Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“My lord, the carriage is ready. The Provincial Governor’s bodyguard arranged a two-wheeled carriage for us. Are we heading back to the manufacturing bureau now?” Hu Haihe said dully as he pulled over a ‘luxurious’ two-wheeled carriage. No matter how good the two-wheeled carriage was, it was still nothing compared to the four-wheeled carriage. Thinking of the four-wheeled carriage that now belonged to the Provincial Governor made Hu Haihe extremely gloomy.
The bodyguard had also arranged a two-wheeled carriage for Old Master Lu. Yan Liqiang walked Old Master Lu to the carriage and bid him farewell. After Old Master Lu’s carriage left, Yan Liqiang went over to Hu Haihe and Zhou Yong’s soldiers and said, “You can go back first, I have not been in Pingxi Prefecture for quite a while. I would like to stay a night in Pingxi City and reminisce with a few old friends. I will go back on my own once I am done!”
“My lord, let us stay with you. It will be convenient in case anything happens!” Zhou Yong responded immediately.
“Haha, don’t worry. There’s no danger in Pingxi City. Don’t forget that I am more familiar with this city than you all. Go back, I will be fine alone!” Yan Liqiang smiled as he waved his hand. “Go now, it will be late if you depart any later!”
“Do you need a rhinodrake steed? Should we leave one for you?”
“No need!”
Having seen that Yan Liqiang was firm about his decision, Zhou Yong and Hu Haihe could only follow his orders. They bid their farewells to Yan Liqiang and returned to the manufacturing bureau.
Yan Liqiang squinted his eyes as he watched Zhou Yong, Hu Haihe, and the rest leave. He raised his head to look at the dusky sky with a mysterious smile. He strolled leisurely as he left the manor. He followed the crowds on the street and arrived at the Plum Gardens.
The Plum Gardens was a scenic spot within Pingxi City, especially at night as many visitors flocked to gardens. The Lake of Longevity was adjacent to the gardens as well. During the night, many restaurants within the Plum Gardens hung strings of red lanterns. From afar, the view of the entire area lit by those lanterns was magnificent. Music could be faintly heard from restaurants and opera theaters. The dimly discernible music and soft ripples of the Lake of Longevity created a peaceful ambiance.
At the Plum Gardens, no one recognized Yan Liqiang. There were a lot of youngsters hanging out in the garden. Aside from his slightly glamorous outfit, Yan Liqiang was no different from the youngsters that were there. No one recognized him as the Provincial Governor’s guest of honor who just had a meeting with him on setting foot into the salt trading industry.
Yan Liqiang felt a special connection to the Plum Gardens. Everything in the garden seemed familiar. Staring at the isle and pavilion on the edge of the Lake of Longevity reminded Yan Liqiang that he had murdered Wang Haofei on that exact isle, giving Yan Liqiang a time-traveling illusion.
The last time he was here, he had murdered someone. This time, he was waiting for someone who wanted to kill him to appear.
The Wang Clan which used to be the influential clan of Huanglong County had vanished into thin air. And now, Yan Liqiang had become a thorn in the eyes of many others.
Previously, he thought that the Shatu people had sent the falcon in the sky. However, he could not be absolutely certain that the person who hid in the tall tower and stared at him with murderous eyes was indeed one of the Shatu people. As per Yan Liqiang’s understanding of the Shatu people, if they had already sent an eye in the sky, it would be unlikely for them to send someone to track him in the places near the manor. Lei Sitong lived in the manor and security around the manor was tight. It was highly doubtful that the person in the tall tower was one of the Shatu people, because a Shatu person would inevitably attract attention near the manor.
However, this was only Yan Liqiang’s deduction. It was also possible that the one hidden in the tall tower was an ally of the Shatu people, but not necessarily a Shatu person. He might also be one of the Shatu people’s lackeys. Even if the person was at the tall tower, they might not have raised any alerts.
Yan Liqiang thought and strolled through the Plum Gardens. He passed by the tall tower which was a seven-story restaurant. The restaurant was bustling with noise. Yan Liqiang did not go up for an inquiry as he knew based on the volume of customers, it was impossible for the waiters and manager to recall exactly when and where someone monitored the manor from there.
If someone were to kill him, they would be waiting for him to come out from the manor to monitor their movements and strike at the opportunity.
Yan Liqiang strolled for a while at the Plum Gardens. As expected, he felt he was being watched from above. A black dot appeared once again across the Pingxi City sky.
Yan Liqiang pretended to be unaware and continued strolling for a while. He exited the Plum Gardens from a different entrance and called for a carriage. He got on the carriage and headed to the Pingxi Prefecture Martial Arts Academy, pretending to visit old haunts.
