Luzhou Moon - Chapter 79
"I only realized you were here after I saw you." Yinglong turned back to look at her with slight surprise. "Didn't the young master tell you to wait there?"
"Yes..." Yue Ruzheng hesitated for a long time before saying, "Then why hasn't he come back?"
Yinglong hesitated for a moment, then said, "He has some things to take care of."
On the path north of the lake, a horse galloped swiftly, its rider dressed in black, almost blending into the night. Following the lakeshore past the vast reeds, a fork in the road came into view. The rider glanced around briefly, then spurred his horse toward the path closer to the lake. Weeds grew rampant along the roadside, rustling softly in the wind.
Suddenly, a flash of cold light shot out from the bushes, like a venomous snake emerging from its den, aimed straight at the rider. The man abruptly pulled on the reins, the horse leaped into the air, and he too leaped forward, his toes landing on a roadside tree trunk. The curved sword at his waist was drawn and swung back towards the bushes.
The blade rose and fell, grass clippings flew, and the previous cold light vanished in an instant. The man lost his target in the darkness. He hesitated for a moment, then felt a chilling coldness in his back and was immediately unable to move.
Before he could even put down his scimitar, his fingers tightened slightly, and the person behind him pierced his clothes with the tip of a sword, aiming straight for his shoulder blade.
"Protector Su, you'd better not move."
Standing frozen in the tangled weeds, Su Muchen watched as the horses galloped away, while he himself was unable to move an inch. He glanced back and sneered, "I'm just a subordinate. Do I deserve to be personally dealt with by Young Master Lian?"
The faint glint of the short sword reflected on Lian Junchu's face, adding a touch of cold pallor. He raised an eyebrow slightly and called out, "Bifang."
A sword-wielding man suddenly appeared from nowhere; judging from his appearance, he was not the one who had been following Lian Junchu. Lian Junchu used the tip of her sword to force Su Mucheng forward a few steps, and Bi Fang threw out a silver rope from her waist, which went straight to Su Mucheng and tightly bound his arms.
Su Muchen tried to break free, but the rope was made of some unknown material, smooth as ice silk, both tough and strong. The more he exerted his strength, the tighter it became.
Bifang held one end of the rope and said coldly, "Don't even think about it. This is celestial silkworm silk."
Su Muchen was furious: "Lian Junchu, are you trying to take me hostage?"
Lian Junchu turned to face him, raised the short sword from her right sleeve, and pointed it at his heart: "Are you that valuable?"
"Then what exactly do you want to do?!" The usually cold and aloof Su Muchen seemed a little anxious.
"What kind of venom is coated on the crossbow bolts from Bliss Valley?" Lian Junchu asked casually.
Su Mucheng frowned slightly and snorted, "I see."
Lian Junchu probed his clothes with her short sword and said, "Don't tell me you don't have the antidote on you. If that's the case, you won't be able to leave."
"I can give it to you," Su Muchen said, frowning, "but you have to let me go."
"Do you have the right to negotiate with me?" Lian Junchu said calmly. "Produce the antidote in front of me, and you can leave only after everything is foolproof. Otherwise, all the poisons on your body will be stuffed into your mouth."
Yue Ruzheng followed Ying Long and the others northward for a while, still not far from the Chaohu Lake area. The lake water lapped against the shore, the cold sound reaching her ears. She looked into the distance and saw a dark shadow moving. Ying Long spurred his horse forward to meet it, and together with the rider, they dragged Su Mucheng, who was being pulled from behind the horse, to their side.
Yue Ruzheng was taken aback when she saw Su Muchen's disheveled state, tightly bound. Ying Long nudged him and asked, "Where is the antidote for the crossbow poison?"
Su Muchen glanced at Yue Ruzheng, a mocking smile on his face, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Yue Ruzheng, why are you with people from Seven Star Island again?"
Yue Ruzheng turned her face away and remained silent. Ying Long tightened his grip on the rope, and Su Muchen snorted, "The antidote is in my arms. Come and get it if you dare."
Ying Long drew his long sword from his back and swiftly opened Su Muchen's robes, causing several paper packets to fall from his arms. Bi Fang stepped forward and whispered a few words to Ying Long, who nodded but did not pick them up. Su Muchen, however, frowned: "What? You're not even afraid to take them?"
"Enough with the nonsense!" Yinglong held his longsword to Su Mucheng's neck, but his gaze was fixed on the distance. Yue Ruzheng followed his gaze and saw someone walking briskly towards them from the edge of the vast reeds. It was Lian Junchu, wearing a blue brocade robe.
