Jinshui spat out a mouthful of fresh blood again when he arrived at Chunjie Kezhan, almost losing consciousness. Huang Yu handed Lin Xiaoyan over to Xiaoshan and Xiaohu who had arrived there, then carried Jinshui into the room, using the inner energy Chailang gave him to help him deal with internal injuries.
Xu Qiao had been worried about Jinshui since he was after the kidnapper, she couldn't rest and waited in front of the door, immediately following when she saw Jinshui coming. Zhu Baique let her slip while standing with a blank expression, barely even reacting as Qin Liangjie took Shangguan Ruyin away from her.
"How is Jinshui Gege?" Xu Qiao asked anxiously. She stood by the bed and got more anxious when she saw Jinshui's pale face.
"He was already injured after fighting Xie Tianhu, and still has to deal with Zhu Guniang's lover," Huang Yu said, "what do you think happened to him?"
"Zhu Guniang's lover?" Xu Qiao asked, for a moment glancing at Zhu Baique.
"He's not," Zhu Baique sighed shortly.
Huang Yu paid no further attention. He transferred internal energy to Jinshui until nearly an hour later, then allowed Jinshui to sit cross-legged and recover himself. Xu Qiao waited beside him, not wanting to leave him. Huang Yu met Zhu Baique by the door.
"Do you know if Ma Yongtao is a member of Liangshan Liu Mo or not?" Huang Yu asked her sternly.
Zhu Baique shook her head slowly, apparently, she was also still shocked by what she witnessed today. Huang Yu observed every change in her expression closely, knowing she wasn't lying.
"Then why were you with him?" Huang Yu asked again.
"He… I've known him since I was a servant at Haitang Jian Pai, he… he was a good friend of mine," Zhu Baique said hesitantly, looking still confused. "Three days ago, he came to see me again, asked me to go with him, and then… then…."
"Then what?" asked Huang Yu.
"Then he asked me to trust him no matter what, and then took me to meet those demons," Baique facial expression seemed to be hiding something unspeakable. "What happened next, you already know."
"Had Ma Yongtao told you anything related to Liangshan Liu Mo?" Huang Yu asked again. "Their dajie laoda, do you know who she is?"
Zhu Baique shook her head in confusion again.
"Your father died at the hands of Liangshan Liu Mo, I hope you don't forget this," Huang Yu continued, "I hope, you are not like my brother Huang Zhe who praised the murderer of our parents as his master, taking Ma Yongtao as your lover."
"He's not," Zhu Baique repeated her same words.
"You go find Liuxin Meimei," Huang Yu said to her, "perhaps she needs your help."
Zhu Baique nodded, then left without asking where Liuxin was. Huang Yu shook his head once and didn't say another word. It wasn't that he didn't know anything about girls, he just didn't like to care, so he went to see Lin Xiaoyan's condition.
Since Chunjie Kezhan was no longer a safe place, Jinshui was injured, Qin Liangjie and Liuxin were also not well, in addition Qin Yujiang's baby had to be rescued immediately, two days later they all said goodbye to Shen Xiru and her sisters, asking conveyed to Xi Xiaofeng, then left the place.
--
Two horse carriages had been prepared, one for Jinshui, Xu Qiao, Liuxin, and Lin Xiaoyan, and another for Qin Liangjie and his family. The others were all on horseback, traveling while the sky was still dark, and headed for Wansui Gu to meet Zeng Baifeng. Huang Yu asked his two loyal servants Xiaoshan and Xiaohu to go in two different directions, trying to find Yanzi's whereabouts.
Passing by the road on the mountainside, a stretch of the valley could be seen ahead at dawn two days later. The horse-drawn carriages slowed their way as several people walked ahead carrying sacks, sacks large enough to hold a human body inside.
There were a total of six people, each of whom was a tall, middle-aged man, wearing an all-black shirt with his face covering down. From their light movements, it was clear that they were quite high-skilled in martial arts. Huang Yu who rode at the front saw one of the sacks move and the person carrying it put it down, hit it once and the sack fell silent completely.
"The disciples of Haitang Jian Pai are really troublesome," that man said. "I don't know what Zhou Zuozhe told us to arrest them for. Instead of capturing their leader, I don't know what's the use of catching the little ones."
Hearing them mentioning Haitang Jian Pai's disciple, also mentioning Zhou Zuozhe or Left Guard Zhou, Huang Yu immediately realized that the six men in front were Zhou Sangong's people of Wansui Gu, and the sacks in their backs contained Yuan Wancui's disciples. Qin Liangjie mentioned to Huang Yu about Yanzi helping the Wansui Gu people before, and now they saw it themselves.
