Attacked late at night
There was a heavy and rapid knock on the door, mixed with people shouting and the sound of tables and chairs being smashed. Zhong Yujing suddenly opened her eyes, sat up, quickly put on her clothes, and opened the door.
Yi Shi stood outside the door breathing rapidly and said anxiously, "Someone attacked the inn at night, I'm afraid they are coming for us."
Zhong Yujing was shocked, "Who is this person?"
"He's wearing black clothes and a mask, so we can't see his true face." Yi Shi lowered his voice and pulled Zhong Yujing to hide in the corner of the second floor, peeking down.
Ten masked men in black were seen throwing things and threatening people downstairs. "Did your shop ever take in a man and a woman? The man looked like a soldier, and the woman was dressed like a lady?"
Zhong Yujing's heart, which had been in her throat, relaxed a little.
The grandparents, Qiu Shan and his grandson, huddled together, shivering like sieves. The old man said, "Our shop is a small business. The customers who come and go are usually just passers-by, ordinary people. How could we have ever received any military officers or ladies?"
The masked man in black who was leading the group slammed a big knife on the table and said, "Old man, don't play tricks on me. Tell me the truth. We will catch the men and report back. You can continue with your small business. We will not hurt a hair of yours. If you dare to harbor these two people, the knives in our hands will show no mercy!" After saying that, he snorted and glared at the old man.
Yi Shi saw the large knife in the masked man's hand and said, "It's a saber! It's the sword of the Imperial Guard!" He was shocked. "The Imperial Guard is dispatched by the imperial court. Our operation is a secret, known only to the emperor. How did it get leaked? Who knew about this and wants to kill us?"
Who is it? It's not hard to guess who it is. It must be the one Zhong Yujing overheard his conversation under the window. In the palace, apart from the emperor and the general, the only one who can mobilize the imperial guards is the prince of the current dynasty.
Zhong Yujing was deep in thought. If she and Yi Shi jumped out of the window and escaped overnight, they might be able to avoid a head-on confrontation with the man in black. But if they ran away, it would be impossible for Qiu Shan and his grandson to explain themselves. The man looked murderous and might not be able to find anyone, so he might kill them to silence them. The only thing she could do now was to go downstairs and confront him. Anyway, she and Yi Shi were disguised like this, so it would not be easy for them to be recognized.
Zhong Yujing said to Yi Shi, "Wait for me for a moment."
She returned to her room, closed the door, found a set of men's clothes from her package, and put them on.
The night before her departure, she had a lot of thoughts. To be on the safe side, she asked her maid and the servants in the mansion to borrow a few sets of clothes. Unexpectedly, they really came in handy.
After fastening her belt, she strode out the door. Yi Shi was surprised at first when he saw her appearance, then shook his head helplessly, laughed softly, gave her a thumbs up, and then bowed and said, "My dear brother."
Zhong Yujing also said in a rough voice: "Brother."
The two of them came downstairs, looking like they had just woken up.
"It's the middle of the night and you can't let us sleep. It's so noisy." Yi Shi walked in front, yawning, and Zhong Yujing followed behind him.
When the masked man in the lead saw the two of them coming down, he stood up suddenly and stared at them vigilantly, looking them from head to toe and then from toe to head.
Seeing him staring at him like this, Yi Shi deliberately said, "Wow! So many of you come here in the middle of the night. Are you here to stay overnight or to stay in a hotel? We are all strangers in a foreign land, and we two brothers are on our way and want to stop here for a rest. You brothers look like you are from the martial arts world. Nice to meet you!" He bowed to them.
The masked man leading the group also bowed to him, but there was no smile on his face. His eyes were still fixed on Yi Shi and Zhong Yujing, "Where are you two from?"
Yi Shi laughed out loud and said in the Qing dialect: "Qing people, out looking for relatives."
The masked leader didn't respond and continued to stare at him cautiously.
Yi Shi hurriedly said, "In that case, we won't disturb you from resting. My brother and I will go back to our room to rest first. We have to travel early tomorrow morning." He yawned again, glanced at Zhong Yujing, and the two turned around and walked back.
