Chapter 48 It's in my hands...
Chapter Forty-Eight is in hand.
Shen Bijun sent men, but when they returned, they found no one there.
"Madam Lian, could you be mistaken?" The person who spoke was a martial arts expert invited by Old Madam Shen, residing in the Shen family home. He wasn't particularly famous in the martial arts world, but he was considered one of the better experts Old Madam Shen could find. It just goes to show that the Shen family had indeed fallen on hard times.
However, he wasn't the only one who came; there were others who were prominent figures in the martial arts world. They weren't here for the Shen family or Old Madam Shen; they were after the Deer-Slaying Knife. But being people of pride, they didn't make it too obvious, and they would lend a hand if the Shen family were in trouble.
Just like today, when they heard from Shen Bijun that there were thieves in the Shen family, they all rushed over to help. However, when they arrived, they didn't see anyone there.
“That man tried to kidnap me, and then another person appeared to save me. The two of them fought. I can’t be mistaken.” Shen Bijun walked to the artificial hill and touched the marks on it. “These are new marks.”
"It looks like a sword mark," one of the men said after examining the area. "According to Madam Lian, neither the thief nor the person who intervened later used a sword. So it must have been a third person. He came, took the two men away, and left a sword mark here."
"That's unlikely. If it was a mark left by a sword, how skilled would the person be to leave such a deep mark on this stone?" The other person reached out and touched the mark, confirming that he couldn't have done it.
He's been famous in the martial arts world for decades, and even he couldn't do it. Could it be that... "Could it be that Ye Gucheng or Ximen Chuixue came by?"
"Impossible. One of them lives deep overseas most of the time, and the other only goes out four times a year. If they had shown up, how could there not be news about them?"
"That's true."
"Perhaps it's Sect Leader Dugu?" After all, the reputation of being a master of both swords and sabers wasn't given to him for nothing by his fellow martial artists.
"That's impossible. Since Abbess Miejue has led her disciples down the mountain, Sect Leader Dugu won't easily follow suit." Everyone knows that the Emei Sect has two sect leaders; if one goes down the mountain, the other won't.
"Who else could it be?" This man was ready to guess at every famous swordsman in the martial arts world. He had no choice; after all, it was just a sword mark, revealing no martial arts technique or source of internal energy. Aside from the deep sword mark, nothing else could be discerned, leaving him only able to guess at highly skilled swordsmen.
Shen Bijun, however, seemed to have thought of something. "Isn't there a swordswoman in the city recently? She only rose to fame in the martial arts world this year."
"Is Madam Lian referring to Feng Qingyang's disciple?"
"Impossible, how could Ling Hao have such ability?" Even he couldn't create that sword mark.
“Why not?” Shen Bijun insisted on his idea. “She single-handedly overwhelmed many martial arts practitioners in Fuzhou City, so why couldn’t she leave such a sword mark? Moreover…”
"And what?" A somewhat aged voice came from behind the crowd.
"Grandma?" Shen Bijun saw the person who came and quickly went forward to help her.
Although Old Madam Shen was old, she was still quite healthy and didn't need anyone to help her. However, since it was her granddaughter's filial piety, she didn't refuse. "Bijun, just say what you wanted to say."
Although Old Madam Shen was old and the Shen family had declined considerably, she still retained some prestige. When everyone saw her arrive, they all stepped aside to let her move forward.
"Moreover, the person who stopped the thieves and allowed my granddaughter to return and report the news was Xiao Shiyilang. Linghao, the heroine, had a conflict with Xiao Shiyilang and had been chasing him. Perhaps she caught up with him here and, seeing the thieves fighting with Xiao Shiyilang, simply took them both away." Shen Bijun thought for a moment and then voiced her guesses. "I still believe that the person was Linghao, the heroine."
"What? The notorious thief Xiao Shiyi Lang? What's he doing here?"
"Xiao Shiyilang has come to the Shen family? Could it be that he's here to steal the Deer-Slaying Knife?"
"Very likely. Gentlemen, we must be vigilant and not let Xiao Shiyilang succeed, otherwise we will all lose face."
"Of course, we can't let the notorious thief Xiao Shiyi Lang come and go as he pleases. He will have to pay the price."
Upon hearing Xiao Shiyilang's name, everyone present became excited, and no one paid any attention to Shen Bijun's words. Perhaps it was because they felt it was unimportant, and naturally, they didn't bother to listen.
Shen Bijun frowned slightly. This was clearly a very common scene, but she just felt uncomfortable.
Old Madam Shen patted Shen Bijun's hand, said a few words to everyone present, and then asked them to disperse.
After everyone had left, Shen Bijun couldn't wait to speak and said, "Grandma, why didn't you let me continue just now? I..."
“It’s no use.” Old Madam Shen looked at Shen Bijun with affection. “Most men in the world look down on women. Unless you can suppress them in person and be several times stronger than them, even if you are right, most men will not listen. Therefore, they do not think what you just said is correct, nor do they think that Linghao heroine has the ability.”
Shen Bijun bit her lip. Of course she knew about this, but she just couldn't bear to be ignored.
"They don't believe you. Either you find evidence that forces them to believe you, or you are strong enough that they have no choice but to follow you. Bijun, you should understand that," Old Madam Shen said earnestly.
Shen Bijun nodded. "Bijun understands."
Meanwhile, Linghao and Gongzi Mingyue had already met at their agreed-upon location. One was with the young master, and the other was with Xiao Shiyilang and Feng Siniang.
When Ling Hao saw that Gongzi Mingyue had dragged the two of them over, she frowned and quickly stepped forward, taking them from him. She then dragged them along and tossed them aside with the young master. She looked Gongzi Mingyue up and down, and only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that he was unharmed.
She said with a hint of helplessness, "Didn't I tell you to let me do these heavy tasks? How much do those two people weigh? What if you get tired?"
Ling Hao always felt that Gongzi Mingyue's body was weak, and that he was only better than ordinary people because of his internal energy. But she thought that if he got tired, he would definitely fall ill. Sigh, the original plan was for him to capture Feng Si Niang and for her to capture Xiao Shiyi Lang.
Who knew that something unexpected would happen halfway through, and a young master suddenly appeared, otherwise he wouldn't have been so tired.
Gongzi Mingyue smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'm not tired. Ah Hao, I'm very capable, this is nothing."
He was telling the truth, but Linghao felt he was just putting on a brave face. "Okay, okay, Mingyue, you're the best. You can't do that again. Next time, just wait for me, okay?"
"Hmm." Young Master Mingyue nodded, his face full of joy at being cared for. "Ah Hao, you've got your ten thousand taels." He glanced at the unconscious Xiao Shiyilang and said this.
A note from the author:
----------------------
Xiao Shiyilang: …………
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
