Not long after the carriage's departure, Jing Rong arrived at the south gate where the carriage was supposed to be. He was a bit puzzled from not seeing the carriage, thus he asked the imperial guard on duty, "Where is the Rong estate's carriage?" "It just left." "What about Teacher Ji who came with me?" Jing Rong suddenly had a bad premonition. The imperial guard replied perfunctorily, "He already left with the carriage." 'Very good Ji Yunshu! This Prince is such a great existence, but you didn't notice that I didn't get on the carriage yet?! Or are you deliberately leaving without me?! Truly brazen!' He was bursting with fury, but he did his best to repress it. He suspected that there was a reason why Ji yunshu didn't wait for him. And the only explanation would be she didn't want him to prevent her from going to Liang mountain. Thus, she acted first and will report to him later. 'That girl! Wait until I catch you, and see how I will punish you.'
Jing Rong ordered the guard to prepare a horse for him. When the horse was saddled, he mounted it and left for Liang mountain in haste.
Behind him, Jing Yi's jet black eyes closely watched him as he set off. Next to him, his trusted aide, Dou Quan, inquired, "Prince Rong is alone, do you want…" Jing Yi lightly curled up his lips and spoke in a gloomy tone, "You better handle it properly. Don't leave any traces behind." "Yes, your Highness!" Dou Quan was about to leave for his mission when Jing Yi stopped him with a stretch of his hand. After a moment of pondering, he said, "No, go notify Yan Weiyi. Let him send people with shiban poison. In any case, since he also wants Jing Rong dead, he might as well clean up that Ji Yunshu too to avoid long nights filled with dreams1" "Your Highness is wise." "We're in the capital after all. I can't dirty my own hands." His statement was accompanied by a clear laugh.
…………………. Liang mountain wasn't located far from the capital, and it was bordered by the main roads. On the way, Ji Yunshu would occasionally lift the carriage curtain and glanced outside. From time to time, she would see another horse carriage travelling on the same road. After a while, they finally arrived at the foot of Liang mountain. After disembarking, Ji Yunshu looked at the sky. The sun was at its zenith, indicating it was currently noon. At this time, the humidity on Liang mountain was at its lowest. The coachman asked with curiosity, "What are you going to do here, Teacher Ji?" "Nothing. Wait for me here." "This…" The coachman was caught in a dilemma. "Rest assured, I won't go far. I'll stay in the vicinity." "I have go with you. In the case something happens, I won't know how to explain to Prince Rong." While he spoke, the coachman pulled the carriage to the side and tied the horses to a big tree. He was ready to hike the mountain with Ji Yunshu. But Ji Yunshu refused, "It's better if you stay here and watch the carriage. If something happens to the carriage, how are we going to return to the Rong estate? Even if we walk back, it will be dark and the city gates will be closed at that time." The main road meandering through the empire was considered safe. However, for a luxurious carriage to be left alone in the wilderness, there's no guarantee that no one would entertain the idea of stealing it. Not to mention that the distance from here to the Rong estate was quite far. Therefore, it was better to be safe than sorry. The coachman thought for a moment. He was still worried about Ji Yunshu, yet he couldn't persuade her. In the end, he had no choice but to comply to her suggestion. According to the capital secretary, the corpse was discovered in the southeastern part at the foot of the mountain. Ji Yunshu was currently located on the western side of the mountain. It would take awhile before reaching the crime scene. She couldn't help but mutter, "If the deceased came down the mountain, how did she end up in the southeastern part? Or did she pass through the forest by foot?" After analyzing the information she had, suddenly, a realization dawned on her! Her eyes widened from the shock, but that emotion was mixed with a hint of pleasant surprise. She broke a branch and used it as a walking cane as she traversed the forest by foot to the southeastern side of the mountain. When she entered the forest, her senses were quickly assaulted by the dense humidity in the air, turning it ice-cold and making her body shiver from the drop in temperature.
