Chapter 204: Hello Chang’an
Chapter 204: The Wisdom of Ants
2023-05-30
Is the newcomer friend or foe?
In the next moment, Chang Suining immediately understood the answer from the direction the cold arrow had flown.
The arrow was aimed directly at the leader of the black-clad men who had been attacking her. The man, sharp and quick, noticed the arrow approaching and immediately raised his sword to deflect it.
"Clang!"
The arrowhead collided with the back of the sword, creating a sound with a lingering tremor, and the black-clad man instinctively stepped back.
At that very moment, Chang Suining threw her long sword, striking its hilt with her palm to send it flying through the misty rain, speeding towards her opponent.
The sharp blade struck the black-clad man's right shoulder, causing him to stumble back in pain. A guard from the Chang family quickly seized the opportunity, capturing him and placing a sword at his throat.
"Alive," Chang Suining ordered.
The reason she had struck him on the shoulder rather than aiming for his life was to disarm him, not kill him.
At this time, the person who had assisted with the arrow had also appeared. She was a young woman, drawing her bow to kill several of the black-clad men.
Chang Suining was puzzled about the identity of this helper, but with her life at stake, defeating the enemy took priority. She glanced at her briefly before looking away, not allowing herself to be distracted.
In the midst of the chaos, she exchanged a look with Chang Ren, who nodded in return.
Continuing the battle wasn't a viable option. The best strategy was to retreat with the captured leader!
Just as Chang Ren and his group were fighting and retreating, the sound of hooves approaching grew louder. A group of riders, about a dozen strong and all dressed in black robes, emerged from the rain.
"How dare you cause such a disturbance in the capital! Capture all those black-clad men!"
The leader, a young man, dismounted and drew his sword, advancing.
These people exuded an extraordinary aura, clearly not ordinary guards. Each one seemed capable of taking on ten opponents, and their strength was remarkable. The commanding tone of the leader, ordering the capture of all the black-clad men, showed he was someone of high authority. With their leader captured and the morale of the black-clad group faltering, they quickly scattered.
"No need to pursue!" Chang Suining sheathed her sword and addressed her group.
The young leader gestured for his subordinates to stop chasing, then quickly approached Chang Suining and asked with some concern, "Miss Chang, are you unharmed?"
Chang Suining, covered in blood, which it was difficult to distinguish whether it was hers or from others, still maintained a composed expression and showed no signs of injury. "I’m fine. But Cui Yuanxiang, why have you returned?"
Cui Yuanxiang lowered his voice and explained, "I was sent by the Grand General to secretly return to the capital and assist Miss Chang!"
Chang Suining didn’t rush to ask further questions. She simply nodded and said, "We’ll talk more after we leave here."
Cui Yuanxiang glanced at the captured black-clad man and asked, "These men were openly attempting assassination. Should we send them to the Minister of Justice?"
"No need," Chang Suining replied. "I have other uses for them."
With the absence of Yao Yi in the Minister of Justice, the authority there had become ambiguous. She no longer trusted them with anything.
Besides, she already had a complete plan, and these sudden black-clad attackers wouldn't force her to alter her course.
Cui Yuanxiang agreed and then asked, "Should we clean up here?"
"No need for that either," Chang Suining answered. "Just clean up a bit, leave the carriage, and leave behind any weapons marked with the Chang family symbol. Create the illusion that I was assassinated and taken away, leaving the authorities to investigate."
In this way, she could disappear for two days under the pretense of being a victim, which would better facilitate the execution of her next plan.
"Understood!"
A wounded guard stepped forward, his voice hoarse. "Two of our men are dead."
Chang Suining looked at the bodies of the two fallen guards and, after a moment, said, "Help them exchange clothes with those black-clad men, then take their bodies back for burial."
"Understood."
"Who gave you the orders?" Chang Suining asked, looking at the black-clad man who had been brought before her.
The man, wounded in the shoulder by her earlier attack, turned his head away, remaining silent. Just as he was about to grit his teeth, Chang Suining suddenly raised her arm and struck him hard in the side of the face with her elbow.
"Thud!"
The blow left him dizzy, and he turned his head to spit out a mouthful of blood, along with a bloodied tooth.
"You..." He glared at the young woman who had suddenly attacked him.
Chang Suining glanced at the tooth he had spit out and said, "Apologies, I thought you had poison in your mouth and were attempting to bite it to commit suicide."
The black-clad man had no time to speak before Chang Suining shoved a pill into his mouth and forcefully pushed his jaw up, making him swallow it.
