Chapter 518: Nian Wushuang (6/10, Autumn Subscription)

Ming had escaped.

Though the way she escaped was somewhat disheveled, somewhat inelegant.

But she had indeed escaped.

"As if they could catch me! As if they could catch me!"

Lost in the forest, Ming grimaced and raged helplessly for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing — a great laugh, a wild laugh, a mad laugh! Until her voice grew hoarse, until her whole body weakened, she finally reined in her emotions and returned to her usual quietness and sweetness.

She laughed softly among the trees, dancing gracefully with butterflies, singing in clear harmony with the birds — though her eyes were blind, she seemed like a fairy fallen from the heavens, brimming with immortal grace.

Suddenly, she stopped moving, tilted her head, looked toward the high sky, and bloomed into a sweet smile.

"I can't die yet, how could I die? 【Lifan】 is not yet complete, why would I die? What do you all think?"

Boom!

A bolt from clear sky, thunder rumbling, lightning flashing.

Above her head, the clouds that had originally been white gradually, at a speed visible to the naked eye, became stained gray, then black, transforming into dark clouds.

Boom!!

Another peal of thunder; that mass of dark clouds, as if brewing something, out of place among the surrounding white clouds, drifted against the wind toward a certain direction.

"Oh? Isn't that… the direction of Qingsi County?"

"Interesting, interesting, but it has nothing to do with me anymore."

Though her eyes were clearly blind, Ming seemed to see everything. She smiled as she withdrew her 'gaze,' her ears twitched twice, then she suddenly picked up a stone by the road and smashed it hard against her own right leg several times.

Blood splattered out, even exposing part of the white bone within, before she finally stopped. She tossed the bloodstained stone far away, cleared her throat, controlled her expression, and put on a frail, helpless, pitiful look, calling out in a tearful voice: "Help… help! Someone please save me!"

Her voice traveled out and out.

Before long, a lavishly decorated carriage came galloping from afar and stopped beside Ming.

A refined, scholarly-looking handsome young man asked with concern: "Miss, do you need help?"

"Y-yes! Thank you, young master…"

Ming's voice was as faint as a mosquito's hum, like a shy little girl, her cheeks already flushed with a rosy hue — enough to make one… drool!

"So beautiful!"

The young master's breath hitched, his face reddening slightly. He bowed and said: "This humble one is Nian Wushuang, with a smattering of medical knowledge. If the miss does not mind, you may travel with me. I can treat your injuries, and once we reach the next village, you may rest and recover."

"M-Mister Nian!"

Ming's blind eyes slowly overflowed with tears: "Besides my parents, Mister Nian is the first good person I've met!"

"The miss speaks too highly…"

Saying so, Nian Wushuang had already helped Ming into the carriage.

The carriage urged its horses onward and soon left the place far behind.

"How should I address the miss?"

"I'm called Ming — the Ming of 'a lone cry.' A fortune teller said I'm destined to be alone and wretched in this life."

As she spoke, Ming made to wipe her tears, but Nian Wushuang gently wiped them away first with a handkerchief.

"I, however, think the miss's Ming is the Ming of 'birdsong' — a voice like heavenly music, a person like a heavenly fairy, a Ming that startles all with a single cry."

Ming's movements stiffened slightly; tearfully and emotionally, she reached toward Nian Wushuang's face, then suddenly stopped mid-air.

"M-Mister Nian, no one has ever praised me like this. May I touch your face?"

"Of course!"

Once Ming's cool little hand touched his face, Nian Wushuang softly asked: "May I know how the miss came to such a plight?"

Ming's tears immediately flowed again; she stammered for a long while before squeezing out two words — Night Thief.

"To think it was the Night Thieves who harmed you, destroying your family!"

Nian Wushuang suddenly clenched his fists, his face full of righteous indignation: "Miss Ming, rest assured. Once I return to my post in Jingcheng, I will definitely report this matter and eradicate every Night Thief under heaven, giving the common people a life of peace and work!"

Ming was suddenly stunned: "M-Mister Nian is…"

"A Document, a newly promoted 【Document】 of Jingcheng's 【Red Department】!"

……

Qingsi County.

"We need reinforcements!"

Tian Erjun paced anxiously back and forth in the hall, showing none of the composure a Blue-Robed should have.

For no other reason than that this incident was too great, beyond what the Blue-Robed could handle.

"Reinforcements? If we're to call for reinforcements, who should we invite?" Fang Yue asked curiously.

"Of course, people from the 【Red Department】! The Phoenix Organization should have been their responsibility to begin with! Their claws have already reached into our 【Heiqing Shanmai】, and they're still playing blind in Jingcheng!"

You Sisi said coldly, a cold glint flashing in her eyes, seeming to have a strong distaste for this so-called 【Red Department】.

"If people from the 【Red Department】 come, at the very least they'll need to send someone of 【Document】 rank to hold the line!" Tian Erjun quickly followed up.

"I don't know, anyway this should be the 【Red Department】's business — how many they send, what rank they send, that's for them to decide! We just report the matter up!" You Sisi said, her tone showing a hint of impatience.

Fang Yue glanced curiously at Tian Erjun, who spread his hands and said in a lowered voice.

"You Sisi is from the You Family in Jingcheng. The 【You Family】 are firm supporters of the Blue Division, and toward the 【Red Department】's empty talk and no real action… uh, I shouldn't say that carelessly. In short, the You Family, including You Sisi, all very much dislike the 【Red Department】."

"My ears aren't deaf, you know!"

At the mention of the 【Red Department】, You Sisi's temper clearly worsened considerably.

Fang Yue could understand her — not everyone can keep a good temper toward people or things they dislike, even if it's just someone else mentioning them. As long as she treats others normally in daily life, staying her usual self, that's fine; after all, even water has a temper.

"You Sisi, calm down first, aren't we just discussing this? And didn't Lord Jun say earlier that the Blue Division's branch is closer to us, and even the 【Red Department】's nearest branch is still a hundred thousand miles away — how could they possibly rush to support our Qingsi County?"

"So we're just cleaning up after the 【Red Department】??"

You Sisi whipped her head around, her voice suddenly rising. Seeing Fang Yue's somewhat startled look, she quickly reined herself in, her cheeks flushing slightly hot.

"I, I wasn't yelling at you…" Taking a deep breath, You Sisi said, "Anyway, anyway, of course the more support the better. What I mean is, the 【Red Department】 has to send people too. No matter how far away they are, they have to send someone over."

After saying that, You Sisi had originally wanted to return to her own seat, but suddenly her movement paused. Not knowing what she was thinking, her little face flushed red, yet her expression forcibly remained blank, and she sat down in the seat next to Fang Yue in one swift motion.

The others were stunned for a moment, but no one spoke. Only Tian Erjun picked up the topic at this point.

"You Sisi is the Chief Blue-Robed Attendant. I have no objections to her proposal. As for the 【Red Department】, I will definitely send someone to notify them."

At this point, the matter regarding the 【Red Department】 could be considered settled. You Sisi seemed fairly satisfied with this outcome and didn't keep nagging. She only lowered her voice and said, "…Just now…I didn't mean to…"

(End of Chapter)