Chang'an: Qinglian Sword Song

Chapter 6
In the long night, Chang'an seemed to have become silent.

Only the crunching sound of Xun Qing eating chestnuts could be heard endlessly, which sounded extremely irritating.

In the cramped alley full of rubbish, Li Bai lay on the roof, looking at the abandoned houses below, carefully observing the situation.

In the dim lights behind those windows, there was a faint noise, as if there were many people inside, and they didn't know what they were doing.

"Below is that guy's lair. I have inquired for a long time, and this is the one."

Xun Qing leaned over, with chestnuts still in his mouth, and said vaguely: "It is said that he has a lot of subordinates, you should be careful."

"Why am I careful?" Li Bai looked over in confusion, "What about you?"

"I?"

Xun Qing said seriously: "I am cheering for you!"

"Aren't you an organist?"

Li Bai asked suspiciously, "Where's your mechanism beast? Didn't you tell me during the day that every senior mechanism engineer has his own mechanism beast for protection, which is unpredictable and powerful?"

silence.

During the long silence, Xun Qing stuffed his mouth with chestnuts and looked at Li Bai dully.

Do you have unrealistic delusions about me?

If I really had that kind of thing, why would I be admitted to the lowest ninth-level mechanism division now?No, it's the next best thing, even if he can have a military mechanism beast, how can he be kidnapped by a group of carjackers?
"I want to build such a big mechanism beast, but I can't afford such an expensive mechanism core."

Xun Qing groaned for a long time, then hesitantly took out his little spider from his bosom: "There is only one... This one was sent out for free by Yu Hengsi during the qualification exam for mechanism division... for nothing..."

Li Bai was shocked and sighed sincerely: "You are so poor!"

"You don't need to say it!"

Xun Qing's eyes turned red, and he almost cried out of anger.

What's wrong with being poor?Being poor can be very happy!
Although he is not as happy as a rich man like Li Bai...but isn't Little Happy not happy!
You must know that the strength of the organist is completely limited by his own works.

If there is no mechanism certificate, no matter how high the manufacturing skills and operation level are, there is no way to show it. Even a freak like Xun Qing who insists on memorizing the mechanism engineer by rote, without the mechanism core, is basically no different from a waste.

This is also a common predicament for the humble organization masters.

Today, when agency cores are becoming more and more expensive, it is even more difficult to buy models other than the civilian version on the market, and once they are scrapped during production, it is even more difficult to bear the huge loss, so they can only sell themselves to major agencies. Workshop work.

On the contrary, the aristocrats are at home in this aspect, what model they want, just say hello, and Yu Hengji will naturally send it over.Even if one is useless, there will be another one, like running water, which has distanced itself from the poor dogs like Xun Qing from the beginning.

"Xun Qing, you have to work hard."

Li Baiyu patted him on the shoulder earnestly, only to get glares in return.

"Your swordsmanship is so strong, why don't you kill melons and vegetables!" Xun Qing urged angrily: "Where is the use of me?"

"A strong swordsmanship also needs to be used in martial arts. Besides, the sword is not omnipotent."

"Isn't it easy for you to kill that guy a few days ago?"

"That guy is not a master, but just an introduction to swordsmanship. Isn't it reasonable for me to wait for work and attack to win?"

Is this just getting started?
Xun Qing was dumbfounded, he really wanted to see what kind of master Li Bai was talking about, whether he could fly into the sky and escape from the ground, just like the legendary celestial master.

"Besides, it's okay to be one-on-one. If there is a chaotic battle, the sword has no eyes, and you may be besieged by accident. Wouldn't it be ugly then?"

Li Bai snapped his fingers and said to him seriously: "There is a saying in the art of war: aggression is like fire, immovability is like a mountain, difficulty is like darkness, and movement is like thunder..."

The more Xun Qing listened, the more he felt that something was wrong, and gradually became suspicious: "Wait, that is to say: rush in at the right time, hack, steal one if you can, and then run away when they can't react, yes Bar!"

"Ah, you bastard..."

Li Bai no longer knew what to say.

This guy, why can he always talk about serious things so absurdly?
Could this be some kind of rare talent?

"Fighting is a very serious matter, Xun Qing."