As soon as I reached the stairs, I heard the masked man leading the group shout, "Wait!"
Zhong Yujing paused, and Yi Shi tightly grasped the soft sword wrapped around his waist.
The masked man said, "This young man looks familiar to me..." He walked towards them and was about to grab Zhong Yujing and pull him over to take a look.
In a flash, Yi Shi drew the soft sword from his waist, and the sword light brushed the tip of Zhong Yujing's hair as it stabbed out. Zhong Yujing only felt a flash of silver before her eyes, and saw Yi Shi and the masked leader fighting in the guest hall. Soon, several other masked men joined the fight. Yi Shi shouted as he fought, "Brother, why do your moves look like those of a palace official? Which gate do you serve?"
The masked men were stunned at first, looking at each other, then rushed forward and continued to fight with Yi Shi. Yi Shi laughed again, "It seems that I guessed right! The officials raised their swords and slashed with such ruthless force, and the shining swords, could they be from the Imperial Guards?"
The masked man in the lead shouted, "Are you Deputy General Yi?"
Yi Shi thrust his sword towards the masked man's neck. "I already said we were going to look for our relatives! Stop talking nonsense and watch out for the sword!"
The masked man dodged narrowly by moving sideways.
Seeing that Yi Shi was more than capable of handling several imperial guards, Zhong Yujing followed the plan she had discussed with Deputy General Yi and quietly slipped over to the Qiu Shan and his grandson.
Zhong Yujing first made a gesture to silence them, then quietly slipped out of the inn with them, went around to the horse post in the front yard, untied the horse ropes, helped Qiu Shan and the old man onto each horse, then went around to the backyard window, picked up the luggage that she and Yi Shi had thrown out of the window, then went back to the front yard door, put the luggage on the horse, and waited for Yi Shi to come out.
Yi Shi was fighting fiercely with the masked man in the living room. He caught a glimpse of Zhong Yujing and the grandfather and grandson who had successfully slipped out. After fighting for a while, he guessed that she was ready, so he stopped fighting, took out the medicine bag in his arms, and with a wave of his hand, sprinkled all the powder on the masked man's face.
Ten masked men immediately covered their eyes and yelled, "I can't see!"
"What the hell!"
Yi Shi sneered and flew out of the inn. Zhong Yujing was holding the horse reins and looking outside the door. Seeing Yi Shi coming out, she waved to him. The two of them each rode a horse, Zhong Yujing carrying the autumn fan and Yi Shi carrying the old man, and they ran into the night.
They ran all the way along the path and stopped only at dawn, thinking that the group would not be able to catch up with them.
The four of them rested in an open area by the roadside. Zhong Yujing took out some dry food from his bag and distributed it to everyone. Biting his rations, he said to the Qiu Shan family, "We've got you in trouble this time. Don't go back to the inn. I'm afraid they won't be able to find you and will come looking for trouble again. After we finish our rations, we have to continue on our journey, so it's inconvenient for us to travel with you."
Zhong Yujing took out a silver ingot from his bag and placed it in Qiu Shan's hand. "Take this. From now on, take the official road and head north. Go to Qi State and settle there. There are no fierce tigers or harsh taxes. The emperor of Qi State treats his people well. Find a place to settle down and resume your family business. With a skill to rely on, you can live a good life anywhere."
Upon hearing this, Qiu Shan and her grandfather exchanged a glance, then dropped to their knees in front of Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi. "Thank you, warrior, for saving my life! Thank you, young lady, for giving me a new life!"
Zhong Yujing hurried forward to help the two of them up, "Please stand up quickly, this is not allowed."
Qiu Shan's eyes were filled with tears. She took Zhong Yujing's hand and looked at her, "Miss, are you from the palace?"
Zhong Yujing looked at her with a smile, "Why do you ask?"
Qiu Shan wiped her tears and pouted, "I noticed the moment you arrived at the inn. Although you're wearing plain clothes, you have an air of nobility. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just feel like you're different from the sisters I've met before."
