Qiu Yizhi was moved by what he heard, and he also said seriously: "It was a dangerous time. I was hit a few times and now I still feel pain in a few places, but it doesn't affect my movement. It should be just a superficial injury. It's a pity that my Western Region sword was taken away by someone, and now I don't know where it was taken."
Zhao Chengxiao was shocked, thinking: Since I followed Qiu Yizi, I have walked through thousands of troops, crossed the mighty passes, and entered the prison. When have I ever suffered such a big loss? He hurriedly asked: "Who is so bold that he dares to go against you? Tell me his name, and I will capture him and vent your anger!"
Seeing that Zhao Chengxiao had led his trusted men to meet him, and that it was not the right time to talk on the way, Qiu Yizhi asked the soldiers escorting him to go back and report to Liu Qing, saying that they did not need to accompany him any longer. Then he turned to Zhao Chengxiao and said, "Let's go, and talk while we walk."
Zhao Chengxiao agreed, ordered his militiamen to guard the area firmly, and then headed towards Lin Shuhan's manor.
Seeing Zhao Chengxiao's strict security, Qiu Yizhi felt more relieved and breathed a sigh of relief, saying, "I heard that after the emperor ascended the throne, the flatterers in the court praised him all day long, saying that the Han Dynasty was revived and the country was peaceful and prosperous. I didn't expect that in the important city of Nanjing, there would be a kidnapping of a court official in the street..."
Zhao Chengxiao asked, "My Lord, you haven't told me yet. Where did these bandits come from? How dare they be so bold?"
Qiu Yizi shook his head and said, "You know this guy, and you've fought him before! Do you remember the bronze-eyed arhat in Anhe Town?"
Zhao Chengxiao was startled and slowed down his pace involuntarily. The surrounding militiamen also slowed down their pace. Zhao Chengxiao saw this and quickly sped up his pace again, saying, "I remember, of course I remember. Although this man is very skilled in martial arts, he was beaten away by Yuchi Lianghong at that time. I remember that he was seriously injured. How did he appear in Jinling City again?"
Qiu Yizi shook her head: "I don't understand this either. It seems that I need to discuss it with Mr. Lin before I can guess the reason."
As the two talked, they arrived at the gate of Lin Shuhan's manor. Qiu Yizi saw that there was a team of ten or so militiamen guarding the gate. There were also sentries set up behind the trees, walls, and rockery. He couldn't help but admire, "Brother Zhao is really thoughtful. But the opponent is not an army of thousands. If we disperse our troops like this, it will be easy for the enemy to find loopholes."
Zhao Chengxiao nodded: "I understand. Your Excellency, please go to the manor first. I will make other arrangements for the defense."
Qiu Yizi was still in shock, so she didn't say anything more and walked into the garden.
There was also a tense atmosphere inside the manor. All the soldiers and militiamen stationed there, whether injured or not, had gotten up and were in action, holding weapons and torches, lighting up the entire manor as if it were daytime.
Lin Shuhan, Wen Lingjiao and He'er were also dressed neatly and waiting inside the door.
Seeing their surprised and suspicious expressions, Qiu Yizi smiled and said first, "This Liu Qing is such a bastard. I was just scared by a few gangsters. I don't know how the soldiers he brought came to pass the order. They disturbed everyone's sleep. I will go over and scold him when I have time tomorrow."
He saw the concern in Wen Lingjiao's eyes again, and said in a tone that seemed to be addressed to Wen Lingjiao alone, but also to everyone, "Okay, it's okay, go back and rest, and we'll talk tomorrow if there's anything else."
Lin Shuhan on the side laughed and said, "My Lord, you don't even look at the time. It's already past midnight, and tomorrow is already today."
Qiu Yizhi smiled to himself when he heard this: "There is a lot of Zen in Mr. Lin's words, which makes people think about it endlessly. However, I am very sleepy now, and my brain is a mess, so I can't think about it. Tomorrow... oh... after dawn, I will go to Mr. Lin to drink tea and discuss Zen."
Lin Shuhan was a smart man and knew the meaning of the four words "参照禅记", so he yawned cooperatively and said, "My lord, you disturbed my sweet dream in the middle of the night. Please treat me to a good meal at Yuanwai Tower some other day to make amends!" As he said that, he smiled slyly and walked back to his bedroom.
Qiu Yizhi was frightened when he heard the words "Yuanwailou". He tried to calm himself down and said to Zhao Chengxiao, "The people in this garden are all our own people, and we have enough troops. If outsiders come in, they will just walk into a trap. You only need to leave the necessary troops to guard it, and the rest of the troops can go back and rest. These are just a few petty thieves, don't mobilize a large army."
After that, Qiu Yizi turned around and bowed to Wen Lingjiao, saying, "I am really guilty of disturbing you twice today. My brother Zhao is in charge of defense here, it's very safe, please go back and rest in peace."
Wen Lingjiao bowed to Qiu Yizi, frowned and smiled, then retreated.
Seeing that everything was settled, Qiu Yizi gave Zhao Chengxiao a few more instructions and then returned to her bedroom to rest.
Qiu Yizi pretended to be very calm in front of everyone, but she was really scared in her heart. She returned to her bedroom and took off her clothes. She saw that there were palm-sized bruises on the places where she was injured by the bronze-eyed arhat. It hurt so much when she touched it. Fortunately, the bronze-eyed arhat was cautious after all. If he had attacked her ruthlessly, she would have died now.
