Chapter 15 Standoff (Part 2)
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"Oh dear, something's happened! Go to the temple fair quickly and see if the dead person is your little sister. The way she looked..."
The wine dishes she was holding fell to the ground, and her mind went blank. Huang Qindong could no longer hear the voices of the other drinkers and neighbors. She ran wildly against the flow of people. In the brightly lit New Year's Eve, all she saw were smiling faces. But Huang Qindong felt that their laughter was like that of ghosts and demons, and she couldn't see anything clearly.
No, no. They must have seen wrong. Huang Qindong tripped and fell, her new clothes covered in mud, but she didn't care. She stumbled to her feet and ran towards the crowd.
"Make way...make way..."
Huang Qindong seemed to have lost her soul. She heard her own voice coming from all directions, but it was unlike any she could produce—hoarse and weak. She pushed through the crowd and squeezed through the gaps.
"Oh, the eldest daughter of the Huang family has arrived..."
"What a tragedy..."
The keys in her pocket were burning hot, as if they weighed a ton. Huang Qin listened numbly to the whispers of those people, a sliver of hope still lingering in her heart.
What if, what if they made a mistake?
How could her little sister, who was so lively and energetic just a few hours ago, be...?
It was only a few steps, but it took years. Huang Qindong saw his mother kneeling in the crowd, tightly hugging something. Her eyes were red, and she couldn't even cry anymore, only repeating the same thing over and over again.
"My daughter... my daughter..."
Was that her younger sister? The person lying on the ground, disheveled and covered in blood, had once bright, lively eyes, now just empty sockets. Her pale yellow jacket and skirt were stained with blood, and her fingernails had been pulled out, gripping the ground tightly, her joints stiff and unable to straighten easily.
She could hardly recognize her; how could that be her little sister?
"ah!!"
Huang Qindong finally found her voice and screamed loudly. She stumbled back several steps and crashed into the crowd, falling to the ground. Someone helped her up, and she trembled as she knelt down and crawled to her younger sister's side.
Who? How could this be? My little sister has never traveled far from home... how could she have gotten into trouble? Huang Qindong bit her lower lip hard to stop the sobs from spilling out. Her heart, already overwhelmed with grief, still had to muster half of her rationality to think about who the murderer was.
“Min’er…yes, Mother, do you remember who that Min’er who often comes to our house is? My little sister said she made an appointment with her…but I thought that person couldn’t do anything once the door was locked…Where is she? Where is she?”
Suddenly, a name popped into Huang Qindong's mind.
Xie Shengmin.
No, that can't be, isn't there only one young master in the Xie family? But the Xie family members are all androgynous...
Yes...yes, that person will leave behind evidence of their crime.
Huang Qindong trembled as she touched her younger sister's body. She grasped the man's broken little finger and searched his clothes, but couldn't find it. People around her couldn't bear it and told her to take her younger sister home quickly; she was already dead, how could she be humiliated in the street any longer?
She ignored her mother's attempts to stop her and stuck two fingers into her younger sister's eye sockets.
The still-warm blood was already viscous, the flesh felt slippery, and the fishy smell assaulted Huang Qindong's senses. Every inch that was pushed in made Huang Qindong nauseous.
But she did indeed find a piece of paper inside the skull. Huang Qindong opened it with trembling hands. The paper was white with black writing, full of provocation.
"My sister is exceptionally beautiful and intelligent, with bright, bird-like eyes. I was captivated by her at first sight, and now I have finally been able to keep her by my side."
However, its crying became excessive and its resistance too intense; it was not a gentle and obedient child, so we did not take it back to the Xie family home. Fearing it would disturb my loving mother's peaceful hearing, we left it by the street.
Huang Qindong forgot how he held his younger sister's mangled body and pounded on the Xie residence door all night, until two constables came and dragged her away, all the way to the gate of the yamen.
Her shoes were worn out long ago, leaving two bloody streaks on the ground.
Upon reaching the yamen, she saw two more corpses, strikingly similar to her sister's from the day before, lying quietly and stiffly on the street outside. In this bustling year-end season, Huang Qindong had never felt such a profound stillness and loneliness in the world.
It's Mom and Dad.
"If these two don't come here to practice the Dharma, they'll just kill themselves; it's none of our business."
The police officers coldly distanced themselves from the matter and dragged the two corpses in front of Huang Qindong.
