CH 280

The ecstasy herb was like an evolved version of psychoactive drugs in the modern world. Although long-term consumption can wear down one’s willpower, one can overcome it as long as you force yourself to stop taking it. There will be a short period of madness and pain, but one can live and be normal once again as long as they get over it and take some life-sustaining tonics.

Doctor Wang would not have failed to tell Bai Liwu that he had been poisoned by the ecstasy herb, but Bai Liwu was still drinking poison to quench his thirst. He had clearly begun to give up on himself.

“Xin’er is here.” Bai Liwu lay on the soft collapse lazily. His mouth was calling out to Bai Lixin, but his eyes were unblinkingly staring at Xiahou Chun.

Bai Lixin was about to open his mouth when Bai Liwu changed his expression and sat up in bed. “I have an urgent matter!”

Bai Liwu rushed straight to a side hut, and Bai Lixin and Xiahou Chun were both stunned when they saw this.

No way! What a big coincidence!

The two casually found a chair and sat down. It was only after about an incense stick that Bai Liwu returned, clutching his stomach.

“Imperial brother, are you alright?” Bai Lixin asked as he sized up Bai Liwu.

Bai Liwu looked depressed, and his face was a little ugly. He was about to speak when his stomach made a “gurgling” sound. Bai Liwu’s face darkened, and he rushed out again.

After going back and forth three or four times like this, Bai Liwu’s face, which had improved slightly, once again looked depressed.

Bai Lixin saw this and winked at Xiahou Chun.

Doctor Wang was surprised to see Bai Liwu’s trips to the hut again and again, so he opened the medicine cabinet and sniffed the pills. His eyes fell on the empty wooden box sitting on the table, and he hesitated for a moment before walking over to it. He had just reached the halfway point when Xiahou Chun stood up and pinned Doctor Wang to the ground in one take.

Doctor Wang cried out in pain and begged for mercy, “What is this, General?”

“Doctor Wang, you deliberately plotted to kill the Benevolent Prince. The evidence is conclusive. Is there anything you have to say?”

“What….. I am also confused with the prince’s symptoms. But it is not because of me. The pill I prescribed should not have this effect. The general must be clear about this! ” The doctor looked at the small wooden box on the table and tried to reach for it, but Xiahou Chun’s hands were so strong that the doctor fell to the ground again. “You still won’t admit it? I think you don’t want to use these hands anymore. ”

Bai Liwu came in and saw the scene in the room and hurriedly asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Imperial brother, father ordered us to invite Doctor Wang into the palace.” Bai Lixin pulled out the token from his sleeve belt and showed it to Bai Liwu.

Bai Liwu was stunned, “You cannot take him away. I am now…… hiss ……” Bai Liwu’s stomach rumbled, and he rushed out of the room again.

Bai Lixin raised his voice and yelled to Bai Liwu’s back, “Brother, I will first take this man back. You’re not feeling well, and father is also worried. I’ll tell the Imperial doctor to come and take a look when I go back. ”

Bai Liwu was powerless to fight, and ran off in a huff to the thatched hut.

Xiahou Chun and Bai Lixin did not stay long after catching Dr. Wang. They took Dr. Wang’s medicine chest and rushed back to the palace before Bai Liwu returned.

Bai Liwu returned to his room with a pale face, and his expression changed when he saw the empty room and the teacups that had been knocked to the floor.

Fear and resentment flashed in his eyes. Bai Liwu gritted his teeth and hammered the table hard.

It was outrageous. To take someone away from his place while he was not there!

It would be bad if Wang Yuan couldn’t stand Xiahou Chun’s torture and gave an account of all their plans.

……

In the palace dungeon, a body covered in wretchedness hangs on a cross. Both arms were lifted high and hung on the crossbeam, and his legs were tied to the vertical pillar in a dishevelled and feeble manner.

“Plotting against the prince is a capital offence that will have nine clans linked to it. Wang Yuan, you even had ecstasy grass in these pills! You had evil intentions. The Benevolent Prince had abdominal pain after eating your pill and almost died. Speak! Did you also cause Prince Bai Liwu’s illness before? ” Bai Lixin whipped the leather whip several times on Doctor Wang’s body. The man only screamed out in pain and nothing more.

“Your Highness, I have explained that ecstasy grass is a good cure for illness if used properly. I am not lying to you.”

