Mo Sang – CH 246

Chapter 246. An Assassin

Lady Shi took a step forward, stood in the moonlight, paused for a moment, lowered her head, and pulled a thin, soft piece of cotton paper folded into a thin strip from her bodice, handing it to Li Sangrou.

“Did you draw this?” Li Sangrou took the paper, squatted down, and spread it out on the ground under the moonlight.

“Yes.” Lady Shi gave a soft hum, looking at Li Sangrou, who was intently studying the drawing, and subconsciously added, “I did not originally intend for anything else; I just wanted you to take Nan’er away…”

“Is this where we are? Where is the Old Madam? Where is the Old Chieftain?” Li Sangrou asked without looking up.

“Yes, they are here, and here too.” Lady Shi squatted down and pointed to the drawing. “The guards…”

“This is enough. I said before, even without you, I can still kill,” Li Sangrou said, raising her hand to stop Lady Shi, looking at the drawing carefully again, folding it, and handing it to Lady Shi.

“What’s your name?” Li Sangrou carefully looked at Lady Shi in the moonlight, gently stroked her cheek, and asked with a smile.

Lady Shi was startled. “Acai.”

“Acai, remember this: First, you have a child; second, everyone, more or less, has secrets they can only know themselves. After we leave here, you and I will never meet again, never know each other.

Give me that butterfly.” Li Sangrou held out her hand.

Shi Acai handed the white jade butterfly to Li Sangrou.

Li Sangrou took the butterfly, put it back in her purse, took two steps back, waved brightly at Shi Acai, turned around, opened the door a crack, and slipped out.

Shi Acai took a deep breath. “Ah You, Ah Zuo, us, all of this—it never happened.”

“Yes!” The two maids spoke in unison, one saying, “As you say,” concise and to the point.

“When we get back, Ah You will go and watch over the eldest son and the youngest daughter. Ah Zuo will get ready until…” Shi Acai paused, glossing over the incident. “You set off immediately to call Father and the eldest son back. Be quick; you must be quick, and they must be quick too, the sooner the better.”

“Yes.” The two maids bowed again in agreement.

“Let’s go back.” Shi Acai took another deep breath, raised her head, and strode forward.

Two maids, one in front and one behind, escorted Shi Acai out of the small storeroom tucked away in a corner of the Yang residence and headed straight back.

……………………

Li Sangrou left the storeroom and followed the shadows cast by the trees and the corner of the wall, almost in a straight line, towards the residence of Old Concubine Wu.

In the third month, Longbiao City was lush with vegetation and blooming flowers.

Li Sangrou leaped from beside a cluster of blooming azaleas, grabbed a thick, outstretched branch of a mimosa tree, flipped over, and climbed along the branches, landing behind Old Concubine Wu’s courtyard.

The courtyard was quiet and peaceful. There were not many lanterns; only one or two hung in the corners. These few lanterns were luxurious and beautiful, with long, intricate tassels hanging from their bases, which swayed gracefully in the breeze.

Li Sangrou, pressed against the lantern like a swaying tassel casting a shadow, darted past, pressed herself against the corner of the wall, paused for a moment, and headed straight for the main courtyard.

Passing through the moon gate next to the side room, Li Sangrou turned the corner and pressed herself against a small patch of shadow by the door, listening intently to the sounds around her.

The side room behind her was the tea room. The two old women on duty were yawning occasionally, chatting idly. The water on the stove was boiling, making a bubbling sound. One of the women said she wanted a bowl of strong tea, and the other took the cup.

Amidst the splashing water and rustling sounds, Li Sangrou slipped into the room. Before the two old women could react, her narrow sword slashed across their necks. Before blood could gush out, Li Sangrou had already swiftly retreated, closing the door behind her. She rushed to the three adjacent main rooms, rising from beneath the open window, her narrow sword already slicing through the gauze stretched over the window frame. She leaped inside, heading straight for the canopy bed opposite the window.

As Li Sangrou stepped onto the half-asleep, half-sitting maid on the footstool, her sword circled the maid’s neck.

The old lady, Wu, on the bed, sat up abruptly, meeting Li Sangrou’s face. Li Sangrou stared at the old lady’s throat, and following her gaze, her narrow sword plunged straight in.

Old Concubine Wu tried to call out, but no sound came out. Li Sangrou drew her narrow sword, swiftly slicing Old Concubine Wu’s carotid artery. Meeting Old Concubine Wu’s wide-open eyes, she took a step back and bowed slightly.

As she bowed, Li Sangrou did not pause for a moment, taking another swift step back, turning, and rushing towards the outer room.

The two maids in the outer room, hearing the commotion, had just sat up. Before they could even finish a yawn, the ghostly Li Sangrou was already upon them. Her narrow sword grazed their necks, dodging the gushing blood. She stopped, listened intently, and confirmed that the room was empty.

