Chapter 20 Don’t just watch, it’s hard work, I’m here.
Inside the courtroom, a man leaned against a bench, stroking his mustache lazily as he read. He squinted slightly, turning to the next page with a hint of unease.
He heard footsteps approaching from afar, and when he looked up, he saw a young man striding towards him. He had a cold expression on his face and a knife hanging from his waist.
He had a hunch that the person was up to no good, so he sat up alertly and said, "Who are you? How dare you trespass into the court? Don't you want to die?"
Upon hearing this, the surrounding constables gathered around with unfriendly expressions.
The young man uttered a soft "huh," his tone filled with disdain. He spoke softly, his voice so low it was almost a whisper: "...You don't want to die? I came here to get my life."
The man with a mustache didn't hear the second half of the sentence clearly. He subconsciously wanted to stand up, and at that moment he felt a chill on his face.
Then I couldn't feel anything.
He was still sitting on the chair, but without a head, he looked weird and scary.
At the same time, a man ran in hurriedly from outside the door, his face full of fear and his mouth wide open, wanting to report something, but he immediately fell silent when he saw this scene.
Before anyone could react, Lou Wanqiao turned around, showed his badge, and shouted, "The Dali Temple is investigating this case. Retreat immediately!"
She held the Dali Temple token horizontally in front of her in one hand, and held a knife in her other hand, the tip of the knife still dripping with blood. Not far from the blade was the head of the man with a mustache.
A nearby constable looked up and took a closer look. His face turned pale and he took two steps back: "This is really the badge of the Dali Temple Shaoqing..."
"Shaoqing of the Dali Temple? Who said yesterday that the woman's cards were fake?!"
"Wait, the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple in the capital..."
Lou Wanqiao glanced at them indifferently, and the whole audience fell silent instantly.
Seeing no one speak, she began to flip through the messy documents piled on the desk. They were clean, with almost no signs of being flipped through. Some of the documents had even been dropped and stepped on. It was obvious that the officials here did not take these cases seriously.
Just as she lowered her head and approached, a younger-looking man among the detectives drew his sword and shouted, "Who cares who he is! He killed our master, what's the difference between him and a thief! After all, what happened here won't be reported to the capital. He's only one person, so why don't we..."
He didn't finish his words.
Lou Wanqiao wiped the blade with his clothes and looked up at everyone: "If anyone else still refuses to accept, come together. I don't have that much time to accompany you."
The air fell into deathly silence again, and this time the atmosphere dropped to freezing point.
Seeing that no one spoke, she nodded to herself: "Let's put it this way, the next question... If you hide anything, you will end up like him."
The people here are all in cahoots. As the government, they have ignored countless injustices and even encouraged the thieves to act recklessly. There is no need to show mercy.
"You," Lou Wanqiao pointed at someone casually, "How long has this situation been going on?"
The person who was called shuddered all over, lowering his head and not daring to look her in the eye: "Reply... Reporting to the Master, it has been nearly half a year..."
"Why do you do this?"
"Your subordinate... Your subordinate doesn't know..."
She raised the knife expressionlessly.
"It's our lord! Our lord has made a deal with someone, offering gold and silver if we follow his orders... or death if we refuse... We dare not disobey!"
Lou Wanqiao sneered, "You dare not disobey? I see you're all rushing to do it."
Clearly, everyone here has been bribed. The officials tasked with clearing grievances and uncovering the truth are colluding with the thieves, hiding the truth beneath the snow. They've woven a blood-stained web into an impenetrable web, becoming the ultimate king here. News is sealed within the city gates, and those who know the truth are either accomplices or become desolate bones in a mass grave... Ha, how absurd!
She straightened up, adjusted her skirt, and glanced at them. "You should understand what to do from now on, right? Now take me to find them."
"He...they?" Someone said with fear, "Sir, this..."
"Why?" Lou Wanqiao sneered. "You only dare to bully those weaker than you, right? You're a bunch of detectives, supposed to uphold justice and provide fairness, but you're doing such disloyal and unjust things. Not only are you dogs for the thieves, but you're also wielding your swords against the weak you're supposed to protect. You... are completely rotten."
No one dared to speak.
"Well, although this kind of thing isn't very moral, I do like to use it sometimes." Lou Wanqiao suddenly curved his eyes and shook the blood-stained long knife in his hand. "You seem to like using this method very much? I told you that if the results don't satisfy me, I will let you taste the methods I usually use. But since none of you want to talk, and I don't need so many people, I'll just leave one person who wants to talk to me."
As soon as she finished speaking, without any hesitation, blood exploded in the crowd.
"I tell you! I tell you!"
"Sir! I'm willing to tell you!!"
“Ahhhh—”
"Wouldn't it have been better if you had done this earlier?" Lou Wanqiao's expression remained unchanged, as if he had just done something very ordinary. There weren't many people in the courtroom to begin with, and now there were only two left.
"Then you two, take me there."
"yes……"
As the door was closed, the blood on the floor was isolated and no one knew what was happening in the courtroom.
Lou Wanqiao changed into a constable's uniform and followed the two men. They were both silent, their faces pale and their heads hanging. She carefully observed her surroundings, always on guard.
The area around here is sparsely populated and increasingly remote.
