Chapter 2
Feng Ming changed his clothes then slipped into the crowd with Rong Hu on his left and Luo Yun on his right.
The Youzi wine becoming sour as it leaves Fan Cheng is a fact that everyone knows. This case regarding Chao An is a crime pushed onto the innocent. Today, when the prisoner gets executed, nine out of ten people in Fan Cheng will rush forth to see the boisterous event held at the city gate.
“What a shame...”
“Ah, I heard he offended the Prince.”
“Quiet! You don’t want to live? Lower your voice.”
The afternoon hasn’t arrived, yet everyone was whispering nonstop along the sideline.
“How are they going to live? An honest man being executed. What a pity, he has an aging mother.”
“That’s right, what a pity, his wife is also pregnant.”
Feng Ming squirmed his way into the crowd, but judging by Rong Hu and Luo Yun’s trifled look, he knew he had reached the closest point to the execution ground.
The execution ground contained a wooden platform about two feet high with large stairs, rows of chairs were placed below and a table spread with satin cloth; which appears to be the seating for the execution supervisor and other officials. In the middle of the platform was the place where the execution will be held, a thick wooden stump the place where the prisoner will kneel down, and place his head onto before beheading.
Feng Ming knew that the wooden stump wouldn’t be necessary for this plan of theirs. No matter how impressive Feng Ming’s ability was, he was not able to reconnect a person’s head back to the original form. Regarding magic, he only watched it on television. Therefore, whether this plan is successful or not, will depend on everyone’s performance and if the Heaven is willing to help out....
Chao An’s wife and mother were sobbing beside the execution ground. Crying alongside with them was Tai Can, pretending to be “ill.”
“Sister...sister... please don’t cry. You’re still pregnant. This is the law, we have no other way, if you want to take a look...” Not sure what kind of powder coating Tai Can placed on his face, but his face was white as a ghost. Crying with tears and snot all over his face, his sobbing was even louder than his sister’s, “It’s all because of me, I shouldn’t have let you choose this marriage. This is not a good marriage and now you’ll become a widow. What a pity for my nephew who hasn’t been born yet...”
Feng Ming knew that he was acting, but he could not help but stare wide mouthed at Tai Can’s realistic acting.
“Duke Ming, the prisoner is here.” Rong Hu’s voice whispered against his ear.
Feng Ming stretched his neck up to look. Indeed, there were a group of people coming from the city gate, walking towards the execution grounds. They were wearing the regular soldier outfit, armed with a long spear. There was only one person wearing a prisoner uniform, emaciated, his hands were tied behind his back, staggering while walking in the middle as if his soul was scant.
“He’s here! He’s here!”
“About to be beheaded?”
When they saw the prisoner, the crowd made a slight commotion. Feng Ming was wondering why Le Ting isn’t here yet. Rong Hu felt something was wrong, believing that Le Ting should have arrived here much earlier.
They both tried to rationalize that Le Ting must have been slightly delayed. However, Luo Yun felt differently, stating, “Something happened.”
Hearing him say it with much conviction, Feng Ming felt nervous, his face went pale and he tried to force a laughter.
“That can’t be? Our plan...was so perfect.”
Rong Hu wasn’t pleased with Luo Yun scaring Feng Ming. Glaring at him, he asked, “How do you know something happened?”
“This is a killer’s instinct.” Luo Yun answered, ignoring Rong Hu’s glare, he turned his head to face Feng Ming, “Didn’t Young Lord said ‘to face your fears to build courage’? Your chance has come.”
Feng Ming was already tense enough. After listening to him, he became more uneasy, and he stammered; “What I meant was...was...oh God, if our plan is leaked and the Yong Yin army were to jump out and surround us, we only have twenty guards. We might really become twenty shredded pieces of meat.”
Feng Ming wasn’t very good at converging his inner thoughts. With his handsome appearance, thick eyebrows and blinking eyes, his pitiful look after being scared was too adorable.