“How did you get the ecstasy grass, which is only available in the Yue Kingdom’s palace? Tell me, who sent you here? ”

Wang Yuan’s expression changed, but he still clenched his teeth and refused to say anything.

At that moment, a voice came out, “You said that the pills I took had ecstasy grass in them?!”

Bai Lixin and Xiahou Chun looked over at the voice and saw Bai Liwu, who had hurriedly come over. In the dimly lit cell, Bai Liwu’s bloodless face was particularly ghastly. He grabbed Wang Yuan’s clothes and said angrily, “This prince has no grudge against you. Why did you harm me?”

Although he did not have much strength in his body, Bai Liwu still hammered Wang Yuan’s face several times with a bit of anger, and his hand grazed so hard on the wound cut Bai Lixin caused that it was extremely painful.

“You! You!” Wang Yuan wailed in pain, and his body trembled a few times.”You!”

Shaking off Bai Liwu, Wang Yuan glared at him angrily. He opened his mouth as if to say something when his expression suddenly became very frightened, revealing a terrified look.

Bai Lixin saw this look and he suddenly recalled the eunuch that Xiahou Chun had interrogated that day.

This man’s expression was exactly the same as the eunuch’s before he died!

Bai Lixin pursed his lips and looked down at Bai Liwu, who had fallen to the ground. He looked at Wang Yuan again, but the whites of his eyes had rolled over and he was dead.

Bai Liwu seemed startled by Wang Yuan’s death, cowering as he stood up and asked in a trembling voice, “He…he’s dead?”

Bai Lixin sighed and supported Bai Liwu up, “Brother must be frightened. I tortured this man, and then you beat him a few times, so he probably couldn’t hold on and died.”

“Did I kill him?” Bai Liwu’s eyes widened, and his already bloodless face turned even paler.

“No, it wasn’t your fault, Imperial Brother.” Bai Lixin glanced at Xiahou Chun, nodded gently towards him, and added, “Imperial brother, there is too much blood here. You are ill and should not be in such a place. I will send you back first.”

Bai Liwu clutched Bai Lixin’s arm, “Okay, you can take me back.”

Bai Lixin took Bai Liwu into the palace carriage and spread a thick cushion in it before slowly moving towards the Benevolent Palace.

Bai Liwu was weak. He was lying on his side with his head resting on Bai Lixin’s lap on the cushion. He let out a bitter smile, “Xin’er, I remember when you were seven years old and were seriously ill. At that time, you were lying in bed, and lying on my lap just like this. It’s true that things in this world are unpredictable. Ten years have passed, and it’s me lying on Xin’er’s lap instead. ”

Bai Lixin’s voice carried a faint note of sadness; “Thanks to brother, who worked day and night back then. Now that Xin’er has grown up, it is up to Xin’er to take care of imperial brother.”

“At that time, even without me, Xin’er would have recovered unharmed. I was only using Xin’er to save some dignity in front of Father. After my mother left, father poured all his heart into you and your mother, and from then on, I knew that I had lost not only my mother, but also my father, “Bai Liwu laughed bitterly, his eyes sorrowful.

Although my initial actions were with purpose, I took care of you with sincerity and carelessness. ”

Bai Lixin nodded in a deep voice, “I know, Imperial Brother.”

“But even so, I have done my best for the Snow Kingdom. Xin’er, you can blame me, but you cannot trust that treacherous villain. Xiahou Chun is ambitious and greedy for fame and power. You cannot trust him lightly. ” Bai Liwu tilted his head and looked into Bai Lixin’s eyes seriously.

Bai Lixin gently stroked Bai Liwu’s cheek, gently wiping away the dirt on his face, and said softly, “Yes, I know, brother.”

Only then did Bai Liwu smile reassuringly and slowly close his eyes as if he had fallen asleep.

Bai Lixin sent Bai Liwu back to his palace and waited until Bai Liwu was at asleep before leaving.

As soon as he left, Bai Liwu, who had been lying in bed, slowly opened his eyes.

His eyes were cold and clear as he sat up, as if he had finally made up his mind. Although Bai Lixin did not say much, his actions in the past few days show that he already knew.

He planted ecstasy grass on Bai Lixin, but it had somehow ended up on him. The only person who could do that in a silent manner was Xiahou Chun.

A trace of resentment flashed in Bai Liwu’s eyes. The best person in the world for you is me, yet you have helped Bai Lixin to harm me twice.

