Chapter 515 Taoist Priest, I'll Take You to Kill Someone (6k)

In the woods, by the fire.

Zhao Duan pinched the gray-black branch at the end, frowned, and asked the palace attendant who had rushed back, "What's going on?"

Tang Jinzhong was holding a bundle of dead branches in his hands:

"There's a group of soldiers chasing someone in the woods. We don't dare show up and take action without your order, so we came back to report first."

Chasing in the forest? This time, not only Zhao Duan and Mo Chou, but also the priest Yuxiu who was sitting cross-legged with her eyes closed in meditation opened her eyes.

The sound was getting closer, and everyone looked in the direction of the sound. They saw a shadowy figure approaching in the woods in front of them on the left, at an extremely fast speed.

The person running in front was slender, wearing coarse cloth clothes and a bamboo hat on her head. One of her shoulders was injured and bleeding. She was fleeing in panic. She was actually a young woman.

Behind the woman, there was a group of about twenty soldiers in the forest. They were wearing soft armor, holding swords and wearing iron helmets. They had a fierce aura and were vaguely in a hunting posture. Their heavy boots stepped down, splashing up the water that had not yet dried up in the grass and trees from time to time.

Tang Jinzhong, Song Jinxi and other followers stopped what they were doing, formed a circle, and protected Zhao Duan and others in the center. They subconsciously held the hilts of the swords at their waists and took a vigilant defensive posture.

"They are officers and soldiers from the Linfeng Military Headquarters." Zhao Duan narrowed his eyes and recognized the origins of those soldiers from the style of their armor.

Soldiers from the Imperial Army? Why are they here?

Who is being chased?

There was clearly still some distance to go before reaching the provincial capital... Mo Chou was stunned, her expression showing obvious confusion.

"Sir, do you want us to help catch him?" asked Song Jinxi, who had a keen eye.

Zhao Duan suddenly turned his head, looked at Yuxiu, and said with a smile: "Could you trouble the priest to help?"

Yuxiu closed her eyes again, looking as if it had nothing to do with her:

"I will not interfere in the internal strife of the royal family."

Mo Chou was getting a little anxious and urged him, "Don't waste time. Stop him first and ask what's going on. I don't think something is right."

Logically speaking, since it was an action by imperial soldiers, they should have helped, but Mo Chou was keenly aware of something unusual.

Be prepared to control the situation first and find out the facts.

"No rush," Zhao Duan looked at the two parties approaching from a distance, and suddenly felt itchy, so he said:

"You don't have to do anything. Let me mediate with my arrows."

He stood up and spread out his right hand. Immediately, an attendant took out an ox horn bow and handed it to him. Everyone was curious and ready to see Lord Zhao's archery skills.

Zhao Duan bent his bow and drew his arrow, his posture straight. The arrow reflected a cold light in the sunlight and locked onto the black-armored soldier who was closest to the fleeing woman and was about to catch up.

According to the "trajectory", this iron arrow will fall on the ground in front of the fierce soldier's feet, forcing both sides to stop.

“Whoosh—”

The bow suddenly relaxed, and an arrow left a shadow, instantly appearing in the forest with mottled shadows of trees.

The woman who was being hunted was panting. She was delighted when she saw Zhao Duan drawing his bow and arrow in the camp in the distance. But the next second, her hair stood on end!

The arrow brushed past her scalp, and the hat on her head was torn in two with a "bang", falling to both sides, and her long black hair fell down like a waterfall.

The arrow continued to move forward with unabated momentum. With a "thump" sound, it pierced into the tree trunk, halfway inside, and its tail feathers were still vibrating!

"Ah!" Mo Chou was startled and turned to look at Zhao Duan in surprise.

She recalled the scene when she sent Zhao Duan to take up his post at the Shenji Camp and the latter missed his target while shooting an arrow on the training ground.

The shot missed... The latter tried his best to maintain the posture of a martial arts master, his mouth twitched, and he threw the bow and arrow to his entourage:

"This bow got damp, so my aim is off. Let's pump some air conditioning."

Everyone: ...

At this time, the group of soldiers were frightened and instinctively slowed down their pace and drew their swords to defend themselves.

The woman took the opportunity to escape to the vicinity of the camp. Finally, she ran out of strength and stumbled to the ground. Blood gushed out of her shoulder, staining her clothes red. She said weakly, "Save... me..."

