Chapter 529: We Will Meet Again |
Chen Ji placed this age-old, broken bed plank back anew.
Almost every Jing Dynasty Military Intelligence Division spy had formerly experienced excessively severe training. The Military Intelligence Division stripped out their natural instincts, teaching them to bury their own scents like wild beasts, living carefully and cautiously in the Ning Dynasty.
To not be cautious was to die.
But it was precisely such a group of people who still left behind such a broken bed plank. Perhaps there was no need to destroy it; perhaps they were reluctant to part with it. Chen Ji had no way of knowing.
He found it very difficult to judge this group of people.
Or to say another way, he found it very difficult to judge every single person within this era. It seemed that judging them from any one-sided angle would be unfair.
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Chen Ji searched this dilapidated old residence once more, yet there were no other clues anymore.
The clues broke.
Chen Ji turned his head back to look toward the extinguished fire basin.
Time seemed to return to half a shichen ago. At that time the sky still hadn't brightened.
He could even imagine Lin Chaoqing currently sitting before the fire basin. The firelight jumped and danced on the other party's cheeks, yet the gaze was empty.
Chen Ji arrived before Lin Chaoqing and squatted down, staring fixedly at the other party's two eyes.
He could hear the sounds of the Turmoil of War outside the courtyard: horse hoof sounds, shouting sounds... But the Lin Chaoqing inside the courtyard still persistently clung to his own ways, burning spirit money.
Chen Ji looked at the phantom shadow of that Lin Chaoqing before him, unhurriedly tossing sheets of yellow spirit money into the fire basin one by one: "You are not afraid. Even though the pursuing troops are so close, you still dare to mourn your colleagues right under their eyelids, because you have made completely infallible preparations and left ample paths of retreat... But where can you hide to?"
Lin Chaoqing did not answer, nor would he answer.
Chen Ji thought for a long time, also not thinking out an answer.
He stood up his body to leave, closing the courtyard doors. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly stood his figure still, holding the door rings with both hands and lowering his head in deep thought.
Wait.
Chen Ji pushed open the courtyard doors anew, arriving before Lin Chaoqing and squatting down: "You disguised your face, right? So you fundamentally are not afraid of others discovering you."
He suddenly recalled Aunt Ping had said: the Jing Dynasty Military Intelligence Division also possessed a lineage of Official Path Gateway that could help people disguise their faces.
Needing to take the blood of the entire body of a beloved person, it could help a person change facial appearance, voice, body shape... When Official Xin played the role of Shopkeeper Yuan it was precisely like this.
Different from a human skin Mask.
That night when Shopkeeper Yuan was killed, the other party suffered the explosions of Firearms, and was also buried alive by the collapsing house, yet the facial features were never once affected. The disguise of this Official Path Gateway could withstand any interrogation and inspection.
Chen Ji at this time was absolutely certain: Lin Chaoqing definitely had already disguised his face. Currently with a brand-new identity, he was living peacefully and safely in Capital City...
No no no, not right.
Chen Ji felt as if he himself had overlooked/omitted something. There definitely still were matters he himself hadn't thought of.
What was it?
He looked straight at Lin Chaoqing's hollow gaze, again lowering his head to look towards the fire basin: "You are not a highly sentimental or indecisive person. The Lin Chaojing you yourself raised up, you sold when you said you would sell... A person like you, how would you take the risk to come mourn your colleagues at this kind of time? If you decided to hide your body in Capital City, then you could come mourn whenever you wished; you wouldn't need to choose today... You are about to leave, aren't you? It will be difficult to return here in the future, so that is why you would burn paper to mourn at this kind of time?"
Lin Chaoqing was about to leave Capital City!
Chen Ji abruptly stood up. Currently the Nine Gates of Capital City only permitted entry and did not permit exit. What kind of person would be able to grandly swagger out of Capital City? Only the Secret Spy Division and Trouble-Resolving Guard!
He stepped over the fire basin, unexpectedly shattering the phantom shadow of Lin Chaoqing within his imagination, and charged out the door.
The outer city in the early morning lacked morning vitality. The breakfast shops were agonizingly slow to take down their door boards. Even the peddlers carrying Carrying Poles did not dare to loudly cry out selling, deeply afraid of provoking whichever Road's Living Yama into displeasure.
Chen Ji's solitary wildly running figure attracted the attention of secret spies by the street side. The secret spies did not recognize him. Instantly drawing their sabers, they shouted in low voices: "What person? Halt!"
But Chen Ji didn't care that much, continuing to run wildly. Enticing a crowd of secret spies to chase behind him, he ran into Chongnan Ward, searching for the figures of Jin Zhu and Tian Ma.
