Chapter 661 – Kind-hearted Wei Zixiao
“So it’s really chaotic in the city—this Wei Zixiao has a heart of stone.”
Yang Si gasped for breath, gripping the reins tightly to avoid being tossed off his horse, looking somewhat battered.
After all that commotion, his formerly neat scholar’s robe was now a wrinkled mess.
Every time he took a deep breath, the cold wind blasted into his mouth.
Turning his gaze toward Qiuyu County, he noticed the night sky above the county glowed an ominous orange-red, flickering with dangerous, seductive flames.
“This is called a meeting of minds.”
Jiang Pengji stood atop her horse, a slight smile on her face.
Yang Si spat dismissively and retorted, “What meeting of minds? I see him as someone just stirring up trouble. Who knows whose bones those are? If we believe Zixiao’s in danger, we’ll lose our chance to strike. He, on the other hand, is fine, at least he communicated with us…”
Speaking of this, Yang Si felt quite troubled.
Seeing those bones, he genuinely thought they belonged to Wei Ci and was genuinely saddened for a moment.
If their lord hadn’t quickly figured it out, he might still be in the dark right now.
Jiang Pengji, hearing this, curved her pale lips into a beautiful arc.
“Perhaps he anticipated this; he knows I won’t be deceived by bones nor delay our plans.”
After saying that, Jiang Pengji wielded the spear in her hand. What used to be a silver-white spear was now soaked in blood, a bright crimson, the warm blood quickly cooling and solidifying in the cold wind, sticky to the touch and utterly disgusting.
She positioned the spear as if nothing had happened and gazed towards the county.
“Jingrong, gather the troops, and attack Qiuyu County!”
Take advantage while you can!
Yang Si replied, “As you command.”
Now, Qiuyu County had turned into utter chaos, flames spreading fueled by the wind, figures darting around and the shouts of battle deafening.
The guards on the wall got caught up in the chaos, and just then, several shadows crept towards the city gate amidst the turmoil, unlatched the door.
With united effort, a creaky clamor erupted as the tall city gate swung open, alleviating Jiang Pengji and her entourage’s troubles.
“Subordinates, welcome our lord.”
The ones opening the gate were indeed the guards who had entered the city with Wei Ci.
They had incited the Red Lotus Sect’s “alliance” to break, and in the midst of chaos, secretly opened the gates for Jiang Pengji’s army.
“Where’s Zixiao?”
One of them answered, “The scholar has been moved to a safe location, waiting for the lord.”
Jiang Pengji’s lips curled slightly as the flickering orange light reflected in her eyes, giving her an inexplicable rush.
To paraphrase the audience in the live stream—our host is looking a bit smug.
“Well done—warriors, follow me to slay our enemies!”
With her spear in hand, she charged ahead like a gale.
After a night of fierce battle, dawn broke, light piercing through the night, welcoming a brand new day.
The fire had burned all night, leaving behind only a few stubborn embers.
The land, singed black, bore witness to the chaos, as gray smoke wafted from ruined walls, the scene before them a patchwork of destruction.
Jiang Pengji patted Xiao Bai’s sooty coat, mumbling, “Poor little Bai, you’re turning into little black now.”
Saying this, she handed the reins to a nearby soldier, instructing him to take Xiao Bai away for a wash.
Yang Si hadn’t slept all night; dark circles marred his once fair complexion, the ash from the smoke did a number on him, making him look quite filthy.
“Zixiao waited right here last night? This guy really knows how to enjoy…”
He followed Jiang Pengji around, exerting a tremendous amount of energy, frequently riding, the skin on his inner thighs burnt raw with blisters.
Not to mention, while he managed to bulk up a bit, he now looked gaunt, a stubbly beard covering his chin, making him appear somewhat disheveled.
Where was Wei Ci?
That guy was living the life!
This out-of-the-way and calm area was completely unaffected by the chaotic battles of the night.
Thinking about how Wei Ci’s night was filled with various antics while he slept so soundly made Yang Si feel a pang of jealousy.
Just then, the tightly shut gate creaked open as a tall scholar clad in blue emerged—wasn’t that Wei Ci?
“Lord! Jingrong!”
Wei Ci hadn’t slept a wink, and as dawn approached, he couldn’t help pacing near the gate, his feet almost wearing a hole in the ground.
In a daze, he caught the sound of familiar voices, jolting him upright. He hurriedly opened the door, and sure enough, it was Jiang Pengji and Yang Si.
Wei Ci stepped forward, while Yang Si, hands in his oversized sleeves, turned his head away, but Jiang Pengji responded.
She walked closer, her eyes sizing up Wei Ci from head to toe.
Without saying a word, Jiang Pengji made Wei Ci feel an inexplicable tension.
“L-lord?”
“Everything alright?” she inquired.
Wei Ci felt an odd pang of guilt; he took a moment to calm himself and maintained a composed expression. “I’m fine, thank you for your concern, my lord.”
“Good to hear.” Jiang Pengji brushed past him, her lips moving just barely audible, “We’ll talk about this later.”
Wei Ci stiffened, his calm facade cracking slightly.
Yang Si, puzzled, gently huffed as he passed Wei Ci.
What kind of game was this? Faking death, pulling at emotions?
Wei Ci could only smile wryly.
He believed that Jiang Pengji would guess his intentions and seize the moment to wipe out the Red Lotus Sect, take down Qiuyu County, and unify Wanzhou.
Even without prior discussion, he was confident they had a mutual understanding.
But…things seemed to have backfired a bit.
Yang Si was easy to bamboozle; Wei Ci believed he could trick him.
But Jiang Pengji was a different story—she was too sharp…his past experiences had already taught him this lesson.
Just imagining the scenario of facing her made him feel an urge to bolt.
Despite Wei Ci’s cover being mostly blown, Jiang Pengji hadn’t completely unraveled that thin veil, so he believed he still had a chance to redeem himself; he hadn’t fully lost his cover…yet… but last night’s events sowed seeds of doubt in his mind.
Had he known, he would have let someone inform her in advance.
Wei Ci sat uncomfortably, while Jiang Pengji remained confidently seated at the head.
After a brief meeting, Wei Ci’s worries never materialized.
Seeing this, he let out a silent breath of relief.
Yang Si and Wei Ci busied themselves with the post-battle tasks, quickly consumed by the heavy workload, leaving no time for other thoughts.
While counting the captives, Yang Si noticed something.
“Strange, where are the high-ranking members of the Red Lotus Sect? Didn’t you manage to flip the second-in-command?”
They had captured over forty thousand prisoners, but it was a huge haul of Red Lotus Sect members, with very few higher-ups among them.
Wei Ci sat behind the desk, surrounded by piles of documents, his right hand cramped and sore from writing. He simply switched to his left hand to continue.
Looking down, his long lashes cast a shadow over his face.
Wei Ci replied indifferently, “I reckon they’ve either been burned to death or hacked to pieces, in any case, they’re dead.”
Yang Si was taken aback. “You sly fox, what did you do?”
Wei Ci smirked, saying, “Those pests are a waste of rations; they could be a danger to the lord. Even if I managed to bring them in, they would just become a hidden threat, likely to bite back someday. Better to eliminate them sooner rather than later.”
Yang Si was left speechless.
Wei Ci, as Jiang Pengji’s messenger, had just incited a complete trap leading to the “accidental” death of the second-in-command at the hands of a crowd…
“You really have a rotten heart.”