Li Bai sternly explained: "Many times, you can't rush and fight all the time. You must know the gap between the enemy and yourself, the weakness of the opponent, who is the leader of the opponent, and whether there are innocent people among them...to understand the actual situation, Only by making corresponding strategies can we win the victory. Sometimes, there is no way out, and we must be prepared to fight to the death..."

Xun Qing was frightened: "Is it... so difficult here?"

In a blink of an eye, Li Bai changed into a confident expression: "However, those are rare exceptions, and there is no reference... The current situation is actually the most common one."

Xun Qing seemed to understand something, and asked, "Then, what kind of situation is it?"

"Of course it's the easiest kind."

really……

Li Bai grinned.

"How much more do you need to think about dealing with a bunch of bastards who only bully children?"

"—Just kill it!"

boom!
At that moment, before Li Bai finished speaking, there was a loud noise under their feet.

Countless broken bricks and tiles flew in, and the roof of this old house was chopped into pieces by Li Bai's foot. While Xun Qing was screaming in horror, Li Bai dragged him to smash the decayed floor like an iron mound, and fell from the sky. .

It even smashed into the middle of a lively hall.

In the midst of countless dust swirls, a ray of moonlight shone through the cracks in the roof, illuminating the smile at the corner of the boy's mouth and the crying pendant on his leg.

In the dead silence, Li Bai looked around and stared at the people in the hall.

"Good evening, everybody."

He asked politely, "Is Wang Che'er there?"

click.

A piece of gravel fell and fell into the boiling soup pot on the big table, and the water vapor rose, blurring the stunned faces.

Those burly men who still held their jobs looked over blankly, not knowing what happened.

"Do not be afraid."

Li Bai comforted him: "I'm just asking him a few words, I'll leave after I'm done, and I won't disturb you for too long."

No one responded.

Only the sound of the sword being unsheathed can be heard endlessly.

The seven or eight burly villains pulled out their weapons from under the table and behind the stool the moment they realized it, and aimed at Li Bai's face.

Someone even turned around and ran, fell to the wall, took off a heavy iron crossbow, and aimed at them without mercy.

On the heavy arrows there are complex patterns forged by sixteen times of forging, and the sharp armor-piercing sharp edges appear ferocious iron light under the light of the torch.

Damn, is that... a military crossbow?
Another military crossbow? !
When did this weapon of war become so common in Chang'an?
Xun Qing stared blankly at the rapid design module composed of three bundles of beef tendon twisted strings and nine-layer mechanism on the crossbow. Before he could react from the horror, there was a strong wind howling!

By the time he found out that the crossbow that pierced through the air was aimed at his screaming mouth, it was too late.

At that moment, he only felt a hand roughly pressing his head, pressing him to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, Li Bai took a step forward and pulled out the long sword from the sheath around his waist, like flowing clouds and flowing water, without any pause.

Against the incoming arrows, cut down!

When the cold cry burst out from the blade, everyone was in a trance, as if a bright moon emerged from the room out of thin air, stinging all the pupils.

Immediately afterwards, sparks flew out, and the crossbow arrows, which were powerful enough to penetrate three walls, were easily split into two and flew out from both sides, nailed to the wall, buzzing.

The sudden bizarre change made the group of villains unbelievable, and then, darkness struck.

Abruptly swallowed everything.

It was a mechanism spider that came belatedly, hanging on its silk, jumped onto the candle flame, and knocked out the flickering light.

Can't see anything.

Such a quick change made Li Bai couldn't help but admire: "Xun Qing, well done!"

"Then get them done!"

Xun Qing lay on the ground with his head in his hands, and shouted in horror: "You really killed me this time! If you die, I will never let you go even if I am a ghost!"

"Is it that great?"

In the darkness, Li Bai laughed softly, "It feels like you are not lethal even if you are a ghost."

"The little bastard is here!"

Hearing the source of his voice, the angry man with a knife and ax widened his eyes and rushed forward.But then, it seemed that something passed by.

A scalp-numbing crackling sound burst out from the darkness, and the roar spread.

A series of roars and wailings of battles sounded continuously from the darkness, and soon disappeared.Finally, the man holding the crossbow huddled in the corner, panting violently, already dripping with sweat.

With trembling hands, he fumbled for the ignition from his arms, and rubbed the gears hard, but the sparks burst out, but they still couldn't strike.Until a cluster of sparks finally fell on the oil-soaked rope and turned into dancing flames.

Before he had time to breathe a sigh of relief, he realized that there was no longer any sound around him.

