Chapter 224: Two Hundred and Thirty-Two, Hostage

Two Hundred and Thirty-Two, Hostage

"Where are the people?"

Xie Ling asked softly.

Yet no one dared to make a sound.

"Ouyang Lianghan, where are the people?" Xie Ling repeated, enunciating every word.

"Second Brother, this Ouyang Lianghan seems to have secretly taken leave and returned to his old home in Nanlong. When our people arrived, the place was already deserted. Only these people are left at Meilu Garden..."

Xie Shigui lowered his head, his face full of guilt.

"Then why didn't you discover this a few days ago and only come to tell me now? What have you been doing all this time, what have you been doing! Eating for free, huh?"

"Second Brother... I..."

Xie Shigui raised his head, then lowered it again, his lips twitching:

"It is my dereliction of duty, Second Brother. I am willing to accept punishment."

As he spoke, he prepared to kneel, but behind him, the lame steward Mao Jin stepped forward to support him.

He pleaded in a low voice:

"Master, the Third Young Master is also in a position where even a clever housewife cannot cook without rice. Previously, that Xie Lingjiang and Yan Wuxu kept hounding the case of the Immortal Lady Yuzhi, and they watched us too closely; it was difficult for us to plant eyes and ears."

"Before and after the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Di Gong Zha, Ouyang Lianghan even purged the county government from top to bottom..."

"Some time ago, you also needed to swallow your pride to appease and stabilize Ouyang Lianghan. Our scouts had to be extremely careful, only daring to observe from indirect angles, fearing we would be caught and exposed..."

Xie Ling seemed not to hear, not even looking at the meddling Mao Jin. He turned his head to stare at Xie Shigui and said:

"How did you guarantee it to me a few days ago?"

Mentioning this, Xie Shigui immediately looked resentful, facing the direction of Meilu Garden:

"Big Brother, it's inconvenient for our scouts to get too close to Luming Street. We could only find a high spot nearby to watch Ouyang Lianghan's courtyard and residence from afar. For the past few days, the lights were clearly on in Ouyang Lianghan's courtyard every night, but who would have thought..."

Xie Ling did not listen further. He suddenly turned around, pushed aside the green-clad servant, stepped forward, grabbed the official hat and hair of County Magistrate Cai Qin, and dragged him out.

This Second Young Master of the Xie family had today completely shed his usual gentle, warm, and honest demeanor in front of everyone.

It was as if he had changed into a different person.

From the moment he led the retainers and thugs to suddenly surround the ceremony this morning and take control of the entire scene, his sickly face had been full of cold indifference, his gaze sharp and predatory.

He looked like a world-weary, sickly tiger.

Xie Ling stared at Cai Qin, who was crying out for mercy, and asked:

"Old thing, why did you only notify me this morning that Ouyang Lianghan took leave and wouldn't come! What were you doing these past few days? When I asked you, you just nodded happily—were you playing me for a fool?"

Cai Qin cried with a mournful face:

"Master Xie, this official... this humble one did not do it on purpose. It was the Magistrate who instructed this humble one to do so before he left on leave, saying..."

"Saying what?"

"The Magistrate smiled at the time and told this humble one to wait until the day of to tell you he couldn't come. The Magistrate said that only then would you and the Xie family work harder and be more obedient in helping the county government share its burdens. He also said something about preventing Master Xie from slacking off—I didn't understand the term."

Xie Ling:???

He couldn't catch his breath and took two steps back.

He widened his eyes, looking at the two "crouching tigers and hidden dragons" before him, Xie Shigui and Cai Qin.

Xie Ling was furious. He drew his sword and slashed wildly to the left and right; fragments of tea tables, flagpoles, and other items on the high platform scattered all over the ground.

His sword tip pointed straight toward the distant Nanlong direction:

"You brat, you brat! How dare you play me for a fool! Your mother is a slave! I'll f*** your mother!"

