Before Yan Bingyun left, Fan Xian stopped him. After a moment of silence, Fan Xian asked in a low voice, "Is there any news about Hong Changqing and the Qi Nian group?"

After escaping from Mount Dadong, Fan Xian went straight to Danzhou. The confidants on that white sailboat were scattered during that pursuit. Although Yan Xiaoyi was eventually killed by Fan Xian's heavy sniper, Fan Xian was still very worried about the survival of Qingwa and those close subordinates. Since the rebel army had the ability to seal off Mount Dadong, and the prefectures and counties had given the rewards as the Eldest Princess wished, they naturally had ways to block the road back to Kyoto from Dongshan.

Yan Bingyun's thin lips were tightly pursed. After a long while, he said, "No news." He glanced at Fan Xian, indicating that he had been away from the affairs of the Surveillance Institute for a month and did not have a thorough understanding of intelligence in this area.

Fan Xian shook his head: "Don't comfort me. No news is bad news."

"Alright, I admit I still have channels to know the information inside the Institute." Yan Bingyun looked at him and said, "There's a very strange thing. The intelligence system on the Dongshan route, and I don't just mean from inside the Institute, all the intelligence feedback systems, seem to have failed. The most recent news arrived three days ago."

Hearing this news, Fan Xian's heart tightened. His palms gradually became sweaty, and his mouth was a little dry, but his face was stubbornly pretending to be calm. He forced a smile and said, "We can't worry about other places for the time being. Let's get the affairs of Kyoto settled first."

Yan Bingyun dusted the light shirt on his body and said with his head down, "You gave me the waist tag, which is equivalent to giving me command of more than a thousand people. Do you want to give me a strategy?"

Fan Xian lowered his head and was silent for a while, then said, "Act according to the established policy."

Yan Bingyun glanced at him, frowned, and said, "Many people will die."

"I myself don't want to die." Fan Xian glanced back at him coldly and said, "I require you to control the Thirteen City Gate Guard, which is the key to the problem."

Yan Bingyun did not express determination or loyalty, but simply shook his head and said, "With just the Surveillance Institute, it is impossible to control the Thirteen City Gate Guard."

"If the Empress Dowager controls the City Gate Guard, she will not allow the Qin and Ye families' armies to enter Kyoto." Fan Xian looked at Yan Bingyun and said, "The old woman does not want Kyoto to fall into war. What we need to do is help the palace control it."

The Thirteen City Gate Guard is actually just an office that manages the nine city gates inside and outside Kyoto. If the Eldest Princess's infiltration of the Thirteen City Gate Guard has been going on, I'm afraid she has already seized control of the City Gate Guard from the Empress Dowager.

Yan Bingyun shook his head: "To bet a life on one gate is a very foolish plan."

Fan Xian smiled bitterly and said, "There's no way. All I have at hand is the Imperial Guard, which I can't fully rely on, and I dare not fight the Qin and Ye families head-on in Kyoto... Everyone says Ye Zhong has returned to Dingzhou, but who would believe it?"

"What if the Thirteen City Gate Guard can't be defended?" Yan Bingyun said with a slight sneer, "Regarding the methods of cultivating cronies in the court, you and I are no match for those older generations. The Eldest Princess must have people in the City Gate Guard."

Fan Xian laughed self-deprecatingly, stood up, and patted Yan Bingyun on the shoulder: "Even if you can't stop the Qin family's army from entering Kyoto, at least you can find out when the Qin family will arrive, how many people will arrive, and how they will arrive in advance."

Yan Bingyun's shoulders were icy cold, and he looked at Fan Xian with shocked eyes.

Fan Xian looked at him calmly: "You said that the older generation likes to play this kind of betrayal and suicide game the most... I know Old Bozi has people underneath... He's preparing to play a suicide game to death with the Old Qin family."

Yan Bingyun smiled bitterly.

"If I'm not mistaken, your father is a chess piece that Director Chen has planted beside Old Master Qin for decades." Fan Xian said with a smile: "In this way, what the Qin family's army wants to do is all under our control. Striving for a perfect time difference should be feasible."

Yan Bingyun sighed, bowed, and left Sun Mansion in silence.

————————————————————

After Yan Bingyun left, Fan Xian began to sit in Miss Sun Pin'er's boudoir and count his fingers, not calculating how much silver he had earned since his rebirth, but calculating the time, calculating how much power he could control in his hands, and what kind of fluctuations he could cause in Kyoto. After calculating, he still had to admit that if the Qin and Ye families' armies entered Kyoto, he would still have to resort to guerrilla warfare.

Therefore, before the army entered Kyoto, he had to launch a thunderous strike against the forces in the palace. Wan'er, Consort Ning, Consort Yi, and the Third Prince, whose state of mind is now unknown, were the people he had to rescue.

