The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear

Chapter 107

Zhu Huihui kept recounting how she was chased by a man in black in the graveyard, with a knife almost slashing her forehead, before being saved by Liu Yue. Feng Xuese finally breathed a long sigh of relief. This child, she really is unlucky, encountering all sorts of unbelievable things, but her luck isn't completely bad either; each time, she has a benefactor to help her, turning misfortune into good fortune.

Upon hearing Zhu Huihui recount the Serpent Envoy's dying wish, west Yeyan and Yan Shenhan were both stunned.

Xi Yeyan couldn't help but ask, "Zhu Huihui, are you serious?" No wonder they couldn't find the whereabouts of Generals Yu and Qi's families. It turned out they had been disguised and mixed into the Western Regions caravan, and were being escorted along the way.

Before Zhu Huihui could speak, a long laugh came from the deck of the dragon boat: "I guarantee that what Miss Zhu said is absolutely true!"

Jianghu TianhenqingⅡ92009-08-13 11:08 Except for Zhu Huihui, who was surprised, everyone in the cabin remained calm, as if they already knew that someone had boarded the ship.

Zhu Huihui was startled, but then she became happy and ran over to open the cabin door: "Brother Liu Yue, you're back!" Brother Liu Yue was a very good friend to her, and she had been worried about him.

Outside the cabin door, Zhu Liuyue slowly entered, surrounded by several guards in brocade robes. Under the lamplight, his face was as handsome as jade, his lips as red as painted vermilion, and he wore an apricot robe and a golden crown. As he entered, his demeanor exuded an air of nobility.

Upon seeing Zhu Huihui, Liu Yue smiled and said, "I'm back!" Her gaze then shifted to the others at the cabin door, and she smiled, "Brother Xue Se, Brother west Ye, Brother Yan, it's been a long time!"

Feng Xuese took a deep breath, slowly stood up, and smiled, "Brother Liuyue, it's been a long time!"

Nishino En and the others also bowed in greeting.

Although Yan Shenhan had fought with Zhu Liuyue before, there was actually no enmity between them. On the contrary, they felt a sense of mutual respect and camaraderie. Meeting again in this situation, they laughed off the past and neither of them brought it up again.

Steward Qin bowed and said, "This old servant greets Your Highness!" Suddenly, he noticed a dark red mark on Liu Yue's sleeve, and his expression changed slightly. "Your Highness, are you injured?"

Zhu Liuyue said casually, "Being hit by a hidden weapon is no big deal."

Steward Qin was still worried: "Miss Mu from Beikong Valley is on the boat. This old servant will go and ask Miss Mu to treat your injury!"

Zhu Liuyue waved her hand: "It's just a minor injury, no need to make a fuss. Steward Qin, go and get everyone a cup of tea." She lifted her robe and sat down on the brocade chair.

Although Chief Steward Qin was worried, he had no choice but to agree.

"Brother Liuyue, is your injury really alright?" Zhu Huihui asked with concern.

"It's nothing!" Zhu Liuyue looked at her and smiled gently. "It's just a superficial injury!"

Feng Xuese asked, "Who injured Brother Liuyue?" With Zhu Liuyue's martial arts skills, who could have injured her?

Zhu Liuyue took something out of her sleeve and gently placed it on the table: "What hurt me was this thing."

Everyone stared intently and saw that it was a six-pointed star-shaped hidden weapon, made of fine steel, with extremely thin edges, and exuding a chilling aura.

Zhu Huihui picked up the object and carefully placed it in her snow-white palm: "Great hero, what is this?"

Feng Xuese gently touched it and slowly said, "This is a hidden weapon from Japan. It seems that the person who injured Brother Liuyue was also a Japanese."

Zhu Liuyue said, "That's right!"

Steward Qin had already brewed fresh tea and personally served it to everyone.

Zhu Liuyue picked up the teacup and drank it all in one gulp as if nothing had happened.

Zhu Huihui reached out to test the temperature; it was scalding hot. She couldn't help but stick out her tongue. She noticed that Liu Yue's sleeve had slipped down, revealing a fair wrist wrapped in a silk scarf with a small amount of blood on it. It seemed that the injury was not serious.

He put down the jade cup and said, “This evening, while our ship was heading towards Xuan Yue Water Island, we were suddenly attacked in the rain. I led my men in a fast boat to give chase. The attackers were in a small boat with a single sail, and due to the thick fog and rough waves on the lake, they soon disappeared. By the time I realized what was happening, I had already stumbled into a water formation. The water formations of Japan are very different from those of China. After I fell into the ambush, their assassins came out one after another, their skills were unpredictable and treacherous, and they used every means at their disposal. Caught off guard, several of my men were killed, and I was also injured by their hidden weapons. After a fierce battle, I finally managed to escape safely.” He slowly recounted his experiences in detail.

