A Long River Myth

After He Song finished gathering the assembled men, he turned and smiled:

"Envoy Liu...you can choose whichever you like. It's just a bit of a bad time these past few days, as all the inner disciples have gone to Huasong Mountain for training."

Liu Ming nodded, gripping the hilt of his knife, and replied, "It's not a big deal. It's just for assisting in detection and surveillance anyway."

Having said that, his expression turned serious, and his eyes shifted to the dozen or so men, his gaze darting around: "You, you, and you come with me... Listen carefully, and you'll be rewarded if we succeed!"

Li Hong, who was in the crowd, was also picked out by Liu Ming at a glance, and the group of six was temporarily transferred away.

This is quite common in the martial arts academy.

When local government offices are short of staff, they often come to the martial arts hall to borrow personnel.

Most of the time, if you do a good job, you'll get some reward.

After Li Hong left the martial arts hall with the patrol team, he felt a little nervous.

Liu Ming had a sharp eye; the people he chose were the ones with the best physical abilities among the remaining disciples.

He was the fourth one chosen, and he had no choice but to go.

After walking through several streets, the constables of the patrol office remained silent, each with a serious expression.

Liu Ming, who was leading the group, remained silent, his expression as cold and hard as a rock. Apart from his feet, only his hawk-like eyes were moving.

Two quarters of an hour later, the procession approached Yanghua Street in the eastern part of the outer city.

All the officers began to quietly change their clothes, taking off their black robes and putting on ordinary clothes.

Yanghua Street is also near the edge of the outer city, with many brothels and brothels, a noisy marketplace, and thieves and petty thieves running rampant.

After changing his uniform, Liu Ming solemnly swept his gaze over the back of the group and gave a deep command:

"Wang Hu and Xu Fei, each of you take three disciples from the Martial Arts Hall and guard the streets at both ends!"

"That smiling wolf Cheng Jiushan is skilled in disguise and light-footedness. Once there is any commotion at Cangchunlou, you will block off the streets and prohibit passage! If you encounter anything suspicious, arrest him immediately."

"As for any other unauthorized personnel, if they dare to disobey the order more than three times, they shall be killed without exception!"

"Yes!" Two burly constables answered in turn.

As Liu Ming spoke, his eyes swept over Li Hong and the others, and he took out Zhang Hai's arrest warrant, passing it around for them to read.

Then, after a moment of contemplation, he gave the following instructions:

"And you lot from the Martial Arts Academy, you'd better keep your eyes peeled and remember this face in the portrait!"

"If you see anyone who looks similar later, regardless of age or gender, inform your respective team leaders first. Don't try to stop them yourselves, understand?"

Li Hong carefully memorized the distinctive face in the portrait, then glanced at the text on the arrest warrant:

"Smiling Wolf Cheng Jiu, a thief from Yunshan Fortress, has the blood of eighteen people on his hands... Internal strength?"

He silently recited it to himself, and when he looked up, he noticed that the other five disciples beside him, who had already read the arrest warrant, all had changed their expressions.

No one bothered to respond.

Liu Ming frowned slightly, a hint of disappointment flashing across his face, and could only offer words of comfort:

"Although Cheng Jiu is physically strong, he has suffered from hidden injuries for a long time. His main battleground is at Cangchun Tower; you are just a safety net!"

"yes......"

Half a cup of tea's time passed.

A young man who looked like a vendor walked out of the crowd on Yanghua Street and secretly kicked a pebble to Liu Ming's feet, who was lying in wait there.

"Move out!"

Liu Ming turned around and gave a low command.

Then, leading a group of three constables, he walked towards Yanghua Street.

.......

Half an hour later.

Li Hong and two other disciples from the Martial Arts Hall had followed behind the constable Wang Hu and arrived at the end of Yanghua Street, which was not far away.

In the alleys on both sides of the street, some people had prepared simple barricades in advance.

"Come over here and get your knife!"

