The old gardener was well along in years. With little else to do, he loved to indulge in heavy drinking and spent entire days half-drunk.
The Liang people assigned to duty in Hostage Manor were mostly relatively reliable.
The old gardener relied on his craft for a living. The work was light and the pay was high, yet his personal martial prowess was quite mediocre—he clearly had family connections.
When Wu Youren heard the news, his heart sank completely into icy dread: *How could this have happened?*
At present, he was still "recuperating from illness." Aside from fetching his daily meals from the dining hall, he had virtually no contact with anyone.
Furthermore, Liang kept the relevant information under tight lockdown, so no further details leaked out.
However, rumor had it that some suspected the old gardener had been poisoned, and Hostage Manor was launching a thorough investigation!
His death had been discovered in the morning, and by afternoon, patrol guards had cordoned off the roads and barged into the hostages' quarters to conduct searches.
Curiously, after searching only a dozen or so hostages, the operation was abruptly halted.
Word came later that officials from Liang's Court of State Ceremonial had arrived and stopped the rash operation.
By dusk, the guards posted at every intersection in Hostage Manor had also withdrawn, and Hostage Manor returned to normal.
Yet Wu Youren didn't dare lower his guard. Those people in the imperial court played underhanded tricks more vicious than the last.
He was even hesitating over whether he should pour out the ten jars of concocted "strong liquor" he had prepared.
No sooner had the patrol guards withdrawn than Shi Linyuan came looking for him.
He hurried into the room, and upon seeing the wine jars intact, let out a breath of relief. "What a relief."
Then he looked at the merit lord's grandson and spoke with surprise, "Since when did you get so brave?"
"There's no way he was poisoned to death," Wu Youren said, looking completely composed.
Inwardly, lingering dread still troubled him, even though he was certain the gardener's immediate cause of death was definitely not simple poisoning.
The primary cause was likely that the man was advanced in age, drank heavily year in and year out, and suffered from underlying health conditions.
Having drunk too much strong liquor, combined with the mild toxicity of the mineral drugs, it had triggered a cerebral hemorrhage.
Bleeding from the seven facial orifices didn't necessarily mean poisoning—he at least possessed this rudimentary medical knowledge.
Yet he was still worried, because the people of Liang might use this to make an issue out of nothing and stir up trouble.
Seeing how calm he appeared, Shi Linyuan gave a soft snort. "Didn't you say the strong liquor was toxic?"
"Even if it's toxic, it wouldn't kill someone like that!" Wu Youren answered with certainty. "He couldn't handle his drink; who's he to blame?"
Dying from drunkenness was not uncommon in this world. Setting aside freezing to death after drinking or falling into water, some people genuinely drank themselves to death.
It might have to do with alcohol intolerance...
"I originally wanted to use this to scare you a bit," Shi Linyuan remarked, letting out a regretful sigh upon hearing this.
Though skilled at scheming, deep down he was still a teenager in his mid-teens. "Seems you don't buy it."
"Don't be too careless either," Wu Youren couldn't help reminding him. "What's happening right now is only what they want us to see."
Suddenly searching the hostages over the death of a mere odd-job laborer, only to stop dead in their tracks—no matter how one looked at it, such a development was rather bizarre.
Therefore, he suspected the other side might be playing a game of appearing relaxed on the outside while tightening vigilance on the inside, letting their side let down their guard first.
"It's not your place to remind me!" Shi Linyuan snapped, irritated.
He had always fancied himself a flawless strategist and refused to let anyone else surpass his cunning.
"What do you know? Making a huge fuss to search us was meant to embarrass the people backing that old gardener!"
"A mere laborer—if he's dead, he's dead... Even if we wanted to harm someone, would we bother targeting him?"
In other words, the prior search had been aimed at putting someone on the spot—even if it achieved nothing significant, giving them a good headache would suffice.
As a result, officials from the Court of State Ceremonial had rushed over in haste to put an end to the farce.
Still, the fact that internal court struggles in Liang could spill over to foreign hostages was truly... an eye-opener!
"I see," Wu Youren nodded. "So, was what the old gardener drank the strong liquor I concocted?"
To be honest, he really was curious. A sudden cerebral hemorrhage could be triggered by anyone else's liquor too, couldn't it?
"You don't need to ask that," Shi Linyuan refused to answer. "Some things aren't meant for you to know."
"Fine then." As a former ancient divine veteran, Wu Youren wouldn't lower himself to the level of a kid.
"These ten jars of liquor are just about ready. Leaving them for another day once you take them back will be enough. In the future, if there's nothing urgent, don't bother me."
"Concocting twenty jars of strong liquor for free in total..." Shi Linyuan's gaze shifted evasively. "You're truly generous. The cost must be remarkably low, huh?"
"There's no point in bringing that up," Wu Youren remarked unhurriedly.
In any case, he had fulfilled his promise; what remained was to see how the other side responded.
"This formula must be placed in His Highness's hands," Shi Linyuan declared solemnly.
"Mm," Wu Youren merely gave a low grunt, offering no further reaction.
Shi Linyuan suddenly found his interest piqued. "Are you really not afraid of death?"
"Who isn't afraid of death?" Wu Youren retorted mildly, saying no more.
Shi Linyuan fell silent. Only after a while did he suddenly ask, "Do you want to leave Hostage Manor?"
"Of course," Wu Youren answered without hesitation, pausing before adding, "However, I hope to leave fair and square, in the open."
