Chapter 237
Chapter 237
“Sister-in-law, you're heading into battle, right? I want to go with you.”
Ever since Shen Lang became the live-in son-in-law of the Count of Xuanwu's Estate, his younger brother Shen Jian had been training in martial arts every day, guided by several masters. Jin Hui, Jin Zhong, Mulan, the Count of Xuanwu, and Jin Shiying had all personally taught him.
“Don't cause a scene. Stay home and protect our parents.”
“Sister-in-law, I've been training for half a year. I think I've gotten pretty strong.”
“Obey my command.”
At Mulan's firm command, Shen Jian reluctantly suppressed his disappointment and stepped back, vowing to become stronger and prove his worth.
* * *
Mulan once again donned her armor and left the estate, where three hundred cavalrymen had assembled. Just then, Jin Jianniang rushed out.
“My lady, let me go with you.”
“What are you talking about? You're injured!”
“This is nothing. I watched my brothers get slaughtered by those beasts right before my eyes. If I don't go for revenge now, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.”
“Very well! Then we sisters will go kill the enemy together. But you must be careful not to get hurt.”
“I won't push myself!”
Mulan and Jin Jianniang mounted their respective horses. Leading the three hundred elite cavalrymen, they charged out of the Count of Xuanwu's fortress like arrows shot from a bow.
* * *
The sun was setting in the west, and darkness was about to fall. On a mountain not far from the Count of Xuanwu's Estate, over a hundred warriors clad in black lay in ambush. Their leader stood atop a tree, watching the mounted Jin Mulan with a complex expression. He was Su Jianting of the Marquis of Zhenyuan's Estate.
Originally, had the Count of Xuanwu's Estate not become a target of the king's new policies, Jin Mulan would have been his wife. She had a stunning figure and was so innocent. Soon, Shen Lang would be dead, and she would be a widow.
*'What a shame. If only the Crown Prince hadn't set his sights on her.'*
Darkness completely enveloped the sky. Su Jianting leaped down from the tree, pulled up his mask to cover his face, and gave a command in a low voice.
“The lure was successful. Have you all prepared the ropes, grappling hooks, and other tools for scaling the walls?”
“Everything is ready!”
Su Jianting gazed at the brightly lit fortress of the Count of Xuanwu's Estate. The object he had to find was inside that fortress. His father had ordered him to obtain it at any cost. It didn't matter how many people died or how many he had to kill; he had to bring it back.
“Move out. We're infiltrating the Count of Xuanwu's Estate. If you encounter any resistance, kill them all, no matter who they are—even if it's their Little Darling.”
At his command, the hundred black-clad masters from the Marquis of Zhenyuan's Estate sprinted toward the Count of Xuanwu's Estate under the cover of darkness. Su Jianting and the hundred warriors he led infiltrated the Jin Clan's fortress like a hundred venomous snakes moving as one.
* * *
Several miles away.
Tang Yan, the Martial Arts Fanatic, sat on his horse at a fork in the road, staring blankly. Before him, the path split into three.
*'Should I go left, middle, or right? Which one of these leads to the Count of Xuanwu's Estate?'*
He had now abandoned the Meteor Sword Art, so the Sword King Li Qianqiu had prepared a new sword art for him. It was undoubtedly as magnificent and powerful as the Meteor Sword Art, but it was still just a piece of uncarved jade. The ancient martial arts manual was engraved in layers of patterns within the jade stone, yet to be deciphered. It would take the Sword King Li Qianqiu himself more than ten years to decode it, but there was someone extraordinary who could do it in a very short time. That person was Shen Lang. That was why Tang Yan had come to the Count of Xuanwu's Estate alone.
It had been an arduous journey. The outside world was indeed a terrifying place. On his way to the estate, he had encountered bandits blocking his path, trying to rob him, three times. In truth, there were many more groups of bandits and robbers along the way. However, after Tang Yan swiftly defeated the nearby bandits, word spread among them, and more than ten other gangs, intimidated, had let him pass unharmed.
Encountering robbers was a trivial matter; the real problem was that he didn't know how to get to his destination. He had already gotten lost more than ten times and had to ask for directions every day. He had a map, but how was he supposed to read it? Tang Yan could instantly comprehend the characters in a martial arts manual, but if the same characters were written elsewhere, he truly couldn't understand their meaning.
Tang Yan had originally intended to come with his master, but his master, with a look of fear, had ultimately refused. He couldn't imagine what could possibly be so frightening at the Count of Xuanwu's Estate. Now, with dusk falling, there was no one around to ask for directions. His master had told him that if he came to a fork, he should choose the right path if there were two, and the middle path if there were three. Before him now was a three-way fork, so he had to choose the middle.
He had always gone the wrong way whenever he chose the middle path, but it was his master's advice, so he had to follow it. The Martial Arts Fanatic Tang Yan spurred his warhorse and galloped down the middle road. Ha! This time, the fool had luckily chosen the right path. The left path led to Xuanwu City, the right to Nanshan City. The middle path he had chosen was indeed the one leading to the Count of Xuanwu's Estate.
