Chapter 304 - 300: Trap
A few moments later, just before 7:00 PM.
Four figures emerged silently, faintly forming an encirclement.
They had clearly been lying in wait for some time.
The man in the lead was none other than Wang Chengyuan, the Director of the Experience Department at the Commandery Magistrate’s Office.
With him were Wu Qiquan and two other subordinates.
Wang Chengyuan’s gaze swept over the two people in the clearing.
He turned his head to look at Wu Qiquan beside him.
Wu Qiquan squinted, sizing up Sun Shouyi, then looked at Qian Laibao. "Junior Brother Qian, who is this?"
Qian Laibao was about to speak and smooth things over.
"I am Sun Zhengyi’s nephew, Sun Shouyi."
A calm voice interrupted him.
Sun Shouyi had already risen to his feet. He dusted off his knees and faced Wang Chengyuan’s group without a trace of fear.
"I have what you want."
Sun Shouyi’s voice was not loud, but every word was clear. "I wonder, did you bring what I want?"
The surprise in Wang Chengyuan’s eyes deepened as he studied the young man before him.
’To face us in this environment and calmly start negotiating... This kind of composure is no simple matter.’
He spoke immediately, "We naturally brought what you asked for. But as for your item, we can’t be sure it’s what we truly want."
Sun Shouyi said calmly, "Whether it’s real or not, won’t we know once we inspect it? Surely you’re not afraid we’ll run away?"
After a moment of silence, Wang Chengyuan nodded. "Fine. Let’s inspect them."
He took a black cloth pouch from his robes and tossed it onto the empty ground in front of Sun Shouyi.
At the same time, Sun Shouyi took a small pouch from his own robes and just as crisply tossed it to Wang Chengyyuan’s feet.
Wang Chengyuan took the pouch from a subordinate. Inside were two neatly folded deeds, the paper yellowed and brittle with age.
He examined them carefully by the flickering firelight.
The deeds were complete with the Official Seal, private signatures, and survey drawings.
The owner’s name, written clearly, was Sun Zhengyi.
Wang Chengyuan squinted at Sun Shouyi and asked, "Young brother, where did you get these house and land deeds?"
"My third uncle left them to me, of course."
Sun Shouyi replied decisively.
Wang Chengyuan put away the deeds and shook his head. "Young brother, I’m afraid... this isn’t what we’re truly after."
Sun Shouyi gave a cold, self-mocking laugh.
He raised his eyes to Wang Chengyuan and said frankly, "I know what you want. I am the evidence you’re looking for."
"You?"
Wang Chengyuan raised an eyebrow. "Young brother, do you know what we need to prove? And what can you prove?"
"Aren’t you investigating the grain robbery at Jingshan Pier and the murder of County Magistrate Tian’s family all those years ago?"
Sun Shouyi’s tone was icy. "My third uncle, Sun Zhengyi, was acting on the Chen Family’s orders back then. He worked for them, robbing the grain at the pier and slaughtering County Magistrate Tian’s entire family."
He paused, his eyes seeming to redden. "The Chen Family deceived my third uncle. They said after it was done, they’d split the money from selling the fifty thousand stones of grain, give half to us, and also give him an Inner Qi Heart Method and Medicinal Cuisine to help him break through to the Spirit Realm.
"My third uncle believed them. But what was the result? He died, and I got nothing. Forget the money, I don’t even have a decent place to live. They order me around, humiliate and torment me. In the Chen Family, I live worse than a dog!"
Wang Chengyuan and Wu Qiquan exchanged a quick glance, each seeing a flash of understanding and delight in the other’s eyes.
A cold sneer rose in both their hearts simultaneously.
’The Chen Family thought it would be easy to control a helpless, dependent boy. They never expected he would be the one to deliver the fatal blow.’
