La vida perfecta en la dinastía Song

Capítulo 57

Tuosang suddenly said in a deep voice, "Hurry up, someone else is coming..."

Zhu Yu darted out several dozen feet, lay prone for a moment, and heard that a large group of people was coming in this direction.

Zhang Yaoxing looked at Zhu Yu, who had flown back, with a bewildered expression. Zhu Yu said to the other two, "You take the three wounded and retreat. Those assassins have no interest in you and won't bother with you."

The two men protected the three men and immediately mounted their horses and retreated back the way they came.

Zhang Yaoxing said, "Lord Zhu, how can we retreat? We still need to go back and report..."

"Do you think you can break out of here? If you don't retreat now, you'll all perish in this forest tonight. What kind of mission will you have then? Retreat immediately!"

Zhang Yaoxing was also very scared. Upon hearing Zhu Yu's words, she quickly mounted her horse and rode off towards the rear.

Xia Ao glanced at Tuo Sang, who nodded, and the two of them headed back the way they came.

The group took a detour along a side path until dawn. Zhu Yu reined in his horse, while Tuosang and Lama Xia Ao followed behind at a leisurely pace.

He glanced at the exhausted group ahead and said loudly, "You can stop now."

The group was both hungry and thirsty, and stopped immediately upon hearing the news.

Zhu Yu looked around at the terrain, which was a hilly area with few residents nearby, so he ordered the two men, "Go and find some food."

The two accepted the order, and the rest of the group rested on the spot.

After the time it takes to burn two incense sticks, the two were still nowhere to be seen.

Zhu Yu's heart sank, and he had just exclaimed "Oh no!" when Zhang Yaoxing asked in alarm, "Have those two already met with a terrible fate?"

The three injured men were terrified, and even Xia Ao's expression changed.

Zhu Yu hissed, "Go quickly..."

Tuosang shook his head: "It's too late, they've already surrounded us from all sides..."

The horse galloped into Shaanxi province before stopping.

This is a small town that is not particularly bustling, and the people coming and going do not show any unusual signs.

Junyu and Shu Zhenzhen led their horses toward a nearby inn. Two ordinary-looking men brushed past them, hurrying along. Shu Zhenzhen glanced at them, but they seemed completely oblivious to her presence.

Junyu noticed that Shu Zhenzhen's gaze was a little strange and whispered, "Sister Shu, what's wrong?"

Shu Zhenzhen also whispered, "I saw these two men from afar when I was investigating the theft of the Northwest Army's military pay. These two are definitely not ordinary people..."

The theft of military funds was dropped after the former Minister of War was dismissed, and ultimately became a major unsolved case.

Junyu immediately said, "Let's go take a look."

***************************************************************************

Chapter 163: Nightmare (5)

Night had fallen completely. Junyu and Shuzhenzhen, dressed in plain clothes, followed the two men. Unaware of what was happening, they quickened their pace as soon as they left the town.

The two ran for four or five miles before splitting up and continuing on their own. Junyu and Shuzhenzhen exchanged a glance and immediately parted ways to pursue the man. Junyu followed the man for another four or five miles when he suddenly stopped and thought to himself, "This is bad." Sure enough, the man let out a very low scream in the darkness and fell to the ground.

Junyu hid behind a tree. Soon, a man in black emerged from the night, lit a torch, and searched the man's body, seemingly looking for something. He quickly extinguished the torch and plunged back into the darkness.

Junyu saw that the man in black was heading towards the town. She immediately followed him.

It was the largest inn in town, and a sign at the entrance read "Fully Booked." The second floor of the inn was brightly lit, and there were many people in the rooms.

The man in black didn't use the main entrance; instead, he quietly leaped up to the second floor and gently knocked on a window. Junyu had been following him. Suddenly, the window opened, the man in black jumped inside, and the window immediately closed.

Junyu pressed himself against the window and overheard someone inside whispering, "How did things go?"

"Lord Meng..."

Upon hearing the extremely familiar voice and the words "Lord Meng," Junyu had no further doubts; the person inside was indeed Meng Yuanjing. She was quite surprised; how could Meng Yuanjing be here?

After the man finished his report, he came out by pushing open the door. He had changed into civilian clothes, and if Junyu hadn't recognized his figure, she would have thought he was a completely different person. She secretly praised the man's skill in disguise, and his abilities were quite impressive. However, how could such a person be appearing in this remote town with Meng Yuanjing?

