procrastination
At the Gu residence, Yu Liu jogged into Wangning Pavilion to announce her arrival.
"Sister Qinglian, His Highness Prince Jin has arrived."
Qinglian was shocked and quickly blew out the lamp in the room, closed the door, and went outside to greet them.
Not far away, Xiao Heng'an walked alone, heading straight for Wangning Pavilion.
"Your Highness Prince Jin, what brings you here so late at night?"
Qinglian blocked Xiao Heng'an's steps into the pavilion.
Xiao Heng'an asked, "Where is Jin Ning?"
Qinglian replied, "The princess has gone to sleep."
Xiao Heng'an stepped forward and said, "I need to talk to her. Wake her up."
Qinglian stepped back and stopped her, saying, "The princess is under house arrest today and is in a bad mood. If you wake her up abruptly, she might get angry. Your Highness, why don't you come again tomorrow?"
Xiao Heng'an took a step closer and whispered in her ear, "If I hadn't come today, and something happened in the capital tonight, could you guarantee she would have gotten away with it?"
Qinglian remained silent, her hands sweating with nervousness.
Xiao Heng'an took half a step back and said, "If she doesn't wake up, I'll go in and wait."
After hesitating for a long time, Qinglian stepped aside and said, "Your Highness, please come in. The princess has just turned off the lamp and may not be resting now."
She asked Xiao Heng'an to wait in the courtyard while she went inside to ask for instructions.
A moment later, the lights inside the room came on, and Qinglian came out and said, "Your Highness, please come in. The Princess wants to play chess with you. I will wait outside and will not disturb you."
Xiao Heng'an entered and closed the door. He looked around the empty room, then slowly walked to the chessboard by the window, sat down, closed the gauze curtain, fiddled with the chessboard, and waited quietly.
Gu Jinning's side, due to the addition of the Flying Knife Master, was greatly exhausted and gradually became overwhelmed, sustaining several injuries.
She braced herself on one leg, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, and let out a sneer, "You four against one and you still can't beat me by even a fraction. If word gets out, people will laugh their heads off."
The burly man with the knife shouted, "Hey, you can't even stand up, yet you still spout such nonsense?"
Dao Wuqing asked, "Which faction or faction are you from? Tell me, so someone can collect your body."
Gu Jinning propped herself up and stood up, curling her lips into a smile, and said, "I have my own sect. You lowly scoundrels should address me as sect leader."
"What nonsense are you spouting!" the burly man with the knife roared. "You brat, so arrogant! I'll kill you today and wipe out your sect!"
Behind them, the captain of the guards hurriedly reported to Xiao Liao, "Your Highness, the person is gone."
Xiao Liao's face turned ashen. He ordered, "Immediately seal off the city gates and conduct door-to-door checks."
The troops at the rear began to gather and retreat in all directions.
Xiao Liao was certain that the prison breakers had accomplices, and his eyes flashed with murderous intent as he looked at Gu Jinning. "You must finish this quickly; I want prisoners alive."
Upon hearing the sound, the four attacked from all sides, using throwing knives to clear a path and restrain Gu Jinning's moves, while their double swords blocked her way, and their large swords cleaved straight down from behind.
Gu Jinning had nowhere to escape.
On the rooftop, the man in black stood up and drew his knife. "Tell the brothers to come up together, rescue the people, and then retreat."
Just then, a gust of wind blew by, and a powerful gust of air descended from the sky, instantly blasting away the flying swords and blades. The three men, including the burly man and the swordsman, were also blasted several feet away and crashed heavily onto the stone statue.
A person dressed in white and wearing a straw hat landed calmly and composedly in front of Gu Jinning, leaving a trail of fallen leaves behind.
An emergency alert was issued. The soldiers who had retreated turned back, one group protecting Xiao Liao while the rest drew their bows again and surrounded Gu Jin Ning.
Dao Wuqing caught the flying knife, his brows furrowed. "Such powerful internal energy."
Xiao Liao narrowed his eyes and ordered, "Arrest him as well."
He's going to wipe them all out tonight.
Gu Jinning was even more surprised than them, and grabbed the person's arm, asking urgently, "Why are you here?"
The man in the straw hat patted her hand and said gently, "You go first, I'll cover your retreat."
After saying that, he gently lifted his arm and flung Gu Jinning into the air. Then, he waved his sleeve and generated a burst of internal force, pushing Gu Jinning away.