Noon was a time where the sunlight was the warmest and brightest, yet inside this forest overly populated by tall trees with dense foliage, it was hard for the sunlight to pierce through the dim and gloomy air. Only the mottled of leaves' shadows projected on the muddy ground hinted at the sun's existence. Within the dimmed forest, a cold wind had a chosen home, rustling the leaves in a continuum, creating a strangeness that seeped into people's heart. Fortunately, her eyes had seen too many corpses, thus she wasn't intimidated by the atmosphere of this dark forest. Relying on her walking cane, she threaded through the forest. The further she went in, the humidity increased and the temperature dropped even further, which she could feel deep inside of her. As time passed, her steps grew heavier, and the laborious effort made her pant. As she ascended a slope, she suddenly slipped on the trail of mud. Her body abruptly fell forward; she had no time to react. But in extremis, A big hand broke her fall by tightly holding onto her waist and strongly pulling her up before she kissed the muddy ground. Her back ended up hitting on her savior's chest. "If this Young Master wasn't here, you would have fallen." A warm and frivolous voice was heard near Ji Yunshu's ears. With that voice alone, she was able to identify the person with certainty. She hurriedly freed herself from the other man's arm and turned around with doubt written on her face. "Why are you here?" Li Shiyan laughed while watching her. In his hand, he still held an exquisite folded fan. With raised brows, he spoke, "It seems that my guess is correct. You are Shu'er." 'Eh?' Ji Yunshu felt too lazy to deny. She pursed her lips and asked, "What are you doing here?" "I followed you from the moment you left Prince Rong's residence until you traveled to this place." "You followed me?" Ji Yunshu was perplexed by his actions. "Why would you follow me from Yuzhou to the capital?" "Didn't I already say this? I greatly admire your investigation skills. I want to follow you as you solve a case, then we can go to poetry assemblies and other gatherings to further our friendship!" For him, this was quite a logical process.
'Damn crazy man!' There are so many women in this world willing to attend poetry assemblies or go to gatherings. Why does it have to be her?! She narrowed her eyes while staring at him. She blurted out with impatience, "Thank you very much for your help earlier. Unfortunately, I am in a hurry, so why don't you quickly go away?" "I know you are currently investigating the missing girls case." "Since you know about it, don't bother me." "In fact, I am very curious about the identity of this perverted murderer." As he spoke, he brazenly came closer to Ji Yunshu before continuing, "The past few days, I have heard many rumors about this case, so I know about the discovery of this body on Liang mountain and that you were the one who examined it." Ji Yunshu stepped back, increasing the distance between them. She calmly said, "So?" He waved the fan in his hand before replying, "So, I want to help you. Look at this place; the forest is cold and the ground is muddy. It's very likely for a weak girl like you to have an accident. You can… think of me as your assistant. How about it?" It's true that as she passes through this forest to reach the crime scene, she might slip many times and could end up falling to her death. She considered Li Shiyan's proposition for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Good! Right, my ears are hurt. So, if you don't have anything to say, it's better to keep your mouth shut."
"Rest assured, I won't disturb you." Li Shiyan's peach blossom eyes sparkled as if he gained a huge benefit. Ji Yunshu proceeded forward while he obediently trailed closely behind her.
Grenn’s Rants Corner
Getting back to the missing girls case. ^_^
夜长梦多 or long nights filled with dreams put in context meant that the nights are filled with dreams, but nothing is real and everything is but supposition. It's better to avoid future troubles by resolving the problem as soon as possible. ↩
Ji Yunshu walked in front, while Li Shiyan followed behind. Watching the slender figure in front of him advancing laboriously, made him worried. His vigilance rose as he readied himself to protect her at anytime.
