Aoyama

Chapter 419 Once the deal is done, it's done.
Liao Zhong lay unconscious on the ground. A dignified Dao Seeking Realm official was actually struck by six palms and his soul was scattered.

Chen Ji looked at Madam Lu and could hear her heavy breathing, as if those six blows had been quite difficult for her: "Aunt Ping, are you alright?"

Lu said in a low voice, "It's alright, let's go."

“Okay,” Chen Ji bent down and lifted Liao Zhong’s belt, as if carrying a tattered sack as he walked out of the courtyard.

But as soon as he stepped out of the door, he immediately leaned back and retreated.

With a thud.

A crossbow bolt flew past his nose and landed on the wooden door frame beside him, the bolt's shaft trembling and humming incessantly.

The Jie Fan Wei are coming!
On either side of the alley, Jie Fanwei, dressed in a straw raincoat, held a knife at his waist with his right hand and a crossbow in his left, firing arrows as they crisscrossed.

Across the alley, Jie Fanwei climbed onto the roof and shot arrows at Chen Ji head-on.

Chen Ji hurriedly retreated into the courtyard with Liao Zhong in his arms, kicking the gate shut behind him as he did so.

With a dozen or so sharp, piercing sounds, the crossbow bolts fired by Jie Fanwei nearly shattered the courtyard gate.

Can't get out.

He examined the traces from all sides.

Behind me was a sea of ​​fire, and in front of me were the Jie Fan Guards. Which way should I go?

The heat waves from the inferno hit you in the face, making your skin swell.

The Jiefan Guards outside the courtyard did not rush to launch a full-scale attack. They knew that as long as the fire continued to spread, Chen Ji would eventually break out. The methods that the Lu family had used against Liao Zhong were now being used against them.

Chen Ji looked at Madam Lu: "Aunt Ping, I have a clue about the long whale."

Lu's pupils, hidden beneath her black veil, suddenly contracted: "What clue?"

Chen Ji said urgently, "Chang Jing is a clerk in the Jing Dynasty's Military Intelligence Bureau. He originally worked in the Jinling area, and later went to Luoyang to collude with the Liu family in a rebellion. He is hiding in the Directorate of Ceremonial, and it is unknown whether he is a member of the Jie Fan Guard or the Secret Intelligence Bureau. He holds a high position and has great power, and can freely look through the list of evidence and files. Now that he has come to the capital, there are not many people who can learn about the Renshou Palace discussion in one day. If we find someone who matches these clues, we will find Chang Jing."

Amidst the surging flames, Chen Ji felt the heat of the inferno making his hair curl up.

He told Lu everything he knew at an extremely fast pace, as if afraid that he wouldn't be able to finish if he spoke too slowly.

A long whale.

Unbeknownst to Chen Ji, he had already had many dealings with this whale. The other party seemed unimportant, yet also very important, always remaining out of everyone's sight and never showing his face.

Chen Ji had never cared who Chang Jing was before, nor had he ever bothered to find out.

But now he has to help Aunt Ping find this person, which he promised.

But Madam Lu didn't seem to care about the long whale anymore. Instead, she asked in a deep voice, "Why didn't you say it before? Are you worried that you won't be able to get out of here alive and that you'll take the secret to your grave?"

Chen Ji corrected, "There may not be a tomb."

Lu said calmly, "It's not funny."

Chen Ji took a deep breath: "Aunt Ping, you should go."

Lu's eyes, hidden behind the black veil, held an unreadable expression: "I'm leaving?"

Chen Ji said solemnly, "I'll find a way to fight my way out later. After we get out, you go east, and I'll go west..."

Lu interrupted, "You want to find a way to fight your way out? What way can you possibly think of to fight your way out?"

Chen Ji said sincerely, "Aunt Ping, don't worry about anything else. Just know that I can fight my way out. You've already helped me enough, and I've told you everything I know. There's no need to help me any further. All good things must come to an end, and it's time to part ways."

Madam Lu sneered: "If I don't help you, who will? I am..."

Just then, a sharp and mournful copper whistle suddenly sounded outside the courtyard.

This time, the bronze whistle no longer blew the call of a magpie, but the long cry of a falcon: Dangerous person!

Be careful!

