Cang Lan Dao - Chapter 31.2

Chapter 31.2
Zhang Yiran, where is Liu Xiniang?

Zhang Yiran was stunned, then remembered that he had instructed Zhang Rong to do this before he left the house. That death row inmate had given him the task of keeping an eye on the King Guang An Mansion next door, but he still had his daily business, so he could only hand it over to his family. If he were there, he would keep an eye on it; if he weren’t, his mother and servant would keep an eye on it. His home was extremely close to King Guang An Mansion, and he could hear the slightest movement, so he instructed his family to tell him whenever a common carriage was traveling at night without royal markings.

According to their country’s regulations, the carriage markings are different for different levels; the royal family has a royal marking, the families have their family emblems, and the soldiers, peasants, industrialists, and merchants each have their markings.

For King Guang An Mansion, even the carriage that carried vegetables was a royal carriage. In the past two days, they had not seen an ordinary carriage traveling from King Guang An Mansion, and he was so busy that he had forgotten about it.

Hearing Zhang Rong’s words, Zhang Yiran hurriedly said, “When did it go out?”

“Half an hour ago.” Zhang Rong hurriedly said, “I came to find you as soon as they left.”

Zhang Yiran nodded. Zhang Rong and his mother cannot play the flute, so he did not leave it to them. He had departed half an hour ago —

Then, if it was just in Dongdu, it should have arrived no matter where. Thinking of this, Zhang Yiran pursed his lips, hurriedly took the flute from his sleeve, and blew the ‘West Lake Willow’ – he and Luo Wanqing had agreed upon.

When the tune rang out, Luo Wanqing stood by the window, looking out at Xie Heng’s residence in the distance. When she heard this tune, she froze and then reacted. So, today’s big event was that Li Guiyu had come to look for Xie Heng! Cui Heng has been dispatched, so Xie Heng should be surrounded by experts now. Can she go over it? She thought about it. It wasn’t something she could choose; the arrow had to be delivered. She would try first. She changed into a black dress, put on her mask, and went downstairs.

These two days, she and the people of the Inspection Department have become familiar with each other. Everyone saw her and gave way; some attendants were bold and puzzled, “Where is Agent Liu going?”

“The night is boring. I’m walking around,” Luo Wanqing explained calmly, then commanded, “You guys get busy.” With that, Luo Wanqing went all the way around to the foot of the back mountain. After looking above, she followed Cui Heng’s teaching method, concealing her breath and leaping to the higher ground.

The entire back mountain was full of mechanisms, but the good thing was that they were all the ones she had seen in the Zhenbao Building; even though it was just a glance, she had memorized the principles of the mechanisms, and she avoided them silently after a moment’s thought.

When she arrived at Xie Heng’s compound, she thought there should be many people, but she realized that the whole compound was empty, only Xie Heng and Li Guiyu.

Luo Wanqing silently fell in the corner, hidden in the flower garden. It was not far from the house. The windows and doors were open, and the perimeter was open. Li Guiyu and Xie Heng sat face to face. Xie Heng seemed to look at a volume of paperwork. He looked solemn, bowed his head, and did not say anything.

Li Guiyu took a sip of tea and calmly said, “My situation, Master Xie, should also be clear; I am different from them. I know what Master Xie wants and what they care about, but I don’t care. As long as Master Xie agrees to help me,” Li Guiyu raised his eyes and looked at Xie Heng, “What you want to do, I will help you at any cost. This case of Qin Jue is an excellent opportunity for us.” As he said that, Luo Wanqing felt that Li Guiyu seemed to glance in her direction.

She wondered if he had sensed her presence. Her heart was beating fast as she lay on her back in the flower garden, not daring to move a muscle. She stared at Xie Heng not far away, pondering Li Guiyu’s words and waiting for Xie Heng’s answer.

What did Xie Heng want? Why did others care, but Li Guiyu did not? What’s that paperwork on the table, and why did Xie Heng keep staring at it? And Xie Heng, in the end, what did he think of Li Guiyu? She gazed at the cold, ice-carved youth. He wore plain clothes, with only an ebony hairpin, a string of sandalwood beads on his hand, and a black belt on his waist.

Luo Wanqing recognized that this was Thousand Machines. He looked normal, but there were killing weapons all around him.

He listened to Li Guiyu’s words, flipped through the paperwork on the table, and said softly, ”To be honest, what Third Prince has said has touched me. I do want to make an alliance with you and get what I need.”

Luo Wanqing’s heart sank when she heard this.

Li Guiyu was unhurried and smiled, “What other concerns does the Department Master have?”

“Luo Wanqing is dead.” Xie Heng answered, and both Li Guiyu and Luo Wanqing froze.

Li Guiyu suppressed his emotions and asked, “What do you mean?”