Tang Jinzhong looked back at Zhao Duan, and when he saw him nod, he signaled an attendant to drag him into the encirclement.

At this time, a group of black-armored soldiers also rushed out and surrounded everyone. The two sides confronted each other. One side was fully armed, while the other side was just dressed as an escort. The contrast in strength was obvious.

But if you look closely, you will find that the followers who should be trembling with fear are actually calm and composed.

However, the officers and soldiers who should have been confident were anxious.

"Hand her over!"

A black-armored officer in the lead walked out with a sword in hand. They were half covered with visors, and the eyes through the holes were sharp and cold.

It seems that if they disagree with something, they will kill people.

Zhao Duan brushed off his robe and slowly sat back on the stool beside the fire, dressed like a young master from a noble family, and said in a domineering manner:

"Who are you affiliated with? Do you know my identity? Didn't Sun Xiaozhun tell you that you are forbidden to use force against the people in your jurisdiction?"

Logically speaking, since Linfeng has become a war zone, these military soldiers should have been transferred to Taicang Prefecture and should be under the jurisdiction of Taicang Prefect Sun Xiaozheng.

In the Taicang Silver Mine case, Zhao Duan was deeply impressed by the prefect who was as thin as iron and acted decisively.

"Who are you? Tell me your identity! We are trying to capture the rebel spies. Anyone harboring them will be treated as a traitor!"

The black-armored officer, whose face was half covered, asked in a muffled voice. The veins on the back of his hand holding the hilt bulged as he quietly exerted force.

Zhao Duan's face was stern:

"Okay, you're interrogating me now. I don't suspect you're traitors..."

"Attack!" Before he could finish his sentence, the crow's feet at the corners of the black-armored officer's eyes suddenly became fine, and he shouted in a deep voice and jumped up.

The armor on his body creaked as he exerted force from his military boots, and the thick and sharp long sword in his hand made a "wu" sound as he slashed towards Zhao Duan.

The other twenty or so "Linfeng Soldiers" all attacked at the same time, in unison, curled up and charged towards the followers with their swords.

If they were ordinary followers, even if they had martial arts skills, they would be killed or injured in a few breaths when facing the coordinated attack of the army.

In the eyes of the black-armored officer, this young man of obviously high status seemed to be a dead man.

This is the front line of a war zone, yet he is stupid enough to travel with several beautiful women. He deserves to die.

However, Zhao Duan, who was holding a branch and stirring the fire beside the campfire, just lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the pot of hot water bubbling on the stone stove, and whispered, "Leave him alive."

"Yes, sir!"

The next second, the harmless "entourage" showed their fangs. Tang Jinzhong grinned fiercely, took a big step without any weapon, and punched the nearest fierce soldier.

The ferocious soldier's body softened like mud, and he suddenly lost all his strength. His back arched, and the inner armor inlaid with metal plates was torn into pieces like tofu. Blood seeped out of his skin, leaving a fist mark. He flew backwards into the forest like a sack, and died.

Song Jinxi smiled wickedly, and his figure appeared behind the three soldiers like a ghost almost at the same time. He locked the opponent's fragile throat with one hand and knocked down the three soldiers easily like killing a chicken.

The other priests also each had an opponent. Without even drawing their swords, in the blink of an eye, a group of murderous soldiers lay on the ground.

Only the black-armored officer was left, rushing to the fire alone, and no one stopped him.

Just as he was about to strike, a sharp scimitar suddenly flew from the carriage and cut off his ankles in two.

The scimitar spun in the air and flew back, and was caught in the right hand of Lang Shiba, who had just "released" himself from the forest.

He picked up the wine gourd with his left hand and took a sip casually, then frowned and weighed the wine gourd again, feeling a little confused.

Ji Yue, who was squatting beside a tree stump, hugged her knees and curled up into a ball. She silently grabbed and half of the black-armored officer's blood was drawn out from the broken ankle wound. She grabbed it into a "blood ball" and threw it into the woods.

"ah--"

At this moment, the officer fell to the ground with a plop. He was too weak to hold his knife. He felt dizzy and looked up with fear in his eyes, looking at the nobleman who was still stirring the charcoal fire.

"You...you are...Zhao..."

Zhao Duan pulled out a branch, stuffed it into his mouth, and said:

"The rebels from Yunfu changed their clothes and thought they could deceive this governor. This is really disrespectful. Bring them to the forest and have a thorough trial. I am kind-hearted and cannot bear to see them tortured."

