"Yah! Clear the way!"
"Everyone, clear the way! Jing'an Guard business!"
A group of Jing'an Guard, clad in black robes with long sabers at their waists and wearing white Faceless Masks, galloped recklessly through the city, causing chaos and panic.
The common folk on the streets cried out or screamed as they dodged to the sides to avoid being trampled by iron hooves.
Pei Shaoqing suddenly felt these Jing'an Guard were no better than his bandits. 'Even though we murder, rob, and kill for profit,' he thought, 'at least we obey traffic laws. We don't just go plowing through the streets on horseback.'
But now, he too was a member of the Jing'an Guard.
'Time to fit in,' he thought.
"Hmph! These lapdogs are so arrogant. Every one of them is insolent and domineering. It's truly despicable!" said a young maiden in a light purple dress, watching the scene angrily from a table by the window on the second floor of a tavern.
She looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, with willow-leaf brows, apricot eyes, and a cherry-like mouth. Her slightly rounded face and delicate features made her resemble an adorable porcelain doll. Her petite frame was already quite curvaceous, and her budding chest heaved slightly with indignation.
At the table were also a young man of about her age, a middle-aged man with a beard, and a still-graceful middle-aged beauty. The middle-aged man frowned and cautioned, "Watch your words and actions. We are in Tongzhou on important business. We should avoid unnecessary complications."
"I know, Master," the purple-gowned girl replied, reluctantly looking away and sullenly downing a cup of wine.
The middle-aged beauty, dressed in a white gown with jade-like skin, a full figure, and a mature, gentle temperament, smiled faintly and soothed her in a soft voice, "I know our Lan'Er despises evil, but when the Government Office is involved, it's better to cause less trouble than more. Otherwise, you'll attract huge problems."
"I know, Mistress. I only say these things in front of you," Zhao Zilan huffed, pouting as she slammed her empty cup on the table with a BANG. "Senior Brother, pour me some more wine."
The young man, however, didn't seem the least bit offended by her rudeness. He just smiled, his expression gentle, and poured the girl another cup of wine, his eyes filled with adoration.
Outside the city gates, nine Guards who had been ordered to leave the city early and wait for him immediately came forward to greet Pei Shaoqing upon seeing him.
"Greetings, Young Master."
"Mm," Pei Shaoqing reined in his horse, pulling on the reins and turning back to address his subordinates. "These men are my Guards. They will be joining us in exterminating the bandits."
"Yes, sir!" the group of Jing'an Guard replied in unison.
They immediately understood the situation. To bring so many Guards to his new post, this new Shangguan must come from an illustrious family. No wonder the Hundred Households Commander himself had led two Standard-Bearers and a group of Small Flag Officers out of the city to welcome him yesterday.
At once, their gazes toward Pei Shaoqing became much more respectful. In the Great Zhou, you could disrespect a man's strength, but you absolutely had to respect his background and power.
"Let's move out! Yah!"
Pei Shaoqing squeezed his legs against his horse's belly, picking up speed again.
The nineteen riders followed close behind, their horses' hooves thudding on the dry official road, kicking up clouds of dust.
Soon, they entered the overlapping peaks of Phoenix Mountain.
"WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH!"
As they passed through a dense forest, sharp sounds of something slicing through the air suddenly erupted from both sides as dozens of arrows rained down on them.
"Enemy attack!" Pei Shaoqing yelled, feigning alarm.
"It's an ambush! Protect Lord Pei!"
The nine bandits posing as Guards had been briefed (read: tricked) by Pei Shaoqing beforehand. They knew this was just a show put on by their Chieftain, who had gathered their fortress brothers to act it out. Thus, they weren't the least bit flustered, calmly pretending to fight the enemy.
The ten Jing'an Guard remained composed in the face of danger. The weakest among them was at the Early Stage of the Body Refining Realm. They formed a circle around Pei Shaoqing, easily deflecting the sharp arrows with their sabers.