No hostage didn't want to leave Hostage Manor, but past examples proved that sneaking out secretly led to consequences far worse than ordinary misery.
"Among those who escaped secretly, some are still alive," Shi Linyuan looked at him with keen interest. "Want to know who?"
"Nope." Wu Youren shook his head and replied crisply, "Even if I did, you wouldn't tell me... Doesn't playing this game get exhausting?"
"You really are much smarter than before," Shi Linyuan nodded with intrigue. "Why such a huge change?"
"I don't want to die a second time," Wu Youren answered. "Unless you all insist on my death!"
"I won't tease you anymore," Shi Linyuan said, finding it somewhat dull. "His Highness can recommend you for admission to the Martial Academy!"
"The Martial Academy..." Wu Youren went silent, pausing for a moment before asking, "His Highness has that authority?"
Shi Linyuan snorted coldly. "Presumptuous! You'd best understand which ship you're currently sailing on!"
Everyone relied on the Seventeenth Prince; they were his core retinue!
"Yet His Highness hasn't entered it himself, nor has anyone else," Wu Youren looked at him thoughtfully. "I have reason to suspect... have you betrayed His Highness?"
*Please get one thing straight: you're not the only one who knows how to manipulate people with psychological games!*
"You... presumptuous!" Shi Linyuan's face darkened. "This is His Highness's intention!"
Yet his life experience was ultimately inferior to that of an ancient divine veteran. Wu Youren looked at him with a half-smile.
"Then we'll talk once the written order arrives. Don't worry, I won't breathe a word about this."
"You!" Shi Linyuan's chest heaved with fury; he was genuinely exasperated. "That was my fucking line!"
Without the slightest exaggeration, that was exactly what he had intended to say: warning Wu Youren not to leak a word.
Having his lines stolen was a minor matter; the crux lay in seizing control of the narrative.
If he set demands and the other party complied, he held command.
Yet when the other party took the initiative to say it, the flavor changed completely.
Not only did it usurp control of the conversation, but crucially, it carried a thick undertone of insinuation: *You might have betrayed His Highness, but I won't tell!*
Any other young hostage might not have caught the underlying nuance, but Shi Linyuan understood it loud and clear.
"Brother Linyuan, please see yourself out." The ancient divine veteran felt a bit listless; he didn't find any glory in bullying a kid. "Next time you want liquor concocted, prepare the fee beforehand. As for the rest, I'll pretend I heard nothing."
"Damn it, it's actually real!" Shi Linyuan stomped his foot in fury, spun around, and stalked off.
Wu Youren watched him depart, his face devoid of expression, though a touch of bewilderment lingered in his eyes.
He was essentially certain that the storm over the old gardener's death had, in all probability, blown over.
The reasons Shi Linyuan gave sounded somewhat absurd, yet Wu Youren considered them highly plausible.
In this world, nothing was ever the most absurd—only ever more absurd.
Between a reason that sounded perfectly normal and one that sounded absurd, which would be more convincing? Unquestionably the former.
Yet precisely because of that, reasons that were harder to grasp were perhaps closer to the truth.
Then Wu Youren recalled something: in the early hours before dawn today, he seemed... to have felt a slight warm current?
He wasn't entirely sure of the sensation, as he had been asleep at the time.
He had practiced a set of boxing today and felt no obvious gain, yet for some reason, things just felt different.
He hadn't noticed that the faint specks of floating dust that usually clung to the biguijue at his waist had quietly vanished...
Wu Youren's narrow escape from death was no small matter within the hostage group—after all, he was one of the hundred official members.
After examining him, Hostage Manor's physician judged that even if he survived, he would need ten days to half a month of rest.
Liang had even already prepared how to respond if he proved incurable.
Consequently, Wu Youren had been having an easy time of it over these past few days, exempted from participating in any of Hostage Manor's activities.
Five days later, Shi Linyuan showed up again. "Concoct another ten jars of strong liquor, and I'll issue you the written transfer order for the Martial Academy."
"I can wait." Wu Youren completely ignored his demand. *Just a compliance test—did he really think no one saw through it?*
"Looks like you're determined not to trust His Highness," Shi Linyuan said, his knack for slapping labels on people growing ever sharper.
"I concocted twenty jars of strong liquor—does that look like I don't trust His Highness?" Wu Youren gave him a cold look.
Then he offered a faint smile, flashing snowy-white teeth. "Brother Linyuan, you've taken such good care of me—I'll remember it!"
*Who here isn't a young lad? Even if it's an act, one has to show a bit of spirited bravado.*
A glint of ruthless chill flashed through Shi Linyuan's eyes, but he spoke impassively, "Then wait."
Two days later, an official announcement arrived from Liang: thirty candidates were to be selected from the hostages in Hostage Manor to enter the Liang Martial Academy.
A number of hostages were genuinely thrilled by this, clearly having had no prior knowledge of the matter.
Wu Youren clicked his tongue in silent amazement. Despite the pervasive atmosphere of decadence in Hostage Manor, their access to intelligence was remarkable—someone was truly getting things done!
However, immediately afterward, an official from the Jin Protocol Office announced, "Everyone, prepare yourselves. It is possible you may be sent to the front lines!"
*To the front lines...* Hearing this, the hostages present were stunned on the spot.
It wasn't necessarily that they feared battle; the crux was, nobody in the world operated like this!
Dispatching hostages from an enemy state to attack yet another enemy state—was there really such a bizarre way of doing things?
Chapter 3