As soon as the door opened, Yuwen Hao felt his scalp tingle.
More than twenty vicious dogs with bodies covered in scars snarled ferociously at him, on guard, full of hatred. Their eyes were bloodshot, as if ready to pounce and tear him apart if he moved an inch.
Marquis of Huiding coldly said, "Prince, don't you dare go in?"
"Your Highness, you must not!" Tang Yang quickly advised. He was no dog trainer, but judging from the wounds on these vicious dogs, they must have just been brutally beaten and were now in a violent mood.
Yuwen Hao gathered his nerves and tried to leap over the dogs, but he didn't expect the marquis' attendant to gesture to the dogs, who immediately went mad and rushed forward, jumping up to surround Yuwen Hao. He couldn't get close to the inner chambers at all.
He jumped around a few times, his sleeves and clothes already torn from biting, barely escaping with his flesh intact thanks to his quick reflexes.
"Be careful, Your Highness!" Tang Yang suddenly shouted to warn him.
Yuwen Hao quickly turned back, only to see a short-tailed, pointy-eared vicious dog had actually jumped up, its body tracing an arc in midair as it charged at Yuwen Hao's back like lightning.
Yuwen Hao hurriedly dodged to the side, but the dog's paw still managed to slash his nape, leaving several bloody marks.
The royal guards and Tang Yang wanted to rush in, but Marquis of Huiding barred their way. "Stop. No one is allowed in this courtyard without my permission."
Tang Yang saw the marquis' attendant continuously gesturing and whistling, while also making whooping sounds - the attack cue.
Tang Yang was furious. "Marquis, you're deliberately trying to injure him!"
"Deliberate injury? I already warned the prince not to enter, yet he insisted on going in." The marquis haughtily replied.
Tang Yang gnashed his teeth as he watched Yuwen Hao's increasingly dangerous plight. Though with the prince's agility he could still escape, that would make it impossible to search the place.
Things had already come to this, if they couldn't find the princess today, it would still be a major crime. Might as well take this final gamble.
In a deep voice he ordered, "Men, charge in. Search only the rooms, do not harm the dogs, and be quick about it."
Injuring the dogs would only drive them into more of a crazed frenzy. Unless all the dogs were killed, even if there was but one dog barely clinging to life, it would still bite back in vengeance.
Moreover, forcing their way into the marquis' estate, killing all the guard dogs yet finding nothing, there would be no way to wash themselves clean of this.
Nearly a hundred men charged in to rescue Yuwen Hao, allowing him to escape. Together with some garrison troops he rushed into each room to search.
All the rooms' doors were flung open, not a soul inside.
One of the chambers was arranged just like a study.
Yuwen Hao's heart sank - they had been duped.
"Your Highness..." The marquis and his household guards had also entered. The vicious dogs stopped their attack and crouched docilely in a corner of the courtyard. The marquis strode up to Yuwen Hao and sternly berated, "This is my study, containing confidential military documents and weapon blueprints. You've charged in with your men to steal state secrets and weapon plans - what exactly are you plotting?"
Tang Yang also realized what had happened. By letting them freely search the estate, the marquis' true objective was this room.
Though an unfounded search and smear campaign against a senior official would not draw heavy punishment from the Emperor, stealing confidential documents and weapon blueprints was a major crime, and imprisonment would be unavoidable even if not sentenced to death.
Tang Yang's heart quailed as he looked to Yuwen Hao. "Your Highness..."
Yuwen Hao had already calmed himself. Slowly he turned his gaze to the marquis and coldly laughed. "Nice scheme, Marquis."
The marquis' eyes were the same vicious shade as the dogs', arrogant and bloodthirsty as he smugly declared, "Do you still remember what I told you that day outside the tent? That one day you would fall into my hands, and I would make you suffer a fate worse than death, never to rise again."
The bloody aura surrounding him grew even thicker, the hatred in his eyes undisguised.
Yuwen Hao was nearly in despair.
He was almost certain Yuan Qingling was already dead.
Strangely, now that things had come to this, he was no longer worried about his own future. In any case, he was already used to being ostracized. His father the Emperor wouldn't go so far as to take his life.
He stared fixedly at the marquis, like a cornered beast, and said in an icy tone, "If I find evidence that Princess Yuan really died by your hand, I will stake this life of mine and make you pay with your death even if it's the last thing I do."
The marquis guffawed loudly. "The Prince overestimates himself. After today, just trying to preserve your own pathetic life will take all you've got."
Yuwen Hao gnashed his teeth but was powerless.
Other than that one time at the Princess's residence, never before had he suffered such humiliation.
The attendant stepped forward bowing. "Marquis, shall we go face His Majesty now?"
The arrogant smile left the marquis' face, his gaze ominous. With a wave he commanded, "Prepare the horses. Summon the Prime Minister. I shall take His Highness the Prince to see His Majesty and discuss this matter."
Tang Yang's face was pale as he came forward. "Your Highness..."
Yuwen Hao coldly ordered, "Withdraw all troops!"
Tang Yang stood dumbfounded. Everything that had happened in the marquis' estate was like a bolt from the blue. The prince's comeback had been but a fleeting firework, instantly scattered into nothingness.
The royal guard was also at a loss, lamenting his own misfortune. Stealing confidential documents was a crime - if this were pursued, everyone present today would be implicated.
The garrison troops and royal guards filed out silently.
The marquis was unspeakably elated. He had choked back this anger for years. If not for the Prime Minister blocking him before, he would have dealt with Prince Chu long ago, instead of allowing him to strut about until today.
But now, it was just perfect. He, Yuwen Hao, thought he had ascended the peak once more, at the height of glory. Knocking him down now would shatter him all the more thoroughly.
The marquis laughed twistedly, his eyes flashing with sinister, venomous light like a viper's.
Yuwen Hao suddenly turned back. Things had already come to this, he might as well vent some anger first.
Before the marquis could react, he unleashed a lightning-fast punch squarely on his nose. He followed with a backhand hook to the temple. The marquis only felt the world spinning as he nearly lost his footing.
The guards and attendants rushed to support him, glaring furiously at Yuwen Hao.
Half of Yuwen Hao's resentment dissipated. His brow rose as he quipped, "The honorable marquis, be careful in the future since you're in such an esteemed position. No telling when some destitute prince might strike a fatal blow."
The marquis spat out a mouthful of blood, gazing fiercely at Yuwen Hao as if wanting to flay him alive this instant. "Don't worry, I'll remember this clearly, and collect both punches back in full with interest."
Yuwen Hao gave a cold laugh and turned away. But from the corner of his eye, he seemed to glimpse someone sprinting over from the back of the courtyard...
"Save me, Your Highness, save me!" The figure was shouting in panic as she ran over. From a distance he could already see her face and hair caked with blood and dirt, her clothes tattered in many places, dressed as a man but with a woman's voice.
In that moment, Yuwen Hao felt his entire body's blood instantly start boiling. He stood stock still, his heart slowly settling back into place.
Never in his life had Tang Yang lost composure like now. He cried out at the top of his lungs, "The Princess, it's the Princess!"
