Chapter 80 Feng Bao's Death
Lou Jin did not rush to take action.
He personally wrote a letter, using the code Lou Yan had taught him before, succinctly explaining his encounter on the way, and requesting Lou Yan to send a reliable elite team to secretly meet him.
After doing all this, Lou Jin walked to the window and looked at the lights gradually coming on outside. The night in Shikan Town seemed even more vibrant than the daytime.
"Your Highness, what should we do next?" Ye Xunyang walked to his side and asked in a low voice.
Lou Jin's gaze swept over the diverse crowd on the street, and he slowly said, "Wait. First, wait for my brother's reply and manpower; second, wait for the other side's next move; third... see if we can find what we're looking for in this town."
He turned to Wushan and instructed, "Have our men split up and go out to gather information. Pay special attention to gambling dens and taverns, and see if there are any rumors about the recent activities of unfamiliar forces."
"Yes!" Wushan accepted the order and immediately arranged for his skilled reconnaissance guards to infiltrate the night market in batches.
Lou Jin then said to Ye Xunyang, "Let's go for a walk too."
Ye Xunyang nodded, and the two walked out of the inn one after the other.
Lou Jin, playing a businessman, strolls leisurely with his hands behind his back, but his gaze inadvertently sweeps over every detail along the way.
Most people are busy making a living and don't pay much attention to them.
When they reached a relatively quiet street corner, Lou Jin's gaze lingered for a moment on an old woman's stall.
There were a few unremarkable herbs there, one of which had small, pale purple flowers.
The Migu Flower usually only grows in the humid and hot areas of southern Xinjiang. Lou Jin had seen it when he went to southern Xinjiang to investigate.
He remained calm and continued walking, but he had already memorized the information.
Just as they were preparing to return to the inn, a commotion broke out ahead.
Several arrogant-looking men were seen checking each street vendor and passerby.
"Have you seen any outsiders? With a sickly old man in tow," the leader barked gruffly.
Ye Xunyang's body tensed instantly, and his hand instinctively went to the short blade at his waist, but Lou Jin gently tugged at his sleeve, signaling him to calm down.
The men quickly approached them and began questioning them. The leader looked Lou Jin and Ye Xunyang up and down: "You! Where are you from? What are you doing here?"
Lou Jin immediately put on the obsequious smile typical of businessmen and replied in a southern accent, "Sir, we come from the south and do small business selling mountain goods and fabrics."
The man in the lead looked at them suspiciously, then at Ye Xunyang: "Where is he?"
"He's my assistant, and also my bodyguard," Lou Jin quickly said, while secretly slipping a small piece of silver to Lou Jin. "You've worked hard, sir. This is just a small token for tea, nothing more."
The man weighed the loose silver in his hand, his expression softening slightly. He waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, get lost! Report any suspicious people you see immediately!"
"Yes, yes, yes, definitely, definitely." Lou Jin nodded repeatedly, then pulled Ye Xunyang away quickly.
Back in his inn room, Ye Xunyang finally breathed a sigh of relief: "That was close, they were really thorough in their investigation."
Lou Jin remained calm: "The more they make a big show of it, the more anxious they are." He walked to the table. "We are safe for now, but we can't stay here any longer. We must leave as soon as my brother's men arrive."
Passively hiding is not a long-term solution. Now that they have concealed their whereabouts, it is time for them to take control of the situation.
As night deepened, the secret guards sent out to gather information returned one after another, bringing back fragmented and vague information. They had not found any definite traces, only mentioning that some unfamiliar faces had indeed been active in the town recently, acting mysteriously.
Just as Lou Jin was concentrating on analyzing these fragmented pieces of information, a strange bird call came from outside the window.
It was a signal from the secret guards sent out to keep watch outside the town: a small group of unidentified, well-trained people was quietly approaching Shikan Town from different directions under the cover of night!
Ye Xunyang's expression changed: "They've found us?!"
Lou Jin's eyes narrowed, and he shook his head, saying, "It's not necessarily that they accurately located us; it's more likely that they narrowed down the area and are conducting a comprehensive search. It seems that the carrier pigeons we sent out have still managed to pinpoint our location to this area."
He made a decisive decision: "We can't stay here any longer! Wushan, prepare immediately, we're moving tonight!"
"yes!"
"Your Highness, where are we going?" Ye Xunyang asked urgently.
Lou Jin gazed at the pitch-black night outside the window, his tone resolute: "Into the mountains! Since the town is unsafe, we'll do the opposite and head into the mountains again! We'll use the terrain to stall them, buy time, and wait for reinforcements!"
