novel
| ← Ch.06 | Ch.08 → |
"Dong Fang Jie, you are hateful! You dare to cast aside Jun Zhu and run off on your own! If I meet you again, I will not spare you!"
As she stepped into the city of Huai Ning, Long Qian Qi looked at the crowds of people streaming endlessly passing by and the hustle and bustle of the place.
"Jun...... Young Miss, where are we going to start to look for him?"
Xiao Lan could fully understand her Jun Zhu's feelings. Dong Fang Jie was truly brave to leave Jun Zhu behind under the protection of Chief Guard Zheng and then left silently on his own. It was not surprising Jun Zhu was so angry with him.
"Stupid! Of course, we have to look for Long Feng Restaurant. He will certainly be there. Walk faster!"
Long Qian Qi glared at her angrily and walked with big strides in front of her.
"Young Miss, wait for me!"
She had inexplicably become a punching bag. Xiao Lan could only bear with a pitiful face and quickly caught up with Jun Zhu.
Along the way, she randomly asked passersby and quickly they located Long Feng Restaurant. Long Qian Qi stood in front of Long Feng Restaurant, looked at the fully packed first floor and furiously walked in.
Long Qian Qi's beautiful face was full of anger. She slapped her palm on the counter and shouted.
"Quickly tell me! Is Dong Fang Jie here?"
At that moment, the first floor which was filled with sounds laughter and chatter instantly stopped and everyone's attention was drawn to the counter. Everyone perked up their ears to listen.
"Lady, who are you? Why are you looking for our Fourth Young Master?"
Shopkeeper Xiao De asked with a smile. In his heart, he was thinking this could not be his Fourth Young Master's romantic debt, right? He looked at the girl's dressing which was extraordinary and presumed she was from an influential family. This time, Fourth Young Master really had run into a big problem.
"Don't talk nonsense! Is he here now?!"
Long Qian Qi impatiently shouted. She had accumulated half a month of anger and was not so easily pacified.
"Young Miss, don't be so agitated. Everyone is looking at you."
Xiao Lan feeling shameful, pulled her Mistress to the side and advised her in a low voice.
Long Qian Qi's response was to glare at her. Then Long Qian Qi turned her head around and rested her fierce eyes on the curious people as a warning.
"In reply to Lady's question, Young Fourth Master is indeed here but at the moment he is not in. Lady, please wait for a while and I will immediately send someone to look for Young Fourth Master."
Xiao De stepped out from behind the counter and personally led the two women up to the second floor. He chose a vacant table and ordered for tea to be served to the women. Then he quickly arranged for someone to look for Fourth Young Master posthaste.
"Young Miss, is it alright for us to wait here? In case Dong Fang Jie knows we are here and he runs off again, then what should we do?"
Xiao Lan watched Xiao De's retreating back view and the more she thought, the more she felt something was not right.
With a lesson learned from the past, it was difficult to guarantee Dong Fang Jie would not take the opportunity to flee again.
"What you said is right. Why didn't I think of this?"
Long Qian Qi slapped her hand on the table, instantly stood up and then hurriedly ran down the stairs.
"Young Miss, wait for me!" Xiao Lan quickly followed behind.
"Lady, where are you going? I've already sent someone to request for Fourth Young Master's return."
Xiao De asked the beautiful lady standing in front of the counter, in puzzlement.
"It's not necessary! Tell me exactly where I can find him and I'll personally go and look for him!"
"Fourth Young Master should now be in Yamen."
Although Xiao De was hesitant but still he carefully told her in detail the direction to Yamen and also he did not prevent her from going.
After Long Qian Qi had thanked him, the two women hurriedly left Long Feng Restaurant.
"Young Miss, don't walk so fast. Wait for me!"
After Xiao Lan left Long Feng Restaurant, she followed breathlessly behind her Mistress. When Long Qian Qi saw the distance between her and Xiao Lan widening, she promptly shouted.
"This girl! Hurry up! If Dong Fang Jie runs off again, see whether I will spare you or not!"
Long Qian Qi turned her head to urged Xiao Lan to hurry up. The moment she turned her head, she bumped into the woman in front of her who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The woman was dressed in plain clothes and wore a veil over her face.
