Chapter 111: The Mask

An old man and a cat, alone on the long street.

“Master, what is 'cure isolated swallow dragon'?”

“It's precisely using the technique of cornering the opponent in a game of Wei Qi, using 'edge' moves to eliminate their large dragon piece, forcing them into a perilous situation from which they must fight for survival.” Yao Lao Tou, holding Hei Yun, walked slowly along the green stone path. “Chen Ji’s Wei Qi style is like this, and he’s the same in person. People often say you can see a person’s character through their Wei Qi, and it’s not without reason.” Yao Lao Tou sighed. “If there are no unexpected changes this time, that little one, Jin Zhu, is probably going to be done in by Chen Ji.”

“You seem very familiar with Jin Zhu, even knowing his cultivation path. I heard Chen Ji say you must not let others know your cultivation path, or it will bring disaster.”

Yao Lao Tou thought for a moment. “Actually, I’m not very familiar. It’s just that when I was in the capital city, I personally watched him grow from a small fat one to a big fat one, from a clueless young man to how he is now.”

Hei Yun suddenly said, “Master, Chen Ji said you have many secrets.”

Yao Lao Tou laughed. “How did he say it?”

Hei Yun thought for a moment. “Can I tell you this?”

Yao Lao Tou also thought for a moment. “Did he instruct you not to say?”

“No.”

“Then just say it.”

Hei Yun nodded. “He said you clearly know about the Forty-Nine Heavy Heavens, but you say you don’t.”

Yao Lao Tou was startled. “How did he know that I know?”

Hei Yun said, “He said that when you were making gunpowder before, you asked him who taught him this method of refining gold. You asked if it was taught by Wu Ji Shan. Later, when he was chatting with the Son of the World, he discovered that Wu Ji Shan is exactly one of the Forty-Nine Heavy Heavens.”

Yao Lao Tou smacked his lips. “Talking to that little one, you really have to be absolutely meticulous. If you leak even a little bit, he’ll catch it. You say he’s so smart, but why isn't he smart in the right places? He’s still not smart enough.”

“Then where should he be smart?”

Yao Lao Tou said, “If he were truly smart, he should take you and leave Jing Chao, far away from all this trouble. A truly smart person should get involved with less karma, with no ties and no attachments, then there would be no flaws.”

Hei Yun nodded. “So you are his flaw.”

Yao Lao Tou was so exasperated he laughed. “Forget it, I can’t explain it to a little cat like you.”

“Master, where are we going now?”

Yao Lao Tou thought for a moment and said, “Naturally, we’re going to take a look at Peony Bridge. Chen Ji’s calculations are clear, but he’s using the plan of 'drive tiger swallow dragon' to kill Jin Zhu, yet he himself is also getting involved. Jin Zhu will indeed be trapped to death by him, but how can he himself escape unscathed?”

Hei Yun looked up. “Master, Chen Ji said he has a plan.”

“Oh?”

Hei Yun recalled for a moment and said, “He said he has been wearing a mask from the beginning, and at the critical moment, he will deliberately reveal his true face to Jin Zhu. Jin Zhu, in order to prevent him from causing trouble, will definitely find someone to replace the mask, because this is the simplest method for Jin Zhu. Chen Ji said, people all have inertia; everyone is accustomed to using the simplest method to solve problems. Jin Zhu is no exception.”

Yao Lao Tou thought for a moment, then sighed deeply. “Why did Jin Zhu have to provoke that little one?”

“Master, are we still going to Peony Bridge?”

“Go.”

“Are you going to help him?”

Yao Lao Tou said exasperatedly, “He’s so smart, why does he still need my help? Can’t I just go watch the excitement?”

Under the thick, dark night.

Jin Zhu, wearing a bull’s head mask, quietly gazed at Peony Arch Bridge. He only felt that the bridge before him was like a huge, bloody maw, a mouth that could swallow a giant dragon.

Five people stood beside a carriage more than twenty zhang away.

The night was so dark, their appearances were unclear.

The carriage was tightly covered; it was impossible to tell if there was a person or a ghost inside.

Jin Zhu took a deep breath, subconsciously asking, “Chen Ji, do you think we should retreat?”

Liu Tian was startled. “My lord, I am Liu Tian. Chen Ji is escorting someone and didn’t come.”

Jin Zhu turned his head slightly and silently looked at the green tiger face beside him, remaining silent for a long time.