The most distant distance in the world is when you prepare to take revenge, thinking ten years is not too long, but after ten years of painstaking endurance, the other party just pats their butt and leaves like a big shot, returning home in glory, while the punch you prepared for ten years and struck with all your might lands entirely on cotton.

One must ask.

How stifling is that?

This brat was too cunning; he almost made Xie Ling's lungs explode with anger.

He took several deep breaths before barely suppressing the fire in his lungs.

"Misfortunes never come singly. Ouyang Lianghan, you just had to be away from Longcheng at this exact time! Why, why does Heaven favor you so much..."

Xie Ling's chest heaved violently with his breathing. He looked up at the sky, and seeing the sun gradually reaching its zenith, approaching a certain time near noon, a flash of anxiety crossed his face.

A moment later, Xie Ling gradually regained his composure.

He suddenly turned his head, his face gloomy, and asked Xie Shigui:

"When you took people to Meilu Garden to make arrests this morning and passed by Luming Street, did you deliver the message from the old gentleman to Young Master Wei and the others as I told you?"

Seeing his Second Brother speak voluntarily, Xie Shigui breathed a long sigh of relief and nodded hurriedly:

"Second Brother, the message has been delivered."

"I took people over and happened to run into Boss Li. He was leading his men, disguised as mountain bandits, imprisoning the Su family next door."

"Boss Li took me to the residence opposite the Su residence. Young Master Wei had just finished burning incense and bathing, and he received us."

"Playing bandits to imprison that family—what kind of trick is this?"

Xie Ling frowned slightly at first and shook his head, then brushed it aside and asked calmly:

"What did Young Master Wei say?"

"Young Master Wei seemed to be in a good mood after hearing the message. He said he understood the rules of the sword smith, that he would definitely follow the old gentleman's instructions, and that he would arrive at the Grade A Sword Furnace room punctually at the second quarter of noon to collect the sword case, and would absolutely not disturb him before then."

"Young Master Wei also asked me to pass on a message, telling the old gentleman not to rush and to wash the sword well."

Xie Ling nodded and asked softly: "Then, what about that Mo family sword case that Young Master Wei brought out?"

Xie Shigui turned his head and waved to the back.

Mao Jin, who was guarding the hostages, saw this, bowed, and stepped forward. He walked to the secluded spot where Xie Ling and Xie Shigui were talking and bowed respectfully:

"Reporting to the Master, that sword case has already been personally delivered by this humble one back to the Grade A Sword Furnace and handed over to the old gentleman personally. Once the old gentleman received the item, he closed the door and did not come out again."

Xie Ling nodded slowly, his expression relaxing slightly.

"Fortunately, there were no mishaps in this matter."

Xie Ling thought to himself, then turned to look at his Third Brother and the lame steward, his expression still somewhat displeased.

He let out a cold "humph."

Xie Shigui gathered a bit of courage and asked with a puzzled expression:

"Second Brother, even if Ouyang Lianghan is hateful and must die, and I wish I could eat his flesh, we have big things to do right now; there's no need to be in such a rush for this moment, is there?"

He paused, frowned slightly, and voiced the confusion stuck in his heart:

"Things are urgent right now; why spend precious time searching for him with such fanfare..."

Xie Ling nodded, his face calm, his voice slightly cold:

"So Third Brother also thinks that my fawning, fawning, and painstaking efforts to hold this new canal celebration were a huge waste of effort and extremely stupid?"

Xie Shigui was stunned and immediately shook his head:

"How could that be? Third Brother has never thought so. On the contrary, I think Second Brother's move is truly a stroke of genius! Not only has it stabilized the situation, but it can also wash away our previous shame and re-establish our Xie family's prestige!"

Mao Jin also nodded, looking at Xie Ling with a reverent expression:

"The situation in Longcheng is quite chaotic today, but the Master made preparations early, controlling most of the county government officials and the main officials. Now there is no organized force that can stop us for the time being. This is called 'capturing the bandits by capturing their leader first'."

