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This time of day wasn"t too late yet. Even if he hadn"t returned home, it wouldn"t make one a.s.sumed that he was kidnapped by a.s.sa.s.sins——
If even Xiao Liulang couldn"t fathom it, then the a.s.sa.s.sins were even less likely to figure it out.
However, being unable to understand was one thing, and having a way to deal with it was another.
"Press his acupoints!" a.s.sa.s.sin A said.
a.s.sa.s.sin B pressed Xiao Liulang"s acupoints accordingly.
As if realizing something, a.s.sa.s.sin B scratched his head and said, "Hey, big bro? Since we can press his acupoints, why did we bother tying him up earlier?"
a.s.sa.s.sin A replied, "... People won’t take you for a mute if you stay silent!"
Xiao Liulang, whose acupoints were pressed, couldn"t move and couldn"t make a sound.
The strip of cloth over his eyes was pulled off, and in the next moment, a cold and icy object was pressed against his face.
It was the rumored human skin mask.
Naturally, it wasn"t really made of real human skin. The material used was actually fish skin. It was processed to resemble human skin and earned its name as such.
There were still some visible flaws in the mask up close, but from a distance, it could almost pa.s.s as real.
Perhaps the imperial guards didn"t antic.i.p.ate that the people from the martial world would use such sinister methods. Ultimately, they managed to smoothly leave the city.
"Big bro, this is bad! The official troops are leaving the city too! They"re coming after us!" a.s.sa.s.sin B said, looking at the imperial guards that had also left the city.
a.s.sa.s.sin A frowned, glanced at Xiao Liulang, and said, "We weren"t discovered so soon... right? Well, maybe they are not after him, we just need to be cautious."
a.s.sa.s.sin B asked, "So... are we still going with the original plan?"
After thinking for a moment, a.s.sa.s.sin A, a bit wary of the imperial guards, said, "Take the minor roads!"
The group abandoned the official road and opted for a rural path, pa.s.sing through a small village before returning to the official road after the imperial guards had gone.
a.s.sa.s.sin B whispered, "Let"s slow down a bit. If we go too fast, we might run into the imperial guards ahead."
They had a feeling that the imperial guards were really after them!
a.s.sa.s.sin A was also in a dilemma.
Weren"t they just targeting a poor official from the countryside? Even if they caught him, there shouldn"t have been much trouble. How did they end up attracting the imperial guards?
"Big bro, big bro! Officials from the government!" a.s.sa.s.sin B pointed at the group of people and horses coming from behind.
It was a group of four bailiffs, riding horses and escorting a prisoner wagon. Inside the wagon sat a prisoner dressed in prison clothes with shackles on his hands and feet.
An idea suddenly struck a.s.sa.s.sin A, "Rob the prisoner wagon!"
It was a simple feat for four a.s.sa.s.sins to overpower a few weaker bailiffs. After knocking the bailiffs unconscious, they tossed them into nearby bushes.
"Go, open the wagon." a.s.sa.s.sin A tossed the keys he had taken from the bailiffs to a.s.sa.s.sin B.
a.s.sa.s.sin B opened the wagon and said to the prisoner inside, "Alright, you can go now."
Prisoner: I don"t really want to, thanks.
a.s.sa.s.sin B slapped the prisoner across the face, dragging him out and taking off his prison clothes and shackles, which he then put on Xiao Liulang.
His movements were naturally not gentle. Xiao Liulang"s hands were already injured, and being roughly handled tore open the healing wounds that had just scabbed over, causing fresh blood to flow.
a.s.sa.s.sin A complained, "Be more careful! Don"t kill him before we get the money! Find something to bandage his wounds!"
Where was he going to find something to bandage him with?
a.s.sa.s.sin B simply tore a piece of cloth from Xiao Liulang"s clothing and haphazardly wrapped it around his wounds.
The a.s.sa.s.sins donned the bailiffs’ clothes and mounted their horses, boldly continuing towards their destination.
The bandaging job wasn"t exactly stellar. Xiao Liulang"s wound continued to bleed, and because his acupoints were pressed, he couldn"t wrap the cloth tightly himself.