As long as these people were rescued, he would not be afraid of anything – using a heavy sniper rifle to fight guerrilla warfare, Fan Xian could not imagine who could do anything to him.

He just felt a little aggrieved, at least he couldn't engage in a frontal battlefield duel with the Eldest Princess, forcing him to choose a hit-and-run tactic. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but shake his head and thought to himself, if His Majesty knew that the Qing Kingdom today would fall to such a state, would he regret prohibiting him from having any contact with the military back then?

Of the seven elite armies in the world, not a single one could be used by him. Fan Xian smiled bitterly and was speechless.

However, Fan Xian was still full of confidence. He stood up, walked to the window, glanced at the gradually dimming lights outside the window, his face was calm, and he began to have some optimistic judgments about this matter in his heart, and his confidence in certain elders became more and more sufficient.

"Little Fan Master." Seeing Yan Bingyun leave, Miss Sun, who had been sitting quietly in her room, came out hesitantly. At this time, she was no longer as excited and frightened as before, and had returned to the self-restraint and introversion that a young lady from a prominent family should have. Only the occasional glance at Fan Xian revealed the complex emotions in her heart.

"Call me Anzhi." Fan Xian returned a salute extremely gently.

Sun Pin'er was filled with emotions, and vaguely guessed what Little Fan Master was discussing with that famous Little Master Yan. She couldn't help but feel a little scared, and also a little excited because she thought she could help Little Fan Master. She lowered her head and said softly, "Little Fan Master, I'm just a girl, and I don't know what's going on in the court, but..."

She raised her face and looked at Fan Xian bravely: "But I believe in you, so if you need me to do anything, please tell me straight."

Fan Xian was silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "There are traitors in the court today. The ruler is not a ruler, the ministers are not ministers, the sons are not sons, and the country is about to fall. This official has thrown away this body to try to pull those rebellious villains off the dragon chair in the palace. If you are willing to help me, you don't need to do anything else, just let me stay here for a few days."

Sun Pin'er was slightly surprised. She didn't expect Little Fan Master to ask for so little, and she was even a little disappointed. She pursed her lips and said with courage, "Master, my father should be of some help to you."

Fan Xian smiled and didn't explain anything. In fact, having Sun Mansion as a central location has already helped him a lot. At least from now on, he can easily contact his subordinates in Kyoto through Yan Bingyun. The beginning of the entire plan began in this lady's boudoir.

"If there is an opportunity, I really need you to introduce me to your father. There are many things that still need Lord Sun's help." Fan Xian didn't dare to completely trust a girl and be able to persuade the dignified Kyoto Prefecture magistrate to change his position. However, with Sun Pin'er acting as a bridge, when the situation changes and Fan Xian's side has the upper hand, Lord Sun might as well do something to add icing on the cake, and Fan Xian would not refuse.

Sun Pin'er's face grew more and more ashamed. After a long while, she bit her lower lip and said, "Actually... Pin'er is really unfilial, so I dare to ask Little Fan Master... Please be more tolerant of my father."

Lord Sun followed the Empress Dowager's order to arrest Fan Xian, but Sun Pin'er hid him in her boudoir. Once Fan Xian really turned the tables in the future, who would know how he would deal with the people who had harmed him? Sun Pin'er knew in her heart how bloody the struggle for imperial power was. Her impulsive actions might harm her father in the future, so she said that she was unfilial.

Fan Xian sighed and looked at this weak girl with pity. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty and comforted her: "Don't worry, miss. If the court returns to the right path, Anzhi guarantees... that your father will at least be safe. If he is willing to repent, then he will be a meritorious minister."

Sun Pin'er, after receiving his promise, happily wiped away the newly shed tears, completely unaware of whether the promises of politicians would count. She bowed deeply to Fan Xian: "Thank you, Little Fan Master."

"I should be thanking you, miss." Fan Xian gave Sun Pin'er a solemn deep bow and said gently, "Although Anzhi can't be called a good person, he's not a good person to kill. Anzhi also hopes that the Empress Dowager can see the truth about the affairs of Kyoto and that everything can be resolved peacefully without bloodshed."

The two saluted each other, seemingly worshipping heaven and earth, and felt very inappropriate. They got up hesitantly. Fan Xian turned around and looked at the lonely sky and silver moon outside the window again, thinking to himself self-deprecatingly, how can such a clear and sparse night be a night for killing people?

……

……

There were some mysterious shadows shuttling outside the residence of the Prince of Heqin, but the guards responsible for guarding the residence would not even look at them because they knew that those were the spies of the inner court, and perhaps some of the Privy Council's informants. However, everyone was aware of each other's existence and no one would take the lead in provoking anything.

The Prince now holds the Imperial Guard in his hands. As long as his military power is not weakened, all the forces in Kyoto must maintain the utmost respect and flattery for this residence.