There was silence.

Only one face suddenly emerged from his eyes.

Smile at him.

Close at hand.

He was obviously handsome, but at this moment, under the reflection of the flames, he looked eerie like a ghost.

"Such a small fire starter is no bigger than a palm. There is also a cover. Is it filled with kerosene? Chang'an's mechanism is really powerful."

Regardless of the military crossbow aimed at him, Li Bai stretched out his hand, took the iron-shelled fire lead off his hand, looked through it carefully, was full of praise, and raised his head expectantly and asked:

"Can you give it to me?"

Stared at by those eyes, the crossbow bearer's whole body stiffened, obviously his finger was already on the trigger, but he didn't have the strength to pull it off.

After a long time, he swallowed hard and squeezed out a twitching smile.

Trembling, nodding.

"Okay, okay..."

"Thank you."

Li Bai thanked him sincerely, "Since you are so knowledgeable about current affairs, then I will play lightly."

The black shadow of the fist quickly enlarged from his eyes, covering everything.

At last there was only a muffled sound.

Bang!
Then, he couldn't see anything.

When the candle was lit again, Xun Qing subconsciously wanted to cover his eyes.

But he didn't see the mountain of corpses and the sea of ​​blood as he expected, but a strong man rolling and moaning with a bruised nose and a swollen face... He got up and looked around in astonishment, but no one died.

"Hey, your shocked expression hurts."

Li Bai moved a chair and sat down, sighed distressedly: "...Why does everyone think I'm a murderer? Do I look particularly like someone who despises life?"

Really, hard to understand.

Everyone seems to think that as long as the swordsmanship is superb, then the weak will be exploited, and as long as they become strong, it is only natural to trample on others.

But what's the point of such a world?
How is it different from hell?
Simply disgusting...

He sighed and looked ahead.

The guy who was holding onto the crossbow and trying to kill was now wriggling and struggling on the ground with a bruised nose and swollen face, trying to break free from the rope, but when he noticed Li Bai's gaze, he froze in place again, whimpering from his mouth stuffed with a rag.

"Wang Che'er?" Li Bai asked.

The man on the ground nodded frantically and whimpered.

"You should have introduced yourself earlier, otherwise so many unpleasant things wouldn't have happened."

Li Bai took off the rag from his mouth, stared at his face, and asked solemnly, "Where did that kid called an official go?"

"...to be an official?"

Wang Che'er was at a loss and thought for a long time: "Who is the official?"

As a result, the expressions of Li Bai and Xun Qing became ugly.

"That kid begging." Xun Qing reminded coldly, "Don't say you don't know him."

As if suddenly realizing it, Wang Che'er's face changed suddenly, and he shook his head frantically: "It's none of my business, and I don't know where he went. He was bought away the day before yesterday!"

"Who?" Li Bai asked.

Wang Che'er's expression twitched, and his eyes wandered: "I, I don't know..."

"Really, forget it, it seems that I interrupted."

Li Bai nodded, stood up, and looked down at his unbelievable expression, but his eyes became cold and no longer warm: "You don't think I will say that, do you?"

Wang Che'er's surprise smile froze.

"The official is dead. What happened the day before yesterday should be right after you sold him."

Li Bai said in a deep voice: "I don't know whether you understand this or not, but in my opinion, a scum like you may not be able to appreciate the importance of life.

If you know anything, please tell me.I'd be sorry if you didn't know anything—"

When he was talking, he pressed his sword hilt, his tone was calm and indifferent, and when he looked down at Wang Che'er's face, his expression became unmoved.

He said: "Something bad will happen to you."

In the dead silence, Wang Che'er's expression twitched, struggling, hesitant to speak, but in the end, with difficulty, he looked away.

Don't say a word.

Xun Qing was silent for a moment, and was about to say something, but a shrill voice burst out. From Li Bai's hand, iron light flew across Wang Che'er's face, splitting the dust and air, leaving only the cold ashes. traces of electricity.

Countless strands of hair flew up abruptly, fluttering in the air.

Wang Che'er closed his eyes subconsciously, screamed in terror, and twitched for a while, only to realize that he was not dead, only the top of his head was bald.

He was trembling, and his crotch was already wet.

When he looked up, he saw Li Bai's indifferent face.The boy looked down at his face, and told him word by word: "Next time, it may not be so accurate."

