Chapter 155

Chapter 155: Did You Reward the Wrong Person?

Not far away, First Madam Liu noticed that Shang Xing Yu and the others came down alone and light, with no one around them.

First Madam Liu immediately gathered a few third-rank officials’ madams and walked over.

First Madam Liu’s mocking gaze landed on the clothing bundles being opened from the back.

Judging by the size, did they catch a squirrel? A wild rabbit?

Or… a wild chicken?

Ha.

It was laughable.

First Madam Liu walked closer and was about to speak.

First Madam Liu’s eyes swept over the table, and in the next instant, First Madam Liu’s face turned deathly white.

First Madam Liu swallowed hard several times. Whether it was lucky or unlucky, First Madam Liu did not faint like Minister Ye and Censor Chen.

But First Madam Liu turned around and gagged, then vomited loudly.

“Ah!” Liu Yan could not dodge in time, and the filth splashed onto Liu Yan’s skirt.

Lord Liu had already heard from wife and daughter what Shang Xing Yu had done. Now that Lord Liu saw First Madam Liu like this, Lord Liu hurried over.

When Lord Liu saw what lay on the table, Lord Liu’s heart shook violently.

Along with disbelief, Lord Liu also felt fear.

Lord Liu steadied First Madam Liu, and disgust showed in Lord Liu’s eyes. “Young Master Shang Er’s actions were far too cruel!”

Following Lord Liu’s gaze, people in the distance also noticed the commotion.

They saw what lay on the table.

Several beast heads.

Blood everywhere, horrifying to the bone.

Aside from that, the only complete prey was a single red fox.

“Gasp! Good heavens. Black-hearted and ruthless, heavy with sin!” a madam cried, turning away in fear.

“Comparing people showed the difference. Sure enough, there aren’t many gentlemen like Qi Shi-zi, so pure and upright, so kind and benevolent,” someone else said.

Qi Shu Xian frowned at the bloody beast heads and clearly disapproved.

Shang Xing Yu’s fingers twitched.

Shang Xing Yu did not care what others thought, but they insisted on comparing Shang Xing Yu to Qi Shu Xian.

And they insisted on making Shang Xing Yu the worse one.

Tsk.

“My lords said it wrong,” Shang Xing Yu said. “I don’t have that many twists and turns in my heart. I only wanted to bring the things down the mountain. Besides, the Imperial Ancestor’s realm was won from horseback. If you don’t even dare kill beasts, then what? Do you think you can protect the common people just by being pure and kind?”

“Good! Well said!” a voice rang out.

The Drill Ground fell silent at once.

“People can’t forget their roots. If killing a few beasts means having no compassion, then every commander – including me – and even the Imperial Ancestor and the Late Emperor, would all be heartless and unjust!”

Liu Ru Gao shook hard.

The people who had been echoing Lord Liu earlier all lowered their heads in shame.

Qi Shu Xian’s face turned pale, then green.

Emperor Chong Sheng walked over with the Empress at Emperor Chong Sheng’s side.

Behind them came Noble Consort Qi, the Crown Prince, the Third Prince, and the others.

In the distance, the tent belonging to the Northern Di envoys finally opened.

Fourth Prince Lu Chuo, who looked weak and pale, slowly walked out.

Behind Lu Chuo, the Northern Di soldiers were in a sorry state. Some were injured, some limped. The worst injured were Generals Hu Shu Xie and Jin Ri Xu.

“Your Majesty!” Everyone saluted.

Lu Chuo bowed halfway with a pale face. Even though the Northern Di soldiers behind Lu Chuo were full of unwillingness, they still bowed deeply.

Emperor Chong Sheng looked over the scene, in excellent spirits.

Emperor Chong Sheng’s gaze finally fell on the beast heads. Emperor Chong Sheng could not help laughing a few more times before speaking. “All of you, rise.”

“Prince Lu Chuo, did Northern Di accept this loss wholeheartedly?” Emperor Chong Sheng asked.

Lu Chuo had not answered yet when General Hu Shu Xie behind Lu Chuo could not help speaking up.

“Hu Shu Xie!” Lu Chuo shot General Hu Shu Xie a cold look.

General Hu Shu Xie snorted and lowered General Hu Shu Xie’s head.

Lu Chuo looked at Emperor Chong Sheng. “A loss is a loss. Sheng Kingdom’s Majesty, Northern Di suffered a great defeat this time. Northern Di accepted it wholeheartedly.”

