Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved
Chapter 47 Truth 2

Chapter 47: Chapter 47 Truth 2

"Yes," Zheng Muyuan’s voice wasn’t loud, but it came through amidst the sound of water splashing, exuding a strangely ominous sense of fear.

Eunuch Ho Sheng gripped Xing Yu’s arm tightly, even though he desperately wished he could suffer in place of his master at this moment, he knew better than to act rashly now.

Ho Sheng had achieved his position today, and moreover, had managed to stay by the side of the arrogant and vicious Fourth Prince for so long, thanks to his wisdom and capabilities.

After a brief period of panic, Eunuch Ho Sheng immediately calmed down. The scene before his eyes had confirmed the suspicions in his mind.

Moreover, he had learned quite a bit about the secrets of Qiandao Temple from Kang Ning. He knew exactly what Master Yin He had been doing in the shadows, how many young lives had been extinguished to keep the Second Prince alive until today. But Ho Sheng had never imagined that the Fourth Prince would also be needed for this plan.

"Why, why?" Zheng Haoyuan feared whatever was in the pool, and the sudden appearance of Zheng Muyuan only made him more frightened. He felt that all of this was related to Zheng Muyuan, but why? His second brother had always taken care of him, secretly giving him many things.

"Fourth brother, if there were another choice, your second brother would never pick you. But if your second brother doesn’t choose you, where else can I find a body with a life force so similar, and one that has been fed poison from a young age?" Zheng Muyuan said laboriously, his pale face, although delicate, was tinged with the grey-black color of death, as he slowly walked over from beside Master Yin He.

Ho Sheng shuddered, but with the groundwork laid in his heart, hearing these words directly from Zheng Muyuan’s mouth meant he didn’t have to guess any longer. The Fourth Prince was the key element in the Second Prince’s bizarre survival spells.

Ho Sheng suddenly recalled the poisonous snakes and insects that Zheng Muyuan had kept sending to the Chenhe Hall over the past two years.

Master Yin He sat cross-legged by the pool, eyes closed, as dense swarms of black creatures crawled from beneath his dark robes, slowly making their way toward the water. Along with these venomous creatures came tufts of black vapor that hid in the dim candlelight, creating a chill so intense it raised goosebumps all over one’s body.

If the candlelight had been brighter, one could have seen that the dense, black creatures endlessly crawling out from beneath the man included scorpions, centipedes, and spiders. Their relentless procession was enough to make one’s skin crawl.

The two Loyalists inside the cave couldn’t help but lean against the stone wall, as if there was something in the air that made it hard for them to breathe.

Suddenly, the Stone Cave fell into an eerie silence, which only heightened the atmosphere of fear. Master Yin He suddenly burst forth, his voice weird and his speech quicker, sending bizarre characters and tones relentlessly into everyone’s ears. It was like a talisman or something invisible was slowly tightening its grip on their skin.

"No, please no..." Zheng Haoyuan sensed the danger and struggled desperately, only to find the chains tightly binding his ankles, unable to break free.

"Fu Gong, don’t be afraid, you won’t feel anything soon," Zheng Muyuan explained patiently, as he watched Zheng Haoyuan’s strong, plump body struggle to sit by the pool. The poisonous creatures diverted their path around him and continued to crawl toward the pool.

A metallic, bloody scent began to slowly spread from the pool.

Zheng Haoyuan dreamed that a layer of black liquid rose to the surface of the water, followed by snakes turning belly-up on the surface, terror silencing him as if someone were blocking his throat. He couldn’t scream; his despair was so intense it almost drove him mad.

Zheng Muyuan watched enviously. What a strong, vibrant body it was, and soon it would be his.

Zheng Nianru and the others couldn’t see inside the cave; they could only hear bits and pieces of the conversation.

"A donor? You want to use my body as a donor?" Zheng Haoyuan swallowed hard, finally spitting out the words, "Second Brother, if you’re looking for a donor, Nanzheng State is so vast, there must be others..."