"Do you know Dong Fang Jie?" The woman in the veil asked.
The first thought that crossed Long Qian Qi's mind when she saw this woman who had appeared out of nowhere was....... . she could not be one of Dong Fang Jie's love interest, right? Then she asked in an impolite tone.
"Who are you? Are you one of those women who is always hanging around Dong Fang Jie?"
"Good. It is good that you know Dong Fang Jie."
As soon as she said those words, instantly she tapped on Long Qian Qi's acupuncture points to immobilize and held her.
When Xiao Lan who was a few steps away saw her Mistress was held captive by the woman, she quickly shouted.
"Hey, woman! What do want with my Mistress?!"
"Go and tell Dong Fang Jie and Cheng Gang right away! If they want this girl alive, tomorrow at noon, bring Xiu Luo to the stone pavilion in the mountain at the back of the city. If they are late, then they can collect her corpse."
As soon as she finished speaking, with a leap, she had disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Xiao Lan ran madly towards Yamen and kept praying in her heart that her Mistress would not come to harm.
***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***
In the back hall of Yamen, Xiao Lan finally found Dong Fang Jie and Cheng Gang. She quickly told them what had happened to Jun Zhu and the instructions of the woman.
"What? Jun Zhu has been taken away?!"
"Dong Fang Jie, you must find a way to save Jun Zhu."
"That must be Luo Sha." Cheng Gang said solemnly.
"Xiao Lan, don't worry. We will save Jun Zhu and we will bring her back safe and sound."
Dong Fang Jie's expression was equally solemn as she comforted Xiao Lan. Jun Zhu was implicated in this case because of her and it was her fault Jun Zhu was caught in such a situation.
"What had happened to Qian Qi?"
Suddenly a low deep voice sounded and Long Hao Tian's tall figure walked in. When he heard part of their conversation, he wrinkled his eyebrows and his black eyes swept over every one of them and finally, his eyes rested on Xiao Lan.
"Wang...... Wang-Ye."
Xiao Lan stared tongue-tied. She was startled by his sudden appearance and after she overcame her shock, she quickly told her Master what had happened.
"Dong Fang Jie, Jun Zhu was involved in this because of you. What are your plans now?"
Long Hao Tian squinted and stared at the person who had avoided his eyes the moment he came in.
"Wang-Ye, please rest assured that we will save Jun Zhu."
Dong Fang Jie had a guilty expression and did not dare to meet his eyes.
At the side, Cheng Gang noticed the awkwardness between the two people. His Shi-mei is not hiding something from him, is she?
"Wang-Ye, since you are here, why don't we discuss this case together? We can discuss how we are going to save Jun Zhutomorrow."
Cheng Gang moved around and place himself between the two people using his burly figure to shield his Shi-mei from Long Hao Tian's sight.
"What plans do you have? Tell me about it."
This Cheng Gang was just too protective of Dong Fang Jie! His black eyes swept over them and he was displeased. With a sweep of his robes, he sat down on a chair and behind him, Liu Yong stood with arms folded across his chest.
"Tomorrow, we will bring Xiu Luo to the agreed place and we will exchange him for Jun Zhu. We hope Wang-Ye will help us to bring back the two criminals."
The operation was to give priority to saving Jun Zhu but at the same time, they must not allow the criminals to escape.
Three years ago, there was an internal battle in court and at that time, the Emperor was held as a hostage. It was Jing Wang who single-handedly rescued the Emperor. Long Hao Tian's martial arts were extraordinary and everyone knew that the Emperor was very respectful towards this cousin of his.
"Tomorrow, I will lace Xiu Luo's food with a potion to weaken him so that he will not have the strength to escape. We just have to concentrate on dealing with Luo Sha."
Dong Fang Jie voiced out her plan. If it was not done this way, it was practically impossible to deal with two criminals at the same time.
"You are really meticulous in your planning to be able to think of this."
Long Hao Tian praised her. His dark eyes stared intensely at the person who did not dare to look at him.
"Wang-Ye, please forgive me, I have another matter to attend to. I will take my leave first."