Gu Jinning didn't have time to say anything more. She gave him a deep look, used the momentum to fly away, and she could hardly hold on any longer.
Seeing this, Dao Wuqing leaped forward and threw out more than a dozen bladed throwing knives, forcing his way towards Gu Jinning.
The man in the straw hat slightly turned his toes and stomped his foot, gathering energy in his wrist. Fallen leaves flew up, countless leaves swiftly chasing after the throwing knife. The throwing knife fell to the ground in an instant.
Dao Wuqing exchanged glances with the other three, and before the man in the straw hat could intercept his blade, he decisively launched a sneak attack.
Xiao Liao simultaneously ordered the arrows to be fired.
A barrage of arrows, flying swords, slashing blades, and whirling flying knives.
The men in black behind the roof were all sweating bullets for the man in the straw hat; their hearts were in their throats.
But the man in the straw hat remained calm and composed. With a flick of his wrist, he blocked the flying blade from a distance. Then, he turned and swung his broadsword, causing it to collide with the rain of flying arrows with a series of sharp cracking sounds, deflecting countless arrows.
The cold light of the two swords was close to their ears. The man in the straw hat took a step back, and two flying leaves struck the wrists of the two men holding the swords. The swords were knocked out of their hands, and they fell to the ground with a thud.
The man in black couldn't help but admire the man's profound martial arts skills, knowing that he was more than capable of handling the situation. Seeing that Xiao Liao's troops had already dispersed into the streets, he decided to retreat first.
Gu Jinning flew out of the street corner and hid in an alley to catch her breath. The blade of the flying knife grazed the medicine that aggravated her wound, causing her excruciating pain.
Gu Jinning took the painkillers she had prepared beforehand. Hearing that there were soldiers searching for people on the street, she had no choice but to go into the alley first.
"master."
Two men dressed in black and wearing straw hats came and helped her up, one on each side.
"You're injured," a woman's voice asked worriedly, taking out a medicine bottle to stop the bleeding.
Gu Jinning asked, "Why are you here? Where is Zuo Wenzhong?"
"Don't worry, Bai Sheng has already transported him to a safe place. Young Master sent us to pick you up. Honestly, you acted on your own without telling us."
The group took shortcuts to avoid the patrolling soldiers. However, the number of soldiers on the streets only increased.
Gu Jinning said, "Xiao Liao has sealed off the city and is searching overnight. He is determined to find out the results. You should go back quickly so as not to arouse suspicion."
"Aren't you coming with us?"
"I need to find a way to slow down Xiao Liao's search and make sure everyone gets away."
Gu Jinning looked around, had an idea, gave the two some instructions, and then left.
Xiao Liao never gives up until he achieves his goal, and he's not afraid to offend people once he's in the right. She has to be faster than him.
Before the patrols had covered the entire capital, Gu Jinning took a shortcut and climbed over the wall into the Marquis of Wu'an's residence.
Marquis Wu'an, Quan Xiangyi, was her maternal grandfather. Gu Jinning naturally wouldn't seek out Quan Xiangyi. Relying on her memory, she slipped into Quan Zichu's courtyard.
Late at night, Quan Zichu was too excited to sleep because he had recently won a lot of money in cockfighting. He lay in his room counting his money, with his great benefactor, Xiaobai, eating and living with him.
The window clicked open. Quan Zichu got up and peered out the window, asking cautiously, "Who is it?"
A familiar voice came from behind the desk, "It's me."
Quan Zichu's eyes widened suddenly, and he quickly turned to look for the person behind the desk, saying, "Cousin? Why are you breaking into my room in the middle of the night?"
Upon seeing the person leaning against the wall, covered in blood, Quan Zichu was both shocked and frightened, stammering, "You... how did you get like this?"
Gu Jinning pulled him down and shushed him, "I need your help now."
Quan Zichu lowered his voice and asked, "What kind of help?"
Gu Jinning recounted the whole story of how she was chased after breaking into the prison.
Quan Zichu opened her mouth in disbelief, then quickly covered it, her voice even softer, "This, cousin, this is a capital offense."
“That’s right. Now you know. If I get arrested, not only the Gu family, but the Quan family won’t escape either.”
Quan Zichu, who was used to a life of ease and leisure, had never seen anything like this before and was almost in tears.
"My dear sister, don't scare me. I haven't lived enough yet, and now I'm going to be wiped out."
Gu Jinning threatened, "So you must keep my secret and help me get out of this predicament."
