This is a feint attack, a diversionary tactic to lure the enemy away from their base.
This not only left Zhao Qingshu completely baffled, unable to figure out their true intentions, but also only made him strengthen his defenses, giving them an opportunity to take advantage of him.
The mysterious house would then be engulfed in thick smoke, and guards would rush out to put out the fire.
Although the fire wouldn't cause Zhao Qingshu too much harm, it would give them enough time to sneak in during the chaos.
At that time, all demons and monsters will have nowhere to hide.
Although Song Xizhi only said that one sentence without any further explanation, He Jingyan quickly understood. He lowered his head and happened to meet Song Xizhi's eyes.
The two looked at each other and smiled.
He Jingyan's martial arts skills were unquestionable. He evaded Zhao Qingshu's heavy guard, dropped a tinderbox, and a fire immediately broke out.
Inside the hall, Zhao Qingshu was gritting his teeth as he investigated the poisoned wine, hoping to give the Tibetan prince an explanation.
Before he could even catch his breath, he saw thick black smoke rising into the sky and quickly filling the entire room.
Zhao Qingshu's face turned pale as he looked at the hall filled with thick smoke. In an instant, he seemed to understand something: "Damn it, today's assassination attempt was indeed aimed at me!"
Upon seeing the commotion, the surrounding guards rushed forward, but Zhao Qingshu's mind was in turmoil; he didn't know who was trying to assassinate him.
But he knew that the Tibetan prince could not be harmed! He especially could not die on his territory!
The fire spread rapidly and fiercely, with the cold southwest wind whipping up thick smoke, causing the flames to leap up in an instant.
He dragged his trembling legs, looking disheveled and weak, just about to escape.
But when he looked up and met the equally panicked eyes of the Tibetan prince, Zhao Qingshu could only grit his teeth and shout at the servants, his face ashen:
"Save the prince first! Escort the prince out of here first! Don't worry about me!"
The scorching heat was scorching his weak body, and Zhao Qingshu's legs were still trembling. He searched his mind for his enemies, but could not find any clues.
He almost screamed to the heavens at the top of his lungs:
Who is it? Who is trying to assassinate him?!
Meanwhile, thick smoke quickly blew towards the mysterious house on the southwest side, the two houses separated only by a narrow alley.
The old woman in the house saw this and gasped softly. Then, as if remembering something, she hurriedly closed the gate to her yard.
The courtyard was instantly engulfed in thick smoke, and as the fire was about to spread inside, the guards who had entered through the secret passage in the artificial hill also shuddered.
They hurriedly fetched water to put out the fire.
The entire courtyard was in chaos. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Song Xizhi and He Jingyan followed the guards' method and opened the hidden door at the rockery.
The gate was wide open, and billowing black smoke poured in directly through the tunnel, spreading rapidly.
When they saw that the tunnel was filled with thick black smoke, they had probably forced all the guards inside out.
Song Xizhi and He Jingyan held their breath, wet their handkerchiefs with water, covered their mouths and noses, and quickly went into the tunnel.
The vast tunnel was spacious enough for two people to walk side by side. The two crawled along the wall and soon came to a fork in the road.
Song Xizhi was already choked by the smoke. With teary eyes, she looked up at He Jingyan with pleading eyes.
He Jingyan stood silently at the cave entrance for a moment, seemingly deciding something, before taking Song Xizhi's hand and calmly saying, "This way, come with me."
The large palms conveyed intense heat. Song Xizhi staggered as he followed him for a while, and finally could feel the thick black smoke gradually diminishing.
As the darkness before his eyes was gradually replaced by a blurry light, Song Xizhi felt that his breathing became much easier.
She slowly raised her head and saw two huge bronze doors in front of her, with intricate and mysterious patterns carved on them.
The light was dim, and the door had just been smoky and burned, making the carved patterns on it difficult to discern.
Song Xizhi frowned slightly and squeezed He Jingyan's hand, which was tightly clasped with hers.
Once He Jingyan understood and let go, she stepped forward and stroked the pattern with her fingertips.
She slowly moved her hands upwards, and as she roughly understood what was drawn on it, Song Xizhi's tightly furrowed brows did not relax; instead, her small face became increasingly serious.
"What's wrong? Did we go the wrong way?"
He Jingyan watched her gradually changing expression and asked in a low voice.
Song Xizhi shook his head: "In the very center of this wooden door are carved two huge mythical beasts. The beasts have heads like dragons, bodies like horses, and feet like oxen. Their bodies are covered in brocade armor, their feet are treading on jewels, and their eyes are wide open in anger."
Upon hearing this, He Jingyan pondered for a moment and said, "This is the Greedy Dog."
Song Xizhi nodded: "Below the divine beast are some naked people engaging in sexual activity, and at the very bottom are intertwined snakes and overlapping frogs."
The greedy dog is inherently avaricous and devours everything, while frogs and snakes are even more so the embodiment of evil and desire.
Thinking of this, Song Xizhi lowered his eyes slightly: "You made the right choice. What we want is probably behind this door."
"But... how did you know it would be this way?"
While observing the bronze door that Song Xizhi had mentioned, He Jingyan answered Song Xizhi's question:
"Because of the smoke, thick smoke usually rises, leaving air below. Just now, between the two forks in the road, one was full of black smoke, while the other had less black smoke."
"This means that one road leads upwards, while the other leads downwards. The guards of the Zhao residence will definitely choose to go upwards to help put out the fire, and with so many of them, they are afraid of disturbing the adults below."
"If Zhao Qingshu really had a secret with those high-ranking officials, the dark room must be hidden deep underground, so I chose the other way."
Song Xizhi hadn't thought of He Jingyan's idea. She gave the man a look and then said, "But we still have one more problem now."
The man raised an eyebrow slightly: "What?"
"This bronze door is locked, and it can't be opened. I think Zhao Qingshu must have provided one for each of the officials who come and go..."
Just as Song Xizhi finished speaking, he saw the man take a long stride and suddenly step forward.
Before she could even react, she saw the man take out a copper wire and fiddle with it. The lock that had been firmly hanging on the door was now in the man's palm.
The sturdy brass lock was as fragile as porcelain at this moment.
His astonishing speed made Song Xizhi's pupils dilate suddenly.
The next moment, she felt the man pull her behind him and slowly push open the door.
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