Tang Dynasty Hidden Guards

The next morning, Xue Wei brought Zuo Qingling to the Plum Blossom Guard's office in Chongren Ward as agreed. There, they saw a large group of Plum Blossom Guard soldiers leading their horses, gathering and preparing to come out.

Yu Jianxiu stepped forward and said with a smile, "Young Master Xue has arrived! We can set off now!"

Three hundred Plum Blossom Guard soldiers set off on horseback in a grand procession. Xue Wei and Zuo Qingling also spurred their horses to join the group, heading towards Wugong County.

Along the way, Yu Jianxiu introduced the scenery to Xue Wei, but he never mentioned the looting incident in Yuanfu.

Xue Wei was somewhat suspicious. If Yu Jianxiu had sent someone to monitor him, then he must know about what happened the night before, and might even know that Li Longji was helping him, but he didn't mention that matter.

Is it to avoid awkwardness, or is it a deliberate attempt to hide it?

Wugong County, located on the north bank of the Wei River, is one of the counties under the jurisdiction of Jingzhao Prefecture. It is close to Qizhou. It was once the fiefdom of Wu Chengsi. After Wu Chengsi's death, the fiefdom was taken back by the imperial court.

In the afternoon, the group entered Wugong County, where Yu Jianxiu told Xue Wei about Zhu Ling.

"Zhu Ling was the largest landowner in Wugong County, owning two manors. However, these manors were gifts from Wu Chengsi to Zhu Ling, but in reality, they still belonged to Wu Chengsi. Zhu Ling was actually just one of Wu Chengsi's..."

Yu Jianxiu couldn't think of a suitable word for a moment, but Xue Wei smiled slightly and said, "White gloves!"

Later generations have a precise term for this kind of person.

"White gloves?" Yu Jianxiu shook his head. "I mean the nominee. He's just Wu Chengsi's shadow."

"I understand, so what?"

"Then four years ago, Wu Chengsi transported one million strings of cash to Zhu Ling, including gold, silver, copper coins, porcelain, silk and the like."

Of course, there might not be a million strings of cash now, because Zhu Ling bought a lot of weapons, but there were still seven or eight hundred thousand strings of cash, which Zhu Ling hid.

I tested his son, Zhu Kuan, and he didn't know either, which shows how well it's hidden. So this time, our mission is not only to eliminate Zhu Ling, but also to find this wealth.

When they entered the county town, it was already dusk, and Xue Wei was surprised to find that Zuo Qingling was missing.

Xue Wei did not search for Zuo Qingling, as she would not disappear without a reason. He followed the Plum Blossom Guard into the city and went directly into a large mansion next to the city gate, where three hundred Plum Blossom Guard soldiers lay in ambush.

The drums sounded to close the city gates, but the gates were not completely closed; instead, a crack was left open, and people could be seen entering the city in twos and threes.

Yu Jianxiu looked out the window at the people on the street and said coldly, "These people are here to see Maitreya. You will have a great eye-opening experience at the Maitreya Dharma Assembly tonight."

"Isn't Li Ling doing this to amass wealth?" Xue Wei asked.

Yu Jianxiu shook his head. "Not only will he not accept money, but he will also treat the poor. Zhu Ling doesn't want money; he wants people's hearts and means to protect himself. As long as he is in Wugong County, the people of Wugong County will not allow the government to touch him."

At this point, Yu Jianxiu turned to look at Xue Wei and said calmly, "So Zhu Ling can't be taken away. We must kill him tonight."

"If we kill him, won't the people seek revenge?"

Yu Jianxiu laughed. "The hearts of the people of Wugong County are like a scale, with themselves on one side and Zhu Ling on the other. When Zhu Ling was alive, the scale of the people's hearts was biased towards Zhu Ling. Once Zhu Ling died, the scale was biased towards themselves. It's like if you raised a dog, you would love it dearly when it was alive, but once it died, you would only think about your own appetite."

Xue Wei nodded. "I understand. In the end, the people are thinking about themselves. Zhu Ling is alive and can provide them with emotional value, so the people want to protect him. But once he dies, he will have no value. In the eyes of the people, he is not even as good as a dog."

"Though the words are crude, that's the gist of it. He rose to power through manipulation. Manipulation is like a fart; it smells strong at first, but once it dissipates, it's gone."

