Chapter 230 Insidious

Lin Changning shouted, which startled the man. Perhaps feeling guilty, he dropped the bucket and ran away. Lin Changning knew something was wrong as soon as he saw the man's posture.

He put on his outer robe and chased after them. As soon as he reached the discarded bucket, Lin Changning frowned. He saw that the liquid spilled from the bucket was flammable upon contact with water.

Lin Changning looked down and realized that this wasn't someone who had come to put out a fire; it was clearly an arsonist.

Lin Changning immediately chased after him. Old Han, who was using wet clothes to put out the fire, also began to frown as he watched Lin Changning frantically chasing after someone.

Just as the man was about to run to their side, Old Han immediately had his men surround him.

He grabbed the man by the collar, but the man was holding a dagger. The moment Xiao Han stopped the man, the sharp dagger sliced ​​across Lao Han's wrist.

Thankfully, Lao Han let go quickly, otherwise he might have been seriously injured.

Lin Changning caught up and pointed at the man, shouting, "Don't let him get away! This is the one who started the fire!!!"

Instantly, the surrounding soldiers all surrounded him, and Lin Changning saw a flash of cold light pass by the man's hand.

He casually drew the knife from his waist and slashed at the enemy. This man was skilled in martial arts and wielded the dagger with unparalleled prowess.

After parrying Lin Changning's longsword, he attacked Lin Changning's neck from an extremely tricky angle.

Lin Changning stepped back, tilted his head, and dodged the attack. Then, he used the tip of his knife to flick the man's dagger upwards, sending it flying.

Then she frowned and looked at the unremarkable-looking man.

"Speak! Who sent you?"

A sinister glint flashed in the man's eyes. He pulled something out of his pocket and threw it at Lin Changning, who was closest to him.

With a flash of cold light, Lin Changning dodged the object in the man's arms with a backflip. Thinking how close she had come to disaster, and seeing that the man seemed to be revealing his true intentions, Lin Changning rushed forward and struck the man's thigh with the back of her knife.

The man's leg cracked from Lin Changning's blow, and Lao Han and several soldiers pounced on him, pinning him to the ground.

A quick-thinking soldier ran to the back and found the hidden weapon the man had thrown at Lin Changning. Holding three darts in his hand, he walked directly to Lin Changning's side and gestured to him.

"Chief, this is what this person just stole from you."

The edges of the three small copper coins were ground very sharp, making them a fairly common type of copper coin dart on the market. However, the edges of these three small copper coins actually had a faint dark sheen.

Old Han glanced at him briefly before kicking the man who had been pinned to the ground in a vicious tone.

"You little brat, those money darts were poisoned! They were really poisonous!!!"

After saying that, he looked at Lin Changning with some concern, frowned and reminded him, "Brother Lin, were you scratched by this thief? It looks like he put a deadly poison on that dart."

Lin Changning shook his head: "I'm fine, he didn't hurt me."

As the two were talking, a flurry of footsteps came from the side. Lin Changning turned around and saw Qi Rong and Qin Zhong rushing over, with the Prince of Qin, whose clothes were a little messy and whose hair was disheveled, following beside them.

Qi Rong strode over, his brows furrowed in a deep frown. Seeing Lin Changning's dusty face and body, with a small bump on her cheek, he felt a pang of anxiety: "Are you injured? How did you get into this state?"

Lin Changning scratched his head: "Commander, it's a long story. When Lao Han and I came back tonight, we happened to run into a fire in the west of the city. Someone deliberately set the fire tonight, and we just caught the culprit."

Qi Rong and the Crown Prince of Qin exchanged a glance, looking at the man who was being held down on the ground. Qi Rong's eyes were filled with unreadable emotions, but Qin Zhong had no such scruples and kicked the man hard in the face.

"You bastard! You almost stirred up public anger yesterday, and today you even started a fire!!"

A hard kick sent blood gushing from the man's nose. He didn't say a word, enduring the pain as the blood flowed freely.

When Old Han saw his commander arrive, he immediately started complaining: "Commander, that bastard is ruthless! Just now, when he couldn't beat them, he used poisoned darts to ambush Changning. Luckily, Changning dodged quickly, otherwise..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Qi Rong, enraged, drew his sword. A flash of silver light appeared, and the man's eyes widened as his head rolled off the ground.

Qi Rong, who had directly beheaded the man, said coldly, "Go, take him to King Zhou's side."

Qi Rong seemed to have thought of something, and suddenly shook his head: "Never mind, no need. Once things are settled in Jinyejiang, I'll personally deliver it first thing tomorrow morning!"

Qin Zhong hesitated for a moment, then advised, "Oh, you really acted swiftly, but wasn't that a bit too impulsive? After all, he's a prince, and the current emperor's own brother."

Qi Rong sneered: "Just killing the instigator means he had bad intentions, set people on fire, and was beaten to death by us as a thief. I don't believe he would dare to report it."

After a pause, Qi Rong continued, "However, a dispute arose with the refugees yesterday, resulting in the deaths of two. Today, they sent men to burn down the western city. I will submit a memorial to the higher authorities regarding this matter. The people of the world are not blind, and the censors are not idle. This incompetent fool dares to try and steal credit, indulging in his pipe dream. I must give the refugees an explanation for this matter!!!"

Hearing what Qi Rong said, Lao Qin nodded and said, "Then I will submit the memorial with you."

The Crown Prince of Qin rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache: "I've seen stupid people before, but this is the first time I've seen someone so incredibly stupid. Count me in."

After speaking, the Prince of Qin looked at Lin Changning's somewhat ashen face and the blisters on the back of his hand, and reminded him, "Second Brother Qi, it's getting late. I'll stay behind to clean up the mess. Your junior commander has burned his hand. Tell someone to go back and treat it quickly."

Qi Rong then noticed a large red patch on the back of Lin Changning's hand, which was now covered with a series of watery blisters.

"Old Han, and Xiao Liu, you two go back and rest first. I'll stay here with them to handle the aftermath."

Lin Changning was indeed a little tired. Hearing Qi Rong say this, he nodded and clasped his hands in greeting: "Commander, then we will take our leave first."

Qi Rong nodded, watching Lin Changning and Lao Han walk further and further away side by side, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.

After extinguishing the fire with his men, it was already daylight. Qi Rong wiped the sweat from his face, left some men to clean up the mess, and led the Prince of Qin and his personal guards straight to where the King of Zhou was staying.

Upon arrival, a guard of the Prince of Zhou came forward and bowed respectfully, saying, "His Highness is resting and cannot see anyone at this time. Please do not disturb him."

Qi Rong smirked and plunged his knife into the man's chest.

Because his eyes were wide open, seemingly not expecting these people to suddenly attack, he fell backward with his eyes wide open.

After drawing his long sword, Qi Rong flicked away the blood droplets, glanced at the Prince of Qin, and nodded slightly.

"Kill! Leave no one alive except for the King of Zhou's personal guards!"

"Yes, Commander!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, look at you guys, you have no sense at all. What are you standing there for? Go help."

"Yes, Your Highness!"