Chapter 209

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Unlike Cen Dezhang's tension, that Censor was practically overjoyed.

Over a hundred people went missing in the Capital on the Lantern Festival night; after much difficulty a clue finally surfaced — it was a gang's doing — but in the end the thief chief escaped, and everywhere took it as a warning, trembling with fear.

The arrest documents naturally reached Hua Prefecture as well; the local authorities searched once, but found no results.

If this time they truly ran into the thief chief, it would be a great merit delivered right to their door; even if mistaken, it didn't matter — just a wasted trip.

Because Han Li said Lv Mao was cunning and ruthless, they had to make foolproof preparations, not let anyone escape again, or implicate bystanders; that Censor also dared not act rashly.

He personally watched over his subordinates; a group of Censors didn't dare slack off, first found the village head to clarify the situation, then immediately summoned Xiang Yuan's partner, the medicinal herb merchant — this man had lived in Hua Prefecture for generations, was a well-known local merchant, his family background clean, and not afraid of collusion.

That medicinal herb merchant was questioned; at first he laughed it off, evasive and unwilling to say more, even helped investigate whether Rui Fusheng had committed some crime, whether it might be a misunderstanding; then upon learning he might be the thief chief who fled from the Capital, he was so startled he couldn't sit still.

At first he still didn't believe it; until he discovered Rui Fusheng's arrival time in Hua Prefecture matched perfectly — it was a few days after jumping off the ship — and was asked about the scar on Rui Fusheng's hand — but he hadn't paid attention, only knew that in the scorching heat, Rui always wore long sleeves and long robes; before he only thought it was habit, but now paired together, it was clearly to conceal.

The more this man recalled, the more frightened he became.

He previously saw Rui Fusheng's family was wealthy, household simple, the man himself dignified in bearing, and had already entertained thoughts; thinking the riverway business had a prospect, he wanted to matchmake his own younger sister with the other party.

"No wonder!" He wiped cold sweat from his temple. "No wonder last time I casually complained my servant boy didn't work honestly, he said 'Beat and kill two as a warning, the rest will all become obedient,' I only thought he was joking, but turns out he really kills people like killing chickens!"

Upon hearing the yamen wanted him to lead constables to arrest the man at his door, this medicinal herb merchant immediately trembled, face turned pale, eyes went blank, kept shaking his head and waving his hands, saying: "Impossible! Impossible!"

And said: "Not knowing was fine; once I know, see the man, my legs go soft, let alone coaxing him to open the door and come out, I'm afraid once I open my mouth, the people inside will hear the voice and know something's wrong!"

"Better to wait until he comes out tomorrow, grab him right at the door!"

"Even if acting now, me showing up isn't proper — middle of the night, suddenly knocking, even a fool would know something's off, right?"

He repeatedly declined; seeing the yamen wouldn't let him off, he thought and thought, came up with an idea, said: "Better to call Xiang Yuan — I've known this man for many years, dare vouch for him, absolutely no connection with that criminal — moreover he's currently living in the same courtyard with Rui Fusheng, no! Lv Mao, he and Lv Mao live together, going to call him is more appropriate!"

"Coincidentally, I just saw him discussing business with He Laoda of the Water Transport Gang, he might not have returned yet — right now intercept him, not a trace of suspicion shown!"

And stamped his foot saying: "My residence! Alas, housing a scourge not enough, the yamen comes to arrest people too, afraid it'll ruin the feng shui!"

Han Li was seconded by the Du Shui Jian, only in charge of riverways; arresting thieves and criminals naturally wasn't his responsibility.

But he never left, watching, waiting for the Censor and the rest to make assignments.

After everyone received orders and departed, Han Li then said to that Censor: "I already told the official earlier, that Lv Mao's swimming ability is extremely good — I see that residence is very close to the riverway, why not arrange a squad to ambush at the riverbank, just in case."

That Censor somewhat disagreed, said: "Front and back doors are guarded, people stationed at the wall base, another squad following inside to arrest, thirty to forty men total, just to catch one thief, even a fly couldn't escape, no need for such superfluous effort, right?"

Han Li said: "Although it's already very thorough, but this scoundrel is extremely cunning, a lion hunting a rabbit still uses full strength; if manpower insufficient, I'll go back and bring a group of students to assist, led by veteran constables, what does the official think?"

