Chapter 36 Chapter 36 As an imperial minister, I should always think about the people...
Amidst the lightning and thunder, the armor on the Jinwu Guards reflected a cold light.
Above the sky, dark clouds like thick ink pressed down heavily, instantly swallowing up the last ray of moonlight.
Huan Zheying, clad in chain mail, the ring-handled sword in her hand slashed a sharp arc of light under the cold lightning. She dodged the incoming blade and, with a backhanded blow, sent a thug's head tumbling to the ground.
Rainwater mixed with blood dripped from the tip of the knife, creating a dark crimson blossom on the bluestone. She wiped the rain from her face, a dull pain throbbing in her palms. She'd killed so many that even her arms were starting to go numb.
Ever since she received the urgent report from the Qinhuai River, she had been defending this place with all her might. But the thugs poured in like a tide, from the riverbank, from the city gates, from every dark alley...
The gates of some aristocratic families had already been trampled. The superiors issued several strict orders, but they only said that the forbidden areas of the aristocratic families must be strictly guarded.
What about the people? Should those civilians crying in the rain be abandoned like grass?
"You stay here..." Huan Zheying clenched his hand tightly around the ring-handled sword. "I'll lead the others to rescue the people."
"Master Duwei! Don't worry, we're here!"
Huan Zheying and his men had just rushed forward a few steps when another group of thugs rushed out from the riverbank. Some of them were wearing stolen armor, some were wearing coarse linen clothes, and they rushed towards them, waving machetes.
She was forced to halt her support, grit her teeth, and turn to face the enemy. Her ring-handled sword flashed coldly in the rain, slashing at the first thug to rush forward with a fierce murderous intent.
At this moment, the sound of horses stepping on green bricks echoed in his ears. Huan Zheying's heart shuddered, wondering where these people who rioted tonight came from and how they could even ride such elite cavalry. With the determination to die, he raised his sword and killed another person. The splattering blood mixed with rain blurred his vision.
The leader came against the light, his face unclear. The man on horseback drew his bow like a full moon, the gleaming arrowhead pointed directly at Huan Zheying's throat.
Surrounded by ferocious thugs, there was no escape. Huan Zheying's pupils shrank as he stared numbly at the eagle-feather arrow that streaked through the air, as fast as thunder.
With a whoosh, the sharp arrow grazed her hair and pierced through the thug holding the axe behind her. A flower of blood exploded in the man's chest, and the axe fell to the ground with a clang.
The man fired three more arrows in quick succession, leaping off her horse the moment the thug raised his knife. Her long hair tumbling, she was followed by several elite warriors charging into the fray. Their blades flashed like snow, clearing a bloody path in an instant. This group, clad in chain mail and led by a skilled leader, looked like an elite cavalry unit ready for battle.
The Jinwu Guards and others who were fighting on the side were also stunned. Some of them even recognized the leader. They looked at each other with their pupils shrinking suddenly, and screams of surprise were about to come out of their throats.
Huan Zheying, exhausted from the battle, knelt on one knee on the blood-soaked bluestone slab, the blade of her ring-handled sword resting on the ground. Panting, she looked up, first catching sight of the red silk-wrapped sword in the moonlight, then following the hilt upwards, finally making out the man's face.
“Ahem…”
Xie Tingyu pulled Huan Zheying up with one hand and looked at her bloodstained face. "Captain, is there anything wrong?"
Huan Zheying placed his hand on Xie Tingyu's shoulder, "Aristocratic families... the common people..."
Xie Tingyu soothed him, "Don't worry, Captain. Wang Lanzhi and I had already noticed something was going on, and we went to the people's homes to clear them out."
Huan Zheying breathed a sigh of relief and then listened to Xie Tingyu say, "Cui Yuanying has also received my message long ago, and now he should also go to the market."
"Cui Yuanying...she?" Huan Zheying was stunned and asked with doubt.
"yes."
"Shouldn't she be hiding at home? Why would she risk her life for something that could cost her her life at any moment?"
Xie Tingyu raised the corners of his lips slightly, "It shows that I am a good teacher."
Speak of Cao Cao and he will appear.
Suddenly, a steady clatter of footsteps could be heard from the other end of the bridge. Two teams of imperial guards were treading through a pool of blood, their faces and armor splattered with gore, clearly fresh from a fierce battle.
