Zhan Chun - Chapter 89
Yichun was immediately filled with admiration for Shu Jun's bargaining skills.
The carriage finally drove away slowly. Yichun poked her head out and saw Uncle Wang sitting in his iron wheelchair, looking at them with a determined gaze, as if he was reluctant to leave.
Shu Jun hugged her from behind and whispered, "Girl, don't worry."
She nodded slowly, turned around and smiled, "I'm not worried, this time it's just the two of us."
He squeezed her hand, but didn't say anything.
The carriage was spacious and comfortable, with pastries and hot tea readily available, and even a jar of fine wine in the corner. Yichun unsealed it, held it, and took a gentle sniff. "Huh? It's Guangling Qionghua Dew!"
Shu Jun tapped her forehead, a half-smile on his face. "You little rascal, after wandering around on your own for a while, you've finally seen some things. You trust the Yan Clan so much, aren't you afraid they'll poison your food?"
"With you here," she answered without hesitation. It seemed there was no poison in the world that could defeat Shu Jun, so she wasn't worried at all.
The two of them ate and drank to their hearts' content, so much so that they could barely walk. They then lifted the curtains to watch the scenery rushing by outside.
The carriage left the bustling market and began to travel along a sparsely populated mountain road. Shu Jun lowered the curtain, leaving only a small gap. The gentle mountain breeze blew Yi Chun's soft hair around her ears, making his heart itch. He reached out and pulled her close, feeling an urge to kiss her lips, which were tinged with the smell of alcohol.
The carriage suddenly stopped abruptly, the horse neighing loudly, clearly having been forcibly pulled back. Yi Chun instinctively gripped the sword at her waist, and Shu Jun gave her a reassuring look, leaning lazily against the carriage wall as he asked, "What is it?"
Old Xu himself lifted the curtain first, looking puzzled, which didn't seem like he was faking it.
"There's something strange about the road ahead. It looks like someone spilled a lot of lard on it. This is a cliff, and if the carriage slips and falls, it'll be no laughing matter. Please wait a moment, young master and young lady, while I go check the situation."
The two men opened the carriage door and peered out. Sure enough, a long stretch of mountain road ahead was covered in a thick layer of solidified lard, clearly solidified. Even skilled martial artists like themselves would likely slip on it, let alone a horse-drawn carriage.
Yichun's eyes widened, her gaze darting around, and she silently mouthed, "Mountain bandits?"
Her eyes shone with anticipation and excitement. Encountering bandits was not a dangerous thing for her at all; on the contrary, bandits meant money to be made. Yichun was quite looking forward to it.
Shu Jun shook his head and didn't speak. Seeing that Old Xu was walking unsteadily on the lard and looking around, probably not seeing anything unusual, he walked back with difficulty, clasped his hands and said, "Please wait for me while I clean the lard off the road."
Before he could finish speaking, a dozen people suddenly appeared from the roadside. Strangely, each of them was carrying a bucket of oil. Old Xu was taken aback and only had time to draw his weapon for self-defense before they poured the scalding hot lard all over the carriage.
The change happened in an instant. Someone threw a torch, and suddenly, a fire dragon shot into the sky, then quickly burned along the lard on the ground. In the blink of an eye, the entire mountain path was burning red. Old Xu only had time to scream in agony before he was burned into a human torch, rolled a few times on the ground, and never moved again.
Yi Chun felt a sudden red flash before her eyes, and blazing flames rushed towards her from all directions. She instinctively reached out to grab Shu Jun, but grabbed nothing. Her heart sank, and she drew her sword, hacking the burning carriage wall to pieces. She desperately covered her head and rushed out.
Fire, fire, fire everywhere! Thick smoke blinded her and made it hard for her to breathe. Desperate, she screamed at the top of her lungs, "Shu Jun!"
No one answered him. In the distance, there seemed to be bursts of fighting, accompanied by the screams of burned people, which terrified her.
It's him? It's him? Oh my god, it can't be him!
She heard a whooshing sound behind her; someone was wielding a knife. Yichun instinctively raised her sword to parry, but the man was incredibly strong. The blow sent her staggering forward several steps before she plunged headfirst into the sea of fire, feeling as if her skin was being burned to a crisp.
Yichun screamed in pain, and someone grabbed her collar from behind and yanked her out. Then Linpi slapped the flames out.
"Are you alright?" It was Shu Jun's voice; he had never been so flustered and anxious before.
Yichun suddenly turned around and grabbed him tightly. He was covered in black soot from head to toe, and half of his hair had been burned off. He looked utterly wretched.
She opened her mouth to speak, but he suddenly lowered his head and kissed her lips, whispering, "Climb up the tree! Don't come down!"