"I, I really don't know, sir, please forgive me, please forgive me!!"

Wang Che'er screamed and burst into tears. His instinct told him that the boy in front of him was playing for real. When death came to him, his so-called backbone and bravery had disappeared. He was completely defeated by this sword and spoke incoherently. begs for mercy: "I was approached by two people I had never met before, I didn't know them, I had never dealt with them, they, they said they wanted to buy someone, I sold them, I don't know anything, really I don’t know anything... By the way, it’s Yunjianlou, it must be Yunjianlou!”

His eyes lit up, as if he finally remembered something, and shouted loudly: "It must be them!"

"...Tsk."

At that moment, Li Bai seemed to hear Xun Qing's tongue smacking in displeasure, and looked over in doubt: "Where is Yunjian Tower?"

"A brothel opened by a scumbag in Changlefang."

Xun Qing explained unhappily, bowed his head and asked, "How do you know it's from Yunjianlou?"

"I, I... in the past, I helped them... some small favors." Wang Che'er muttered, and squeezed out a flattering smile: "Among those two people, one of them has a musky smell on him, that kind of smell. Spices are only found in Yunjianlou...they must have come from there! I promise! Sir, please forgive me, that's all I know, please forgive me, please forgive me..."

After finishing speaking, Wang Che'er wriggled on the ground, kowtowing to the two with all his might.

"If that's the case, then I have no reason to bother."

Li Bai nodded: "Thank you for your cooperation, Wang Che'er, now, there is only one last thing left."

He raised his hands.

Showing the pen and paper in hand.

"Can I trouble you to write down what you have done these years?"

At that moment, Wang Che'er's surprised smile froze on his face.

Almost stopped breathing.

The next day, at dawn, the gatekeeper in front of the gate of Dali Temple yawned, pushed open the gate, screamed, and collapsed to the ground in shock from the scene outside the gate.

A huge iron cage was thrown at the bottom of the steps.In the iron cage, the bullies and hooligans who were originally invincible have already had bruised noses and swollen faces, and their heads are bleeding

"Help, help..."

The disheveled Wang Che'er crawled out from the inside, raised his swollen face, and stretched out his hand to call for help with difficulty: "I did it all...I recruited, I recruited..."

He kowtowed on the stone steps, "I beg you, don't fight anymore, just kill me..."

Around his neck was a thick roll of documents, which had already been signed.

The gatekeeper was stunned for a long time, and finally realized that he ran back to make an announcement as if he had seen a ghost.

Half a quarter of an hour later, Di Renjie, who had worked overtime and hadn't rested until now, finally heard the end of the matter from Yuan Fang, and couldn't help rubbing his darkened eye circles.

"So, that fellow Li Bai, just dumped this bunch of scumbags on me?"

"Yes." Yuan Fang suppressed a smile: "It seems that she knew that I was following quietly. Before leaving, she said that she wanted to learn about the laws in Chang'an City."

"Hmph, that guy." Di Renjie clicked his tongue unhappily, and ordered: "Since you're here, let's send them all in, the evidence is convincing, there is no need to send it for trial.

The cowards traveled three thousand miles and were sent as slaves. The leader, Wang Che'er, went on the road after autumn. "

After quickly writing a memorial by hand, he stamped his own seal, "It seems that this time the bastards in Honglu Temple will say that they have exceeded their authority."

Yuan Fang took the memorial, put it in a copper box, covered it with lacquer, and finally asked, "What about those children?"

Di Renjie was silent for a moment, then said softly: "Send it to the reformatory school, let the dean rest assured, I will not ignore it."

Knowing the dire financial situation in Chang'an Labor Camp and Di Renjie's donations over the years, Yuan Fang couldn't help nodding in admiration and didn't ask any more questions.

However, before he left, he heard Di Renjie's voice behind him.

"Yuan Fang, what if they really wanted to kill people last night?" he asked, "What would you do?"

"Ah this..."

The boy thought for a long time, patted his head, and sighed helplessly: "My lord, I occasionally doze off when I stay up late and work overtime. I can't help if I don't see something."

"Hmph, they're all a bunch of troublesome guys."

Di Renjie angrily picked up the token on the table and threw it over: "Get lost and go to work, or the money will be deducted!"

"okay!"

The boy raised his hand to catch it, smiled, and disappeared in the shadows.

(End of this chapter)