After a while on the road, they actually crossed paths with Minister Zhao of the Ministry of Works, who had just returned from a trip.
Minister Zhao had partic.i.p.ated in the Six Ministries Examination, where Xiao Liulang served as an invigilator. They had met before.
Xiao Liulang tried to signal for help from Minister Zhao.
Perhaps a.s.sa.s.sin B"s acupoint technique wasn"t proficient enough. Xiao Liulang was now beginning to regain slight mobility, but he wasn"t sure if the movement from his side would attract Minister Zhao"s attention.
He proceeded with great caution.
As the carriage jolted, he lunged forward heavily, making it appear as if he had lost his balance.
His shoulder and head slammed against the carriage with a loud noise, causing Minister Zhao to open the curtain of his carriage. However, after just a glance at the wagon, he let the curtain fall.
Evidently, he wasn"t planning to intervene in the affairs of another yamen, nor did he suspect anything was amiss.
Both parties quickly pa.s.sed each other.
As Minister Zhao"s carriage moved further away, Xiao Liulang knew that his tiny sliver of hope had been shattered.
This might... have been his last thread of hope.
Because they were nearing their destination.
"Big bro, look! We"re almost there! It"s just up ahead!" a.s.sa.s.sin B exclaimed. He was so excited he almost spurred his horse forward.
a.s.sa.s.sin A glared at him, "Don"t mess around. Be careful not to attract the imperial guards!"
"Right, right, right! We can"t attract the imperial guards!" a.s.sa.s.sin B cheerfully agreed.
The group followed the official road to a T-junction. Instead of continuing along the main road, they turned onto the smaller path.
At this moment, another carriage approached from the opposite direction on the official road.
Xiao Liulang merely gave it a casual glance, but his entire body froze!
Suddenly, he couldn"t be bothered about hiding the fact that he could already move slightly. He turned his face away, lowered his head, attempting to avoid being seen by the other party.
He momentarily forgot that he was wearing a human skin mask. Even if they saw him, so what?
They wouldn"t recognize him.
"Princess, there"s a prisoner wagon ahead." Yu Jin whispered to Princess Xinyang from the carriage.
Princess Xinyang said, "Then slow down and let the prisoner wagon pa.s.s first."
"Yes." Yu Jin agreed, opening the curtain and telling the coachman, "Slow down."
The coachman tightened the reins slightly, slowing down the pace.
The prisoner wagon pa.s.sed by, and only then did they resume their speed.
Long Yi was also among the entourage, riding his horse.
Suddenly, Long Yi stopped.
When Princess Xinyang didn"t hear Long Yi"s horse hooves, she furrowed her brows. She opened the curtain and looked, indeed finding no trace of Long Yi.
"Stop." Princess Xinyang instructed.
"Yes." The coachman brought the carriage to a halt.
Princess Xinyang signaled for Yu Jin to open the rear window.
Yu Jin pulled back the curtain and opened the rear window.
Princess Xinyang saw Long Yi on his horse stopped at the intersection, staring unwaveringly at the prisoner wagon.
Princess Xinyang glanced at the prisoner wagon, her expression unchanged. She said, "Long Yi, let"s go."
Long Yi didn"t move.
On the prisoner wagon, Xiao Liulang was bleeding.
Drop by drop, his blood stained the road.
Long Yi dismounted his horse.
Princess Xinyang coldly commanded, "Don"t move the prisoner wagon!"
Dragon Shadow Guards would never disobey their master"s orders. Since Princess Xinyang forbade him from moving the prisoner wagon, he wouldn"t move it.
The next moment, he swung his sword, and the four a.s.sa.s.sins were cut down on the spot!
Long Yi calmly sheathed his sword, walked over, and directly lifted the cage containing Xiao Liulang from the prisoner wagon.
Princess Xinyang watched him in frustration.
Long Yi’s eyes shifted, and since his hands were occupied, he could only use the tip of his foot to lightly kick the wagon.
It was as if to say:
Here, the prisoner wagon is right here. I didn"t move it.
What I moved is the prison cage.Raz P."s Thoughts
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