That Censor didn't answer, but looked at Cen Dezhang, asked: "What does the Tongpan think?"

Cen Dezhang said: "This case was followed by Zheng Yan, better to follow his words, just more trouble for the subordinates."

The superior spoke, the Censor had no choice but to agree, arranged more manpower without further mention.

Put this aside for now; the other side, Rui Fusheng stormed out of the official inn, but was caught up by Xiang Yuan in large strides, repeatedly persuading, saying: "You and I do business, harmony brings wealth; a beating or scolding is over and done with, why get angry with a dog-mouthed servant? Hard enough that Zhang Fu owes you a favor, that sour scholar surnamed Kong even rolled up his sleeves for you, so proud, so much face, you turn and leave, what's the meaning of this??"

Rui Fusheng stopped and said: "Older Brother, you go negotiate, I have a belly full of fire I can't vent, this matter I trust you, I'm done with it; negotiate it, later I'll send someone to follow up."

Xiang Yuan was so angry he cursed inwardly, persuaded a good while longer.

That Rui Fusheng said: "I'm not throwing in the towel either; last time those sea goods you wanted, fish paste, shrimp, dried scallops and dried abalone all have news, I'll go back and contact them for you."

The riverway is naturally big business, but one's daily business is the foundation.

Xiang Yuan had done business with Rui Fusheng before, knew this man had many channels, mountain delicacies and sea treasures, everything he could get; this time bought a batch of sea goods from him, deposit already paid, just never had news; now hearing there was progress, and seeing the other party refuse to return no matter what, he could only soften his stance.

He himself returned to the official inn, sought Kong Fuyang to discuss matters, waited half a day, didn't see Han and Lu return, had to agree to meet at the riverway early next morning to discuss, on the way home detoured to find the Water Transport Gang to discuss cargo water transport matters without further mention.

And that Rui Fusheng declined Xiang Yuan, but wasn't in a hurry to return to the mansion.

Though borrowed lodging, that medicinal herb merchant's courtyard was by the water, only one street plus one or two hundred paces from the city riverway.

He reached the riverbank, found a small boat, specially sought an old boatman, paid money to charter it, told the other to wait here overnight, only said his family had urgent business, anxious to return home, needed a chartered boat to the next dock, would go pack luggage now, be back in a moment, also gave money, told the other to buy food and water to keep on the boat.

After settling the boat, Rui Fusheng turned and returned to the courtyard.

He entered the room, locked the door first, also confirmed the window paper was unbroken, then placed half a bucket of water behind the window, placed a stick and a chair behind the room door, only then went to pack valuables.

Things were all ready, long packed in a bundle; he counted one by one; inside besides ordinary money, there was a set of monk's robes, a set of Taoist robes, also a monk's document and a Taoist's document each, a full set of matching implements.

Confirmed correct, Rui Fusheng rewrapped the bundle, changed into indigo clothes, bound legs and tied sleeves, took off his head crown and changed to a cloth headwrap, also changed to a new belt — wide belt, slightly heavy, inside sewn with silver sheets and gold sheets.

Once everything was prepared, he then ground ink, picked up brush, wrote a letter to leave for Xiang Yuan, only saying he just received news, urgent matter at his hometown in Qinzhou, no time for verbose talk, middle of the night bad to disturb, so simply left first, also said his sea goods business would continue to be followed up, told him not to be anxious, as for the riverway matter, he could no longer participate, let him find another partner, and so on.

Letter finished, he was about to blow out the lamp and wait until midnight, when he heard footsteps outside, not long after, someone called outside: "Rui Laodi, I see you still have the lamp lit, haven't you slept — got a bit of urgent news from the riverway side!"

Outside the door, Xiang Yuan's palm kept sweating.

Not fear, not nervousness, but hesitation.

Doing business this big, traveling south and north; if saying he didn't have a few friends walking both sides of the law, that's impossible.

Knights use force to break bans; which tyrant doesn't raise a few thugs? Some extravagant figures' household guards hold more than one life in their hands.

The Capital's Lantern Festival disappearances caused a huge uproar; he naturally heard of it.

If this Rui Fusheng truly is Lv Mao, must say, trafficking so many people, truly damages yin virtue.

But the other party after all didn't abduct his wife and children, didn't harm him in the slightest; on the contrary, the two did business back and forth, got along very harmoniously for many years; only this time suddenly fell out, but if it was due to guarding against identity exposure, it's not incomprehensible.