Li Sangrou opened the door, leaped over the parapet through the moon gate next to the tea room, and sprinted along Old Concubine Wu’s courtyard wall towards the courtyard of Old Chieftain Yang.

The stench of blood would soon permeate the entire mansion; she had to be fast enough.

For over a century, Yang Yong, the old chieftain who unified the Jiuxi Shidong, was revered as a god by the barbarian people. No one dared to trespass into his mansion, or even into the entire city of Longbiao, let alone commit murder within its walls.

Before Li Sangrou, this mansion was as magnificent as it was safe.

In the front courtyard, the Old Chieftain Yang was lying on his back, fast asleep. A snore broke the silence, but he did not fall back down. Li Sangrou’s narrow sword sliced ​​through his throat, aiming for his artery.

As blood gushed from the narrow sword, Old Chieftain Yang’s eyes widened. He gripped the thin brocade quilt tightly, sat up abruptly, and collapsed forward onto his own legs.

Li Sangrou stood by the bed, watching Old Chieftain Yang sit up suddenly, then collapse again. She took a few steps back, leaped out of the window, over the courtyard wall, and headed straight for the small storehouse.

The storehouse door was ajar. Li Sangrou rushed in, bolted the door shut, descended the wooden ladder into the cave, carefully covered it with the heavy lid, and then ran swiftly down the ladder, bending low, through the narrow tunnel.

As Li Sangrou covered the heavy lid, a piercing scream echoed from the main courtyard, far from the storehouse. Half an hour later, a golden gong suddenly sounded from the tall watchtower of Longbiao City, followed by a deep but penetrating horn call.

The guards stationed around the inn were stunned by the sounds of gongs and horns.

They all knew the meaning of the gongs and horns, but none of them could believe it: Longbiao City under attack? Was Longbiao City in danger?

How could this be?

“Quick! Quick!”

The Baihu Captain was just as bewildered as everyone else, but his reaction to the command was much faster than his men’s. The moment the first horn sounded, the Baihu Captain frantically waved his hand, issuing orders, and charged ahead, rushing back to Longbiao City.

The sounds of gongs and horns echoed through Longbiao City—the gongs were an alarm, and the horns were a call to gather all the warriors from the Jiuxi Shidong who heard the horns to assemble in Longbiao City and defend it!

Li Sangrou forcefully pushed aside the heavy wooden planks in the corner of the inn’s storeroom, jumped out of the tunnel, and headed straight for the inn.

“Boss!” The inn door flung open before Li Sangrou could reach it. Da Chang let her in, then stood in the doorway, holding a thick bolt.

“No need to guard it,” Li Sangrou ordered hastily. “You guys go find all the oil, everything that can be burned! Hurry!” She had not even regained her footing.

“Let’s go!” Hei Ma was followed by Xiao Lu and the others, rushing towards the kitchen.

“Throw it away; we do not need it anymore! Pack up, we are running for our lives,” Li Sangrou turned and ordered Da Chang.

Meng Yanqing climbed in through the window. “Boss, everyone’s evacuated, running as fast as they can towards Longbiao City!”

In Longbiao City, the horns were still sounding.

“Something’s happened in Longbiao City!” Ye Anping, barefoot, stumbled down the stairs, his hands trembling as he wrapped a long robe around himself, and cried out to Li Sangrou.

“Knock him out! Da Chang, carry him first, and run as fast as you can!” Li Sangrou had barely uttered the words “knock him out” when Dong Chao, standing at the top of the stairs, swung his hand and struck Ye Anping on the neck. Meng Yanqing caught him, quickly wrapped Ye Anping in his robe, and handed the robe to Da Chang.

“You all hurry! If you are slow, you will die!” Li Sangrou ordered Meng Yanqing. Seeing Hei Ma carrying a bucket of oil in one hand, running like the wind, her head bobbing back and forth, she quickly leaped out. “Follow me!”

Li Sangrou led the way, with Hei Ma and Datou each carrying two buckets of oil, gritting their teeth and running at breakneck speed. They reached the small storehouse in one go. Li Sangrou gestured to the entrance. “Pour the oil in!”

Hei Ma poured the oil in with a gurgling sound, threw down the buckets, and immediately pulled out a flint and steel to start a fire.

After pouring in about ten buckets of oil, Hei Ma, still holding the flint and steel, threw burning tinder into the hole.

The tinder, upon contact with the oil, immediately whistled and leaped forward.

Li Sangrou grabbed a heavy lid, covering the entrance while pointing to a large rock nearby.

Hei Ma and the others hurriedly pushed and kicked, using all their strength, to push the large rock onto the lid.

“Go!” Before Li Sangrou could even finish the word “go,” she had already dashed off.