Zhong Yujing laughed out loud, "What's the difference? Is it an extra eye or an extra mouth?"
Qiu Shan was amused by her and stammered, "It's different anyway." He blinked at her curiously.
Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi packed up their things and prepared to mount their horses to continue their journey. Before they parted, Qiu Shan said to them, "I don't know why those masked men wanted to capture you, but it seems they have ill intentions. I'm afraid if they can't capture you this time, they'll come again. You must be extra careful."
Zhong Yujing smiled and nodded, "Don't worry, my brother is very skilled. If he comes again, he will definitely beat them to a pulp."
Qiu Shan smiled, and her smile was always contagious, making people feel that any difficulty was not a big deal. People should live with such an optimistic smile towards everything known and unknown.
Suddenly, as if remembering something, he leaned over and whispered in Zhong Yujing's ear, "I think it would be safer for you to find that handsome general as soon as possible. He looks very heroic and extraordinary, and you are the one he holds dear to his heart. He will definitely protect you well!"
Zhong Yujing looked at her in a daze, and she winked at him playfully.
As Qiu Shan and his grandson waved goodbye, Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi mounted their horses again and headed towards Nansai.
The journey has been smooth these days. When it gets dark, we check into any inn we find. If we can't find a place to rest, we light a bonfire in the woods and take turns keeping watch, taking a short rest to refresh ourselves.
One day after arriving in Jiangdu and preparing to take the water route, they finally found a decent inn on the main road. Zhong Yujing asked the waiter to fetch a few buckets of water, took a comfortable hot bath, and slept soundly for the first time in many days.
At dawn the next day, they boarded a ship at the dock. In order to avoid being seen, they rented a small boat with a simple two-story structure. There was a lounge under the deck. The boatman and two apprentices drove the boat. The journey took seven days. Rocking on the boat every day saved energy, but it was not much easier. On the sixth day, Zhong Yujing felt dizzy and disoriented, as if he had hysterics. Even Yi Shi, who had a strong body, felt unwell.
The boatman laughed and said, "You two brave men are from the north, right?"
Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi nodded with pale faces.
The boatman said, "Boats from the south and horses from the north will feel uncomfortable when they first come to our place. People like us have been raised on boats since we were little, and we have to rely on boats to go everywhere. Once we get used to it, it will be fine."
Zhong Yujing thought to herself, there’s no need to wait until I get used to it, I can just hold on for another day and then I can get off the boat.
Another dusk and dawn passed, and they finally saw land. Zhong Yujing packed her luggage, cheered herself up, and paid the boatman. The shore was right in front of her, and she could finally return to land.
The boat docked steadily. Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi walked to the shore one after another on the wooden planks, and their feet finally touched the ground.
Suddenly, a black shadow passed by her eyes, and her feet left the ground in an instant, and her whole body was pulled into the air. Before she could react, she heard Yi Shi shouting, "Let her go!"
Zhong Yujing looked in the direction of Yi Shi's voice and found that he was already several feet away from her feet, while she was being caught with a rope and lifted up, getting closer and closer to the top of the tree...
Yi Shi drew out the soft sword from his waist, kicked a tree trunk beside him, and used the force to fly towards Zhong Yujing. With a click, he cut the hemp rope that bound her, grabbed her clothes tightly, and the two of them landed steadily on the ground.
"Run!" Yi Shi said to her.
Zhong Yujing put away her frightened mind and followed Yi Shi to run towards the forest ahead. Seeing that the fog was so thick in the forest that she couldn't even see the scenery in the forest, let alone the road, Zhong Yujing didn't have time to think carefully. She just followed Yi Shi and ran desperately, and finally ran into the thick fog.
The masked man leading the pursuit suddenly stopped, raised his hand to stop the nine people behind him, and heard them ask, "Why aren't you chasing?"
The masked man leading the group said, "That's the border of the Nansai tribe. It's filled with miasma. If they enter the miasma forest, they won't be able to come out alive."
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