After a moment of walking in silence, Li Shiyan asked, "Where are we going right now?" "Southeast," answered Ji Yunshu. "I don't understand. Why do you want to pass through this forest? Look at this place; everything feels humid, and the sun barely shines down. Why don't you go around it?" He frowned in bewilderment. In front of him, Ji Yunshu continued to walk with caution. She jabbed the improvised walking cane into the muddy ground and talked to him without turning back, "Do you really want to know?" "Of course." Li Shiyan nodded. "If you feel that my talent is good, feel free to receive me as your disciple. Perhaps in the future, I can solve cases in the blink of an eye." 'In the blink of an eye?' His words made Ji Yunshu smile, but she no longer spoke to him. However, because Ji Yunshu didn't dispel Li Shiyan's doubts, his mind became more bothered by it. Therefore, he continued to urge her for an answer, "Since you're allowing me to go with you, there's no need to hide your thoughts from me. Maybe if you tell me, I might be able to help you get some ideas." Ji Yunshu didn't appear to be against the idea. She took a deep breath, inhaling the cold and humid air before speaking, "The deceased came from the main road and ran through the forest until she reached the southeastern part of the mountain." "How do you know that?" "Although this is the surroundings of a big mountain, woodcutters often go into this mountain, so it's impossible to hide someone here. In addition, the capital secretary had ordered a search in the vicinity which implies that there's no place to hide anyone. Taking into account the state of the corpse at the moment of its discovery, it was impossible for the victim to escape from a faraway location to this mountain. Therefore, there is only one explanation." "What it is?" "Prior to her death, the victim must have escaped from inside a carriage or from something that could hide a person. At that time, she must have been chased by someone. Therefore, in that moment of desperation, it would be impossible for her to make a decision with clarity like to detour the forest by taking the trails to the east then to the south. The only option she would take is to run directly through the forest to the southeast. Unfortunately, during her escape, she stumbled on something and fell on a stone where she met her end." Ji Yunshu explained this with incredible patience. Li Shiyan nodded several times in shock. His face completely expressed the worship he had for Ji Yunshu, but it wasn't enough to stop him from continuing to ask, "Then, you are retracing the deceased's escape route? But, why do you want to do that?" "I want to search for any clues left behind by the murderer or something that could give us more information on the case." Her explanations were quite vulgarized, but despite this, Li Shiyan pushed his brain to work harder. It still took him a good moment to understand everything that was said. Finally, he gasped in awe. He really wanted to open that woman's head and see what her brain is made of. Ji Yunshu used most of her energy to hike through the forest, but she still continued to explain, "Another thing, Liang mountain is near the capital and could only be reached by the main road. If you want to hide someone, the type of carriage used is probably bigger in size than normal ones. What's more, the direction where the carriage was going is probably out of the city." "Why?" "That's because of the missing girls case. Due to the numerous disappearances, the city was heavily guarded and under search everywhere. The murderer might be scared of being discovered, thus he must smuggle the victim out of the capital. Unfortunately, there is still a point I am unclear about. If he did use a carriage, hiding the victim inside should be easy. But, there's a strict search at the gates. How did the murderer avoid that? How did he smuggle the victim out of the capital?" Ji Yunshu's mind gradually sank in confusion. To summarize it, many points remained unclear in her conjecture, and she still had no lead to unravel that mystery. Right now, she could only hope that she finds a clue while going through this forest. "Enough, let's try to find some clues first." Ji Yunshu stated. Li Shiyan stopped asking questions as he still had not digested Ji Yunshu's explanations. Suddenly, Ji Yunshu stopped walking. "Wait, wait, wait!"
"What?"
"Look, isn't that a white cloth?" She pointed in a direction. Not far from them, a white cloth was tangled in overgrown branches where a steep slope loomed below. If she was careful enough, she should be able to reach for that white fabric. Li Shiyan squinted his eyes several times before nodding, "This is indeed some kind of cloth and one of average quality." "We will know after a closer examination." After a moment, Ji Yunshu leaned on a tree and bent down in order to reach for the white cloth in vain.
"Let me do it." Li Shiyan pulled her up and was about take her place when- Swish! Swish! Swish!
Suddenly, something nailed the tree. In between the shadows of the trees, an ear-piercing sound could be heard. Then, more than a dozen men clad in black jumped down from a tall tree. Each of them held a sword and thrust it toward Ji Yunshu and Li Shiyan. When she saw the sword darting dangerously toward them, she instinctively raised her hand to protect Li Shiyan's back.
"Be careful!" Li Shiyan waved his beautiful fan and opened it. Unexpectedly, several sharp needles shot out from the fan and accurately pierced the throats of a few assassins, killing them on the spot!
