Chapter 511 - 511: Assassin
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Ruyi and Zhao Cai walked around the posthouse and realized that there was a big house next door. There was a small building in the big house facing the posthouse. The two of them looked around and felt that if someone was standing in the small building, everyone in the posthouse would be watching. The two of them went back and told Zhou Jia about the situation. “Master, there’s something wrong with this place. I think you should go back to the small courtyard to stay at night.”
“Alright, since someone is monitoring us, let’s go back to the small courtyard after the welcoming banquet.” Zhou Jia looked at Zhao Cai. “Go to the Four Seas
Bank and ask how that matter is going.”
“Yes, Master.” Zhao Cai left and walked towards the Four Seas Bank.
The news that Zhou Jia had chased away all the people sent by the government office spread to a small house beside the Cheng family’s mansion. After the Eldest Prince discussed it with Cheng Shan, Cheng Shan left in relief.
Zhao Cai came out of the posthouse. After taking a few steps, he realized that someone was following him. He quickened his pace and walked towards the crowded place. When he reached the stall in front, he flashed into a brush and ink shop. Standing there, he saw two lean men in gray clothes hurriedly push through the crowd and chase after them.
Zhao Cai came out of the brush and ink shop and crept into an alley. He turned through a few alleys in a row and arrived at the Four Seas Bank. The shop assistant brought Zhao Cai to the backyard where he met Chu Shan.
“Shopkeeper Chu, someone followed me when I came. We should return to the small courtyard tonight.”
Chu Shan nodded when he heard that. “Alright, I’ll arrange for people. Ding Yi and Hu Cheng have been gone for half a month. The secret guards following them will send news back tomorrow at the latest. I’ve already sent people to Qingyue County to wait. As soon as there’s news, I’ll inform Sir to mobilize the garrison into the mountain.”
Zhao Cai bowed and said, “Thank you, Shopkeeper Chu. I’ll go back and report to Lord Zhou now.”
Chu Shan smiled and waved his hand. “Steward Zhou, you’re welcome.”
Zhao Cai came out of the Four Seas Bank and returned to the posthouse. Zhou Jia and Ruyi had already gone to the Intoxicated Immortal Restaurant to attend the banquet. When Tiezhu saw Zhao Cai, he said, “Brother Cai, Master asked us to wait for him in the backyard of the Intoxicated Immortal Restaurant. He will come out of the banquet in an hour. He asked us to follow behind his carriage. Master is changing carriages at the bend in front.”
Zhao Cai nodded in agreement and drove the carriage to the Intoxicated Immortal Restaurant with Tiezhu. The Drunken Fairy Building was brightly lit and bustling.
Magistrate Feng brought the officials of the Yuezhou Prefecture and the rich country squire to welcome Zhou Jia and the eunuch into the Intoxicated
Immortal Restaurant. When they arrived at a dazzling and spacious pavilion, Zhou Jia sat down. Ruyi and a round-faced secret guard stood behind him.
After three rounds of wine, Magistrate Feng clapped his hands and music sounded. Five beautiful dancers entered the private room and danced. The beautiful dancer in the middle spun towards Zhou Jia. When she danced toward Zhou Jia’s table, she suddenly slipped and fell to the ground. She looked up at Zhou Jia with tears in her eyes. Her charming gaze made people pity her.
Zhou Jia looked at her coldly with a wine glass in his hand and counted silently in his heart to see how long she could last on the ground.
The dancer got up with a red face. After bowing to Zhou Jia, she bowed to everyone present and danced elegantly with her expression unchanged.
After the dancer got up from the ground, Cheng Shan and Magistrate Feng looked at each other with wine glasses, as though they were sending a signal to each other.
An hour later, the eunuch stood up and excused himself from everyone. Zhou Jia also took the opportunity to bid farewell. Everyone tried to persuade him to stay for a while. Seeing that they could not, Magistrate Feng and the officials could only send Zhou Jia and the eunuch out.
Zhou Jia and his servant came out of the Intoxicated Immortal Restaurant. The two of them nodded and got into the carriage.
When Tiezhu and Zhao Cai received the news, they also drove the carriage and followed. They caught up at the turn. Zhou Jia quickly jumped into the carriage driven by Zhao Cai. The round-faced secret guard still drove the carriage towards the posthouse with the attendant.
When they arrived at the posthouse, Ruyi and the round-faced secret guard followed a secret guard who looked similar to Zhou Jia into the posthouse. Just after midnight, Ruyi and the round-faced secret guard went up the beam of the main door pillar. The secret guard who looked similar to Zhou Jia was in the room. After a while, the lights went out.
In the dead of night, Ruyi and a secret guard were sitting on the beam, resting with their eyes closed. Suddenly, they heard a faint sound on the roof. The secret guard in the room quickly stood up and listened.
The secret guard gestured to Ruyi, indicating that one of them had gone up to the roof and three others had entered the courtyard.
The assassins who had entered the courtyard dispersed and surrounded the main room.
The assassin on the roof arrived at the main room and gently lifted the tiles on the roof.
Below, the secret guard disguised as Zhou Jia listened attentively to the roof and wanted to move. Just as the tiles were uncovered, the crossbow in his hand tore through the air and hit the person in the face.
At the same time, Ruyi and the round-faced shadow guard held small crossbows on the beam at the door of the main room and shot at the assassins at the door. With a few muffled sounds, two assassins were shot and fell to the ground. The remaining one jumped onto the wall and fled.
Ruyi and the round-faced shadow guard chased after him. After a while, the assassin was gone.
The assassin who was shot by the crossbow tumbled from the roof to the courtyard, smashing into the ground. Then, he heard a loud shout coming from the house. “Catch the assassin! Someone is assassinating the imperial envoy. Catch the assassin…”
The secret guard lit the oil lamp and the courtyard lit up. The servant rushed to Zhou Jia’s courtyard with his men. Ruyi and the round-faced secret guard had already returned to the posthouse.
Ruyi said to the eunuch, “Eunuch Wang, someone tried to assassinate Lord
Zhou. Fortunately, Shopkeeper Chu of the Four Seas Bank invited Lord Zhou to his house.”
The royal servant looked at the assassin who had been shot at the door and the assassin who had fallen into the courtyard. After approaching with a lantern, he took a look and shouted, “Come and take a look. What’s hanging on his waist?”
Ruyi and the round-faced secret guard approached and saw something squirming in the cloth bag. From the bulging shape of the cloth bag, it should be something like a snake.
Ruyi took the crossbow and slammed it into the snake’s head. The contents of the bag stopped squirming.
The round-faced secret guard untied the rope and poured out a huge snake with golden rings on its body. “This snake is called the Golden Armored Belt
Snake. It’s poisonous and afraid of the light. It likes to move at night. If you’re bitten by it, you’ll die in less than half an hour.”
Ruyi and the round-faced shadow guard searched the three assassins but found nothing.
Eunuch Wang cursed in a sharp voice, “They’re really bold. They even dared to assassinate the imperial envoy…”
The courier arrived in a hurry. Eunuch Wang went forward and dragged him to the corpse. He pointed at the corpse on the ground and the golden-armored snake and shouted sternly, “An assassin actually came to assassinate Lord Zhou in the courier station you manage. What kind of courier are you? Hurry up and report it to the officials.”
The courier was scared to death. Without saying a word, he turned around and ran out. An hour later, the Yuezhou magistrate judge, Wu Hualin, arrived with
the bailiff..
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