Therefore, Qiu Yizi lay in bed, but her heart could not calm down for a long time. She listened to the intermittent sound of night watchmen's clappers coming from outside the window, and vaguely distinguished that it was around the hour of Yin. She gradually fell asleep while thinking about all sorts of things.
But he had slept for less than two hours when a timid voice came from outside the door: "Sir, sir, someone is looking for you, someone is looking for you."
Qiu Yizhi was woken up by someone while she was drowsy. She was very unhappy. She recognized the voice of Wang Laowu and complained, "Laowu, you know what time I went to bed yesterday. What happened? Why did you bother me?"
Wang Laowu outside the door said, "It was the man named Liu Qing who came to see the master. I know that the master just came back at midnight yesterday and was injured. But Liu Qing came and said that he had something important to ask the master. I said that no matter how important the matter is, we can't disturb the master's rest and sleep, but Zhao Tou said that the matter is urgent and can't be delayed..."
Wang Laowu was chattering away, and Qiu Yizi had already climbed out of bed and pushed the door open, but Wang Laowu was still chattering endlessly: "But among the few personal soldiers, no one was willing to come over to pass on the order and disturb your rest... We argued for a long time before we came up with the idea of drawing lots. Logically speaking, I am not your personal soldier, nor am I a bandit from the mountains. What does their drawing lots have to do with me? But this group of people was unreasonable and asked me to join in the capture. Unexpectedly, I caught them, so I came to do this unlucky job. Your Excellency can't blame me."
After hearing what Wang Laowu said, Qiu Yizhi had guessed that the "Iron Head Dragon" must have cheated to bully Wang Laowu during the lottery. He felt amused but didn't want to point it out, so he said, "This is official business, you have nothing to apologize for. Where is Liu Qing?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Qing came out from behind an ancient tree and saluted towards Qiu Yizi: "Sir, I'm here." His face looked serious and nervous.
Qiu Yizi nodded and asked, "Why? You came to me in such a hurry, have you found the traces of Bronze Eyed Arhat, Shi Wei and the others?"
Liu Qing looked around and said, "It might not be quiet here. Why don't we go to the adults' room and talk about it in detail?"
Qiu Yizi waved his hand nonchalantly: "What are you afraid of? The people in this garden are either my personal soldiers or newly recruited militiamen. Even Lin Shuhan's housekeeper and gardener were sent home two days ago. Are you still afraid that it's not confidential? If you have anything to say, we can talk about it while we walk."
Then he instructed Wang Laowu, "Laowu, go and see if Mr. Lin has woken up. If he has, invite him to the pavilion under the half-pine tree to have a chat. I have something to discuss with him."
Wang Laowu bowed and was about to run to pass on the message.
Qiu Yizi stopped him again: "Why are you in such a hurry? Ask the cook to make a few more bowls of noodles. I'm still hungry!"
Wang Laowu bowed again, making sure that Qiu Yizi had no other instructions, and then he retreated with peace of mind.
Qiu Yizhi watched Wang Laowu run away in the blink of an eye, and turned to Liu Qing and said, "It's just the two of us now. You can say whatever you want, right?"
Liu Qing looked around and whispered, "I have already given orders according to His Highness Yi's instructions overnight, but the army searched all night and still couldn't find any trace of Shi Wei and the other thieves. I am very anxious!"
"What!" Qiu Yizi screamed, "Did you conduct a large-scale search last night?"
Liu Qing replied: "Yes! I thought I would take advantage of the opportunity yesterday when those thieves haven't gone far yet and catch them immediately. Besides, if we act in the middle of the night, we will make less noise and can conceal our tracks..."
"Fool! Idiot! Confused! What do you know?" Qiu Yizi interrupted Liu Qing rudely. "When the incident happened, there were at least 70 or 80 guests drinking in the Garden Outer Building, and most of the people who could eat and drink there were either rich or noble. How could you hide it? And then you mobilized such a large force to search for you, which attracted more attention. I see that you have political enemies in Jinling City. I'm afraid that several impeachment documents have been sent to the capital!"
Qiu Yizi looked at the stunned Liu Qing, and continued as if to teach a student who was not making progress: "These people are all famous figures in the martial arts world. They have been in the martial arts world for so many years and have had many dealings with the government. How could they not know how to escape and hide? Why do I want you to tighten the fence first and then investigate calmly? I want to make these martial arts people have a contemptuous heart, and once they show up, they must be caught and not let go. This is the best strategy. How are you now? After alerting the snakes in this way, these people have become frightened birds. How can they be easily exposed?"
After hearing this, Liu Qing broke out in sweat and stopped walking involuntarily. He asked Qiu Yizhi, "Is there nothing we can do now, Your Highness Yi?"
Qiu Yizi sighed and said, "If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for being too impatient and ruining things. There's nothing I can do now."
Liu Qing's eyes went dark after hearing Qiu Yizhi's words, and even his tongue kept moving. He stammered like a bronze-eyed arhat with a brain injury, "This... this... what should I do?"
"Alas!" Qiu Yizhi sighed, "It seems that I have no choice but to come forward and make a few excuses for you in front of Prime Minister Zhongli. As for whether it will work or not, I don't know. In short, you will definitely not be able to serve as the governor of Jiangnan Road, but you may still be able to save your life..."
Liu Qing had mixed feelings after hearing this - not everyone can get such a lucrative post as the chief military officer of Jiangnan, but he was reluctant to be dismissed from his post after working for less than three months; however, compared to his life and property, it was easier to give up his official position... In short, no matter what, the golden road in front of him has undoubtedly come to an end, and there is only a small path that is getting darker and darker behind. (To be continued)