Chapter 1111: Forgiveness Is Their Matter

Han Fengqiu hesitated, but Zu'an's sword had already pressed down.

The Tai'a sword was incredibly sharp; his finger immediately split open, and blood gushed out.

"No, no, no, I'll talk!" Han Fengqiu quickly said, realizing this guy was serious about cutting vertically.

Sensing the coldness of the other party's demeanor, he no longer dared to hold back and explained, "Prince Qi was originally cooperating with Jian Yanyou, but that Jian Yanyou was timid and afraid of trouble. When we realized his younger brother, Jian Taiding, was very ambitious, we supported him to take power."

"Unexpectedly, Jian Taiding rose to power quickly, so we naturally began to cooperate with him."

"However, after he became the acting governor, he grew confident and began to guard against the Prince, unwilling to place all his chips with us. So, he secretly drew in Prince Yan, attempting to use Prince Yan's power to counterbalance us."

"Naturally, the Prince would not allow this to happen, so he sent the Crown Prince with people to handle matters here."

"We cleverly made sure you discovered the altered account books, then used the imperial envoy delegation to investigate Zuo Su and Jian Taiding, successfully removing these two biggest obstacles."

Zu'an frowned. "Does Zhao Zhi have such capability?"

The series of operations they performed in Yunzhong Commandery was truly masterly. If Zu'an hadn't accidentally learned the truth, he probably would have been completely played.

Zhao Zhi had some talent in cultivation, but he was arrogant and didn't seem like someone capable of orchestrating such a large scheme.

If that were truly the case, Zu'an would need to be more vigilant around him in the future.

"This plan was discussed by the Prince's advisors, and the Prince ultimately made the final decision. The Crown Prince's role here was merely his status, which allowed him to more efficiently mobilize various forces in the region." Han Fengqiu kept his eyes fixed on the sword's tip near his finger, terrified that the other party, in a fit of anger, would actually split his finger vertically.

Zu'an pressed on, "You eliminated Jian Taiding and Zuo Su, but now Jian Yanyou is back. Doesn't that mean everything is back to square one?"

Although Zu'an knew Jian Yanyou was dead, outsiders didn't.

Han Fengqiu replied, "Jian Yanyou disappeared for two years, and most of his trusted associates have already been purged. Now that he's back, he's merely a lone wolf. Moreover, he seems to have suffered severe injuries, and his cultivation is far from its peak, so he poses even less of a threat."

"However, he is still a Duke, and given the many recent incidents in Yunzhong Commandery, we're letting him live for a few more days."

"Once you imperial envoys leave Yunzhong Commandery and the dust settles, we will quietly eliminate him. We'll then announce that he died from his severe, unhealing injuries, which won't cause too much of a stir."

Zu'an's expression was complex after hearing this. He thought about how Yu Yanluo had previously planned to help him escape in a similar manner. The thinking of those long-accustomed to high positions was truly remarkably consistent.

With that thought, he casually pressed his sword down.

"Ah!"

A piercing shriek rang out. Han Fengqiu looked at his finger, now vertically cut in half, feeling both pain and terror. "What are you doing!"

Han Fengqiu's rage spiked.

Zu'an said blandly, "It's your fault for not being honest. Every time I have to ask you before you'll answer. I don't have that much patience to play a Q&A game with you. Tell me everything you know. This sword of mine cuts through iron like mud, so the cut just now actually wasn't that painful. But next time, I might find a dull knife and slice slowly."

"You're a devil!" Han Fengqiu wanted to curse further, but after meeting Zu'an's gaze, he immediately cowered and hurriedly said, "After Jian Taiding and Zuo Su were overthrown, our people took charge here. The leader, naturally, is City Warden Pei Shao. The Pei family has deep connections with the Prince's Mansion, and a big reason the Crown Prince came this time was for a marriage alliance with their family."

"The Prince also didn't want to sacrifice the Crown Prince's happiness, so he agreed to let him come and see for himself, to decide whether to proceed with the marriage alliance with the Pei family. The Crown Prince was initially a bit unwilling, but after he saw Miss Pei, he was instantly captivated. Unfortunately, Miss Pei seemed indifferent to him. The Crown Prince believes that Miss Pei is merely shy because the marriage hasn't been finalized yet, which is a major reason why he left so hurriedly this time—he wants to finalize the marriage as soon as possible, so he can finally get close to Miss Pei."

Zu'an's face was grim. *That Zhao Zhi was really dreaming.*

Seeing Zu'an's displeased expression, and fearing another vertical cut to a finger, Han Fengqiu quickly continued, "Aside from Pei Shao, Yu Xuansu, the Sima of the Governor's Mansion, is also our man. Over the years, he and Yu Xuanqing have had intense family disputes. Yu Xuanqing foolishly sided completely with Jian Taiding, so the Prince naturally supported Yu Xuansu to replace him."

"With these two influential figures in the local government and the Governor's Mansion, coupled with many mid and lower-level officials being protégés of the Prince's Mansion, controlling Yunzhong Commandery will not be difficult."

Zu'an recalled his visit to the Pei family, where Pei Manman had mentioned that her stepmother was from the Yu family. At that time, Yu Xuansu had appeared at the Pei residence several times, but Zu'an had only assumed he was visiting his daughter and hadn't paid much attention. It turned out they had been colluding all along.

His gaze fell on Hu Xin, who was beside them. "What about those tiger tribesmen?"

