Chapter 55: Ghost Light
Jiang Qiaosheng was merciless, the contempt oozing from her bones like a bucket of hot oil poured down the man's back. The man was furious, but his anger had no basis, and he only bared his teeth and claws in bluffing: "How dare you! I'm your father!"
"Hahaha!" Jiang Qiaosheng laughed, clapping his hands. His eyes curved into an arc as he fixed his gaze on the man. "Father? Haven't I killed enough relatives in my life? One more of you wouldn't be too many."
The man's chest rose and fell, the soft silk cushioning the armrest twisting and tugging deep wrinkles beneath his claw-like palms. Gradually, he began to tremble under Jiang Qiaosheng's cold, playful gaze, the false dignity between his brows broken, revealing a hint of timidity.
"If you dare to come to see me, think of Feng Jimin as coming back." Jiang Qiaosheng tapped the table with the silver chopsticks in his hand.
"good!"
Wen Yao didn't know who this Feng Jimin was. At those three words, the man's spine straightened again, his head slightly raised, and he dared to look his daughter, who had been secretly afraid, in the eye. "Elder Feng has returned. You've failed twice in your assassination attempts, and this time, you've ruined my Jiang Dynasty's grand plan."
A hint of deep malice and undisguised hostility flashed across the man's brows. "Instead of arguing with me, why not first figure out how to kneel down before the elders and beg for the antidote?"
Wen Yao had been sitting next to him quietly until he heard these words, when his expression suddenly changed.
Jiang Qiaosheng curled his lips and made a move to throw his chopsticks. The man was so frightened that he waved his hands repeatedly, urging the servants below to carry him out of the valley.
As soon as the person left, Wen Yao raised her hand and pressed it on Jiang Qiaosheng's neck, pressing down heavily and pressing her face against the table: "What did he say, what antidote? Jiang Qiaosheng, I'm telling you, if you want me to take care of you again in the future, you have to explain everything this time!"
Jiang Qiaosheng's face was pressed against the table. He turned over with great effort under Wen Yao's hand, looked up at her, and suddenly closed his eyes and groaned.
"My father had eighteen sons and thirteen daughters. From childhood on, he always told us whoever became Pavilion Master would be the most powerful." Jiang Qiaosheng's eyelashes trembled slightly. "I won, and I killed all my other brothers and sisters, firmly sitting on the throne of Red Pavilion Master. I thought I could live a carefree life without anyone to stop me, but who knew that bitch Feng Jimin would actually poison me. It comes back every three months, and it hurts like hell."
It must be really painful. Jiang Qiaosheng, who used to be covered in scars and could still smile while soaking in water, now has hot eyes and touches Wen Yao's hand with great grievance.
"The antidote to this poison is in Feng Jimin's hands, right?" Wen Yao's eyes turned cold, and he made a quick decision: "I'll kill him and bring out the antidote. Then I'll take you to find Wang Fu, who can make a new one."
"distant."
Jiang Qiaosheng looked at her and suddenly smiled. He raised his hand and placed it on Wen Yao's, rubbing it gently against her palm. "The poison I was poisoned with is called 'Ghost Lantern Line'. It's a secret medicine from the Jiang Dynasty palace, originally used to raise assassins. When Tianshui Taizu defeated the rebels and marched into Bianliang, the Jiang Dynasty royal family saw that they were powerless and sacrificed their lives for their country. This is probably the widely known story now. But in fact, it's not. The Jiang Dynasty royal family was completely slaughtered by Taizong, leaving only the side branches of the royal family to be granted marquises to silence the world's gossip."
Unfortunately, despite all his calculations, Taizong still asked the then leader of the Jiang Dynasty's Death Warriors Pavilion to replace the prince with a cat, and fled with the young prince, leaving a bloodline for the Jiang Dynasty royal family.
This was an act of loyalty to the emperor, and if it were known, it would be a masterpiece for all time. The leader of the Death Warriors' Pavilion fled Bianliang and founded the Red Pavilion, adopting orphans and growing the group. Thus, two branches coexisted within the Red Pavilion: the Jiang Dynasty royal lineage was nominally the leader, while the leader of the Death Warriors' Pavilion served as the elder for generations.
"The rules of our ancestors are long gone, and no longer apply." Jiang Qiaosheng said lamentably, "The Pavilion Master and the elders have long been vying for power. How can anyone sleep peacefully on the couch beside me? When I took this position, I originally planned to kill Feng Jimin immediately. But I don't know where he got the 'ghost light' from. This poison is too strong, and the most crucial ingredient in the medicine is the blood of the poison controller. If I want to live, I can't kill him."
Jiang Qiaosheng felt extremely aggrieved.
Feng Jimin was young and cunning. Killing someone was easy, but controlling them without killing them was much more difficult.
