Chapter 64: Setting the Ambush

They walked straight to the cargo yard. Quite a few people had already arrived. The crowd at the yard was now twice what it had been a few years ago, though Zhao Jin's peers still numbered only a bit over twenty — all from well-off families who had kept up their martial training. The sparring matches here were rare real-combat experience for them. The rest were either busy making a living or had already left Xuzhou; only those on good terms with the group dropped by occasionally.

The others were just like Zhao Jin and his friends back then — boys around ten years old, too young to help their families yet unable to sit still at home. Parents in Xuzhou City all knew that capable people kept an eye on the west-city cargo yard. They didn't worry about their kids picking up bad habits or being snatched by kidnappers here. Some even sent their children over on purpose.

The boys who came here also went through the motions of sparring every day, but they were only in it for the fun and excitement. Whenever Zhao Jin's group held their real matches and drills, these youngsters would gather around and watch with pure delight.

Children need heroes most of all, and the kids here all saw Zhao Jin and his few friends as heroes. If they could run an errand for them, they treated it as an extraordinary honor.

Chen Sheng and the others had already arrived. Seeing Zhao Jin approach, they all stood and came closer. Chen Sheng, looking thoroughly puzzled, said, "Why weren't you home today? Zhaojing and I went over and didn't find you. Your mother was very worried."

Before Zhao Jin could answer, Chen Sheng turned to Mu Shulan and asked, "What's wrong with Little Lan? She looks thoroughly unhappy."

They had all played together for so long that they were very close. Mu Shulan was the same age as Chen Hong, and Chen Sheng had always regarded her as his own little sister.

Before the girl could reply, Zhao Jin glanced back. The two men tailing them were loitering at the intersection on the east side of the cargo yard, looking over from time to time. Zhao Jin turned his head back and said in a low voice, "At that east intersection — two men in padded jackets sitting together. They've been following us since early morning. Liu Yong, take a few people and circle around from the other side. Grab them!"

"Don't look that way — you'll scare them off!" Zhao Jin barked in a low voice. Hearing this, Chen Sheng and the others all looked over curiously. As for Zhao Jin's order, Liu Yong showed no hesitation. Over these past few years, everyone had grown used to following Zhao Jin's lead.

Liu Yong had also brought a few of his young buddies along. At his call, several of them left the cargo yard through the west exit. But this area was crisscrossed with paths in all directions, so they could loop around directly.

"Rare to see you bring your spear," Chen Sheng remarked, looking at Zhao Jin. Zhao Jin answered with a smile, "I hadn't expected the Xuzhou area to be so lawless either. If I hadn't brought a weapon, Little Lan would probably have been snatched outright."

Chen Sheng's expression instantly hardened. He drew his long blade halfway out, then slammed it heavily back into its sheath and said in a low voice, "When we catch them, beat them within an inch of their lives."

Hearing Zhao Jin's words, it wasn't just Chen Sheng who flared up — Wang Zhaojing, Sun Dalei, all of them were enraged. Though Mu Shulan didn't join in the sparring, the friendship built over all these years ran deep. For someone to act so brazenly — they truly had no idea they were courting death.

Shi Manqiang, who had been keeping his eyes fixed in that direction, suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Xiaoyong and the others are there!"

Liu Yong had always been on the short side, which was why they called him "Xiaoyong." Hearing this, Zhao Jin turned straight around and watched Liu Yong and his group ambling this way with grins on their faces.

The two young men sitting by the roadside hadn't sensed a thing. They were still staring in this direction, muttering to each other as they watched.

Liu Yong and his group sauntered up to them laughing and joking, then suddenly spun around and lunged at the two men. Though they were all only fifteen or sixteen, their strength was already considerable, and the attack was completely unexpected. Caught off guard, the two men were tackled straight to the ground.

"You little brats, you—" They tried to struggle and curse as they hit the ground, but Zhao Jin and the others had already rushed over. Without a word, Zhao Jin delivered a vicious kick. The man's body instantly curled up like a shrimp, the pain so sharp he couldn't make a sound.

"Beat them up first. Don't kill them," Zhao Jin said.