He mocked himself in his heart, then opened his mouth. “What do you all think? Has the Liu family’s ambush already seen through our identities?”

Xi Feng maintained his rigid and arrogant posture, saying in a low voice under his mask, “My lord, the Liu family’s ambush might be a precaution, not targeting us. If we were to receive a cure, such an important matter, we would also arrange people to control the situation in advance.”

Liu Tian said in a low voice, “That makes sense.”

Jin Zhu refuted in a low voice, “This matter concerns the life of the family; how can there be any room for wishful thinking?”

Xi Feng was silent for a moment. “My lord, perhaps we should retreat first. Maybe there will still be a chance to catch him later.”

Liu Tian said, “My lord, if you keep the green mountains, there's no need to worry about firewood.”

Jin Zhu remained silent, finding it difficult to make a choice.

This was the reason he had wanted to find Chen Ji earlier: he didn’t even have a single person on his side to help him with a plan.

Just then, the carriage curtain of the carriage was lifted open from the inside. Liu Mingxian, wearing a large black fox fur cloak and holding a small, exquisite bronze hand furnace, slowly stepped down from the carriage.

He and Jin Zhu and the others looked at each other from a distance, laughing across the air and asking, “Since you gentlemen have come, why don’t you come up for a chat?”

On the bridge, under the bridge, both sides confronted each other, and the air gradually solidified, even the Luo River under the bridge was quiet.

The next moment, Jin Zhu said in a low voice, “The arrow is on the string and must be released. Go up the bridge. Liu Mingxian has already appeared. Later, act according to my command.”

Xi Feng lifted his foot and walked onto the bridge. Liu Mingxian saw them ascend the bridge and laughed, “Gentlemen, why must you be so cautious?”

Jin Zhu, behind Xi Feng, sneered, “You handed over the Assistant Supervisor of the Craftsman Bureau to us, and then instructed the Luo City Military and Horses Division to seize him back. This matter has already violated the mutual agreement. For us to still be willing to come tonight is already a great favor to your Liu family.”

Liu Mingxian gradually suppressed his laughter. “With the status of my Liu family, who has the qualification to talk about grace?”

Jin Zhu laughed. “Oh, your Liu family relied on having the Empress Dowager and the Cabinet Elder in the early years, acting tyrannically, leaving many handles for Mo Zhang Ba Hu. These years, the court situation has reversed, half of the Liu family’s followers and old officials have been impeached by the Censorate and the Remonstrance Bureau. It is clear that the great trend has already passed, and you can only huddle in Yu Prefecture. In a few more years, I’m afraid you won’t even be able to keep Yu Prefecture, and will finally end up with your family exterminated.”

Jin Zhu’s voice gradually grew cold. “If not for this, how would your Liu family think of contacting my Jing Chao?”

Liu Mingxian suddenly laughed. “Jing Chao, are you gentlemen really people from Jing Chao? Lord Jin Zhu, when did you become a spy for the Jing Chao Military Intelligence Division?”

Jin Zhu heard the other side call out his name and his face immediately changed, pulling Xi Feng and Liu Tian back to retreat. Liu Mingxian suddenly shouted, “These three people are thieves from Jing Chao! I am the Luo City Intendant; I should remove them for the court. Kill them without mercy!”

The confrontation had begun.

From behind Liu Mingxian, Zhang Guoer took out a bronze whistle from his waist and blew it. The sharp whistle tore through the night. In an instant, quiet residential houses suddenly opened, and several hundred elite soldiers wearing brown leather armor rushed out, fighting with the secret agents scattered and hiding in the small alleys.

As Jin Zhu retreated rapidly, he saw more than ten people behind him biting long knives horizontally, climbing up from under Peony Bridge, blocking their retreat route. Xi Feng said urgently, “My lord, these are elites hidden by the Liu family from the Yan Shi military camp!”

Jin Zhu wanted to pull Xi Feng and Liu Tian to jump into the river, but their path was blocked by Zhang Guoer, who used the Mountain Flower Ghost Money, and the two tattooed men. His face was gloomy as he listened to the sound of clashing metal in the night, turning his head to look at Liu Mingxian. “Lord Liu, you are privately mobilizing armored soldiers. Are you rebelling?”

Liu Mingxian said meaningfully, “I might be capturing thieves from Jing Chao. How could I be rebelling?”

Jin Zhu sneered, “Saying we are thieves from Jing Chao, does Lord Liu have evidence? If there is no evidence, arbitrarily surrounding and killing members of the Secret Service is no different from rebellion.”