"It is just that we subordinates are dull and ineffective, letting Ouyang Lianghan escape and failing to execute your plan well. We are the ones holding you back."

Unlike the sycophantic Mao Jin.

Xie Shigui's expression at this moment was quite excited. He pointed at the trembling officials and gentry on the platform, as well as the terrified Longcheng commoners below, and grinned:

"Let's see who dares to look down on our Longcheng Xie family in the future! This group of corrupt officials and cunning people, relying on Ouyang Lianghan's backing these days, really thought of themselves as grandfathers? Treating our Xie family like grandsons?"

Xie Shigui looked satisfied and pointed sternly at the silent crowd below:

"Now you know who the real masters of Longcheng are!?"

The whole scene was silent, heads lowered, daring to be angry but not daring to speak.

Xie Ling listened silently to the words of the two people in front of him, nodded slightly, and said indifferently:

"Good, Third Brother is right." The tone suddenly changed: "Then go now, detain all these corrupt officials and cunning people! Aren't there a batch of ready-made official ships over there? Take as many as you can. Let's go, back to the West Bank Sword Shop!"

Xie Ling said with a gloomy face, waving his hand.

Xie Shigui and Mao Jin were both stunned and looked at each other.

"Second Brother."

Xie Shigui asked Xie Ling, who had turned to leave, in confusion:

"Isn't it to establish prestige? Why take these burdens back? As hostages? But Ouyang Lianghan is not in Longcheng County either."

Xie Ling stopped, patted Xie Shigui on the shoulder, nodded, and said:

"Aren't you trying to avenge Big Brother? These people watched coldly on the street when Big Brother was stabbed, and they kicked him while he was down—they are all accomplices!"

He sighed up at the sky and said earnestly: "Then send them to the Dragon-Slaying Platform."

Xie Shigui was stunned as he listened.

When he heard the three words "Dragon-Slaying Platform," he shivered slightly, as if remembering the arrangements this Second Brother had made early on at the Dragon-Slaying Platform.

That was originally intended to entertain Ouyang Lianghan.

And at this moment, Xie Shigui looked at the corners of Xie Ling's mouth, which were pulled up, and the hidden, bloody, and cruel murderous intent.

"Second Brother, this..." Xie Shigui shivered again.

"What, have you forgotten Big Brother's revenge?"

"No... no, how could I dare to forget."

Xie Shigui wanted to say something but stopped, his brows furrowed tightly, and he whispered:

"But Second Brother, this Longcheng County is after all the place where our Xie family rose to prominence. Even if we get the help of the Wei family after today and rise to the two capitals, we will inevitably have clansmen mixing here in the future. Is it really good to cut off so many heads to offer sacrifices?"

"Besides, our Xie family's ancestral graves are also here..."

"How about leaving a line, picking out a few who love to jump around to torture and kill in public to sacrifice the flag, and the rest will be as honest as two-legged lambs? Isn't that what Big Brother taught us before..."

"If you kill them all, who will you enslave and exploit?"

Xie Ling listened quietly to his Third Brother's words, during which he kept looking at Xie Shigui, whose expression was hesitant.

This sickly current head of the Xie family suddenly said: "Third Brother, you really listen to Big Brother."

Xie Shigui laughed dryly: "Second Brother, I listen to both you and Big Brother. Now I only listen to you, but I just think Big Brother's words make some sense..."

Xie Ling's observing and measuring gaze instantly converged and disappeared without a trace. He sighed:

"Third Brother, this is your womanly benevolence. How about Second Brother teaching you a truth."

"Kill one person, and they will want to kill you. Kill ten people, and they will hate you. Kill a hundred people, and they will fear you. But kill a thousand or ten thousand, and they will praise you."

"On this road, you will only be safer the more people you kill. Do you understand?"

Xie Shigui was speechless, his expression somewhat complicated. He was at a loss, as if caught in some kind of struggle.

Xie Ling showed a tired expression, pressed his hand firmly on Xie Shigui's shoulder, and the latter stared at him blankly.