Song Jinxi, who was skilled in assassination, torture and other strange methods, picked up the soldier with a smile and went into the woods.

It was not until this time that Mo Chou, who was sitting beside the fire, came to her senses. She screamed "Ah", stood up in shock, looked at the corpses on the ground, covered her mouth suddenly, and began to retch again.

Yuxiu maintained her cross-legged meditation posture and frowned:

"I only got the name wrong, not the nickname. He's worthy of being called 'King Zhao Yan' by the people of the capital."

Zhao Duan smiled and said, "Priest, can't bear it?"

Yuxiu stood up and turned to walk towards the carriage:

"The battle between the two armies is in accordance with the will of heaven. What does this have to do with me?"

Zhao Duan laughed heartily and said, "When the meal is ready, I'll have someone send it to the car."

Yuxiu said nothing, but just quickened her pace.

…

The battle ended as quickly as it came.

In the blink of an eye, there were more than twenty corpses in the forest. Tang Jinzhong searched the corpses and actually found the identity badges of the Yunfu rebels inside the clothes and armor of these people.

"Why are the rebels here? Is there something wrong with the capital city?"

Mo Chou dry heaved several times, frowned, and looked at Zhao Duan.

Zhao Duan sat by the fire, holding an ID card between his fingers and examining it, squinting his eyes and saying:

"If something really went wrong, there would be no need for these people to disguise themselves. It would be obvious at a glance that they were just a small group of scouts who had infiltrated the imperial defenses. With such a long defense line, it's impossible to completely seal it off, so it's not surprising that some of them slipped through.

And the woman who caused this group of people to hunt her down seems to be more important than we expected."

At this time, an attendant came over with the woman. Her wounds had been simply treated and she was fed healing pills. She had recovered some strength, but her hair was still disheveled.

When he was brought over staggeringly, his face, which was of ordinary appearance except for his high nose bridge and seven or eight streaks of black ash, showed alertness and uncertainty.

"Tell me, who are you and why are these people chasing you?" Zhao Duan spoke softly, looking at the strange woman.

After the hat was shattered, a red mark was left on the woman's scalp by the arrow. There was still a trace of blood on her forehead. Her eyes, like those of a little leopard, were filled with an inexplicable brilliance. She looked at Zhao Duan nervously and suddenly asked:

"Excuse me, are you Zhao Shaobao of the capital? Do you have any token of identity?"

Tang Jinzhong raised his eyebrows and suddenly put the long knife in his hand against the woman's neck:

"Answer whatever the adults ask."

Zhao Duan looked at her in surprise, then suddenly waved his hand and said with interest:

"You have courage, anyway. Do you recognize this?"

He reached into his bosom and when he took it out, there was an extra token in his palm, which was the identity badge enshrined in the imperial city.

With a twist of his wrist, the token spun and drilled in front of the woman, embedding itself into the ground with a plop.

The woman's eyes lit up, and with her bloodstained hands she pulled out the token. She held it horizontally, tilting it toward the sunlight, observing the angle of the light reflected from the token and its subtle texture, just as if she were checking counterfeit money.

"Confirmed! The imperial court's Silver Medal Shadow Guard 'White Falcon' greets His Excellency!"

The dirty woman showed surprise on her face, and suddenly knelt on one knee, holding the token high in both hands and handed it back.

This scene made everyone stunned. Zhao Duan said suspiciously:

"Shadow Guard White Falcon?"

"Yes." The woman codenamed White Falcon reached into her bosom and took out her own Shadow Guard Order with silver lettering on a black background.

"Please check it, sir."

Tang Jinzhong, who was standing by, took it and channeled his Qi into it. A dreamy, star-like light appeared on the Shadow Guard Token. After turning it over, the words "White Falcon" appeared on the back of the token.

"It's true." Tang Jinzhong confirmed.

"Are you the imperial shadow guard? Why were you assassinated? Tell me quickly." Mo Chou lost her composure and asked while suppressing the urge to vomit.

Bai Falcon immediately replied:

"I was ordered to infiltrate behind enemy lines in a war zone to gather intelligence. My identity was exposed and I was pursued. Fortunately, I was rescued by you, sir."

Mo Chou was suspicious and asked, "Why are you fleeing here? Shouldn't you flee to the capital?"