When he found Jin Zhu and Tian Ma, the two of them were seated at a window-side position in a noodle restaurant eating mutton soup noodles. Beside the two people were already stacked up six or seven empty bowls.
Chen Ji stopped outside the door panting heavily. The crowd of secret spies behind him surrounded him, also panting until the upper breath couldn't connect to the lower breath.
Jin Zhu was currently eating noodles. Glimpsing him from the corner of his eye, he instantly stood his body up, inquiring across the window: "What's wrong here?"
The secret spies behind Chen Ji spoke panting thick breaths: "Milord, this person just now was running wildly all along the route. His tracks and behavior are extremely suspicious. We suspect him..."
Jin Zhu waved a hand impatiently: "Scram to the side. Who asked you?"
Chen Ji arrived by the window side. Supporting himself on the window lattice, he asked in a concentrated voice: "Within half a shichen, whether it's the Secret Spy Division or the Trouble-Resolving Guard, which branch of troops and horses left Capital City?"
Jin Zhu was startled: "This I truly don't know, I was eating noodles."
A secret spy behind Chen Ji said: "This humble official knows. Within half a shichen, only a single branch of Trouble-Resolving Guard troops and horses left Capital City. At that time they flashed their Waist Plaques at the southern city's Gate of Eternal Stability, saying they were heading to the Jinling and Yangzhou line to track down Lin Chaoqing. Totaling six people."
Chen Ji's expression turned solemn: "How long have they been gone for?"
The secret spy recalled: "Almost the time of two incense sticks."
Chen Ji said hurriedly: "Chase!"
Jin Zhu didn't ask a single extra word, saying in a hurried voice: "Quick, lead the horses over!"
At this time, Tian Ma hugged his bowl drinking the noodle soup also completely clean and dry. He put down the bowl using sign language to ask Jin Zhu: What's wrong?
Jin Zhu responded with sign language: Found Lin Chaoqing.
Tian Ma was bewildered: Found him just like this?
Jin Zhu responded: This brat hasn't been wrong yet.
Tian Ma nodded his head. Going out the door he flipped onto a horse, leading dozens of secret spies galloping wildly toward the Gate of Eternal Stability.
Chen Ji whipped his horse following behind, crouching his body low. He explained to Jin Zhu: "I guess Lin Chaoqing has already disguised his face as a certain Trouble-Resolving Guard, following the Trouble-Resolving Guard together out of the city."
Jin Zhu didn't press for details, merely comforting: "Relax your heart. It ought to still be in time!"
The traveling group of horses dashed to the Gate of Eternal Stability. Before the gates stood three rows of Wooden Barriers.
Before waiting for the city-guarding foot soldiers of the Five Wards Military and Police Department to inspect Waist Plaques and move the Wooden Barriers aside, Tian Ma actually directly drew his bow and nocked arrows. One by one meteor Arrow Rain blasted the Wooden Barriers into skies full of wood splinters.
The city-guarding foot soldiers dodged and evaded in a fluster, allowing them to whip their horses and fly past amidst the wood splinters.
After exiting the city, along the official road chasing south for ten miles, Chen Ji's complexion suddenly changed. He only saw five Trouble-Resolving Guard corpses collapsed inside a long pavilion ahead. Blood was currently flowing down the stone steps from the long pavilion.
So-called five miles a short pavilion, ten miles a long pavilion. If someone left the capital heading south, relatives and friends would send them off for ten miles, drinking wine and uttering partings at this long pavilion.
Initially when Wu Zhai led the crowds of monks of Yuanjue Temple crossing south to Luo City, the literati and refined guests of Capital City had sent him off to this place. They also wrote down poetry such as 'Blue Ox Listens to the Scriptures Guide', 'Sending the Superior Man Wu Zhai on his Southern Campaign against Luhun', and 'Song of Breaking Obscurity' at the long pavilion.
Yet at this time, the long pavilion was dyed in blood.
Jin Zhu looked toward Chen Ji: "You guessed right. When exiting the capital there were six people. Now there are only five corpses. It's Lin Chaoqing who killed them."
Chen Ji asked hurriedly: "Him choosing to make a move here definitely holds a reason. He doesn't want to walk further south anymore... Are there paths to flee nearby?"
Jin Zhu pondered for a moment, saying with absolute certainty: "Only the waterway. Yongding River's southern ferry crossing is precisely not far away. He wants to borrow the waterway to leave! Chase!"
Jin Zhu turned his horse's head leading the way in front. Running for merely two miles they simply saw patches of Reed Marshes.