"Liao-xiong, we'd better stop here for some rest." Huang Yu said, then asked Yue Songdai and Qin Liangjie to bring the carriage to the side and hide them behind the trees and thickets so as not to directly deal with the Wansui Gu people.
"Eh, I thought there were some carriages behind us," one of the sack-bearers said, looking back and seeing the street was empty.
"Don't worry about it," his friend replied, "only a few strays I suppose. Today we don't have time to deal with anything else."
"Wansui Gu is only a few miles ahead, we must quickly bring these ladies over there, then find the rest," his other friend said, "Zhou Zuozhe already said, must capture all of them, not sparing a single person."
They continued walking towards the valley, occasionally slapping the sacks on their backs roughly, then laughing. Huang Yu and Liao Xian watched, considering Haitang Jian Pai's disciples not to be counted as associates they shouldn't need to get involved, but after all members of that sect were all girls, to see this kind of bullying without doing anything was out of character for them.
However, Huang Yu had not yet released his chess pieces weapons. From the other end of the street, a small figure appeared, approaching the people. The six Wansui Gu people immediately stood up, apparently recognizing the figure. It was a little girl who was also no stranger to Huang Yu.
"Erxiaojie," one of them gave a timid salute, like a servant caught by his master slacking off on an assignment. His friend also greeted her in the same tone.
"How many have you caught?" the young figure asked. Her tone was harsh, unlike anything Huang Yu had ever known. The Yanzi he saw this time, her style was much more like her older sister Zhou Xiangnu.
Huang Yu and the others watched silently on the spot, wanting to find out what was going on. The Wansui Gu people arrested the Haitang Jian Pai disciples under Zhou Sangong's orders and Yanzi also supported them. There seemed to be another explanation for her behavior.
"Erxiaojie, we caught six," one of the men answered in eerie, "Laoke and the other are still in Wuzhang City, perhaps they manage to capture Xuehua Zhishou and the other before the meeting with Huan Jiaozheng."
"Only six?" Yanzi asked in a high-toned voice, following her small hand also slap the man's face. "You really are useless, you only managed to catch six people in a whole day?"
"Erxiaojie, Yuan Wancui's disciples escaped their confinement and spread to eight different directions," another man also reported. "We've been looking around all day, and only found six of them."
"Perhaps the other caught more," another one added.
Yanzi harsly slapped the other five men one by one. This little miss turned out to be just as fierce as her sister who always enjoyed torturing people using her nine-tailed whip. Huang Yu felt that something was not right. He collected some thought for a while, immediately realizing that Yanzi was only pretending. Only he still couldn't figure out the reason.
"You three quickly go catch some more," Yanzi said again. "You three, one person carrying two sacks, come with me back to Wansui Gu."
"Erxiaojie, but... we cannot...."
"What?"
The people in black didn't have time to answer, suddenly they felt the cheek that had been slapped earlier turned hot, then the whole body also felt like it was on fire. One by one they fell to the ground and groaned in pain. Yanzi clapped her hands a few times, returning to her usual annoyance style.
"You helped my father create trouble in Wansui Gu, if I don't represent yeye punishing you, don't call me Yanzi," she said. But then she clutched her own chest, apparently suffering in pain.
"Erxiaojie, please forgive us, we just...."
One person, the most senior one, could still stand, regardless of the poison in his body. Presumably because in Wansui Gu, it was normal to him to be subject to this kind of punishment. He approached Yanzi in anger.
"Erxiaojie... I know you are not in line with Zhou Zuozhe...."
Huang Yu had already jumped out of his hiding place, kicking the person before he got close enough to harm Yanzi. Of course, he didn't dare to touch the man directly because he knew the man had been poisoned. The man didn't have time to put up any resistance, he was immediately thrown into the rocks and didn't move anymore. Yanzi didn't have time to swear at him, she was already weak.
"Zhou Guniang!"
Yanzi vomited dark blood. Huang Yu didn't think much of it, immediately flicked his chess pieces at the five other followers of Zhou Sangong, struck the important blood path so they couldn't harm anyone anymore, opened the sack containing Yuan Wancui's disciples, and ordered them all to leave.
The six Haitang Jian Pai disciples were still young, presumably third-generation students. They recognized Huang Yu, didn't say anything, then just left.
"Huang Yu Gege," Yanzi recognized Huang Yu instantly. "Why are you here?"
"Don't say anything," said Huang Yu. "You got poisoned."
"I've already taken the antidote, I'll be fine," Yanzi said anyway, "there will be no trace of poison by tomorrow morning, I promise."