"Take it away quickly, it's the New Year, don't bring bad luck."
Why would they ask for a pardon? Why... Huang Qindong bit his lip hard, looking at the half-drawn sword at the waist of the yamen guard, telling himself again and again that he must not act impulsively. If he died, his family's lives would never be recovered.
Huang Qindong dragged her half-broken leg, carrying her younger sister's body home. The butcher next to the liquor stall couldn't bear to see this, so he helped her bring her parents back as well, took them to a mound in the village, dug a hole, buried the three of them, and hastily erected a tombstone.
In the middle of the night, Huang Qindong returned to his empty home in a daze, gathered his remaining silver, bid farewell to the butcher, and walked alone on the streets of Yicheng.
As I stepped out of the city gate, a sudden heavy snowfall blanketed everything in white.
The boy dragged his heavy body, turning back every few steps, his eyes filled with boundless hatred.
...
The leader didn't ask much of them, except for one absolute order: forget the past and settle all grudges. Huang Qindong dared not openly disobey, so she could only plot in secret. Chen Pixi only agreed to help train the Death Servants out of pity for their past.
"I... owe the Alliance Leader a great debt, I will repay her in my next life."
Huang Qindong's eyes welled up with tears. He lowered his head, almost unable to look at the flawless white jade ring, and murmured to himself.
"...Just leave me alone, are you going to let me die?"
Is this the leader's order?
Lin Chengye was also stunned. She thought it was just some permission, but she didn't expect Bian Yi to give her the Alliance Leader's Order directly.
This guy is something else, daring to give things away so casually. Does he think he can just give them to anyone who wants them? That won't do... Lin Chengye secretly gritted his teeth and made a mental note of Bian Yi's actions.
"Even the Alliance Leader's Token isn't working."
Lin Chengye calmly put away the white jade ring, then suddenly raised his hand and snapped his fingers in the darkness.
While Huang Qindong was staring blankly at the Alliance Leader's token, Lin Chengye saw a white figure slowly emerge from the west gate of the mansion. The person's eyes were filled with confusion, seemingly unsure of what to do next. Lin Chengye winked at her, signaling her not to move. The person was obedient and immediately stood still without making a sound.
With this person present, the situation wouldn't get any worse. Lin Chengye finally felt relieved, and his usual slightly mocking expression returned to his face. He casually waved his hand and said...
"Thank you so much, Dr. Bian, for helping to stop these people."
As soon as she finished speaking, Huang Qindong suddenly caught a whiff of the soft scent of pear blossoms. A folding fan opened from within her moon-white, wide-sleeved robe, seemingly caressing her cheek. The fan ribs were made of sandalwood, but the central ribs were made of black iron, which, under the red sky, seemed to be stained with blood. It pressed against her neck. A black, high-tied hairstyle with a white ribbon fluttered, brushing against her eyelids.
She heard a particularly helpless sigh, without dissatisfaction or blame, just a sense of regret.
"I don't need you to repay me in the next life."
"Alliance..."
Yes, if they were to stop her, the Alliance Leader couldn't possibly not come to ensure everything went smoothly. But the more soft-hearted the Alliance Leader was, the more he did, the more distressed she became.
Tears welled up in Huang Qindong's warm eyes. She only managed a weak call, not daring to turn her head to look. But when she saw the person Bian Yi was holding in his other hand, she froze and cried out in surprise.
"Thank you, Xiyuan!"
A bit confused, Lin Chengye let out a soft sigh.
In fact, Bian Yi's appearance was quite comical in Lin Chengye's eyes.
Bian Yi had one fan resting on Huang Qindong's neck, while the other hand was dragging someone along like a dead pig.
The person was being choked, their red dress stained with blood and mud, clearly having been dragged along. Their eyes were almost rolling back, and they had been poisoned; the veins on their neck had turned bluish-black, but they were still conscious and struggled violently when they heard Huang Qindong speak.
Xie Xiyuan, who had just been half-dead, narrowed his eyes. His disheveled state vanished suddenly, replaced by a sharpness like that of a hawk. He suddenly gathered a powerful inner force, but instead of aiming at Huang Qindong and Bian Yi, several silver lights flashed at his fingertips and headed straight for Lin Chengye's face.
Lin Chengye was startled and was about to dodge when someone suddenly grabbed his wrist and pulled him back.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Xie Xiyuan flipped backward and quickly created distance, trying to escape.
