Chapter 9: All Are Using Others to Commit Murder, Dying with Regret (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"Giddyup! Scatter!"

"Scatter, all of you! The Jing'an Guard is on official business!"

A group of Jing'an Guards, draped in black robes, with long blades at their waists and wearing white Faceless Masks, galloped recklessly through the city, causing a scene of chaos and panic.

Pedestrians on the street either shrieked or screamed as they dodged to both sides to avoid being trampled by the iron hooves.

Pei Shaoqing suddenly felt that these Jing'an Guards were no better than the horse bandits; although the bandits killed for loot and murdered for money, they at least followed traffic rules and wouldn't go charging wildly through the streets.

However, he was now a member of the Jing'an Guard himself.

He had to fit in.

"Hmph! These lackeys are truly arrogant, every one of them is overbearing and hateful!" At a table facing the street on the second floor of a tavern, a young girl in a pale purple dress looked at this scene with indignation.

She was about seventeen or eighteen, with willow-leaf eyebrows, almond eyes, and a cherry mouth; her slightly round face paired with delicate features made her look like a cute porcelain doll, and her petite figure already had quite a few curves, causing the fabric at her chest to heave slightly in anger.

At the table were also a young man of similar age, a middle-aged man with a beard, and a middle-aged beauty who still possessed great charm. The middle-aged man frowned and reminded her: "Watch your words and actions. We have important business in Tongzhou; let's avoid complicating matters."

"I know, Master." The girl in the purple dress reluctantly withdrew her gaze and drank a cup of wine in a sullen mood.

The middle-aged beauty, dressed in a white gown with skin like jade, a full figure, and a mature, gentle temperament, smiled and softly comforted her: "I know Lan'er hates evil, but when it involves the authorities, it is better to avoid extra trouble, otherwise it will bring great misfortune."

"I know, Mistress. I only say these things in front of you." Zhao Zhilan huffed, pouted, and slammed her empty wine cup onto the table. "Senior Brother, pour the wine."

The young man did not feel offended by her rudeness at all; he smiled slightly and gently poured another cup of wine for the girl, his eyes full of doting affection.

Outside the city gate, the nine guards who had been ordered to wait outside in advance stepped forward to welcome Pei Shaoqing upon seeing him.

"Greetings, Young Master."

"Mm." Pei Shaoqing reined in his horse, pulled the reins, and looked back at his subordinates, saying: "These men are all my personal guards; they will join us in suppressing the bandits."

"Yes!" the group of Jing'an Guards replied in unison.

They immediately understood the situation; to bring so many personal guards to a new post meant this new superior must have a prominent family background. No wonder the Centurion had personally led two Flag Captains and a group of Small Flags out of the city to welcome him yesterday.

Their gazes toward Pei Shaoqing became much more respectful. In the Great Zhou, one might not respect a person's martial prowess, but one must respect their background and power.

"Continue! Giddyup!"

Pei Shaoqing squeezed the horse's flanks with his legs and accelerated again.

The nineteen riders followed closely behind, their horse hooves clattering across the dry official road, kicking up clouds of dust.

Soon, they entered the layered peaks of Phoenix Mountain.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

Passing through a dense forest, sharp sounds of air being pierced suddenly erupted from both sides, and dozens of arrows rained down upon them.

"Enemy attack!" Pei Shaoqing shouted, putting on a show.

"An ambush! Protect Lord Pei!"

The nine horse bandits posing as guards had been briefed (tricked) by Pei Shaoqing in advance and knew this was a play arranged by the Chief to gather the brothers of the stronghold, so they were not panicked at all and calmly went through the motions of fighting the enemy.

The ten Jing'an Guards remained calm in the face of danger; the weakest among them was at the Body Refining Realm, and they shielded Pei Shaoqing in the center, easily deflecting the sharp arrows with their blades.

"Kill!" "Kill these dog officials!"

Accompanied by shouts of battle, dozens of bandits with their faces covered in black cloth rushed out from the dense forest on both sides and the trees above, focusing their attacks on the few horse bandits posing as guards—their former good brothers.

Because according to the Second Chief, it was these guys who had defected to the government, leading to the ambush and death of the Chief who had gone down the mountain to loot yesterday, and now they were even bringing the Jing'an Guard to wipe out the stronghold; they truly deserved to die!

Because they had no defenses against their own people, five of the nine horse bandits posing as guards were killed in the blink of an eye.

"Stop! We're on your side!" The remaining four realized something was wrong and cried out in alarm, their faces pale.

"How bold!" Pei Shaoqing's eyes widened in anger as he pointed his blade at them and roared: "No wonder the news of the suppression leaked and we were ambushed; so you lot actually betrayed this official and colluded with the bandits! You deserve death! Kill them!"

First hacked at by their former brothers, and now accused of being traitors by the Chief, the four were completely bewildered. Before they could react, the nearby Jing'an Guards had already pounced on them.

Within a few breaths, all four were dead.

Thus, all the bandits who had followed Pei Shaoqing down the mountain to rob yesterday had perished.

"My Lord! The enemy is many and we are few, you must leave first!"

A Jing'an Guard shouted while fighting.

Pei Shaoqing's two moves to block arrows earlier had shown them that this superior's martial arts were mediocre; with him here, everyone had to divide their attention and energy to protect his safety, making it impossible to fight without distraction.

Moreover, to be able to join the Jing'an Guard and even be a Small Flag without even entering the path of martial arts showed how deep his background was. If he died here or suffered any injury, they would certainly meet a miserable end.

Therefore, sending Pei Shaoqing away was both to focus on killing the enemy and to protect his safety.

"Good! I will return to the city for reinforcements; you must kill all the bandits, leave no one alive!"