Since the news of His Majesty's assassination came out, the Empress Dowager closed the palace gates and issued a strict order to suppress all the restless elements. The residence of the Prince of Heqin became the focus of attention for all the major forces in Kyoto. The First Prince himself was even more strict in protecting the members of his consort's family and servants in the residence to an astonishing degree.

After all, he was the commander-in-chief of the Western Expeditionary Army back then. At this critical juncture, his fierce strength was fully displayed. He even transferred a team of five hundred Imperial Guards to surround his residence. In this way, even if something happened in the palace, the First Prince's confidants could maintain the security of the residence until the very last moment.

As for whether this was in accordance with etiquette or violated the laws of Qing, no one dared to say anything more, because the largest army in Kyoto was in the hands of the First Prince. He wanted to do this, and no one could do anything about it – with the tacit approval of the Empress Dowager.

And those civil officials who had enough courage to speak... had all been arrested and imprisoned in the Taiji Hall today.

The Qing Kingdom is now without a ruler, so whoever has the most soldiers has the loudest voice.

……

……

The Second Steward of the Prince of Heqin's residence came out from the door room next to the main gate. He lowered his voice and said something to the guards, seemingly expressing condolences. Then, one of the guards came out and arranged a carriage at the back of the residence.

With the sound of horses' hooves, a carriage painted with the Prince's residence mark drove out of the darkness and stopped in front of the stone steps of the residence. The Imperial Guards who were guarding around the residence shifted their gazes over, but there was no reaction.

Kyoto is now naturally implementing a very strict curfew. Except for those forces chasing Fan Xian in the various wards, the streets are basically empty. In theory, no one is allowed to travel at night. But the person getting on the carriage at this time was the Second Steward of the First Prince's residence, so the Imperial Guards naturally pretended not to see it.

The Second Steward greeted the Imperial Guard Colonel gently, stood on the stone steps, and squinted his eyes to look into the darkness of the street corners. He knew that in those shadows, he didn't know how many people were peeping at his whereabouts, but he wasn't worried about anything. He was going to meet the strategist from the Eldest Princess's residence to arrange their next actions.

Yes, this Second Steward was the spy leader sent by the Little Emperor of Northern Qi to Kyoto. He secretly hid it from the Princess and sold Fan Xian's whereabouts in Yangcong Lane to the Eldest Princess.

The Second Steward's brows gradually relaxed. He was entrusted with the Imperial decree, so he didn't take the Princess's anger to heart. There were many things that needed to be reported after the fact, especially since the First Prince had sent the Imperial Guard here, but he himself was forced to stay in the palace and couldn't know what was happening in the residence. Fan Xian was betrayed by the people in his residence.

He smiled and stepped down the steps, preparing to board the carriage.

His steady right hand slowly lifted the curtain of the carriage. The Second Steward's pupils shrank nervously, because there were several men in black looking at him indifferently in the carriage that should have been empty!

Then the Second Steward felt a bone-chilling coldness, which invaded his mind along several empty holes in his body. After the coldness, there was endless pain.

He opened his mouth wide, but couldn't shout out a syllable. He could only breathe hard and lowered his head, finally seeing clearly the three iron awls that had suddenly appeared on his body!

The cold iron awls ruthlessly pierced into his body, stringing him up like an innocent chick waiting to be slaughtered. Warm blood gurgled out along the blood grooves on the iron awls.

"Fifth Bureau!"

At this moment before his death, the Second Steward finally recognized the identity of the assassin, knowing that the other party was his extremely famous counterpart in the South, and resigned himself to his fate in despair.

He betrayed Fan Xian, so he should have known that he would face the endless snipes of the Surveillance Institute, but he didn't expect that in just a few hours, how could the Surveillance Institute, which seemed like a pile of loose sand, have regained its powerful mobility?

There was no time to think about it. The Second Steward's hands weakly clenched the iron awls on his chest and slumped down from the carriage, falling to the ground with a thud. Blood flowed everywhere, and his vitality was gone.

……

……

The first to discover this assassination at the gate of the Prince's residence were of course the guards of the Prince's residence who were close at hand. However, they were shocked by this bloody scene and did not react for a while. They could only watch as the Second Steward, who was trusted by the Princess, was stabbed to death by three iron awls and fell into a pool of blood, twitching non-stop.

And the carriage had already started moving at an extremely fast speed, ran over the Second Steward's body, and rushed into the darkness.

The spies who were watching this scene in those dark corners were dumbfounded. They never expected that someone could assassinate that steward-like figure in front of the heavily guarded residence of the Prince of Heqin. They didn't know how those people hid in the Prince's residence's own carriage, and didn't reveal a trace.

