Chapter 152: A Difference in Thought

The Grand Historian, Mr. Zheng, who was over eighty years old and had retired to his hometown, observed the celestial phenomena at night and was certain that tonight would be a rare spectacle of six stars in a conjunction.

As he was speaking, a streak of golden light suddenly streaked across the eastern sky.

It was just getting dark at this time. A golden light passed by, and the sky was briefly bright before it became dark again.

The bright sun fell on a deserted mountain path.

All his clothes were burned and he was about to use magic to change them, but he found that he couldn't use it.

Damn Zhu Su, he said they would take the water route, but ended up letting her fall from the sky to the earth. He deliberately punished her because she said so many disrespectful words to him. What a stingy guy.

Fortunately, it was night time, so her appearance would not scare others.

When I was lying in the grass, not knowing how to get dressed, I heard a group of people whispering.

Jiaoran had sharp ears and heard that they were going to rob a group of passing imperial soldiers.

These days, the imperial court is so useless that even bandits like this dare to rob officials.

Jiaoran did not intervene either, thinking that she wanted to see how brave these gangsters were, and would only take action when someone was about to die.

This group of people succeeded quite quickly. She watched for a while in the night and found that these officials were like soft persimmons in the hands of the gangsters. They were getting worse and worse.

However, the leader did not kill them and let them go. He was different from the ordinary bandits who killed and robbed people. But it might also be because the people in the underworld were still a little afraid of the government.

Seeing that they had won, they counted the items, dispersed, and divided the jewels among themselves.

Jiaoran followed the tall and thin bandit in the lead and saw him running fast on the night road.

The man seemed to be completely unaware that a dark shadow was following him, as nimble as the wind, as ghostly as a spirit, and without making any sound.

Jiaoran followed behind him, sometimes far away, sometimes close. A few times, he could even pat the man's shoulder with just a stretch of his hand.

Jiaoran finally didn't want to play this game anymore, so he took advantage of the moment he was standing behind this person and gently exhaled onto the back of his neck.

As he screamed, Jiaoran suddenly dodged and hid in the grass.

It was actually a woman's voice, and it sounded a little familiar.

Her movements were also very agile. When she felt a warm breeze blowing from behind her, she immediately slapped back with her palm. However, when her palm reached the person behind her, the person had already disappeared in a flash.

It was a summer night and the weather was very hot and humid.

Her head was covered with sweat.

There was cold sweat on his back.

The woman's eyes widened as she stared at the shadows of the bushes and trees, cursing, "Get out of here!"

"If you're playing tricks on me, I'll knock your teeth out if you can!"

"Damn it! The person who dares to scare me hasn't even been born yet!"

She seemed to be in a hurry, so she walked quickly forward while cursing.

Jiaoran was too lazy to scare her and showed up.

The bright moon rises obliquely, and under the faint moonlight, the beautiful figure of a woman is reflected, and she seems to be emitting the faint light of the moon.

It can be seen that she is a woman with extraordinary temperament.

"Who are you and why are you following me?"

Jiao Ran said, "Give me one of the dresses in your bag."

The woman looked closely and realized that her clothes were in disarray, as if torn, and she was half naked like a baby.

She didn't say anything more and just threw a set to Jiaoran, "Take it."

Jiaoran leaped up to the treetop. A few steps away, the leaves on the big tree rustled.

After changing her clothes, Jiaoran looked down from her high vantage point. The woman was standing under the tree. Jiaoran could see her clearly now. Although her appearance had changed a little, she still recognized her. "Chai Liu!"

When she heard this person call her like that, she was stunned.

"Who are you?"

Jiaoran fell down from the tree, "Look who I am?"

When Chai Xiao saw that it was Jiaoran, she was overjoyed, "How could it be you! How could it be!"

He grabbed Jiaoran's hand and cried, "I thought you were dead. My eldest brother, second brother, and third brother are all dead. My sister is missing, and my mother is gone too. They are all dead. I thought you were gone too."

Jiao Ran suddenly heard her say this, as if it were a lifetime ago, and his heart was filled with sadness. "Yes, they are all gone. By the way, do you know the whereabouts of my senior sister and Mu Jin?"

Chai Xiao interrupted her and said, "Don't you know yet? My second sister-in-law and second brother are also no longer alive. I went to pay my respects to them two years ago. It was Mu Jin who erected tombstones for them."

When Jiaoran heard that her senior sister had died, her heart felt like it was being cut by a knife, but when she heard that Mu Jin was still alive, she felt a little relieved. She knew that no matter what the answer was, she would find it difficult to let it go.

"Do you know where Mu Jin is?"

Chai Xiao put his arm around her shoulders and said, "Let's not talk about Mu Jin for now. What's the difference between meeting him sooner or later? You are skilled in martial arts, so you can help me with something."

