Chinese martial arts: From being shot and killed by the armed police during a mountain search to bec

The Governor's Mansion.

The flower hall was in complete chaos.

All nine of Mo Laohu's concubines were present, along with his first wife. The ten women made the huge hall more lively than a vegetable market.

The rosewood armchair was covered with a bright red cushion embroidered with gold thread, a Ru kiln celadon teacup was placed on the tea table, a bamboo painting by Zheng Banqiao hung on the wall, and Hetian jade ornaments were placed on the curio cabinet.

The room was filled with an air of wealth and luxury, but these women made it so noisy that not a trace of it remained.

The fifth concubine wore a light red cheongsam with a low neckline, revealing a section of her fair neck.

She waved her round fan loudly, her voice high-pitched and thin: "Sisters, it's already past noon! The Commander usually returns by this time, but why haven't we heard a word from him today?"

The third concubine glanced at her sideways and slowly sipped her tea: "What's the rush? Perhaps the nuns at Ciyun Nunnery are chanting so beautifully that the commander is so engrossed that he doesn't want to leave."

"Chanting scriptures?" Fourth Concubine snorted, her lips curling downwards. "More like pestering people, not chanting scriptures. Those nuns, with their serene and ascetic appearances, are probably quite wanton and lewd inside. Will the Commander still be able to straighten his back when he gets back?"

Upon hearing this, the concubines chuckled.

The sixth concubine couldn't laugh. She sat on an embroidered stool in the corner, twisting her handkerchief in her hands, her eyes red-rimmed. "The commander is really something... We sisters, which one of us wasn't carefully selected? We've been with him day and night, how come he still runs off to other women? What's so good about those wild women? They're all like vixens, always trying to seduce other men..."

Upon hearing this, the fifth concubine stopped fanning herself, turned her head, and sneered, "Oh, sixth sister, you're mistaken. Men, which one doesn't want more than what they have? Homegrown flowers never smell as sweet as wild ones. All of us combined can't compare to one fresh flower outside."

"You—" Sixth Concubine bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes.

The seventh concubine leaned against the screen, playing with the jade bracelet on her wrist, and said sarcastically, "Fifth sister is right. Besides, among us, who can really keep the commander-in-chief in check? Eldest sister hasn't said anything yet, why are you worrying about it, sixth sister?"

These words drew the ire of the first wife.

The eyes of all the concubines turned to the person in the main seat. The first wife stopped holding her prayer beads.

That's enough.

The first wife placed the Buddhist prayer beads on the table and glanced at each of the nine concubines.

She was over forty years old, with a few gray hairs at her temples, but her eyes remained sharp.

She was Mo Laohu's first wife, having followed him since he was a company commander. She was a woman who had survived countless battles and possessed a fierce and ruthless aura.

"Gossiping here first thing in the morning." The First Madam's voice wasn't loud, but it made everyone afraid to breathe. "What the Marshal does when he goes out is his business. You all sit here in this mansion eating and dressing well, and everything you have is provided by the Marshal. Now, you're gossiping about him behind his back?"

The flower hall was completely silent.

The third concubine quickly put down her teacup, put on a smile and apologized, "Eldest sister is right, we were just worrying unnecessarily and didn't watch our mouths, please don't take it to heart."

"Yes, yes," the fourth concubine quickly chimed in. "Don't be angry, eldest sister. We were just saying it casually."

The fifth concubine reluctantly twisted her body, placed the fan on her lap, and lowered her head without saying a word.

The First Madam glanced at them, picked up her prayer beads again, and turned them one by one: "I've already sent people to Ciyun Nunnery to investigate. You all better wait quietly. If I hear anyone gossiping again, go back to your own courtyard and don't come out here and embarrass yourselves."

The concubines exchanged glances, saying nothing but flattering each other with their eyes that said, "The eldest sister is the best."

The flower hall remained quiet for less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Suddenly, a series of stumbling footsteps came from outside, running hurriedly and chaotically, as if someone was tumbling and crawling in the corridor.

Immediately afterwards, the door to the flower hall was pushed open.

The one who came in was a close attendant of the governor's mansion, a young man of seventeen or eighteen years old. He usually ran errands and did odd jobs in the front yard. At this moment, his face was as white as paper, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans were dripping down his cheeks.

His hands and feet were shaking, his knees buckled, and he collapsed to his knees with a thud, lying face down on the ground.