Liu Mingxian stroked the bronze hand furnace in his arms and laughed, “I still keep the secret letter you sent me earlier about coming to Peony Bridge. The secret letter clearly uses the hidden character method used by the Jing Chao Military Intelligence Division. This is evidence. Even without this, I can still fabricate much evidence. This matter does not need to worry Lord Jin Zhu.”

Jin Zhu slowly took off his mask, only to see Liu Mingxian turn his head and say to a person beside him, “Lord Yuan, earlier, my side leaked secrets, causing your division to be almost surrounded. This matter is indeed the fault of my Liu family. Tonight, Jin Zhu’s head is the generous gift my Liu family sends. With this as a token, is our sincerity sufficient? I wonder if the Division Master can come south. My Liu family has an important matter to discuss.”

A low, deep voice slowly and leisurely responded, “Lord Liu’s sincerity is full. If you can truly bring Jin Zhu’s head, the Division Master will surely come south to meet.”

Jin Zhu’s pupils contracted slightly, and he suddenly looked at the speaker: a fat figure wearing a bamboo hat beside Liu Mingxian.

He wanted to see the face of the person opposite, but the person not only had their head bowed but also had their face covered with a gray cloth.

Jing Chao Military Intelligence Division.

No wonder Liu Mingxian exposed their identity. It turned out they had re-established contact with the Jing Chao Military Intelligence Division.

But the key was, three days ago, the Liu family clearly had not re-established contact with Jing Chao. How did they suddenly get in touch?

Where exactly did the problem occur?

Jin Zhu looked at the Liu family elites slowly surrounding them and shouted fiercely, “Breakthrough!”

Liu Tian looked at the three Liu family officials in front of him, then turned his head to look at the elites behind him. He suddenly regretted volunteering to wear the tiger face.

Otherwise, the one who should have died on the bridge was Chen Ji, not him…

A quarter of an hour before.

In a narrow alley, Chen Ji was pushed and shoved forward by a secret agent, stumbling. The secret agent guarding him, in order to prevent him from making any wrong moves, had actually tied his hands behind his back with rope.

Chen Ji suddenly stopped walking forward.

The secret agent behind him kicked him. Chen Ji, however, seemed to have eyes in the back of his head and dodged the kick.

The secret agent’s kick missed, and he staggered, almost falling.

“You son of a…”

He steadied himself and wanted to grab Chen Ji.

But Chen Ji was like a mudfish, slippery and impossible to hold. He simply couldn't be grabbed. Chen Ji, with his hands tied behind his back, ran staggering.

The two of them chased each other in the small alley, and actually gradually ran out of the alley, running further and further along the edge of the Luo River.

The secret agent saw there was no hope of meeting up with his colleagues and immediately pulled out his knife in a panic. “If you run again, I’ll chop you with one knife!”

Chen Ji stood still. He hesitated, but his mouth was tied shut, and he couldn’t say a complete word for a long time.

The secret agent impatiently took off the cloth strip from his mouth. “What exactly do you want to say?”

Chen Ji moved his chin slightly, and with his hands behind his back, asked in a low voice, “My lord, don’t you feel something isn’t right?”

“What isn’t right?”

Chen Ji said urgently, “This area is probably home to over a hundred households. On average in Luo City, three out of ten households keep dogs. But over a hundred secret agents have sneaked in and are controlling this place, yet not a single dog bark is heard. Where have all the dogs gone?”

He continued, “Furthermore, not only is there no sound of dogs barking, but it’s still not light yet. However, those who collect dung, carry foot soil, and go to the market to sell and buy goods should have set out. My lord, we’ve walked this far; have you seen anyone go out?”

The secret agent thought about it and was terrified. He wasn’t stupid either. Everything Chen Ji said made sense.

However, just at this moment, a sharp whistle sound came from afar. Before they could react, they saw the large doors of two residential houses in the alley were kicked open, and five or six leather-armored elites rushed out respectively.

The secret agent sucked in a cold breath when he saw these more than ten elites. “Yan Shi Military Camp Elephant Armor Guard!”

In the narrow, dark alley, a person among the Elephant Armor Guard shouted in a low voice, immediately swinging his knife to slash. “Kill!”

However, when the long knife struck, Chen Ji, with his hands tied, quickly turned his body, and the strike actually chopped straight through the rope between his hands.

With a chi sound, the rope broke.