Wen Yao was startled when she heard the phrase "blood as bait," and immediately thought of those old, poisonous people in the southwest. Her brow furrowed, and after a moment's thought, she said, "First, knock him out, take him away, and lock him up. We'll talk about it when Wang Fu returns. We have to give it a try. You, you assassinated the emperor, did you really want to restore the country?"
"Oh, of course not." Jiang Qiaosheng shook his head. "The Red Pavilion was founded on the pretext of restoring the country. Every leader of the Red Pavilion has assassinated the emperor. Aside from a few lunatics like my father, most people know that restoring the country is wishful thinking. They are just expressing their attitude and don't use the Red Pavilion banner."
This time, Jiang Qiaosheng directly used the name of the Red Pavilion to assassinate the Emperor of Tianshui, which immediately pushed the Red Pavilion to the forefront and really made some powerful figures in the Red Pavilion very angry.
"I don't care about Hongge's life or death." Jiang Qiaosheng's eyes were bright and he laughed heartily. "Hiding is so boring. Besides, I helped Lou Chengyi. If he really reigns over Northern Liao, he'll definitely attack Tianshui sooner or later. If he lets me kill the Tianshui emperor out of my friendship, it will be avenge for my ancestors and I can become a first-class filial son and grandson in the world!"
He also has filial sons and grandsons, and is crazy and mad.
Wen Yao was used to Jiang Qiaosheng's occasional irritation, so she waved her hand and slapped her on the back of the head: "Can't you just live a peaceful life?"
"I've thought about it." Jiang Qiaosheng suppressed his smile, covered his head and muttered, "The Red Pavilion Master is very boring. If it weren't for 'Ghost Lantern Line', I would have come to Mobei to look for you a long time ago."
Wen Yao frowned upon hearing this, then remembered something: "Does Feng Jimin know that you have no intention of controlling the Red Pavilion to compete with him for power? If so, would he be willing to hand over the antidote?"
"He knows." When Jiang Qiaosheng mentioned Feng Jimin, disgust and irritation flashed between his eyebrows and eyes: "That lame lunatic, who knows what he's thinking."
Jiang Qiaosheng was a soft-spoken person with a hidden edge. She always loved to play nice with Wen Yao, and even Lou Chengyi had often been unsuccessful in her hands. There were very few people she could be so powerless to escape from.
"Yaoyao is here to arrest someone." Jiang Qiaosheng perked up, his eyes gleaming as he looked over. "The Red Pavilion is spread all over the place. Some bases are in my hands, and some are in Feng Jimin's. I'll give you everything I have. Bianliang is the headquarters, so this time, you'll just capture my father first."
Jiang Qiaosheng's tone was excited. Wen Yao raised his eyelids and glared at Jiang Qiaosheng coldly, saying sternly, "I should take you back first!"
"I have made up for my sins with my merits, so I will show some mercy." Jiang Qiaosheng was not afraid at all. He opened his arms and rushed forward to hug Wen Yao's waist.
Wen Yao took a few deep breaths and suppressed his anger. "If you had this plan, you should have told me earlier. Why didn't you tell me? I could have come here alone to capture Feng Jimin. Now that we've made such a big fuss, if Feng Jimin is really as cunning as you said, what if he runs away——"
Many people saw Wen Yao as they walked along. The Red Pavilion Assassins traveled far and wide, and many people recognized Wen Yao's face.
Jiang Qiaosheng said, "I didn't know you were helping the King of Yan. I thought you were free and at ease. How could I bear to cause you trouble?"
This was exactly the same as Lou Chengyi's previous rhetoric. If Wen Yao hadn't traveled all the way to Bianliang, neither Tianshui, Beiliao, nor Hongge would have had anything to do with her. She could have continued to live a carefree life, a deity beyond the Great Wall.
"But you've come here for Prince Yan." Jiang Qiaosheng half-raised his eyes and looked at Wen Yao, his snow-white arms tightly gripping her waist like a beautiful venomous snake. "This Bianliang City is a place of power and conflict in the world. Once you step in and get involved, it will be difficult to leave."
"I never caused trouble before." Wen Yao said softly, "It's not that I'm afraid of trouble. I must repay Master Zhao Xuanxu's favor, and now..."
She hesitated slightly, a strange hesitation showing on her face.
Jiang Qiaosheng nuzzled into her shoulder, keenly aware of her peculiar emotions. He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Besides, what's going on now?"
She received no answer.
When Wen Yao opened his mouth to speak, his eyes suddenly became fierce. He raised his eyes to the cave entrance and pulled Jiang Qiaosheng up with one hand: "Someone is coming."
A moment later, two men wearing pure white masks walked up the stone steps and bowed respectfully to Jiang Qiaosheng. "Pavilion Master, Elder Feng is waiting for you in the Thousand Candles Hall."
