Chapter 144 Interception!
Li San Niang looked at the green-skinned man and the big man walking towards her against the light, and she heard her own heart pounding in her chest.
Then the thug revealed a forced smile and said to Li Sanniang with a grin, "Hey, little hussy, the rules of the underworld are: pay for service, first come, first served, no cheating, young or old."
Li San Niang thought to herself, "Oh no, they're going to get me."
Li San Niang originally thought that the thug would step forward, but instead, the big man who came later went straight up, grabbed Li San Niang's right hand without any mercy and pressed it to the ground. Then, after looking around, he picked up a stone that someone had used to block the door by the alley, raised it high, and was about to smash it down on Li San Niang's wrist.
Li San Niang knew that if she didn't save herself, she might survive, but she would lose her hands.
Just before the stone fell from the big man's hand, Li Sanniang sprinkled the sleeping potion she was holding in her left hand onto the face of the big man who was very close to her.
"Damn it, you scoundrel, you cheated!"
The drug would take time to take effect, but because they were so close, the powder got into the big man's eyes, so he couldn't hit Li San Niang's wrist with a stone.
Seizing the opportunity, Li Sanniang quickly rolled to the side, only to see the big man still rubbing his eyes vigorously with both hands.
Qingpi reacted quickly. He didn't know that Li Sanniang had used a sleeping potion; he only thought it was a common and insidious trick used in the martial arts world, a deceptive lime powder.
If this lime powder gets into your eyes, it can burn them and blind you.
Green Skin quickly restrained the big man's hands, which were still rubbing his eyes. "You idiot! You'll go blind if you keep rubbing your eyes! Bear it, Tiger Head, bear it!"
Before Qingpi could figure out what to do, the drug finally took effect, and the huge man's massive body collapsed onto Qingpi. Qingpi, holding the man, was terrified. He slowly put the man down while shouting, "Tiger Head, Tiger Head, what's wrong with you? Tiger Head, say something!"
Taking advantage of the moment when the bandit was rescuing the big man, Li Sanniang gritted her teeth and endured the pain in her lower back, using the wall beside her to stand up and walk quickly towards the intersection.
Li San Niang hoped that the drug would be effective enough to knock out Qing Pi as well.
When Li Sanniang had walked only a dozen steps, Qingpi assumed she had given the big man a deadly poison. His eyes turned red with rage, and he pulled a small knife from his waistband and chased after her, yelling, "You wicked woman, you dared to poison my brother! I'll kill you!"
Li San Niang naturally heard these words, but she didn't stop at all. Every extra step she took was a greater chance of survival!
When you're in despair, praying to gods and Buddhas is completely useless. You'd be better off focusing on escaping.
With a "thud," Qingpi's body also fell to the ground.
It was Li San Niang's drug that took effect; it must have been something Qing Pi picked up when he hugged the big man.
Li San Niang kept running forward, using all her strength. Just as she was about to run out of the alley, a man in black suddenly jumped out from the shadows of a wall.
Li San Niang stopped a foot away from the man in black, and saw him clapping his hands in front of her. The sound of his clapping was particularly loud in the quiet alley.
Li San Niang knew that this person was the mastermind behind everything. She clenched her right hand, holding the scalpel upside down in her palm, and regretted that she should have brought more sleeping pills.
Changshoufang, the Li family.
Li Erlang quickly stepped forward to open the door and saw Li Dalang and an old woman, with a squad of armored and sword-wielding Imperial Guards standing outside the door.
The captain stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Golden Guard inspectors, please cooperate."
It turned out that the Imperial Guards patrolling Changshoufang at night spotted Li Dalang and Wang Pozi walking briskly at the street corner. After sternly stopping the two, they went up to ask them and learned from Li Dalang that someone in his family had not returned home on time, which was why they were walking on the street after curfew.
After the squad leader checked the household registration certificate that Li Dalang was carrying, one of the soldiers in the squad happened to have served with Li Dalang before and knew that he was Li Dalang's eldest son, so he stepped forward and spoke to him.
The captain then took it seriously, realizing that this was probably not a real incident, and that the person hadn't deliberately broken the curfew.
Therefore, the captain escorted the two men to the Li family for investigation.
Li Erxiong, quick-witted and articulate, immediately stepped forward and explained that his younger sister had gone to work at Changshoufang today, riding in Old Man Wang's donkey cart. She should have returned before curfew, but it was already past curfew and she still hadn't returned. Fearing something might have happened, he had no choice but to send the fast-moving Li Dalang to Old Man Wang's house to inquire after curfew.
The old woman, Wang Pozi, who was Wang Laohan's wife, immediately stood up, slapped her thighs with both hands, and cried out, "Old man left this morning and hasn't come back yet!"
The captain stopped Wang Pozi's crying and shouting, "Didn't Li San Niangzi go somewhere else and miss the appointed time, which is why she hasn't returned home yet?"
Father Li stepped forward and saluted the captain, "Sir, before Third Sister left home today, she promised us that she would return home soon. She would never leave without a word. Now, we are certain that Third Sister has been kidnapped by bandits. Please, sir, help her."
After saying this, before the squad leader could react, Li's father bowed and said, "Guards, please make an exception and ask my eldest grandson to go to the gate of the ward to tell the ward leader about my daughter's disappearance. If you can, we can open the gate and go to the capital prefecture to report the case!"
Upon hearing this, the captain was caught in a dilemma. If he did not grant Li's father's wish, it might cost a life, and he himself would suffer the consequences later.
The curfew regulations in Chang'an City forbade ordinary people from walking at night, but the law did not specify whether a missing person case could be reported outside the ward gate during curfew hours.
"Your eldest grandson will come with us to the ward gate to deliver a message. We will inform the people outside the ward about the disappearances of your Third Madam Li and Old Man Wang, and have the Imperial Guards of Yongping Ward search near the Third Medical Hall. If there is any news, we will inform you immediately. How does that sound?"
"Thank you, guard."
Li's father and the others reluctantly agreed to the team leader's plan. Afterwards, Li's father pulled Li Dalang aside and gave him a few words of advice. In the meantime, he gave Li Dalang the name tag he had from the Bad People's Bureau, telling him to act according to the situation, but to take care of himself.
Li Dalang then followed the group of Imperial Guards towards the gate. Fortunately, Li Dalang was skilled in martial arts and did not fall behind the Imperial Guards as they hurried along.
Upon arriving at the gate, they knocked on the gatekeeper's door, explained the situation, and signaled to the people outside the gate. After the person came over, they carefully explained where Li San Niang and Wang Lao Han might appear in Yongping Ward. The squad leader left the soldier who knew Li Da Lang there to wait for news, while the rest of the men and he himself went to perform their duties and patrols.
Sun Fang poured two cups of hot tea for the two of them. Seeing Li Dalang's worried brows furrowed tightly, he sighed, not knowing what to say, so he simply said nothing.
Meanwhile, the Imperial Guards in Yongping Ward received the news and immediately sent a message to the people in the vicinity.
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