TNIBFT -Chapter 201 The Fake Eunuch Yuan Heipang

Everyone in the room stood up one after another and looked at Tao Lichun.

Their expressions were grave, their faces pale.

Ye Tian was also on full alert.

Tao Lichun swept his gaze over them, suspicion rising in his heart—could it be that Gao Defu was really killed by Ye Tian and the others?

Otherwise, why did everyone in the shop look like they were facing imminent disaster?

He didn’t ask this aloud. After thinking for a moment and organizing his words, he said,
“Gao Defu is dead!”

Dead?

Yuan Heipang, Xiao Wang, and the others who were just about to pack their belongings froze in place, staring at Ye Tian in shock.

The room fell silent.

Duan Qingshan and Old Yang let out a sigh of relief, exchanging a glance.

Yuan Heipang and the other workers were overjoyed:

“This is truly heaven opening its eyes!”

“The gods must have heard our prayers—this old eunuch dog committed countless evil deeds, he deserved to die!”

“Who got rid of this scourge and saved us?”

“That person is a true hero!”

They were so excited they were almost in tears. With Gao Defu dead, the crisis was over—they no longer needed to pack up and flee into hiding.

Seeing Ye Tian remain silent, Tao Lichun continued, “Before dawn today, the soldiers guarding outside his residence sensed something was wrong. No one came to open the gates, so they jumped inside to take a look—there were corpses all over the courtyard, not a single survivor.”

“There were many experts in Gao Defu’s residence. Recently, he didn’t even rely on regular soldiers anymore, using only imperial guards for protection. Just yesterday, the first batch of soldiers was assigned to guard his residence, but he still didn’t trust them and only stationed them in the outer courtyard.”

“Eighty-three people in the residence—yet not a single one survived. I wonder what kind of powerful figure has come to Sifang City?”

Everyone was shocked.

Who in this world could possess such strength?

To deal with someone like Gao Defu—and do it without making a sound?

Ye Tian cast a suspicious glance at Sun Wuji.

At that moment, Sun Wuji was sitting at the table as if he hadn’t heard anything, stuffing melon seeds into his mouth while spitting out shells all over the floor like a machine.

Ye Tian: …

Shangguan Ning looked at Sun Wuji.

Then Old Yang and Duan Qingshan did the same. Among everyone, Sun Wuji was the most suspicious—Gao Defu had just been planning to deal with Ye Tian, and the very next day he was dead.

In Sifang City, who else could have such ability besides Sun Wuji?

“What are you all looking at me for?”

“Want some melon seeds? Or are you trying to frame this old man for murder?” Sun Wuji glared at them unhappily, stood up from his chair, and waved them off in annoyance. “Go away, go away—just looking at you all irritates me.”

“I’d rather Gao Defu had dealt with you lot.”

“Move aside! Little disciple, let’s go shopping.”

Sun Wuji grabbed Ye Shuangxue’s small hand, shot Ye Tian a glare, and as he left, deliberately stepped on Ye Tian’s shoe before walking out with her.

Watching his departing figure, no one dared to say anything.

Tao Lichun spoke awkwardly, “The old senior is already so advanced in age—it’s indeed inappropriate for you to suspect him.”

“Let alone killing over eighty experts—even killing eighty chickens would exhaust him to death,” Tao Lichun said weakly, shaking his head.

The people in the shop felt embarrassed.

Could Sun Wuji be compared to an ordinary person?

“How did Gao Defu die?” Ye Tian finally asked.

“The head was completely gone—flesh scattered all over the ground. Even I felt like vomiting when I saw it. The killer’s methods were brutally cruel, truly…”

At the side, Zhao Kang recalled the scene he had just witnessed. His face turned deathly pale, his expression twisted in pain. After speaking, he covered his mouth with one hand and began dry heaving.

Duan Qingshan, Old Yang, and Shangguan Ning exchanged glances. They had already determined who the killer was.

No matter what, Gao Defu was dead—and everyone was satisfied with that outcome.

