Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Sheng Zhaoning obediently made herself scarce.

She never questioned any of Wei Yi’s decisions.

Even if one day he grew utterly weary of her, she would not hesitate to kill herself rather than trouble him.

After returning to the Shadow Pavilion, Sheng Zhaoning changed into a set of black combat attire. Instead of her usual longsword, she wrapped a Sleeve Crossbow around her wrist, and picked a handy dagger to tuck at the small of her back. Both the hidden weapons and the blade were coated with potent poison.

She was efficient and never dallied.

Thus, even though Wei Yi had just given the kill order, she was already fully prepared to act immediately.

“Where are you going?”

Unexpectedly, just as Sheng Zhaoning pushed open the door, she came face to face with Dai Rong’s stern expression.

Dai Rong was holding a plate of ice crystal cakes, her scrutinizing gaze sweeping from top to bottom. When it landed on Sheng Zhaoning’s black attire and the dagger in her hand, it paused noticeably, but she did not expose her.

She simply asked, “It’s so late-who are you going to see?”

Sheng Zhaoning tightened her grip on the dagger, a flicker of discomfort crossing her face before she feigned composure and said, “I have orders.”

Dai Rong gave a cold snort, her expression darkening. She forcibly shoved Sheng Zhaoning back inside, shut the door behind her, then turned and fixed her with a piercing stare, her words ringing clear: “His Highness is not even in the residence right now! Whose orders are you carrying out!”

Pushed back into the room, Sheng Zhaoning pressed her lips together and did not answer.

Dai Rong heaved a heavy sigh.

In truth, there was no need for an answer. How could she not know?

Who else but That one from Northern Garden could possibly order her around?

“Does His Highness know about the person you’re going to kill?” Dai Rong asked.

Sheng Zhaoning’s gaze lowered halfway. “No.”

Dai Rong’s brows furrowed. She strode to the table in a few steps and set the plate of pastries down heavily, producing a dull thud.

“Don’t forget who your true master is!” Dai Rong lowered her voice but scolded sharply. “If you take matters into your own hands and His Highness finds out, you’ll have broken the rules. Haven’t you had enough punishment from last time!”

Sheng Zhaoning’s eyes flashed coldly. “That man deserves to die.”

“What makes him deserve it?” Dai Rong demanded.

“He’s a spy.”

“Do you have proof!”

Dai Rong slapped the table, glaring at her, her volume rising. “Or did you catch him committing some crime!”

Dai Rong was rarely so harsh. Her usual gentleness and poise had vanished; now she looked more like an exasperated elder, disappointed and angry that someone she cared about was falling short.

“If you have neither, what right do you have to kill him?” Dai Rong stared into her eyes, questioning her word by word.

Seeing Sheng Zhaoning remain silent, Dai Rong composed herself, sat down on a chair, and turned her head away.

“You are a Shadow Guard, a Shadow Guard of the Wei Clan, not his slave.”

Dai Rong sighed and continued, “He is already betrothed. Even if it’s not the lady from the Chi Family, it will be someone else. In short, it will never be you.”

“This is the last time,” Sheng Zhaoning suddenly said.

Dai Rong immediately looked up at her, her gaze uncharacteristically sharp. “Do you even believe that yourself?”

Sheng Zhaoning pressed her lips together and said nothing.

Dai Rong shook her head, her voice growing even sterner. “You will stay right here and not go anywhere! Today, I’m staying here to watch you-as long as I-”

Her anger-filled voice cut off abruptly.

The unspoken words stuck in Dai Rong’s throat. Her eyes went blank, and she quickly lost consciousness, slumping softly.

Sheng Zhaoning withdrew her right hand from the strike to the back of Dai Rong’s neck and swiftly caught her limp body.

The room’s temperature was slightly cool. Sheng Zhaoning helped her onto the bed, glanced at the floor stove with a slight frown, then freed a hand to straighten the bedding. She adjusted Dai Rong into a comfortable position, then pulled the cotton quilt over her.

The blow wasn’t heavy, only enough to cause a brief loss of consciousness.

Sheng Zhaoning lit a calming incense stick and added more charcoal to the floor furnace.

The temperature in the room slowly climbed.

After all this, she stood up again and checked her hidden weapons-the knives and crossbow.

After making sure everything was correct, Sheng Zhaoning lowered her head, looked deeply at Dai Rong, and said, “I’m sorry, Auntie.”

She knew Dai Rong meant well.

But since Wei Yi had personally entrusted her with this task, she had no choice but to go.

The “last time” she had mentioned was not a lie.

To kill a high-ranking frontier general, unless with Prince Zhenbei’s secret assistance to minimize the impact, no one would investigate deeply.

But this time, acting without Prince Zhenbei’s knowledge at all was a heaven-defying crime. Not to mention covering for her, even if she managed to kill and escape, she could not avoid the Shadow Pavilion’s punishment.

She was destined not to come out of this mission unscathed.

Sheng Zhaoning walked to the door, glanced back at Dai Rong, tightened her grip on her sword, and resolutely turned away.

……

Border Pass, Beijie Camp.

The night was deep, the air filled with biting cold.

“God damn it, those bastards from the Hu Kingdom just won’t leave us alone!”

Outside the parade ground, a group of soldiers finished their drills and came out in a crowd.

“Tell me about it! How long has it been since we stopped fighting? And here they are again!” one short soldier grumbled.

“I heard the Hu Kingdom sent several batches of reinforcements this time. Looks like they’re dead set on fighting a big battle.”

A soldier walking in front said bitterly, “Damn it, no matter how many they send, sooner or later we’ll slaughter our way to those bastards’ homeland and wipe them all out!”

The group left in a mighty procession, no one noticing a black shadow flitting past the tree not far away…

Inside the adjutant’s tent, Liu Qi was looking through the battle reports on the table, his brow furrowed with worry.

“Still no word from the scouts we sent out?”

Deputy General Li Ping, seated on a chair, sighed and shook his head. “The scouts haven’t returned yet, but from my perspective, the situation doesn’t look good.”

Liu Qi rubbed his temples. “The court’s grain and pay have been cut off for two months now. The remaining supplies will only last half a month. If we have to fight, it’ll be a bloody battle.”

“Damn it all!” Li Ping slammed the table, swearing. His eyes wide and furious, he said, “I’ll go demand grain!