The man, his arms restrained, tried to cough it out but couldn’t, his face turning bright red. "What did you make me eat?"
"You weren't carrying poison, so I gave you some," Chang Suining said, looking at him. "This poison has no antidote for twelve hours, and it will take your life. So, let me ask again—who gave you the orders?"
The black-clad man’s expression changed several times. "I don’t know who it was! We were just paid to do the job!"
Chang Suining didn’t doubt his words.
Poison was typically used by assassins with a death wish. These people’s behavior and skills seemed more like those of a mercenary group—hired killers who didn’t inquire into their employer’s identity.
She asked, "Where will you meet after the job is done?"
The employer always needed to confirm whether the job was completed, and the assassins had to collect the remaining payment.
"…In the Guandi Temple behind Chongye Alley!"
Chang Suining asked, "How will you meet?"
The black-clad man replied, "Bring the head to them."
Cui Yuanxiang asked, "Whose head?"
Chang Suining: "Clearly, mine."
"You won’t be taking my head." Chang Suining glanced at the black-clad corpses on the ground. "Pick one you like from here and take it."
The black-clad man: "…"
Chang Suining intended to find out who wanted her head so badly.
She turned to the masked woman standing beside her and asked, "Thank you for your help today. Would you like to come with me?"
This wasn’t a place for talking. To prevent the people in the Guandi Temple from receiving news of their failure before her arrival, she needed to move quickly.
The woman hesitated for a moment before nodding.
---
The Guandi Temple in Chongye Alley had been abandoned for a long time, and beggars usually gathered there.
However, due to the influx of refugees coming to the capital to petition the emperor, which had disturbed the peace of the city, the emperor had ordered the removal of beggars, citing that many spies were hiding among them. As a result, the beggars were driven away, and the Guandi Temple was left empty.
"Madam… they’ve arrived!"
A maidservant wearing a hooded veil, who had been watching outside, rushed in to inform the others upon seeing the black-clad group enter.
In the temple, a woman dressed in a similar hooded veil, sitting beneath the statue of Guandi, immediately stood up, asking anxiously, "Did it succeed?"
The maidservant lowered her voice. "It looks like it succeeded…"
The leader of the group was carrying something!
The woman let out a deep, satisfied laugh. "That calamity is finally dead!"
She was eager to see it for herself.
Five or six black-clad men entered, and the leader was one they recognized. He was injured, covered in blood, but the woman didn’t find this unusual. After all, he was going to kill someone—being injured was normal.
One of the black-clad men, carrying a heavy bundle in his left hand, placed it on the altar. "We’ve brought it back. Where’s the remaining payment?"
The maidservant replied, "Of course, the money is yours, but we need to inspect the goods first."
The black-clad man made a loud "thud" as he placed the bundle on the altar. He opened it, revealing a square box. As the box was opened, a bloody human head appeared.
The woman under the veil froze, her expression turning angry.
Though the maidservant was startled by the gruesome sight, she quickly demanded, "You dare take such a large sum and present us with this? Where is the real item we requested?"
"It’s here," came a voice from outside the temple, followed by the entrance of a young man.
As the newcomer crossed the threshold, he threw a dagger into the air, which flew toward the woman, slicing off the veil on her head.
The woman’s face was now revealed—it was Chang Shi, the wife of the Marquis Ying.
Her eyes widened with fury. "Chang Suining…?!"
"Ah, Madam Ming," Chang Suining said. "You hired so many people just to take my head. What a lavish sum you must have spent."
But this also showed that the Ming family and the holy Emperor had already abolished Chang Shi’s influence. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been left with no one to rely on and had to hire external assassins.
Miss Chang’s voice grew sharp. "Kill her!"
Indeed, people rushed forward, but it was Chang Ren, Cui Yuanxiang, and their group who arrived.
They had dealt with all the people that Chang Shi had brought, quickly subduing her and her maidservant.
"...So many people couldn't kill you. You truly are a natural disaster!" Chang Shi, pinned to the ground, continued to struggle. "Why haven’t you died yet?"
Chang Suining approached, crouched down, and examined Chang Shi's emaciated, hate-filled face, and said with understanding, "It seems you're about to go mad... I remember your mother died from madness and harming others. It seems this illness runs in your family. No wonder Ming Jin is growing worse as he gets older."
Once a setback or frustration occurs, the symptoms of this condition inevitably appear.
Chang Shi’s expression shifted. "What are you talking about?!"
How could this lowly person know that her mother died from madness… Her father had kept this secret, not a soul knew, not even the emperor!
Chang Suining stood up without responding to her confusion.
The guards pulled Chang Shi off the ground, restraining her arms.
