Chapter 394 Assassin
Lin Changning looked somewhat dejected after hearing this. His father and elder brother were serving in the military, and his elder brother had not yet been found. Thinking of this, Lin Changning sighed and was about to say something while supporting the old man.
Suddenly, a sharp sound came from some corner of the crowd. Alert, Lin Changning quickly drew his sword and stood in front of Li Mingxiu and the old man.
A flash of light deflected a hidden arrow, and the sound of air being pierced came from two corners behind them again.
Two hidden arrows shot towards Li Mingxiu in the center, when suddenly an old man's exclamation came from behind him.
"Be careful, sir!"
After the exclamation, the old man behind them shoved Lin Changning and Li Mingxiu, causing them to stumble. After pushing them aside, the old man was struck by a hidden arrow and fell to the ground with a thud.
Lin Changning's eyes widened suddenly, not expecting the old man to push them both away. Li Mingxiu's expression also froze for a moment, then a furious look suddenly appeared on his face.
"Guards! Seize the man who fired the arrows!!!"
The two were instantly surrounded by soldiers. A group of soldiers protected Lin Changning and Li Mingde in the encirclement, while others followed Li Mingde and quickly grabbed the fleeing people through the crowd.
Li Mingxiu was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly stepped forward to help the old man up.
Lin Changning was a bit faster than him, taking a few steps forward and scooping up the old man who didn't weigh much.
"The military doctor is available!!!"
A soldier beside him suddenly clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Please wait a moment, sir, we'll go find it right away!"
Lin Changning's forehead was covered in sweat as he watched the blood slowly seeping through the coarse linen clothes from the old man's chest, his back teeth grinding together.
With a worried look on his face, Li Mingxiu quickly surrounded Lin Changning: "Old man, how are you?"
The old man seemed to have just realized he had been ambushed. He was panting heavily, as if he was in too much pain. He looked at Li Mingxiu's face and shook his head slightly.
Suddenly, Xie Yilang pushed aside the soldiers surrounding Lin Changning and his men, raised his hands high, and shouted, "My lord! My lord! I know medicine! I know medicine!"
Lin Changning turned to look at the shouting Xie family young master, glanced at the soldiers on the perimeter, and said, "Let him in."
Upon hearing this, the soldiers quickly made way for Xie's son to enter. Xie's son rushed directly to Lin Changning and grabbed the old man's bony arm.
After checking his pulse, the anxiety on his face disappeared and was replaced by a deep sorrow.
The young master of the Xie family released his grip, took out a cloth bag from his bosom, opened it, pursed his lips, and bowed to Lin Changning.
"My lord, the lungs have been damaged, and coupled with prolonged starvation, there is no hope of recovery."
Lin Changning sighed and gently placed the old man on the ground, half-lifting him up. He watched as Li Mingxiu slowly knelt down and gently took the old man's hand.
"Grandpa...you..."
The old man's breathing was now more inhalation than exhalation. He patted Li Mingxiu's hand and said, "This old man is over seventy years old. The young master and the lord are good people. It's worth it to exchange an old man's life for the lives of two young people."
As he spoke, the old man half-closed his eyelids, looking as if he were sleepy.
Looking at Li Mingxiu, whose face was filled with emotion, Lin Changning sighed softly and asked, "Old man, do you have any wishes left?"
The old man's pupils were gradually dilating, and he could hardly hear what Lin Changning was saying. Seeing that he was about to pass away, Lin Changning and Li Mingxiu listened intently, trying to hear if the old man had any last wishes.
After listening for a while, it seemed that all I could hear was the old man muttering something: "Gouwa, have some food, Gouwa."
Trying to listen more closely, I saw the old man collapse helplessly.
Even on his deathbed, he was still clutching the bag of millet that Lin Changning had given him.
Lin Changning felt a pang of sadness. A short while later, Wan Jin, accompanied by two military doctors, pushed past the crowd and walked directly to Lin Changning.
"Your Highness, Vice Commander, the military doctor has arrived. Are you injured?"
Lin Changning breathed a long sigh of relief: "We're fine."
After saying that, he lowered his head and looked at the old man whose body was still warm with his eyes closed.
Li Mingxiu was also feeling bad. He never expected that he would simply release the old grain from the warehouse to the people.
Someone was actually willing to risk their life for him for such a bag of millet.
Overwhelmed with mixed feelings, the two remained silent, neither speaking first, as they watched the old man's body slowly begin to stiffen.
Wan Jin, steeling himself, reminded him, "Minister, the weather is hot; it would be best to bury the old man as soon as possible."
Lin Changning hummed in agreement, then looked at Li Mingxiu and suddenly said, "Your Highness, Gouwa is probably the old man's grandson. I'd like to go and see if I can help."
Li Mingxiu stood up and nodded gently to Lin Changning: "The old man's funeral arrangements have been taken care of. As for his grandson, bring him back to Taiyuan with us. I promise him a bright future!"
Lin Changning nodded, slowly released the old man, laid the old man's body flat, and instructed Wan Jin, "Wan Jin, have someone make a coffin and properly preserve the body."
After saying that, he stood up and looked at Wei Shao, who was protecting him, and said, "Go check the old man's identity. We'll go to the old man's house later."
He just remembered that the old man said he had a grandson who was also sick, and he should go see him as soon as possible, as they would be returning to Taiyuan in the next couple of days.
The scoundrel who had been shoving the old man while squatting in the crowd suddenly raised his hand and spoke.
"Sir, I know where Old Li's house is. Can you show me the way?"
Lin Changning and Li Mingxiu turned their heads and looked over. They saw the scoundrel who had just pushed the old man standing in the crowd with his hand raised, his eyes darting around. He was squatting on the ground in the crowd, looking at them.
Lin Changning glanced at his personal guards, and immediately someone pulled out the hooligan who was following in the crowd.
The ruffian was clearly still somewhat afraid of Lin Changning and his group. Upon seeing Lin Changning, he bowed and cupped his hands in greeting, his voice trembling slightly as he said, "Sir, I am Li Sanhuang, the old man is my cousin, everyone calls him Old Li. He lives in the west of the city and runs a tea shop with his daughter-in-law. His son is serving in the military and hasn't come back yet. At the beginning of this year, his grandson had a high fever that lingered and didn't get better. His daughter-in-law also fell ill with the fever and passed away recently because she was trying to make money."
Lin Changning grunted in agreement, tossed a piece of silver from his pocket, and said coldly, "Lead the way, take me to his house."
The rogue instinctively caught the loose silver coins that Lin Changning threw to him, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. However, seeing Lin Changning's cold face, he didn't dare to accept them. He held the silver coins in his dark palm and presented them to Lin Changning.
"I'm just leading the way, and Old Li is my cousin, so I can't accept your money."
Lin Changning glanced at the greed flashing in the man's eyes and sneered inwardly: "Take it, lead the way!"
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