Yue Ruzheng felt a thud in her heart, but her gaze instinctively lowered.
Lian Junchu walked up to Su Muchen, glanced at the ground, and turned to Bi Fang, saying something. Bi Fang reached behind Su Muchen and snatched a crossbow bolt. Su Muchen was forced to retreat by Ying Long's sword, and with a flick of Bi Fang's wrist, the crossbow bolt pierced Su Muchen's shoulder.
"Do what you want." Yinglong pressed his longsword against his throat and kicked the paper packages on the ground with his toe.
Su Mucheng gritted his teeth and endured for a while before finally whispering his instructions. It turned out that each packet of powder was essential; they had to be mixed in a fixed amount, and any slight difference would render the medicine ineffective. Bi Fang and the others first applied the powder to Su Mucheng, and only after confirming he was alright did they proceed with the detoxification of Yue Ruzheng, following the original instructions. Throughout the entire process, Lian Junchu stood silently to the side, seemingly detached from the situation.
After the medicinal powder was applied, Yue Ruzheng's wound gradually stopped bleeding. Su Muchen, clutching his shoulder, glared at everyone and said, "I've given you the antidote, why aren't you letting me go?"
Just as Yue Ruzheng was about to ask a question, Lian Junchu gestured with her eyes, and Yinglong withdrew his longsword. Su Muchen gave him a cold glance, then turned and hurried back the way he came.
Bi Fang and Ying Long led the horses over and whispered something to Lian Junchu. Yue Ruzheng stood alone behind them, unable to understand what they were saying, but she could see their solemn expressions. After a moment, seeing that they seemed to be preparing to leave, she became anxious: "Are you just leaving like this?"
Ying Long and the others stared at her in surprise. Lian Junchu stepped forward and calmly asked, "Is there anything else?"
"Why did you just let Su Mucheng go? Wasn't he supposed to be in Luzhou? Isn't it surprising that he suddenly appeared here?" Yue Ruzheng asked a series of questions, but her eyes were on the others.
Lian Junchu glanced at her coldly and said, "This is a matter between your Yinxi Xiaozhu and Jile Valley, it has nothing to do with me. We have other things to do and can't waste any more time."
Yue Ruzheng was both angry and annoyed. She grabbed her sword and walked up to him, saying, "I didn't want your help. You clearly knew that the people of Bliss Valley were searching for my master's whereabouts, yet you still let Su Muchen go, not even giving me a chance to ask him a question!"
Those around her, unaware of her relationship with Lian Junchu, were quite surprised by her sudden outburst. Lian Junchu turned her face away, gave a cold laugh, and looked elsewhere, saying, "So what do you want?"
Yue Ruzheng wanted to vent her frustration, but seeing Ying Long and the others staring at her with suspicion, she had no choice but to suppress what she wanted to say and walked straight past Lian Junchu, heading in the direction Su Muchen had left.
Although Yinglong, Bifang, and the others were unaware of what was happening, seeing Yue Ruzheng walk away, they were quite anxious to get Lian Junchu onto her horse. Unexpectedly, Lian Junchu didn't look at the others, but instead stared at Yue Ruzheng's retreating figure with a pout. Seeing that she showed no intention of turning back, she couldn't help but call out, "Yue Ruzheng!"
She paused for a moment, then continued walking.
Lian Junchu quickly caught up with her, glaring at her, and lowered her voice: "What exactly do you want?!"
Yue Ruzheng took a deep breath and said calmly, "Don't misunderstand, I'm not trying to blackmail you. I've thought it through, this really has nothing to do with you... I have no reason to ask you to do anything anymore. It was my mistake to get angry with you before..."
"Can you stop spouting this nonsense?!" He suddenly interrupted Yue Ruzheng's apology, looking up at her with a sorrowful smile. "Why are you not like yourself at all now?"
Yue Ruzheng's face turned pale. She felt as if something was blocking her chest, and she could hardly breathe.
She longed to stride confidently past him, but her legs felt too heavy to lift.
"Yes, I've changed. I'm not the Yue Ruzheng I used to be." She finished speaking with difficulty before gritting her teeth and brushing past him.
Her figure disappeared into the depths of the reeds. Lian Junchu remained standing in the same spot, not turning back to look, nor even moving an inch.
The subordinates of Seven Star Island had been watching from a distance. Bi Fang hesitated for a long time before walking up to him.