Bai Falcon answered truthfully:

"There was a battle in the capital today, so we dared not go there and had to head north. The Linfeng Shadow Guards knew a few days ago that Your Excellency was leading his army south, so they fled north, hoping to scare the enemy scouts into retreating too far."

He answered questions fluently without any hesitation.

Zhao Duan suddenly asked, "You said there was a war in the capital?"

Bai Falcon nodded:

"Reporting to you, my lord, today the rebel Su Dan sent his troops to attack the city, but I learned through espionage that the rebels sent a master to lead elite cavalry to take advantage of our army being pinned down in the city, intending to sabotage it. Upon hearing this, I was extremely anxious and took the risk of crossing the front line to return, which is why I was targeted."

What? There's a war going on up ahead? Are the Yunfu rebels fighting Xue Shence?

At this moment, everyone present changed their expressions.

Zhao Duan's heart sank, and he asked:

"You said there were experts sneaking in to sabotage us? What exactly happened? Who were they? Where did they go?"

Bai Falcon looked troubled:

"The enemy's movements are confidential, and I don't know much... I only know that they are a few light cavalry units, with a master cultivator in command."

Zhao Duan suddenly threw the map on the ground and the branch in his hand to her:

"Mark out the route of the cavalry you know and saw. Don't tell me you know nothing about it, or these people will hunt you down and kill you to silence you."

Feeling the cold gaze of "King Zhao Yan", Bai Falcon suddenly shuddered. He had no thought of resisting, so he gritted his teeth, picked up the gray-black branch at the end, and drew a few lines on the map.

Zhao Duan nodded in satisfaction, looking at her with a slightly warm look in his eyes, and personally stood up to help her up:

"Thank you for your hard work. Since she's injured, come, take her to my carriage to rest. I have better medicine in it."

Bai Falcon was filled with gratitude and said:

"Sir, the battle situation is urgent. I don't care about my reputation. I don't know where the reinforcements are. The best plan now is to rush to the capital to repel the powerful enemy."

Are you teaching me how to do things? Zhao Duan said solemnly:

"This governor will seriously consider it. Go ahead."

After saying that, he cast a look at Tang Jinzhong, who understood and personally took the silver medal shadow guard named Bai Falcon to the back.

"The military situation is urgent. There is no time to eat. We should set off immediately." Mo Chou urged anxiously.

Zhao Duan didn't move his butt: "Where to?"

Mo Chou looked at him strangely:

"Of course we're going to the capital! This shadow guard is right. Only if we arrive as soon as possible can we turn the tide of the battle."

"Wait a moment." Zhao Duan said, turning his head to look at the woods where screams were coming from.

After a while, Song Jinxi returned carrying the bloody black-armored officer and said with a smile:

"My lord, this man has told me everything he knows."

After listening to the officer's information, Zhao Duan found it highly consistent with what Bai Xuan said.

At this time, Tang Jinzhong also came back and nodded at him, indicating that he had verified Bai Falcon's identity with a secret code.

Zhao Duan nodded:

"Shi Meng, Yuan Feng, and the others should indeed lead the main force of the Beijing Camp to the provincial capital. Jinxi, ride to the rear camp and inform them of the intelligence we have learned. Tell them to work harder and march quickly. Also, transfer the light cavalry battalion of the Shenji Camp over here separately; I need them."

Song Jinxi responded, jumped on his horse, whipped it and galloped away.

Mo Chou was stunned: "What do you want light cavalry for?"

Zhao Duan picked up the branch and stared at the dirty map on the ground:

"Of course they're going to kill people, didn't you hear? The enemy's real purpose in attacking the city is probably to cover up that cavalry's entry and wreak havoc. How can we just let it go?"

Mo Chou retorted, "But we don't know where these people went?"

Zhao Duan didn't even raise his head, staring at the black and gray arrows on the map, his eyes as deep as a pool of water.

In his eyes, all the important locations and coordinates in the entire Taicang City emerged from his mind one after another, and the directions of the enemy attacks marked by the white falcon became clearer and longer in his mind's deduction.

Those scattered, deliberately confusing arrows seemed to stretch, turn, and finally converge along the numerous roads on the map.

He whispered softly:

"I don't understand marching and fighting, but I understand that on the battlefield, in this small space, it's just a game of chess that follows basic rules. I consider myself quite knowledgeable about chess. If I can deduce the moves of chess, then marching should also be possible.