Wang Chengyuan said consolingly, "Young brother, hearing of your ordeal fills even me with indignation. The Chen Family’s unjust and treacherous actions are chilling. Rest assured, as long as you are willing to step forward, tell the Government Office the whole truth, and testify to the Chen Family’s crimes, then I promise you, once this case is closed and the Chen Family is brought down, you may choose whatever you wish from their estate as compensation for the grievances you’ve suffered."
Sun Shouyi silently stuffed the black cloth pouch containing his payment into the hands of the still-dazed Qian Laibao.
Then, he turned to Wang Chengyuan. "Let Uncle Qian leave safely. I will go with you."
"Good!"
Wang Chengyuan nodded decisively. "Shopkeeper Qian, your business here is done. You are free to go. Young brother, please come with us."
The deal was struck.
The group left Pingshui Village that very night.
「The next afternoon, the sun was scorching.」
They were only thirty or forty li from the Commandery City.
The group reined in their horses in a small patch of woods to rest.
In that instant.
"Traitor, die!"
A sharp cry, filled with killing intent, exploded through the air.
A black figure, as fast as a phantom, plunged down from the canopy of a pine tree.
Before he even arrived, a flash of sword light tore through the air, aimed straight for the back of Sun Shouyi’s heart.
"Ambush!"
"Protect the young brother!"
Wang Chengyuan reacted fastest. The longsword at his waist was already unsheathed, transforming into a streak of silk as it slashed upward at a diagonal, intercepting in the nick of time.
CLANG!
The ear-piercing screech of metal on metal rang out.
Wang Chengyuan felt a massive force travel up his blade, numbing his wrist and churning his qi and blood. He was horrified.
’This person’s cultivation is by no means inferior to my own.’
At the same time, Wu Qiquan and the other two guards also reacted.
The attacker was wrapped in a wide, gray cloak, his face covered with a black cloth that revealed only a pair of icy eyes. He wielded a Cyan Steel Longsword.
"He’s an Honored Guest of the Chen Family."
Sun Shouyi’s face turned deathly pale. He said urgently, "Kill him, quickly. He must have discovered I left on my own and followed me. I’m afraid he’s already sent word to the Chen Family. If we delay any longer, their people will be here."
Wang Chengyuan’s heart trembled. ’So that’s it! We have to end this quickly!’
"Attack with full force! Kill him on sight!"
Killing intent filled his eyes. His Sword Momentum suddenly grew more ferocious as he tried to join forces with his men to eliminate this threat as soon as possible.
But the masked man’s swordsmanship was superb and his body technique was agile. Although his demonstrated cultivation was around the Spirit Realm Second Level Profound Acupoint Level, similar to his own...
...his mastery of swordsmanship was far beyond that of an ordinary Martial Artist of the same rank.
Even with the four of them working together, they couldn’t take him down. Instead, his aggressive style had them flustered and in disarray.
PSST!
The muffled sound of a sharp blade sinking into flesh.
The masked man’s longsword pierced through the heart of one of the subordinates. The man’s mouth opened, a bloody froth bubbling out, and he collapsed limply to the ground.
"Old Qi!"
The other subordinate, overcome with shock and rage, lost his focus.
How could the masked man let such an opportunity slip by?
The sword light wheeled back, a traceless arc that flashed across the man’s throat.
"Ghk..."
He clutched his gushing neck and fell.
In the blink of an eye, two of his best men were dead.
Wang Chengyuan, both shocked and furious, retreated abruptly.
His left hand quickly reached into his robes, pulling out a dark iron tube. He aimed it at the sky and pulled the fuse at the bottom.
FWOOSH... BANG!
A crimson flare shrieked into the air, exploding against the noon sky.
PSST!
In that brief moment, Wu Qiquan, who had been guarding the perimeter, was instantly pierced through the throat by the precise tip of the man’s sword.
His eyes went wide. He let out a few gurgles, collapsed to the ground, and after a couple of twitches, fell silent.
"Young brother, with me!"
Wang Chengyuan made a split-second decision. With a sharp cry, he flicked his left hand, sending several dark projectiles flying at the gray-cloaked man’s face.