She was surprised, and before she knew it, she was standing at the window.

The window suddenly opened, and a joyful voice whispered, "Junyu..."

Junyu smiled and nodded, then jumped in through the window.

Meng Yuanjing rubbed his eyes, almost as if in a dream. Overjoyed, he became somewhat incoherent: "I saw a figure moving outside the window and was about to make a move, but it turned out to be you... Junyu..."

Junyu was delighted to meet him unexpectedly and asked, "Yuanjing, what brings you here?"

Meng Yuanjing's heart was in turmoil, and he could no longer maintain his composure. After a long while, he finally said, "I've come here on some important business..."

Seeing his troubled expression, Junyu smiled and said, "If it's a confidential matter of the Ministry of War, then you don't need to tell me."

Meng Yuanjing's face turned even uglier. He had been honest with Junyu since childhood and would never hide anything from her, no matter how important. But now he was here on a secret mission to kill Tuosang, how could he tell Junyu that he had been sent to kill Tuosang?

Seeing his embarrassed expression, Junyu immediately changed the subject: "I've long heard of the notorious bandits of Sichuan and Shaanxi, I really don't know how many of them roam around here..."

Meng Yuanjing breathed a sigh of relief and naturally continued the conversation: "We have tracked down several major thieves who were involved in the theft of military funds in the Northwest last time."

Junyu laughed: "Yuan Jing is still as honest as he was when he was a child. I got the truth out of him right away, haha."

Seeing that she seemed to think this "secret matter" was about investigating the robbery of the Northwest Army's pay, Meng Yuanjing immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He was also pleased to see Junyu with a mischievous smile, just like she had in her childhood. Originally, this matter was even more important than the assassination of Tuosang, and so far only he and Wang Jun knew about it, yet he made no attempt to hide it from Junyu: "Another spies from the Thousand Machines Sect have uncovered some clues. If they are revealed, the consequences will be astonishing. It's just a pity that the notorious thieves we captured aren't qualified to know the top-secret information, and a leader who knew a little about it immediately committed suicide..."

***************************************************************************

Chapter 164: Nightmare (6)

Junyu nodded. The emperor had clearly laid a trap. The Northwest Army suffered from the harsh winters year-round, and for those who robbed the supplies to do so at such a critical moment as the outbreak of plague and war was truly outrageous. It was a mystery who was so audacious as to instigate such an act.

She suddenly said, "Yuan Jing, do you want me to help you?"

Meng Yuanjing was overjoyed. He and Junyu had a great working relationship and he was happy to have more time to spend with Junyu, so he immediately nodded. But then he suddenly seemed to remember something, and his expression became very unnatural: "Never mind, Junyu, you don't have much vacation time left, I can't hold you back."

Seeing him nod and shake his head, his expression more complicated than ever before, Junyu was very curious. She wanted to ask him why, but suddenly realized that the two of them were no longer as in sync as before, so she remained silent.

Seeing that she seemed to want to ask something but remained silent, Meng Yuanjing knew that she suspected he was holding back, and his heart felt even more choked with anxiety. He knew that Tuosang was doomed this time, and Junyu was still completely unaware. If she stayed to investigate the theft of military funds with him, she would surely find out about Tuosang's situation soon. How could he dare to leave her behind?

The two remained silent for a long time before Junyu raised his head and smiled, "Yuanjing, I'm leaving."

Meng Yuanjing stared at her extremely pale face. Although he knew she liked Tuosang and had felt a little resentful towards her because of it, he felt very sad now that he thought of her still being all alone and not even knowing whether Tuosang was alive or dead.

In that instant, he desperately wanted to tell her the truth he had been hiding from her for the first time in his life, but several times he swallowed the words back. Now, countless experts from both the legitimate and criminal worlds lay in ambush along the way, waiting to take Tuosang's life. He feared that once Junyu was involved, she would never be able to escape. Moreover, her attempt to resign had failed; if she were to get involved in this conflict, even if she miraculously escaped, she would be forced to live as a fugitive.

Seeing that he was still in a daze and didn't speak, Junyu said again, "Yuanjing, I'll take my leave."

Meng Yuanjing suddenly realized she was about to leave and snapped out of his daze: "Junyu, your vacation is almost over. What are your plans for the future?"

