Consort of a Thousand Faces

Coldness surged from within the man’s eyes. Yun Ruofeng appears to be indifferent on the surface, but an innate insanity is etched deep into his bones.

“Prince Yun, being arrogant is fine, but it can also lead to one’s own destruction.” 

“This Prince maintains my stance: if you want me to make a deal with you, bring Lan-er to my side. Otherwise, you can forget about it.” Yun Ruofeng then turned back to his seat and continued to play chess.

The man in cyan’s eyes glistened coldly as he walked out of the private room and headed to the top floor. “Since you insist on being like this, I’ll leave first.”

Meanwhile, Lanshan was staring coldly at the man in front of her. “Why did you still come here? I’ve already told you not to come again.”

The man in red smiled. “This is the last time, and I’m just here to offer some advice. You should already know that even if you push that person up into that position, the Imperial Family’s rules won’t tolerate him.”

“Won’t tolerate him? Based on what? He is also a member of Xiliu’s Imperial Family.” A contemptuous smile hung at the tips of Lanshan’s mouth.

The man in red had his eyes glisten coldly. “You know even better than I do what his background is. Don’t say things like this again.”

“What? None of this would have happened if not for your selfishness, yet you’re coming here to tell me this now?” Lanshan’s eyes flared with ire as she rolled the Buddha beads in her hand more rapidly.

The man’s eyes turned icy cold. “A person dying is like a light being extinguished. You should let the past stay in the past, or do you really wish to see history repeat itself?”

“No, I don’t want history to repeat. Rather, I want history to be completely overturned. Everything should return to its rightful owner.” Lanshan stated coldly.

The man in red sneered. “Do you honestly think that this is everyone’s wish?”

“Explain yourself.” Lanshan heard the undertone in his words, and bewilderment briefly flashed past her eyes.

The man’s eyes glimmered coldly. “What is yours will ultimately be yours, but you shouldn’t be greedy for what isn’t.”

Lanshan’s gaze held a derisive smile. “I have never believed in destiny. My fate lies in my own hands, and not the heavens.”

The man in red simply smiled. “I have already said my piece; you better think about it properly. This is my last time coming here, but if you’ve thought things out, you know where to find me.”

The man leapt out, smirking as he caught a glimpse of the figure hiding behind the pillar.

Inside the room, Lanshan’s eyes were freezing as she reflected on his words.

The man in cyan walked in. “What’s the matter with you?”

“Nothing. Why did you come back? Have Prince Hao’s men already withdrawn?” Lanshan regained her composure.

The man laughed cheekily. “No, they’re still guarding an empty room.”

“I see that you’ve pulled an Empty City Ruse (Kongcheng-ji)[1] on them.” Lanshan smirked.

The man’s smile deepend. “Since they like to guard it, I’ll just let them do so. That said, I don’t want to stay there with them forever.”

“He offended Prince Hao and Prince Yun last night. Are you planning to do the same? If you dare to ruin my plan, I’ll definitely not let you off the hook.” Lanshan warned with resentment.

An icy smile hung on the corners of the man’s mouth. “I know, I definitely won’t dare to ruin your important business.”

However, some things just never go the way you want them to. Some things may even be completely different than they appear.

1. ’Kongcheng-ji’ or ‘Empty City Ruse’ is one of the stratagems by Zhuge Liang. 

A brief summary of the story is that he played the qin alone in an empty city, fooling the enemies that there were formidable forces hidden in the city when it was in fact empty.

Feel free to read more about the full story and details of the strategy.