The more he thought about it, the more he felt like it made sense. Weren't the protagonists or great schemers in stories always like this? They would be the ones in the back, orchestrating incidents that slowly moved aside their enemies and rivals...
Chen Tengfei must've done something because he wanted to get rid of the third prince, so Chen Tengfei wanted to use the hand of the fifth princess to get rid of his rival.
"...As expected of the protagonist, he's really smart. He's completely on another level compared to us," Feng Yongrui muttered. "I'm just glad I'm not his rival..."
"System, open up the information and tell me," Feng Yongrui said, "Is Chen Tengfei the one who's behind the third prince and fifth princess' fight? Is he the one who secretly caused it?"
"Host, you can search the information yourself, you know..." the System grumbled.
Feng Yongrui rolled his eyes. It was true that he could look for the information himself, but it would take a long time, and he was simply lazy... Anyway, he could finally put the System to good use.
The System flipped through the information and sighed. "Host, there's no information about that. The information only says that the protagonist, Chen Tengfei, starts fighting against the third prince around this time."
"And did he win?" Feng Yongrui asked.
"Yes, he managed to get rid of the third prince, Host."
"Hm..."
"But... currently, things aren't looking too good, right? After all, the one who is winning is the third prince... Or is this normal?" Feng Yongrui wondered. "But... if this continues, won't the fifth princess lose?"
"Host, even if the fifth princess loses and she gets pushed away from the fight from the throne, isn't that a good thing? After all, she is also one of Chen Tengfei's rivals," the System said.
"You have a point, but... weren't you the one who said that it's better if things follow the original timeline? If the one who ends up winning is the fifth princess, won't there be some sort of butterfly effect or something?" Feng Yongrui asked.
"Err..." the System could not find a reply.
"Right, System. Is there any information about the Vampire Clan?" Feng Yongrui asked, changing the subject.
"Let me see..." the System flipped through the information and spoke. "Host, the Vampire Clan is the third most powerful clan in the Phantom Realm."
"The most powerful clan would be the royal family, right?" Feng Yongrui asked.
"Correct, Host. The second most powerful clan would be the Shadow Demons. As for the Vampire Clan... They're actually very powerful, almost as powerful as the Shadow Demons. In fact, if those two clans were to fight, the winner would not necessarily be the Shadow Demons..."
"The Shadow Demons and the Vampire Clan have been rivals for some time now. For starters, the Vampire Clan wants to overpower the Shadow Demons, but of course, the Shadow Demons won't let them... This is one of the main reason they're rivals..."
"However, there are some who say that the Shadow Demons and Vampires were actually from the same clan, but later split up due to internal problems... Of course, there is no way of verifying this rumor," the System explained.
"Alright. Now who's the current head of the Vampire Clan? Is he pretty strong? Will he become a problem for the protagonist?" Feng Yongrui asked worriedly.
"Hmm... Wait a second, Host," the System said, searching through the information.
"Right. The current head of the Vampire Clan is Lilith. She's said to be extremely ruthless when dealing with her opponents..." the System said.
"Lilith..." Feng Yongrui muttered her name and wondered out loud.
According to Big Brother's words, the Vampire Clan was backing the third prince... However, he had no way of knowing if this was normal or if something unexpected was happening, diverting from the original timeline.
"I can't rest assured at all," Feng Yongrui sighed. "I really can't keep calm. What if an accident happens and somehow the protagonist gets into trouble?"
"Host... this... Isn't this just needless worrying? Even if something were to change, isn't he still the protagonist? As long as Chen Tengfei is the protagonist, no matter how much the environment changes and no matter what this world throws at him, he's bound to succeed and overcome his problems, right?"
"Also, Host. Weren't you the one who said you wouldn't worry about the protagonist? Why are you so worried right now?" the System scoffed.
Feng Yongrui clicked his tongue. He knew that logically, nothing bad would happen. After all the protagonist was the protagonist for a reason. However, he couldn't shake off the strange feeling that was brewing in his heart.
He knew that his worries were uncalled for, but he still...
"Host, let me tell you the truth," the System sighed. "Even if you were to help him, as a minor supporting character who is arrogant, despicable, and has poor writing skills, in what way can you help him?"
Feng Yongrui: "..."