"Thank you, Er!"
Suddenly, a man rushed out from the center of the team, holding a shield sword and running towards them at a fast pace. Huan Zheying took a closer look and was immediately dumbfounded.
Cui Yuanying carried a horn bow on her back, the dagger in her hand still dripping with blood. The rage between her brows still lingered, but when she met Xie Tingyu's gaze, she subconsciously straightened her back, like a student waiting for praise.
"Well done." Xie Tingyu nodded.
Cui Yuanying was satisfied. She looked at Huan Zheying again and said proudly, "Remember to tell your aunt that I was very successful tonight." She raised her chin, "Don't take the credit from me! I fought my way here from Changganli."
Huan Zheying finally recovered from her shock and sneered, "Who wants to steal your credit?" She wiped the blood from her face and said sternly to the two men, "Then please follow me and clean up Wuyi Lane, Qingxi River, and the aristocratic family gardens in Changningfang."
"There's no need to go to Wuyi Lane." Cui Yuanying shook the blood off his sword. "The soldiers from the Wang and Xie families have already blocked the entrance to the lane like an iron barrel. I just saw Yuan Wangshu leading over 200 people to the Yuan family mansion."
"Okay." Huan Zheying was about to redistribute when he suddenly saw a meteor bomb explode in the night sky outside the city.
Seeing this, Xie Tingyu's face changed drastically, "That's the direction of Ci'en Temple."
Huan Zheying was confused at first, "What's wrong?" Then he suddenly realized, "That's the temple where the emperor is practicing."
Xie Tingyu stared intently at the direction of Ci'en Temple and said in a deep voice, "To prevent the refugees from causing unrest, I have already sent people to guard the area near the temple. If there is any danger, they will fire meteor bombs to warn people."
"This group of thugs is so despicable that they even spared such a quiet place for cultivation." Huan Zheying was very angry.
As a captain of the Jinwu Guard, she shouldered the responsibility of protecting the imperial city and the royal family. She shouted sternly, "Jinwu Guard, listen up! Quickly assemble a team and follow me—"
"Captain Huan."
Huan Zheying looked in the direction of the sound and saw Xie Tingyu already mounted her horse, her hands tightly gripping the reins. She said coldly, "The captain has several responsibilities and I'm afraid he's overwhelmed. Why don't I do it for you?"
Xie Tingyu looked down at Huan Zheying and asked, "Can you lend me a team of Jinwu Guards?"
We're so short of manpower right now, and yet someone volunteered! This is clearly a timely help, so how could we refuse?
"Xie Er is so brave and kind-hearted, how can we not lend him his money?" Huan Zheying turned to the Jinwu Guards and said, "You must all obey Xie Tingyu's orders and not make any mistakes."
Xie Tingyu whipped his horse whip, and the horse neighed and he stood up. Using all his strength, he shouted loudly, "Where are the Jinwu Guards?"
This shout resounded like thunder, shocking the entire Jinwu Guard. Recalling Xie Tingyu's heroic display in defeating the enemy, the Jinwu Guards were all convinced and responded in unison, "We are here!"
"Where are Xie's personal soldiers?"
"I'm here!" This response was even more passionate and high-pitched, with a subtle momentum to suppress the Jinwu Guards.
Xie Tingyu sheathed her sword and said coldly, "All troops, hurry and support Ci'en Temple!" Her eyes were solemn, "Any armed rioter will be killed without mercy!"
Huan Zheying stared blankly at Xie Tingyu's retreating figure, her heart trembling. She had inexplicably felt that Xie Er was more qualified for the position of Jinwu Guard Commander than she was, but the thought was quickly extinguished. Her expression stern, she and Cui Yuanying quickly assembled their forces and galloped towards Changningfang.
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Ji Lian was gently shaken awake. He opened his eyes drowsily and met Jiang Zhu's anxious face. "What's going on?"
"Something happened." Jiangzhu took down the outer robe on the clothes hanger and swiftly helped Ji Lian dress. "A large mob has gathered outside Ci'en Temple and is about to break in."
The word "mob" was like a cold shower on his head. Ji Lian's sleepiness vanished, and a chill ran up his spine. He reached under his pillow, pulled out the golden sword, hid it in his sleeve, and quietly left the dormitory through the back door with Jiangzhu.