Wang Hu pulled out several more knives from under a sack in the corner and distributed them to the three men.

Li Hong drew the blade about an inch away for inspection; its cold gleam was dazzling, and the blade was sharp!

Wang Hu glanced at him and instructed, "The knife is for self-defense. Remember, your main role is to assist in identification. Notify me immediately if anything seems suspicious!"

Li Hong nodded, and the group immediately focused their attention on looking out over the street.

What followed was a long wait.

Time passed second by second.

The other two disciples were already getting a little anxious.

Even Wang Hu started gripping the hilt of his knife and patrolling in circles.

Only Li Hong remained calm and collected, mentally preparing for all possible scenarios that might occur next.

Suddenly, after an unknown amount of time, they all heard several screams and exclamations coming from afar in the street.

Then came angry shouts and the crackling sound of wooden furniture being destroyed.

"Push it now!"

Wang Hu immediately gave the order, and the four of them worked together to push the barricades to the end of the street and block the road in just over ten breaths.

Only a gap of less than two meters was left.

"Clang!"

He then drew his knife to guard the gap, but the sounds of fighting coming from inside the street had already shifted.

It is spreading towards the street.

Then there were several more ups and downs, and then there was no more movement, but the pre-arranged signal to return to base was nowhere to be seen.

Li Hong's heart skipped a beat, realizing that Liu Ming must have failed to land a single blow!

The thief escaped from the Hidden Spring Pavilion...that's why they chased him from house to house, but they still lost him.

Wang Hu, standing in front of him, clearly understood the same meaning and his heart tightened.

My hand gripping the knife hilt started to feel slippery; the chaos on the street had increased the number of people in front of me.

Some people tried to approach the checkpoint, but Wang Hu shouted, "The Patrol and Inspection Division is conducting an investigation; this area is off-limits!"

After he finished speaking, some people were so surprised that they hurriedly turned around.

"Ignore those turning around; they're trapped!"

Wang Hu whispered a reminder to the three people behind him.

Li Hong nodded first and began to carefully examine the faces of those who had been stopped.

"what!"

Suddenly... a piercing scream came from a teahouse not far from the end of the street!

Wang Hu, Li Hong, and the others tensed up instantly!

However, there were dozens of pedestrians waiting to pass just a few meters away, making it impossible to go and check.

Wang Hu coldly reminded him:

"Don't move. Even if the sky falls in the street, it's none of our business. The boss and his men will handle the cleanup..."

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly felt a pang of anxiety.

Thick smoke was already billowing from the teahouse, and flames were about to emerge!

The already panicked pedestrians were forced closer to the checkpoint at the end of the street, and the situation instantly became even more chaotic.

A few drops of cold sweat were already dripping down Wang Hu's cheeks.

He was 100% certain that Cheng Jiu was at the end of the street, right in front of them!

Previously, Liu Ming said that Cheng Jiu had been suffering from hidden injuries for a long time, and Wang Hu naturally knew that the leader was afraid of these martial arts hall disciples.

This was a ruse to appease the troops.

However, given their meticulous planning, it's highly unlikely that Cheng Jiu would emerge unscathed from Liu Ming's first encounter.

Moreover, as soon as the smoke rises here, my colleagues will definitely be rushing here immediately!

.........

A few breaths later.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man wearing a straw hat and dressed entirely in black blended into the crowd at the end of the street.

His jaw was clenched, his right trouser leg pressed tightly against the ground, and drops of blood were silently flowing out.

This man was none other than the smiling wolf, Cheng Jiu!

As cunning as he was, he naturally knew that there wasn't much time left, perhaps not even enough for half a bowl of tea!

Liu Ming's Tiger Roar Saber truly opened his eyes; if it weren't for the fact that he had been hiding his "Ghost Entangling Sleeve" skill...

He was probably already decapitated inside the building just now!

Feel the weakness throughout your body caused by blood loss.

Cheng Jiu, with his sharp eyes, spotted a woman holding a baby in the crowd...