Almost fooled me

The Emperor Wu of Han’s imperial carriage had already traveled from the Weiyang Palace to the Changle Palace.

Word had reached the Crown Prince’s Palace that the Emperor was on his way, and instructions were given for the household to prepare to receive His Majesty.

The palace timekeeper struck the hours, signaling midnight.

Seated within his carriage, the Emperor heard the bells and suddenly paused.

"When did he leave the palace?"

Su Wen hurriedly replied, "He went out this morning, though Your Servant is unaware of the exact hour."

The Emperor slowly closed his eyes in thought, and after a moment, suddenly commanded, "Return to the Weiyang Palace."

"As you wish."

The imperial carriage retraced its path to the Xuanshi Hall. The Emperor stood with his hands clasped behind his back beneath the eaves of the hall, bathed in the moonlight, which only made his expression increasingly unfathomable.

The eunuchs and attendants stood quietly behind him, none daring to disturb the Emperor, let alone fathom what occupied his thoughts.

Stirrups, saddles, horseshoes... Could all of this really have taken so long?

Why wait until nightfall to return to the palace?

The Brocade-Clad Envoys had offered an explanation earlier, stating that Liu Jin had taken ten thousand coins to an ironmonger's shop, where he caught the eye of greedy men. Two swordsmen had disguised themselves as blacksmiths and trailed Liu Jin all the way back to the imperial palace.

They had found no suitable opportunity along the way, likely intending to strike in a secluded area, only to somehow arrive near the Changle Palace.

The two assassins had probably intended to secretly abduct Liu Jin to escape the palace, but upon being suddenly discovered by him, had no choice but to launch an attack.

Everything seemed plausible and logical—yet what if the entire thing had been orchestrated by that boy?

The Emperor stood with his hands clasped, rolling a small bronze peach back and forth between his palms, rubbing it incessantly.

"What was his purpose?"

The Emperor muttered to himself.

To have the commander of the Crown Prince's Palace guards promoted to chief commander of the Changle Palace guards?

That was the only logical motive.

And what would be the purpose of securing that promotion? To control the military forces of the entire Changle Palace?

Was he planning to match wits with Us when the ultimate moment of desperation arrived?

Once he figured it all out, the Emperor’s mind suddenly cleared. Instead of being angry, a trace of an appreciative smile gradually surfaced on his face!

The boy certainly had courage!

Early this morning, he came to present the horse gear, first arousing Our interest. Leaving Us aside, even Shangguan Jie was stunned by these three inventions.

Then, taking advantage of Our joyous mood, he immediately set the stage for an assassination plot. With all Our attention focused entirely on the horse gear, We would never suspect anything fishy about the assassination.

And indeed, he had succeeded; just moments ago, the Emperor truly had not suspected otherwise, naively believing it to be a random assassination attempt driven by greed and circumstance.

Wait, could there be yet another purpose? To deliberately lure Us to the Crown Prince’s Palace on the pretext of checking on him?

After all, having determined that We were deeply interested in the three pieces of horse gear, it would only be natural and reasonable for Us to visit him after an assassination attempt.

Throwing a single stone to stir up ripples on multiple fronts!

He had almost managed to calculate Us into his scheme. Tsk tsk, when did you develop such deep and unfathomable scheming?

No wonder he came so early to the Weiyang Palace to plead for the chief commander of the Changle Palace guards—he simply did not wish to implicate more innocent people.

After all, he had already killed two innocent men, hadn't he?

So much for being soft-hearted; it seemed that wasn't entirely true. He had grown somewhat more ruthless.

Yet, given the boy's temperament, he had most likely given those two men a substantial sum of money, enough to keep their families provided for for the rest of their lives.

After all, trading one's life for such a fortune had never been an easy task in this era.

...

In the Crown Prince’s Palace, Crown Prince Liu Ju and Lady Shi stayed by Liu Jin’s side, terrified that their son had been traumatized by the assassination attempt.