At the time it was summer days. The glossy green Reed Marshes, over a human's height tall, swayed and tottered.
The crowd whipped their horses along the official road piercing through the Reed Marshes. Arriving at the ferry crossing, they precisely saw a small black-awning boat at the center of the river heading downstream with the current. On the boat Lin Chaoqing stood with his hands behind his back. Behind him there also was a lean and thin stout fellow punting a long bamboo pole.
The little boat was outstandingly lonely and desolate in the center of the river.
Lin Chaoqing wore a Bamboo Hat on his head and draped a coir raincoat over his body, like a traveler departing home heading south.
When Jin Zhu and the others arrived at the ferry crossing, he seemed also to not have thought someone would chase over this quickly.
Lin Chaoqing smiled and said: "So it turns out the Secret Spy Division, aside from Bai Long, still has intelligent people."
Jin Zhu shouted across the river: "If you leave, Laozi will definitely greet Lin Chaojing properly in the Imperial Prison, Lingchi-ing (death by a thousand cuts) him!"
Lin Chaoqing's expression remained unchanged, merely saying in a clear ringing voice: "The two dynasties have bitterly suffered matters of war for already a long time. Taxes are piled high; the People Have No Means of Livelihood. When a certain Lin comes again, I will inevitably lead armored cavalry to trample through your Southern Dynasty's Capital City, returning the world to a state of Peace and Prosperity!"
Jin Zhu angrily cursed: "What motherfucking big-headed garlic are you pretending to be! What root of scallion do you count as? (Who do you think you are?)"
Lin Chaoqing smiled faintly. Cupping his hands across empty space to bid farewell, he said in a high-pitched voice from afar: "Everyone, no need to trouble yourselves to send me off. We Will Meet Again."
Chen Ji looked to the left and right. The ten-plus boatmen at the ferry crossing had already been completely killed to death by Lin Chaoqing. The boats had also been completely destroyed.
In the next moment, Tian Ma spread his both arms into the void, pulling out a set of dazzling longbow out of thin air.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
One by one meteor Arrow Rain drew famous parabolas falling toward the little boat. Separated by over two hundred paces they flew straight for Lin Chaoqing's facial door (face). Lin Chaoqing drew his saber from beneath his coir raincoat, hacking the one by one meteor Arrow Rain into pieces turning them into daylight stars.
Lin Chaoqing retracted his saber returning it to its sheath, speaking no more words.
Jin Zhu said in a low voice: "The distance is too far... this old brat had hidden his ungainliness (concealed his true abilities) during ordinary days. He is clearly a Grand Guild Agent at the peak of the Path-Seeking Realm."
Chen Ji stood his horse still at the ferry crossing, watching that little boat gradually hide and submerge within the dense Reed Marshes disappearing from sight.
Lin Chaoqing simply left just like this.
The Official Ding who laid hidden in the Ning Dynasty for so many years... Having killed so many people, having played around with so many people, actually retreated completely intact with his whole body just like this. No wonder the 'Earth' Branch of the Military Intelligence Division would be presided over by him.
Tian Ma stowed his bow, performing sign language to Jin Zhu. Jin Zhu turned his head and instructed the secret spies: "Return to the capital to pass letters via flying pigeon. Have the Trouble-Resolving Guard along the route intercept and kill him!"
A secret spy hurriedly departed.
Chen Ji suddenly turned his horse around. After leaving the ferry crossing he flew wildly toward the south all along the route. The horse hooves raised yellow sand flying dust a zhang high behind him.
Again a further ten miles towards the south, his line of sight finally lacked the concealment of the Reed Marshes.
Chen Ji looked fixedly at the surface of the Yongding River. He was absolutely certain that little boat was impossible to be faster than a warhorse. Even breaking the bamboo pole from punting it wouldn't do. But he waited from the Chen hour (7-9 AM) persistently until the Wu hour (11 AM - 1 PM). Only then did he see that little boat solitarily, unhurriedly drifting out of the Reed Marshes.
When the little boat reappeared, Lin Chaoqing and the boatman on the boat... had both disappeared without leaving a trace.
Where did they go?
Did not know.
Perhaps within that patch of Reed Marshes there still were other people waiting to receive and match up with them. Perhaps within that patch of Reed Marshes there still were other paths out and branch streams. Chen Ji had no way to be certain.
Lin Chaoqing had made sufficient and ample schemes and plans in order to leave the Ning Dynasty. Perhaps the other party had waited for this day... waiting for a full twenty-one years.
Chen Ji watched quietly.
He had a premonition, this time Lin Chaoqing truly couldn't be caught anymore.
(End of this chapter)