Be careful!

Be careful!

The next moment, a cry of alarm came from the west side of the courtyard. It was unclear who had rushed over and disrupted the Jie Fanwei's formation.

Two breaths later, cries of pain came from the rooftop across the courtyard, along with the sound of a corpse rolling off the tiles to the ground.

Two people arrived.

Who?
With so many trouble-relief guards around, who would dare to risk being accused of treason and come to cause trouble?

Chen Ji and Madam Lu exchanged a glance. Madam Lu then removed the door panel and said, "I'll cover you as we head west!"

She suddenly rushed forward, holding the door panel, and used the plank to send Jie Fanwei flying backward, crashing into the brick wall of the alley.

Lu held up the door panel facing east, and the crossbow bolts from the Jie Fan Guards rained down on it.

Chen Ji carried Liao Zhong and charged westward, the two of them back to back, quickly approaching the source of the noisy fighting.

His gaze traveled through the alley, past layers of raincoats and straw hats, but he could only see shadowy figures and still couldn't make out who it was.

At this moment, a guard swung his sword down first. Chen Ji raised his right hand to block, but found that the opponent's sword strike changed and was actually aimed at Liao Zhong, whom he was holding in his left hand... This was to silence him!
Chen Ji took a small step back, and Jie Fanwei's knife barely grazed Liao Zhong's scalp; an inch less and blood would have splattered on the spot. The knife ripped Liao Zhong's hair apart, and his gray hair immediately fell down.

Taking advantage of the moment when the opponent was about to exhaust himself, Chen Ji's short knife flew out of his hand and nailed into Jie Fanwei's face, splitting open the opponent's bamboo hat.

Jie Fanwei slowly fell backward, and just as his body arched back, Chen Ji stepped forward and drew his short sword again.

A centurion of the Jiefan Guard shouted from the crowd: "If you want to commit the crime, surrender and we'll spare your life. If you resist again, kill us without mercy!"

The sea of ​​fire reflected on Chen Ji's face, making it shimmer with a powerful and savage life force. Chen Ji twirled the short sword in his hand, switching from a forward grip to a reverse grip.

In terms of force exertion, the upright grip is the proper way to use a knife, which is convenient for stabbing, while the reverse grip is convenient for slashing.

However, the true purpose of the backhand is not to cut or slash, but to conceal the knife. The blade is hidden behind the forearm, like a scorpion hiding its hook; this is the most dangerous knife technique.

Chen Ji lunged towards the alleyway, never getting more than half a step away from Jie Fanwei. Jie Fanwei could even clearly see every single eyebrow of his and hear his even breathing.

Jie Fanwei had no room to maneuver his long sword at this distance. He tried to push Chen Ji away with his left hand, but could only watch as the short sword sliced ​​through his armpit and neck, blood gushing out and spraying onto Chen Ji's body and face.

After killing one person, Chen Ji crawled out of the other's arms and then crashed into the arms of the next. Jie Fanwei, who was close by, tried to stop him with his sword, but Chen Ji was already one step ahead, slicing through the tendon of the other's hand with a backhand strike.

Chen Ji had been wary of Wu Xuange, but Wu Xuange seemed to be off guard.

The shouts of killing continued at the end of the alley. Chen Ji was killing people outside, while others were killing people inside. Although there were clearly more Jie Fanwei members, the two of them seemed to be besieging Jie Fanwei, and Jie Fanwei was gradually squeezed into an impenetrable area.

Chen Ji was in a bloodthirsty frenzy, killing his way forward without knowing how many people he had killed or how many cuts he had made. Just as he was about to use his short sword to slit the neck of the person in front of him, the blade stopped right in front of the other person's neck.

woman.

The woman, dressed in black with her face covered by a black cloth, patted her chest and giggled, "Lord Chen, your knife is so fast! It scared me to death!"

Chen Ji recognized Jiao Tu's voice: "How come it's you? I'm on the wanted list now, aren't you afraid of being implicated?"

The alley was littered with corpses, and Jiao Tu walked around in the pool of blood as if no one else was there: "So I came masked, Lord Chen, didn't you notice? I even changed my clothes and hairstyle!"

"Thank you for your help," Chen Ji said as he tried to rush out of the alley, but Jiao Tu braced herself against the brick wall and blocked his way.

