suddenly lunged to the side, his body rolling to the ground in an extremely disheveled manner.
roll.
This action can dissipate the impact force to the greatest extent.
"boom!"
The carriage almost grazed his back before crashing heavily into the wall behind him.
Bricks and stones shattered and flew everywhere, shaking the entire wall.
The two runaway horses neighed and fell to the ground, and the heavy carriage overturned due to the enormous inertia, making a deafening noise.
"My lord—!"
A sobbing voice called out from afar, and it was Yu Wen, who was ordered to wait at the alley entrance.
His face turned deathly pale, and he scrambled to Yang Yan's side.
"My lord, are you alright? I'll go and get the guards right away to arrest these thieves!"
Yang Yan pushed himself up and stood up, patting the mud off his clothes.
He ignored Yu Wen and turned around, his sharp gaze sweeping over the chaotic scene.
The luxurious carriage proved that the owner was either rich or noble.
The robust Hexi horse indicates that this is by no means a means of transportation for ordinary people.
"The horse was just startled, let's go back."
Yang Yan's voice was devoid of any emotion.
Yu Wen was stunned.
"My lord, this...this is clearly aimed at you!"
"Oh?"
Yang Yan turned around, looked at the loyal teenager, and asked, "How did you figure that out?"
"Does this even need looking?!"
Yu Wen stamped his foot in frustration: "The road in front of this gate is so wide, yet the carriage rushed out as soon as you came over! And the coachman disappeared immediately after the accident; it's clearly a premeditated murder!"
"That's right, but it's not enough."
Yang Yan walked to the overturned carriage and reached out to touch the axle.
It's warm.
"The axle was coated with a lot of tung oil, which ensured that it could run very fast."
He then walked over to the horse that was still convulsing, pried open its mouth with his fingers, and smelled it.
It has a faint, spicy herbal scent.
"The horses were fed spurious feed, enough to drive them mad in a short time."
He patted Yu Wen on the shoulder, his tone as if he were instructing a student.
"The timing, the location, the method—everything was meticulously planned. This was not an accident; it was an assassination."
Yu Wen was stunned, followed by immense fear.
"Then...then let's hurry back to the East Palace! Only there is it safe!"
"No."
Yang Yan shook his head.
The calmness on his face made Yu Wen feel a sense of unfamiliarity.
"Going back now would be tantamount to telling them I'm scared. Their next methods will only be more covert and ruthless."
Yang Yan looked past Yu Wen's shoulder and gazed into the distance.
"Since they want to watch a show, I'll play along. I'll make them think I'm just a lucky idiot who didn't see through their tricks at all."
"Let's go, take the detour back through the West Market."
Yu Wen was completely dumbfounded.
"My lord, have you gone mad?! Someone just tried to kill you, and you still want to go to a crowded and dangerous place like the West Market?"
"It's precisely because there are so many people and so many eyes that it's safe."
Yang Yan swiftly and decisively mounted the black horse that Yu Wen had brought.
"In Daxing City, the prestigious Zhuque Avenue is a stage for the powerful and wealthy, a place where everything is a mask for peace and prosperity. Only the West Market, filled with the stench of money and sweat, holds the true veins and pulse of this empire. I'm quite interested in that."
He squeezed the horse's flanks with his legs, and the black horse slowly moved forward.
"Let's go and see how many powder kegs are buried beneath the prosperity of the Sui Dynasty."
As you pass through Chongrenfang, the noise hits you like a heat wave.
West City, a mix of the empire's largest den of iniquity and slum, is now bursting with a dizzying vitality.
The shirtless foreign merchant, speaking broken Chinese, spitting as he hawked his Persian brocades and spices.
The blacksmith's furnace by the roadside glowed red-hot, and the clanging of hammering mingled with the jingling of bells on the ankles of the Western Region dancers.
Yang Yan slowed his horse down, his gaze sharp as a knife, sweeping across the stalls.
It's not all about prosperity.
