Chapter 1879

Liang Da Zhuang still found time to visit Qinghong Ge despite his busy schedule; there are many places like Qinghong Ge in this area, and Qinghong Ge is not a high-class establishment, inside there are no famous courtesans, only vulgar commoners, doing business for lowly folk; truly respectable people would disdain going to such a place.

For Liang Da Zhuang, however, there was nothing special about it; as an ordinary servant, this place suited him perfectly, and as a normal man, it was only natural for a man to come here to relieve his own needs.

Even so, Liang Da Zhuang remained very cautious; after completing the task Hu Xiaotian had entrusted to him, he waited until nightfall, then slipped out, taking several turns to ensure no one was following, before coming to Qinghong Ge and discreetly flipping Chun Hong's sign.

Chun Hong is Xiang Qin; even at Qinghong Ge, her looks belong to the type nobody patronizes; as a woman she is naturally of extremely high safety. If it weren't for Liang Da Zhuang's occasional visit, the patrons who came to Qinghong Ge would hardly glance at her, although she is actually the behind-the-scenes boss here.

Outsiders are unaware of the inside story; to them, whoever flips Chun Hong's sign simply has peculiar tastes, or put nicely, to each his own.

Upon entering Chun Hong's room, Liang Da Zhuang let out a deep sigh; his humble, fawning smile vanished instantly, his plump frame straightened considerably, the essence hidden in his small eyes burst forth, and his whole person was shrouded in an inscrutable, profound aura.

Xiang Qin sat by candlelight, her chubby hands constantly playing with the pink silk handkerchief, her large, basin-like face showing no smile, she oddly regarded Liang Da Zhuang and said, "Why did you come all of a sudden?"

Liang Da Zhuang sighed, turned to bolt the door, moved away from the window and sat down, lowering his voice: "He probably suspects me."

Xiang Qin snorted disdainfully: "Hasn't he suspected you all along?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "I can't come here anymore."

Xiang Qin said: "You're that afraid of him?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "His methods are getting more and more ruthless; he must have formed an offensive-defensive alliance with Hong Beimo, and furthermore..."

"And what?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Long Xi Yue has returned, and she will be staying often in Kangdu."

Xiang Qin said: "That's hardly news." The fact that the King of Zhenhai's consort has arrived in Kangdu is already common knowledge.

Liang Da Zhuang said: "You only see the surface, not the behind-the-scenes maneuvering; Long Xi Yue's visit this time is as a hostage, and Hu Xiaotian is about to leave Kangdu."

Xiang Qin said: "Given his temperament, how could he let Long Xi Yue take such a risk?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "There are two possibilities: one, he believes he has enough ability to guarantee Long Xi Yue's safety; two, he and the Yongyang Princess are feigning discord to make outsiders think they still have a rift, I worry they have already reached an agreement, and if they join forces with Hong Beimo, they could cooperate seamlessly, making it unlikely anyone would ignore such a power."

Xiang Qin seemed uninterested in Liang Da Zhuang's words, lazily asking: "Where is Hu Xiaotian going?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Supposedly to Dongliang Jun, but I suspect he's actually going to track down the skull."

Xiang Qin nodded: "Looks like he's already found the skull's whereabouts."

Liang Da Zhuang pressed his lips, as if he had something to say but held back, remained silent for a moment, then finally couldn't help asking: "Was the Xuanti Lei that night of their final battle yours?"

Xiang Qin gave him a sideways glance: "Why would you think it was me?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Why did you kill him?" After a pause he added: "Why did the old lady want to kill him?"

Xiang Qin said: "That has nothing to do with me!"

Liang Da Zhuang shook his head: "Since Hu Xiaotian returned this time, I've noticed your methods have changed a lot; has the old lady already changed her plan? If so, why not tell me plainly?"

Xiang Qin sighed: "You're always overly suspicious; you know how I feel about you, don't you? Are you worried I'll harm you?"

Liang Da Zhuang gave a heh heh cold laugh: "Everyone works for the old lady just to stay alive; if staying alive means you can discard dignity, what else matters?" He didn't believe a word of what Xiang Qin said.

Xiang Qin said: "It's too late; you should go back, you shouldn't have come; if Hu Xiaotian discovers our connection, you know the consequences."

Liang Da Zhuang said: "You still haven't given me an explanation; the old lady only told me to watch Hu Xiaotian, never said to kill him, so why did she suddenly change her mind that day at Fengyi Shan Zhuang?"

Xiang Qin snapped: "I've said it's nothing to do with me; why do you keep pressing?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "Few people know whom Hu Xiaotian and Bu Bu Ma were to meet, and those who possess Xuanti Lei are even fewer; I didn't do it, so who else?" He stared fixedly at Xiang Qin, obviously convinced the explosion was her doing.

