Chapter 275: Pursuit

Reality never changes because of the mood of the parties involved; no matter how Xue Hanmeng regretted or suffered, Xue Bangzhu's story had already reached an unchangeable end.

By the time the morning light was faint and the insects and birds began to chirp, "No-Trace" had already turned into a mass of blurred flesh, completely unrecognizable as human. Xue Hanmeng was still lying on his corpse, biting continuously.

Zheng Yi calculated the time, flashed behind Xue Hanmeng, and pointed at her "Fengchi acupoint," True Qi penetrating, and Xue Hanmeng collapsed to the ground.

She had completely changed; her mouth and face were covered in blood foam and flesh, horizontal lines bulging on her brow; rather than a person, she looked more like a man-eating beast.

It was just that this beast, even in a coma, was still shedding tears from the corners of her eyes.

Zheng Yi laid her flat on the ground, reached out and pressed on her dantian, and as instructed, abolished her Wu Gong. When the last strand of True Qi disappeared from Xue Hanmeng's dantian, her seven orifices suddenly overflowed with blood, and she instinctively choked and coughed.

Although it was only half an hour, Xue Hanmeng had gone into Qi-deviation several times, and the meridians in her body were already in a mess.

Especially the Foot Jueyin Liver Meridian, which governs "anger," the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, which governs "sadness," the Hand Shaoyin Heart Meridian, which governs "resentment," and the Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian, which governs "regret," were already riddled with holes. To be able to collapse the meridians of a Heaven-Human expert to this extent showed just how surging the emotions in Xue Hanmeng's heart were.

Zheng Yi had expected this, and with a puff of True Qi, she smoothed out the tremors in her meridians.

An hour later, Zheng Yi raised her hand and turned to look at Xue Hanmeng's side.

The half booklet Xue Bangzhu left behind was gripped tightly in Xue Hanmeng's hand.

Zheng Yi reached out to pull the half booklet out, tried several times, and actually lifted Xue Hanmeng's arm along with it.

Even in a coma, Xue Hanmeng still gripped the half booklet tightly, refusing to let go.

Zheng Yi frowned, lowered her head, and pried Xue Hanmeng's fingers open one by one, finally pulling the booklet out.

She flicked off the flesh and blood stuck to it and was about to put it into her bosom, but her gaze inadvertently swept over Xue Hanmeng's face, and her movement paused.

The tears in the corners of Xue Hanmeng's eyes, which had stopped as her meridians were smoothed, were surging again.

After Zheng Yi smoothed her meridians, her face had calmed down, returning to her original youthful appearance, looking even more pale and haggard. At this time, her brow was furrowed, and two lines of clear tears flowed out continuously, as if she were a lost child.

Zheng Yi suddenly stood up, her willow-leaf eyebrows arched, walking back and forth a few times, cursing in a low voice.

"Damn it, damn it, who are you putting on this look for now!"

"Where did that fighting spirit from last night go!"

"Now you know regret, what were you doing earlier!"

After walking back and forth for a long time, Zheng Yi suddenly stopped and stamped her foot.

"Forget it, forget it!"

Tucking the half booklet into Xue Hanmeng's bosom, Zheng Yi struck the ground with her palm, smashing "No-Trace's" corpse into the dirt, and then raised her sword to hack at the cave entrance.

The mountain stones shattered, covering the entrance.

Only then did Zheng Yi carry Xue Hanmeng and use light-body techniques to rush toward Kaifeng city.

She knew where Xue Hanmeng should be sent.

The residence Li Miao had prepared for Xue Hanmeng was the very small courtyard where Xue Bangzhu had lived when she first entered the city, connected with Yan Fan's ancestral home, and it was quite spacious.

Letting Xue Hanmeng grow old here could be considered a beginning and an end.

Before dawn, the people in that residence were smashed open by Yamen runners and driven out; they were a bit aggrieved, but after being hit in the face with a stack of silver notes, they immediately nodded and bowed, holding the silver notes and rolling away.

Zheng Yi jumped down from the roof, and the Yamen runner at the door saw her at a glance, hurriedly running over and prostrating himself.

"Are you the sister of the Commander-in-Chief?"

Zheng Yi's face was embarrassed, but she couldn't say anything.

With that face of hers, no one would believe she had nothing to do with Li Miao, and she couldn't explain it to this Yamen runner. She had to nod in default.

The Yamen runner hurriedly gestured and led Zheng Yi into the courtyard.

"The residence has long been prepared, and everything has been cleared out. According to what the Commander-in-Chief said, we found the old people who knew Xue Bangzhu back then, and the things inside were all furnished to look like the way she lived back then, absolutely identical."

Zheng Yi nodded and stuffed Xue Hanmeng into the Yamen runner's arms.

"The lord has already instructed you, right?"

The Yamen runner nodded.

"Yes, don't worry. From now on, we will send people here every day to watch, and we have also found a careful old woman to accompany her. Whether it's official or Jianghu, if there is the slightest mistake, I will offer my head!"

