Is this some kind of desperate attempt to devour himself?

Chapter 110 Is this some kind of desperate attempt to devour himself?

With a "whoosh," the arrow pierced the air and hit the bullseye perfectly.

"good!"

The Imperial Guards watching cheered in unison.

Wang Daniu sat upright on his horse, holding his longbow high, looking quite pleased with himself.

On the stands, Liu Feng stood up with a smile, clapping as he ordered, "Excellent archery! A bolt of colored silk will be awarded to you."

Jia Yun was about to take the tray forward when suddenly the sound of hooves rang out, and Zhang Laifu spurred his horse into the training ground, raising his arm and shouting, "Sir, wait! Behold my archery skills!"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Laifu had already drawn his bow and nocked an arrow, and with a swift movement, he shot it out, hitting the bullseye.

Another thunderous cheer erupted from the training ground.

Liu Feng clapped his hands and laughed.

Zhang Laifu started, and everyone present was itching to show off their skills, so they all mounted their horses and tried their hand at archery. With each twang of the bowstring, every arrow hit its mark; he truly was a master archer, hitting the bullseye every time.

Cheers rose and fell, and Liu Feng watched with great enjoyment, clapping his hands incessantly.

After a long while, Liu Feng raised his hand to silence the noise, and said with a smile, "Good! Everyone's martial arts are superb, each of you shall be rewarded with a piece of colored silk."

匹！

"Thank you, Your Excellency!" All the officials of the garrison dismounted and bowed in gratitude.

Liu Feng nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Li Shoutian and instructed, "From today onwards, every meal on training days must include meat, large chunks of meat!"

"Thank you, Your Excellency!" All the Imperial Guards present were overjoyed and knelt down in unison.

Just then, the officer on duty led Liu Quan quickly to the foot of the stands and bowed, saying, "Sir, Steward Liu has arrived."

Liu Feng looked up.

Liu Quan then went up to the stands, took out a letter from his pocket, and handed it over with both hands: "Second Master, this was sent by Miss Lin."

Liu Feng took the letter, casually tore it open, and found an invitation inside. After reading it, he was slightly taken aback. Xue Baochai was inviting him to dinner at Pear Fragrance Courtyard, with Wang Xifeng and You Shi also to accompany him. What was this all about? A trap?

Three women invited me to dinner? Wait... could the "dinner" they're talking about be me?!

Just then, the officer on duty rushed back, panting, and reported, "Sir, Eunuch Li has arrived!"

Li Jinzhong? What's with this scoundrel?

Liu Feng frowned. "Where is he?"

"Reporting to you, sir, they are waiting in the duty room with tea."

Liu Feng tucked the invitation into his pocket, turned to Liu Quan and said, "Just say I have something to do, let's do it another day." He then whispered a few more instructions to Li Shoutian, turned and left the stands, heading towards the front yard.

Li Jinzhong, this little eunuch, is a bit cunning, but he's always sensible and never hangs around Liu Feng unless it's for serious business.

Your uninvited appearance today is probably not a good thing.

Inside the duty room, Li Jinzhong held a teacup, but his eyes darted around, clearly plotting something.

"Lord Liu is here," the little eunuch beside him whispered a reminder.

Li Jinzhong then came to his senses, quickly stood up, and smiled at Liu Feng who pushed the door open and entered, saying, "Lord Liu, you've arrived."

Liu Feng nodded, sat down in the main seat, and asked directly, "What happened?"

Li Jinzhong waved his hand, and the little eunuch immediately withdrew and closed the door.

"That family member surnamed Gao is dead."

Liu Feng nearly choked on his own saliva. How long had it been since he was taken there? It seemed like less than an hour had passed. And he was already dead?

Even novels wouldn't dare to write a plot like this in my past life!

Li Jinzhong glanced out the window and leaned closer: "Didn't Lord Liu say that the rumor was about the King of Wu..."

'

"Stop!" Liu Feng raised his hand and said seriously, "The current evidence points to the Wu Prince's Mansion, not what I said."

Li Jinzhong smiled and said, "Isn't that the same thing?"

Liu Feng rolled his eyes. This little eunuch was trying to set a trap for him as soon as he opened his mouth. He was a real scoundrel.

Li Jinzhong wasn't annoyed and continued with a smile, "My godfather wants Lord Liu to investigate this matter."

Liu Feng raised an eyebrow: "Investigate what?"

Li Jinzhong was quite straightforward: "Investigate whether the deaths of the Gao family members are related to the Prince of Wu's mansion."