Pei Shaoqing left these words behind and rode away.

Without him, the Chief, and Ye Hanshuang, the Second Chief, taking action, the bandits in the stronghold could handle ordinary merchant guards or county bailiffs, but against the Jing'an Guard, they were essentially being slaughtered unilaterally.

Sorry, brothers. After eating and drinking well with me for so many years, for the sake of my lifelong wealth, I have to wrong you by cutting your lives short; go on ahead.

He galloped toward the place he had agreed upon with Ye Hanshuang. Sure enough, before long, he saw a masked man standing in the middle of the road, holding a blade in one hand.

"Who are you! What is your intent!" Pei Shaoqing pulled the reins to a stop and asked with a nervous face, though he knew full well it was Xu Zhiyong, he pretended not to know.

Seeing that he was alone, Xu Zhiyong took off his mask and said sinisterly: "Noble Consort has ordered your death. Young Master Pei, you can't blame me for this! When you get to the underworld, make sure you know who the real culprit is."

"Flag Captain Xu! It's you! Did Wan Guifei send you to kill me?" Pei Shaoqing gasped in shock, but beneath his mask, he was completely calm. He feigned panic and helplessness, saying: "My father is the Weiyuan Marquis. Flag Captain Xu, spare my life, and I will surely reward you handsomely."

"Arrogant fellow, you dare use the word 'reward' when death is at your doorstep?" Xu Zhiyong was inexplicably provoked. He tapped his toes, leaped high like a swallow, and bore down on Pei Shaoqing. "Kid, hand over your life!"

"Clang~"

The next second, accompanied by the sound of metal clashing, the long blade at Pei Shaoqing's waist left its sheath. A sharp blade light flashed, easily deflecting Xu Zhiyong's blade. At the same time, he did not let up, leaping from his horse to deliver a slash.

"Ah!" Still in shock and confusion, Xu Zhiyong hurriedly raised his blade to block. With a *clang*, sparks flew, his blade was knocked away, and he landed heavily from the air, stumbling back a few steps before steadying himself. His hand holding the blade trembled, and he stared at Pei Shaoqing in disbelief, exclaiming: "Condensing Qi Realm!"

Damn it, wasn't it said he knew nothing of martial arts?

"The one who should be damned is you, Xu Yuanqing!" Pei Shaoqing landed on his horse, standing tall, and pointed his blade at Xu Zhiyong from afar, saying coldly from his high position.

Xu Zhiyong was stunned: "Xu Yuanqing?"

"That's right! You are Xu Yuanqing!" Pei Shaoqing removed his mask, a trace of mockery and a cold smile on his face as he said: "No wonder Xu Yuanqing wore a mask; it was because he was afraid that if people saw his true face, they would recognize him as a Jing'an Guard Flag Captain! No wonder he could repeatedly escape government suppression; it was because he had another identity as a Jing'an Guard Flag Captain! But what a pity, the net of heaven is vast and leaks nothing; your true face is about to be revealed to the world!"

"You... you want to kill me to claim credit!" Xu Zhiyong's eyes widened, his voice turning shrill. Knowing that the gap in strength made escape hopeless, he, already drenched in sweat, plopped to his knees on the spot. Biting his lips, he kowtowed repeatedly to beg for mercy: "Young Master Pei, spare my life, spare me! I didn't want to do this either; it was all forced by Lord Zheng, I had no choice! Please, spare me, I will be your beast of burden, I will be your dog!"

"It's a pity I only like female dogs." Pei Shaoqing shook his head, leaped down from his horse, and pressed forward step by step.

Just then, a sudden noise erupted. Also wearing a black mask, the over-two-meter-tall Ye Hanshuang leaped between the treetops. After landing, she sprinted over with sword in hand, the single ponytail at the back of her head whipping high in the air. It was a pity she had bound her chest today, otherwise, the sight would surely have been beautiful.

Hearing the sound, Xu Zhiyong turned his head and was overjoyed to see her running toward him. Feeling like he had survived a disaster, he sprang up and braced himself: "Chief Xu, you've come just in time! Let us join forces immediately and kill this man!"

"Puchi!"

The next instant, while he was completely off guard, the long sword in Ye Hanshuang's hand pierced through his heart, and fresh blood dripped steadily from the blade onto the soil.

Xu Zhiyong's body stiffened on the spot. He slowly lowered his head to look at the sword blade protruding from his chest, his eyes filled with shock and confusion, then looked up again to stare fixedly at Ye Hanshuang.

He did not understand, he truly did not understand.

"Puchi!"

Ye Hanshuang pulled out her long sword, and after a grunt, Xu Zhiyong's body lost its support and fell heavily to the ground.

"Big Brother." Ye Hanshuang sheathed her sword, walked up to Pei Shaoqing, removed her mask, and called out in a cold voice.

Xu Zhiyong, who had not yet breathed his last, watched this scene with eyes wide in fury, his mouth continuously emitting wheezing sounds.

Pei Shaoqing sheathed his blade, walked to Xu Zhiyong's side with a smile on his lips, "Your mind must be very confused, right? Let me let you die with clarity: I am Xu Yuanqing. The real Pei Shaoqing has already been disposed of by me. Of course, from now on, you are Xu Yuanqing, and I am the Young Master of the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion, a dignified member of the Jing'an Guard, and the hero who, just after taking office, wiped out the Phoenix Mountain bandits and killed the bandit leader Xu Yuanqing! Hahahaha! Hahahahaha!"

"Heh~ heh~ you... Puh!" Xu Zhiyong's chest heaved violently from his agitation, and then he spat out a mouthful of blood and breathed his last, his eyes wide open, dying with a grievance.

(End of chapter)