Xiang Qin said: "You should know the old lady's temperament; if she doesn't want others to know something, you'd better not ask."

Liang Da Zhuang said: "I want to see her, I want to ask her directly what's going on."

Xiang Qin coldly said: "Your mission is to watch Hu Xiaotian, not anything else."

Liang Da Zhuang shook his head: "I can't go back; if I return I'll surely expose a flaw; tonight I'm leaving, I have no intention of coming back."

Xiang Qin snapped: "You dare defy orders?"

Liang Da Zhuang said in a low voice: "Since you've already decided to kill him, my staying here is meaningless; do you want me to die with him? The old lady is truly ruthless!"

Xiang Qin said: "I don't need to explain myself to you!"

Liang Da Zhuang nodded: "Fine, I'll give you three days; if you can't give me a reasonable explanation, I'll tell Hu Xiaotian everything."

Xiang Qin snapped: "You dare!"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "You should know my temperament."

A cold voice came from behind the curtains: "Then you have only a dead end left."

Liang Da Zhuang's heart jolted; he hadn't noticed anyone hiding behind the curtains; a woman in a gray cloak stepped out slowly, her face expressionless, her pair of cold eyes full of killing intent, a woman Liang Da Zhuang had never seen before; he glanced at Xiang Qin.

Xiang Qin, however, sighed: "You shouldn't have said that." She shifted to the right, cleverly blocking Liang Da Zhuang's retreat.

Liang Da Zhuang then calmed down, quietly gazing at the gray-clad woman and asked: "Who are you?"

The gray-clad woman extended her right hand; her skin was deathly white, devoid of any trace of blood; she opened her palm, in which lay a dead Black Kiss Bird, and said softly: "Everyone says you're cautious, yet you were being tracked by this bird and didn't notice."

Liang Da Zhuang couldn't help drawing a cold breath; he truly realized he could not go back, Hu Xiaotian's subordinates are full of talent, Xia Zhangming excels at commanding birds and beasts, this bird is almost certainly under his control.

Xiang Qin said: "Haven't you seen the Dharma Protector Elder?" Her eyes showed a hint of reluctance; it seemed she didn't want to see Liang Da Zhuang silenced like this, so she spoke up to warn him.

Liang Da Zhuang said: "It was my oversight."

The gray-clad woman snorted coldly: "Negligence or wanting to betray us? You've probably already led people here."

Liang Da Zhuang looked around somewhat apprehensively.

He heard a clattering sound from outside, growing nearer; Xiang Qin wanted to move to the window crack to look out, but the latticed windows simultaneously burst with a bang! Four black torrents poured down from the sky, tens of thousands of birds surged into the room.

Xiang Qin's face changed abruptly; she threw a punch, an invisible fist wind met the oncoming bird flock in midair and detonated there, plasma and feathers scattered everywhere; the gray-clad woman grunted coldly: "Above!" She planted her feet, shot straight up, burst through the roof with a large hole, her upward momentum showing no sign of weakening, she spiraled upward in the air, from her height looking down she saw tens of thousands of birds surrounding the small building they'd just been in, the flock frenziedly charging indoors like a dark cloud pressing down.

Liang Da Zhuang was the second to react, rushing out through the hole the gray-clad woman had made; Xiang Qin followed last. The three understood the bird attack was no accident but someone manipulating from the shadows; after leaving the building via the roof, they immediately split up and fled.

Xiang Qin chose due south; her movement was very strange, like a meatball soaring up, landing on the ground then bouncing hard, immediately springing even higher; though she is a woman, she has mastered an external-hardening art, using her body to smash through the swarming birds, wherever she passed nothing could stand; after a few leaps she had already left Qinghong Ge and entered the narrow lane ahead. Yet the birds did not give up chasing her; from afar, her back seemed to trail a long black tail.

Xiang Qin, while swatting at the birds attacking her, also gauged direction, seeking a place where she could split the bird flock's attack; just then she felt a sharp gust ahead, looked up, and saw a dark object spinning toward her face.

In panic, Xiang Qin threw a forward punch that struck the object squarely; a clang! a dull ring, shaking her arm numb; yet this punch had hit a great hammer, and even so her blow sent the hammer recoiling backward.

From the darkness came a harsh, grating laugh; Xiong Tianba appeared like an iron tower at the alley's end, his right hand spread to seize the hammer, his strange eyes flipped up to lock onto Xiang Qin, and he bellowed: "Hey! Fat woman! What tremendous strength!"

Xiang Qin inwardly groaned; the newcomer was actually Hu Xiaotian's top warrior; though she had just punched his great iron hammer back, her arm remained sore and numb to this day, her strength clearly inferior to his. She kept her composure, her face full of contempt, saying: "Black monkey, a real man doesn't fight a woman, and besides you're holding a weapon—do you still have any shame?" (To be continued~^~)