Dong Fang Jie could not stand the strange look that he had not stop giving her after he had come in. It was better for her to leave as soon as possible.
"Alright. I am leaving too. Let's leave together."
Long Hao Tian stood up, adjusted his robes and waited for her to leave together with him.
She was slightly startled and did not expect him to say this. For a moment, she did not know how to refuse him.
"Shi-di, have you forgotten? Chief Guard Jiang was looking for you. Why don't you go now?"
Cheng Gang's expression did not change and rescued her just in time.
"Ah...... it has slipped my mind. Wang-Ye, please return first. I have to go and look for Chief Guard Jiang."
She waved her hand at him and hurriedly walked past him as if a wild beast was chasing after her.
"Wang-Ye, please return. Please forgive me for not sending you off." Cheng Gang smiled.
"Let's go."
It was not that he did not understand Cheng Gang's thoughts. Long Hao Tian just wanted to see how long Cheng Gang was able to protect Dong Fang Jie.
Cheng Gang watched as the group of people left with Long Hao Tian. He frowned and felt worried.
At noon, the next day, in the stone pavilion in the mountains behind Huai Ning City, two groups of people stood in confrontation. Luo Sha who was holding Long Qian Qi captive. She ignored the presence of the large number of guards, Cheng Gang and Dong Fang Jie and shouted at everyone.
"Let him go!"
Dong Fang Jie waved her hand towards the two guards who were escorting the weak Xiu Luo and shouted loudly at Luo Sha.
"Luo Sha, bring the lady towards the front of the stone pavilion. At the count of three, we will simultaneously release the two people together."
Luo Sha pushed Long Qian Qi to the front and after counting to three, everyone watched as the weak Xiu Luo slowly walked towards Luo Sha, dragging his feet and the happy Long Qian Qi who was running forward.
"Elder Brother!"
When Long Qian Qi saw her Elder Brother had come personally to save her, she called out happily.
Just at that split second, when Long Qian Qi and Xiu Luo brushed shoulders as they passed each other, the weak Xiu Luo with the speed of lightning, caught hold of Long Qian Qi and jumped into the stone pavilion.
"Elder Brother!" Long Qian Qi screamed with fright.
This sudden unforeseen situation threw everyone into a panic. Everyone looked solemn and watched as Luo Qian Qi fell once again into captivity.
"Such bravery! Let go of her!"
Long Hao Tian's eyes became cold and hard as he looked at his sister who was scared and unconsciously clenched his fists.
"Cheng Gang, Dong Fang Jie, I knew you would not be so kind to release me. I knew you must have other plans, so I did not eat even a morsel of the food you sent me this morning."
Xiu Luo proudly laughed out loud. Earlier, in the prison, he had scrutinized and understood the whole situation. Therefore, he had secretly disposed off the food he was supposed to eat. Now that he is holding an important hostage in his hands, he wanted to see what Dong Fang Jie and Cheng Gang would do.
"Let the lady go and I will guarantee you will leave here safely."
Dong Fang Jie could only settle for the next best thing giving priority to Jun Zhu's safety.
"I don't know about this girl's background but since you are willing to do an exchange, her identity should not be ordinary. I already have this life-preserving mascot in hand, do you think I will release her?"
Xiu Luo's face showed a trace of ridicule and one of his hands was inappropriately stroking the face of Long Qian Qi. His lustful eyes were roving over the beautiful curves of her body under her clothes.
"Don't you dare! You bastard! If you dare to touch this Jun Zhu, I'll kill you!"
Long Qian Qi was so scared that she screamed and shouted. Her body trembled as she tried to avoid his lustful wolf claws.
"Jun Zhu? Third Sister, it seems you have found someone of good value this time. I have never experienced with someone of noble status before. I wonder what it's like to play with her."
Xiu Luo's pair of eyes started to glow and he looked covetously at the person in his arms. He boldly and restlessly moved both his hands over her body up and down. He brazenly performed such tricks in front of everyone because he knew no one would dare to act rashly.
"Such bravery, Xiu Luo! Stop!" Dong Fang Jie shouted loudly.