Luo Yun never expected that his words would scare Feng Ming like that. He was both amused and upset. Sweeping his eyes to look at him once more and using an insensitive tone of voice, he said, “If it’s leaked then it’s leaked. The Xiao Family is unafraid of anyone. If someone dares to hurt you, they will have to walk past my dead body.” Although his expression was cold, his intention of protecting Feng Ming were clearly conveyed in his words.
Feng Ming was deeply moved. He grabbed Luo Yun’s hand tightly, revealing a bright smile. “Thank you.”
Surprised, Luo Yun looked down in disgust at the hand Feng Ming was holding. He tried to struggle free but couldn’t. This place was filled with many people so he didn’t dare to use much force that would cause unwanted attention to them. He gave up on struggling, feeling embarrassed while letting Feng Ming to continue hold his hand.
Just then, Rong Hu suddenly said, “He’s here!”
Sure enough, a carriage came from the other side of the gate, surrounded by several guards, made its way towards the execution ground. Le Ting held the highest position within the area. He made the announcement that he will be there personally at noon to convict the prisoner according to the laws of Yong Yin. During the time of execution, horse carriages were not allowed near the execution ground. Everyone was aware of this.
The curtains to the carriage lifted and the dignified person stepped out. However, the image of the person that appeared was not Le Ting, whom they had been looking forward to, but instead a young man Feng Ming had never seen before.
Feng Ming was shocked, he thought that he didn’t see clearly so he quickly rubbed his eyes. After taking a closer look, his face went pale, his heart dropped. It wasn’t Le Ting at all. Could Luo Yun’s words be true, something happened....
“The Prince sent an envoy! Pay your respects!”
Feng Ming was still shocked wondering where Le Ting could be. If it wasn’t for Luo Yun, pulling him down to kneel along with the others, Feng Ming would have stood out from the crowd, inadvertently putting himself in danger.
As the crowd was ordered to stand up, Feng Ming followed along. There were no news about Le Ting and yet an envoy from the Crown Prince arrived. This was something they were all afraid of.
Tai Can, who was sobbing on the sideline, noticed that something wasn’t right. His mouth was wide open and his eyes dilated bigger than a pair of bells, a horrid look on his face displayed after seeing the unknown Crown Prince’s envoy.
The crowd below were whispering to each other, wondering why the Crown Prince’s envoy was here.
Luo Yun knew that the situation had changed and could result in extreme danger. He advised Feng Ming to make a quick decision regarding this unexpected change in events.
Feng Ming was at a loss for words. He didn’t know what to do and blamed himself for not thinking everything thoroughly. If Rong Hu, Luo Yun, Tai Can and Le Ting were to meet with misfortune then it will be his fault. What kind of magic trick is this? Great, with all the preparations, the execution supervisor went missing. This lousy magic trick is the worst one ever!
“This Crown Prince’s envoy is really strange.” Rong Hu was muttering beside him.
“I know that he’s strange, but this isn’t the time to pursue that.” Feng Ming whispered, “Right now, the important thing is...what should we do? God, if that envoy takes charge of the execution, do we really have to snatch the prisoner? Ah, I...it’s all my...”
“This person is clearly Xiao Liu.” Rong Hu stared at the Crown Prince’s envoy who was standing on the platform. Xiao Liu was skinnier than before so with one glance, he couldn’t recognize him. Two years of not meeting, it seems that he was sent by His Majesty to Yong Yin.
Feng Ming thought Rong Hu said something about running off, so he responded, “Run? Where should we run to? No, I came up with his plan, I have to save the prisoner before the execution time. If we were to run away, wouldn’t I be killing an innocent person?”
“Duke Ming, that person is Xiao Liu.”
FM: What? Rong Hu, you know that person? Can you think of a way to resolve this matter? Money is not a problem, didn’t Lie Er said that Yong Yin officials love bribery?
RH: He is originally one of us.
FM: What? One of us....He.. he.. he...this Crown Prince’s envoy... Say it one more time?
RH: He was sent by His Majesty as a spy within Yong Yin.
