CHAPTER 64: 58. KILL SI CAO_3

Chen Ji said earnestly, "Master, this is not the mercy of a woman."

Having spoken, he struggled to get up, intending to leave, but soon calmed down and sat back on the bed, "No, I must wait until everyone is asleep."

Old Yao chuckled as he stepped out, "At least you’re not stupid... I advise you to stay away from that Wu Hongbiao as much as possible. I’ve seen his lifeline on his palm—short and stout, looks quite cute, but entangling with him will not end well."

Chen Ji: "..."

"Master, did you go stripping other people’s clothes and even check their palmistry?"

...

...

It was deep into the night, and snores reverberated throughout the apprentice dormitory. Chen Ji quietly got up amid the snoring and laboriously draped on some clothes.

Despite his movements, he aggravated his wound, causing his forehead to break out in cold sweat, but he didn’t dare make a sound.

Chen Ji carefully limped out the door. In the courtyard, Crow was perched on an apricot tree branch, eyes closed like it was merged with the tree.

Seeing Chen Ji emerge, it opened its eyes, quietly watching.

Under the moonlight, silver hues cast a colorful, divine-like cloak over it.

Chen Ji said earnestly, "Uncle Crow, thank you."

The old man had mentioned that Crow had been with the Cultivation Path for fifty-three years, so it was no issue for him to call it Uncle Crow. However, it was the first time Crow heard someone address him that way, so it curiously sized up Chen Ji.

Chen Ji chuckled softly, "Master said if not for you, I would have died yesterday. I need to go out now; if you notice anything unusual, please let me know. I’ll be in the fabric store next door."

Crow paused silently then flapped its wings, signaling him to go ahead.

Chen Ji took some clothes from the wardrobe, went to the kitchen for four mixed-grain cakes, filled a bamboo tube with water, and tucked some Cnidium Monnieri into his breast pocket before leaving the Medical Hall.

His injuries were severe. He could only lean against the wall, groping in the shadows between buildings bit by bit.

Managing only a hundred meters, the sweat from Chen Ji’s pain made it seem as if he had just run five kilometers. The wound on his thigh burst open, and blood soaked his trousers again.

He gritted his teeth as he climbed over the wall into the backyard of the fabric store, only to see Wu Yun hiding in the shadows, guarding the main house’s door.

Upon seeing him in such a state, Wu Yun immediately meowed, "What happened to you? Who hurt you?"

Chen Ji leaned against the wall, catching his breath, and gave a wry smile, "Let’s not talk about that for now. Is Wu Hongbiao still inside?"

Wu Yun replied, "He’s still inside. He’s been mostly unconscious, and even when awake, he didn’t try to escape, seemingly waiting for you."

Chen Ji remained silent. There was a moment where he hoped Wu Hongbiao had been acting all along so that he could kill him without any emotional burden and eliminate a potential threat for good.

"Did he eat anything today?" Chen Ji asked curiously.

Wu Yun said, "While he was unconscious, I caught a few rats and threw them next to him. He’s not picky, woke up, peeled them with a knife, and ate the meat from their legs and backs raw."

Chen Ji glanced into the house. The floor was smeared with blood, and three skinned rat corpses lay discarded to one side.

"How does he drink water?"

Wu Yun explained, "When he’s thirsty, he scoops up the accumulated water from the ground in the yard."

Chen Ji knew Wu Hongbiao was desperate to survive. His will to live surpassed that of an ordinary person, which is probably why he had survived manhunts up to this day.

"Wu Yun, has he seen you?"

"Never."

"Good."

Chen Ji walked toward the house, and Wu Hongbiao, who had been sleeping, abruptly opened his eyes. Seeing it was Chen Ji, he finally relaxed and said with a bitter smile, "I thought you had met with disaster... but you don’t seem to be any better off than me."

Chen Ji threw food, medicines, and clothes to Wu Hongbiao, then cut to the chase, "Which Si Cao wants to kill you?"

"Which one?" Wu Hongbiao, shivering with cold, quickly donned the clothes and responded with confusion, "There’s only one Si Cao."

Chen Ji asked, "Is it the one wearing a blue-faced, sharp-toothed mask, skilled with a knife, wearing patched clothes at the elbows?"

"Exactly, that’s him."

Chen Ji had already been eighty percent sure in his heart. Behind the name of Si Cao, there was definitely more than one person playing this role.

The Manager Yuan from Bailu Pavilion was one, and the blue-faced sharp-toothed one was another. It seemed the one who wanted to kill him and Wu Hongbiao was the knife-wielder...

"How long have you been working with this Si Cao?" Chen Ji inquired.

Wu Hongbiao, struggling to sit up, leaned against the wall and nibbled on a mixed-grain cake, "About four years with him and never saw his true face. I just know that in Jing Dynasty, he was called Li Xilong. But when I came to Ning Dynasty, I heard from your uncle that this man was his old subordinate who would take care of us."

"Why would he still want to kill you then?"

Wu Hongbiao choked on the mixed-grain cake; he took the bamboo tube Chen Ji offered and drank a large gulp of water before making his guess, "I suspect he might have just received a message from the Jing Dynasty. Earlier, your uncle had only been removed from his post as Left Prime Minister by the court and was still holding the Military Strategist Envoy position. Now even that has been taken away, with his political rival Lu Guanwu ascending. Thus, Li Xilong, to preserve his own position as Si Cao, has completely turned to Lu Guanwu and plans to use us as his credentials."

Chen Ji thought to himself that keeping Wu Hongbiao alive did not disappoint him. The other’s position within the Military Intelligence Department was not low, and he knew many secrets.

Li Xilong...

Chen Ji leaned against the doorframe of the main building, looking somewhat exhausted.

He had already sensed the crisis approaching. Now that they couldn’t find Wu Hongbiao, they would certainly try to make a move against him soon.

Chen Ji looked at Wu Hongbiao sitting on the ground, "How are you holding up?"

Wu Hongbiao patted his chest, "I have the Cultivation Path within me, I won’t die."

"I didn’t feel you were all that powerful though..."

"You little brat deserve a lesson," Wu Hongbiao cursed, "I was severely injured yesterday, and I was blocked by that son of a dog, Li Xilong. Despite enough credit, he never granted me the next level of the Cultivation Path."

Chen Ji curiously asked, "What are your plans next?"

Wu Hongbiao said, "I plan to return to the Jing Dynasty. I must go back soon to ask your uncle to save my sister and also to help him rise again... I must go back quickly..."

The room fell silent, the moonlight casting Chen Ji’s elongated shadow across the room.

After a long silence, Chen Ji looked directly at Wu Hongbiao, "I’m sorry, you can’t leave yet."

"Stay for what?"

"To kill Si Cao."