Junyu laughed: "I can't think of anything either. Maybe I'll just hide far away and make sure no one can find me."

Thinking of this parting, with no hope of ever seeing each other again, Meng Yuanjing couldn't help but whisper, "Junyu, I really want to hide away with you. You were alone when you were little, and you're still so lonely now. I want to take good care of you in the years to come."

Junyu smiled and said, "Yuanjing is talking nonsense again. Your mother, your aunt, Lanni, and Hongni all need your care. How can you avoid it?"

Meng Yuanjing recalled his recent private conversation with the Shi sisters and sighed helplessly. He feared that once Consort Mei gave birth to a prince, the sisters' positions would be in grave danger.

“During this time, let’s work together to figure out a way to help you resign from your post properly, without any ties, so that you can truly be free to do what you want.”

"Okay, I will contact you as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, Meng Yuanjing was much happier.

Junyu looked at him deeply, reached out and took his hand, and smiled, "Yuanjing has always been very good to me since I was a child, and that has never changed over the years. From now on, and forever, you will always be my best friend."

Meng Yuanjing squeezed her hand tightly before letting go: "Junyu, take good care of yourself on your journey alone."

"I'm not alone, I have Sister Shu too."

Meng Yuanjing smiled and said, "Then I'm much more relieved."

***************************************************************************

Chapter 165: Hands in Hand (1)

As I bid farewell to Junyu, dawn was just breaking.

Meng Yuanjing returned to his room to rest for a while, when suddenly he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The one who entered was his deputy, Zhu Lei, another newly promoted deputy commander of the Thousand Machines Sect. Zhu Lei whispered, "We received news that last night, about a hundred miles from here, unidentified people from the Zanghan Chila Khan sect surrounded 'Bokdo.' After a fierce battle lasting half a day, 'Bokdo' still managed to escape. Only the bodies of three Thousand Machines Sect guards were found at the scene..."

Zhu Lei said, "Should we immediately notify the ambush troops to pursue Bokdo? Even if he has three heads and six arms, he's probably exhausted. Now is the best time to chase him down."

Meng Yuanjing shook his head: "Investigating the theft of military funds is the top priority."

"However, the Emperor has ordered that 'Bokdo' must be killed. Now, the hundreds of people we've contacted in both the legitimate and criminal worlds have already laid ambushes along the way, making it the perfect time to strike."

"We've just made some progress on the robbery of the military pay, which is far more important than hunting down 'Bokdo.' Bokdo has already been deposed, so whether he lives or dies isn't urgent. Besides, the Rahan Cult will definitely not let him go. Why not wait for them to fight first, and then we can seize the opportunity to reap the benefits and preserve our strength..." Meng Yuanjing laughed and said, "Lord Zhu, if we solve the case of the robbery of the military pay, the merit would probably be much greater than killing Bokdo. Why not weigh the pros and cons?"

Zhu Lei had just been promoted to deputy commander and was eager to do something earth-shattering. Upon hearing this, he exclaimed with delight, "If we really solve this case, it will indeed be a great achievement."

Meng Yuanjing had always hated and loathed Tuosang, but seeing Junyu traveling alone and Tuosang being hunted down by all sides, he knew that there was no possibility for the two of them in the end. He couldn't help but think to himself, "Tuosang, now that things are like this, why should I kill you and hurt Junyu? For Junyu's sake, I will neither kill you nor save you. Let fate decide your life or death."

***************************************************************************

Chapter 166: Hands in Hand (2)

Junyu returned to the inn, but Shu Zhenzhen hadn't come back yet, so he went to rest for a while. He waited all day until Shu Zhenzhen finally returned, just before the sun was about to set.

The two exchanged information about their respective investigations, and Junyu also told her about Meng Yuanjing's special trip here to thoroughly investigate the theft of military funds.

Shu Zhenzhen said, "I didn't find any clues about the military pay. I only heard their secret order to set off immediately to hunt down some important figure. Moreover, judging from their tone, many underworld figures have already been lying in wait along the way. I don't know what important figure it is that has mobilized so many experts from Sichuan and Shaanxi."

Junyu was greatly surprised and couldn't help but become suspicious: "Who could command so many experts? It seems that the person being hunted is really not simple."

Shu Zhenzhen said, "I'm also very curious. If we weren't in such a hurry, we could stay and take a look. However, in the martial arts world, all sorts of feuds happen every day, so it's not surprising."