Feng Ming stared at Rong Hu several times, after determining that Rong Hu was not joking, he let out a huge sigh of relief.
FM: One of us?
RH: That’s correct.
FM: One of us?
RH: Hush, Duke Ming. Please don’t raise your voice, it will arouse attention. FM: That’s right...one of us...m y dear God (for crying out loud!)
Feng Ming silently thank that his magic trick was still supported by the Heaven.
He tilted his head and filled with emotions, he glanced over at Rong Hu. He didn’t know whether to hug Rong Hu or give him a good kick. Unfortunately with the present circumstances, he couldn’t do any of these two actions. The only thing Feng Ming could do was to clench his teeth in dissatisfaction, “Why didn’t you say so earlier, do you want to scare your Royal Highness to death?”
RH: I just knew about it.
LY: What should we do now?
FM: Whew, it turned out to be a false alarm. The next course is to follow our plan. Rest assured, if he is one of us, he will help us complete this plan. Ha, I didn’t expect Rong Tian to be so amazing, this is very good.
LY: I still don’t see how this Crown Prince’s envoy will help with completing our plan. FM: Hah?
LY: I don’t think he knows what our plan is.
FM: Hah?
This can’t be! Could this pawn be placed randomly because of Rong Tian? He wasn’t ordered here to kill Chao An, was he?
They’re finished....
The moment Feng Ming was shouting “They’re finished,” Rong Hu decisively went to the edge of the execution ground, grabbed the panicky Tai Can and whispered in his eyes, “Quickly run up on the platform towards the Crown Prince’s envoy, cry to him and then...”
============
On the execution platform, Xiao Liu was also upset. When Le Ting was knocked out unconscious, he wasn’t planning on making his appearance. However, after thinking about it, he felt a bit uneasy. The execution notice was announced, so if the main execution supervisor was not present, there will still be a deputy execution supervisor. And if that person were to put out the order to kill Chao An, then his hard work would go to waste. To ensure that such things won’t happen, he had to personally take a trip to come here.
“Master Liu, please drink some tea.”
Le Ting was the major General to execute the prisoner, therefore, officials from top to bottom within Fan Cheng came to attend. However, Le Ting unexpectedly disappeared; and the envoy of the Crown Prince who came had an even higher position than Le Ting. After serving the tea, they showered him with flattering words.
“Haha, the weather is very sunny, Master Liu didn’t mind traveling tirelessly from miles away, you are very loyal to the court.”
“I’ve heard...Master Liu is a man of principle and righteousness and highly respected by Prince Yong Quan...”
Xiao Liu forced a smile. Cutting short their sentences, he glanced around and then asked, “How come I don’t see the Execution Supervisor General Le Ting?”
“This...” The deputy supervisor for Le Ting was silently muttering to himself that he too didn’t know where General Le Ting was, but while looking up at the colorful sky, he replied, “The General is probably ridden with a bunch of matters entangling him, he will arrive shortly.”
Xiao Liu secretly sneered. Your general is currently tied up like a pastry, placed underneath the seat within my horse carriage, perhaps he’ll never be able to arrive here at all.
There was one official who told Xiao Liu that if General Le Ting doesn’t arrive, then Xiao Liu could always use his title as the Crown Prince’s envoy to execute the prisoner. Xiao Liu knew this official pledge his loyalty to Prince Yong Quan and was disgusted by it, but he kept on a poker face.
XL: We absolutely cannot do that. His Highness is kind, benevolent and abides by the law. If you want the person from Crown Prince’s estate to be in charge of this execution just because the main execution supervisor is not here, then if this rumor were to spread in the future, wouldn’t this tarnish His Highness’s reputation?
Xiao Liu knew that if an hour passed and Le Ting still hadn’t shown up for the scheduled time frame, then according to the law, the prisoner will be sent back to prison. So right now, he had to endure all the flattery and sweet talk by the other officials for an hour.
During this time of extreme impatience, a sudden cry rang out.