Ji Yunshu didn't have the time to react before realizing that the fan was in fact a terrible hidden weapon.
"Stay near the tree and don't run anywhere." Li Shiyan instructed her. In no time, he was entangled in a perilous fight against the assassins. Unbeknownst to him, Ji Yunshu who hid near the tree was once again attacked by an assassin who had jumped down from it. His sword slashed down without pity, mercilessly slashing toward her head. Her eyes unconsciously looked up and she stared at the sword's tip, glinting like a shooting star. Her pupils dilated. 'Am I going to die? I survived in Jinjiang only to die here? I haven't solved the missing girls case and the Lin capital case yet. And there's Wei Yi; what will happen to him? Will Jing Rong take care of him in my stead? Will he be fine after I'm gone?' The sword ruthlessly descended. But, with only 0.0001 cm left before her skin was pierced, a stone timely struck the sword, deviating its trajectory. The force from the stone was enough to make the sword jump out of the assassin's hand, falling into a broad hand. After grabbing the other's sword, Jing Rong immediately plunged the weapon into the man's chest. At the same time, he pulled Ji Yunshu toward him, causing her to knock her head into his chest. "Next time you dare to leave me behind, I will kill you!" Anger surged into his eyes. Despite the dim surroundings, Ji Yunshu could clearly distinguish the anger and seriousness painting his countenance. "I…" Jing Rong didn't have time for Ji Yunshu's explanation as he immediately pushed her back to the tree. "Stay here." After that, he turned away, sword in hand and joined the fray. Ji Yunshu hugged her stomach without reacting for a long time. Then, she watched the ongoing fight. Her sight fell once again on the white cloth, and after thinking for a moment, she carefully sneaked toward it. When she came nearer, she tried once again to reach for it through the branches with her fingertips. She inched a bit more toward the steep slope and used her other hand to grab it. 'A bit more!' She inched a bit forward. 'Almost there!' Finally, she grabbed that white cloth.
"AH!" And she tumbled down the steep slope.
Grenn’s Rants Corner
My god! Assassins again!
Not long after the carriage's departure, Jing Rong arrived at the south gate where the carriage was supposed to be. He was a bit puzzled from not seeing the carriage, thus he asked the imperial guard on duty, "Where is the Rong estate's carriage?" "It just left." "What about Teacher Ji who came with me?" Jing Rong suddenly had a bad premonition. The imperial guard replied perfunctorily, "He already left with the carriage." 'Very good Ji Yunshu! This Prince is such a great existence, but you didn't notice that I didn't get on the carriage yet?! Or are you deliberately leaving without me?! Truly brazen!' He was bursting with fury, but he did his best to repress it. He suspected that there was a reason why Ji yunshu didn't wait for him. And the only explanation would be she didn't want him to prevent her from going to Liang mountain. Thus, she acted first and will report to him later. 'That girl! Wait until I catch you, and see how I will punish you.'
Jing Rong ordered the guard to prepare a horse for him. When the horse was saddled, he mounted it and left for Liang mountain in haste.
Behind him, Jing Yi's jet black eyes closely watched him as he set off. Next to him, his trusted aide, Dou Quan, inquired, "Prince Rong is alone, do you want…" Jing Yi lightly curled up his lips and spoke in a gloomy tone, "You better handle it properly. Don't leave any traces behind." "Yes, your Highness!" Dou Quan was about to leave for his mission when Jing Yi stopped him with a stretch of his hand. After a moment of pondering, he said, "No, go notify Yan Weiyi. Let him send people with shiban poison. In any case, since he also wants Jing Rong dead, he might as well clean up that Ji Yunshu too to avoid long nights filled with dreams1" "Your Highness is wise." "We're in the capital after all. I can't dirty my own hands." His statement was accompanied by a clear laugh.