Previously, Zu'an had dealt more with Kong Qing, and this guy had not appeared alongside Kong Qing before.

Han Fengqiu shivered, terrified of another vertical cut, and hastily replied, "Because previously, trade with the demon race was conducted through the Jian family, who had good relations with the Peacock Royal Clan. To fully control the channels, the Prince wanted to bypass the Peacock Royal Clan. Conveniently, the demon race isn't a monolithic entity; the Tiger Tribe has always been unwilling to remain subservient to the Peacock Royal Clan and sought to replace them. The Prince fully exploited this, and both sides immediately hit it off. The Tiger Tribe helps the Prince establish a new trade network with the demon race, and the Prince helps the Tiger Tribe rise to power."

"So that's why you've been supplying so many restricted and illicit goods to the demon race?" Zu'an sneered. "Prince Qi disregards the safety of humanity for his personal ambition, despite his reputation as a virtuous prince."

Han Fengqiu hesitated, then said, "The world isn't black and white. Which of those powerful figures in the imperial court doesn't act from their own self-interest? Isn't Yu Yanluo, who you're on good terms with, also doing business with the demon race? Even the late emperor, didn't he do similar things back then?"

"What about the late emperor?" Zu'an frowned. Such secrets weren't recorded in databases and could only be learned from older people who had lived through those times.

Han Fengqiu replied, "I don't know the specifics, but I once overheard the Prince mention that the late emperor seemingly ascended to the throne with the help of the demon race's power."

A storm raged in Zu'an's mind. Since arriving in this world, he had encountered various official and unofficial documents, all portraying several generations of emperors leading humanity in great wars against the demon race, completely defeating them and driving them to the desolate frontiers, thus allowing humanity to live in peace and prosperity.

The common people worshipped these emperors of humanity as saints, but now it seemed that behind their bright and grand figures lay an untouchable darkness.

Han Fengqiu cautiously glanced at him, not daring to linger, and continued to reveal what he knew: "Zhang Che, Prince Yan's trusted confidant, had been unheard of for years, but recently we discovered that he seems to have become an elder in the Demonic Cult and also established the Pegasus Merchant Guild, providing financial support to Prince Yan."

Zu'an thought, *No wonder when I infiltrated the Pegasus Merchant Guild last time, I saw Zhang Che with those loose practitioners from the Demonic Cult. Qiu Honglei also diverted my investigation away from the Pegasus Merchant Guild several times.*

*But that foolish girl, don't let Prince Yan sell you out and still count his money for him.*

"This time, they also intend to replace the Zhenyuan Merchant Guild and completely control the trade channels with the demon race. Naturally, we won't allow that to happen. The Prince is incredibly resourceful; from the start, he arranged for his spy, Taohong, to be stationed at the Jade Pavilion, a subsidiary of the Pegasus Merchant Guild. With a little guidance later, the imperial envoy could be led to eliminate Prince Yan's forces."

After hearing the entire story, Zu'an felt a certain admiration for Prince Qi. He had orchestrated everything from thousands of miles away, meticulously arranging all the forces in Yunzhong Commandery.

At this point, Han Fengqiu tentatively asked, "I've told you everything I know. Can you let me go now?"

He had initially had the courage to die, but after such a long time, he suddenly didn't want to die anymore.

Although his cultivation was ruined, living was surely better than dying.

Zu'an said in a deep voice, "Go to the graves of Shen Zhou's wife and child, genuinely repent and apologize, and beg for their forgiveness. Then I will release you."

The other villagers hadn't been buried yet; currently, only the mother and child had graves.

Han Fengqiu was overjoyed. "Yes, yes, yes, I will sincerely apologize. Although they didn't die by my hand, I do bear some responsibility."

Zu'an heard him shifting blame, but said nothing.

Soon, Zu'an brought Hu Xin's head and Han Fengqiu to the graves of Shen Zhou's wife and child in the city outskirts.

Zu'an silently placed Hu Xin's head before the graves, then lit three incense sticks and bowed.

Though his mind was swirling with thoughts, he said nothing at that moment. Anything he might say would feel too hollow.

Seeing Zu'an's solemnity, Han Fengqiu felt a bit dismissive. *Just a few lowly commoners, is there a need to be so serious?*

However, to save his life, he dared not show his true thoughts.

Instead, he knelt there, weeping and apologizing profusely. Seeing that Zu'an remained unresponsive, he gritted his teeth and even kowtowed repeatedly to the gravestone.

He secretly fumed, vowing to repay this humiliating disgrace a hundredfold someday.

Although his cultivation was ruined, through the Abhisara Sword, he could slowly absorb the blood of cultivators to resume his practice. In time, recovering his strength might not be impossible.

Seeing his forehead was red and swollen from kowtowing, Zu'an nodded slightly, seemingly pleased with his performance.

Han Fengqiu was overjoyed, thinking that he had finally passed this ordeal. *This guy looks ruthless, but he's just soft-hearted.*

Just as he was about to stand up, a cold gleam suddenly appeared before his eyes.

Immediately after, his head flew into the air.

"You..." Han Fengqiu's last flicker of consciousness left him shocked and enraged, seemingly cursing Zu'an for breaking his word.

Zu'an gently wiped the blood from his sword, as if finding Han Fengqiu's blood too dirty.

While wiping his sword, he said blandly, "Whether they forgive you or not is up to the mother and son. My only job is to send you to meet them."