“If she doesn’t die, there is still room to maneuver, and I will conspire with you. But people can’t come back from the dead,” Xie Heng raised his eyes and stared quietly at Li Guiyu, “No matter what I do, I can’t pay her back.”

“I didn’t expect,” Li Guiyu smiled coldly, “My Miss has gone but still has such a hold on the Department Master?”

“I owe her one thing,” Xie Heng faintly said, “I failed to give her an answer while alive. Thus, in death, I’ll give her one.” So, Xie Heng raised his eyes, looked at Li Guiyu, and calmly said, “I am grateful for your heart; I won’t send you off.”

Li Guiyu did not speak. He seemed to be observing Xie Heng for a long time before smiling and saying gently, “For a dead person, Master Xie, is it worth it?”

“It’s not your turn to judge whether it’s worth it.” Xie Heng lowered his eyes, took a nearby teacup, and faintly said, “Go out.”

“Well then, let’s just take it as we never met. But Master Xie, I have to warn you, the explanation for my Miss,” Li Guiyu stood up, raised his eyes to Xie Heng, his tone slightly cold, “It’s not your turn to give it.”

The words just fell, and the teacup in Xie Heng’s hand flew directly towards Li Guiyu, sternly shouting, “Scram!”

Li Guiyu’s foot pointed, and he flew out of the door. His cold eyes looked towards Luo Wanqing’s direction. He raised his hand, and a sword Qi split over! If Luo Wanqing had not moved, that ferocious sword Qi would split her into two on the spot.

Luo Wanqing rolled on the ground and rushed out without hesitation. However, Li Guiyu seemed to have already predicted her movements. A cold arrow in his sleeve shot out in a hurry. Luo Wanqing spun around and leaped. The cold arrow brushed past Luo Wanqing’s chest, almost wiping her neck. The arrow brought cold pain; Luo Wanqing didn’t dare to stay and ran wildly towards the forest.

Li Guiyu looked at the back of the person who went over the wall and frowned slightly. He seemed to be getting sicker. To think, this killer seems so much like his Miss? How can that be? It’s rare for Luo Wanqing to run on ordinary days, so where did she get such an agile body? This person was a specially trained killer. How did she resemble Luo Wanqing? He dared not let Xie Heng notice his abnormality and suppressed all his emotions. Turning his head, he said, “I’ve cleaned up the unclean things. Have someone collect the corpse, Master Xie, farewell.”

Xie Heng glanced at Li Guiyu and said nothing. He turned his eyes again to see where the spy had escaped. Li Guiyu struck too quickly, and that person ran too quickly; he didn’t even notice the figure. What kind of person could sneak here? Feng Yu Pavilion’s people? Which killer? Or, Liu Xiniang? When this name surfaced, Xie Heng wanted to laugh, but when he thought about it, he felt it couldn’t be her. Recently, he had observed her; no trace of anyone had coached her, and she didn’t know anything. She has been training diligently, and has no interest in ‘Xie Heng,’ and also has no intention of questioning him, the Shadow who takes the name of ‘Cui Heng,’ so if she is the assassin sent to kill Xie Heng, she should not be so careless. Although he did not know her experience, she should not have come to the Inspection Department to do evil.

Most importantly —

Xie Heng helplessly glanced at the city’s outskirts and listened carefully to the location of the flute. Somebody had played that flute for a long time. He and Liu Xiniang agreed to blow it three times, and she blew him into a tune. This flute was a new thing developed by the Inspection Department and produced in a slight batch with different sounds. He knew the one played was Liu Xiniang’s. She didn’t sleep in the middle of the night; what was she doing in the countryside?

Xie Heng was puzzled. He stood up and changed his clothes while calling Xuan Shan to come in, commanding: “A while ago, a spy sneaked in. Chase that person, alive or dead.”

Xuan Shan was stunned. He never thought somebody could sneak into the Inspection Department. He solemnly answered, “Yes, I will investigate.”

Xuan Shan looked up and saw that Xie Heng had changed his clothes. He asked, “Master wants to go out?”

“Uh-huh.” Xie Heng answered without explaining. He opened the door and walked out.

Xuan Shan swept around, saw the traces left behind by Luo Wanqing, and immediately ordered people to search the mountain.

Luo Wanqing escaped from Xie Heng’s courtyard and immediately sealed her tendons. Her wound was burning and painful as if it were being torn open; this kind of pain was not usual. Li Guiyu did not chase her, so she knew she must have been poisoned. She poured an antidote pill from the bottle and ate it, then began to run down the mountain. Halfway down the hill, she heard the sound of searching from above.

Luo Wanqing felt chills in her body as she held onto a tree and listened to its sounds; after thinking about it, she knew she couldn’t return. She couldn’t hold out much longer, and if she returned, she would probably faint in her room, and the Inspection Department would find her.