…………………. Liang mountain wasn't located far from the capital, and it was bordered by the main roads. On the way, Ji Yunshu would occasionally lift the carriage curtain and glanced outside. From time to time, she would see another horse carriage travelling on the same road. After a while, they finally arrived at the foot of Liang mountain. After disembarking, Ji Yunshu looked at the sky. The sun was at its zenith, indicating it was currently noon. At this time, the humidity on Liang mountain was at its lowest. The coachman asked with curiosity, "What are you going to do here, Teacher Ji?" "Nothing. Wait for me here." "This…" The coachman was caught in a dilemma. "Rest assured, I won't go far. I'll stay in the vicinity." "I have go with you. In the case something happens, I won't know how to explain to Prince Rong." While he spoke, the coachman pulled the carriage to the side and tied the horses to a big tree. He was ready to hike the mountain with Ji Yunshu. But Ji Yunshu refused, "It's better if you stay here and watch the carriage. If something happens to the carriage, how are we going to return to the Rong estate? Even if we walk back, it will be dark and the city gates will be closed at that time." The main road meandering through the empire was considered safe. However, for a luxurious carriage to be left alone in the wilderness, there's no guarantee that no one would entertain the idea of stealing it. Not to mention that the distance from here to the Rong estate was quite far. Therefore, it was better to be safe than sorry. The coachman thought for a moment. He was still worried about Ji Yunshu, yet he couldn't persuade her. In the end, he had no choice but to comply to her suggestion. According to the capital secretary, the corpse was discovered in the southeastern part at the foot of the mountain. Ji Yunshu was currently located on the western side of the mountain. It would take awhile before reaching the crime scene. She couldn't help but mutter, "If the deceased came down the mountain, how did she end up in the southeastern part? Or did she pass through the forest by foot?" After analyzing the information she had, suddenly, a realization dawned on her! Her eyes widened from the shock, but that emotion was mixed with a hint of pleasant surprise. She broke a branch and used it as a walking cane as she traversed the forest by foot to the southeastern side of the mountain. When she entered the forest, her senses were quickly assaulted by the dense humidity in the air, turning it ice-cold and making her body shiver from the drop in temperature.
Noon was a time where the sunlight was the warmest and brightest, yet inside this forest overly populated by tall trees with dense foliage, it was hard for the sunlight to pierce through the dim and gloomy air. Only the mottled of leaves' shadows projected on the muddy ground hinted at the sun's existence. Within the dimmed forest, a cold wind had a chosen home, rustling the leaves in a continuum, creating a strangeness that seeped into people's heart. Fortunately, her eyes had seen too many corpses, thus she wasn't intimidated by the atmosphere of this dark forest. Relying on her walking cane, she threaded through the forest. The further she went in, the humidity increased and the temperature dropped even further, which she could feel deep inside of her. As time passed, her steps grew heavier, and the laborious effort made her pant. As she ascended a slope, she suddenly slipped on the trail of mud. Her body abruptly fell forward; she had no time to react. But in extremis, A big hand broke her fall by tightly holding onto her waist and strongly pulling her up before she kissed the muddy ground. Her back ended up hitting on her savior's chest. "If this Young Master wasn't here, you would have fallen." A warm and frivolous voice was heard near Ji Yunshu's ears. With that voice alone, she was able to identify the person with certainty. She hurriedly freed herself from the other man's arm and turned around with doubt written on her face. "Why are you here?" Li Shiyan laughed while watching her. In his hand, he still held an exquisite folded fan. With raised brows, he spoke, "It seems that my guess is correct. You are Shu'er." 'Eh?' Ji Yunshu felt too lazy to deny. She pursed her lips and asked, "What are you doing here?" "I followed you from the moment you left Prince Rong's residence until you traveled to this place." "You followed me?" Ji Yunshu was perplexed by his actions. "Why would you follow me from Yuzhou to the capital?" "Didn't I already say this? I greatly admire your investigation skills. I want to follow you as you solve a case, then we can go to poetry assemblies and other gatherings to further our friendship!" For him, this was quite a logical process.
