Chapter 171
“I’m his uncle,” Liu Xiaowei replied without much ado.
Chu Lishu, who was in a tense posture, was momentarily stunned upon hearing this answer. Both Lu Yi and Lu Shi exchanged glances.
“Liu Xiaowei,” Chu Lishu frowned as he looked at him.
Liu Xiaowei returned the gaze with equal coldness.
Lin Qingyang quickly stepped forward, awkwardly introducing everyone. Upon hearing Chu Lishu’s identity, Liu Xiaowei became puzzled. The relationship between his nephew and the cousin from the Lin’s family seemed surprisingly close. What was with the hugging and embracing between these two grown men?
The two men exchanged glances, scrutinizing each other. Even though Chu Lishu appeared to lack any internal strength, he gave Liu Xiaowei an inexplicable sense of danger.
Liu Xiaowei instinctively didn’t quite like this person.
“Fortunately, Uncle came up the mountain; otherwise, it would have been really troublesome,” Lin Qingyang sighed.
Chu Lishu didn’t bother with Liu Xiaowei. Hearing Lin Qingyang’s sigh, he stared over but quickly changed his reproachful gaze. He scanned Lin Qingyang from head to toe, noticing a few wounds that, while not severe, gave him a disheveled appearance. This made Chu Lishu both anxious and distressed.
Lin Qingyang quickly asked, “By the way, when I left, wasn’t the way blocked? How did you get in? What about the others? Will there be another explosion here?”
Chu Lishu directly reached out, holding Lin Qingyang’s hand as they walked forward. “Explain to me why you took matters into your own hands again while we walk,” he said.
Lin Qingyang awkwardly smiled, feeling like Chu Lishu was not holding his hand but rather placing handcuffs on a prisoner.
The group started walking back, and along the way, Lin Qingyang slowly recounted the situation. He emphasized that he didn’t take risks for the sake of showing off but out of necessity. Unable to meet up with Chu Lishu’s group, he had to intervene to prevent the crisis of the thunderous explosion. If he couldn’t make it in time, they might all have ended up buried here. So, Lin Qingyang’s actions weren’t necessarily wrong, just not to Chu Lishu’s liking.
“So, you’re saying that after Xu Wenze discovered the infiltrator, he found a way to intervene once he could move?” Chu Lishu asked.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Why did the infiltrator capture him? Leaving aside the fact that acting alone is more convenient to avoid obstacles, wouldn’t capturing a member of the royal family be a better way to ensure survival?” Chu Lishu suddenly asked.
Lin Qingyang was a little stunned, didn’t think too much, and said, “At that time, weren’t the other hostages all in the pit? Only Xu Wenze was next to them, so he might have been captured incidentally. But why capture… Could it be to use him as a life-saving charm after escaping through the secret passage and leaving the Great Zhou?”
Chu Lishu just felt some doubts in his heart, sensing that something was amiss, but seeing Xu Wenze almost losing half his life, this sense of unease was diluted. Maybe everything was just a coincidence.
However, what Chu Lishu disliked the most was still Liu Xiaowei. Clearly, he had been following Lin Qingyang all along, yet he let him encounter such a dangerous situation. It was truly a senior without brains.
At this point, they had reached the location where the secret passage was dug through. Lu Yi and Lu Shi immediately concealed themselves. They had been able to move freely before, but now they might encounter people from the royal family, so they had to hide their movements to avoid being discovered.
Meanwhile, Yue Chen and Huo Luo were busy here, dealing with the remaining Thunderous Explosions to prevent a second explosion.
It turned out that when Lin Qingyang shouted, they were already close to this passage, but they were blocked outside by the subordinates of the patriarch.
Lu Yi and Lu Shi cleared a bloody path. Chu Lishu watched with wide eyes as Lin Qingyang rushed into the dark passage, without a second thought, and followed suit. Lu Yi and Lu Shi naturally followed closely behind.
But the next moment, with a deafening roar, rocks tumbled down, blocking the way.
Chu Lishu stood just in front of the pile of rubble. He was momentarily stunned. Before everyone could grasp what was happening, Chu Lishu began to dig directly, using his hands to continuously clear away the stones, as if someone buried deep underground was constantly excavating the path ahead in order to survive.
Lu Yi and Lu Shi quickly moved forward to help.
Huo Luo had no choice but to stay behind to deal with the remaining enemies. Yue Chen seized the opportunity to jump down into the hostage pit. The hostages, already frightened, immediately rushed towards Yue Chen.
Yue Chen quickly removed the gag from one person, directly asking, “Where is the Thunderous Explosion?”
With only one explosion, it indicated that it wasn’t the detonation of the Thunderous Explosion. So, they were safe here. Lin Qingyang, who had left early, must be fine!
