Just as Kong Ze was about to speak, the butler of the mansion walked to the door. "Grand National Master, Eunuch Fu, who serves the Emperor, is here. He's waiting for you in the main hall."
"Eunuch Fu?" Kong Ze couldn't help but frown. "Why would he come to the mansion?"
"I don't know, Grand National Master. Eunuch Fu only said that he has important matters to discuss with you."
"Okay, I'll go there right away." Kong Ze turned around and told Feng Yunshu worriedly, "Little Junior Sister, don't be too anxious about Helan Yanting's matter. I'm here, and I'll surely help you find out the truth."
Feng Yunshu nodded absent - mindedly. At this moment, her mind was full of the thought that if Helan Yanting was really gone, she might have to go to the underworld to find him.
Everything had happened so suddenly and was full of doubts. Now, suddenly hearing that the man was gone, Feng Yunshu couldn't accept this huge amount of information all at once.
"Third Senior Brother, you go and see what the Emperor wants to talk to you about first. I'll calm myself down."
Kong Ze nodded and then walked to the main hall.
When Eunuch Fu saw Kong Ze enter, he immediately got up politely and bowed. "Grand National Master, you're here."
"Eunuch Fu, what brings you to the mansion today? I suppose the Emperor has some important matters to tell me?"
Eunuch Fu quickly nodded. "Yes, Grand National Master is truly worthy of the title. I suppose you've already heard the news of the death of Prince Helan?"
Kong Ze nodded meaningfully. "Yes, but I wonder why Prince Helan suddenly had an accident when he was in good health?"
"Well... I heard that he died in the dungeon. I'm not quite sure about the specific situation. However, this time the Emperor sent me here with an oral edict."
"Please go ahead, Eunuch."
"The Emperor asks you to enter the palace immediately to handle the aftermath of Prince Helan's death."
"Handle the aftermath?" Kong Ze frowned in confusion after hearing this. "Why does the Emperor..."
"I'm just following orders to deliver this oral edict. I don't know anything else. You'll surely understand everything once you see the Emperor, Grand National Master."
"Okay, I understand." Although Kong Ze would show his true self in front of Feng Yunshu, outside, he tried his best to imitate the original master's expression and attitude. His expression and tone were rather cold, giving an air of keeping people at a distance.
After Eunuch Fu left, Kong Ze told Feng Yunshu about this matter. He thought that although he didn't know what the Emperor was up to, he could just take this opportunity to find out what had really happened to Helan Yanting.
Feng Yunshu nodded. "Okay, Third Senior Brother. I'll trouble you with this matter. If..." At this point, Feng Yunshu's voice choked. After a short pause, she continued, "If something really happened to him, I must find out the truth. As for that dog - emperor, he won't be able to stay on the throne for much longer. You know I always keep my word."
"Don't worry, Little Junior Sister. I'll be here to share everything with you. Just leave this matter to me for now."
Feng Yunshu nodded with red - rimmed eyes and a complicated mood. "Okay, I'll wait for your news."
In the palace.
Kong Ze came to the South Study and saw Dongfang Chuan. At that time, Dongfang Chuan was sitting on a chair, reviewing memorials. When he saw Kong Ze enter, the Emperor put down the memorials and looked up at him.
"Grand National Master, you're here."
Kong Ze stepped forward a few steps. "Your Majesty, according to Eunuch Fu, Prince Helan has passed away? What exactly happened? This incident happened so suddenly that I'm not quite clear about the whole story."
"Yes." Dongfang Chuan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Helan Yanting had been secretly plotting a rebellion during his years in our Dan Kingdom. With such evil intentions, I naturally couldn't continue to keep such a dangerous person around."
"A few days ago, I sent the imperial guards to arrest him and put him in the dungeon. Maybe Helan Yanting was not in good health. I hadn't even imposed any punishment on him, but the jailer found this morning that he was already dead."
Kong Ze nodded slowly after hearing this, his face looking rather gloomy. "Prince Helan was a rebel?"
Dongfang Chuan nodded. "Yes. Such a rebel is dead, and he's of no use anymore."
Kong Ze was silent for a moment. "Since the rebel is dead, why did Your Majesty summon me here?"
"Grand National Master, I have an important task for you, and you must complete it."
"I've had Helan Yanting's body placed somewhere. I want you to use his body to curse the Helan royal family, cursing them to have no descendants and never be able to rise again!"
Kong Ze's heart skipped a beat after hearing this, and his expression became rather complicated.
"Your Majesty, do you know that cursing is the most despised thing among practitioners? It's already despicable for an ordinary person to do so. As the emperor of a country, how could you come up with such a despicable plan?"
"National Master, you don't know. The Yuan Kingdom has always been the biggest threat to our Dan Kingdom. And the royal family of the Yuan Kingdom is not a good one. Especially the emperor of the Yuan Kingdom is extremely despicable and shameless. Decades ago, when I was still the crown prince, I fought against the emperor of the Yuan Kingdom and almost got killed by his暗算."
"Therefore, when it comes to the Yuan Kingdom, any method is not considered despicable. This is just my way to defeat them!" After saying this, Dongfang Chuan looked at Kong Ze. "What, are you going to refuse my request? Or do you have any objections to my decision?"
Kong Ze shook his head. "I have no objections. Since Your Majesty has made up your mind, I'll do as you say." In fact, Kong Ze thought to himself that he would just fool the emperor. Once the emperor died, he would never be able to see what would happen to the Helan royal family in the future.
Dongfang Chuan nodded and continued, "There's another thing. I want you to divinate the whereabouts of Feng Yunshu and that fox. I want to know whether she's dead or alive. I must find her immediately!"
"Your Majesty, why are you so persistent about the whereabouts of Princess Helan? Just because of that fox? But I've said before that the little fox is not a spiritual fox."
"Whether it's a spiritual fox or not, Feng Yunshu is full of mysteries. I want to interrogate her myself." At this point, Dongfang Chuan added, "In addition, now that the Yuan Kingdom and our Dan Kingdom are at war, I want you to calculate our chances of winning. If possible, increase our chances of victory."
"Your Majesty, victory and defeat are common in war. I'm afraid this may not go as you wish. Moreover, war is a waste of people and resources. Peace is the way for a country to thrive in the long - term."
However, Dongfang Chuan was still persistent. "So can you calculate it or not?" When saying this, Dongfang Chuan's tone was a bit impatient. "I just want a result. Surely you, Grand National Master, can do this?"
Kong Ze didn't say much more. "Your Majesty, please give me some time."
After saying that, Kong Ze asked someone to go back to his mansion to get the tools he needed for divination. In fact, they were quite simple: a few tortoise shells, some copper coins, and a small incense burner.
Actually, Kong Ze didn't need any props to divinate. He could just release his spiritual power to perform the divination. But in order to make others more convinced, he had to use some props to demonstrate.
After a round of divination, Kong Ze told the emperor the result. "Your Majesty, the divination result shows that Princess Helan and the little fox are no longer in the Dan Kingdom. Since the distance is too long, I can't determine their exact location. They're probably in the southwest direction."
"Really?"
Kong Ze nodded. "Absolutely true."
"Good. I'll immediately send people to search in the southwest direction."
"What about the result of the war?"
"Peace through negotiation."