The friendship that we shared on the battlefield is now buried in the dust along with the ecstasy grass!

I will return to you all the pain that you have inflicted on me, and I will make it worse!

When Bai Lixin returned to the palace, Xiahou Chun had already disposed of the corpse.

Looking at the blood-stained prison, Bai Lixin asked, “Did my brother kill the eunuch in the same way that day?”

“Well, he hid the poison in his fingertips. By touching the wound in a fit of rage, the poison invaded his body along the wound. This poison can instantly kill a man just by passing through his muscles. It seems to be one of the most poisonous substances in the world. ”

“So I have to thank my brother for not using it on me, otherwise I wouldn’t have survived this long.”

“You have no old illnesses or serious injuries. It would be too conspicuous if you were to die suddenly and violently. After all, you are one of the princes of the Snow Kingdom. If you died strangely, whoever gained power would be the most likely to be the target of suspicion. Bai Liwu is not that stupid.”

“I naturally understand what you’re saying. Forget it, let’s go back first. ”

Although Doctor Wang did not explain anything, Xiahou Chun had checked his body and found very obvious traces of the Yue Kingdom people. So, although it was not very certain, collusion between the Yue and the Kalou Kingdom was a nine out of ten possibility.

Xiahou Chun and Bai Lixin reported the matter to Emperor Shengyuan, who, after thinking about it, said, “The most important thing now is Bai Liwu’s body. Did you ask Wang Yuan for the solution to the ecstasy grass?”

Although Wang Yuan did not say anything about a cure, Bai Lixin happened to know the cure. So he told Emperor Shengyuan the method.

Emperor Shengyuan pondered for a moment, “Under the bath of fire can we be reborn. However painful the process is, make sure that Bai Liwu is detoxified. ”

The matter seemed to have come to an end, and only a few eunuch doctors knew about Bai Liwu’s falling victim to ecstasy grass.

The doctors followed Bai Lixin’s advice and combined ginseng, deer antler, and other nourishing medicines into the right proportions before sending them to Bai Liwu’s house every day. At first, Bai Liwu was in great pain because he was deprived of his daily supply of ecstasy grass.

However, under the careful care of the imperial doctor, Bai Liwu gradually suppressed the disaster caused by the ecstasy grass and gradually recovered.

Two months later, Bai Liwu was already much better and had completely recovered.

He had stopped taking the pills the Imperial Physician had prescribed for him for seven days in a row, yet he was still glowing and no longer craved the pleasure the ecstasy grass gave him.

“Why did you save him?”

“I am not trying to save him, I am trying to make it clear to him that I am the master of this Kingdom and Father did not choose me because of his ill health or anything else. If he were ill, he would have an excuse to lose to me; but if he were in good health and still lost to me, what do you think the result would be? ”

“A convinced heart?”

“Bai Liwu is proud and arrogant, outwardly gentle and modest, but in fact, he looks down on everyone. What kind of blow do you think his pride would receive if his brother, whom he has despised since he was a child, trampled him under his foot? ”

Bai Lixin snorted and took a sip of the wine he had made. “The wine has taken shape. With the excitement over there, I think it’s almost time to close the net.”

In the intervening two months, another incident had occurred. The cave where Huang Yuanwei, the richest man in the Snow Kingdom who controlled the economic lifeline of the Snow Kingdom, was mining crystals in the back of the mountain had collapsed.

Coincidentally, on that day, Xiahou Chun had imposed a city-wide martial law on what seemed like a whim. Almost all the villagers were at home and did not go to work. But Huang Yuanwei carried out some secret mining, so a dozen workers died when a landslide occurred and the cave collapsed.

Because the whole city was under martial law that day, it was natural for workers not to go to work. However, because the employer ordered them, these workers had to bite the bullet and carry out mining silently. After the deaths of a dozen workers, the families of these workers were extremely emotional and wanted to settle accounts with Huang Yuanwei.

Although the matter was more serious than the previous one, because there was no manipulation on Bai Liwu’s part, Huang Yuanwei was still spared, and a foreman was dragged out to take the blame instead.

The matter had just come to an end, and Huang Yuanwei breathed a sigh of relief, his heart a little elated.

Although a mistake led to Bai Liwu’s falling victim to the ecstasy drug and the loss of a spy, it was a blessing in disguise. The emperor had put all his efforts into finding a cure for Bai Liwu and had put all his heart into Bai Liwu.