Xie Ling said earnestly:

"Third Brother, how could I not be thinking about the Xie family all the time? These days, I have exhausted my energy, just wanting to fulfill Big Brother's wish."

No, he didn't want to at all.

Xie Ling calmly withdrew his hand, put it into his sleeve, and touched a cold, hard bronze mask inside his sleeve.

The mask was brand new.

This was cast for him by the Immortal Lady Yuzhi before the ribbon-cutting ceremony. It already contained the phantom of a female ear-of-grain worker. As long as he had this item, the world was vast—where could he not go?

That was what the Immortal Lady Yuzhi did back then, traveling all the way south from the northern coast, dodging many pursuits, and even daring to lurk under the noses of that group of Wu-Yue female cultivators next door...

Xie Shigui listened to Xie Ling's words, his expression hesitant and struggling for a moment, and soon showed a decisive expression:

"Good, Second Brother, I will listen to you..."

Xie Ling, who was hiding his hands in his sleeves and lowering his eyes, suddenly interrupted:

"Wait, did you just say that you saw Boss Li's men on Luming Street, disguised as bandits, controlling that Su family?"

Xie Shigui nodded: "That's right, it should be the instruction of that Young Master Wei. I don't know what he is plotting. This Young Master Wei is worthy of being from the capital; he has many tricks, more than us in playing with prey."

Xie Ling did not pay attention to Xie Shigui anymore. He turned and walked to the edge of the platform, looking into the distance in the direction of Luming Street, whispering imperceptibly:

"Sacrificing these ants, taking quantity to get quality is too troublesome. If it is the identity and bloodline of that family, picking out a male descendant, the feedback of spirituality would be enough..."

"That's right, Xie Ling, Xie Ling, why must you be obsessed with Ouyang Lianghan as a sacrifice? Although the Immortal Lady Yuzhi successfully rose in rank by borrowing it, his spirituality is definitely enough... That's right, that's it, don't let anger cloud your judgment."

Xie Ling raised his head again, just as he opened his mouth to prepare for deployment again.

"Master, Master! The Longcheng County government has sent people again, and they have been caught by the old servant's men."

Mao Jin, who had quietly retreated at some unknown time, returned and suddenly brought back a strange piece of news.

Xie Ling waved his hand impatiently: "They've come twice already, aren't you annoyed? Drag them out and slaughter them. If they dare to bother me again, when we go back later, we'll catch all those remnants on the way."

"Master, this time it's a bit different. It's not just people coming foolishly to beg for ships. The old servant also got a piece of good news from their mouths: Ouyang Lianghan has returned to Longcheng and is now in the county!"

Xie Ling's movements paused, then he widened his eyes in sudden joy.

"Good, good, good!" He called out three times. He put his hands behind his back, paced back and forth, excited for a moment, then turned calmly, narrowed his eyes, and ordered: "Someone, deliver a letter for me."

"As you command!"

Mao Jin immediately turned and retreated to execute the order.

Xie Shigui on the side also grinned hideously: "Good for you, Ouyang Lianghan, you dare to come back. Truly, enemies are bound to meet on a narrow road!"

"Humph." Xie Ling turned his head, his gaze coldly cast toward the corrupt officials and cunning people on the field, and the batches of official ships moored in front of the river beach not far away. He nodded:

"Ouyang Lianghan, you probably don't know the reason for the rising water today, and you don't know that the entire Longcheng County is now a game about the Tripod Sword? It's fine, just be an ignorant ghost. I like standing behind and watching smart people die without knowing why."

Xie Ling muttered, and Xie Shigui beside him turned his head to look at his Second Brother.

About an hour later.

Zhe Yiqu, Songlin Ferry.

Inside and outside the ceremony platform, everything was silent.

Just in this oppressive silence, the figure of a young county magistrate arrived silently.

Countless different gazes from the whole scene were cast over.

Ouyang Lianghan had arrived. ===== CHAPTER 225 =====