"The corpses in the righteous manor, and Yan Fan's corpse, we have also collected and buried; they are buried outside the city, and now we are asking a master to chant scriptures and pray for them."

Zheng Yi nodded and looked deeply at Xue Hanmeng.

"She might seek death; you must watch her more these few days, and don't leave any sharp things in the room. After a few months, she should be fine."

"After that, I will have to trouble you to take care of her."

The Yamen runner's expression changed, and he nodded in agreement.

Zheng Yi didn't say anything more and turned to leave.

A moment later, she arrived at the small courtyard where she was staying with Li Miao; as soon as she entered, she heard Li Miao laughing inside.

"What's wrong with eating imperial grain?"

"What Jianghu or imperial court, where is there such a clear distinction? Human hearts are sinister, intrigue, and deceit are never limited to the imperial court."

"They all say 'learn literary and martial arts, sell them to the emperor's family,' not to mention whether you like wealth and glory, you should have an interest in 'Heaven-Human inheritance,' right?"

"Whatever the Embroidered Uniform Guard was like before, it's my turn to call the shots now; if you don't come—could it be that you have some dissatisfaction with me?"

Zheng Yi walked in and saw Cao Hanyan shaking his head and explaining, while Yin Suqin on the side was anxious, wishing he could press Cao Hanyan's head to agree.

Seeing Zheng Yi return, Li Miao nodded to signal her to come over, then waved his hand and said unquestioningly.

"Anyway, there has never been a precedent for someone I've taken a fancy to running away."

"Cao Hanyan, I'll give you half a day to pack your things and say goodbye to your friends and family; move out with me tomorrow morning, and from today on, you are a Company Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"If I don't see you tomorrow morning—"

Li Miao's gaze swept toward Yin Suqin, squinting his eyes and saying.

"I will have to investigate this friend of yours who has been editing stories about me... go."

Before Cao Hanyan and Yin Suqin could speak, Li Miao waved his hand, sweeping the two out the door, and the gate closed without wind, *bang*.

Leaving the two looking at each other outside the door.

Zheng Yi saw that Li Miao's business was done, stepped forward and cupped her hands.

"My lord, Xue Hanmeng has been settled... thank you."

Li Miao shook his head.

"No matter."

He reached out and took out the first half of the booklet Xue Bangzhu left behind, waving it in the air.

"Xue Bangzhu's matter is settled."

"The news she left behind isn't much, but it's all very critical... I think you should have some guesses too."

"About yourself, and your mother."

Zheng Yi pursed her lips and nodded.

"Yes."

"If the news Xue Bangzhu left behind is all true... then there will be two suspicious points about me."

"First, my background."

"If Penglai people don't give birth in Penglai, mother and child can only have one survive... yet when I achieved success in Wu Gong, my mother was still a living Heaven-Human expert."

"The second is—"

Zheng Yi gritted her teeth, paused for a long time, and continued.

"My mother's identity."

Li Miao smiled and nodded.

"Exactly, you are indeed much stronger than Xue Hanmeng."

"From the information Xue Bangzhu left behind, your mother doesn't look like a simple Penglai sect member who fled to the Great Ming."

"When the massacre occurred back then, Penglai sect members fled in all directions, and no one knew who had escaped or where they were hiding. But your mother left behind a few words, guiding us to Kaifeng and finding Xue Bangzhu."

Li Miao used a finger to flip open the booklet, turning to the page recording Zheng Yi's mother's name.

"Xue Bangzhu died in the hands of a Penglai peer, and she made marks on the names of some of the peers in this booklet, including your mother."

"Is she marking the peers who might still be alive... or is she guessing who the murderer hunting down the peers is?"

"What was the basis for her marking your mother?"

Zheng Yi pursed her lips and was about to open her mouth to argue, but was stopped by Li Miao with a wave of his hand.

"You don't need to explain; this matter has no conclusion yet, but the suspicious points about you and your mother can never be escaped."

"There is one thing I must tell you in advance."

Zheng Yi frowned, looking at Li Miao, whose smile carried malice, and immediately understood that what the other party was about to say was absolutely not serious.

She didn't know if it was because their bloodlines were close, but after only a month of getting along, Zheng Yi felt she already knew Li Miao's temperament like the back of her hand.

Sure enough, seeing her not take the bait, Li Miao smiled and said to himself.

"Actually, it doesn't count as serious business, just a pattern I discovered recently; I'll tell you, believe it or not."

"That is, the opponents I've met since I started walking the Jianghu have eight out of ten commonalities."

Li Miao extended a finger.

"First, their background is a mystery."

And then slowly extended the second one.

"The second one... is that they don't die cleanly."

"You didn't see your mother killed with your own eyes back then, did you?"

"Take Xue Hanmeng as a lesson; you'd better prepare yourself in your heart, so you don't lose your composure if you really discover some truth you don't want to accept later."

