Tang Dynasty Hidden Guards

The following morning, Xue Wei was surprised to learn that Yuan Renjing had not come to court.

Wang Zaifeng, the Junior Supervisor of the Imperial Household Department, was somewhat worried. "Supervisor Yuan has always been conscientious and has not taken a single day off in the past six years. It is impossible for him to miss court without a reason unless he is seriously ill, but he has not shown any signs of illness these days."

"Did Vice-Supervisor Wang send someone to his house?"

"Not yet, we're just about to send someone to check."

Xue Wei immediately said, "I'll send a few men to go and take a look."

Xue Wei felt uneasy. This Yuan Renjing was very important; he hoped nothing bad would happen to him.

He immediately sent Gao Yuanli with several brothers to Yuan Renjing's house.

..........

An hour later, an unexpected message arrived: Yuan Renjing had not returned home the previous night.

This news shocked Xue Wei. What happened to Yuan Renjing?

Gao Yuanli said in a low voice, "Captain, things are not that simple. My men have discovered that there are at least seven or eight people monitoring Yuan Renjing's house."

Seven or eight people. Xue Wei was secretly startled. One or two people meant surveillance, but seven or eight meant arrest. Who could be arresting Yuan Renjing?

But Yuan Renjing had never been involved in any trouble in the past six years. Yesterday, when he met me for the first time, someone wanted to arrest him.

Xue Wei suddenly realized that these people were coming for him, and had nothing to do with Yuan Renjing.

Xue Wei thought about his enemies. The Zhang brothers were said to be doing their best to please the emperor and couldn't care less about him for the time being. Shangguan Wan'er had also promised her mother that she would no longer target him. In particular, Yuan Min had recently bought several of her shops, and her relationship with Yuan Min had warmed up, so her hostility towards him had decreased a lot.

After much thought, it all came down to Wu Sansi and Wan Guojun. They were currently doing everything they could to capture Luo Rui, and the source of the three thousand taels of silver was the case of the missing silver of the Shaofujian official. The two were related, and it was highly likely that Wu Sansi or Wan Guojun was behind it.

Xue Wei immediately returned to the courtyard and said to Tie San and Tie Si, "Come with me!"

The two mounted their horses and followed Xue Wei as they rode towards the Plum Blossom Guard camp. The Plum Blossom Guard was divided into the Left and Right Guards. The Left Guard was stationed in Luoyang, the capital, while the Right Guard was scattered throughout the land.

Previously, the Left Guard General of Plum Blossom was Wu Jizhi, who resigned and stayed home to recuperate after Xue Wei crippled one of his legs.

Xue Wei, the current Left Guard General of Plum Blossom, is very familiar with Liu Jingren, his opponent on the polo field. Liu Jingren succeeded Wu Jizhi as the Left Guard General of Plum Blossom.

"Oh! Commander Xue, what fragrant breeze has brought you here?"

Liu Jingren warmly greeted them.

"Brother Liu, I have something urgent to attend to. I'll treat you to drinks another day!"

Liu Jingren nodded. "So, what is it?"

Xue Wei took out the Plum Blossom Guard silver token and silver command arrow. "General Liu, do you recognize these?"

Liu Jingren's expression immediately turned solemn. Of course he recognized them; he had identified various special tokens and keepsakes on his first day in office.

Xue Wei's Plum Blossom Guard General silver medal is different in shape from the official Plum Blossom Guard silver medal. The Plum Blossom Guard military medals are all diamond-shaped, while Xue Wei's medal is square. This is called a signal medal, and it is only useful when combined with the troop deployment order arrow.

The same applies to the troop deployment order; it must be combined with the card of faith to be effective.

"General Liu, please carry out the imperial decree. I am dispatching fifty Plum Blossom Guard soldiers."

Liu Jingren took the token and command arrow, handed them to his personal guard, and took them to Sima to verify their authenticity.

Before long, fifty Plum Blossom Guard soldiers lined up and rushed over, led by a brigade commander.

"Commander Xue, it cannot exceed three days at most!"