It was hard for her to think about what to do, but her intuition knew she couldn’t reveal her identity. Either way, it was essential to come to a decision when she was sober. But who could help her now? The figure of Cui Heng crossed her mind, but she immediately vetoed it. Cui Heng was good, but she had no trust in him. After a few moments of thought, she had only one option: Qin Jue.

Qin Jue wasn’t a member of the Inspection Department and wouldn’t immediately deal with her. Since she had saved him, he was grateful to her. Plus, she was looking for Xiang Sizi to get the mother parasite for Zhang Jiuran, and Qin Jue also knew that. For the time being, they were allies.

Luo Wanqing didn’t have time to hesitate. She lifted her last breath and stumbled to Qin Jue’s compound, prying open the door and gasping, “Qin Jue!”

When Qin Jue opened the door, he saw Luo Wanqing, who was seriously injured at the door, and frowned, “What’s wrong with you?”

“Take me in first and give me some medicine.”

Qin Jue pursed his lips, glanced around, and then helped Luo Wanqing into the house. Puzzled, he said, “Where did you get that injury?”

“The Inspection Department is on searching. Help me cover it up.” Luo Wanqing gasped for breath and reported a bunch of antidotes to him, hoarsely saying, “Is there any?”

“I have to search for it.” Qin Jue looked at the red-stained blood on her chest and said, “But you have to be clear with me. What exactly are you doing?”

“I’m going to trick Xiang Sizi into giving me the mother parasite,” Luo Wanqing said softly, “but I have to gain his trust first. He stated that if I listened to the conversation between Li Gui Yu and Master Xie Heng, I agreed to assassinate Master Xie, so I went to eavesdrop. When tomorrow comes, I will find Xiang Sizi and pretend to agree.”

“Pretend?” Qin Jue seemed disbelieving, “Really pretending?”

“What do you think?” Luo Wanqing raised her eyes to look at him, “If I were someone from the Feng Yu Pavilion, would you still be alive right now?”

These words gave Qin Jue shock.

Luo Wanqing took another antidote to the poison, sat cross-legged on the couch, running her internal energy to press down on the toxin, and said in a low voice, “You can disbelieve me and have the Inspection Department go to Xiang Sizi to ask for the mother parasite.”

But the Inspection Department wouldn’t save an assassin, Zhang Jiuran.

Qin Jue understood Luo Wanqing’s meaning, pursed his lips, turned around, and said, “I’ll go look for medicine.”

Qin Jue went to the next room and searched for the herbs Luo Wanqing wanted. After searching for no more than a few moments, Zhu Que’s voice came from outside: “Qin Jue? Are you there, Qin Jue?”

Qin Jue’s face changed slightly. He immediately put down the herbs, went to the courtyard entrance, and opened the door. Zhu Que glanced at the courtyard and asked, “Have you seen an injured person?”

“No.” Qin Jue shook his head, puzzled, “What happened?”

“Oh, nothing.” Qin Jue didn’t doubt him, only saying, “Then I’ll leave first.”

Zhu Que then keeps searching.

Qin Jue closed the door and turned back to his room. He found the herbs that Luo Wanqing had asked for and boiled them according to her instructions.

At this time, Xie Heng rushed to the countryside to find the location of the person playing the flute. The other party hid behind a tree, repeatedly playing ‘West Lake Willow.’ He seemed unsure whether he had blown out the sound or the other party had heard him, but thinking of the previous promise, he could only blow repeatedly.

At this time, the moonlight was just right, the peach blossoms of the Guardian Temple fell with the wind, and when Xie Heng listened to the flute, he inevitably slowed down his footsteps. He had always known she was brilliant, learned everything quickly, had excellent martial arts skills and a stunning sword-wielding stance, but he had never known that she was good at playing the flute, too.

She played this ‘West Lake Willow’ so clearly and comfortably that it was easy to hear. It carried Jiangnan’s tenderness but was not weak, somewhat similar to her indifferentness.

“Alright,” Xie Heng saw that the other party did not stop, walked behind the tree, and gently said, “Stop blowing. I hear you. I’m coming.”

The flute sound under the tree stopped. Xie Heng was wearing a gilt mask, holding a fan in one hand, and walking around the tree to come forward; once he lowered his head, he met a pair of blank eyes.

Xie Heng froze and saw the other party sitting on a stone bench under the tree, wearing a green shirt stained with mud, holding a flute, and speaking in doubt: “You are?”

Xie Heng’s face immediately changed, his eyes lowered to look at the flute in his hand, instantly realizing something.

“Zhang Yiran!” He stared at the youth; for the first time, he felt anger rising up. He couldn’t help but laugh out loud and say icily, “Where is Liu Xiniang?!”