Huang Yu looked at her. Yanzi grew up in Wansui Gu and she had been personally trained by Zeng Baifeng. All kinds of poison in the world wouldn't be able to trouble her.
"Why don't you just say so?" he asked.
"You didn't ask," Yanzi laughed annoyingly in pain. "Huang Yu Gege, is Jinshui Gege coming too?"
"Yes," said Huang Yu, "we are looking for you, need your help to get into Wansui Gu and meet Zeng Laoqianbei without having to deal with your father."
They walked towards the horse carriage, meeting Liao Xian and the others there. Jinshui came down from the carriage and greeted them, his condition had gotten better since Chunjie Kezhan, but he still needed to rest.
"My father," Yanzi kept talking. "My father caught Yuan Wancui and her disciple. There were forty hostages in total. They were detained in Wansui Gu. A few days ago I accidentally found out and released them secretly. My father was very angry, then ordered his men to chase and recapture the women. He almost broke my leg."
"What?" asked Huang Yu,
"My father isn't that smart, his goal of capturing Yuan Wancui isn't hard to guess," Yanzi kept on rambling. "For the past few years, even though my father had been controlling Wansui Gu, yeye is still there, dashibo (martial uncle) can also come back at any time and take over his position."
"Dashibo?" asked Huang Yu. "Feng Yeye's first disciple, Qian Sui You Du (thousand years old right poison) Hong Maoren. It's been said that he and Wansui Gu broke off their relationship a long time ago, and no one knew his whereabouts after."
"He shaved his head and became a monk," Yanzi said. "Yeye knew dashibo would not come back, and in the past year, he started talking to Duan Meng about passing down the position of master of Wansui Gu to outsiders. My father heard this, and it made him restless day and night, and then began to think about taking matters into his own hands."
"Where is Feng Yeye now? Did he know this?" asked Jinshui.
"Since returning to Wansui Gu that day, yeye stayed in his room, practicing some kind of internal arts or concocting poison I don't know much," Yanzi almost cried. "Whatever my father's plans to use Haitang Jian Pai's disciple, I don't know yet, nor have I had the chance to tell yeye."
"We have to hurry to Wansui Gu to see Laofeng," said Jinshui. "Yanzi, did Zhang Zheliang, Zhang Laoqianbei, also come to Wansui Gu?"
"I don't know," said Yanzi, "I don't think so. There's only that Yuan Wancui. She came and said she needed to see yeye, and asked him to step in and help deal with you, Yumen descendants. It's just that Yuan Wancui didn't get the chance to meet yeye, instead, she met my father, they fought and my father used poison to trick her, managed to catch her, then locked her up in a special room."
Jinshui and Huang Yu remembered Zhou Sangong's words at the meeting in Yiling District that Yuan Wancui had sent letters to Wansui Gu, and asked Wansui Gu's help in dealing with and prosecuting the Yumen descendants. Unexpectedly, Weian Shuang Jian then personally came to Wansui Gu and wanted to see Zeng Baifeng about this matter.
Some rumors in the martial world said that Yuan Wancui used to be Zeng Baifeng's lover, Huang Yu also heard about this. If there was a power struggle in Wansui Gu, perhaps it could be resolved by entangling the past story.
Zhou Sangong captured Yuan Wancui to use it to threaten Zeng Baifeng. He really did plan a rebellion.
Yanzi led Huang Yu and the others straight to the hidden part of Wansui Gu, and entered through the passage that Zeng Baifeng and Duan Meng usually used to go secretly to look for medicinal ingredients or poisons. Wansui Gu's old master was indeed strange in character, and even like to go in and out of his own house in secrecy.
There were no guards on the secret passage, even down into the valley not a single person was seen. They left the horse carriage before visiting a medicinal garden, heading for Zeng Baifeng's residence. The medicine garden was very large, and various kinds of plants were there, not only medicinal but also poisonous plants. Yanzi gave orders many times to Jinshui and the others not to touch any of the plants.
Across the medicinal garden, they saw flames of torches, dozens of them in number, moving in one direction, towards a stone room where Zeng Baifeng's residence was. The place was in a remote part of the valley, and usually never had anyone come at nights like this one. But the torches were in the hands of dozens of figures clad in black, all wearing masks and weapons at the ready.
"Oh no," Yanzi said, "we are too late."
"There are some of us who are injured and some who can't fight. You have to take them to a safe place first," Huang Yu said.
"Come with me," Yanzi said, then led them all to a hidden mountain pass in another part of the valley, there was a fairly large cave there.
Jinshui and Huang Yu had Liao Xian and Zhu Baique look after the others, while they followed Yanzi back to the gate of Zeng Baifeng's stone chamber.