Jiao Ran was helpless, "I haven't seen you for so many years, and you've become a bandit leader."

I secretly thought that she wanted me to rob people on the road like her.

"I've already prepared the plan. We're heading to Shiqiu, thirty miles away, tonight. A group of people from the escort agency will arrive from—"

Jiao Ran waved his hand, "I don't want to do this. I'm going to find Mu Jin."

She said, "If you don't help me, I won't tell you where Mu Jin is."

Jiao Ran thought of several places, "The Governor's Mansion?"

She had a blank expression on her face.

Jiaoran continued, "Huiying Inn?"

A panic flashed across her face. "He's not there."

Jiao Ran nodded and said, "Okay, I got it. It's at Huiying Inn."

Chai Xiao hurriedly blocked her path and said, "We'll start the fight tonight at the second watch. After we succeed, we'll split up. You go to Xiu Tu, and I'll go to Lan Ling. How about that? We'll split the loot 30% and 70%."

Seeing Jiaoran was unmoved, he said, "Five-five."

Jiaoran's figure flashed and rushed forward again. Chai Xiao immediately followed her because she knew how powerful a helper Jiaoran would be.

She followed behind, chattering non-stop, "Please, Sister Jiaoran, do you know how miserable those disaster victims are now? After the flood, they lost their homes, and the relief from the court has been delayed. When it reaches them layer by layer, they can't even get a bowl of porridge."

When Jiaoran heard this, he plucked a piece of grass and put it in his mouth, not knowing what he was thinking.

She said with a smile, "This is a business with no capital. We are robbing the rich to help the poor. If you don't want to give your share, you can keep it for yourself. I only want mine. I will go to buy food and transport it to the disaster area."

Jiaoran looked at her without saying anything.

Chai Xiao smiled, stepped on tiptoe, stuck to the ground, and spun around to stand in front of her.

"Is this okay? Are you willing?"

Jiaoran really wanted to help her, but when she came out, Zhu Su had already told her not to interfere in human affairs, otherwise it would disrupt the mortal world. Although he temporarily sealed her spiritual power, her martial arts could easily cause waves in the world.

"No," she said.

Chai Xiaohao looked at her disappointedly, "You are not the Jiaoran I know. She hates evil and hates evil. If it was the old Jiaoran who heard that I was going to do this, she would definitely help me."

Jiao Ran said, "Don't look at me like that. I just said I won't help you rob. I didn't say I won't do anything else. Tell me, where exactly is it?"

"Tens of thousands of people drowned in the Qingzhou flood."

Jiaoran rushed out, and in the blink of an eye, Chai Xiao followed behind her. The two of them disappeared into the darkness together. "You want to go to Qingzhou with me?"

The two of them kept running forward, and Jiao Ran suddenly stopped and asked, "Your people are nearby, right?"

She nodded. "What's the matter?"

"Tell them to help me deliver a letter to Mu Jin."

"That's easy."

"You look so disheveled, you probably haven't eaten anything. We need to eat and drink enough before we can do our work."

As she said that, she took Jiaoran to eat a bowl of noodles.

Jiaoran was used to eating food from the wonderful world, so when he ate food from the human world, he suddenly felt a heaviness in his body.

"Why, it's not tasty? Just bear with it for a while. When I'm done, I'll take you to the best restaurant in Chang'an. I'll treat you."

Jiaoran said no, "It's delicious, and I'm hungry too."

Chai Xiao looked over at her and said, "Jiao Ran, if I'm like this now, my mother will beat me again in the afterlife, right?"

"She loves you very much. She gave you gold and silver mines in exchange for a few days of escape. How could she bear to hit you? Besides, what's wrong with you being like this now? I think you are better than before."

The two looked at each other and laughed together.

"You're the first one to say that. You're the only one in the world who thinks being a bandit is better than being a lady in the Governor's Mansion. Haha ...

As she was laughing, she remembered another good thing, "There's an old acquaintance of yours. If she saw you, she would definitely be happier than me. She's also under my command."

Jiaoran didn't know who she was talking about.

She quickly finished three bowls of noodles, wiped her mouth with her sleeve and said, "I'll take you to see her. We'll take her with us so we can take care of her in Qingzhou."

The two of them traveled for several hours, and when it was almost dawn, they arrived outside a tavern and looked inside through the window.

Jiaoran saw a woman selling wine with a headscarf on.

"Wan'er!"

Those drunkards who were drinking alone late at night saw a gorgeously dressed woman rushing in, hugged the woman selling wine and kissed her, "How could it be you? I thought I would never see you again——"

She looked at Jiaoran for a while, then slowly smiled. "Ah, it's you. I didn't expect to see you here. How come you are with Axiao? We talked about you a long time ago."

