Li Zhao looked at Xiao Jingcheng and asked, "Xiao Jingcheng, you're the crown prince of the Sheng Kingdom. Now that you know the hidden danger that Dongli Town is facing, what are you going to do?"
Being directly addressed as the crown prince, Mo Zhizhang gently raised his eyebrows and also looked at Xiao Jingcheng.
Xiao Jingcheng lowered his eyes and stared at the reed stalks on the table, lost in thought.
What should he do?
Naturally... do what a crown prince ought to do!
On his way back, Xiao Jingcheng had already thought about this question. He looked up and said, "For now, we need to figure out a way to alert the townspeople and help them take flood - prevention measures. At the same time, we should also plan an escape route. Once Dongli Town falls, we must immediately evacuate everyone to a safe place."
Li Zhao deliberately asked, "You're right. This matter concerns the lives of thousands of people in Dongli Town. It's a major event. If it's done well, the merits will last for generations. But if it's not, you'll be condemned for all time and become a sinner in history. Are you confident and capable enough to handle it?"
Xiao Jingcheng met those calm and deep eyes. A fire was ignited in his chest, burning vigorously and making his whole body boil.
"Uncle Li, rest assured. I'll make proper arrangements and take full responsibility for the consequences."
Li Zhao asked, "The throne of the Great Sheng has already changed hands. Now it's your uncle, Xiao Tianchi, sitting on the dragon throne. Even though doing this will draw his attention and he may very likely send people to hunt you down again, do you still not regret it?"
Xiao Jingcheng nodded. "This concerns the lives of the common people. If he uses this as an excuse to kill me, then I'll—dethrone him from that position!"
Li Zhao laughed. "Okay, I'll leave it to you."
Xiao Jingcheng stood up from the ground and said to the three of them, "If everything turns out as we've speculated and the water level in Dongli Town continues to rise, Huichuntang is not a place to stay for long. You should hurry up and pack your things. Wait patiently here. I'll send someone to pick you up."
Qi Wen volunteered, raising his hand. "Brother Jing, let me go with you! I can help too!"
Xiao Jingcheng looked at Mo Zhizhang, who had his head down and seemed to be in deep thought, and Li Zhao, whose face was clearly pale and weak. He said, "No, you stay here. Besides packing your valuables, you also need to gather some medicinal herbs. They'll surely come in handy later."
Qi Wen immediately replied, "Okay."
After giving his instructions, Xiao Jingcheng quickly left. He lifted the curtain and came to the backyard. He paused for a moment and looked at a closed door.
Inside the room, Jiang Mian and her mother must be sleeping soundly.
Without further hesitation, Xiao Jingcheng put on his straw raincoat, picked up his bamboo umbrella, stepped into the rain, and left quickly.
...
After Xiao Jingcheng left, the three of them also got up and went back to their rooms to pack their things.
When Li Zhao came to Dongli Town, he had nothing but some silver on him. But Jiang Mian had bought him several sets of clean clothes, which he folded and packed.
Just as he tied up the package, there was a noise at the door. Mo Zhizhang was standing outside, holding a bowl of steaming medicine.
"Although the toxicity in Secretary Li's body has been temporarily suppressed, his body is still quite weak. He still needs to take additional medicine," he said.
Li Zhao's gaze fell on the pottery bowl in his hand. He nodded. "Bring it in."
Taking the medicine bowl from Mo Zhizhang's hand, Li Zhao didn't even frown and drank all the medicinal soup in one go.
When he returned the bowl, Mo Zhizhang said, "Aren't you afraid, Secretary Li, that there are other ingredients in this medicine that could kill you instantly?"
Li Zhao looked at the smiling young man and said, "Since you call me Secretary Li, it means I'm still useful to you. So, you won't let me die so easily."
Mo Zhizhang laughed, his eyes narrowing slightly, looking like a fox. "Oh, as expected of Secretary Li. You saw through my intention so quickly."
Li Zhao said, "Since things have come to this, there's no need for us to hide anymore. You're not actually Wang Hengyong's junior brother, am I right?"
Mo Zhizhang asked with a smile, "Oh? How do you know?"
He also wanted to know when he had shown his flaw.
"The signs were already there when I asked you about your master when you first came to Huichuntang," Li Zhao said slowly.
"I'm an old acquaintance of Wang Hengyong. Back then, he was the chief physician of the Imperial Hospital of the Chu Kingdom. He was dismissed from his post and expelled from the capital for accidentally offending the favorite concubine of the King of Chu with a thoughtless remark.
"At that time, his master was already sixty - two years old. Nearly twenty years have passed. His master should be eighty - two years old by now. At such an advanced age, how could he be traveling around as you said?
"I suppose you've never met his master, but since you had to disguise your identity, you came up with such an excuse."
Mo Zhizhang suddenly realized, "Ah, so that's it. I thought it was because I'm better at detoxification than at treating diseases that I showed my hand."
The smile on his face grew wider. "Then, Secretary Li, guess who I am and why I'm here?"
"You're an informant that Xiao Tianchi planted in Dongli Town," Li Zhao said firmly. He paused for a moment and then added, "You're related to the King of Chu, or rather, the royal family of the Chu Kingdom."
"There are very few people in this world who know about Li Bingjun. Moreover, I've been in hiding for many years. Unless someone saw me back then, no one would know my identity."
The smile on Mo Zhizhang's face became even broader. "Oh? Couldn't it be that I overheard your conversation with Brother Gou Dan and that's how I knew?"
Li Zhao stared straight at him. Although his face was pale and his breath was weak, his gaze was extremely sharp, as if he could see through all the mists.
"You're so much like that person," Li Zhao said.
The person he was referring to was the King of Chu, Chu Kuo, who had once issued an order to massacre the entire Li family.
However, Chu Kuo had already died at the hands of the Xiao family. By the time of his death, he was already in his thirties, while the man in front of him was only twenty - three years old. Their ages didn't match, and they didn't look alike either.
But the other person's way of doing things and his mysterious nature were exactly the same as Chu Kuo's. Especially the tone he used when threatening Li Zhao with the venom and gall of the silver - banded krait just now made Li Zhao feel familiar.
Chu Kuo was dissolute. Maybe Mo Zhizhang was the bloodline that Chu Kuo left in this world but was never recognized by the royal family of the Chu Kingdom.
Mo Zhizhang sighed. "There's nothing that can be hidden from your eyes, Secretary Li. Since you've seen through my identity, I can't let you live any longer.
"The Li family of Luozhou has a deep - seated hatred with the Great Chu. To avenge your clansmen, you'll surely kill me. For my own safety, I have to strike first."
But after saying that, Mo Zhizhang just stood there smiling and didn't do anything else, as if the threatening words just now were just empty talk.
Li Zhao looked at him silently. After a while, he said, "Oh, well. Killing you now won't do me any good. Anyway, you'll die in three years. I still want to see the miserable state you'll be in when the poison flares up."
Mo Zhizhang turned around and left with the medicine bowl. Li Zhao was lost in thought, then he let out a soft laugh and murmured almost inaudibly, "Xiao Tianchi, what on earth are you up to?"