Liu Feng nodded: "Where are the files?"

Li Jinzhong pulled a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it over.

Liu Feng was stunned. Just one sheet? He took it and saw that it only had the words "died by hanging" written on it.

He looked up at Li Jinzhong.

Li Jinzhong was unusually uneasy and said in a low voice, "I guess someone passed a message to them during the escort..."

'

He paused, then added, "We killed several, but no one has claimed responsibility."

Liu Feng slowly sat up straight. This guy is no ordinary person; he's a suicide squad member!

Li Jinzhong said sourly, "My godfather doesn't trust anyone else now, only you."

Liu Feng's lips twitched. This trust, whoever wants it can have it.

Li Jinzhong stood up and said, "Alright, I'm leaving." He stopped at the door, turned his head, and said, "If you don't trust me, you can go to the palace and ask my godfather in person." After saying that, he opened the door and walked straight out.

Liu Feng folded the paper and put it into his sleeve.

Even if Li Jinzhong didn't say anything, he still planned to go to the palace. If he didn't clarify this matter face to face, he would definitely be blamed if anything went wrong later.

"Something's not quite right in the palace today."

Liu Feng could see people coming and going from afar in the Qianqing Palace, bustling like a market. There were officials and eunuchs, all with stern faces, as if something major had happened.

Just as he was hesitating whether to go over, a flurry of footsteps suddenly sounded behind him. Turning around, he saw that all the approaching figures were noble generals and military commanders—Duke Zhenguo Niu Jizong, Duke Liguo Liu Fang, Marquis Zhongjing Shi Ding, General Shenwu Feng Tang... Even Prince Zhongshun, who had been staying at home drinking and playing games with Qi Guan recently, had come.

Except for Feng Tangchao, who nodded slightly to him, the rest of them walked straight over and hurried into the Qianqing Palace.

Liu Feng recalled the military report from a few days ago. Could it be that war had broken out in western Liaoning? After thinking about it, he decided to go and take a look.

Liu Feng was usually very generous to Dai Quan's godson and godson, so a young eunuch immediately came over and whispered, "It's nothing urgent, you should go back first. Going in now would just bring bad luck."

"What happened?" Liu Feng took out a silver note and stuffed it into the little eunuch's hand.

The young eunuch didn't stand on ceremony, stuffing the letter into his robes and glancing around. "Urgent dispatch! Dalinghe has fallen. Of the 30,000 troops, only a few thousand escaped back to Jinzhou."

Liu Feng was truly shocked. These 30,000 men were the main force, and with auxiliary troops, there were at least 50,000 to 60,000 of them. In the end, only a few thousand escaped. This was equivalent to being completely annihilated!

"The ancestor has emerged."

Liu Feng turned his head and saw Dai Quan carrying several imperial edicts as he walked out of the Qianqing Palace.

Liu Feng quickly went to greet him. Dai Quan also saw him and walked over, saying, "You've come at the right time. Come with me to deliver the imperial decree."

Winter days are short, and by the time Liu Feng got home, it was already close to dusk.

He casually tossed the reins to the servant and entered the room with an expression that suggested the Prime Minister was scolding Wang Lang.

I knew the emperor was inhuman, but I never imagined he could be so utterly shameless.

Liu Feng followed Dai Quan for an entire afternoon, only to meet veterans of the Beijing garrison who had been forced to retire a few months earlier.

The Beijing garrison lacked sufficient fighting strength, so they had to rely on veteran generals to make up for it.

This emperor is fickle; he uses people when he needs them and turns his back on them when he doesn't. He changes his mind faster than flipping through a book.

Liu Feng shook his head. Snow was falling heavily outside the Great Wall, and the weather was freezing. Sending reinforcements from the capital's garrison a thousand miles away seemed unreliable. He hoped it wouldn't end up like what happened to the Duke of Ningguo...

"Second Master is back!"

As soon as I entered the backyard, Qingwen emerged from the west wing, grinning like a little fox who had stolen a chicken leg, and nudged the living room with her chin.

Liu Feng handed her the food box and asked, "What's wrong? Did you two have a fight?"

"No, not at all." Qingwen shook her head. "Miss Ping is here..."

'

"What is she doing here?"

"They invited Second Master to the Xue family for a meal, saying they'd prepared a table full of Nanjing dishes and were just waiting for Second Master to arrive."

Liu Feng was slightly taken aback. Was this some kind of scheme to devour him?

On second thought, the bold get rich, the timid starve. Let's go see what these women are up to...

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