Xue Wei couldn't help but burst into laughter, "So he has to keep holding religious ceremonies to maintain the concentration of this fart!"

Yu Jianxiu gave a thumbs up, "You understand so quickly! It's a pleasure talking to you, young master!"

..........

As night deepened, the city gates remained open, but the streets were deserted. Three hundred imperial guards set off, heading straight for a large square in front of the east city wall.

A huge platform was erected in the square, covered with colorful curtains, and on top of it lay a fat monk who looked plump and healthy. The monk was bare-armed and seemed to be asleep, with a peaceful smile on his face.

This is the Dharma body of Maitreya, also known as his substitute. Once Maitreya possesses a person, this Dharma body will awaken, and believers will see the radiant and real Maitreya.

The platform was surrounded by black-clad warriors, a group of monks chanted sutras below, and tens of thousands of believers sat on the ground, devoutly following the monks in chanting.

At this moment, Zuo Qingling suddenly appeared, carrying a large bundle on her back.

"What's this?" Xue Wei asked, pointing to the bundle.

"We'll use this to counteract the hallucinogenic drugs later."

Xue Wei suddenly remembered the copper watering can he had seen at Grandma Zuo's place.

"Is Grandma Zuo coming too?"

"She's not coming, but several of my senior sisters are coming to help. My mother-in-law hates people being deceived with hallucinogenic drugs the most."

"How could you tell there were hallucinogenic drugs?"

"That smoke!"

Zuo Qingling pointed to the faint white smoke floating in the square, "That's artificially created white smoke. There isn't any yet. Once you see any unusual movement in the crowd, they'll release the hallucinogenic drug."

Zuo Qingling handed a pill to Xue Wei, saying, "Take this, and you won't be fooled by hallucinogenic drugs and see illusions."

Xue Wei actually wanted to see the illusion, but at this moment he obediently swallowed the medicine.

"When, in a safe place, can I see a hallucination?"

Zuo Qingling glared at him. "Go and make that request to the girl!"

"If it doesn't work, then forget it." Xue Wei shut up awkwardly.

At this moment, the believers suddenly began to move. The believers who had been sitting quietly on the ground stood up and became agitated.

The Maitreya stand-in, who had been half-lying down, sat up with a smile on his face and made a flower-picking gesture with his fingers. A middle-aged man appeared beside him and knelt down to offer a bowl of water.

The Maitreya avatar dipped a little water and flicked it at the surrounding believers. The people began to go into a frenzy, shouting and screaming. Suddenly, Zuo Qingling disappeared.

Xue Wei suddenly noticed that she and several other people were spraying water mist into the sky. Inhaling the mist would neutralize the effects of the drug and make the hallucinations disappear.

At this moment, more and more people quieted down and stared blankly at the absurd scene on the stage: a fat and lewd monk was touching the head of a middle-aged man.

The golden, radiant image of the Buddha, and the two-zhang-tall Maitreya, had all disappeared.

A feeling of being fooled washed over everyone, and shouts of curses began to erupt as the angry believers dispersed and left.

The middle-aged man also realized something was wrong, and a look of panic appeared on his face.

Just then, Yu Jianxiu suddenly rushed over and patted Xue Wei on the shoulder.

"That middle-aged man is Zhu Ling. You're responsible for killing him; I'll handle the rest!"

The square was in complete chaos. The fake Maitreya was dragged down and beaten by the angry crowd, and the monks who were chanting sutras were also beaten.

Xue Wei pushed through the crowd and rushed toward Zhu Ling. Zhu Ling had already disappeared behind the curtain. Xue Wei also rushed onto the wooden platform and saw Zhu Ling disappear under an offering table.

Xue Wei rushed over and saw a large hole under the altar. It turned out to be a secret passage. He took his sword and crawled inside.

The secret passage wasn't narrow; it was quite wide, enough for two people to walk side by side, but they had to bend over. There were lamp niches on both sides, each containing an oil lamp. They could hear running sounds ahead, and someone saying, "Father, I'm hungry! I want to eat!"

"This is not the time to eat, run!"

Xue Wei gave chase. There were two figures ahead, both running very fast. After running for an unknown amount of time, the two figures suddenly disappeared. Xue Wei chased after them and instantly ran out of the tunnel. He had actually left the city. In front of him was a lake. Zhu Ling was pulling her son along as they ran wildly. They jumped onto a boat.