Bian Yi shielded Lin Chengye behind her, turned around with a flick of her sleeve, knocked the several silver needles that Hua Rong Lou was known for using, which were both delicate and sharp, to the ground. With a flip of her hand, she poured powerful internal energy into the fan and it flew out, hitting Xie Xiyuan's knee directly. Instantly, dark bloodstains appeared on the red silk skirt.
Even though Xie Xiyuan was poisoned by one of the most notorious poisons on the list, she was still the leader of a famous martial arts sect and not so easy to deal with. However, she had to suppress the poison and block Bian Yi's already intense attacks, so she was clearly preoccupied with other matters.
In the blink of an eye, the two figures, one in red and one in white, had exchanged more than ten blows, and Xie Xiyuan was clearly losing ground. But Bian Yi was clearly not going to kill her; he was merely tossing her around like a spatula, just trying to prevent her from escaping.
"Impressive." Lin Chengye clicked her tongue twice and moved to Huang Qindong's side. Although this guy didn't seem to be very skilled in martial arts, he was still stronger than her. Maybe he could help her if Xie Xiyuan wanted to bully the weak again.
"...Huang Qindong. Hua Rong Lou and Jiang Jinmeng have never had any enmity, so why are you harming my Xie family like this?"
Seeing this, Xie Xiyuan had no choice but to land and block Bian Yi's final blow. She groaned, the veins on her neck turning even darker, and finally spat out a mouthful of black blood. Her figure swayed, and she knelt straight down on one knee in front of the group. She glanced at the Qinghonglou, which was engulfed in flames in the distance, and her face twisted with rage.
"When did you plan this?! Why did you commit such a heinous act?!"
Lin Chengye examined her closely and noticed something amiss. Logically, Xie Xiyuan should be in her early fifties, but it was probably due to the evil technique of the Thousand Needles that could not only change her gender but also preserve her youthful appearance, making her as beautiful as a peony.
After staring at Lin Chengye for a while, Huang Qindong calmly stepped out from behind him, adjusting the bridge of his nose. He lied without batting an eye.
“You’ve got it wrong. We’re not on the same side. This miracle doctor and I are on the same side. We’re just passing by to stop Elder Huang.”
As Bian Yi was spacing out, she suddenly felt someone touch her lower back. She turned her eyes and saw Lin Chengye beside her bending down slightly and winking at her.
"Ah, oh. You are... Xie Xiyuan, the master of Hua Rong Lou? I'm sorry, I just saw you climbing over the wall and trying to escape, so I subconsciously brought you here. My methods were a bit rough, I apologize."
Bian Yi's acting was incredibly bad, and Lin Chengye couldn't help but cough awkwardly a few times when he heard this clumsy performance.
Hearing this, Xie Xiyuan was also stunned for a moment. Her eyes lingered on the three of them, but she did not shout anymore.
"Thank you, Master. I am... a passing itinerant doctor. I saw that your family seemed to be poisoned, and I couldn't just leave them to die. This is Young Master Lin, a friend of mine."
Bian Yi nervously hummed in agreement a few times.
Xie Xiyuan looked her up and down.
"Who named this? Won't it shorten my lifespan?"
Bian Yi was taken aback again. She knew that in folk beliefs, healing the sick and saving lives made one a god, and at most, one could call her a living bodhisattva. What kind of title was this? And it even sounded quite convincing.
"I have never heard of Yama having any attendants when he kowtows; he always comes alone."
In the darkness, faces were hard to see clearly. Xie Xiyuan squinted, her face frighteningly grim, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth onto her chest. She didn't know what these people were pretending to be, though they clearly knew each other.
But she didn't have many options left.
Xie Xiyuan glared at Bian Yi with venomous resentment. She had only heard that this itinerant doctor was highly skilled in medicine, but she never expected that his martial arts were also so profound.
However, rather than living under threat here, it's better to go along with their idea of protecting Huang Qindong.
Although I don't understand why this idiot Huang Qindong thought a single poison could eliminate her without leaving any backup plan? I also don't understand why this Lin guy and Bian Yi went to such great lengths to exterminate them.
Could it be that they regretted their decision after realizing they had killed too many people? What they wanted was for Huang Qindong to be free from this matter for the rest of his life.
Xie Xiyuan suddenly grinned and laughed heartily, like a madman.
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