Before setting off, Lou Wanqiao sent a carrier pigeon and burned the pages. While she favored unilateral force, in situations like this where the odds were stacked against her, it was safer to seek help. Furthermore, those individuals were skilled in martial arts, so a fight with them offered a high chance of victory, making it the most effective way to resolve the situation.
-
arrive.
Lou Wanqiao stopped in front of a huge and deep cave, paused for a moment, and walked behind the two people.
Ta-ta-ta, ta-ta...
The three of them were not moving in unison, and two of them were panicking. Lou Wanqiao didn't expect them to be of any help. As long as they could bring her here, it would be fine. The rest of their role would probably be to use them as a shield at the critical moment.
"stop."
The sound came from the darkness ahead, and the three of them stopped in their tracks. Lou Wanqiao, sensing something, moved a little further behind one of them.
"You guys from the government? What are you doing here?"
The voice was unpredictable, and it was impossible to tell whether it was happy or angry, but Lou Wanqiao could still feel a faint sense of pressure.
The man beside him raised the black cloth bag in his hand and said with a brave face: "The master asked us to deliver the 'tribute'."
"Oh? Come in. You know the rules. Don't blame me if you die accidentally."
The two men immediately began to tremble. Lou Wanqiao didn't know the reason, and they hadn't said much before. Although they were confused at this moment, they suppressed it for the time being.
After getting his permission, the three of them continued to walk inside.
Lou Wanqiao was unfamiliar with the road, so he followed closely behind them, trying his best to observe his surroundings. Although it was so dark that he could hardly see anything, his sense of smell and hearing were actually more acute.
All around.
On the wall.
At the top.
There are many "living things".
Lou Wanqiao looked calm, pretending to know nothing, and continued walking in with the other two. Finally, they came to a relatively open area, with a large round table in the middle, and a candle burning on it.
The constable placed the black cloth bag on the table and turned his head to glance at Lou Wanqiao.
It seems that this is the whole process.
She walked back slowly with them, memorizing the route as she went.
Suddenly, the atmosphere in the darkness changed.
"Wait a minute," someone whispered, "God says it's not enough."
The sound was so cold that it didn't sound like it came from a living thing. It was like sharp nails scraping against a metal slab, giving people goosebumps for no reason.
Lou Wanqiao's hair stood on end instantly, and she dodged to the side so quickly that only a shadow was left behind.
The other two were not so lucky. They only had time to make a brief sound before falling into the darkness.
It's scary here.
Very dangerous.
Lou Wanqiao held her breath, concentrating. She knew she was exposed to "their" sight, and this position was perfect for a counterattack. Although she wasn't sure about the difference in strength between us and the enemy, she had to give it a try. She gripped the hilt of her knife tightly, keeping a vigilant eye on her surroundings.
"Hmm?" The voice in the darkness sounded doubtful. "Among those idiots, is there someone with such good skills?"
Lou Wanqiao locked onto the position, unsheathed the long sword in his hand, and stabbed fiercely into the darkness!
——Nothing.
A layer of cold sweat broke out on her back and her breathing trembled slightly, but she quickly calmed down.
The more times like this happen, the more we should not panic.
There are easy echoes in the cave. This person must have used some kind of martial arts to make it impossible for others to see his position, so he can hide in the darkness and attack.
Does this prove on another level that... their close combat abilities are not outstanding?
The martial arts these people practiced were very similar to Li Huanian's, so their breathing and movement patterns could not be distinguished, but... if they made a move, one could always hear the subtle friction sound.
Lou Wanqiao listened carefully and, as expected, heard a faint sound piercing the air from the southeast. She raised her knife to block it, but the metal clashed and the hidden weapon fell.
While raising the knife, he gathered his inner strength with his other hand to eject the hidden arrow from his sleeve. The sound of flesh and blood being torn apart echoed in the deeper darkness.
"You are not from the government office."
It was another voice.
"Oh." She responded indifferently, and suddenly developed a bit of evil taste, smiling at the darkness, "I am from the Guiyin Sect."
There was dead silence in the darkness.
Lou Wanqiao straightened up.
Wow... why are there sounds of bows being drawn everywhere?
Are they so irreconcilable?
Without much time to think, Lou Wanqiao made a quick decision and pulled up the two lifeless bodies on the ground to block the arrows, while retreating towards the cave entrance according to his memory.
But it was obvious that the people from Dengxianmen had no intention of letting her leave.
The original retreat route has changed.
Inside this cave... there are many hidden traps. No wonder these people choose to use this place as their hideout.
Now that we are here, let’s destroy it together.
Lou Wanqiao dodged another wave of attacks. The two constables were already in a terrible state, and her shoulder was also cut by the dense blades.
As she listened carefully, her long-standing vigilance made her uneasy, and she suddenly raised the knife back almost entirely relying on instinct.
Clang!!
Lou Wanqiao was hit by the stone wall and rolled to the ground, then he turned over and got up nimbly.
"Li Huanian! Stop just staring!"
The moment she shouted, Lou Wanqiao felt her whole body lighten and someone lifted her up by the waist.
Someone led her through the darkness and merged her into the even darker place.
The magnetic voice was low and a little chilly, pressing against her ears.
"Thank you, I'm here."
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