“We don’t know! We only heard the shouts of Xu Wenze and Lin Qingyang.”
Yue Chen directly untied his restraints and urged him to free the others, saying, “Hurry, get out of here. We don’t know when it might be dangerous again.”
Yuan Ye, the first one to be untied, quickly grabbed Yue Chen and said, “What about outside? Is it still dangerous? With your arrival, does it mean it’s safe now?”
“It should still be ongoing, but it’s safer than here.”
“You and Huo Luo, protect me out of here!” Yuan Ye urged anxiously.
At this moment, the Third Prince, who had just been freed, also shouted, “Find a safe place for us first and wait for the rescue.”
Yue Chen coldly glanced at the two, “If Huo Luo and I don’t go help find the Thunderous Explosion, then everyone can just wait to die here. Both of you should understand the importance of the bigger picture.”
His words instantly made the two princes flush with embarrassment. Coupled with their current disheveled appearance, they truly looked like complete clowns.
Yue Chen ignored them and climbed up. By now, Huo Luo had cleared all the enemies. Catching sight of Yue Chen coming up, he extended a hand to help him up. The two of them rushed to the pile of rubble and joined forces.
With three skilled martial artists and two individuals familiar with finding the optimal digging points, they quickly dug through the passage.
Fortunately, there was no smell of blood here, indicating that no one was buried in this area. The group couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
As they crossed the pile of rubble, the hostages outside also climbed out of the pit. Naturally, they dared not venture inside, fearing danger. They shouted a few times and then gradually ran out one after another.
At this moment, Chu Lishu was struggling to suppress his emotions, which were threatening to spiral out of control. In this unknown and potentially dangerous place, losing control over Lin Qingyang for the second time made it almost impossible for him to maintain his composure.
However, even in this state, Chu Lishu was still Chu Lishu. A glance at the destroyed passage immediately revealed something amiss.
The Thunderous Explosives were concentrated in this area, and the main fuse would pass through here.
Chu Lishu immediately made a decision. To prevent the explosion from spreading to the maximum extent, he needed to cut off the fuses leading to various empty spaces here.
Without an explosion, the level of danger for Lin Qingyang would be significantly reduced.
This was the most rational decision to make at the moment, but Chu Lishu still wanted to find Lin Qingyang immediately.
Yue Chen naturally understood Chu Lishu’s mindset and immediately said, “I know what to do. You go after him; Huo Luo and I will handle things here.”
Huo Luo nodded immediately. He also sensed the urgency of the situation and felt the need to share the burden for His Highness.
So, they split up, and precisely because they cut off the fuses behind, when the spy detonated the explosives, it only caused a small explosion. Initially, Lin Qingyang thought it was just a minor impact, but it turned out that Chu Lishu had early on detected the danger, and Yue Chen, at the back, eliminated the threat, preventing a major disaster.
Midway, Chu Lishu suddenly sensed the power of the Thunderous Explosion and realized that Lin Qingyang might be in danger. This caused Chu Lishu to lose control, and disregarding the efforts of Lu Yi and Lu Shi to stop him, he rushed into the danger zone. Chu Lishu didn’t elaborate on what happened next.
Upon hearing this, Lin Qingyang truly breathed a sigh of relief. When he looked at Chu Lishu’s hands, he noticed that they were covered in small wounds, likely from moving the rocks barehanded. But even now, Chu Lishu was still tightly gripping his hand with those injured hands.
Lin Qingyang subtly struggled, but Chu Lishu paid no attention and only tightened his grip.
Yue Chen and Huo Luo were relieved to see them unharmed. Their job here was done, and no one would exploit the Thunderous Explosion stored here.
Seeing Xu Wenze heavily injured, they quickly approached to check. Originally, Huo Luo had planned to carry Xu Wenze, considering that he was the closest to them.
But there might be other tasks outside that required their attention. So, the task of carrying Xu Wenze was handed over to Liu Xiaowei. He didn’t mind at all; after all, he just needed to keep an eye on Lin Qingyang.
Exiting the cave, they immediately heard the sounds of battle.
Huo Luo, carrying the body of the patriarch, took the lead without hesitation.
When they arrived at the interior of the stronghold, the battle had already ceased. Huo Luo had also returned to their group, but his expression was grim.
“What happened?” Yue Chen asked.
Huo Luo directly stated, “Zhao Cheng killed everyone to cover his tracks.”
Without traps and internal conflicts, the confrontation with the court forces was already overwhelmingly disadvantageous for Wu Xin Fort. Those who resisted in Wu Xin Fort were still hoping that the patriarch would bring reinforcements. However, upon seeing the body of the patriarch, they knew everything was lost.