These spies would naturally not rush up to surround and capture the assassins in the carriage, but opened their eyes excitedly and watched this good show, guessing who made the first move, and what they should report to their masters when they returned later.

……

……

"Kill!"

The Imperial Guards deployed to control the defense outside the Prince's residence reacted at the fastest speed after a slight daze. They shouted in unison and stabbed the carriage with their spears.

With a few sounds of clicking, the horse pulling the carriage let out a sad cry and was killed on the ground. The lethality of the Imperial Guard's encirclement was really terrifying. Spears came out together, the horse fell to the ground, stirring up a cloud of dust, and the carriage was also stabbed to a halt in the street.

However, at this time, the encirclement had not yet been completed. There was a gap left in the direction of the street corner. The carriage scattered into countless pieces with a bang. Then, a large amount of thick smoke was blown out of the carriage. The smoke should have contained poison gas, forcing the Imperial Guards around to retreat a little and cough repeatedly.

The three assassins of the Fifth Bureau turned into three black shadows and rushed out of the gap under the cover of the poisonous smoke, disappearing into the darkness of Kyoto before the Imperial Guards could complete the encirclement.

Only a gloomy and cold announcement was left behind.

"This is the price of betraying Lord Fan!"

……

……

At the gate of the Prince's residence, the poisonous smoke dissipated, the steward died, the Imperial Guards were poisoned and treated, and there was a scene of grief and tension. And in everyone's heart, they were still echoing the last sentence left by the assassin – yes, who has this ability besides those terrible professional assassins in the Surveillance Institute, who has this courage to assassinate at the gate of the Prince of Heqin!

After His Majesty left, Director Chen was poisoned by a master from Dongyi City, and Director Fan became a wanted criminal of the court. In just one day, the Surveillance Institute, whose sinister reputation had once shocked the world, suddenly became a pile of loose sand, completely losing that magic power.

And this sinister and brave assassination, that announcement, finally told all the forces in Kyoto again – Little Master Fan is still alive! The Surveillance Institute is still there!

Those who betrayed him, those who tried to kill him, will slowly usher in the endless revenge of the Surveillance Institute. How long will those murders and poisons, immersed in darkness, soak this city? How many people will die?

————————————————————

The chaos, panic, and fear outside the Prince's residence did not completely spread into the residence. The heavily guarded residence seemed particularly calm. The Princess sat in a slightly cool pavilion with a cold face, looking out the window in a daze, and said slowly, "Is this a warning to me?"

"No." Yan Bingyun stood up slowly and said calmly, "This is the sincerity and message conveyed by Director Fan."

The Princess turned her head and looked at his eyes seriously.

Yan Bingyun remained unmoved and said calmly, "The Princess is the Princess, no longer the Great Princess of Northern Qi. I believe you won't feel sorry for the deaths of people like the Second Steward, no matter how many die."

The Princess's heart moved. She knew that what the other party said made sense. Since she had married into the Qing Kingdom, according to Fan Xian's reminder in Yangcong Lane, she was already a Qing citizen. Even if she considered more for her younger brother in the North, it would probably not be of any benefit to her future.

"The message that Director Fan wants to convey is very clear." Yan Bingyun said calmly, "The people who die tonight will gradually confirm this – he has regained control of the Surveillance Institute."

The Princess was silent for a while and said, "I am very willing to cooperate with Little Master Fan." She suddenly smiled slightly: "Of course, in addition to thanking Little Master Fan for killing people to establish prestige, I must also express my admiration. It was really a good kill."

Everything was clear to each other without words. The shout at the gate of the Prince's residence, I don't know how many people it will confuse.

The Princess suddenly spoke solemnly and said, "But assassination has never been the right way to solve problems. I hope Master Yan will be cautious."

She understood very well that Fan Xian was still being hunted down. The ability of the Surveillance Institute to gather together and exude a sinister power in such a short period of time was all due to the ability of the official in front of her. The policy of assassination to establish prestige may have been decided by Fan Xian, but the specific executor was the person in front of her.

Yan Bingyun said softly, "The people in the Institute have already scattered. Our advantage is in the darkness."

He bowed to the Princess and said slowly, "In Director Fan's words, we don't unsheathe our swords, we just kill people. As for the specific consequences and how the Empress Dowager will react, these are the issues that Director Fan needs to consider."

"How many people will die tonight?" The Princess asked worriedly. If Fan Xian really set off a bloody storm in Kyoto, would he really not worry about the Empress Dowager retaliating with iron-blooded means? What about those people in the palace?

Yan Bingyun paused slightly, and the coldness between his eyebrows gradually turned into coldness. He said, "A commander in the Thirteen City Gate Guard should already be dead, and a Vice Minister in the Ministry of Justice should also be dead. The Princess doesn't need to worry. In such a big storm, there are always many people who should die."