The group, already itching for a fight, immediately swarmed in with fists and kicks. Wang Zhaojing had kept his hand on his sword hilt the entire time and only let go now. He didn't join the fray; instead, he said with a smile, "Brother Zhao, did you lure them here to catch them all in one sweep?"

Wang Zhaojing had grown ever more dashing and refined. Every gesture he made carried an air of effortless grace. Zhao Jin smiled and nodded.

Alone and holding a long spear, he naturally had no fear of confronting those two stalkers. He could have chased them down and caught one himself, but the other would inevitably have gotten away.

The two stalkers had already been beaten to the point of begging for mercy, but with such a rare chance to cut loose and hit someone, no one was about to stop. They kept at it until the two men couldn't even muster the breath to plead.

"Stop. A few of you, shoo the crowd away — don't let them gather around to gawk," Zhao Jin said.

Seeing the beating, many children had stopped their games and come over to watch. Shi Manqiang and a few others went over and loudly dispersed them. The kids scattered at once, clustering in separate groups. Though they still sneaked glances, they no longer dared to crowd around.

Zhao Jin walked up to them. The two men lay on the ground, faces bruised and swollen, yet anger still showed in their expressions. Captured by a sneak attack from a bunch of kids — even though they'd taken a beating, they still felt deeply unwilling to accept it.

"Why were you following us?" Zhao Jin asked.

"Who says we were following you? The road's wide enough — you saying we can't walk on it? Is it your—" Neither man could get up, but they still ran their mouths.

Halfway through the words, whoosh — both felt a sudden chill on the tops of their heads. They reached up and felt around, only to find that the caps and hair on their crowns had vanished, as if a razor had just swept across their scalps. Before they could process it, a flash of light caught the corners of their eyes, and they saw a stocky, slightly plump young man holding a long blade, strands of hair still clinging to the back of the blade.

Only then did it hit them — someone had just sliced off their hair and caps with a single stroke of the blade. Had it veered even slightly, half their skulls would have been gone.

Both men's faces instantly drained of all color. They began trembling uncontrollably. Zhao Jin repeated the question, his voice cold: "Why were you following me? Who sent you?"

"I… we were given orders to find out whose family that young lady is from, to learn where she lives… We're from the Yunshan Firm." The two men no longer dared hold anything back, spilling everything like beans pouring out of a bamboo tube.

"The Yunshan Firm?" Zhao Jin's brow furrowed, and his expression immediately darkened. He knew the place — it was a business the Yunshan Temple operated in Xuzhou City. Trade wasn't exactly booming, but it served as the temple's representative within the city. All dealings with the authorities and the hosting of visiting guests were handled through the Yunshan Firm.

Seeing him pause in thought, the two men on the ground assumed he was intimidated by the name. One of them glared and said, "Now that you know we work for the holy master, hurry up and help us—"

Once again, the words were cut off halfway as Zhao Jin's kick slammed him back down. His lips split open and bled on the spot.

The Yunshan Firm, Yunshan Temple — and then there was that monk Runan he'd seen yesterday. Zhao Jin pieced the whole sequence together. The young men gathered around wore varied expressions. Wang Zhaojing looked indifferent, Chen Sheng's brow was furrowed, and the rest all showed traces of apprehension.

Before he could speak, Liu Yong, standing beside him, tugged at the hem of his clothes and whispered, "Brother Zhao, I've heard people say that the abbot of Yunshan Temple likes young girls."

Disgusting. So they really had their eyes on Mu Shulan. A wave of revulsion washed over Zhao Jin. He made his decision at once: "Everyone, lend a hand. We're reporting this to the authorities."

The group paused, then caught on immediately. They surged forward again with fists and kicks, forcing the two battered men to their feet, and marched them off toward the magistrate's yamen.

Surrounded by over twenty people — even if they were all half-grown youths around fourteen or fifteen — the two men had absolutely no chance of running.

Yet the moment they heard they were heading to the yamen, the two stalkers, far from being afraid, actually turned somewhat brazen. They kept muttering under their breath, "We're advising you — don't go stirring up trouble. Let us go now. Even if we walk into that yamen, our boss can get us out with just a single calling card."