Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

The second floor of the Japanese Consulate.

Jingmei stood by the window and saw the handkerchief fall to the ground.

His pupils were so wide they almost burst out of their sockets.

"Quickly, quickly! Follow me downstairs."

Behind him, Takeda Yuyasu looked completely bewildered.

Didn't His Highness just tell me that he wanted to test the strength of the Grandmaster sent by the Empire?

Why did you have to go downstairs to greet them so soon after you finished speaking?

Jingmei's pace is even faster than that of Takeda Yu'an.

He rushed to the stairwell in two or three steps, then suddenly stopped, turned around and said:

"Takeda-kun, get two gas masks."

Immediately afterwards, Jingmei rushed downstairs without looking back, completely abandoning her previous demeanor as a Japanese prince.

"Temu-kun! Temu-kun!"

It's very far away.

Jingmei ran quickly toward the man at the consulate entrance, shouting at the top of her lungs.

Even though his oversized kimono, printed with the Japanese imperial family logo, was dragging on the ground and torn in several places, he didn't care.

The man smiled slightly, then gracefully bent down and picked up the white silk handkerchief from the ground.

He stood up, folded the handkerchief, and put it back into his collar pocket before slowly speaking:

"Your Highness, it's been a long time. You still love to joke around as much as ever."

Jingmei had already approached, but dared not get close, keeping a good two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) away from the man. Upon hearing this, his expression stiffened:

"Lord Temu, it was my rudeness."

Jingmei's previous arrogance completely disappeared.

just.

These words had barely left his lips.

The group of Japanese soldiers behind the man suddenly turned pale, their lips turning from red to black, and the next moment, they all fell to the ground.

Jingmei frowned, her face extremely pale, yet she held back, daring not to explode.

"Temu-kun, they are all pillars of the empire, you..."

Tie Muling smiled gently, picked up her suitcase and walked into the consulate. Jingmei did not stop her, but quickly stepped back a few paces.

……

The second floor of the Japanese Consulate.

Jingmei and Temura sat facing each other on the sofa, with Takeda Yuyasu standing behind Jingmei.

Like Jingmei, he had somehow put on a gas mask.

"Your Highness, is it necessary to be so afraid of me? This time I am here to assist you on the orders of my uncle... no, His Majesty the Emperor. Why do you not even have this much trust?"

Beneath the gas mask, Jingmei gave an awkward smile: "I'm just used to being cautious and discreet."

Tie Muling didn't respond further. A playful smile appeared on his lips as he turned to look at Wu Tianxiong.

"And what about you, Takeda-kun?"

Upon learning from Jingmei that this matter came from a master of the Transcendent Realm within the country, Takeda Yuyasu, already puzzled by Jingmei's actions, removed his mask upon seeing this, his face displaying a fawning expression.

"Lord Ironwood."

Tie Muling then withdrew her gaze and said softly:

"I have identified the target. Next, I will assist Your Highness in resolving the crisis in Jiangcheng according to the pre-set plan."

He paused, his voice turning slightly colder: "I prefer to do things step by step and don't want to cause too much of a commotion. While I'm in Jiangcheng, Your Highness only needs to handle normal trade relations and doesn't need to interfere with anything else."

He raised his hand to look at his fair and slender hands, then took out the handkerchief again and gently shook it.

"If Your Highness's recklessness ruins things and the plan is targeted by forces outside Jiangcheng or by the high-ranking officials of China, Your Highness should know how to explain it to His Majesty the Emperor."

Upon seeing the handkerchief, Jingmei's pupils dilated in shock beneath the gas mask, and his exposed throat involuntarily twitched.

"Okay, I will do my best to complete the tasks assigned by my elder brother." Jingmei's tone was very sincere.

As she spoke, Tie Muling opened the leather case on the table, revealing it filled with syringes. She took out two dark purple syringes and pushed them towards Jingmei.