“Good!” Emperor Chong Sheng was even happier. Emperor Chong Sheng turned Emperor Chong Sheng’s gaze and looked toward one spot. “Shang Er, besides a thousand taels of gold, do you want any other reward?”

What?

Everyone froze.

Second Prince Sheng Yuan Qi lifted Sheng Yuan Qi’s head in disbelief and stared at Emperor Chong Sheng, then at Shang Xing Yu.

“Imperial Father, did you reward the wrong person?” Second Prince Sheng Yuan Qi said. “In this hunt, the one who killed the most Northern Di soldiers was Qi Shi-zi. The one who heavily injured two Northern Di commanders was also Qi Shi-zi!”

“The final banner was also pulled out by your son,” Sheng Yuan Qi added.

That last sentence sounded a little guilty, but Sheng Yuan Qi immediately forced confidence back into Sheng Yuan Qi’s voice. “No matter what, the person you should reward shouldn’t be Shang Er!”

Second Prince Sheng Yuan Qi said what most people thought.

Even the Northern Di soldiers themselves thought the same.

Emperor Chong Sheng gave Sheng Yuan Qi a look full of disdain and turned to Lu Chuo. “Prince Lu Chuo, what do you think?”

“Sheng Kingdom’s Majesty truly saw everything clearly,” Lu Chuo said with a bitter smile. “On the surface, it was the Sheng Kingdom team led by Qi Shi-zi that defeated Northern Di’s soldiers. But from beginning to end, the one who planned it all and controlled it was this Young Master Shang.”

In just a few sentences, Lu Chuo revealed Shang Xing Yu’s entire scheme.

The commanders behind Lu Chuo were stunned, especially General Hu Shu Xie and General Jin Ri Xu.

General Hu Shu Xie and General Jin Ri Xu glared at Shang Xing Yu. They could not believe it. From start to finish, they never even saw the other side in the forest, yet they still walked step by step into the trap according to the other side’s plan.

“I, Hu Shu Xie, concede!”

“I, Jin Ri Xu, also submit!”

After those words, Qi Shu Xian still could not recover from what Lu Chuo said.

What did it mean that Shang Xing Yu controlled the layout from beginning to end?

Yes, Qi Shu Xian had noticed something was wrong when the Northern Di soldiers kept arriving one after another and allowed them to Encircle the Point and Ambush Reinforcements.

But… how could that be possible?

Shang Xing Yu was a dandy.

How could Shang Xing Yu do all this?

Qi Shu Xian’s face looked even worse than before.

In the crowd, First Madam Liu and Liu Yan both wondered if they had heard wrong.

Shang Xing Yu…

A dandy…

How could Shang Xing Yu have that kind of ability?

Shang Tian Hao narrowed Shang Tian Hao’s eyes, staring hard at Shang Xing Yu.

Shang Xiu Yuan’s lips trembled, and Shang Xiu Yuan’s eyes were blank.

How could it be?

Since childhood, Shang Xing Yu had never been better than Shang Xiu Yuan at anything.

When it came to memorizing texts, Shang Xing Yu could not even read them. When it came to riding and archery, Shang Xing Yu could not even draw a bow. There were so many other things too.

Shang Xing Yu was a complete dandy.

How could Shang Xing Yu think of such a precise and brilliant scheme?

“Shang Er,” Emperor Chong Sheng said, sounding amused, “everyone said you were just a dandy. Even your father told me you were completely useless. Tell me, how did you, a dandy, come up with such a tricky plan, so delicate and precise, and so perfectly tuned to human nature?”

The moment Shang Tian Hao was mentioned, Shang Tian Hao felt many strange gazes land on Shang Tian Hao.

Shang Tian Hao lowered Shang Tian Hao’s head.

Shang Xing Yu smiled. “Your Majesty praised me too highly. Actually, Father was right. I really am a dandy. This time, the reason I thought of this method was… did Your Majesty ever catch sparrows when Your Majesty was young?”

“Hm?” Emperor Chong Sheng raised Emperor Chong Sheng’s brows.

Shang Xing Yu smiled. “There’s a way to catch sparrows. You just propped up a cage with a stick. Then you scattered some rice and grain the sparrows liked where the sparrows gathered. The greedy sparrows followed the grain, step by step, until the sparrows walked under the cage you set…”