Chapter 129 Core Skills
The shocking case of Master Ge has finally come to a close. Before the townspeople can recover from their shock, they hear the clamor of drums and gongs, announcing that tonight at noon, the "Clever Lantern Lady" will teach everyone the core skills of the "Deciphering the Heavenly Lantern." Anyone with time should go and see it.
People in the streets and alleys heard the sound of the gong. At this time, in the inn, Chachar, the deputy leader of Persia, was dressed as an ordinary businessman. Quanzhou has always had many foreign merchants, so no one doubted his appearance. This mission was divided into two teams, one for direct provocation and the other for concealment.
A team led by him infiltrated the merchants and waited for an opportunity to secretly visit various shops. Originally, they only wanted the Tiangong Lantern that made them lose, but later they learned that the craftsmanship of some folk shops was also very good, so they had evil ideas and wanted to take them all.
Chachaer stroked the secret letter in his hand, his hawk-like eyes swept over his men sitting around him, and he said with a smile: "No need to wait any longer, we will act tonight!"
The counselor frowned and warned, "Sir, this might be a trap. A few days ago, one of our men was arrested and taken to the government office for questioning in connection with Old Man Ge's case."
Chachaer chuckled. "The more of a trap it is, the more likely it is to contain treasure. Look," he pointed at the handwriting on the letter. "She specifically wrote to open it at noon, but she didn't realize that midnight is when defenses are most relaxed. Let's sneak in at night and catch them off guard!"
The night is dark and dark clouds obscure the moonlight.
Twelve masked assassins wearing light night clothes climbed over the wall of Changming Pavilion.
At this time, there were already people outside Changming Pavilion watching the excitement.
These people listened to the sound, stuck close to the corner of the wall, avoided the guards in the open, and sneaked towards the attic where the Tiangong Lantern was stored.
The leading assassin gently pushed open the window frame and was about to climb in when he was stopped by his companions.
His companion took out a thin metal wire and fiddled with the secret lock on the window. With a "click", the secret lock opened silently.
Tonight, one of the Tiangong Lanterns that was originally stored in the secret room was taken out and stored here.
After entering the attic, the room was pitch black, with only the Tiangong lamp emitting a faint blue light.
The assassins held their breath, took out the black cloth they had prepared in advance, wrapped the entire Tiangong Lantern, and prepared to move it away directly.
At this moment, the soldier in charge of keeping watch suddenly made a quick hissing sound, and everyone immediately stopped their actions.
It turned out that they triggered the pressure mechanism on the ground, and the subtle sound of gears turning was particularly clear in the quiet attic.
The faces of the assassins changed drastically, and the leader gritted his teeth and whispered, "Retreat quickly!" But before they could take action, the mechanisms around them instantly blocked their retreat.
At this time, Zhao Yan, who was standing on a high place, gave an order, "Attack!" The yamen runners who were ambushing in the dark, holding torches and sharp blades, surrounded them from all directions.
Yu Huatang and his team, who had been prepared, immediately evacuated the crowd.
In order to prevent accidental injuries, net walls were set up around Changming Pavilion until the crowd dispersed.
The Persian envoys had been drugged by the guards and had passed out. Chachar, who had been excited and wanted to kill them, finally reacted.
In the chaos, Chachar and several of his confidants tried to break out, but were stopped by the yamen runners who drugged them.
"Zhao Yan, how dare you plot against us! We are envoys from a foreign vassal state. Once we suffer casualties, aren't you afraid that the two countries will go to war?" Chachar's eyes were wide open with anger, and the scimitar in his hand was flashing with cold light.
Zhao Yan sneered, "Scheming? It's nothing more than giving someone a taste of their own medicine. Leader Chachar isn't on a normal diplomatic mission, but is instead posing as a merchant, intent on stealing the folk arts of Da Ting. Everyone present tonight is a witness."
The people who had been hiding opened their windows and stuck their heads out.
"First, you sent people to secretly observe various shops, then recorded the time it took to make various mechanical lamps, and finally, you lured Master Ge to sell his ancestral skills. If I'm not mistaken, you didn't intend to buy it with money, but just wanted to test our backbone. But something went wrong. Master Ge's son, Ge Fuying, heard it and made a deal with you beforehand." Yu Huatang said slowly in a soft voice, "I think you originally wanted to kill Ge Fuying, but he was too cruel and killed his own father. This made you anxious. You were afraid that the matter would be exposed, so when you heard that we were going to dismantle the Tiangong Lamp tonight, you couldn't wait to take action."
The crowd quieted down. Yu Huatang took a deep breath and said, "From the beginning, you never wanted the blueprints for the Tiangong Lantern, nor did you want me to dismantle it in public. You only wanted the lantern itself. Because as long as you bring it back, there will definitely be someone who can dismantle it, and that person is the one who created the Qianji Lantern."
"Persia has always used trade as a pretext for learning abroad, then returning home to imitate the art, using low prices to undermine the merchants of the past. You don't want a lamp; you want the livelihoods of the people of Quanzhou."
Chachar's face suddenly changed, and he finally realized that everything was a trap. He roared and swung his knife forward, but the anesthetic made him no longer as strong as before.
"I didn't expect to fall into your hands!" Chachar gnashed his teeth, his eyes full of resentment. "But even so, you dare not do anything to me. Don't forget that I am an envoy from a foreign vassal state. My king is waiting for us to return."
At this time, Zhao Yan walked over and looked down at him. "Although Da Ting has good relations with the foreign vassal states, those who harm the people of Da Ting will only be severely punished. I will not punish you. You will be escorted to the capital to await punishment!!"
Yu Huatang looked at these people silently. This was the greed in people's hearts. It could make people travel thousands of miles to hide here, and it could also make people kill their loved ones for ten thousand taels of silver.
If these people are not caught, the people here will have a harder time in the future. Their ancestral things will be sold by people who are tempted by money, and then their means of making a living will probably no longer be worth anything.
That night, Zhao Yan immediately submitted a memorial to the emperor, recording everything that had happened to the Persian envoys. While the memorial was being submitted to the capital, the envoys were being escorted to the capital by government officials. To prevent them from committing suicide on the way, Zhao Yan had their jaws removed and they were given specially prepared medicines before being taken to the capital.
The once noisy case of the theft of the diplomatic mission has finally come to an end. The guys in Changming Pavilion are all wondering whether the head of the guild this time will be their own Miss Yu. After all, it was Miss Yu who discovered the problem of the Persian envoy in advance and reported it to the adults. Even after the envoy was arrested, she still selflessly explained the secret of the Tiangong Lantern in front of everyone, hoping that there would be more followers.
"Everyone has witnessed all of this. If the chief doesn't give it to Miss Yu, I'll be the first to object," said the waiter beside him angrily.
At this time, Xu Fu came in from outside and said, "Alright, stop yelling. If someone with ulterior motives hears it, it might be bad for Senior Sister."
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