Oh, thank goodness this is Taicang Prefecture. When I came here last year to investigate a case, I spent a few days at the post station thoroughly researching this area in order to track down the suspect. I even personally walked the paths, big and small, in the city and the countryside...

There weren't many places in Taicang that were worth Su Dan's trouble to set up such a false formation for a surprise attack.

The cavalry could not travel over the mountains, and the roads they could take were fixed;

Reinforcements are about to arrive, and with Prince Mu's intelligence capabilities, they're definitely aware of it, so time is limited... Once these many rules are sorted out one by one, the target of the enemy's surprise attack will be revealed."

As he uttered the last sentence, the branch in his hand suddenly pointed at a certain location on the map. Zhao Duan looked melancholy and laughed at himself:

"What do you mean by coincidence? My coming here is simply destiny."

Mo Chou stared blankly at the location circled on the map, which was...

Taicang Silver Mine!

Zhao Duan stood up and said loudly:

"Put out the fires and break camp. Abandon the carriages and baggage. Everyone, mount your horses. Wait for the light cavalry to arrive and follow me, the commander-in-chief, to fight the enemy!"

The worshippers were shocked, their eyes lit up, and they all said yes.

They were all very frustrated because they hadn't had any fights along the way.

Zhao Duan turned his head and glanced at Mo Chou, then as if remembering something, he added:

"Leave two people behind to protect Mo Zhaorong and the Heavenly Master's Palace priests, as well as the injured shadow guards, and reunite with the main force."

Mo Chou opened her mouth, wanting to say that she could do it, but suddenly Zhao Duan's voice came to her ears:

"You stay here and keep an eye on that white falcon. The priests have more force than brains, and I don't trust them keeping an eye on me."

He used the "sound transmission into secret" method that a warrior can master after reaching the worldly realm.

Mo Chou was startled and subconsciously wanted to look at the shadow guard named Bai Falcon, but she held back, her eyes widened, as if to say: Do you think there is something wrong with her?

Zhao Duan smiled, his eyes slightly cold:

"Not sure, just suspicious. It's always better to be cautious."

There is indeed a person named "White Falcon" in the list of shadow guards, and his appearance, age, and position do match the information in Beijing.

But Zhao Duan could not forget the agility and calmness this man showed when facing the arrow shot by Zhao Duan when he appeared.

That is not a quality that an ordinary "Silver Medal Shadow Guard" can possess.

"Do you really think my archery skills are that outrageous? Learn from me. The intrigues and deceptions on the battlefield are no less intense than those in the imperial court."

Zhao Duan jumped on his horse and whipped it to rush towards Taicang Silver Mine.

Behind him, a group of attendants followed like shadows - in the second carriage, a graceful figure also floated out and followed.

Mo Chou stared blankly at the man's back as he killed the enemy, and was briefly distracted for a moment.

…

Inside the carriage, Nie Yurong, with a high nose bridge and seven or eight streaks of black ash on her face, lifted the curtain with her hand and looked at the departing target with a not-so-good expression and cold eyes.

At this moment, she had changed her appearance and transformed herself into the appearance of "White Falcon". Combined with the special secret method and the information read from the White Falcon's soul, she perfectly stole the identity of the shadow guard.

——A few days ago, the shadow guard that Xiuyi directly arrested was the Silver Medal White Falcon.

"Miss, may I ask where Lord Zhao has gone? Has he joined up with the main force?"

Nie Yurong pretended to be weak and worried and walked down from the carriage with difficulty.

His eyes swept over the two remaining priests in the camp.

Passing by the second carriage, a faint cry was heard.

The scene is fixed on Mochou, who is dressed in a neutral style.

Mo Chou glanced at her as usual, then suddenly smiled:

"You don't recognize me?"

Nie Yurong looked bewildered and asked, "Excuse me, young lady, who are you..."

The local silver medal shadow guards were not qualified to meet Mo Zhaorong.

Mo Chou smiled, without explaining, and said calmly:

"It's cold outside. You're injured. Don't move around."

far away.

Zhao Duan was on his horse, and he looked at Yuxiu, who was also riding a horse beside him, with a strange look in his eyes: "Why are you following me, Priest?"

Yuxiu's expression was cold: "The governor doesn't want me to follow you?"

Zhao Duan laughed heartily, full of heroic spirit: "I couldn't ask for more. Today I will take the Taoist priest to kill someone."

(End of this chapter)