"How are the novice monks, the abbot and the pilgrims in the temple now?" Ji Lian asked in a low voice.
"The path to the back mountain has been blocked by falling rocks due to the heavy rain for several days." Jiangzhu's face was solemn. "Now everyone is trapped in the palace."
Ji Lian paused. If that were the case, they were already trapped. He forced himself to calm down, gripping the dagger in his sleeve tightly. "Man can conquer nature, don't be afraid."
The two of them hurried to a tightly closed side door. Jiangzhu raised her hand and knocked on the door panel, three long and two short. Immediately, the sound of a chain sliding could be heard from behind the door. The wooden door cracked at first, revealing a half-vigilant face. After recognizing the person coming, it slowly opened.
A young monk clasped his hands together and bowed deeply to Ji Lian, "Your Highness, please come in."
Ji Lian hurried into the hall, where she saw flickering candlelight, illuminating the golden statue of Guanyin. The abbot sat upright on a lotus pedestal, his eyes slightly closed, twirling his Buddhist beads. Five novice monks lined up on either side, their chanting echoing through the hall like a tide.
"Namo Amitabha..."
The muffled sound of chanting was faintly mingled with the suppressed sobs of a child. In the flickering candlelight, Ji Lian saw that everyone's face was cast in a shadow of panic.
Ji Lian quietly disappeared into the crowd and sat cross-legged. He clasped his hands together and closed his eyes. In the dim light, the man's face appeared before his eyes without a word.
When she opened her eyes again, Ji Lian leaned over to the incense burner, picked up a handful of incense ash, and hid it in her wide sleeves.
Various screams, the sound of iron chopping, and chaotic footsteps continued to be heard from outside the door.
Puff. A stream of blood splashed directly onto the window coffin. The pilgrims closest to it couldn't help but scream, watching in panic as a face with bulging eyes and bleeding from all seven orifices smashed against the window grille, brain matter mixed with bloody foam dripping from the cracks in the wood, and the body collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Boom.
Knock knock.
The continuous banging on the door made the candlelight flicker. These bangs seemed to hit people's hearts.
Everyone kept shrinking and hiding on the lotus platform.
With a crack, the palace door split open, then shattered with a crash. The night wind, tinged with the stench of blood, blew in, and dozens of blood-stained thugs rushed in.
The leading thug had a large bloodstain on half of his face. She swept her sinister eyes across the hall and swung the goose-feather knife in her hand.
"Bang!"
All the offerings and utensils were swept away.
She roughly grabbed a young monk and held the blade to his throat. "I heard the emperor's brother is here? Get out!"
The little monk was shaking all over, tears were streaming down his eyes, and his mouth was tightly shut.
"You won't tell me, right?" The thug brought the goose-feather knife a few inches closer, and a bloody streak immediately appeared on the young monk's delicate neck. "If you don't tell me, I'll kill everyone in this hall one by one."
Everyone in the hall was silent, even their breathing was stagnant.
The abbot on the lotus platform opened his eyes, chanted "Amitabha," and said, "Donor, you have slaughtered lives tonight, staining the Buddhist community with blood. Your sins are deep. I hope you will reconsider."
Ji Lian couldn't bear to implicate innocent people, and was about to stand up when a force grabbed her sleeve.
Jiangzhu's tears fell like rain, and she clutched the corner of his clothes tightly. "Your Highness, let me take your place." His voice choked with sobs, "You are precious, how can you fall into the hands of such a thief?"
"No." Ji Lian brushed his hand away. "Since I enjoy the support of the people, how can I be so afraid of death? As an imperial minister, I should always think of the people."
The candle flame suddenly burst into a spark.
The thug narrowed his eyes and saw a slender figure rising from the crowd. With every step the man took, the light and shadow in the hall shifted a little more around him.
"The person you're looking for is me." Ji Lian stood still ten steps away, his back as straight as a pine tree. When he raised his eyes, his long eyelashes cast tiny shadows under his eyes. His voice was soft but every word was clear: "Release the little master, and I will go with you."
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The author has something to say: I am so numb from writing this...
I don't understand why I chose this topic to write about. = = There's a tsunami in my head.
Mary Sue is the best!
I'm going to write a Mary Sue in the future!
I really like the feeling of being able to talk nonsense. No one cares about me anyway.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
