Catching Monsters

Chapter 747 Damn it, bandits?

The students who had rushed in to cause trouble lowered their heads and dared not utter another word after hearing Fang Tingzhi's words.

Of course, it wasn't that they really felt they had done something wrong, but rather that no one dared to contradict Fang Tingzhi. At least in their minds, Jiang Yun was already a traitor designated by the imperial court, so what wrong could they possibly be doing?

There are quite a few people who hold this view.

However, what puzzled many people was that nothing seemed to have changed inside the Jiang residence; servants were going out to buy things as usual.

Unlike other people who were labeled as rebels, whose homes were raided and their families wiped out almost immediately upon the announcement of the rebellion, this was not the case.

The Jiang family residence remained unharmed.

Meanwhile, the two saints, Fang Tianzong and Chu Qinghe, who were the instigators of all this, were drinking tribute tea in the imperial garden of the palace.

"Can Xiao Jingzhi help us search for Jiang Yun's whereabouts?" Chu Qinghe, sitting opposite him, asked calmly.

Fang Tianzong sneered and slowly said, "I said, find Jiang Yun within three days. If you can't find Jiang Yun's whereabouts..."

"What, are you really planning to kill Xiao Jingzhi?" Chu Qinghe frowned slightly and reminded him in a deep voice, "The rule we set back then was to live in seclusion and not easily interfere in the mortal world. If you kill Xiao Jingzhi, then you will be breaking the rule."

Fang Tianzong: "What time is it, and you still care about this?"

Chu Qinghe: "Do you think you can find Jiang Yun easily just by killing Xiao Jingzhi? The Zhou court also sent out those Imperial Guards to search for people."

"You and I both know that these Embroidered Uniform Guards were all Jiang Yun's former subordinates. Do you think they would seriously search for Jiang Yun?"

Fang Tianzong was silent for a moment: "Then what other ideas do you have?"

Chu Qinghe smiled faintly and said, "What method I use is none of your business."

After saying this, he finished the last sip of tea, stood up, and calmly walked out of the palace.

Chu Qinghe arrived at the Jiang residence immediately. There were still servants guarding the gate, so it seemed that the situation had not been affected in any way.

Chu Qinghe walked forward with his hands behind his back. The servant hurriedly stepped forward to stop Chu Qinghe, but he also saw that Chu Qinghe was wearing a scholar's robe and had an extraordinary demeanor.

Those who are assigned to guard the gate of the Jiang residence must have some discernment.

Knowing that this person was no ordinary individual, he said respectfully, "I'm sorry, sir, but our Steward Yun has instructed that the Jiang residence will not be receiving guests for the time being. Please leave."

Chu Qinghe said calmly, "I am an old friend of Jiang Yun, and I would like to visit his wife."

"I'm sorry, Madam is away on business and is not at home."

Upon hearing the man's reply, Chu Qinghe frowned slightly and quickly began to use his divine sense to search the Jiang residence.

Indeed, there was no one in the Jiang residence who seemed to fit Xu Suwen's identity.

Seeing this, Chu Qinghe frowned, turned around and left, returning directly to Qinghe Academy.

When they returned to Qinghe Academy, the people there were all beaming with joy upon hearing the news of Jiang Yuntong's betrayal of the country.

The capture of Qinghe Academy by Jiang Yun caused the academy to lose face.

The key point is that, given Jiang Yun's previous status and position, Qinghe Academy couldn't retaliate against him; they could only swallow their anger and resentment.

Now that Jiang Yun has gotten into this mess, the people at Qinghe Academy are itching to set off some firecrackers to celebrate.

After Chu Qinghe returned, he immediately went to find Peng Chenxing.

"Go and investigate where Jiang Yun's wife and sister are," Chu Qinghe said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Peng Chenxing was slightly taken aback and said, "Chu Sheng, what do you mean?"

"Of course, it's to force Jiang Yun to show himself," Chu Qinghe said coldly.

Peng Chenxing began, "Master Chu, this Xu Suwen comes from the Zhenguo Duke's family. The Zhenguo Duke's mansion is located in the capital..."

"Why should I care about these things?" Chu Qinghe said with some dissatisfaction. "You just need to find out where the two of them are."

"Yes."

Upon hearing this, Peng Chenxing could only nod in agreement. Soon, he mobilized the Qinghe Academy's connections in the capital to inquire about the whereabouts of Jiang Qiaoqiao and Xu Suwen.

That same evening, Peng Chenxing arrived at Chu Qinghe's courtyard.

"Master Chu, there's news. This afternoon, someone went to the Sanqing Temple to pay their respects and saw Xu Suwen from afar."

