Chapter 114 - 96: Token (Part 2)
His clothes weren’t fancy, just a simple linen outfit.
He had no particular odor, only a faint, sweet scent.
Jiang Ran listened and nodded. ’His answers are so detailed,’ he thought. ’The interrogator must have been just as thorough.’
A frail old man in a bamboo hat, with a salt-and-pepper beard, wearing a linen outfit, and carrying a sweet scent.
After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Ran said to Li Tianxin,
"Break his legs."
Li Tianxin glanced at Jiang Ran and curled his lip. He walked forward, swung his saber, and with two sharp CRACKS—
The bones in both of Tie Cheng’s legs were instantly shattered.
A bloodcurdling scream erupted. He was utterly bewildered... ’I told them everything I know, so why are they breaking my legs?’
Thankfully, his legs weren’t smeared with the same substance Jiang Ran had put on his forehead. Otherwise, he couldn’t imagine the torment he would suffer.
Just then, the sound of footsteps came from outside.
Li Tianxin glanced back.
"Old Ma’s here."
"Open the door."
Jiang Ran said softly.
Li Tianxin nodded but didn’t move from his spot.
Just as Master Ma reached the door and raised his hand to knock, Li Tianxin flicked his sleeve. With a surge of Inner Strength, he blew the door open.
Master Ma stood frozen outside, his hand poised to knock. After a moment of shock, he quickly clasped his fists in a salute.
"Hero Li."
"Come in."
Li Tianxin said coolly, his expression a mask of cold arrogance.
Jiang Ran was speechless. ’Is this his idea of showing off?’
Master Ma quickly entered. His eyes first fell on Tie Cheng, who was lying on the floor, his forehead beaded with sweat from the pain.
Then he saw Jiang Ran, sitting off to the side and holding a teacup.
He immediately hurried to salute him as well.
Jiang Ran waved his hand dismissively.
"No need for formalities, Master Ma. I called you here to ask you to do something."
"Just give the word, Hero Jiang. I, Old Ma, would go through fire and water for you without a moment’s hesitation."
Master Ma vowed, thumping his chest.
Jiang Ran smiled.
"I won’t be asking for such a great sacrifice."
He gestured toward Tie Cheng.
"There’s a master backing this man. He was captured tonight, so the next person to come will likely be that master."
Master Ma’s face turned pale when he heard this.
Tonight, Tie Cheng alone could have slaughtered them as easily as chickens and ducks if he’d truly been set on murder.
Now, hearing there was a master behind Tie Cheng... What was he to do?
But Jiang Ran just smiled.
"Don’t worry, though. They need something from you."
"Their way of asking for favors isn’t exactly normal, but just agree to their demands."
"As for Tie Cheng... just tell them that he overpowered you tonight and tortured a few of your men."
"Then, after leaving his instructions, he departed."
"You don’t know where he went or what he did after that."
"Understand?"
"Yes, I understand."
Master Ma nodded, truly understanding Jiang Ran’s intentions.
"Good."
Jiang Ran waved his hand.
"Fix up the courtyard as soon as possible, and don’t let anyone notice anything is wrong."
"I suspect they won’t come looking until tomorrow night at the earliest. One night should be enough time, and they’re unlikely to notice any discrepancies in the dark."
"Yes."
Master Ma nodded immediately. "Does Hero Jiang have any other orders?"
"Go."
Jiang Ran said.
"You can stop what I asked you to do before. From now on, just follow the leads they give you."
"But no matter what you find, report to me first."
"As you command!"
Master Ma gave a firm, final salute before turning to leave.
Li Tianxin watched him go, then clicked his tongue.
"You saved their lives tonight. It looks like that Old Ma is truly loyal to you now."
Jiang Ran shot him a glance.
"And?"
"You probably don’t have many friends, do you?"
Li Tianxin shook his head and walked out.
Jiang Ran gave a wry smile. ’Why would a dying man need friends?’
He turned his gaze back to Tie Cheng.
"Come on. We’re moving you to a new location."
Tie Cheng: "???"
...
...
「A day passed in the blink of an eye.」
The previous night, Dugu Yu and Yin Yue had indeed come looking for Master Ma.
It was just as Jiang Ran had predicted.
Master Ma had prepared well for their visit, even going so far as to have his three men inflict serious injuries on themselves.
After Dugu Yu and Yin Yue’s inspection, the ruse was a success.
They merely instructed him to get the job done quickly and to report any news to them at once.
Then there was the matter of the county government office.
The moon was high in the sky, and the night was deep and still.
A series of black-clad figures leaped through the darkness, arriving at the county government office in mere moments.
With a soft wave from their leader, the group of black-clad figures instantly fanned out.
They infiltrated the compound from all directions.
Any government constables on guard who discovered them were either knocked unconscious or drugged into submission.
In the blink of an eye, the group had rushed to the front of Chang Nian’s courtyard residence.
Just as they were about to set foot inside, a streak of impossibly sharp Sword Qi descended from the heavens.
Before the man in the lead could even react, the Sword Qi sliced him in two.
"It’s her!"
During the past day, other places had been peaceful, but the county government office was not.
They had already made two attempts, and both times they had returned in defeat.
Although Shi Miao was blunt and straightforward, her martial skill was extraordinary. If it hadn’t been for that bewitching gong and drum for which she had no defense, those six people would have died by her sword that day.
Everyone looked up, and sure enough, there was Shi Miao, clad in white, standing atop a building in the courtyard.
With the starry night as her backdrop, she looked like a celestial being who had descended to the mortal realm.