Ye Tian changed the subject. “Since Gao Defu is already dead, what is Teacher Tao worried about now?”

“The welcome banquet is the day after tomorrow.”

Tao Lichun’s face was full of worry as he looked helplessly at Ye Tian. “This peace negotiation is an opportunity that Great Liang fought hard to obtain. If it fails, the Empress of Great Zhou will send troops north. When that happens, the people will suffer—only the citizens of Sifang City will bear the consequences.”

“The Emperor and his consort are far away in the capital, indulging in pleasure every night. They won’t care about the lives of the common people. This negotiation must not fail.”

“But now that Gao Defu is dead…”

Tao Lichun sighed in frustration.

At this moment, a bold idea formed in Ye Tian’s mind. Sifang City was a place the Emperor could abandon at any time. In the original story, when Ye Yunting occupied Sifang City, Great Liang didn’t react at all—they simply allowed him to grow stronger.

If the original protagonist could do it, then if he seized Sifang City now, wouldn’t it also be possible?

As long as he had enough silver, he could stabilize both Great Zhou and Great Liang, buying himself time to grow stronger. He might even do better than the original protagonist.

But Tao Lichun was blindly loyal—there was no way he would agree to rebellion.

So it had to be justified by circumstances. For example: Gao Defu tried to kill him, and then Gao Defu was killed. As the Emperor’s representative, Gao Defu’s death should have caused outrage—but Tao Lichun’s first concern was still the peace negotiation.

“Who says Gao Defu is dead?” Ye Tian suddenly said.

Everyone was stunned.

They couldn’t understand what he was getting at.

“You mean…?” Tao Lichun’s eyes lit up.

Ye Tian pushed Yuan Heipang forward with a sly grin. “From today onward, he is Gao Defu. Old Yang, Old Duan, and Xiao Wang will be his guards and attendants.”

“Since no one has actually seen Gao Defu before, from now on, Old Yuan is Gao Defu.”

Everyone looked at Ye Tian in shock.

Tao Lichun frowned deeply, but he had no better solution.

Yuan Heipang shrank his neck, his face full of fear. His lips twitched as he looked at Ye Tian. “How long do I have to pretend? One day? Two days?”

“Boss… no one’s going to kill me, right?”

“I won’t be able to pull it off…”

Yuan Heipang looked like he was about to cry, while Xiao Wang and the others covered their mouths, snickering in amusement.

…

Two days later—the welcome banquet.

Inside the City Lord’s residence of Sifang City.

The once resplendent and luxurious residence had grown desolate in less than half a month after Xiao Haoyang fled. The artificial hills and ponds were left unattended, weeds grew wildly, and the fish pond had frozen over with thick ice.

Without bustling servants, the place felt eerily quiet—like a haunted house.

Yuan Heipang had changed into Gao Defu’s bright red eunuch robe. His belly bulged against the fabric as he sat uneasily on the high seat, his face flushed red from nervousness.

“Boss!”

“Boss, don’t leave!” Seeing Ye Tian about to step out, Yuan Heipang immediately sprang up from his chair, lips trembling, as if he might rush down and cling to Ye Tian’s leg.

Ye Tian looked at him speechlessly.

Twisting awkwardly, Yuan Heipang said, “I’m scared someone’s going to kill me.”

“Boss, I get nervous the moment you leave. Can you stand behind me later?”

Old Duan rolled his eyes and nudged Yuan Heipang’s arm with his sword hilt. “What ‘you’ and ‘I’? You’re the Grand Eunuch now. You should refer to yourself as ‘this servant.’ When you meet the envoy from Great Zhou, you should call yourself ‘your humble servant.’ Don’t blow your cover.”

“And your expression—make it more sleazy. Your voice is off too,” Old Yang added.

Outside the hall, Tao Ling’er ran up to the entrance, her cheeks flushed as she called out with a smile, “Quick! Hurry!”

“They’ve already reached the main gate. Everyone, get ready—don’t let anything slip!”