"Xu Suwen and Jiang Qiaoqiao may have gone into hiding at the Sanqing Temple after Jiang Yun's case came to light."

Sanqing Temple?
Upon hearing these three words, Chu Qinghe didn't hesitate.

He knew Jiang Yun somewhat, and knew that Jiang Yun was a man of great loyalty and righteousness. If he could capture his wife and sister, it wouldn't be too difficult to force him to show himself.

Although the method was a bit underhanded, Chu Qinghe did not feel any psychological burden.

The things Fang Tianzong said to him back then weren't just empty words.

Although he became a sage through Confucianism, his character was considered despicable among all the sages.

Chu Qinghe arrived alone at the gate of Sanqing Temple soon. By then, it was getting dark and the gate of Sanqing Temple was already closed.

boom.

With a loud bang, the gate of the Sanqing Temple was slammed open by Chu Qinghe with a single palm strike.

Then, Chu Qinghe walked slowly inside with his hands behind his back. Inside the Sanqing Temple, many Taoist priests dressed in robes rushed over as soon as they heard the loud noise from the direction of the gate.

"What?"

"Do you know where this is? You're just running wild here."

"Are you tired of living?"

These Taoist priests glared angrily at Chu Qinghe, and one by one they rolled up their sleeves, showing signs of wanting to fight him.

Soon, Wen Chen, as the person in charge of the Sanqing Temple, also walked over quickly. He glanced at the door panel on the ground, then looked up at Chu Qinghe, frowned slightly, and his expression was not very good. He asked, "Who are you, sir?"

"Hand over Jiang Yun's wife and sister." Chu Qinghe's eyes held a hint of contempt, clearly indicating that he didn't want to waste any more words with these people.

Upon hearing this, Wen Chen's heart skipped a beat. Oh no, they're after his master's wife.

Wen Chen's expression darkened. Looking at the extraordinary demeanor of the person in front of him, he vaguely guessed that this person was probably the saint that Eunuch Qin Hong had mentioned earlier.

Soon, a pleasant female voice came from behind Wen Chen.

"It came quite quickly."

"Master Wen, you may all leave now."

The one who spoke was Dongfang Yao.

"Yes." Wen Chen nodded. He understood that the strength of the person in front of him was beyond what he and the Taoists of the Sanqing Temple could handle.

Staying here would only result in the Taoists of Sanqing Temple dying needlessly if a fight broke out.

After Wen Chen and the many Taoist priests in the temple left, Dongfang Yao took a few steps forward, and the demonic aura on her body gradually began to emanate.

Chu Qinghe also realized the woman's identity: "The Fox Saint?"

"Now that you have awakened, why don't you return to your demon clan and instead stay in the capital of Zhou?" Chu Qinghe frowned. After learning the woman's identity, he understood that it wouldn't be so easy to take Xu Suwen and Jiang Qiaoqiao away from her.

"This is none of your business." Dongfang Yao said slowly, her eyes icy. "It's impossible to take the person away from me."

Chu Qinghe narrowed his eyes: "A dignified demon saint, willing to be a bodyguard for two humans in the capital of Zhou Kingdom? If this gets out, it won't sound very good."

Dongfang Yao was too lazy to answer his question, and simply said, "If you're going to make a move, then do it quickly, stop talking nonsense." Chu Qinghe fell silent, looking at her, but didn't dare to make a move against her easily.

You must understand that although the three demon saints joined forces and were defeated by the Confucian Great Sage, that was the Confucian Great Sage!

Since then, the three demon saints have been sealed away for more than two thousand years.

The Fox Saint's status makes him a true senior to Dongfang Yao.

Chu Qinghe gave Dongfang Yao a deep look, then turned and left, unwilling to actually fight her.

He still harbored some apprehension towards the demon saint who had lived for over two thousand years.

Seeing Chu Qinghe turn and leave, Dongfang Yao breathed a slight sigh of relief.

It can only be said that Jiang Yun's influence in the capital is indeed too great, affecting all aspects of life.

……

Three days later.

In the north, in Tonghe County, nestled among the mountains and forests, a caravan of镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) is traveling through the mountains and forests.

This escort agency had a fairly large team, with more than forty guards, including four martial artists.

The strongest among them is a master of the seventh rank of martial arts, the Tendon Refining Realm.

Among them, a woman dressed in a tight-fitting outfit rode at the front on horseback. She had delicate features and dark, rough skin, clearly indicating that she was often outdoors, exposed to the wind and sun.

On her back, she also carried a long sword.

She had long hair. She glanced at the sky; it was already noon. She said loudly, "Everyone, rest for half an hour."

"Yes."

Everyone from the escort agency stopped, found a shady spot under a tree, sat down, and ate their dry rations to rest.