'Damn crazy man!' There are so many women in this world willing to attend poetry assemblies or go to gatherings. Why does it have to be her?! She narrowed her eyes while staring at him. She blurted out with impatience, "Thank you very much for your help earlier. Unfortunately, I am in a hurry, so why don't you quickly go away?" "I know you are currently investigating the missing girls case." "Since you know about it, don't bother me." "In fact, I am very curious about the identity of this perverted murderer." As he spoke, he brazenly came closer to Ji Yunshu before continuing, "The past few days, I have heard many rumors about this case, so I know about the discovery of this body on Liang mountain and that you were the one who examined it." Ji Yunshu stepped back, increasing the distance between them. She calmly said, "So?" He waved the fan in his hand before replying, "So, I want to help you. Look at this place; the forest is cold and the ground is muddy. It's very likely for a weak girl like you to have an accident. You can… think of me as your assistant. How about it?" It's true that as she passes through this forest to reach the crime scene, she might slip many times and could end up falling to her death. She considered Li Shiyan's proposition for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Good! Right, my ears are hurt. So, if you don't have anything to say, it's better to keep your mouth shut."
"Rest assured, I won't disturb you." Li Shiyan's peach blossom eyes sparkled as if he gained a huge benefit. Ji Yunshu proceeded forward while he obediently trailed closely behind her.
Grenn’s Rants Corner
Getting back to the missing girls case. ^_^
夜长梦多 or long nights filled with dreams put in context meant that the nights are filled with dreams, but nothing is real and everything is but supposition. It's better to avoid future troubles by resolving the problem as soon as possible. ↩
Ji Yunshu walked in front, while Li Shiyan followed behind. Watching the slender figure in front of him advancing laboriously, made him worried. His vigilance rose as he readied himself to protect her at anytime.
After a moment of walking in silence, Li Shiyan asked, "Where are we going right now?" "Southeast," answered Ji Yunshu. "I don't understand. Why do you want to pass through this forest? Look at this place; everything feels humid, and the sun barely shines down. Why don't you go around it?" He frowned in bewilderment. In front of him, Ji Yunshu continued to walk with caution. She jabbed the improvised walking cane into the muddy ground and talked to him without turning back, "Do you really want to know?" "Of course." Li Shiyan nodded. "If you feel that my talent is good, feel free to receive me as your disciple. Perhaps in the future, I can solve cases in the blink of an eye." 'In the blink of an eye?' His words made Ji Yunshu smile, but she no longer spoke to him. However, because Ji Yunshu didn't dispel Li Shiyan's doubts, his mind became more bothered by it. Therefore, he continued to urge her for an answer, "Since you're allowing me to go with you, there's no need to hide your thoughts from me. Maybe if you tell me, I might be able to help you get some ideas." Ji Yunshu didn't appear to be against the idea. She took a deep breath, inhaling the cold and humid air before speaking, "The deceased came from the main road and ran through the forest until she reached the southeastern part of the mountain." "How do you know that?" "Although this is the surroundings of a big mountain, woodcutters often go into this mountain, so it's impossible to hide someone here. In addition, the capital secretary had ordered a search in the vicinity which implies that there's no place to hide anyone. Taking into account the state of the corpse at the moment of its discovery, it was impossible for the victim to escape from a faraway location to this mountain. Therefore, there is only one explanation." "What it is?" "Prior to her death, the victim must have escaped from inside a carriage or from something that could hide a person. At that time, she must have been chased by someone. Therefore, in that moment of desperation, it would be impossible for her to make a decision with clarity like to detour the forest by taking the trails to the east then to the south. The only option she would take is to run directly through the forest to the southeast. Unfortunately, during her escape, she stumbled on something and fell on a stone where she met her end." Ji Yunshu explained this with incredible patience. Li Shiyan nodded several times in shock. His face completely expressed the worship he had for Ji Yunshu, but it wasn't enough to stop him from continuing to ask, "Then, you are retracing the deceased's escape route? But, why do you want to do that?" "I want to search for any clues left behind by the murderer or something that could give us more information on the case." Her explanations were quite vulgarized, but despite this, Li Shiyan pushed his brain to work harder. It still took him a good moment to understand everything that was said. Finally, he gasped in awe. He really wanted to open that woman's head and see what her brain is made of. Ji Yunshu used most of her energy to hike through the forest, but she still continued to explain, "Another thing, Liang mountain is near the capital and could only be reached by the main road. If you want to hide someone, the type of carriage used is probably bigger in size than normal ones. What's more, the direction where the carriage was going is probably out of the city." "Why?" "That's because of the missing girls case. Due to the numerous disappearances, the city was heavily guarded and under search everywhere. The murderer might be scared of being discovered, thus he must smuggle the victim out of the capital. Unfortunately, there is still a point I am unclear about. If he did use a carriage, hiding the victim inside should be easy. But, there's a strict search at the gates. How did the murderer avoid that? How did he smuggle the victim out of the capital?" Ji Yunshu's mind gradually sank in confusion. To summarize it, many points remained unclear in her conjecture, and she still had no lead to unravel that mystery. Right now, she could only hope that she finds a clue while going through this forest. "Enough, let's try to find some clues first." Ji Yunshu stated. Li Shiyan stopped asking questions as he still had not digested Ji Yunshu's explanations. Suddenly, Ji Yunshu stopped walking. "Wait, wait, wait!"