Yan Liqiang knew that Shi Dafeng and Shen Teng were not at the Martial Arts Academy.
Just a month ago, all the new students of the Martial Arts Academy had gone for a field trip to Lan Province, led by Shi Changfeng and a few other tutors of the academy. They would only be back next spring.
After he made one round at the Martial Arts Academy, Yan Liqiang felt slightly disappointed as did not see any ‘familiar faces’. By the time he left the academy, it was already late. Yan Liqiang settled down in a quiet inn named Verdant Lodge and stayed in a guest room with a small courtyard.
……
In the middle of the night, Pingxi City was filled with darkness. Three elusive figures climbed the tall northern city wall of Pingxi Prefecture and hastily moved toward the Verdant Lodge.
The three elusive figures wore black full body suits. The only things exposed were the three pairs of eyes gleaming with murderous intent. One of them had a longbow on his back, one had a black scimitar on his waist, and one had two daggers in his hands.
The one with the longbow suddenly stopped when he was around fifty meters away from the inn. He gently leaped onto the roof of adjacent loft on the third floor. He took the bow and nocked a black metal arrow onto it. The longbow was drawn into a full-moon shape and was aimed at Yan Liqiang’s room.
Meanwhile, the other two elusive figures continued approaching Yan Liqiang’s room. They gently leaped over the wall of Yan Liqiang’s courtyard like two feathers landed on the wall without a sound. They split courses, and one of them stood outside the locked door of Yan Liqiang’s room while the other stood in front of the window. Simultaneously, they pushed hard on the window and door and barged into the room.
At that moment, the glow from the blades radiated like a rising sun in Yan Liqiang’s dark room…
Yan Liqiang’s room collapsed under the gleaming blades like a piece of tofu split into two. One of the elusive figures who entered the room was slashed in half while the other one had blood spilling out from him as he was thrown outside the room.
As the room collapsed, it revealed Lei Sitong who was sitting on the bed holding a nearly two-meter long deadly machete. His eyes stared coldly at the two defeated men. “Damn, took you all long enough! You are pretty good for being able to withstand my attack…”
Lei Sitong stood up after he finished his sentence. With dignified manner of an emperor, he took quick steps and waved the machete in his hand…
The rows of bamboo and ten-meter wall in the Verdant Lodge were once again split into two by the gleaming machete. The man who was coughing up blood attempted to flee the scene by climbing over the wall. However, his body and the scimitar in his hand were also split into two by the Provincial Governor’s gleaming machete before he could even scream.
Just as the courtyard was filled with blade gleams, the black elusive figure who stood on the nearby roof of the loft with his long bow felt the roof tiles giving way. A large hand as powerful as steel suddenly grabbed his leg. With a loud noise, the whole roof collapsed. The archer was taken down.
Loud noises were heard inside the loft. The walls of the loft cracked and the whole tower shook violently. Dust and shattered tiles came pouring down.
A few seconds later, Pingxi Military Governor Liu Yucheng was coughing up dust while dragging the shattered body of the black-suited man as though he was dragging a dead dog from the loft. He stopped in front of Lei Sitong and lit the area with the light from his torch. He ripped off the man’s head cover and revealed the bloody face of a lifeless Shatu person.
“Son of a b*tch, it was indeed the Shatu people…”
“My lord…” Wang Jianbei grimly walked forward with soldiers carrying torches in their hands. “These three are from outside of the city. They are not from the Shatu people’s settlement in the city!”
“The Shatu people had the intention to assassinate me. Continue to search the Shatu people’s settlements in the city. Kill as many rebels as you can on the spot…” Lei Sitong laid the orders out coldly.
“Yes!”
After he issued his orders, Lei Sitong looked at the three corpses in front of him. He narrowed his eyes and whispered, “The three Shatu assassins were Martial Grandmasters. These Shatu people were really not fooling around!”
“What about Yan Liqiang…” Liu Yucheng asked.
“There’s no need to worry about him. He is brighter than a monkey. We’ll just wait for the news. These Shatu people were really unlucky to have crossed paths with him…” Lei Sitong gently shook his head. He stared at the western part of the city and let out a smile.
It wasn’t long before Lei Sitong’s soldiers shook the dreams of countless residences within Pingxi City with the sound of metal hooves. A large group of soldiers with torches in hand marched into Shatu people’s settlement with murderous intent. They went from house to house to search for the assassins. When they came across Shatu people who were uncooperative, the soldiers barged in to thrust the long spear in their hands at those uncooperative individuals.