Soon, a robust martial artist with a smile approached the woman and said, "Qingyi, we will be returning to Qin'an County in two days."

This woman's name was Guo Qingyi, and she was the daughter of the chief镖头 (bodyguard/escort) of the Tiger Mountain Escort Agency.

He also possesses the cultivation level of the eighth rank of martial arts, the Body Tempering Realm.

The person she was talking to was named Wu Tongzhan. Although he was twenty-eight years old, he had already reached the seventh rank of the Tendon Refining Realm.

This is already the most powerful expert that Tiger Head Escort Agency can recruit.

Normally, such a skilled person would not join an organization like a security escort agency to work as a镖局 (bodyguard agency).

Let alone experts at the seventh rank, even those at the eighth rank rarely enter the escort agency.

After all, with that kind of power, you could easily find a wealthy family, and they would treat you like an honored guest.

Even within a prominent family, one can achieve great things.

But the head镖师 (chief镖师) had promised him that Guo Qingyi would be betrothed to him, which is why he joined the Tiger Head镖局 (Tiger Head Escort Agency).

But when Guo Qingyi saw Wu Tongzhan, she frowned and said in a deep voice, "Brother Wu, I'm going to the river to fetch some water."

Guo Qingyi knew that Wu Tongzhan liked her, but she didn't like him; he was quite scheming.

She doesn't really like people like that.

She made an excuse to leave, took her water bottle, and walked towards a river not far away. But as soon as she reached the riverbank, she saw a corpse lying motionless on the bank.

Guo Qingyi frowned. She was no ordinary lady from a prominent family. She quickly came to the man's side and reached out to check his pulse.

The pulse is still beating.

"Someone is coming!"

Guo Qingyi quickly shouted, "Someone come quick!"

Soon, many people from the escort agency rushed over to the scene, and frowned upon seeing the unconscious man.

“Young Miss, judging from this man’s clothes, he should be a young master from a wealthy family. It seems that he may have been attacked by bandits.”

Soon, men from the security escort agency came forward and lifted the man up.

The people in the escort agency are basically people who travel the world. When they see someone in trouble, they will help if they can.

Moreover, this person is of noble status; perhaps after bringing him back, the escort agency will receive a sum of money as a token of gratitude.

They've encountered this kind of thing quite often.

The unconscious person was Jiang Yun, who was traveling along the underground river. He was seriously injured and drifted along the river, not knowing where he had ended up.

Soon, the group moved the goods around to make room and tossed Jiang Yun onto them.

After a short rest, the group continued their journey towards Qin'an County.

Jiang Yun remained unconscious throughout the journey. The experienced镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) along the way had all checked on Jiang Yun's condition, but they couldn't quite understand what was going on with him.

Jiang Yun appears to have no visible injuries, so could he have suffered internal injuries?

That night, they invited Wu Tongzhan to see if he could use his internal energy to heal Jiang Yun's injuries.

Wu Tongzhan refused. In his view, whether this person lived or died was none of his business. He needed to conserve his internal energy so that he wouldn't be short of it in case of danger.

On the morning of the third day, Jiang Yun slowly opened her eyes and then felt intense pain in her internal organs.

"Cough cough!"

Jiang Yun coughed violently, trying to circulate his internal energy, but his meridians were in excruciating pain, as if they had been broken.

The pain caused cold sweat to break out on his forehead. He weakly opened his eyes, slowly sat up, and looked around.

I was sitting on a cart full of goods. There were more than twenty carts lined up in a row, making quite a sight.

"woke up!"

"I thought this person wouldn't make it."

"Go and inform the young lady."

The procession didn't stop, and soon a woman with a dark complexion rode up to the cart.

She glanced at Jiang Yun with a spirited air and asked, "What? Did the bandits get into trouble?"

Jiang Yun remained silent. Seeing this, Guo Qingyi assumed that he was frightened. She said, "Don't worry, we are not bandits. We are镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) from the Tiger Head Escort Agency in Qin'an County. We found you by the river. Your injuries are quite serious."

"Take a good rest. We'll be in Qin'an County in two hours. Once we get there, we'll find a doctor to treat your injuries properly."

"Thank you girl."

"Giddy up." Guo Qingyi didn't say much and rode her horse to the front of the group.

Jiang Yun quickly touched his body and found the Azure Lotus Banner.

To his surprise, when he checked his internal condition, he found that the Azure Lotus Banner was actually located next to his dantian in his abdomen.

Can this thing be stored inside one's body?

Thinking of this, a strong sense of fatigue washed over Jiang Yun, and she fell asleep again, slowly drifting off to sleep.

(End of this chapter)