"What?"
"Look, isn't that a white cloth?" She pointed in a direction. Not far from them, a white cloth was tangled in overgrown branches where a steep slope loomed below. If she was careful enough, she should be able to reach for that white fabric. Li Shiyan squinted his eyes several times before nodding, "This is indeed some kind of cloth and one of average quality." "We will know after a closer examination." After a moment, Ji Yunshu leaned on a tree and bent down in order to reach for the white cloth in vain.
"Let me do it." Li Shiyan pulled her up and was about take her place when- Swish! Swish! Swish!
Suddenly, something nailed the tree. In between the shadows of the trees, an ear-piercing sound could be heard. Then, more than a dozen men clad in black jumped down from a tall tree. Each of them held a sword and thrust it toward Ji Yunshu and Li Shiyan. When she saw the sword darting dangerously toward them, she instinctively raised her hand to protect Li Shiyan's back.
"Be careful!" Li Shiyan waved his beautiful fan and opened it. Unexpectedly, several sharp needles shot out from the fan and accurately pierced the throats of a few assassins, killing them on the spot!
Ji Yunshu didn't have the time to react before realizing that the fan was in fact a terrible hidden weapon.
"Stay near the tree and don't run anywhere." Li Shiyan instructed her. In no time, he was entangled in a perilous fight against the assassins. Unbeknownst to him, Ji Yunshu who hid near the tree was once again attacked by an assassin who had jumped down from it. His sword slashed down without pity, mercilessly slashing toward her head. Her eyes unconsciously looked up and she stared at the sword's tip, glinting like a shooting star. Her pupils dilated. 'Am I going to die? I survived in Jinjiang only to die here? I haven't solved the missing girls case and the Lin capital case yet. And there's Wei Yi; what will happen to him? Will Jing Rong take care of him in my stead? Will he be fine after I'm gone?' The sword ruthlessly descended. But, with only 0.0001 cm left before her skin was pierced, a stone timely struck the sword, deviating its trajectory. The force from the stone was enough to make the sword jump out of the assassin's hand, falling into a broad hand. After grabbing the other's sword, Jing Rong immediately plunged the weapon into the man's chest. At the same time, he pulled Ji Yunshu toward him, causing her to knock her head into his chest. "Next time you dare to leave me behind, I will kill you!" Anger surged into his eyes. Despite the dim surroundings, Ji Yunshu could clearly distinguish the anger and seriousness painting his countenance. "I…" Jing Rong didn't have time for Ji Yunshu's explanation as he immediately pushed her back to the tree. "Stay here." After that, he turned away, sword in hand and joined the fray. Ji Yunshu hugged her stomach without reacting for a long time. Then, she watched the ongoing fight. Her sight fell once again on the white cloth, and after thinking for a moment, she carefully sneaked toward it. When she came nearer, she tried once again to reach for it through the branches with her fingertips. She inched a bit more toward the steep slope and used her other hand to grab it. 'A bit more!' She inched a bit forward. 'Almost there!' Finally, she grabbed that white cloth.
"AH!" And she tumbled down the steep slope.
Grenn’s Rants Corner
My god! Assassins again!