"Kill them!" "Kill these dog officials!"
Accompanied by bloodthirsty cries, dozens of bandits with their faces covered by black cloth charged out from the dense woods on both sides and from the trees above. They specifically targeted the few bandits posing as Guards—their own former brothers-in-arms.
According to their second-in-command, it was these very traitors who had submitted to the Government Office, leading to their Chieftain being ambushed and killed yesterday when he went down the mountain to "reap the autumn wind." Now, they were even leading the Jing'an Guard to exterminate their fortress. They deserved to die a thousand deaths!
Caught completely off guard by their own people, five of the nine bandits posing as Guards were killed in the blink of an eye.
"Stop! We're on the same side!" the remaining four cried out in alarm, their faces paling as they realized something was wrong.
"How audacious!" Pei Shaoqing's eyes widened in fury. He pointed his saber at them and roared, "No wonder word of the bandit extermination leaked and we were ambushed! So you all betrayed me and colluded with the bandits! You deserve death! Kill them!"
First, they were attacked by their former brothers, and now their own Chieftain was accusing them of being traitors. The four men were completely bewildered. Before they could even react, the nearest Jing'an Guard members had already lunged at them.
Within a few breaths, the four men were dead.
And with that, all the bandits who had followed Pei Shaoqing down the mountain to pillage the day before were now dead and gone.
"My lord! We are outnumbered! You should leave first!"
One of the Jing'an Guard shouted while fighting off an enemy.
Pei Shaoqing's clumsy attempts at deflecting arrows just now had shown them that this Shangguan's martial arts were mediocre at best. With him around, they would have to divert their attention and energy to protect him, making it impossible to focus wholeheartedly on the enemy.
Besides, for someone who hadn't even started on the path of Martial Arts to join the Jing'an Guard, and as a Small Flag Officer no less, his background must be incredibly deep. If he were to die or even get injured here, they would surely face a grim fate.
Therefore, sending Pei Shaoqing away was both to allow them to focus on killing the enemy and to protect him.
"Alright! I'll ride back to the city for reinforcements! You must kill every last bandit! Leave no one alive!"
With those parting words, Pei Shaoqing spurred his horse and galloped away.
Without him, their Chieftain, and Ye Hanshuang, their second-in-command, taking action, the bandits of the fortress could handle ordinary merchant guards or constables from the County Government Office. But against the Jing'an Guard, they were basically facing a one-sided slaughter.
'Sorry, brothers,' he thought. 'You followed me through thick and thin for so many years. For the sake of my lifelong wealth and glory, I'll have to ask you to cut your lives short by half a lifetime and go on ahead.'
He galloped toward the place where he had arranged to meet Ye Hanshuang. Sure enough, it wasn't long before he saw a masked man standing in the middle of the road, holding a saber in one hand.
"Who are you! What do you want!" Pei Shaoqing reined his horse to a halt and asked, his face full of tension, feigning ignorance even though he knew it was Xu Zhiyong.
Seeing that he was alone, Xu Zhiyong directly removed his mask and said sinisterly, "The Consort has ordered your death. You can't blame me for this, Young Master Pei! When you get to the Underworld, make sure you know who to haunt."
"Standard-Bearer Xu! It's you! Noble Consort Wan sent you to kill me?" Pei Shaoqing cried out in feigned shock, though his expression beneath the mask was completely calm. He deliberately made his tone sound flustered and helpless. "My father is Marquis Weiyuan! Spare my life, Standard-Bearer Xu, and I will reward you handsomely."
"You arrogant bastard! You're about to die and you still dare use the word 'reward'?" Xu Zhiyong was inexplicably enraged. He tapped his toes, leaping high into the air as light as a swallow, and shot toward Pei Shaoqing. "Brat, time to die!"
"SHING~"
The next second, with the sound of metal on stone, the long saber at Pei Shaoqing's waist was unsheathed. A fierce flash of saber light effortlessly knocked Xu Zhiyong's blade aside. Pressing his advantage, he leaped from his horse's back and slashed down.