"If you die in the hands of others because of a moment of hesitation, don't blame me for not reminding you."

Zheng Yi didn't answer.

Li Miao didn't continue, handing the booklet to Zheng Yi.

"Look at these names Xue Bangzhu wrote down; which ones do you still know? How many locations did your mother mention? Are there any that match?"

Zheng Yi took the booklet, looking at the names while carefully recalling. After a long time, she looked up and pointed to a marked name and said.

"This one."

Li Miao looked at the name: "Zheng Huaijin, looking at the name, it shouldn't be 'main family.' Where is he?"

Zheng Yi pondered for a moment and said slowly.

"Jiangxi Provincial Administration Commissioner, Guangxin Prefecture!"

————————

Autumn rain, evening.

Horse hooves trampled the mud, water splashes like curtains, drops of muddy water hitting stirrups, scabbards, and cloaks, then shaken into the air by violent movements.

"Thief, don't run!"

"Don't run, you can't escape, struggling is just suffering in vain! Why not stop and let me stab you with a sword; if you can take it, we'll let you go, how about that!?"

"My Kongming Sect is a famous righteous sect, we keep our word! Friend, consider it!"

A sorrowful voice came from ahead.

"Do you think I'm an idiot!!!"

"Setting traps to lure me here, poisoning the wine, setting crossbows under the bed, putting bear traps on the bed! And poisoning them!"

"The most excessive thing is, you actually ambushed me while I was urinating! Damn it, what kind of famous righteous sect are you!"

The words were filled with sorrow and desolation, and even a trace of grievance.

Lightning flashed, illuminating the face of the person being chased.

If any Jianghu people were present, they would be shocked. Because the person being chased was actually the famous evil expert of the Ganzhou greenwood path, "One-Smoke" Shu Qingyi! He was in the "flower-picking" trade that even the greenwood path despised!

Because his Wu Gong was high, and he was very cautious when picking targets, his life was quite comfortable.

But everything changed after the Songshan Moon-Viewing Banquet.

Since the fifteenth of the eighth month, Shu Qingyi suddenly discovered that he, who was originally hated by everyone, had suddenly become popular, and even many famous righteous sects sent him letters, saying they wanted to give him a guest position.

He didn't know why, so he picked one to see—and then fell into a trap.

That sect leader actually suddenly smashed his wine cup on the ground while drinking with him! And the disciples ambushed all around swarmed up, almost killing him!

He barely escaped with his life, just thinking about how to take revenge in the future, when he discovered that the Jianghu had changed.

Almost all famous righteous sects looked at him as if they had seen a beauty—their eyes shining!

Fortunately, the famous righteous sects were used to hypocrisy, and their methods were slightly pedantic, so he survived. But now, the methods of these famous righteous sects were becoming more and more vicious, more and more despicable!

Ambushing him while he was urinating! And it was a group fight! This was something even the evil path couldn't bring themselves to do, yet these people behind him did it!

His pants were still wet!

Who was the righteous path, and who was the evil path!

Shu Qingyi was crying without tears; his thigh had been slashed by a sword, and he couldn't run well, and the other party was riding a horse, so no matter what, he couldn't escape.

Behind him, the excited conversation of the other party faintly came.

"Senior brother, the method taught by Commander An is really useful! Taking this head, should we trade it for money with the Embroidered Uniform Guard, or trade it for manuals?"

"Of course, manuals! After we practice well, we'll go find more damn evil people to kill, and trade for better manuals! This is called what, 'virtuous cycle'!"

"Well said! Hahaha!"

Shu Qingyi became even more desperate.

Fortunately, as he ran, firelight faintly appeared ahead. Shu Qingyi looked closely and saw a ruined temple ahead, and a person with a saber at his waist standing at the door, clearly also a Jianghu person!

He thought: "Heaven does not cut off all paths!"

He hurriedly ran toward the ruined temple.

When he got close, he shouted loudly.

"Friend, friend!"

"Save me! I am a bodyguard of the 'Tiger Might Escort Agency,' thieves are chasing me! Please block them for me, and there will be a heavy reward in the future!"

After saying this, he reached into his bosom and took out a stack of stolen silver notes and threw them over.

"This is the deposit, I will definitely come to thank you in person in the future!"

The other party didn't even move, letting the silver notes fall.

Shu Qingyi's face showed despair.

Suddenly, a blur appeared before his eyes, and with a *whoosh*, the silver notes disappeared.

Then a lazy voice came from inside the temple.

"Little Cao, this isn't our style."

"We don't have the principle of not taking money when we see it—of course, whether to do the thing or not is another matter."

Cao Hanyan pursed his lips, let out a long sigh, drew his saber from its sheath, held it at his waist, and was about to stop Shu Qingyi first to ask what was going on.

Suddenly, a shrill sword sound came from his side!

Followed by a sharp shout.

"His head is mine!"