Hei Ma, Xiao Lu, Datou, and the others, swinging their arms and with eyes wide and teeth clenched, ran for their lives as fast as they could. If they were slow, they’d be dead!

Just as they burst out of the inn, a loud explosion erupted from the direction of the storeroom. Hei Ma cried out, his legs blurring into afterimages.

Li Sangrou and Hei Ma caught up with Meng Yanqing and the others. Li Sangrou shouted, “Hurry!” and continued running without slowing down.

Meng Yanqing waved his hand, yelling repeatedly, “Hurry, hurry, hurry!” The large group of people, gritting their teeth, swinging their arms, ran for their lives.

Although they did not know what had happened, it was definitely something serious!

If they were slow, they’d be dead!

A large group of people, running for their lives with all their might.

They ran until dawn broke through the night. Li Sangrou, who had been in the lead, stumbled and collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

Da Chang, carrying Ye Anping on his back, lunged forward, throwing Ye Anping to the ground. Da Chang sat on the ground, legs outstretched, panting heavily.

Hei Ma lay on his back, mouth open, tongue lolling out, breathing heavily.

Meng Yanqing and the others were all tumbling around, some on top of others, too exhausted to move, others too tired to move, content to just breathe.

“What…what happened?” Ye Anping, dizzy from the fall, leaned against a tree to stand up, spun around a couple of times, but could not find his way to Longbiao City.

Li Sangrou lay on the ground for about fifteen minutes before slowly getting up, sitting down against a tree, and letting out a long sigh.

“Boss, what happened? Did we just blow up Longbiao City? Ten barrels of oil and Longbiao City were blown up?” Hei Ma climbed up to Li Sangrou and asked, craning his neck.

“Is there any water?” Li Sangrou ignored Hei Ma and licked her lips as she asked.

“No,” Da Chang answered first, and Meng Yanqing shook his head as well.

They had been in such a hurry when they left the inn, and they had run so much along the way that they were almost dead. They had not even brought a lot of silver notes, let alone water.

“There’s an inn not far ahead. I will go get some water.” Ye Anping finally figured out which way to go.

“No need. Everyone, rest and make sure you have the strength before continuing. We do not know what’s ahead,” Li Sangrou instructed.

The group rested for about two quarters of an hour, tidied themselves up, stood up, and set off towards Shimen.

Throughout the day, starting with Li Sangrou, everyone gripped their sword hilts, fully alert.

But that day, the inns and villages along the way were as peaceful and quiet as when they arrived. The sounds of gongs and horns from Longbiao City that night seemed like a dream to them.

After two more days of travel, everything remained calm and normal. Li Sangrou felt a slight sense of relief. That evening, the group checked into an inn, and for the first time in days, they had a proper meal with soup and meat.

That night, in the latter half of the night, gongs and horns suddenly sounded in Longbiao City, followed by an explosion at the inn. Although Li Sangrou remained silent, her craning neck and strained posture, as if wishing she had more legs to run faster, spoke volumes.

For the past few days, they had been on high alert, their lives hanging in the balance. No one dared to speak, nor did they have the mind to ask questions.

Now, seeing Li Sangrou carefully selecting and enjoying the food, everyone finally relaxed and began to wonder: what had happened in Longbiao City that night? Where had their Boss gone? “What happened that day?” Meng Yanqing could not hold back any longer and leaned in to ask.

Of all the people in the group, besides Li Sangrou, he knew best what their trip to Longbiao City meant for the Great Qi Dynasty and for this critical war.

If we were talking about the immense pressure of this trip to Longbiao City and the deep anxiety about its potential failure, he was definitely number one.

Li Sangrou gave a vague “hmm.”

“What happened?” Meng Yanqing asked again.

“Boss, where did you go?” Hei Ma, holding a meat bone, followed up.

“I got a dice cup, so I gambled once and won,” Li Sangrou said with a smile.

“Huh? Who did you gamble with? Old Concubine Wu? Old Concubine Wu really likes to play dice. You won? Then?” Ye Anping was completely confused.

During these past few days of fleeing for their lives, he was the most disoriented.

“Old Concubine Wu,” Li Sangrou drawled, chuckling. “She’s the bet.”

“Ah? Then…” Ye Anping was even more confused.

“That’s a big gamble! A gamble! A gamble! This, that! Da Chang, did you understand?” Hei Ma frowned, patting this side and that side, turning to ask Da Chang.

Da Chang glared at Hei Ma, ignoring him.

“Let’s get some rest. We need to get back as soon as possible. From today onwards, sleep two and a half hours a day, eat dinner for half an hour, and spend the rest of the time traveling.” Li Sangrou yawned as she stood up.

Everyone jumped up and hurried back to rest. In two and a half hours, they would continue their journey.