Tang Qing stared at him coldly, and an invisible pressure made Xiang Ge tremble involuntarily.
Xiang Ge, quick-witted as ever, immediately tried to shift the blame. He pointed at Chuan Liu and accused Tang Qing, "Sect Leader! This woman brought people to cause trouble! If I hadn't brought the brothers to buy time, she would have already stormed in! Oh! Right! She's Chuan Liu, and she even said she wanted to settle scores with you!"
He finished speaking at length, but Tang Qing showed no reaction whatsoever, simply looking at him calmly.
"Sect Leader, you have to stand up for our brothers!" He felt something was amiss, so he quickly added.
Tang Qing sighed, looking utterly disillusioned, and said, "Ah Xiang, what am I supposed to say to you? Do you even know the enormity of the mess you've made!"
She suddenly raised her voice, and her powerful aura made Brother Xiang kneel down with a "thud".
Oh no, the sect leader found out after all.
A cold sweat broke out on Ah Xiang's back.
"I, I..." he stammered, trying to explain, but because he had just woken up from poisoning, his mind was completely blank.
Tang Qing closed her eyes, not wanting to look at the filth in front of her anymore. The cold voice rang out again: "Go and receive your punishment. I will arrange for someone else to do your work."
"Sect Master! Spare me!"
Upon hearing the words "punishment," Ah Xiang's face showed a look of terror. He quickly crawled to Tang Qing's feet, hugged Tang Qing's leg, and cried bitterly, "Sect Master, I will never dare to do it again! Please give me another chance!"
Tang Qing simply squatted down slowly and pressed two fingers on a certain acupoint of the man, who immediately fainted.
The sudden turn of events sent a chill down the spines of the assassins present. They dared not utter a sound, nor did they dare to leave; they could only stand frozen in place, awaiting their fate.
Tang Qing merely glanced at them indifferently and said, "Take him away."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and quickly carried Ah Xiang away.
"I'm so sorry to have made you laugh." Tang Qing glanced at Chuan Liu, then at the dimly lit outside, and invited, "It's getting late, why don't you two stay here for the night?"
"It's an honor," Chuanliu replied.
"Aren't you afraid I'll assassinate you?" Tang Qing asked with great interest as he led her out the door.
Chuanliu shook his head. "I can sense that Sect Master Tang acts with integrity."
"No need to call me Sect Leader Tang. Just call me Sister Tang Qing, like that kid Zhui Ming."
"Okay, Sister Tang Qing."
Tang Qing remained silent, leading the two through the main hall and into a hidden corridor, eventually arriving at the back of the "secret door." The buildings here were cleverly constructed against the cliff, with several houses as stable as naturally grown rocks, yet still retaining the elegant style of traditional Chinese courtyards.
The "Hidden Door" is actually much larger than it appears. After passing through a cliffside path, a bright hillside unfolds before you, revealing a well-organized courtyard. The interior layout of the courtyards is ingenious and varied. At the top of the hill, Tang Qing's residence stands proudly, overlooking the entire territory of the "Hidden Door."
As darkness fell, those inside the "Dark Gate," holding tinderboxes, began to light the oil lamps along the way. One by one, the lamps flickered in the night, illuminating the path ahead. A cool mountain breeze whistled through the air, brushing against the rock walls and creating low, echoing sounds—like the breath of nature, or perhaps the howl of a demon.
Chuanliu and Zhuiming followed closely behind Tang Qing, navigating the winding corridors until they finally arrived at the room Tang Qing had arranged for them. After dinner, Chuanliu sat alone by the window, gazing at the view outside.
The bright moonlight poured down, like a soft silver veil gently covering the tranquil mountains. Black Spade Mountain, bathed in moonlight, appeared especially mysterious and serene. Outside the window lay a bottomless abyss; a cool night breeze brought an unprecedented tranquility to the mountain.
Just then, a knock on the door broke the silence of the night.
"Knock knock knock".
"Who?" Chuanliu asked.
“Chuanliu,” the person outside said, “is me.”
It was Tang Qing's voice.
Chuanliu opened the door with some surprise and saw Tang Qing standing there alone, without any bodyguards behind her. "Sister Tang Qing, what brings you here?"
Tang Qing smiled faintly and said, "Shall we take a walk?"
Chuanliu nodded and followed.
The night was very quiet. Chuanliu followed Tang Qing to the back garden of the "secret gate".
"You want to ask me why I came to see you so late?" Tang Qing, walking ahead, suddenly broke the silence.
She seemed uninterested in hearing the girl's answer and continued, "Although I haven't left the 'Secret Gate' for many years, I know more or less about what happens down the mountain. For example... Xu Zhi and Jia Zuowei, Wu Fangming and Lei Laojiu, and Susan and Jiulong."
Tang Qing's words made Chuan Liu stop in her tracks instantly, and she looked at the woman with a serious expression.
The latter, however, did not turn around, but chuckled lightly, "Don't be nervous. I'm not interested in who wins or loses, nor do I care what you did in it, or perhaps you're just an innocent bystander. I just happened to investigate you, and thus happened to know that you were investigating that 'disaster' two years ago."
A surge of indescribable shock welled up inside Chuanliu; she hadn't realized she'd been under someone else's surveillance all along. She glanced around to make sure nothing was amiss, but her vigilance remained undiminished.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her turmoil, and then slowly said, "I never imagined that someone as insignificant as me would warrant such a large-scale operation from the 'Dark Gate'."
“No, it has nothing to do with the ‘Secret Door,’ it was my investigation.” Tang Qing shook his head. “Actually, it’s not entirely accurate to say it was me. To be precise, it was that guy ‘Plum Blossom 10’ who wanted me to investigate you. I refused, but I did my own investigation.”
"Plum Blossom 10" Li Quanyou? He actually had someone investigate him?
Chuanliu frowned.
Tang Qing continued, "According to industry regulations, I shouldn't have disclosed client information to you, but what can I do? He's from Plum Blossom City. I hate Plum Blossom City. They thought time would make me forget everything, but they're wrong."
"I think you know who wants to kill you. He's in cahoots with Li Quan and his gang, and also with 'Club Ace' and their associates... As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."
At this point, Tang Qing stopped, picked a flower from the garden, and threw it into the small lake in the garden.
Cao He, the "King of Hearts," and Li Quanyou, the "Ten of Clubs," have something going on between them, and Chuanliu has some vague clues about it.
After a moment's thought, Chuanliu asked, "So, you want to cooperate with me to deal with them?"
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