Chai Xiao smiled and said, "This tavern belongs to Mei Wan'er. It's not big, but she's well-informed. Sometimes when things get tense, we won't come. Wan'er and I are the Golden Flower thieves. We've been out there for years and have never failed. This time, with you, Jiaoran, we're sure we'll be safe."

Mei Wan'er asked, "You two are going to Qingzhou together? What are you going to do then?"

Jiao Ran said, "Just open the warehouse and release the grain."

"That's the government's territory. Do you dare? Do you know how many soldiers and officers there are?" Chai Xiao looked at her blankly. She didn't expect her to be so brave.

But it seemed like she could do it. Compared to buying grain and transporting it over, it would be faster and easier for her to just go to the door and open the warehouse to store the grain.

Mei Wan'er said, "Let's think about it carefully. If we are defeated, then..."

Jiao Ran laughed, "I'll take action when the time comes, and you can gather some disaster victims to rob them."

"Jiaoran, you are really skilled and courageous!" Chai Xiao looked at her.

The tavern had already driven out its guests, and only one oil lamp was lit in the room. The shadows of several people, whose figures were unknown, were reflected on the wall, looking somewhat hideous and terrifying.

After another hour's rest, they set off for Qingzhou. Jiaoran leaned over the table, humming a tune, and fell asleep soon.

After sleeping for half an hour, I heard a burst of hurried footsteps coming.

Jiaoran thought that it was Chai Xiao who caused the trouble and he straightened up quickly.

This time when she came out, she didn't even bring Gale with her.

Chai Xiao quickly shrank back and went into the room, "The police are here, let's go!"

I saw another figure approaching quickly, carrying a heavy bag. Mei Wan'er said, "Hurry up, we have to leave now."

I don’t even need to leave the store anymore, I have to leave immediately.

The three began to flee in the night.

Chai Xiao, however, was not afraid at all. She laughed heartily and said, "This is too exciting. It will definitely be even more exciting when we get to Qingzhou."

Jiaoran and Mei Wan'er didn't say anything, each carrying a bag.

Chai Xiao ran and laughed, "When we get to Qingzhou, we'll open the granaries and release the grain. The victims will definitely say we're living Bodhisattvas. When the soldiers and officers come to stop us, I'll kill them all. Not only will I kill these officials, but I'll also kill all the corrupt officials who exploit the people. Kill them all."

Jiao Ran smiled and said, "That doesn't sound like something a young lady from an aristocratic family would say."

The three of them ran for a while, and Chai Xiao said, "Jiao Ran, after you help us, you can go back to Huiying Inn. We are in the business of being on the run, and no one will care about us even if we die. But Mu Jin is waiting for you, and you are different from us."

Just as he said this, Jiaoran hadn't said anything yet, but he saw Mei Wan'er getting closer and closer. She raised her hand, and with a "whoosh", the hemp rope was already around Jiaoran's neck.

Chai Xiao was startled, "Wan'er, what are you doing!"

When she saw that she had succeeded, a sinister sneer appeared on the corner of her mouth.

Jiaoran let out a muffled groan and grabbed the noose with both hands, but just as she was about to struggle free, which would have been easy with her strength, Mei Wan'er suddenly approached, and with a flash of brilliance, a dagger was unsheathed. Everything happened too quickly.

Jiaoran didn't expect Mei Wan'er to be so cruel.

The tip of her sword had already pierced her heart.

"You want to go back to your beloved, right? Don't even think about it. You killed the person I loved the most, and you want me to watch you reunite with your beloved. I will never forgive you!"

Jiaoran struggled hard, broke the rope, pulled out the weapon that was stuck in his heart, and tried to escape staggeringly.

If I had known earlier, I would not have meddle in other people's affairs. She originally came to see him. I don't know if the letter has been delivered. If he had seen it, he might look forward to her return every day.

Only Mei Wan'er's laughter could be heard gradually. "Many years ago, Yuan Jianlu said he was going to capture you and take you back to the underground palace. I tried my best to make him promise me not to hurt you and to talk things over nicely so that you wouldn't hurt each other by mistake. But you killed him. How could you kill him! I think Mu Jin is no match for him at all. You are the only one who can kill him. Tell me, did you kill him? Speak!"

Jiaoran lay on the weeds, unable to argue, because it was indeed she who killed Yuan Jianlu.

It was already daybreak and they escaped from the pursuers, but she could not escape the sword piercing her heart.

She should have been more vigilant. If she had known earlier, she would have hurried back to Xiu Tu as soon as possible.

The sunlight had penetrated through the dense leaves and into the forest. A ray of light shone on her face. She heard Chai Xiao crying, and then she heard nothing.

When she woke up again, Zhu Su was right in front of her.

He only glanced at her and smiled contemptuously, "Oh, you came back pretty quickly——"