The burly man in red fell to the ground and died quickly, but his eyes remained fixed on Long Ye's face for a long time, as if he would not rest in peace even in death.
Long Ye didn't even blink, and without any mercy, he lightly lifted his foot and kicked him away, as if it were easier than kicking a dog or a cat. He said with utter contempt, "Hmph... what are you? You dare to ask for my promise? Die!"
After being kicked away, the man rolled right to Lanxiang's feet. Lanxiang was stunned when she saw the corpse, which was like a ball, suddenly rolling toward her.
Every inch of the ground where he fell was covered in bright red blood, thick blood spreading everywhere. The sea breeze carried a pungent, fishy smell that made her nauseous.
Seeing this indiscriminate killing of innocent people, this extremely bloody and cruel scene, and then seeing Long Ye's ugly face with a devilish grin as he turned around, all the humiliation and hellish days she had endured in Wan Jiao Pavilion over the past few years, the tragic death of Erlang, the passing of her mother, the curses, ridicule and mockery of the world, and the departure of Yan'er that had just happened, all flashed before Lan Xiang's eyes.
These painful memories, which she could never shake off, seemed to be slowly devouring her. Her body trembled more and more violently, her teeth clenched so tightly they clicked, and her fists clenched into fists.
Finally, she mustered almost all her strength, bent down abruptly, and pulled out the dagger stuck in the red-clad burly man's abdomen. Taking a deep breath, she roared at Long Ye's back, "Long Ye, prepare to die!"
Long Ye was walking back towards Long En, thinking about how to explain things to him when he heard the sound. He turned around in surprise and just happened to meet Lan Xiang's hand with the copper scabbard with the dragon pattern. She immediately aimed and stabbed him in the heart.
Lanxiang was shocked and immediately let go of his hand, taking two steps back in a daze. Long Ye slowly reached up and grabbed the dagger, but he was too weak to pull it out. He could only watch as Lanxiang's face turned pale and she stood there dumbfounded.
"Lanxiang, you!" Upon seeing this, Long En immediately flew over, stared wide-eyed at the dagger stuck in Long Ye's chest, and then looked at Lanxiang's face.
"I killed someone! I killed someone! No, no, he did so many bad things, he deserved to die, he deserved to die! How could he just kill someone and sell them off like that? He deserved it, he brought it on himself." Lanxiang looked at her blood-stained hands and screamed in panic, as if she had gone mad.
“He did something wrong and will be punished accordingly, but how could you, a young woman, kill someone with a knife? How could you become like this? You are not like Lanlan’s daughter at all. Lanlan was so gentle, virtuous, and understanding. But you, look at yourself now, how are you any different from a murderous devil?” At this moment, Long En watched Lanxiang kill without blinking and found it utterly unbelievable.
"Don't you dare pretend to respect my mother in front of me! You're not worthy! If my mother was so good, why did you abandon your wife and children back then? Why did you go and climb the social ladder? Since you so heartlessly abandoned us, why did you keep that bracelet? Is it... is it to show off, to flaunt that there was once an incredibly foolish woman who willingly endured humiliation for you, and who remained devoted to you until her death? Hmph, you ungrateful, hypocritical, and heartless man, you really are that kind of person! I never want to see you again in this life." After shouting this heart-wrenching rant at Long En, Lanxiang turned and ran away in tears.
"No, Lanxiang, it's not like that, please listen to me..."
No matter how loudly Long En called out, Lan Xiang never looked back and left...
With a solemn expression, Long En squatted down and supported Long Ye's shoulder, whose breath was already extremely weak. For a moment, he had a lot to say but didn't know where to begin.
This bronze-sheathed dagger with a dragon relief design is extremely rare and precious. Lanxiang's stab was too accurate and too ruthless; if she were to pull it out now, Long Ye would surely die on the spot. Therefore, he can only wait to die.
After a long while, Long En looked at the dagger in Long Ye's chest and slowly said, "This dagger with a bronze sheath and dragon relief was a gift I gave you when we first met, when you first joined the Xiaolong Society. Legend has it that this dagger was tainted with an evil aura, so I didn't want to give it to you. But you insisted on having it, saying that you could suppress it. I never expected that the person who would lose his life because of this dagger would be yourself."
Having said this, Long En glanced at Long Ye, who seemed to be in great pain, and continued in a low voice, "Now that things have come to this, what can I say to you? Is it really true that even in death, we brothers are only destined to be apart? Over the years, I haven't been able to tell how much of what you said to me was true and how much was false? We were like brothers, not seeking to be born on the same day, month, and year, but wishing to die on the same day, month, and year. Do you still remember the vows we made? Indeed, in this world, 'those who do many evil deeds will surely perish.' But if you make mistakes in this life, you can repent in the next life and still be a hero in 20 years. But our brotherhood only lasts for this lifetime, doesn't it?"