Just then, countless small boats suddenly appeared all around, surrounding the ship. Wu Chongxun stood on the lead boat, with Imperial Censor Wan Guojun beside him.

Zhu Ling pulled her son to kneel down, saying, "I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!"

At this critical moment, a throwing knife shot out like lightning, "Thud!" The throwing knife pierced Zhu Ling's temple.

Zhu Ling screamed and tumbled off the boat. Wu Chongxun, who had been so smug just moments before, suddenly widened his eyes in fury and turned to stare fiercely at Xue Wei on the shore.

Wan Guojun was also very anxious and shouted to his men to save people.

Xue Wei was about to throw his second flying knife at Zhu Ling's son when he suddenly stopped. Zhu Ling's son had wide-set eyes, slanted eyes, a low nose bridge, and a small head. He was a typical child with Down syndrome.

He sheathed his throwing knife and sneered, "Young Master Wu, how have you been?"

"asshole!"

Wu Chongxun trembled with rage, pointing at Xue Wei and yelling, "You idiot, you've ruined my grand plan!"

"Is that so!" Xue Wei said coldly, "When you killed Zhu Kuan and framed me, you should have expected this outcome. Enjoy your wealth!"

Xue Wei turned and left. Wu Chongxun was filled with hatred, but he was helpless and could only watch Xue Wei's back as he entered the secret passage.

He suddenly grabbed Zhu Ling's eldest son, Zhu Nian, by the collar and roared, "Where did your father hide the money?"

Zhu Nian looked at him with a face full of fear and whispered, "I...I'm hungry!"

Wu Chongxun almost fainted. This guy was actually an idiot. He slapped Zhu Nian hard and knocked him into the water.

…………..

Xue Wei returned to the county town via the secret passage. The square was deserted, the huge platform had been overturned, and all the colorful curtains, offering tables, and other items had been looted.

Zuo Qingling and several companions stood at the entrance of the secret passage, swords in hand. When they saw Xue Wei come out, Zuo Qingling immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"I went inside to look for him, but I couldn't find him!"

Xue Wei nodded. "There are forks in the road; you might have gone the wrong way."

At this moment, Yu Jianxiu strode over, "Young Master Xue, how did it go? Did you kill Zhu Ling?"

Xue Wei nodded. "I shot Zhu Ling dead, but her son still fell into the hands of Wu Chongxun and Wan Guojun."

Yu Jianxiu breathed a sigh of relief. "It's good that Zhu Ling is dead. The other one is his eldest son, Zhu Nian, who is an idiot and wouldn't know anything. We've captured his second son, Zhu Yang. Also, I found Huang Long. Do you need him, young master?"

Xue Wei had no interest in Huang Long; he was more concerned with Yu Jianxiu's motives. Xue Wei stared at him intently, his gaze sharp. "Why does Commander Yu insist that I kill Zhu Ling? Why doesn't Commander Yu do it himself?"

Yu Jianxiu pulled Xue Wei aside and whispered, "Wu Chongxun is here to seize wealth for the Zhang brothers. I absolutely cannot let them succeed, but I dare not offend them either. So I can only use you, young master. The Crown Prince said that the money is of great importance. Even if we can't find it, it cannot fall into the hands of the Zhang brothers. Therefore, we must kill Zhu Ling, or rather, let it disappear completely."

Human hearts are unpredictable, and Xue Wei trusts no one now. He just wants to carry out the emperor's orders as quickly as possible and then return to Luoyang to report back.

"Didn't Commander Yu find that fortune?"

Yu Jianxiu shook her head. "We found nothing at the Zhu residence. Next, I'm going to search his estate."

"We can interrogate her trusted guards and coachmen. Zhu Ling wouldn't have moved things herself; these people would have known."

"Thank you for the reminder, young master. If I have gained anything from it, I will certainly tell you. Then I will take my leave."

Clearly, Yu Jianxiu didn't want Xue Wei to continue participating.

"Has the young master completed his mission?" Zuo Qingling asked softly.

Xue Wei smiled and nodded. "I've done what I was supposed to do. The rest is none of my business. Let's go back to Chang'an!"

That very night, Xue Wei and Zuo Qingling rushed back to Chang'an.