The gray-cloaked man swung his sword to parry, his movement faltering for a split second.
Seizing the opportunity, Wang Chengyuan grabbed Sun Shouyi’s arm and plunged desperately into the dense woods, in the opposite direction of the attacker.
Watching Wang Chengyuan and Sun Shouyi’s backs disappear into the forest, the gray-cloaked man loosened his mask and let out a slow breath from under his cloak.
’It’s been a while since I’ve had to fight,’ he thought to himself. ’I’m a bit rusty.’
He glanced back behind him, then followed at an unhurried pace.
「Two or three li away.」
"Something’s happened!"
He Ping’an, who had been tailing them from a distance, saw the crimson cloud of smoke explode in the sky, and his expression changed dramatically.
"Ambush!"
Without a moment’s hesitation, he ordered the two subordinates beside him, "You two, follow them covertly and leave markers along the way. I’ll return to the city at once and report to the Governor."
"Yes, sir!"
The two men acknowledged the order and crept off in the direction of the signal flare.
He Ping’an took a deep breath, whipped his horse, and galloped madly toward Liyang Commandery City.
...
「Nightfall.」
「Liyang Commandery City.」
Deep within the Governor’s Mansion, the study was brightly lit.
He Mingyun sat upright in a large, Zitan rosewood armchair, his eyes flickering in the candlelight.
Before him, He Ping’an stood with a respectful bow, quickly and concisely reporting the situation to He Mingyun.
When he heard, "We’ve found the witness, and he’s willing to testify that the Chen Family was behind the murder of the official at Mirror Mountain," He Mingyun shot up from his chair. His hands pressed on the edge of the desk, and his breathing grew ragged.
An irrepressible wave of joy washed over him.
He wished he could immediately assemble the elites of the Commandery Magistrate’s Office, reinforce Wang Chengyuan, and bring Sun Shouyi back unharmed.
Then, with the speed of a thunderclap, he would storm Lingxi and arrest every last member of the Chen Family.
He wanted to annihilate the Chen Family with his own hands!
However, just as his foot crossed the threshold of the study, he froze as if struck by an Immobilization Technique.
’Something’s wrong!’
He Mingyun slowly returned to the study, the elation receding from his face like a tide.
A deathly silence fell over the room.
He Mingyun’s gaze fell on He Ping’an again. "Tell me what happened once more, in detail. Do not omit a single thing."
He Ping’an was taken aback, but he did not dare to be slow, quickly recounting all the details of what had happened in an even more thorough report.
The more He Mingyun listened, the more his brow furrowed.
He stopped pacing and sat back down in his chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping a dull rhythm on the smooth surface of the desk. THUMP, THUMP.
’Sun Shouyi could have turned against the Chen Family at any time, but he chooses to do it now? At the precise moment when I’m investigating them with all my might but have hit a dead end?’
’Could such a coincidence truly exist in this world?’
’If Sun Shouyi’s story is true, how could the Chen Family leave such a crucial person so unguarded, allowing him to escape their control so easily?’
’If the Chen Family were really so full of holes, how could Zhangqiu and the four Grandmasters he brought with him have been completely wiped out?’
The more he thought, the tighter his brow furrowed, and the heavier his heart became.
Everything He Ping’an had described seemed to fit together perfectly, entirely logical.
’But the more logical it seems, the more problematic it is!’
He Mingyun came to a conclusion almost instantly.
’This is more like a meticulously laid trap.’
’The Chen Family wants to lure me out of the city and kill me!’
But...
’What if?’
Another voice echoed in the depths of his heart, laced with a tempting glimmer of hope.
’What if Sun Shouyi’s betrayal is real?’
’What if these are all just coincidences, and I’m simply being too suspicious?’
’Wouldn’t I be throwing away this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!’
If he stood by and allowed the Chen Family to silence Sun Shouyi, trying to use the power of the Government Office to deal with them in the future would be exponentially more difficult.
He Mingyun leaned back in his chair and fell into silence.