After hearing this, Feng Xuese said, "I have heard that Japanese ninjutsu has the five elements and five escape techniques of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Those who practice ninjutsu are called ninjas. Like Chinese martial arts, Japanese ninjas are divided into different schools. The most famous of these are Iga and Koga. The ninjas trained by these two schools are persevering and have extraordinary skills. They are indeed not to be underestimated!"

But in his heart he wondered: I wonder which school Kazama Yoru was trained in? In the previous battle with Kazama Yoru, he used at least several kinds of ninjutsu from Japan, such as illusion, water release, and earth release. It was a pity that his eyes were not good, and he had to rely on his senses to fight, so he was unable to see it.

Nishino En also said, "Those men in black who ambushed me and Lao Yan from Xuan Yue Shui Yu, although I can't tell if they are from Japan, it's certain that their martial arts are of the Japanese lineage!"

Zhu Liuyue nodded in agreement.

After exchanging a few more words about other things, Xi Yeyan turned the conversation to the question everyone was most concerned about: "Brother Liu Yue, according to Miss Zhu, are the families of Generals Yu and Qi indeed in the Western Regions caravan?"

Zhu Liuyue's usually cheerful face darkened. After a moment's pause, she said, "Perhaps she was here before, but now, she's gone."

Before anyone else could react, Zhu Huihui panicked: "How could this be? The Twelve Zodiac Envoys of the Blood Pavilion risked their lives for this, it can't be fake news! How could the families of the two generals be gone?"

Feng Xuese grasped her hand and patted it gently: "Huihui, don't worry! Brother Liuyue must have a plan!" Huihui wanted Zhu Liuyue to escort her to Xuan Yue Water Island to deliver the Serpent Envoy's words to her in order to save the families of the two generals. However, having suddenly received such important intelligence, Zhu Liuyue would definitely not delay. He would surely escort her while secretly planning to take action to rescue them—anyone would do the same, only this little idiot of his didn't understand…

Zhu Liuyue's gaze lingered on the clasped hands, her eyes dark and unfathomable.

After a moment, he looked away and said calmly, "I brought Miss Zhu to Xuan Yue Water Island. At the same time, I have already dispatched people to investigate all the merchants who have passed through the customs in the past few months. Among them, the most suspicious is a caravan from the northwest heading southeast. This caravan started from the capital, traveled west to purchase local products, and then went south after reaching Liangzhou. It then traveled east along the waterway. The reports along the way stated that it was going to Jiangnan and other places to purchase silk, porcelain, tea and other items, intending to sell them overseas."

Nishino En murmured, "Starting from the capital, first heading west, then south, and then east by water?"

That's it! No wonder we couldn't find the two generals' families; it turns out they were focusing their investigation on the wrong things.

After Generals Yu and Qi were falsely accused and imprisoned, their families and relatives were secretly exiled to the southern frontier. A month after leaving the capital, they disappeared on the road. Whether it was Blazing Sky, Maple Snow City, Deep Ice Realm, or Connecting Heaven Water Island, all focused their attention on the route out of the capital. No one expected that the enemy had actually infiltrated a caravan and secretly escorted them westward. Although they took a long detour, they successfully evaded the sight of their pursuers.

What a cunning enemy!

Zhu Liuyue continued, "My men found the caravan at a place called Jinshui Post Station. Unfortunately, by the time my men arrived, there wasn't a single survivor in the caravan."

Everyone was startled: "What?"

"All the merchants in this caravan, including the innkeeper and his staff, a total of forty-one people, have been killed. However, none of the bodies were found to match the characteristics of the two generals' family members."

Everyone fell silent. The enemy was incredibly ruthless! Their consistent tactic had been to leave no survivors and indiscriminately eliminate all witnesses!

That day, Feng Xuese took a deep breath and asked, "Poison?"

"Yes, it's poison," Zhu Liuyue said. "According to experts, it's an inhaled poison called 'One-Finger Incense,' which kills instantly upon inhalation. My men found traces of this poison in the lamps at the post station. It's fortunate that Jinshui Post Station is far from towns; otherwise, if the poisonous incense had spread through the air, the death toll would likely have been much higher!"

In other words, there will be no witnesses to this case, so there is no way to find any clues.

After a moment of silence, everyone sighed deeply in unison.