* * *
Inside the main fortress of Raging Tide City.
Mistress Shu was very quiet, showing no signs of fear. Only occasionally did her gaze drift toward the Taoist An Zaetian. She began to speak.
“Young Mistress, you saved me, which is why this unworthy one has been able to live until now. For someone like me to try and harm you was a deed worse than any beast's. But if I hadn't poisoned your food, my son and daughter would not have escaped death.”
Qiu Yao'er shook her head.
“I do not blame you. But why did you suddenly disappear a while ago? Why did you stop poisoning me?”
“First, because I became pregnant. Second, because the situation changed, and Qiu Tianwei suddenly needed you.”
Hearing her words, Shen Lang saw Mistress Shu in a new light. It was an analysis worthy of a daughter from a scholarly family. She spoke with great clarity and profound insight. Originally, Qiu Tianwei had intended to kill Qiu Yao'er, believing he no longer needed her. But with the news of the ancient gold vein's discovery on Sorrowlove Island, Qiu Yao'er's existence became crucial. She was the best card Qiu Tianwei had to defend Raging Tide City in his stead. Thus, he had stopped the poisoning. At the same time, since Shu had also become pregnant, he made it look as though he had killed her to silence her.
Qiu Yao'er closed her eyes. Her adoptive father had tried to kill her? He had really tried to kill her?
*'After all the years I've served you with loyalty, you tried to kill me? Qiu Tianwei, you know I have no ambition, that I would never threaten Qiu Xiao's position. And still, you tried to kill me? Was it because my reputation and influence surpassed yours? Did my martial prowess become so great that it frightened you? Is it in a man's nature to destroy anyone stronger than himself?'*
Qiu Yao'er didn't tremble or rage at this revelation. She only felt a slight disappointment, and a sense of liberation.
*'Shen Lang was right. I no longer owe Qiu Tianwei my life. That debt has been fully repaid!'*
Qiu Yao'er spoke suddenly.
“Shu, did you sleep with Qiu Tianwei willingly?”
“No. He forced himself upon me. He is a beast. Even as he violated me, the name he called out most was yours.”
For a moment, Qiu Yao'er felt a wave of nausea and wanted to vomit. She took a long breath and then asked.
“Shu, will you come with me? Will you continue to cook for me? I've grown accustomed to your cooking. Besides, it's the most delicious.”
This woman's magnanimity was boundless. To ask Shu to cook for her, even after she had poisoned her food?
Shu knelt and kowtowed.
“Young Mistress, I am deeply grateful for your words. But... I have a man now. And we are going to have a child. I want to spend the rest of my life with him.”
And her beautiful eyes turned once more to An Zaetian. In that moment, tears streamed from An Zaetian's eyes. For over ten years, he had lived hidden by Qiu Tianwei's side, his life on the line, every day filled with fear and anxiety. To have found a wonderful woman to spend his life with amidst all that... it must have felt like a reward for all his past sorrow and suffering.
Qiu Yao'er looked at Shen Lang with a somewhat complicated expression. After a long moment, she spoke.
“Shen Lang, I will give you this fortress, and Raging Tide City as well. I will take my people and go far away. I hope we never meet again!”
* * *
In a village within the fiefdom of the Count of Xuanwu's Estate.
Warriors from the Count of Jinhai's Tang Clan and masters from the Marquis of Zhenyuan's Su Clan, masquerading as Dog-Head Huan's band of brigands, were mercilessly killing and burning.
“Hahahaha!”
They had unleashed the demons sealed within them. They watched, overjoyed, as house after house turned to ash and people continuously lost their lives at their hands.
*'This is so exciting! So satisfying! Hahahaha!'*
Who knew that murder and arson, things they'd never experienced before, could be so thrilling? So this is why being a bandit is fun. They were bound by no one. If they wanted to kill, they killed. If they wanted to rape, they did.
“Set it on fire! Set it all on fire!”
Torches were thrown into the houses, and countless subjects of the Jin Clan screamed and wailed in agony. Women fled, clutching their children. Hundreds of villagers were herded into the threshing ground. The entire village was ablaze. The fake bandits watched the roaring flames and laughed viciously.
“Hahahaha. Are you still waiting for the Jin Clan to come and save you? Don't even dream of it. The Jin Clan is about to be finished; they'll be hard-pressed to save themselves. Besides, in their eyes, you're nothing but lowly ants. You're commoners, worse than dogs and pigs. Your lives aren't worth a single coin to Jin Mulan. You're just tools for the Jin Clan to exploit for money.”
Suddenly, a young man spoke up.
“Nonsense! His Lordship the Count will definitely send people to save us.”
“That's right! The Count cherishes his people like his own children, and so does Lady Jin Mulan. She's always treated us like family, like her own children.”
“Just you wait, you bandits! When our master arrives with his army, he won't spare any of you.”
The villagers all shouted in unison. They genuinely revered the Jin Clan.
The fourth young master of the Tang Clan laughed boisterously.
“You foolish serfs are still living in a dream. Would Jin Mulan really risk danger for dogs and pigs like you? Hahaha!”