With that, he threw her forcefully. Yichun flew through the air, crashing straight into a tall locust tree opposite. Agile as she was, she hooked onto a branch, swayed slightly, and leaped to the treetop. Suddenly, fire erupted from the ground. A searing pain shot through her back. Yichun gasped, turning sharply to see the flames already several meters high, thick smoke billowing up, almost obscuring half the sky.
She instinctively took a step forward and almost fell headfirst from the top of the tree.
"Shu Jun!" she cried out, but no one answered her. A few figures flickered in the towering flames and rushed to the edge of the cliff. One of them seemed to slip and fall. Yi Chun called out again, "Shu Jun!" Still no one answered her. She felt her heart pounding with fear and desperately jumped down from the tree. She stepped on lard and rolled several feet, wishing she could rush into the fire to find him.
The firelight was blinding, as if burning her eyes, causing excruciating pain. Swords flashed around her, and she instinctively blocked them with her bare hands.
A sweeping attack, a slash, a downward chop—blood splattered on her face. Yi Chun raised her hand to wipe it away, but her foot slipped again, and she fell heavily to the ground. The flashing blades and shadows all aimed for her eyes, trying to pierce them through.
She rolled on the spot and rolled all the way to the edge of the cliff.
The mountain isn't high; you won't die if you fall.
So, Shu Jun, if you fall, if you die, I will despise you for the rest of my life!
Without hesitation, she jumped. The wind immediately enveloped her, and the dense trees clinging to the cliff edge made her face sting as if it were being torn apart by the soft leaves. Yichun protected her head and face, curling her body up as much as possible. During her fall, she felt herself hit a tree branch, and a sharp pain shot through her left arm; she guessed it was broken.
Finally, her body landed heavily on something thick and soft, and her head was hit hard by something hard. Stars flashed before her eyes, and Yichun fainted without uttering a sound.
That day, Yan Yufei went to discuss with the sect leader about the sudden disbandment and disappearance of many gangs in Yangzhou overnight. The Yan Clan intended to expand its influence in Jiangnan, but the other side did not seem to give them much face, and the resistance was not as fierce as it had been in Sichuan and Hunan. The gangs, large and small, in Jiangnan were playing a defensive game, disbanding their forces overnight and handing over such a large piece of Jiangnan territory.
It should be understood that no matter how delicious the fat meat is, it cannot be swallowed whole. While the Yan Clan gains power, it will also have to pay two to three times the price. Just bribing the government officials will cost a huge sum of money. The people living along the river are also not very interested in the newly arrived Yan Clan. If someone were to launch a counterattack from the outside, the Yan Clan's plans in Jiangnan could very well fall apart.
After Yan Yufei lost his right hand, his third uncle, Yin, traveled far and wide to find a piece of thousand-year-old fragrant wood. He then hired the best craftsmen to make a wooden prosthetic hand to fit into the injured area. The prosthetic hand was made so realistically that even the patterns on the fingernails looked real. Apart from being unable to move, at first glance, he was no different from an ordinary person.
At that moment, he was gently knocking on the door with his prosthetic hand. Usually at this time, the sect leader would be in his study reviewing letters and official documents.
After knocking a couple of times, Old Lin, the sect leader's personal subordinate, opened the door and bowed respectfully to him. "Second Young Master, the sect leader is not in the manor right now. Before he left, he instructed that important matters should be decided by the eldest and second young masters. He will not be able to return for another half a month."
"Did the sect leader say what it was about?" Yan Yufei was a little puzzled. At this critical moment when the power in Jiangnan was undergoing a major change, how could the sect leader leave without informing them?
"He didn't give any instructions, only saying that the affairs of Jiangnan were enough to be handled by the eldest and second young masters." Yan Yufei frowned as he left the sect leader's courtyard. Just after passing the bamboo forest, he heard a voice laughing from inside: "Second brother, I know where Father went. Do you want me to tell you?"
He turned around calmly and saw Yan Yudao standing in the woods with a smile. A few days ago, he had suffered a serious injury somewhere and had been bedridden for more than half a month to recover. His originally round face had become thin, revealing a somewhat pointed and monkey-like appearance.
Yan Yufei didn't have much affection for his half-brother, and simply said, "What are you doing in the sect leader's courtyard at this hour instead of going to your Autumn Wind Training Class?"
Yan Yudao laughed and said, "Second brother, I know you are always calm and not easily tricked. You can't blame Father for always being biased. You and eldest brother are indeed talented, but you are very clever, not so much."
Yan Yufei was too lazy to listen to his nonsense and turned to leave. He only heard the man call out behind him, "Second Brother, I've run into the woman who cut off your right hand! Don't worry, I will avenge you!"
Yan Yufei was taken aback at first, then a chill ran down his spine, as if a memory he had tried so hard to forget or ignore had suddenly surged back. He turned abruptly, staring intently at Yan Yudao, and whispered, "What do you mean?"