Liu Bian at the start, so you're called Dong Zhuo, right?

"Leave one alive!" Liu Bian gasped for breath, but his voice remained extremely steady. "At least one."

Upon hearing this, Cao Ren's eyes darkened, and he turned around and roared:

"Listen to Your Highness! Catch one that's still breathing!"

With a swift stroke of his blade, he forced the dark figure at the front back into the firelight, then kicked the man squarely in the back of the knee.

With a "click," the moment the man knelt down, two armored soldiers pounced on him, locking his arms, pressing down on his shoulders, and removing his sword in one swift motion.

Another shadowy figure tried to rush into the shadows amidst the smoke and fire, but Cao Ren swung his sword, and the scabbard slammed into the man's back with a "bang." The shadowy figure staggered, and as soon as he turned around, two spears were already pressed against his throat.

The soldiers swarmed forward, pinned the man down, tied him up tightly, stuffed cloth into his mouth, and bound him like a rice dumpling.

Cao Ren then rushed to Liu Bian, his face ashen and his voice filled with lingering fear:

"Why did Your Highness leave the palace alone?!"

"If this matter is handled even slightly off-track, the consequences could be disastrous!"

Liu Bian looked up at him, his lips twitched, he wanted to laugh but couldn't:

"I thought... we'd found a way in."

He pulled the secret letter from his sleeve and handed it over.

Cao Ren glanced at it, and his brows immediately furrowed:

"Zhou Yi's letter?"

Liu Bian didn't answer, only raised his chin, his eyes as cold as a knife's edge:

Where is Zhou Ling?

Cao Ren turned around and roared:

"Search! Find Zhou Ling! Every single jailer—not one less!"

The armored soldiers rushed into the inner corridor, their torches casting a series of flickering shadows.

But the further you go in, the more it feels like stepping into a well.

The corridor was too quiet.

It's abnormally quiet.

Until the firelight illuminated the first corpse—a jailer lying across the wall, a thin gash in his throat, but not much blood was flowing, as if someone had already muffled his voice.

Further inside, there was a second, a third... lying haphazardly, yet neatly arranged.

Even the prisoners in the jail were lying on the ground, with white foam at the corners of their mouths, as if they had been drugged by something.

Cao Ren's face darkened, and he lowered his voice:

"It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision. Someone sealed the prison gates first and then used sleeping gas, so that they couldn't hear anything outside."

Liu Bian clutched his shoulder, hot blood seeping through his fingers.

Ignoring the pain, he uttered only one sentence:

"Go to the innermost room."

That was the cell Zhou Yixin mentioned—the cell where important criminals were held.

Cao Ren waved in response, lowered the torches, and the armored soldiers advanced along the inner corridor. The deeper they went, the dampness seeped into their skin, and the smell of rust and blood mingled together, like a tight squeeze on their throats.

The innermost cell door was half-closed.

The bolt broke cleanly, as if it had been forcibly twisted open with pliers.

Cao Ren kicked it away—

"Bang!"

The moment the firelight poured in, Liu Bian felt a sudden emptiness in his chest.

Zhou Yi.

He lay on the damp ground inside the door, his official robes soaked black with blood, his chest rising and falling barely, like a lamp about to go out in the wind. There was a long gash from his left shoulder to his ribs, the blood half-congealed, but his fingertips were frighteningly cold.

Liu Bian felt as if something was blocking his throat for a moment, then he forced a shout:

"Take it away!"

"Return to the palace—return to the palace immediately!"

Cao Ren stepped forward and touched Zhou Yi's neck, his face darkening:

"It's still breathing."

He dared not delay, immediately ripped off his cloak to cover his wound, and roared:

"Two people carry it! Four people protect it! Take the shortest route!"

"Anyone who obstructs—behead them!"

Liu Bian followed behind, his chest feeling like it was burning with fire.

-

Inside Chengde Hall, the lights were on.

When Hua Tuo arrived, his sleeves were still damp with night dew. He frowned the moment he saw the person on the bed. He took the person's pulse, remained silent for a long time, and then slowly shook his head.

"Your Highness... conventional methods cannot save you."

"This knife wound penetrated deep into the internal organs, causing a lot of blood loss and rapid dissipation of vital energy. It's a miracle that he's survived this long."

Wang Ming, who was listening nearby, turned pale:

"Miracle doctor...is there any other way?"

Hua Tuo looked up at Liu Bian and asked directly:

"How long does Your Highness intend for him to live?"

Liu Bian stared at Zhou Yi's face, which was so pale it was almost bloodless, and his voice seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth:

I want him to wake up.

"I want him to finish what he has to say."

Hua Tuo gently exhaled:

"There is a risk involved. A needle."

"Open the philtrum, protect the heart with Neiguan, support the Qi with Zusanli, and then gently lift the spirit with Baihui."

He paused, then lowered his voice even further:

"It's easy to get that breath up, but once it's gone—you can never get it back."