“He’s innocent! He’s innocent!” Tai Can burst into tears while he was crawling and scrambling onto the execution platform. “Official, please reexamine the case! My brotherinlaw is innocent! My sister is currently pregnant, a future widow and a fatherless child, what will happen? Please...please have mercy...”
Despite having a large chubby physique, his actions were surprisingly swift. Before anyone could react, Tai Can had already clung onto Xiao Liu’s leg and started crying. If he was a normal person, then he would've been dragged out by the guards. However, no matter what type of person Tai Can was, he was an official in Fan Cheng for several years. Since the guards knew that he was an official, they didn’t dare to take action. As for the other officials who were sitting on the platform, they shook their heads and halfheartedly said, “Brother Tai, please quickly stand up, if you need to say something please say it slowly, everyone else is staring.”
“Brother Tai, I can understand your sadness, but regarding your brotherinlaw’s matter, the law is ruthless.”
“Let’s talk about it slowly, Brother Tai and quickly let go, this person is the Crown Prince’s envoy...”
Xiao Liu’s leg was held tightly that he couldn’t move. He was overly embarrassed, but felt a bit sympathetic towards Tai Can. He wanted to tell Tai Can that he came here to save the prisoner, but since he couldn’t clearly state it, he placed a stone face and said, “Who are you? Being so rude towards me? What do you mean innocent? General Le Ting gave the conviction according to the law, are you saying that he is doing this because of personal interest? What nonsense! Quickly let go!” While bending over, he tried to push away the hands that were grabbing onto his leg.
Tai Can was waiting for this opportunity. Seeing him stooping down, he immediately whispered into Xiao Liu’s ear like a lightning bolt, “Rong Hu requests that you meet up with him.”
Xiao Liu was surprised that this person knew his identity and even Rong Hu. While wondering what Rong Hu had to do with this matter, Tai Can added that Duke Ming was also standing within the audience. The other officials who were standing to the side were afraid that Xiao Liu would be angry so they rushed over to pull him off. After being dragged off the platform, Tai Can wiped his tears and comforted his sister.
Xiao Liu was shocked, but he eventually swept his eyes over the people below the platform and saw Rong Hu. Noticing that Xiao Liu had seen him, Rong Hu made a gesture, which Xiao Liu silently understood.
XL: Is there... any place to let loose*? (*restroom)
The officials started laughing, “Are you in a hurry? The city gates have a place which is fairly clean, allow me to show you the way.”
XL: No need. This matter does not need many people to follow along.
After asking for the direction, Xiao Liu brought two of his guards to follow behind. Once he came to the city gate and made a turn into a quiet place, Rong Hu was already waiting right there for him.
RH: I know that you have many things to ask me and I have many things to ask you, but right now there is something important to do and we’re running out of time. First off, take this paper.
Xiao Liu took the sheet of paper, glanced over it quickly and asked, “What is this?”
RH: Duke Ming is determined to save Chao An’s life. This is the rescue plan that our team decided to act out. Luckily, Duke Ming is clever enough to bring this just in case. Just follow the plan that is written, you have to remember your lines. Be careful, don’t miss a single word.
XL: What?
RH: We have no other choice. Originally, we discussed the plan with Le Ting and would perform it during the execution, but we didn’t expect him to suddenly disappear. Right now, sending someone to find him will be too late, therefore, you will have to replace him. Just take some time to memorize these lines, then head up to the platform and be a substitute for Le Ting. Using your position, you have all the qualification to take charge of the execution on Le Ting’s behalf. Xiao Liu, this role is very important, whether or not Chao An can be saved depends on this moment, alright? Why do you have a weird look on your face?
XL: Uh, Rong Hu...
RH: If you have something to say, let’s talk about it later. If noontime is over, Duke Ming’s plan would become a waste. The most important thing right now is for you to memorize your lines, we don’t have much time...I know we have to bother for your assistance this time.
XL: Did you just said that this plan was discussed with Le Ting?
RH: Yes, it was. At the critical moment, no one knows where Le Ting had run off to, if he... XL: I know.
RH: ... could come here on time, then it would be great...Ah? What did you just say?