In his dying moments, in a hazy state, he heard Long En's heartfelt words, his voice choked with sobs. Long Ye vomited blood, his voice barely audible, and said, "Brother, I was wrong, I was really wrong. I've dragged you into this. But I truly don't know who kidnapped Ruoxi. Besides exchanging Ruoxi for a thousand taels of gold, I really had no other deal with him. He was extremely cautious, refusing to reveal a single word about himself. Brother, don't blame me. Those past few years, I was truly terrified of being bullied. Brother, I'm so sorry about Lanxiang. I owe you this life, and I'll definitely come back to repay you in the next. I'm so sorry, so very sorry..."
In Long En's arms, Long Ye finally closed his tearful eyes.
Long En closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and forced back the tears that were about to fall...
In the Snapdragon Club.
With Yi Sanshao's covert assistance, he still refused to directly engage in these political affairs. Furthermore, since most members of the Xiaolong Society were people oppressed by Emperor Jing's tyranny in Western Qin, Xuan Yuanhan intervened and properly resettled them before completely disbanding the Xiaolong Society. Only a few dozen remained, under the guise of being recruited by the Nan'an court, to guard the place and prevent it from becoming ruins.
As for Long En, Wei Ning had indeed found no strong evidence that he harbored any ill intentions towards either Xi Qin or Nan An. Furthermore, with Lan Xiang's repeated assurances, as long as Long En agreed to completely dismantle all the mechanisms and firearms currently in place inside and outside the Xiaolong Society and hand over all the relevant design drawings, he could be temporarily pardoned.
Now that everything was arranged, everyone was gathered in the brightly lit Xiaolong Hall to discuss the next steps in the search for Yi Shangyun.
Based on the information gathered from the red-clad strong man who had escaped by feigning death and was found on the rocky mountain, as well as what Xuan Yuanhan had witnessed that night and other information, everyone concluded that Tuoba Ze must have learned from somewhere that Yi Shangyun was not dead and that he also knew everything that had happened in Taohuadian Village. That is why he conspired with Long Ye to kidnap him when he was not paying attention.
Now, what everyone doesn't understand is, where will he take Yi Shangyun next? And why does he always target that insignificant little girl?
Ultimately, everyone seemed to lean towards Xuan Yuanhan's analysis: Tuoba Ze was able to succeed so quickly because he must have had an accomplice with extremely good information, and this person must be someone close to them. Therefore, as long as this person is identified, they can follow the clues and find out the whole truth.
Finally, Xuan Yuanhan still said with some concern, "Alright, it's highly likely that Tuoba Ze kidnapped Yun'er this time because he intends to take her back to Beilie Kingdom. Therefore, I have sealed off all the exit checkpoints of Xiqin Kingdom. However, there are many paths to Beilie, and Tuoba Ze is a cunning and treacherous man. Just in case, it would be better for me to go back as soon as possible and guard them personally."
At this moment, Mei Zhixuan had a sudden inspiration and stepped forward, saying, "Your Highness, I have a suggestion. It seems unlikely that Tuoba Ze will go any further south. How about this: Your Highness, Young Master Yi, and I will each personally guard the north, west, and east of Western Qin. This might increase our chances of victory."
“Yes, I agree. This time, I’m determined to personally bring Ya’er back. Xuan Yuanhan, you’re not allowed to get close to Ya’er again.” Upon hearing this, Young Master Yi immediately stood up, flicked his sleeves at Xuan Yuanhan without any hesitation, and raised his head to warn him.
Seeing the two of them speaking in perfect harmony, seemingly in perfect sync, Xuan Yuanhan wondered when they had met. He then came to his senses and asked, "By the way, how did you two meet? And why are you together?"
"us……"
Before Mei Zhixuan could finish speaking, Young Master Yi interrupted him hastily, saying, "This is the border of my Nan'an Kingdom. Who I associate with, who I know, and who I invite to be my guests are none of your business."
Just as Xuan Yuanhan was looking at the two people with doubt, he suddenly heard a familiar male voice from outside the door say, "No need, I know where Tuoba Ze went."
"Tianlin?" Upon recognizing the familiar figure striding in, Xuanyuan Han exclaimed in surprise.
"Tianlin greets Your Highness Prince Qin!" As soon as Lu Tianlin entered, he respectfully bowed to Xuan Yuanhan.
How did you end up here?
Xuanyuan Han gestured towards him, and Lu Tianlin straightened up, saying, "This matter is a long story, but the most urgent thing is for Your Highness to return to the Western Qin capital as soon as possible. Just now, I saw Miss Yi being taken back to the capital by Tuoba Ze in disguise. Moreover, Miss Yi is very likely..."
Lu Tianlin suddenly hesitated before speaking.
Xuanyuan Han sensed that Lu Tianlin seemed to have some unspeakable difficulty, so he ordered everyone to hurry back and pack up, preparing to set off for Xiqin that very night.
Just as everyone was about to turn and leave, Lanxiang suddenly spoke hesitantly...
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