"Host, he is the protagonist. Even if the sky were to fall down someday, everyone would die except him. Rather than being worried about someone you don't even know, much less the powerful protagonist of this world, it would be better to think of ways to stay low-key and make sure Xu Chao doesn't find out that you're a spy," the System said.
Feng Yongrui sighed. He knew that the System was right...
"But I still want to mention it, even if it's just a little bit, in my report," Feng Yongrui decided.
The System sighed. "Alright, Host. But don't stray too far away from the original flamboyant style. You have to make sure you write in the same way that 'Feng Yongrui' usually writes. Otherwise, the protagonist might find out something's wrong with you."
Feng Yongrui nodded. "I know," he whispered.
That evening, when Feng Yongrui returned to his quarters, he took a piece of paper and wrote, in the usual flamboyant, ostentatious style, about his day.
However, at the end of his report, he added that he heard rumors that the Vampire Clan was colluding and supporting the third prince. Feng Yongrui had also slyly asked if all of this was happening because he* (Chen Tengfei) had purposely orchestrated it.
At the end of the week, Feng Yongrui sent the letters to CHEN1213 and hoped that he would receive a reply. All this time, when Feng Yongrui sent his letters, Chen Tengfei had never bothered to reply him.
Feng Yongrui thought it was pretty normal. After all, his letters usually contained nothing but rubbish. It would've been a miracle if Chen Tengfei even read his letters in the first place...
But now, Feng Yongrui really hoped that Chen Tengfei would send him a reply. After all, Feng Yongrui wanted to know if this was all part of Chen Tengfei's plan. As Chen Tengfei's loyal subordinate, he had the right to at least know this, right?
***
In the heart of the Phantom Realm, inside a gloomy room, a young man with dragon horns sat leisurely in front of his table. He stretched out his hand and picked up a jade goblet.
When he moved, his long, slender fingers were illuminated by the candles, showing off his delicate white skin and well-shaped joints. The man took a sip of wine from the goblet and licked the corner of his lips when he was done.
When he licked his red lips, a flash of white could be seen, as neat rows of pearly teeth were exposed. If a person were to see this scene, they would've immediately fallen for his charms.
After all, just the small movement of his agile tongue skimming across his lips seemed to carry meaning and depth.
A black bird flew noiselessly into the room, transforming into Xiao Niao.
"Master," he greeted.
The man gave Xiao Niao a small glance and opened his mouth to speak.
"I called you here because --"
The man suddenly stopped short, leaving Xiao Niao gaping at him.
"Master, what is the matter?" he asked tentatively.
Xiao Niao looked at his Master, who was looking impatiently at... at the air in front of him? What happened? Was there a spy listening to their conversation? Was there a hidden weapon somewhere? Did someone use poison??
A thousand thoughts ran through Xiao Niao's head as he looked at his Master's cold face. Why did it seem like... his Master was waiting for something?
"It should be here any moment, just wait a bit," the Master spoke, his low voice sending chills into Xiao Niao's heart.
"Understood, Master."
One minute later, Xiao Niao felt a strange vibration in the air and he looked up. At the same time, he saw a stack of papers appear out of thin air, landing on his Master's outstretched hand.
Xiao Niao looked at the stack of papers and found them strangely familiar. Where did he see them...?
Right! Weren't those the reports from the unidentified spy who was in Xu Chao's mansion??
Xiao Niao looked at his Master and waited patiently. His Master would definitely tear those letters to shreds, right? After all, who dared to send such stupid, irrelevant "reports" to his one and only, awesome Master??
Xiao Niao waited and waited, but he did not hear the sound of paper being torn into shreds.
Xiao Niao: ???
***
*Note: When writing his letters, Feng Yongrui never addresses "Chen Tengfei" by his name. He always calls him something like Boss or Master or "the one to whom I have sworn loyalty to".
The main reason for this is because Feng Yongrui is afraid that one day he will be exposed (as a spy). If he is exposed and Xu Chao finds his letters, Feng Yongrui doesn't want Xu Chao to know who is Feng Yongrui's boss. Think of it like a code name, spies won't call their boss/colleague by their names directly, so as to avoid getting exposed...
This is why Feng Yongrui avoids writing Chen Tengfei's name directly, and also the basis for future misunderstandings... Hope this helps. :)