Yet all three of them were somewhat bewildered; why had the Emperor suddenly turned back when he was already on the verge of arriving at the Crown Prince’s Palace?

"Father, Mother, I am not frightened. You should go back and rest; it is getting late."

Liu Ju and Lady Shi nodded slightly, deciding not to disturb Liu Jin further and urging him to rest early.

Liu Jin walked out of the bedchamber. The moonlight was brilliant in the night sky. He stood beneath the veranda eaves with his hands behind his back and slowly closed his eyes.

Originally, he had intended to take things slowly and plan more meticulously, ensuring at the very least that not a single flaw could be found.

However, Li Ji had already begun setting traps for him over the past couple of days, and there was no telling how many other factions wishing for the downfall of the Crown Prince’s Palace remained hidden in the shadows.

He had been seeking out his grandfather for so long, but judging by the current state of affairs, progress was far from ideal. He did not know whether he would ultimately succeed in changing the Emperor's attitude toward the Crown Prince's Palace, nor whether he could prevent the impending Witchcraft Calamity.

He had previously suspected that the Witchcraft Calamity might have been a play directed by the Emperor himself, and he could not simply sit back and await his doom.

In history, when his father eventually rose in revolt, it had been far too rushed. If only they could truly secure unified command over the Changle Palace troops, they might not necessarily have lost in that catastrophe!

That was why Liu Jin had seized the opportunity of presenting the three-piece horse gear set to orchestrate this entire scheme.

Everything had been done for the sole purpose of allowing Zhang Feng to take command of the Changle Palace military forces.

Both Zhang Feng and Shi De were his father's men. Even if the chaos of the Witchcraft Calamity eventually erupted, these two would personally lead the troops, making them trustworthy.

Though this arrangement might still have a few minor flaws, Zhang Feng had now genuinely been promoted to the position of chief commander of the Changle Palace guards, taking over its military power.

His goal had been achieved.

The only thing Liu Jin could not be certain of was whether his grandfather had seen through everything he had arranged.

Liu Jin had already considered beforehand that even if the Emperor vaguely suspected something, no evidence could ever be found.

He had given ten thousand coins to the two swordsmen, and their families had long since departed Chang'an, enough for them to live free of financial worry for half their lifetime.

This world was harsh—cruel, even. When bargaining initially, the swordsmen had felt that one thousand coins per person was enough to risk their lives, yet Liu Jin had still given each of them five thousand coins.

Human life was the cheapest commodity in this era.

The Jianzhang Palace incident had yet to occur; historically, it would happen later that very year, when swordsmen carrying blades would infiltrate the Jianzhang Palace to assassinate the Emperor, an affair that would ultimately be left unresolved before leading to massive arrests and investigations, eventually implicating Gongsun Jingsheng in corruption, leading to his arrest and imprisonment.

Who could say with certainty that those events had not been orchestrated by the Emperor himself?

Liu Jin had drawn inspiration from that very affair, learning from the Emperor to stage his own performance.

The only uncertainty lingering in Liu Jin's mind was why the Emperor, having been on the verge of reaching the Crown Prince's Palace that night, had suddenly turned back.

As the night grew deeper, Liu Jin cast aside these thoughts and slept soundly.

Early the next morning, just as Liu Jin rose, Zhang Feng came to find him.

"Your Highness."

He was followed by several soldiers. Liu Jin asked in confusion, "Is something the matter?"

The soldiers immediately dropped to their knees and kowtowed: "Many thanks, Your Imperial Grandson!"

"Hmm?"

Zhang Feng hurriedly explained, "His Majesty spared their lives, saying it was due to your intercession, so they have come to express their gratitude."

Looking at the Changle Palace soldiers kowtowing respectfully to him on the ground, a wave of shame stirred within Liu Jin's heart.

"Rise. It is nothing. Go back and attend to your duties properly."

"Many thanks, Your Imperial Grandson!" The group of soldiers showered Liu Jin with boundless gratitude.