"It’s too late." Zheng Muyuan suddenly laughed, "Little brother, do you know how much suffering I’ve endured for this day, how many methods I’ve tried? But, I have no time left. Look, look..."

Zheng Muyuan rolled up his sleeves, but in the darkness, Zheng Haoyuan could not see anything; he only felt the man’s arms were pitted and bumpy, like a toad’s.

"We are blood brothers, you are my second brother—" Zheng Haoyuan cried out in despair.

"Fu Gong, rest assured, I will replace you and live well." Zheng Muyuan slowly said, his voice becoming hoarse by the last few words, as if these words had exhausted all his strength.

"Second brother, we are family...?" Zheng Haoyuan sobbed, realizing what Zheng Muyuan meant, but he did not want to die, not even Mother Consort would know he had died.

Zheng Nianru’s eyelids twitched, and it seemed as if some things unintentionally connected together. If the future Zheng Haoyuan was not Zheng Haoyuan, then the future behavior of Zheng Haoyuan could be understood.

An odd thought flashed through Zheng Nianru’s mind: if she saved Zheng Haoyuan, then the events that followed might not happen, and Nanzheng State wouldn’t decay wretchedly. After Zheng Congyuan’s death, she could only push her incompetent son to the throne. Although Zheng Haoyuan was young, what about in a few years?

"If Mother Consort finds out, she will definitely find out." Zheng Haoyuan cried out, his inherent fear and the immediate terror stretching out infinitely, the small figure making splashes in the pool water.

"How could Mother Consort find out, we are both her sons after all." Zheng Muyuan struggled to his feet, and Master Yin He also stood up, his voluminous black robes turning empty and deflated in an instant, like a child wearing an overlarge coat of a fat man.

This time, several snake-like arms did not head toward the pool but slowly crawled onto Zheng Muyuan’s body; Zheng Muyuan seemed accustomed to it all, letting the dozens of snakes wrap around every part of his body, the stench of blood in the air growing even stronger.

Master Yin He repeated the strange and urgent spells in a low voice, the spells whipping anyone who could hear them like a black vine covered in sharp thorns.

The black-robed young man’s chanting grew louder and more urgent, filling the entire stone cave; unseen black smoke writhed everywhere, penetrating every crevice. Zheng Haoyuan’s pupils darkened further until gradually, he felt as if he was merging with the pool.

Zheng Nianru also felt her skin tightening all over, like an extremely dehydrated fish, yet suddenly the sensation seemed familiar. She suddenly remembered the Mystical Arts Ju Nanyi performed by her bedside when she was close to death and had to admit, there were times she thought she wouldn’t survive, yet she woke up in bed again.

Therefore, Zheng Nianru suddenly realized it was very likely this could succeed.

Just then, as Master Yin He headed toward the pool water, Eunuch Ho Sheng had already become an arrow loosed from its bow. Zheng Haoyuan’s scream at that moment, like the hand releasing the arrow’s tail, shot past Zheng Nianru and directly toward Zheng Haoyuan in the pool.

"Your Highness—" Eunuch Ho Sheng shouted loudly, and in a flash, shadows scattered as if spooked, crashing around like ghosts shying away from sunlight.

The man in black’s face changed, and he immediately made a move, but Zheng Nianru was not idle either, kicking at Zheng Muyuan who was sitting by the pool, giving him a taste of being drowned.

With a splash, Zheng Muyuan fell into the water without resistance. Master Yin He’s face changed, and he was about to confront Zheng Nianru, but as Zheng Nianru turned to face him, the man abruptly withdrew his hand, as if holding a hot potato. In his panic, the previously scattered black smoke suddenly had nowhere to go, some of it even rushing toward the black-robed young man.

Meanwhile, another part continued toward Zheng Haoyuan in the pool, as Eunuch Ho Sheng held Zheng Haoyuan, desperately trying to save him.

"Ah, ah—" Eunuch Ho Sheng let out a scream of utter humanity, while Xing Yu, having just overturned two Loyalists, frowned and covered her ears.