"Ah!" Still in a state of shock and bewilderment, Xu Zhiyong hastily raised his saber to block. CLANG! Sparks flew as the saber was knocked from his hand. He landed heavily on the ground from mid-air, stumbling back several steps before steadying himself. His saber hand trembled uncontrollably as he stared at Pei Shaoqing in disbelief, crying out, "Qi Condensation Realm!"
'Damn it, wasn't he supposed to be unskilled in martial arts?' he thought.
"You're the one who's damned, Xu Yuanqing!" Pei Shaoqing landed on his horse's back, standing tall. He pointed his saber at Xu Zhiyong from his high vantage point and said in an icy voice.
Xu Zhiyong froze. "Xu Yuanqing?"
"That's right! You are Xu Yuanqing!" Pei Shaoqing took off his mask, a mocking sneer on his face. "No wonder Xu Yuanqing had to be masked! It's because he was afraid people would see his real face and recognize him as a Jing'an Guard Standard-Bearer! No wonder he was always able to escape the Government Office's encirclements—it's because he had another identity as a Jing'an Guard Standard-Bearer! But what a pity. The net of heaven is vast, but it lets nothing slip through. Your true face is about to be exposed to the world!"
"You... you want to kill me and steal the credit!" Xu Zhiyong's eyes widened, his voice turning shrill. The disparity in their strength made him realize escape was hopeless. Already drenched in sweat, he dropped to his knees with a THUD and kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy, "Young Master Pei, spare me, please spare me! I didn't want to do this! Lord Zheng forced me! I had no choice! I beg you, spare me! I'll be your horse or your ox, I'll be your dog!"
"A pity. I only like bitches," Pei Shaoqing said, shaking his head. He leaped down from his horse and advanced on him, step by step.
Just then, a sound broke the silence. Also masked with a black cloth, the over-two-meters-tall "big cart" Ye Hanshuang leaped between the treetops. She landed and sprinted forward, sword in hand, her high ponytail swinging back and forth. It was a pity she had bound her chest today; otherwise, the sight would have been quite magnificent.
Xu Zhiyong heard the sound and turned his head. Seeing someone running toward him, he was overjoyed. Feeling like he had just been saved from disaster, he shot to his feet and stood tall. "Chieftain Xu, your timing is perfect! Let's join forces and kill this man!"
"PFFT!"
In the next instant, while his guard was completely down, Ye Hanshuang's longsword pierced through his heart. Blood dripped from the blade onto the dirt below.
Xu Zhiyong's body froze. He slowly looked down at the sword blade protruding from his chest, his eyes filled with shock and confusion. He then looked back up, staring intently at Ye Hanshuang.
He didn't understand. He truly didn't understand.
"PFFT!"
Ye Hanshuang pulled out her longsword. With a grunt, Xu Zhiyong's body lost its support and fell heavily to the ground.
"Big Brother." Ye Hanshuang sheathed her sword, walked over to Pei Shaoqing, took off her mask, and called out in her cool voice.
Not yet dead, Xu Zhiyong watched this scene with wide, furious eyes, a rattling sound coming from his throat.
Pei Shaoqing sheathed his saber and walked to Xu Zhiyong's side with a smile. "Your mind must be a mess right now, huh? Let me clear things up for you before you die. I am Xu Yuanqing. The real Pei Shaoqing's body has already been destroyed without a trace by me. Of course, from now on, *you* are Xu Yuanqing. And I... I am the young master of Marquis Wei Yuan's Mansion, a proud member of the Jing'an Guard, and the hero who exterminated the Phoenix Mountain bandits and killed their leader, Xu Yuanqing, right after taking office! HAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"Hrrk—hrrk—You..." PFFT! Xu Zhiyong's chest heaved violently with emotion. He spat out a mouthful of blood and finally stopped breathing, his eyes wide open in death, unable to rest in peace.