Liu Bian did not hesitate any longer and raised his hand in a bow:

"Thank you, sir."

He turned and gave the order:

"Hot water, strong liquor, clean linen, quick."

"Boil all the knives and needles. Not a single speck of ash is allowed to fall into his wounds inside the palace."

Wang Ming was taken aback, but immediately responded and ran off.

Hua Tuo said no more. He removed the needle, extinguished the fire, and washed his hands. It was clear at a glance that he was a man who had been fighting against death for many years.

The first needle was inserted into the philtrum.

Zhou Yi's brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

The second needle is inserted into the Neiguan point.

He let out a very soft "ho" sound, like a drowning person finally taking a breath.

The third needle was inserted at Zusanli (ST36).

That breath was finally "pulled" back.

Zhou Yi's chest began to rise and fall noticeably, and his lips regained a slight red hue.

After a moment, he opened his eyes.

His eyes, however, were unfocused, as if he were still under the dim light in prison.

Liu Bian leaned down, his voice extremely low, as if afraid of startling the breath away:

"Zhou Ling".

Zhou Yi's pupils slowly narrowed, as if he recognized someone. His lips moved, and his voice was as thin as paper:

"...Your Highness."

Liu Bian's heart skipped a beat, and the tension tightened even more in the next moment:

"Who did it?"

Zhou Yi swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing as if in great pain.

He said haltingly:

"The person... has been caught."

"The letter... was also delivered by your subject."

"Your Majesty... I originally intended to... leave something for Your Majesty to say."

Liu Bian's fingers tightened: "Then why would that be—"

A bitter smile flashed in Zhou Yi's eyes, a smile that seemed to be both ashamed and angry:

"In the county jail... there is a person... who has betrayed us."

"The gatekeeper... that yamen runner... his surname is Du."

"He is usually very cautious, keeps accurate accounts, and speaks very little."

"I believe... they are one of our own."

"As a result... he took advantage of the night shift change... to let several men in from inside."

As Zhou Yi finished speaking, his chest suddenly clenched, as if he had been stabbed again.

Hua Tuo gently pressed his wrist and whispered, "Slow down."

Zhou Yi shook his head, forcing out the words:

"They came in...without killing anyone first."

"First...read."

He let out a dry laugh, as if swallowing back blood and saliva:

"The Blue Heaven is dead; the Yellow Heaven shall rise."

"What are you saying... Heaven saves people, Heaven bestows life."

"I also need to go with you."

"They talk about how Heaven saves the people... they say the court is corrupt, the emperor is immoral, and that following them is 'obeying Heaven'."

"They also said... as long as I nod, I can become a 'Merit Officer' and 'act on behalf of Heaven'."

Liu Bian already had an answer in his heart, but he still asked, "How will you answer?"

Zhou Yi's eyes suddenly lit up:

"Your subject... is the magistrate of Luoyang."

"We are guarding... His Majesty's city."

"What we are protecting is... the lives of the people of Luoyang."

"How could you... worship their 'heaven'?"

He took a deep breath, as if spitting out the hardest piece of bone he had ever lived:

"Your Majesty, I only uttered one word—"

"roll."

Liu Bian's throat tightened suddenly.

Zhou Yi continued, his voice growing softer and softer:

"They...stabbed me."

"Before I fainted... I heard them cursing."

"To say... 'Ignorant of destiny'."

"He said... 'The Crown Prince will arrive soon.'"

Liu Bian's knuckles tightened little by little, and the pain in his shoulder seemed to disappear at this moment.

He felt a fire burning in his chest, making him want to turn the entire city of Luoyang upside down.

Zhou Yi slowly closed his eyelids.

Liu Bian's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly looked up at Hua Tuo.

Hua Tuo immediately stepped forward and pressed on his acupoints, saying in a deep voice:

"I can't say any more."

"Let him rest for a while; he can hold on for a few more days."

Liu Bian stared at Zhou Yi's face, as if trying to etch the man's true nature into his bones.

This person can be seduced, hurt, and pushed into the mud.

But he never knelt before "Yellow Heaven".

He gave his life to the city and its people.

Zhou Yi's voice eventually became a whisper, almost inaudible:

"Luo...Yang..."

It's as if they want to pass those two words on to future generations.

Then he fainted.

The room fell eerily quiet for a moment.

Liu Bian slowly raised his head, the slight moisture in the corner of his eyes glistening in the lamplight, which he forcefully suppressed.

His voice was soft yet tinged with intense coldness as he spoke to Cao Ren:

"Bring all the prisoners who were alive in the county jail tonight."

"Examine them one by one."

"Anyone who dares to bite the venom sac will have their teeth knocked out first."

"Anyone who dares to play dead will have their fingers cut off first."

Cao Ren felt a chill run down his spine, but he only clasped his hands in a fist salute:

"Here you go!"