She smiled and said, "I have a sincere heart to save people. If you are defeated by someone else, don't betray me."

Chen Ji took a deep breath: "Don't worry, I will never betray you."

But even after saying this, Jiao Tu still blocked the way, toying with a dagger in her hand.

Chen Ji glanced back at what was behind him; Aunt Ping was still struggling to hold off Jie Fanwei.

He asked Jiao Tu in a deep voice, "What does Your Excellency desire?"

Jiao Tu lowered her voice and said with a smile, "It's so easy to talk to smart people. Lord Chen, the merit this time is too great; I'm afraid you can't handle it all by yourself. If Lord Chen dies, that's fine, but if you return to the capital alive, would you be so kind as to give me a hand?"

Chen Ji replied earnestly, "Definitely."

However, the Jade Rabbit still did not move aside.

Chen Ji raised an eyebrow: "Is there anything else, Lord Jiao Tu?"

Jiao Tu spun around again: "My night clothes have lotus flowers embroidered on them, and they're tailored to fit my body perfectly. You still haven't told me if they look good or not!"

Chen Ji exclaimed in astonishment, "Beautiful!"

"Lord Chen has better judgment than Yun Yang!" Jiao Tu finally stepped aside, smiling broadly, and said, "Lord Chen, you should run away quickly. I can only help you fend off some small fry; I can't handle the rest. There are three warhorses outside. Remember to pay me for them when you get back to the capital—three hundred taels of silver per horse!"

"Aunt Ping, let's go," Chen Ji quickly walked past Jiao Tu, grabbed the reins of the warhorse at the alley entrance, put Liao Zhong on the horse's back, and rode on another warhorse himself.

Suddenly, Madam Lu tossed the door panel in her hand a foot into the air, then slammed both hands down on it, shattering it completely. The invisible force carried splinters and arrows from the panel, sending them flying backward and knocking the guards in the alley off balance.

As Lu turned to leave, she gave Jiao Tu a cold look as she passed by. Her sharp gaze, even through the black veil, sent a chill down Jiao Tu's spine, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end!

However, Madam Lu ignored her and mounted her horse, saying, "To the East Gate."

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Jiao Tu called out to the rooftop, "Come down and get to work!"

Yun Yang, dressed in black and masked, stormed into the alley from the rooftop to clean up the mess. A man and a woman, armed with daggers, killed him swiftly and decisively.

"Hey, killing so many people, won't this cause a big problem?" Yun Yang asked curiously. As he spoke, he pierced the jaw of one of the guards with a dagger.

The two men killed with ease and skill, their techniques were exquisite, direct, and decisive; Jie Fanwei was no match for them.

Jiao Tu stepped through the alleyway amidst pools of blood and corpses: "Don't worry, they're all people who betrayed the Inner Minister. It'll be fine after we kill them all."

Once the alley quieted down, Yun Yang wiped the blood from his face: "What did that kid say?"

Jiao Tu calmly replied, "He agreed."

Yun Yang stretched and yawned: "What if this kid goes back on his word?"

Jiao Tu glanced at him: "You and I both know what kind of person this kid is. Now I trust him more than I trust you."

Yun Yang's eyes widened: "You believe him but not me?"

Jiao Tu said casually, "Why should I believe you? Give me a reason."

Yun Yang opened his mouth as if to speak, but then stopped.

Jiao Tu sneered, "Shut up and get to work. Stop the spies coming from the north too. Xuan She has chosen the wrong side this time in his quest for power; he thinks Wu Xiu is in charge..."

Yun Yang asked curiously, "His Majesty does indeed value Wu Xiu more now, should we...?"

Jiao Tu glanced at him sideways: "You want to die too?"

Yun Yang raised his hands in a gesture of surrender: "I was just saying."

"Let's go. Chen Ji is probably still in danger."

Yun Yang refused to move: "You've already helped him... and he might not even make it back alive. There are too many people who want to kill him this time, and neither of us can stop them."

The Jade Rabbit said casually, "But if he really goes back, you and I can return to our positions in the zodiac. That Golden Pig kid is shrewd; he's already made his bet, so we'll all lose together."

(End of this chapter)