The commotion alerted the nearby Palace Attendants, but before they could separate the two, Wang Heng had already slashed Song De’s neck, nearly severing it completely.
At the same time, Song De’s poisoned dagger plunged into a vital spot in Wang Heng’s chest. Wang Heng’s face instantly turned a deathly purple. He struggled to grab the silver notes beside him, but it was too late.
The potent poison from the dagger spread rapidly. Within a few breaths, he had stopped breathing and died.
Only in his final moments did clarity return to him. ’What am I doing?’ he thought. ’To die together with Song De over one hundred thousand taels of silver notes? My own fortune is worth more than one hundred thousand taels.’
’Could someone be manipulating me...?’ Relying on his innately powerful Spiritual Power, Wang Heng sensed something was amiss, but it was far too late.
As for Song De, he was in no better state. With his head barely attached, blood gushed out. He struggled for a moment, a flicker of lucidity appearing in his eyes before he, too, went still.
The surrounding Palace Attendants were stunned by their actions, standing frozen on the spot. It took them a long while to come to their senses.
"This is bad! Commander Wang and Commander Song killed each other over one hundred thousand taels of silver notes!"
"It wasn’t just about the silver notes. I heard Commander Wang belongs to the Third Prince and Commander Song to the Fifth Prince. Those two Princes are at each other’s throats right now, so their commanders must have been affected too."
"A whole one hundred thousand taels of silver! No wonder the two Commanders were willing to fight to the death. If I had the chance to get my hands on one hundred thousand taels in silver notes, I’d do the same."
"I can’t believe there were one hundred thousand taels of silver notes hidden in a flowerpot here. I wonder who put them there."
Xia Wuyang also came out "just in time." He reprimanded the surrounding Palace Attendants, then gleefully took the one hundred thousand taels of silver notes, claiming them as his own and saying he was going to buy more Dragon and Tiger Elixir.
The Palace Attendants looked at each other, unable to help but sigh once more. The two Commanders had killed each other for one hundred thousand taels of silver notes, only for the elder Crown Prince to reap the benefits.
News of the incident spread throughout the Eastern Palace and soon reached the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince. When they heard what happened, both assumed the other had orchestrated a retaliation that ended in mutual destruction, never suspecting anyone else was involved.
And so, Xia Wuyang had stealthily eliminated two major threats and deepened the conflict between the Third Prince, Xia Wuchen, and the Fifth Prince, Xia Wushang.
After sleeping with a Fox Girl for a while, Xia Wuyang feigned exhaustion and lingering injuries. He added that he was afraid of assassination and returned to his Practice Room to continue his cultivation in peace.
He activated his Mental Force Field, constantly observing all activity within a hundred-meter radius. He could detect any anomaly the moment it occurred.
Not even a Super Grade Celestial Human could evade the observation of his Mental Force Field—such was the power of a Companion Talent.
His Heart Like a Bright Mirror reflected everything. Even a Martial Artist far stronger than Xia Wuyang could not escape its reflection.
He was getting closer and closer to the Marrow Refining Realm. At this rate, it would only take about half a month to break through.
Then, he would reach Second Grade, be known as a Grandmaster, and be considered one of the top experts in the world.
The days passed slowly. His Spiritual Power continued to grow, and the breakthrough to the Marrow Refining Realm drew ever nearer.
One morning, as Xia Wuyang was enjoying a delicious meal in the arms of a Qiuci Dancer, he overheard several magpies chirping in the branches outside, gossiping about him.
"Did you hear? The elder Crown Prince is useless in that department. He’s just an embroidery needle!"
"Dong Xiurong says he’s an embroidery needle, Dong Yujie says he’s an embroidery needle, everyone says he’s an embroidery needle."
"All show and no go! The elder Crown Prince is all show and no go. She’s forced to live like a widow."
"Embroidery needle, little worm. I love embroidery needles."
"The elder Crown Prince’s ’little bird’ needs to be fed grain—rice, millet, wheat... I love rice and millet, too."
Xia Wuyang’s face darkened. ’It seems they think my "illness" isn’t severe enough, so they’re using that wretch Dong Yujie to slander me even more viciously than before.’ Even he was finding it hard to stomach.
After all, what man would want to be called an embroidery needle, or be told his "treasure" needed to be fed rice and millet? It was outrageous.
Although he had been faking his incompetence, he had never faked his performance in *that* department. Even if he wasn’t an "Unyielding Golden Spear," he was at least as firm as a pillar.
But the outside world didn’t know that, and Xia Wuyang couldn’t exactly go around proving it to everyone. Dong Yujie’s move was truly malicious; she was trying to nail him to a pillar of shame.
He had originally planned to let her run her mouth for a while before dealing with her, but he never thought the wretch would go this far.
They were husband and wife, after all, and he had treated her well in the past. For her to treat him like this now... to say she was repaying kindness with enmity would be a compliment.
However, the key was the person controlling Dong Yujie from behind the scenes. Any revenge should be directed primarily at them.
Even the birds were gossiping about it. One could only imagine how far the rumors had already spread.
Sure enough, it wasn’t long before people started discussing the matter right outside Wenhua Hall, clearly intending for Xia Wuyang to hear them.
"Dong Xiurong said the elder Crown Prince’s thing is like an embroidery needle. No wonder Dong Xiurong had to cheat on him."
"That explains it. So many concubines have turned their backs on the elder Crown Prince. Turns out, besides his poor Cultivation Power, he’s not even a real man anymore."
"Dong Xiurong also said the elder Crown Prince’s ’little bird’ needs to eat more grain, or else it won’t grow. It’s hilarious!"
"Hahaha, the elder Crown Prince should change his name. How about the ’elder eunuch’?"
As the words drifted in, the vast Wenhua Hall fell silent. Every Palace Maid, Qiuci Dancer, and Fox Girl froze, not daring to move in the slightest, silent as cicadas in winter.
Xia Wuyang also "froze," looking outside in seeming disbelief. "That... that bitch dares to slander me like this!"
As soon as he spoke, he suddenly clutched his chest, spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and collapsed limply onto the couch.
"Your Highness, what’s wrong?"
"Summon the Imperial Physician! Don’t let anything happen to His Highness!"
"His Highness is coughing up blood again! Someone, come save His Highness, quickly!"
Wenhua Hall was thrown into chaos. The Imperial Physician rushed over, and after checking the Crown Prince’s pulse, he shook his head repeatedly. "His Highness is suffering from a surge of anger attacking the heart. His body is extremely weak. He must rest well for a short period and absolutely must not do anything strenuous. Most importantly, do not let anyone agitate His Highness again, or the consequences will be dire."
A group of attendants quickly carried Xia Wuyang to the Practice Room, isolating him from the outside gossip to prevent him from hearing anything else he shouldn’t.
Once everyone had left, Xia Wuyang immediately bolted the door to the Practice Room and began to focus on his cultivation. There wasn’t the slightest trace of a dying man about him.
Although he wasn’t truly harmed, this time, the rumors had genuinely pissed him off. It was time to do something about it.
’Even if I can’t kill him, I’ll make him pay a price.’
’That wretch, the Seventh Prince, Xia Wunian, is truly relentless.’

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