If the man falls into the net, the many properties and businesses behind him will definitely be seized.

But I just bought so many sea goods from the other party, also have some silver transactions, still on the books, haven't had time to verify — once it enters the yamen's pocket, can it be taken out?

Definitely cannot.

In just a split second, countless thoughts flashed through Xiang Yuan's mind.

"Xiang Xiong, what matter? Those sea goods of yours, I've already arranged, in a few days they'll arrive, when the time comes the shopkeeper will naturally come find you……"

The door wasn't even open yet, Rui Fusheng inside already answered.

The words were spoken beautifully, and the matter was handled thoroughly.

When the door opened, Xiang Yuan wanted to take a look, and saw Rui Fusheng standing behind the door wearing a robe, without a lantern.

In the sweltering heat, there seemed to be another layer of clothing beneath the other party's robe; though it was unclear what it was, he was not wearing a hat, but had his head wrapped in cloth — a rare sight.

Xiang Yuan held a lantern and quietly shone it downward — Rui Fusheng's shoes were also outdoor shoes, and for some reason, he was a good head shorter than in the daytime.

Xiang Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and he opened his mouth: "It's a matter on the river..."

He spoke to this point, and from the corner of his eye, he saw the several yamen runners on either side already reaching for their clubs, gripping their knives; his heart stirred, and as if possessed, because he saw Rui Fusheng looking at him, he suddenly stalled, first looked at Rui Fusheng, then winked toward the doorway on the right, making a signal.

Rui Fusheng did not hesitate in the slightest, suddenly stepped back, shut the door, then kicked over the water bucket beside it with a clang, turned and bolted for the rear.

There was a large window at the back of this room, wide open; he ran extremely fast, grabbed the bundle on the bed with one hand, and vaulted out the window in a mad dash.

Outside the room, several yamen runners almost simultaneously lunged inside.

— They slammed squarely into the door, knocking it open.

Those who couldn't check their momentum stumbled, hurriedly grabbing the door, nearly falling to the ground; those who steadied themselves, seeing Rui Fusheng had already fled, didn't think twice, just took off after him.

One foot stepped onto the ground.

The ground wasn't water, but slick and greasy, all oil; three or four of them slipped and fell at once.

From behind someone shouted: "The thief has fled! Quick, go around to the rear gate and cut him off!"

Sure enough, people whooshed around, following Rui Fusheng's tracks in pursuit.

Xiang Yuan's heart was in his throat, and he hurriedly followed along.

Rui Fusheng vaulted out the window, bundle tied, first ran halfway to the rear gate; from afar he saw the rear gate was closed, but faint firelight seeped through the crack from outside; he stopped immediately, then turned his head and heard footsteps behind him — pursuers right on his heels.

Wolves ahead, tigers behind; his mind raced like lightning, neither advancing nor retreating, he simply climbed the rockery beside him, intending to vault the wall and escape.

But just as he was halfway over, he saw several people guarding near the base of the wall; hearing his movement, they shouted: "The thief is here!"

As they spoke, someone drew a bow and loosed arrows.

Seeing the arrows, Rui Fusheng hurriedly ducked his head, hesitating whether to force his way through, when from the corner of his eye he caught sight of someone holding a lantern standing on the plum blossom piles in the martial arts training ground in the back courtyard, just beyond a wall.

Not far away, and with night fallen, only that spot was brightly lit; Rui Fusheng saw at a glance that the lantern-holder was a half-grown child.

There were only two children in this courtyard: one was Xiang Yuan's son, the other was Xiang Yuan's adopted son.

Forced to flee for his life, then forced back to square one, Rui Fusheng had no other choice left.

The courtyard was divided in two; the side gate was locked tight; the left side was Rui Fusheng's quarters, the right side was Xiang Yuan's.

But a single door could not stop anything at all.

Rui Fusheng jumped back to the ground, took a few running steps, vaulted the central wall, and sprinted straight for the martial arts training ground.

By now the pursuers had arrived, all blocked outside the wall.

Xiang Yuan followed close behind.

The lead Chai Guan shouted urgently: "Where's the key?? Open the door!"

The key was at Xiang Yuan's waist, but he only fumbled randomly on himself, and with almost no hesitation shouted: "The key is with the steward!"

That Chai Guan immediately shouted: "Ram the door!"