As for Bai Liwu, it seemed that this incident enlightened him and he agreed to his plan to cooperate with him from the inside.

In a month’s time, it will be a cold winter, the ground will be covered with thick snow, and it will be the best time to take advantage.

All he had to do now was wait for the right weather, the right place, and the right people to take over the Snow Kingdom in one fell swoop!

As time passed, and as winter approached, snow began to fall incessantly from the sky, and a thick layer of snow gradually piled up on the ground.

Seeing that the time for the plan was getting closer, Huang Yuanwei sent a message to the Kalou Kingdom, asking the vanguard army to wear white outer robes as a cover and secretly march towards the Snow Kingdom.

Huang Yuanwei planned to go to the camp three days before the attack and change into his own attire.

He was originally from the Kalou Kingdom, and had entered Snow City more than twenty years ago as a merchant in order to infiltrate the Snow Kingdom. With the accumulation of time, he had both fame and fortune. Although he had wealth and contacts in the Snow kingdom that he did not have in the Kalou Kingdom and had never suffered from in the Snow Kingdom, he still yearned for the sunny and fiery Kalou kingdom in his heart.

Huang Yuanwei smiled as he watched the eagle soar on its wings and fly out of the city.

Kalou Kingdom and the Snow Kingdom were next to each other.

They were so close to each other, but one is a kingdom of fire and the other is a kingdom of ice and snow.

The reality has long doomed these two countries as incompatible. If there is a Kalou Kingdom, there should not be a Snow Kingdom!

On the seventh day after the letter was sent out, Huang Yuanwei received a reply.

The letter said that 500,000 troops were already on their way to the Snow Kingdom, and that they would arrive outside Snow City in ten days. When the time came, a letter would be sent to inform him.

After reading the letter, Huang Yuanwai laughed and burned it. He was in a good mood, but he didn’t see a ghostly shadow flying out of the Huang mansion.

“As you expected, they have already set out.”

“An ice and a fire Kingdom. Ice and fire are incompatible. Now let’s see if ice is slightly better or fire is stronger.” Bai Lixin knew what the result would be and he smiled, “Mister Huang is no longer useful.”

Xiahou Chun also smiled and said, “Just wait for the net to be closed. There is no hurry; we will see the results tomorrow. ”

Huang Yuanwei had dozed off in his soft, comfortable bed, only to awaken in a pitch-black dungeon.

The dungeon seemed specially built, with thick steel locks all around it. There was no sunlight or moonlight, only pitch darkness. There was a small, four-sided sliding door below the locked door for the daily delivery of food.

Where was this?

A dungeon? Who had brought him here?

Had the plan fallen through?

But the Kalou army had already set off! If he was captured, then …… what should be he do next?

Is there anyone here? Where is this? Hey, is anyone there? ” It was a cold dungeon, but Huang Yuanwei’s forehead was covered with cold sweat. His heart was beating fast, and his whole body was trembling. 500,000 troops! That’s half a million troops!

He must give them the news, or else!

The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became, but there was nothing he could do in the iron-walled cell.

But Bai Liwu is still out there, and there are ten days left. Bai Liwu will notice if he is still missing in ten days.

He had worked with Bai Liwu so many times, and the latter had never let him down once.

Bai Liwu, whether the Kalou Army can retreat in one piece or not is entirely dependent on you!

However, on the other hand, Bai Liwu, whom Huang Yuanwei regarded as a life-saver, was placed under house arrest.

The reason is none other than the crystal cave collapse incident that ended just a month ago. The case that was supposed to have ended took a new twist. The foreman, who had confessed to the crime, suddenly changed his story. He said that he took the blame because his family was being blackmailed and that someone else was the culprit.

The Minister of Justice originally did not want to investigate further. After all, the matter had been going on for more than half a month, and the Benevolent Prince had even come to ask questions several times. But just as he was about to take the case to court, he was stopped by His Royal Highness Bai Lixin and Xiahou Chun.

Xiao Chun came to the department with an account book that clearly recorded every bribe Huang Yuanwei had given. In it, the one who had received the most bribes was actually the Benevolent Prince.

Emperor Shengyuan learnt of this and was furious. He immediately ordered the Benevolent Prince to be placed under house arrest in his palace. The palace gate was heavily guarded and no one was allowed to approach.