Long Hao Tian narrowed his eyes which displayed an intent to kill. Just as Xiu Luo barked out his mad laugh, using small stones as his weapons, Long Hao Tian attacked suddenly at lightning speed with both hands, hitting both of them. At the same time, like a demon, he rushed towards the two people. The two of them were caught by surprise by the sudden attack and recovered just in time to counter his blows. Long Hao Tian seized the opportunity of the lapse and rescued Long Qian Qi from Xiu Luo. By momentarily shifting the position of his tall figure and utilizing his skills, Long Hao Tian was able to bring Long Qian Qi back to safety in a blink of an eye. This move of shifting positions by Long Hao Tian was an eye-opener for everyone and also made Xiu Luo and Luo Sha's backs felt cold.
"Don't even think of escaping!"
Cheng Gang shouted, made a leap and chased after Xiu Lou running in the direction he had escaped. At the same time, Dong Fang Jie chased after Luo Sha, running in another direction.
The large group of guards split into two smaller groups and ran in two different directions, following behind in support.
Long Hao Tian looked at Long Qian Qi's trembling body in his arms and saw that her small face had turned pale with her hands clutching his robes. To comfort her, he said.
"Qian Qi, don't be afraid. Everything is alright now."
She forced out a big smile, pushed her Elder Brother's tall figure away and said.
"Elder Brother, I'm fine. Quickly, go and help catch those two wicked people. Don't let them escape."
Long Hao Tian studied her for a while to make sure she had only been frightened without suffering any injuries. Then he instructed Liu Yong to protect her before he left in a hurry to offer his help.
***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***
Strong winds blew with sand twirling in the air.
At the edge of the cliff, two people stood facing each other. The two people controlled their breathing and concentrated their attention on each other's movements.
"Luo Sha, you can't escape. It's better for you to surrender."
"Dong Fang Jie, you and Cheng Gang killed my Elder Brother. If I don't kill you to take revenge for my Elder Brother, do you think my heart will feel at ease?"
When she thought of her Elder Brother who had died tragically in the hands of these two people, she was determined to take revenge at all costs. She and her Second Elder Brother had committed crimes at various places in order to lure out Cheng Gang and Dong Fang Jie. Today, even if she has to die, she still wanted to take revenge for her Elder Brother.
"All three of you, brothers and sister had done so many evil heartless things, nobody will regret your death."
There was a slight smile on Dong Fang Jie's lips as she said those cold piercing words which contradicted with the expression on her face.
"Well, that depends on whether you have the ability to kill me."
As soon as the words were said, a hidden dart was shot towards Dong Fang Jie. Instantly she pulled out her sword and with a flick of her sword, she sent the dart back towards Luo Sha. Luo Sha turned her body and was able to avoid the darts. From her chest, she took out some darts and with both hands, she sent them flying towards Dong Fang Jie. Dong Fang Jie held her sword in mid-air and with a wave of her sword, she swept down the darts. Holding her long sword she directly attacked her opponent with an irresistible force.
Luo Sha's martial arts was not weak. Although she was not holding any weapon, her body had concealed poisonous hidden darts. In order to guard against her hidden darts, Dong Fang Jie had to keep a safe distance from her. In just a short while, the two people had exchanged more than a hundred blows.
"Dong Fang Jie, be careful!"
Because Long Qian Qi was worried for Dong Fang Jie, she had forced Liu Yong to look for Dong Fang Jie. She did not expect to see Dong Fang Jie at the edge of the cliff, dangerously trying to dodge the hidden weapons of Luo Sha.
"Jun Zhu, it is dangerous here! Liu Yong, quickly take Jun Zhu away!" Dong Fang Jie shouted loudly and was momentarily distracted.
"Ha, you think it's so easy to leave?!"
Several hidden darts flew out of Luo Sha's two sleeves. Liu Yong hurriedly blocked them off with his sword but he still could not completely avoid all the flying darts. When Dong Fang Jie saw a hidden dart flying towards Long Qian Qi, she knew it was too late. She flew towards Long Qian Qi, hugged and pushed her down to dodge the flying weapon. But Dong Fang Jie was not fast enough and a hidden dart pierced straight into her left arm.