He saw several ragged Han Chinese farmers kneeling before Sogdian merchants dressed in silk Hu clothing, kowtowing repeatedly for a few coins' worth of transport fees.
He saw at the dark alley entrance that several thugs with fierce eyes were searching a thin boy.
The patrolling thugs ignored this, staring blankly at Hu Ji's exposed snow-white waist.
"My lord, this place is chaotic."
Yu Wen drove the carriage closely behind, leaning out half his body and nervously watching his surroundings.
"Let's hurry back home."
Yang Yan did not turn around.
His gaze lingered on a stall selling flatbread.
There were seven or eight men who looked like refugees squatting there, their eyes numb, only their Adam's apples bobbing wildly when they saw the steaming hot pancakes coming out of the oven.
"Yu Wen".
"I'm here."
"Why do you think these people are here?" Yang Yan asked.
Yu Wen thought for a moment, then replied honestly, "My lord, perhaps the Guandong region suffered a disaster, leaving their families with no way to make a living, so they come to the capital to seek a living. This happens every year."
"Yes, it happens every year."
Yang Yan's voice carried a hint of coldness: "But in previous years they were scattered here and there, but this year, there are so many that they're almost crowding the entire street."
"This is not a natural disaster, it is a man-made disaster."
Yu Wen was puzzled: "Man-made disaster?"
"Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand, so I'm not going to waste my breath on you!"
Yang Yan withdrew his gaze, dismounted, and crawled into the somewhat cramped carriage.
"Take it easy, we're heading back to the palace."
The curtains were drawn, shutting out the noise and cold wind from outside.
Inside the carriage, Yu Wen frantically rummaged through a trunk and pulled out a thick fox fur cloak.
"My lord, you've just been frightened, please don't catch a cold."
Yang Yan leaned back on the cushion and did not reply.
He closed his eyes, reviewing everything that had happened that day.
From essays written in the examination hall to assassinations in alleyways, and then to what I saw and heard in the West Market.
As the clues gradually came together, the path ahead became increasingly clear in his mind.
He needs money, he needs people, and he needs a place where he can really make his mark.
All of this is inseparable from his second uncle, Yang Guang, who was secretly watching from the shadows.
Today's assassination is just the beginning.
Yang Yan slowly opened his eyes and his gaze fell on Yu Wen beside him.
The boy was looking at him with concern, his eyes clear and filled with unwavering loyalty.
It was this loyalty that set alarm bells ringing in Yang Yan's mind.
It seems I can no longer keep this trusted confidant, whom I grew up with, by my side.
……
It was just one street away from that thrilling "accident".
Yong'an Inn, Room No. 1 (Top Class).
The location here is excellent, and the carved window frames are not completely closed, leaving a gap about two fingers wide.
A man sat by the window, dressed in an inconspicuous gray-blue brocade robe, toying with a warm, white jade chess piece in his hand.
"That's interesting."
The man muttered to himself, his fingers gently stroking the chess pieces, producing a faint, teeth-grinding sound.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
The door was pushed open a crack, and a thin, ordinary-looking young man slipped in. He moved as nimbly as a cat, closed the door behind him, and quickly walked three steps behind the man, stopping and bowing respectfully.
"My lord, the plan is proceeding smoothly. It is indeed Prince Changning himself, not a stand-in."
"Oh?"
A playful smile curved the man's lips as he slowly turned around.
It was an ordinary face that you could easily lose in a crowd, but those eyes alone exuded a cold, venomous chill.
"What a pleasant surprise!"
"Now that the identities have been confirmed, let's proceed as planned."
The man put down his teacup and tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "Whether he's truly foolish or feigning it, once he's in this game, he has no choice. Immediately send someone to inform the master that the fish has taken the bait."
"There is one more thing; please take care of it immediately."
The man's voice was low, yet it carried a chilling aura that sent shivers down one's spine, as if it came from the deepest hell.
"I want the Jingzhao Prefecture government office to be set on fire in five days."