Chang Shi showed no fear on her face, instead, she sneered, "You think by catching me, you can save your brother? Foolish dream! Even if I die, I will never admit it. Don’t think you can use me to succeed!"
"You’re thinking too simply! You should know who truly wants your brother dead!"
"No matter what you do, you can't save him... You can only watch him be executed!"
After saying this, Chang Shi seemed more pleased with herself. She was already a dead woman, so there was nothing to fear from falling into this lowly person's hands. She couldn’t kill her, but watching her suffer would be satisfying!
Faced with her vengeful words, Chang Suining looked at her with some curiosity. "Before all this, I had no deep enmity with you. Why do you hate me so much?"
This question suddenly ignited Chang Shi’s fury.
"You injured my son, who is certainly useless, but if not for the enmity beforehand, how would there have been that horse race incident? How could he have been injured so badly?" Chang Shi’s eyes were filled with hatred. "He started taking medicine recklessly because of this… otherwise, how could there have been the disaster in the maple forest behind the mountain?"
"All of this happened because of you!" Chang Shi ground her teeth. "You ruined my son!"
And because of that, you ruined everything for me!
Now you're still saying "no deep enmity"?!
Chang Suining looked at her. "So this is how you, who consider yourselves noble and unassailable, explain things."
Chang Shi scoffed sarcastically, "There are thousands of ways to explain the world. What does it matter if you’re dissatisfied or resentful? Who cares about the reasoning of people like you? You were born lowly. Who would care about the reasoning of such lowly people?"
Although she was about to die, she still had the reasoning of the emperor on her side. No one could challenge that!
"Let you ants struggle all you want, no one will care, and no one will fear you!" Chang Shi taunted. "Even if you kill me now, I’m not afraid!"
"Do you still need me to kill you?" Chang Suining showed no sign of being provoked. She finally said, "You still have some use, so you can live a few more days. Before you die, you might as well see what the reasoning of us ants is."
After speaking, the young woman turned to leave, and Chang Shi was about to say more but was knocked unconscious by the guards.
Chang Suining and Cui Yuanxiang went to talk alone beneath the eaves of the temple.
"…The Grand General heard of the matter on the way and immediately ordered me to return to the capital to assist Miss Chang."
In fact, the Grand General had initially planned to return with them, but after riding several dozen miles, he stopped again.
Cui Yuanxiang explained this, "It’s not that the Grand General didn’t want to come back to the capital. It’s just that matters in Bingzhou can’t be delayed. And also, the Grand General said… you probably don’t want him to return."
Chang Suining fell into a moment of thought before nodding.
"Yes, my brother has me, and Bingzhou needs him more."
Rather than a blind, reckless attempt to help regardless of the situation, the wise and cautious Cui Jing made things easier for her and earned her respect.
If Cui Jing had returned to the capital and neglected Bingzhou, that kind of help would only have added pressure on her.
Cui Jing had clearly considered this and, knowing that he had helped her with many useless tasks in the past, chose to stay calm and only sent Cui Yuanxiang back.
"You didn’t need to rush back." Chang Suining said to Cui Yuanxiang. "I already have the Grand General’s bronze token in my hand, that’s enough."
"But the Grand General said you probably didn’t want him involved and wouldn’t use it…" Cui Yuanxiang said quietly. "When you were in danger earlier, you didn’t have many people with you, so you clearly didn’t use it."
"So, the Grand General ordered me to return and follow Miss Chang's instructions." Cui Yuanxiang continued, "The Grand General said that although he is away and doesn't know all the details, if Miss Chang's brother is in real danger, he would even go so far as to act as a prison break. The priority is to ensure Young Master Chang’s safety."
Hearing the words "prison break," Chang Suining couldn’t help but ask, "Is your Xuanzhe Manor really so lawless now?"
Cui Yuanxiang answered seriously, "Our Xuanzhe Manor is loyal to the Da Sheng Empire, loyal to justice and the rule of law. Young Master Chang, as a merit official and a member of the Xuanzhe Army, is wrongfully imprisoned. Xuanzhe Manor has the responsibility to rescue him!"
After a moment, Chang Suining nodded slightly.
This Xuanzhe Manor was indeed a good one.
"But the Grand General repeatedly emphasized that everything should be based on Miss Chang’s arrangement. Whatever you say, we will follow."
Chang Suining: "Good, after this matter is settled, please help me thank your Grand General."
After that, Chang Suining went to see the young, masked woman.
She tried her best to speed things up. Let's not fight yet o(╥﹏╥)o. There will be more updates later.
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