The order was given quickly, and the unconscious Feng Bao was carefully placed on a specially made frame. Everyone checked the equipment and turned off the lights.
Lou Jin took one last look at this temporary hiding place and said to Ye Xunyang in a deep voice, "Let's go!"
Like ghosts in the night, the group quietly slipped out of the back door of the inn and stealthily made their way towards the distant forest.
The night was deep, and the mountains and forests, like a lurking beast, exuded the scent of damp earth and decaying leaves.
Lou Jin and his group abandoned the main road and instead chose to traverse densely vegetated paths, trying to erase as many traces of their journey as possible.
However, the tracker was clearly a veteran as well.
Less than an hour later, the faint sounds of hunting dogs barking and people moving about could be heard from behind.
"They brought hunting dogs!" Ye Xunyang's heart sank, which meant that it would be difficult for them to completely shake off their pursuers.
Lou Jin remained calm and ordered, "Upwind, find a place with water!"
The group immediately changed direction and sped towards the higher upwind side, while listening intently for the sound of the stream.
Hunting dogs rely on scent to track animals. Being upwind can help them use the wind direction to their advantage, while water flow can block the scent as much as possible.
The mountain road was steep and overgrown with thorns.
The guards took turns carrying Feng Bao, and their breathing became heavy.
"This way!" one of the guards scouting ahead whispered, pointing to a mountain crevice on the left, half-hidden by vines, from which the faint sound of flowing water could be heard.
The group immediately slipped into the crevice in the mountain. Inside was indeed a narrow stream valley; the water was shallow, but icy cold.
“Let’s go upstream along the stream!” Lou Jin said decisively.
The group stepped into the stream and went upstream.
Although it was early summer, the icy stream water in the dead of night instantly soaked through shoes, socks, and trouser legs, and the biting cold made one's teeth chatter.
They waded through the stream for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, until the barking behind them became indistinct, and then they stopped to rest in a place where the current was relatively calm.
The group leaned against the cold rocks, panting heavily, their breaths clearly visible in the hazy moonlight.
Lou Jin looked at Feng Bao, who was still unconscious under the guards' protection, and asked, "How is he?"
The guard in charge of watching over the patient checked and said with a serious expression, "Master, the patient's aura is even weaker. The Gu poison seems to be worsening. The silver needles and medicine are almost unable to suppress it."
Misfortune never comes singly. Pursuers are closing in, and the crucial witness's life hangs in the balance.
Lou Jin closed his eyes, forcing himself to calm down. He glanced at the sky; there was still some time before dawn.
"You can't stay in the water for too long, or you'll lose body heat too quickly."
Lou Jin analyzed, "The pursuers have been temporarily shaken off, but we can't stay too long. Wushan, take two people ahead to scout out a relatively dry, easy-to-defend, and difficult-to-attack place where we can rest and deal with Feng Bao's situation."
"Yes!" Wushan immediately led two guards and disappeared silently into the darkness upstream of the valley.
Ye Xunyang sat down close to Lou Jin, using his body to shield him from the cold wind, and held Lou Jin's cold hands tightly, trying to warm them up.
He looked at Lou Jin's profile, which he was trying to maintain, and his heart was filled with worry. He hated himself for not being strong enough to share more of Lou Jin's burdens.
About half an hour later, Wushan and the others returned.
“Master, there is an abandoned hunter’s hut about a mile ahead. Although it is dilapidated, it can still provide shelter from the wind and is in a fairly secluded location.”
“Okay, let’s go there.” Lou Jin propped himself up.
The group set off again, carefully leaving the stream and trying not to leave any new traces, heading towards the wooden house that Wushan had mentioned.
The wooden house was dilapidated, but at least it provided some shelter.
Upon entering the wooden house, Lou Jin immediately ordered: "Check Feng Bao's condition and do everything you can to stabilize him."
However, the guard in charge of the inspection, Shenshan, reported: "Master, it's no use. The poison has penetrated deep into his heart meridian. The silver needles and medicine are completely ineffective. He won't last more than half an hour."
The atmosphere instantly plummeted to freezing point. With Feng Baoyi dead, all the sacrifices would be meaningless.
Just then, Feng Bao, who had been unconscious, suddenly opened his eyes. He grabbed Lou Jin's sleeve tightly and roared with his last bit of strength.
“Wang…Quan…is Xian…and…Qin…Qin…”
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