"I understand, thank you!"

Liu Jingren ordered the brigade commander: "By order of the Emperor, you shall now obey Commandant Xue's orders for three days!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Come with me!"

Xue Wei led fifty Plum Blossom Guard soldiers and Tie San and Tie Si out of the East Gate and, guided by a Dali Temple official, headed towards the village where Yuan Renjing lived.

When they rushed to the courtyard, the situation had changed drastically. More than twenty warriors were ransacking Yuan Renjing’s mansion, digging up the ground in the front and back yards. They seemed to be looking for something.

"Bang!"

Xue Wei kicked open the courtyard gate, drew his sword, and rushed inside.

"Plum Blossom Guards, kneel down!"

Twenty-odd warriors were digging in the courtyard when the Plum Blossom Guard soldiers suddenly stormed in, stunning them all. Everyone stood frozen in place.

The lead warrior roared, "Who are you to interfere in the affairs of the Prince of Liang!"

Xue Wei stepped forward and punched him hard in the liver area, causing him to squat down immediately, trembling all over. Xue Wei then kicked him, knocking him backward.

"Beat them!"

At Xue Wei's command, fifty Plum Blossom Guards rushed forward, pinned down the twenty-odd warriors, and began punching and kicking them. The courtyard was filled with howls and screams of agony.

Although these warriors were fierce, they were no match for unarmed civilians. When they encountered soldiers, especially the Plum Blossom Guards with law enforcement authority, they all cowered in fear. No one dared to resist, for whoever did would die.

In just a moment, all twenty-odd warriors were beaten black and blue, rolling on the ground. Xue Wei waved his hand, and the Plum Blossom Guards dragged them out.

Tie San stepped forward and whispered, "Young Master Qi, I have checked. Supervisor Yuan's family members are locked in a room and have not been harmed, but they are a little frightened."

Xue Wei nodded, walked out of the courtyard, and said to the groaning warriors lying on the ground, "Get out of here! Tell Wu Sansi that if he dares to harm the families of officials again, I will make him explain himself to the Emperor!"

The twenty-odd warriors struggled to their feet, helped each other up, and limped away.

At this moment, Yuan Renjing's elderly mother, wife, son and daughter were released. The four of them were trembling with fear, their eyes filled with terror. They were all quite frightened.

Xue Wei told the Plum Blossom Guard soldiers to wait outside. He stepped forward, saluted, and said, "I am Xue Wei, a friend of Supervisor Yuan. It's not safe here anymore. Pack your things and I will take you into the city. You can stay in my old house."

"Excuse me... Lord Xue, what has happened to my son?" the old lady asked worriedly.

"Madam, please don't worry. Your son is involved in an old case. He has inside information and some people want to arrest him. But rest assured, I will protect you."

The family of four was terrified and dared not linger. They quickly packed a few things, boarded the oxcart rented by Xue Wei, and headed towards Qinghua Ward in the city under the protection of the Plum Blossom Guards...

Xue Wei's old house has been cleaned up and is still in relatively good condition, with some basic simple furniture. This was Xue Wei's former residence, but he doesn't want to live here now and plans to sell it.

There is no problem in temporarily providing accommodation for Yuan Renjing's family.

Xue Wei arranged for them to stay, gave them several dozen taels of silver, and ordered ten officials from the Dali Temple to stay and protect their family.

Xue Wei originally wanted the Plum Blossom Guards to protect them, but that would frighten Yuan Renjing, making him even less likely to come looking for him. It didn't matter that it was the Dali Temple; Yuan Renjing had originally been an official of the Dali Temple.

Xue Wei then gave each Plum Blossom Guard soldier one string of cash, dismissed them, and sent them back to their camp.

.........

As night fell, a large group of black-clad warriors rushed back to Wu Sansi's residence from outside the city. Among them was a man with a black bag over his head and his hands tied behind his back, who was escorted into Wu Sansi's residence by the large group of black-clad warriors.

Wu Sansi immediately ordered Wan Guojun, "Interrogate him overnight. I need accurate information before dawn."