"These are two advanced versions of the assassin's potion. I see that the consulate's defenses are weak, so I'm just giving Your Highness some peace of mind."

After closing his suitcase, Tie Muling stood up and bowed deeply to Jingmei: "Your Highness, we'll meet at the North City Medical Clinic. I'll take my leave now."

This perfectly reasonable response seemed completely unreasonable to Jingmei, who immediately replied, "Thank you, Temu-kun."

Jingmei didn't say anything, letting Tie Muling turn around and go downstairs.

Wait until the sound of the iron bell's footsteps completely faded away.

Jing Mei then reached for the two dark purple syringes on the table.

"Ahem!"

Before Jingmei's hand could land on the injection, a soft cough sounded behind him.

Takeda Yuyasu was clearing his throat with difficulty when he saw Jingmei turn to look at him. He forced a smile.

"Your Highness, the weather is dry, and I am feeling a little unwell."

Jingmei turned around, pulled his hand back from the table, not taking the two syringes, and slowly spoke:

"Temurin, 27 years old, his mother is the eldest princess of the empire, and his father is the famous biologist, pharmacologist and chemist of Milijian. Since he was 17 years old, he has been accompanying his father in Milijian to conduct in-depth research on human blood transfusion experiments, human drug experiments and human toxin experiments."

"Three years ago... the current emperor acquired a top-secret martial arts technique in China... a month after the emperor began practicing it, rumors spread in a small country in the southeast that all the elderly, weak, women and children in the country had died of poisoning."

"Ahem!"

Takeda Yuyasu coughed violently again, hurriedly covering his lips with his hand, a thick, unyielding streak of blood staining his hand.

Hearing the last word in Jingmei's words,

Takeda Yuyasu's hand remained frozen at his lips, unable to be withdrawn for a long time.

……

Martial Arts Hall in the South of the City.

Lin Ji knocked on the door three times.

The doors to the martial arts hall were only slightly opened.

A familiar face peeked out from the gap:

"Old Lin?"

"Manager Wang."

Lin Ji cupped his hands in greeting and slipped through the crack in the door that Steward Wang had cleared for him.

Lin Ji entered the martial arts hall.

I noticed that there were far fewer students in the training ground, and several instructors had also left.

Gu Yanqiu continued to instruct the students of the martial arts hall in their training as usual, but there was a hint of anxiety between his brows.

"Manager Wang, has anything happened at the Martial Arts Hall these past two days?" Lin Ji asked upon seeing this.

Manager Wang frowned slightly and nodded: "Yes, there are several children from families who do hard labor in the north of the city who are sick. They all have the same symptoms and haven't come to the martial arts hall for many days."

"North of the city?"

Lin Ji's heart sank slightly, and for no apparent reason, he thought of that yin and soft aura.

"Yes, but the other students are doing well. It's just that the situation in the city is too turbulent. Some students have gone to work hard to make a living, and several teachers have also resigned."

Manager Wang continued talking about the matters concerning the Martial Arts Hall, then turned to Lin Ji: "It's been many days since I've seen you at the Martial Arts Hall. What brings you here this time?"

"I'm also here to resign, and to visit Xiaonian and Yanqiu while I'm at it."

Lin Ji spotted Bai Xiaonian from afar. Since killing the "tiger" last time, the boy had grown rapidly and had already tempered most of his bones. He estimated that he would be able to fully reach the peak of bone refining in less than a month.

"I guessed it." Manager Wang stroked his beard, which was now streaked with white, and sighed.

Gu Yanqiu patted the student on the shoulder and saw Lin Ji come over to greet him.

"Grandpa Lin."

Lin Ji nodded and asked, "Are you alright coming in? Where's Yue Ru?"

A hint of hesitation flashed in Gu Yanqiu's eyes: "In the backyard."

"However, news came from the family that Jiangcheng is in turmoil, and that Mother should go to the provincial capital to stay for a while."

"Family?" Lin Ji asked hesitantly.