There were mountain rocks nearby; someone soon hugged a boulder and came to smash the door.

Inside the wall, Rui Fusheng leapt in a single bound to the child's side, looked closely, and it was indeed Xiang Yuan's son, Xiang Lin.

At this moment his mind held only one thought — Heaven helps me!

Xiang Lin saw someone come, heard the clamor outside, and before he could even react, his neck was clamped, and he let out a piercing scream.

Accompanying that scream came a "Boom—" as the side gate fell in response.

A horde of pursuers surged in.

But Rui Fusheng's heart was already steady; left hand clamping Xiang Lin's neck, right hand drawing a dagger from his calf and pressing it to the child's throat, he shouted at the surrounding pursuers: "Back off! One step closer, and don't blame me for showing no mercy!"

He applied just the right force — enough to make Xiang Lin cry out, but not enough to let him twist and struggle.

Outside the door, hearing that familiar cry for father and mother, Xiang Yuan's face changed drastically; he rushed forward in a few steps, and upon seeing the child in Rui Fusheng's hands, it was like being struck by lightning, and he cried: "Brother Rui! What are you doing???"

Rui Fusheng grinned fiercely: "Brother Xiang, I know you've looked after me; a son can be born again, but I have only this one life — you're still young, you can have another!"

As he spoke, he tightened his grip and shouted: "Who dares come forward! All of you, back off!"

Xiang Lin's crying gradually softened at this point, frozen in fear, unable to move.

Seeing Rui Fusheng held a hostage, the officials and soldiers dared not move; the lead one hurriedly shouted: "We can talk this out, just put the knife down."

He repeated persuasive words over and over.

Others dared not move, but Xiang Yuan was different.

This was his only son; though he had many faults and had said he wouldn't care anymore, in the end he was his own flesh and blood — how could he not ache? Especially since he had known Rui Fusheng for many years, he always felt the man would give him some face; unable to restrain himself, he rushed forward two steps and blurted: "Brother, you..."

The word "you" had barely left his mouth when a miserable scream rang out, and something rolled onto the ground — it was Rui Fusheng wrenching Xiang Lin's head askew, the dagger slanting, slicing off half the child's ear.

In an instant Xiang Lin's face and half his body were covered in blood, his screams unending.

Xiang Yuan's eyes nearly split with rage, his heart both furious and regretful; in the end he too was of street-and-alley stock, and his hot blood surged; he cursed: "You surnamed Rui, don't push people too far!"

As he spoke, he lunged forward.

Rui Fusheng was a trained fighter; his reaction could not be called slow — a sidestep, a sweep kick, knocked Xiang Yuan to the ground, followed by a punch to the face.

Seeing the other man clutching his head, still trying to rise and grapple, and seeing many officials and soldiers behind about to surround him, Rui Fusheng tossed Xiang Lin to the ground — the child's hands were already bound behind his back — and taking advantage of Xiang Yuan's dizziness and inability to resist, pulled off his belt, tore open his upper garment, grabbed his head, pressed the knife against him on the plum blossom piles, and turned to the officials and soldiers: "Who dares come forward!"

Killing the chicken to warn the monkey — nothing more than this.

Xiang Yuan was an adult after all; taking a punch to the head, he was dazed; with a knife at his throat and suspended wood at his back, he struggled ceaselessly.

Malice rose in Rui Fusheng's heart; he shouted: "Move again and I'll slaughter you!"

As he spoke, he repeated the same trick, swinging the knife toward Xiang Yuan's ear.

At this moment he had one foot on a plum blossom pile and one on the ground, originally extremely stable, but for some reason he heard a "Crack!" and his footing slipped — the plum blossom pile had snapped in the middle, causing him to suddenly step into empty space.

Once a person's center of gravity is unstable, they will instinctively use their hands to brace themselves.

Rui Fusheng unconsciously waved his knife.

That dagger cut iron like mud, slicing right into something unknown, sliding all the way down.

He heard a cry, and when he steadied himself and looked down, he saw Xiang Yuan rolling on the ground.

——Blood was spurting from this man's chin to his throat, and onto his chest.

?? Double monthly tickets tomorrow, when I update tomorrow I will definitely thicken my face and ask everyone for votes, dear ones, if you have votes for Xiao Miao, if you can save them, save them first, and vote tomorrow, okay? Otherwise seeing it makes my heart ache (; _;)/~~~