"Ah...... Dong Fang Jie, do you want to......"
Long Qian Qi panicked and shouted out loudly. She was so helpless that she did not know what to do.
"Jun Zhu, stay here. Don't run around."
Dong Fang Jie resisted the strong feeling of dizziness and vaguely felt the poison this time was even more potent than the previous one. She hurriedly removed the anti-poison medicine from her chest and immediately consumed it. She hoped the medicine would be able to temporarily suppress the poison from taking effect. Biting her teeth and bearing the pain, she pulled out the poisonous dart and shot it at Luo Sha who was fighting with Liu Yong.
Luo Sha was alert to avoid the dart but her left arm was slashed by Liu Yong's sword. When Dong Fang Jie saw that, she drew up her strength, raised her sword and leaped into battle. She concentrated her attacks on the upper half of Luo Sha's body while Liu Yong attacked the lower half. With four hands attacking at the same time, Luo Sha could only counter several dozen blows before she eventually lost to them. In one of the moves, she could not avoid quick enough and Dong Fang Jie was able to thrust a sword into the left side of her chest.
When Long Qian Qi saw Long Hao Tian and Cheng Gang walking towards her with the subdued Xiu Luo, she suddenly shouted out.
"Elder Brother, you finally came!"
"Qian Qi, why are you here?"
Long Hao Tian wrinkled his eyebrows with displeasure. Did he not tell her to wait at a safe place?! This girl is really disobedient!
"Shi-di, be careful!"
Cheng Gang shouted loudly. He had seen Dong Fang Jie pierced her sword into Luo Sha's chest but now Dong Fang Jie was standing unsteadily on her feet. When Luo Sha saw her plan had failed, she was determined to destroy everything possible. With a sudden move, she held on to the sword in her chest and with the other hand, she held tightly onto Dong Fang Jie's arm. She quickly retreated to the edge of the cliff, pulling Dong Fang Jie along with her. Dong Fang Jie understood her intentions and tried to withdraw her sword but her eyes suddenly blurred. The poison in Dong Fang Jie was starting to take effect.
"Dong Fang Jie, even if I die, I want you to die with me!"
Luo Sha laughed wildly as she dragged along Dong Fang Jie who was not quick enough to withdraw and when everyone was still in chaos, she jumped off the cliff with Dong Fang Jie in tow.
Liu Yong who was heading towards his Master felt something amiss behind him and when he turned around to try to save Dong Fang Jie, he was already too late.
"Shi-di!"
"Dong Fang Jie!"
Long Hao Tian and Cheng Gang rushed over to the edge of the cliff at the same time but they could only watch as Dong Fang Jie fell into the bottomless abyss and could not do anything to save her.
Cheng Gang's face turned pale, fell to the ground and stared blankly straight down the cliff.
Shi-mei..........
Long Hao Tian became frantic and could not accept the fact. He clenched his hands into fists and stared desolately at the bottomless abyss. He felt a heavy, painful hammering in his heart.
No, he would never allow her to leave him this way. He still had a score to settle with her! Fiercely, he called out to the guards behind him.
"Chief Guard Zhang, immediately send someone to find out whether there are any paths leading down the cliff! And also send someone to prepare a strong and sturdy rope. I will go down this cliff myself."
If she lives, he wants to see this person and if she dies, he wants to see her corpse. If he does not witness with his own eyes, he will never believe she had died.
***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***
A month later.
Two black horses, one after the other, ran wildly into the city of Luoyang. Although there were a lot of people on the streets, the horses' speed did not decrease and as soon as everyone saw them, they ran helter-skelter.
All at once, a lot of the stalls collapsed and some stalls were even damaged. The horses left a messy trail behind. Everyone watched as the two horses galloped away and the people shook their heads and cursed after them.
The tall figure on top of one of the horses suddenly tightened the reins and the fine horse raised its head and neighed. The man immediately straightened up as the two horses had finally stopped in front of Dong Fang Residence, one in front of the other. The two men stared at the white lanterns hanging in front of the door with white funeral banner fluttering in the wind.