"Madam...Madam..." His lips trembled for a long time, and his voice was stuck in his throat and could not be squeezed out.

The first wife frowned: "What's the panic? Speak properly."

The attendant took a deep breath, and a sob escaped his chest:

"The commander-in-chief is dead! The commander-in-chief is dead! The whole yard is full of corpses, they're all dead!"

The air in the flower hall seemed to freeze.

The melon seeds in Ninth Concubine's hand scattered all over the ground with a "clatter," and Third Concubine's teacup was held in mid-air, forgotten to be put down.

The fifth concubine's fan slid off her knees and fell to the floor tiles with a thud.

Then, it exploded.

"fart!"

The fifth concubine was the first to jump up, grab a teacup from the table, and throw it at her attendant.

The teacup smashed on the attendant's shoulder, splashing tea all over him, and shards of porcelain flew all over the floor.

"You damned lackey! What kind of unlucky talk is this so early in the morning! Who is the Commander-in-Chief? He's a military governor! A fierce general! Who in Guangzhou can harm him? If you dare to spout any more nonsense, I'll tear your mouth apart!"

The fourth concubine also stood up, wringing her handkerchief in her hands, her face flushed red: "That ignorant bastard, how dare he curse the Marshal! Eldest sister, drag this servant out and beat him to death with sticks!"

The concubines started cursing all at once. Some rushed up and kicked the servant, while others slammed their fists on the table and cursed loudly. The sixth concubine was so frightened that she shrank into a corner, trembling like a leaf, with tears streaming down her face.

The first wife sat in the armchair, her back ramrod straight, her hands gripping the Buddhist prayer beads tightly, her knuckles making a clicking sound.

Her face was expressionless, but her lips were pressed into a line, and the fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes were furrowed.

"Shut up, all of you!"

The concubines' cursing stopped abruptly.

The First Madam stood up and walked to her attendant, who had already been kicked by the Fifth Madam and was lying on the ground trembling, his face covered in a mixture of sweat, tears, and tea.

"Li Hu," the first wife called out.

A guard with a gun at his waist walked in from outside, clasped his hands and bowed: "Madam."

"Lift him up."

Chen Hu pulled his attendant up from the ground, and two guards on either side held his arms to make him stand up straight.

The first wife picked up a cup of cold tea from the table, flicked her wrist, and splashed it all over her attendant's face with a "splash".

Tea dripped down the attendant's forehead, leaving streaks of white residue.

The attendant shuddered, finally focusing his gaze.

The first wife placed the teacup back on the table. "I'm asking you a question, so answer properly. What's wrong with the Commander?"

The attendant's lips trembled for a long time before he finally said:

"Ciyun Nunnery... the ground is littered with corpses..." he said, trembling, his hands gripping his trouser legs tightly. "The commander-in-chief, the adjutant, the platoon leader of the guard platoon, the guards... they're all dead, not a single one is left..."

The first wife's voice deepened: "Did you see clearly?"

The attendant nodded frantically, his face streaked with snot and tears: "I saw it clearly! The commander-in-chief was wearing that gray silk robe, lying in the meditation room, his head caved in, blood everywhere... The adjutant was lying next to the commander-in-chief, with a hole in his head... And the guard platoon leader, his body slumped beside the incense burner, his neck snapped... They're all dead, all dead!"

The last "ah" was dragged out into a long wail that pierced the eardrums of everyone present.

The flower hall was silent for a full ten seconds.

Then, the crying erupted.

The sixth concubine was the first to cry out. With a loud wail, she slid off the embroidered stool and collapsed to the ground, wailing inconsolably.

Fifth Concubine also cried, her tears smearing her rouge, and she and Fourth Concubine embraced and wept together. Third Concubine's teacup finally shattered on the ground, porcelain shards scattered everywhere, she covered her face and sobbed, her shoulders shaking with each sob.

The seventh concubine cried the loudest, her voice high-pitched and bright. She cried and shouted, "My great general! How can I live without you?" Her cries echoed in the flower hall.

The eighth and ninth concubines were the youngest. They hugged each other and cried so hard that their clothes were soaked with tears.

The flower hall was filled with weeping.

The first wife stood amidst the weeping, her back straight, motionless. "It's all over, everything is over..."

The third concubine suddenly stepped forward and grabbed the first wife's clothes. "Eldest sister! The commander is gone! What are we going to do now? The lives of all the sisters in the manor are in your hands!"