Chapter 230: Manipulator behind the Scene

"How dare you..." Murong Rou, speechless with anger, shot Murong Xue a piercing stare, as if she intended to skin her alive. "Murong Xue, I am your aunt. Are you aware that you have committed the crime of showing no respect to elders and injuring me seriously?"

"How can you pin the blame on me? It is the assassins' ferocious attempt that led to the misunderstanding between us and wounded you seriously."

"I will ask Xun Feng to tear the black veil off their faces and sketch their appearances, which will be handed over to the Shuntian Mansion. Once we find out their real identities and the person behind all this, I will personally slay the culprit to avenge your misfortune..." Murong Xue smiled while signaling Xun Feng.

Following her order, Xun Feng approached the assassins quickly!

As soon as he was about to take their black veils off, Murong Jian, a wisp of cold gleam flickering in his eyes, said in a hurry, "Why are you still quarreling? Wasn't it a shame that you nearly killed each other because of a misunderstanding?"

The assassins slaughtered were warriors trained secretly for his own use before being brought here by himself from Jingzhou. If Murong Xue handed the pictures to the Shuntian Mansion, the assassins' identities would be clear. Even if Murong Jian was not the nominal leader, he would be listed as a suspect...

"So uncle wants to say that..." Murong Xue, raising her eyebrows, stared at him.

"Since this is all a misunderstanding, no one will mention it again," Murong Jian said emphatically before carrying Murong Rou back to the mansion in vigorous strides.

"Are you really letting them off the hook?" Murong Rou stared at Murong Jian, her eyes filled with rage. She knew clearly that she and Murong Xue would never bury the hatchet. Almost killed by that girl, she really intended to skin Murong Xue alive...

"What else can we do?" Murong Jian, knitting his eyebrows, retorted in anger. He took such a long period of time to train those assassins whose martial arts had been a little promoted before being killed by Murong Xue. What a pity!

However, if the assassination were known to the Shuntian Mansion, he not only couldn't put Murong Xue to death, but would cause serious trouble for himself...

"I will take you back before making further plans!"

"Fine!" Murong Rou nodded helplessly, grinding her teeth with great hatred at the thought of Murong Xue. Though badly hurt, she actually got nothing useful from her. She would never let Murong get away with plotting against her!

Watching Murong Jian and Murong Rou dashing away on the horseback, Murong Xue was lost in thought, a meaningful gleam flickering in her eyes. As Murong Jian's secret guards, the assassins rarely reveal themselves in public. Even if she could have them taken to the Shuntian Mansion under escort, she still had no evidence of Murong Jian's participation in assassinating her.

So she would rather slay them all. By eradicating his secret army, as well as injuring Murong Rou severely, she would deter them from coveting her what belong to her...

"What have you found out?" There came a melodious sound suddenly. It was Ouyang Shaochen coming up slowly, his snow white robe fluttering like a butterfly, greatly accentuating his inborn elegance and nobleness.

Murong Xue's eyes were shining. "Murong Jian and Murong Rou came for the token. Just like me, they merely had some basic information with no idea what on earth the token is! Otherwise, they wouldn't have brought so many guards for the empty ebony box..."

"Do you know how they learned about the Shadow Guards?" Ouyang Shaochen asked with a meaningful stare.

Murong Xue chuckled. "My father was living in the Marquis Mansion. No matter how careful he was, there would still be oversights. Not to mention that Murong Jian and Murong Rou had always been keeping an eye on him. It's not surprising that they have heard about the Shadow Guards..."

Ouyang Shaochen nodded, his obsidian-like eyes flickering with the barest hint of a smile. The silly little girl could become smart sometimes...

Suddenly, she heard an almost imperceptible sound. A wisp of cold light glimmered in Murong Xue's eyes. "Who is that?" As soon as she finished speaking, she pitched the silver needles mercilessly to the tree nearby with a flick of her wrist. A black shadow fell down to the ground from the top of the tree...

Upon seeing the figure, who was also wearing a black veil, Murong Xue squinted. "He is...an Invisible Guard..."

"There is someone in the capital who knows about the Shadow Guards and is inquiring about their whereabouts secretly..." Ouyang Shaochen said emotionlessly, his eyes as dark as a fathomless lake.

Murong Xue squinted at the sight of Murong Yue's study, which was clean and tidy. There was nothing related to the token. She took the empty ebony box, only aiming to test Murong Jian and Murong Rou. It was beyond her expectation that someone else would be implicated...

Only powerful people of high status could afford Invisible Guards. So who would he be?

How unconquerable on earth the shadow guards trained by Murong Yue were that they had attracted the attention of many people?

It would be extremely difficult for Murong Xue to find the Shadow Guards and the token...

Inside Prince Jing's Mansion.

The senior Prince Jing was sitting in the octagonal pavilion near the pond, playing chess against himself.

The light fragrance came along with the refreshing breeze. The senior Prince Jing was gently putting down one of the white pieces.

Ye Yichen entered the pavilion in big strides, his sharp eyes flickering with sullenness. "Father!"

"What happened?" The senior Prince Jing asked casually while putting down a black piece with his left hand gently.

"Murong Xue has found out that Murong Yue used to train dozens of Shadow Guards in secret. Now, she is searching for the Shadow Guards and the token, while Murong Jian and Murong Rou were also poking their noses into the matter..." Ye Yichen murmured, his eyes gleaming with sullenness.

"They are not common Invisible Guards...Don't you have any regrets?" The old Prince Jing asked heedlessly, who put the pieces away and fixed his gaze on Ye Yichen.

Ye Yichen understood his father's subtext, but he kept silent with his head lowered.

"If you didn't taken Qin Yuyan back, if you married Murong Xue earlier, the situation would have been completely different!" The senior prince murmured, a meaningful gleam skimming across his eyes.

"I know!" Ye Yichen's eyes were sparkling. He had always thought that everything would be under his control, and never expected that he would lose control and watch the situation take a turn for the worse.

"What's your plan for the next step?" The senior Prince Jing stared at Ye Yichen expressionlessly.

"I already have something in mind!" Ye Yichen nodded, his sharp eyes sparkling with something subtle and opaque to others...