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Chapter 294: Returning to Jiangnan
Chapter 294: Returning to Jiangnan
After exchanging some pointless pleasantries, the group began assigning tasks.
Lu Xiaofeng quickly took the lead, sending Jin Jiuling and Hua Manlou to find Chang Mantian and Jiang Zhongwei, while he took the Red Satin girl to go and find someone himself.
"Who are you going to find?" asked Jin Jiuling.
"I'm going to find a she-tiger," Lu Xiaofeng replied.
The she-tiger Lu Xiaofeng referred to was, of course, Xue Bing, the granddaughter of Divine Needle Madame Xue, one of the four most beautiful women in the martial arts world, nicknamed the Ice Demoness, and also the new Eighth Sister of the Red Shoes Society. It was unclear who was older between her and Shangguan Feiyan.
Lu Xiaofeng turned to Su Shaoying, "Will you be going with Jin Jiuling or Hua Manlou?"
Su Shaoying blinked, "Why can't I go with you?"
Lu Xiaofeng's eyebrows twitched as he let out a chuckle, then immediately broke into a smug smile, "You can join me if you can catch up."
As soon as he finished speaking, he flipped out the window and disappeared into the misty mountains in the blink of an eye, displaying his extraordinary lightness skill.
However, Lu Xiaofeng had just climbed over the temple wall when he heard Su Shaoying's voice ringing from inside the room, "I knew he would leave when I said that. At least we don't have to worry about him stealing our midnight snack tonight!"
Lu Xiaofeng stumbled, tempted to turn back. He would rather waste some time than let Su Shaoying have a peaceful meal.
Inside the room, Hua Manlou shook his head and laughed, "It seems the two of you can never get along peacefully."
Jin Jiuling shook his head as well, "Peacefully? They're more like natural-born enemies."
Hua Manlou nodded in agreement, for he had never met anyone as unpredictable as Su Shaoying, except for Lu Xiaofeng, of course. He could only sigh, "Just make sure you don't start fighting."
Jin Jiuling looked at Su Shaoying, "So, will you be going with Hua Manlou or me?"
"Why can't I go by myself?" Su Shaoying asked.
Jin Jiuling's eyes narrowed, "Where are you going?"
"To chase after Lu Xiaofeng, of course," Su Shaoying replied nonchalantly. "Since Lu Xiaofeng said I can't catch him, I'm going to prove him wrong!"
Su Shaoying nodded to Jin Jiuling and Hua Manlou, then slowly opened the door and walked out. Her voice drifted in with the wind, "Whenever Lu Xiaofeng is involved, things never stay safe. Brother Hua, please take care of my junior sister."
Shi Xiuxue pouted, wanting to say that she didn't need Hua Manlou's protection, but she thought better of it and remained silent.
Jin Jiuling pondered for a moment before asking Shi Xiuxue, "Do you think your senior brother can catch up to Lu Xiaofeng?"
Su Shaoying's recent transformation had also boosted Shi Xiuxue's confidence in him. "Senior Brother Su is already the heir of Emei. In terms of swordsmanship alone, there are very few on Emei Mountain who can beat him."
Hua Manlou was blind but perceptive. He could sense Su Shaoying's enlightened state of mind, and those with such a mindset were bound to be powerful warriors. Moreover, Su Shaoying had also seen through Ximen Chuixue's issue.
"Don't worry, Jin. Su will be fine," Hua Manlou reassured him with a smile.
Jin Jiuling nodded and smiled, "Well, they're both impulsive, so I guess we should hurry up too."
...
On the other hand, after Su Shaoying descended from Mount Jiuhua, he didn't rush to Hangzhou. The Xue family, known as the Divine Needle family, was located just north of Hangzhou and south of Lake Tai.
As Lu Xiaofeng went to meet his little sweetheart, Su Shaoying naturally wouldn't tag along and play third wheel. He had missed the chance to meet the elusive Sikong Zodiac last time, so he now had the opportunity to experience it for himself.
"This was all a trap set by Jin Jiuling. The truth is that Er Niang embroidered the flower, and Jin Jiuling was unraveling the thread when he disguised himself as the Embroidered Thief," he continued.
"Then, Lu Xiaofeng brought Xue Bing to this inn and encountered Sikong Zodiac, who was disguised as a shop assistant," Su Shaoying added.
"Sikong Zodiac was sent by Jin Jiuling to steal the red satin and take it to the Pen Xie Temple in Lingnan. Jiang Qingxia was the fifth sister of the Red Shoes Society, and their purpose was to frame Gongsun Daniang," he explained.
"In other words, Sikong Zodiac knew that Jin Jiuling was the Embroidered Thief?" Su Shaoying frowned and thought for a moment before shaking her head. "It can't be proven. Even if Sikong Zodiac said that Jin Jiuling was the mastermind, it still can't be proven. After all, Jin Jiuling can always come up with excuses."
The simplest explanation was that Jin Jiuling was too busy to go himself, so he asked Sikong Zodiac to retrieve the red satin and bring it back to Lingnan. As for why he asked Sikong Zodiac to steal it in the first place, of course, it was because Sikong Zodiac was friends with Lu Xiaofeng!
"But..."
Su Shaoying's eyes flickered, "In 'The Golden Phoenix Dynasty', Huo Xiu asked him to steal something from Shangguan Danfeng. In 'The Embroidered Thief', Jin Jiuling asked him to steal the red satin. And in 'The Purple Forbidden Summit', he returned two mysterious ribbons to Lu Xiaofeng..."
He seemed to be a tool for the bosses. Su Shaoying refused to believe that he had no secrets, especially since even Lu Xiaofeng couldn't find him most of the time. Yet, whenever the bosses needed him, they always managed to get ahold of him.
"But his position is also very different from that of Huo Xiu and Gongsun Daniang. He might not even have heard of Gongsun Daniang, which sets him apart from the honest monk," Su Shaoying mused, feeling her head ache again. "It seems like all the experts in this world have their secrets."
So, how could she resist the urge to meet such an intriguing person?
Ju Shengyuan, an old and well-known inn located in the northern outskirts of Hangzhou, was often frequented by martial artists, traveling merchants, and peddlers who stayed there for drinks and lodging.
When Su Shaoying arrived, she was surprised to find the inn already filled with guests.
As her gaze swept across the room, she identified over a dozen escorts, seven or eight bandits, three to five lone swordsmen, a couple of thieves, and of course, five or six young masters from prestigious families.
However, since her past life had never ventured to Jiangnan, she was unfamiliar with the local aristocratic families of the region.
As Su Shaoying surveyed the people in the inn, they, in turn, directed their attention towards her.
And then, she spotted a familiar face.
"Brother Su!" Tang Tianyi called out to her.
"Brother Tang!" Su Shaoying approached Tang Tianyi's table. "Why are you alone?"
Tang Tianyi invited Su Shaoying to sit down and explained, "The old Lama has gone missing, so we brothers are splitting up to investigate and track him down."
As Su Shaoying was from the Emei Sect and had witnessed the battle between the Tang Clan and the Lamas of Daxueshan, there was no need to keep this matter a secret from her.
"Have you found anything?" she asked.
Tang Tianyi shook his head. "I followed the Yangtze River all the way to the sea, but I lost their trail after that."
"Looks like they have connections in the Central Plains," Su Shaoying remarked with a smile.
"Indeed." Tang Tianyi nodded in agreement. "They're likely based in the southeast region, or perhaps further south."
(End of Chapter)
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