Jiang Qiaosheng sat up straight, squinted his eyes, and suddenly shouted loudly: "Snow Guest!"
Xue Ke was the man with the black scarf on his face.
"The Right Commander has gone ahead to the Thousand Candles Hall." One person continued respectfully, his tone flat and steady, "Please come back, Pavilion Master—"
“Puff—”
Jiang Qiaosheng didn't say anything to the old Pavilion Master, but he had pierced the man's heart with the chopsticks he had thrown. The man's knees gave way and he fell to the ground, blood splattering everywhere.
Watching his companion die just a step away from him, the other man remained bent over, maintaining his previous posture, and said in a calm tone, "Master, please move."
Jiang Qiaosheng was furious. He quickly removed the restraints from his forearms and hurriedly dragged Wen Yao towards the cave entrance. Once he reached the pale-faced man, he struck him in the heart with a palm, shattering his meridians. A still-warm corpse lay on the ground.
Jiang Qiaosheng's innocent expression was gone; instead, she was confronted by the rumored bloodthirsty and murderous Red Pavilion Master. She didn't care about killing in front of Wen Yao. She quickly pulled Wen Yao out, bypassing layers of stone doors and secret passages, looking menacing and looking for trouble.
The corners of their clothes tangled together, one black, one blue, swaying and creating waves. Jiang Qiaosheng dragged Wen Yao to a huge cave in one breath. Before he even entered, he shouted angrily, "Feng Jimin, you are so bold! How dare you touch Xue Ke!"
Wen Yao followed Jiang Qiaosheng into the cave, where a bright light filled the room. She took a closer look and instantly understood why this place was called the Thousand Candle Hall.
The cave was enormous, with wooden platforms lining its sides, towering tall. The platforms were divided into multiple tiers, each one adorned with countless white candlesticks. The dim candlelight made the cave incredibly bright. Sitting in the center of the cave was a man seated on a strange wooden chair, surrounded by dozens of white-masked figures.
This is Feng Jimin.
Wen Yao was slightly stunned when he saw him.
Feng Jimin had pure white hair that fell to his elbows like moonlit satin. Contrary to this, he had an extremely young face, with white eyelashes and pupils that were almost light red.
It's just... not very human.
Wen Yao's first reaction was that Feng Jimin had albinism, but she had seen many albinos in her previous life, and their appearance was very different from Feng Jimin.
Xueke's mask was knocked aside, and he knelt on one knee, one hand pinned to the ground by a dagger. Jiang Qiaosheng strode over, bent down, and directly pulled the dagger from Xueke's flesh and blood. Without hesitation, he threw it at Feng Jimin, but was blocked by a sword drawn by a white mask.
"He played along with you, leading Xingyi Sword and the factory supervisor to Tangshan." Feng Jimin's voice was also unique, very clear and cold. "He should have been executed. But because I was following your orders, I only crippled one of his hands."
Jiang Qiaosheng licked his lips, his murderous intent revealed: "I'm going to chop off your head."
Feng Jimin seemed not to hear this. He turned to look at Wen Yao and nodded politely. "Seeing is believing, Xingyi Sword Wen Yao, I wonder if the Red Pavilion's full-scale siege today can cause you to be killed."
"That shouldn't be possible." Wen Yao raised his chin slightly, leaning to the side with the Xingyi Sword in his arms. He was clearly dressed in black, but this was scorching to the eyes. "I can pull out your tongue, chop off your limbs, and take you back to make a medicine man. That's fine."
She spoke calmly, and after she finished speaking, the whole room fell silent. The white masks around her were clearly extremely vigilant, and they all gripped the swords at their waists tightly.
Feng Jimin suddenly smiled, breaking the heavy atmosphere. "You work for Prince Yan, and I am not his enemy. I was not in Bianliang during these two assassination attempts, and I was unaware of them. If you take Governor Song away from here and don't pursue the matter, I can do Prince Yan a favor. If he wants to ascend the throne, I will help him eliminate his political enemies."
Come on, Zhao Xuanxu's mental state is not much better than yours. He was already thinking about how to bring down the Tianshui Zhao family.
This is surprisingly similar to Jiang Qiaosheng's situation. This shows how important a normal growth environment is to a child.
Wen Yao shrugged and shook his head. "Who is Governor Song? I've come all this way, so how can I return empty-handed? Besides, I, Wen Yao, am a well-known figure in the martial arts world. If I fail to capture the Red Pavilion assassin for the third time, where will my dignity be?"
Feng Jimin wasn't angry. His expression had been calm from the beginning, completely different from Jiang Qiaosheng's. After hearing Wen Yao's words, he just sighed slightly and said, "It seems that there is no way to end this peacefully today. I can only ask you and Governor Song to stay here."
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