When it came to the safety of his family and the life of his beloved older sister, Quan Zichu, though afraid, still mustered his courage and asked, "How can I help?"
Gu Jinning said, "Just hold Xiao Liao back."
"What should we use to drag it?"
Gu Jinning glanced at the table, pointed to the sleeping little white dog on it, and said, "We have no choice but to sacrifice it. Here, eat this first."
"What's this?"
"For pain relief."
"ah?"
Before Quan Zichu could react, the medicine had already entered his mouth, and Gu Jinning then slashed his arm.
Quan Zichu was about to cry out in pain, but Gu Jinning covered his mouth to stop him. "It'll only hurt for a moment. You pretend to be attacked by Xiaobai later, and cry out in pain and call for a doctor. Make a big fuss, the bigger the better, so that Xiao Liao will come here and I'll have time to get away."
"This... can the King of Qin believe it?" Quan Zichu felt a pang of pain in his arm.
Gu Jinning said, "Of course I don't believe it. So you have to kill Xiaobai, so there's no way to prove it. Xiao Liao is very suspicious, and he will definitely interrogate you for a long time."
"If he asks you, just tell him about switching Xiaobai. If Xiaobai can hurt Xueqiu, he can hurt you too. He'll have no choice but to believe it."
"Then, what about my father and grandfather..."
Gu Jinning said, "You should only know about my visit. My maternal grandfather and uncle will also talk about the cockfighting. Don't worry about them getting angry; the angrier they are, the better. I'll make you two more fighting cocks another day."
After saying that, Gu Jinning climbed out the window and left.
Quan Zichu said urgently, "It's not about cockfighting. It's about me getting beaten to death."
He chased after her out of the house, but Gu Jinning had already disappeared. Quan Zichu slapped his thigh in panic, "Oh dear, this is going to kill me!"
It's all over. On one hand, Gu Jinning's life is in danger, and on the other hand, he's going to suffer physical pain. Quan Zichu thought, "I've already been stabbed, so I might as well grit my teeth and go for it."
He woke Xiaobai up, clutched his wound, and rushed out of the house shouting, "Someone come here! Someone come here!"
The servants were startled awake and rushed over. Quan Zichu pointed at the howling little white dog and angrily said, "Quick, quickly slit its neck! It actually hurt me!"
When Quan Zijing entered the courtyard, she saw that Quan Zichu's arm was injured, and quickly instructed the servant to fetch a doctor.
Taking advantage of the situation, Quan Zichu exclaimed, "Ouch, I'm so dizzy. I don't know if this beast is poisonous or not. Quickly, call a few more doctors for me. Call all the doctors from three streets!"
It's common for people to kill chickens, but this is the first time a fighting chicken has injured someone. Everyone panicked, some calling for help, others trying to catch the chickens, and chaos erupted in an instant.
Quan Zijin advised Quan Zichu to calm down and lie in bed while waiting for the doctor to arrive.
Quan Zichu refused and ordered the servants to catch the chickens. Sensing danger, Xiaobai assumed a fighting stance and darted left and right, injuring several servants in the process. Finally, the guards arrived and captured Xiaobai.
Quan Zichu feigned anger, drew the guard's sword, and slit Xiaobai's throat. Chicken blood gushed out instantly, splattering all over Quan Zichu.
Madam Quan rushed over upon hearing the commotion and saw Quan Zichu covered in blood. She immediately fainted.
"mother!"
Quan Zichu was truly frightened. When he saw Quan Mingxiao walking not far behind him, he was so scared that he simply closed his eyes and pretended to faint.
The Gu family is in complete chaos.
Outside the prison, the flames of war were dying down. The man in white robes and a bamboo hat defeated four martial arts masters and drifted away unscathed from a hundred archers, leaving only a trail of fallen leaves behind.
Xiao Liao crouched down among them, trying to find a clue.
"Who exactly is this person that even you are powerless against?"
Xiao Liao picked up half a small leaf, held it to his nose and sniffed it lightly, then swept it over the four people lying on the ground and questioned them with displeasure.
Dao Wuqing covered the wound from the backlash of his own flying knife and replied, "This person possesses profound internal strength; few in the martial arts world today can rival him. We have done our best."
"Useless!" Xiao Liao stood up with a flick of his sleeve, gritting his teeth, "I don't believe he can disappear into the heavens or the earth."
"Your Highness!" a patrolman reported urgently, "There's been some unusual activity at the Marquis of Wu'an's residence; several doctors have been summoned."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