XL: I said, I know where Le Ting is.
RH: You do? That’s great! That’s great! Where is he? How long until he arrives here?
XL: He’s in my horse carriage.
RH: Your horse carriage? What is he doing on your horse carriage?
XL: Actually, he’s tied up and stuffed beneath the seat of my carriage.
====
Those who were not involved with the plan wouldn’t know that even though the execution this time was ordinary, there were a lot of chaos within. After knowing where Le Ting was, Rong Hu used his fastest and most agile speed to report the news to Feng Ming and then with the same speed, rushed over to the back of Xiao Liu’s carriage and rescue Le Ting, pulling out the smelly rag from his mouth and pouring a bowl of water on him. He then gave two heavy slaps to his face, thus finally waking Le Ting from his unconscious state.
RH: The Crown Prince’s envoy is a good person, because of his righteousness, he came to help us, which is also part of this magic trick. Here...anyway...let’s follow through with the plan.
After explaining the current situation to Le Ting in the most simplest words, they decided to continue with the plan Feng Ming had implemented. As for the groggy general, he was brought inconspicuously to the remote area of the city gate without anyone noticing, and there he climbed onto a horse.
In a short while, before noontime came to an end, General Le Ting who had gone missing, suddenly appeared around the corner of the gates, as if he had experienced a long arduous journey, answering the eagerness cry of the people.
“Look! Look!”
“The General is here!”
“That’s right! General Le Ting is finally here!” “Oh! The prisoner may really die this time!”
When Le Ting appeared, a sudden burst of noise was heard from the top and above the platform. Tai Can thought that their plan of bringing a dead person to life was exposed, silently glancing at Le Ting riding towards the execution platform, dismounting his horse, and being escorted by his guards onto the platform, did Tai Can remember what his responsibilities are. He quickly rushed forward and started crying loudly.
On top of the platform, General Le Ting who just arrived became the focus of attention. “Where did the General go off to?”
“Reporting to the General, Master Liu of the Crown Prince’s estate has been waiting for a long time...”
“Aiya, what is wrong with the General’s face? You’re bleeding!”
Coming face to face with the polite and courteous words of his fellow officials after being knocked out unconsciously and reawaken afterwards, Le Ting was a bit overwhelmed. Hearing someone mentioning his face, he unnaturally snorted, the corner of his eyes swept over towards Xiao Liu who was sitting innocently to one side. Le Ting could only reply, “This morning, I was riding out of my estate, then that crazy animal suddenly attacked me for no apparent reason, causing me to injure myself.”
“Ah...so it was a horse...” The officials answered in abrupt astonishment.
O f c o u r s e , n o o n e h a d t h e g u t s t o a s k L e T i n g : i f h e h a d f a l l e n o f f t h e h o r s e , t h e n w h y d o e s h e have two hand imprints on his face?
Xiao Liu almost burst out laughing on the sideline, but he couldn’t expose himself so he could only quench his thirst with a cup of tea. Those who did see Xiao Liu’s slight smile, secretly confirmed that the Crown Prince wanted Chao An to die and since Le Ting is present, the chances of that happening is most likely, which correlates with the reason for Xiao Liu’s smile.
The deputy official asked, “Time's running out, does General still wish to execute the prisoner?”
“Of course!” Apart from saying anything else, Le Ting immediately nodded. If this matter is further delayed for a few more days, then this magic trick can't go on and he will be pressured again!
“Guards! Bring the prisoner onto the platform!”
A loud noise could be heard on the platform. The close family members of the prisoner were crying on the side. A loud commotion was also heard from the audience below.
They’re killing someone! It seems as if this pitiful Chao An will be unjustly killed today!
Feng Ming pushed his way through the crowd. He was shivering in excitement, so emotional that he was tearing up. This plan that Duke Ming had meticulously orchestrated, the first and greatest magic trick of this generation, bringing a dead person to life, is finally, finally, beginning after going through all sorts of difficulties and encountering all kinds of twists and turns....
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