Long Hao Tian's handsome face changed drastically. He immediately turned his body around and got down from his horse. Both his hands slammed fiercely onto the door knockers in the form of a lion-headed iron ring on the beaded door.
"Who is it?"
The two-panel beaded door opened inward and before the servant could see clearly who was at the door, the tall figure of Long Hao Tian had rushed in and entered.
"Hey! Who are you?! How can you enter without permission?......." The servant followed behind and shouted at him.
It was like walking on no man's land as Long Hao Tian walked unimpeded all the way in until he reached the hall. In the hall, he could see the funeral ceremonial table with the white funeral banners decorations. In the center of the funeral ceremonial table was a big tablet engraved with a few big characters which read 'Dong Fang Jie's Memorial Tablet'.
Like being struck by a thunderbolt on a clear day, the tall figure was suddenly shocked and his face turned pale. He refused to believe what his black eyes were seeing and stared straight at the memorial tablet.
"May I know who are you?"
Dong Fang Ling was coincidentally coming into this hall. He studied the extraordinary and respectable appearance of the person in front of him and tried to guess his identity.
"Long Hao Tian. How are you related to Dong Fang Jie?"
Long Hao Tian looked at the man who had suddenly appeared and he could detect a certain calmness emitting from the man. If he had guessed correctly, this man must be Dong Fang Ling.
"It is an honor to have Jing Wang as a visitor. My name is Dong Fang Ling. I am Dong Fang Jie's Eldest Brother. Is Wang-Ye here to offer prayers to my Fourth Brother?"
"Is Dong Fang Jie really dead?"
On the day of the accident, he had ordered people to look for her at the bottom of the cliffs. He and Cheng Gang had also climbed down the cliffs several times to look for her. However, they could only find Luo Sha's dead body but there was no sign of Dong Fang Jie's body. But after trying his best for half a month, he received news that Dong Fang Jie was already dead. Then he had rushed to Luoyang to investigate.
"That's right."
Dong Fang Ling frowned slightly and his voice carried a tinge of sadness.
"How did he die? Who discovered the body? Can I have a look at his body?"
Unless he is allowed to see her body with his own eyes, otherwise he will not easily believe in what others tell him.
Dong Fang Ling looked at Dong Fang Jie's memorial tablet with a complex expression and said.
"He fell off a cliff, how can he be able to survive? It was my Third Brother who discovered the body as he was passing under the cliff. He had to cremate the body due to the odor of the rotting corpse before bringing the ashes home."
"You mean Dong Fang Tang found the body?"
Long Hao Tian was engulfed in sadness and closed his eyes to calm his nerves. Even Dong Fang Tang, the God of Medicine was unable to save her, could it be that she was really dead?
"That's right. Dare I ask, what is Wang-Ye's relationship with my youngest brother?"
Dong Fang Ling's eyes revealed a bright radiance. He looked at Long Hao Tian's unusual reaction and could not help but feel suspicious.
"It's no longer important."
Long Hao Tian did now want to stay here for a moment longer. His heart constricted and he felt so uncomfortable that he staggered as he walked. Finally, he took one last look at Dong Fang Jie's memorial tablet before he turned and left.
Suddenly a light flashed across his mind. He had always felt there was an important link which he had overlooked. His footsteps halted, he turned around abruptly and with his black eyes shining brightly he stared straight at Dong Fang Ling.
"Just now, you said it was Dong Fang Tang who discovered his body. Dong Fang Jie was dead at that time and therefore the body was cremated before the ashes were brought home, right?"
"Correct. Because the body was rotting with a strong odor, so that was the best way to handle the corpse."
Dong Fang Ling lifted his eyebrows. Although he did not understand why Long Hao Tian had to ask this question but he still had to answer.
"I will take my leave."
Long Hao Tian's dark eyes stared at Dong Fang Lin for a long time. Finally, he glanced once again at Dong Fang Jie's memorial tablet before he left without looking back.
After Long Hao Tian left, the hall resumed its silence. Dong Fang Ling was thoughtful as he looked at his retreating back for a long, long time.........
| ← Ch. 06 | Ch. 08 → |