However, Huo Luo discovered that those who survived no longer wore masks. In other words, the deserters from the past had all perished. Combining this with what he witnessed – Zhao Cheng continuously killing several masked individuals while avoiding others right next to him – he understood that Zhao Cheng already knew the identity of the masked people. Thus, he chose to eliminate them.
They had to continue concealing the truth.
Huo Luo was naturally infuriated, but Yue Chen remained calm because he knew that, for Yuan Ran, the truth had long ceased to matter. His goal was never to clear his name. So, whether there were eyewitnesses or not, it didn’t matter.
Hearing this, Lin Qingyang thought of the emperor’s orders mentioned earlier and speculated that Zhao Cheng probably had received authorization by now.
The other captured individuals gave up resistance and sat on the ground.
Lin Qingyang and the others received immediate care. Passing through the fort’s square, Lin Qingyang saw the Eldest Prince sitting on a tall horse with a fierce expression, clearly having displayed a ruthless demeanor in the battle. Although intimidating, compared to them, Yuan Ye and the Third Prince, who had been rescued, seemed quite embarrassed in front of the large army.
Especially when the Eldest Prince saw them, he remained on horseback and taunted from a high vantage point, “You guys really have some skill.”
This instantly triggered uncontrolled rage in Yuan Ye and the Third Prince.
At this moment, a person walked out from behind the Eldest Prince, it was Chief Steward Ning. Chief Steward Ning didn’t show favoritism towards anyone; he just stepped forward to say a few words, preventing the three princes from making a scene and embarrassing themselves.
Unable to resist, Lin Qingyang whispered, “The Eldest Prince climbed up so quickly and smoothly. Did Chief Steward Ning lend a hand? Does he also understand trap formations?”
Chu Lishu was also observing Chief Steward Ning. Upon hearing this, he said, “He doesn’t understand, and achieving such a fast speed, even I couldn’t do it, unless it’s someone who specializes in this.”
As Chu Lishu thought about this, he furrowed his brow slightly. Unless there was a master he wasn’t aware of. But considering someone who specializes in this, there was indeed one person, and that person was in the Blood Abyss Pavilion.
Could it be… Chu Lishu was pondering when suddenly Lin Qingyang nervously tugged at Chu Lishu’s sleeve and said, “The Dai siblings.”
Chu Lishu followed Lin Qingyang’s gaze and saw that the Dai siblings had been captured. It seemed they hadn’t found a good opportunity to escape.
“Don’t worry, they’ll be fine,” Chu Lishu seemed to have a plan in mind and was not in a hurry.
Soon, a portion of the army stayed behind to thoroughly investigate Wu Xin Fort. Chief Steward Ning stayed, probably realizing that these masked individuals might be the deserters from back then. He was so persistent about that incident; he would undoubtedly continue investigating. However, there were no survivors to interrogate, so they could only stay in the fort and search for any traces.
Inside the fort, naturally, there wouldn’t be any clues.
Huo Luo and Yue Chen stayed behind to assist the Eldest Prince and Zhao Cheng in dealing with the Thunderous Explosion. Although the fuses were removed, they could still be confiscated and reused. Lin Qingyang, Chu Lishu, and others descended the mountain first.
On the way down the mountain, Lin Qingyang noticed that Chu Lishu was walking slowly, realizing that he had endured a lot throughout the day and his body might not hold up any longer. So, Lin Qingyang quickly squatted down, offering to carry him.
But Lin Qingyang was injured as well, and Chu Lishu naturally didn’t want to impose. He directly said, “Let’s support each other.”
Even though they were supporting each other, it was almost Lin Qingyang embracing Chu Lishu as they descended the mountain.
Chu Lishu’s body had indeed reached its limit.
When they returned to the camp, they were arranged for temporary rest and recovery.
As a close relative of Lin Qingyang, Liu Xiaowei entered the military camp and was naturally assigned to a tent.
As soon as he entered, Liu Xiaowei directly threw the man he had been carrying on his back onto the bed.
Hearing the commotion, Lin Qingyang turned to look, speechless. “Uncle, he’s injured. Can’t you be a bit gentler?”
Liu Xiaowei had a strange expression. Gentleness? Wasn’t that an attitude reserved for women? Why be gentle with a grown man? However, seeing Lin Qingyang carefully helping Chu Lishu to sit on the bed, he suddenly couldn’t find the right words and felt awkward.
He turned to look at Xu Wenze; it seemed that the impact just now made his complexion even paler.
After settling the two, Lin Qingyang quickly went out to find Mu Huichun. Other physicians were likely prioritizing the royal family, but that was fine. After all, Lin Qingyang knew the most skilled one.
But Lin Qingyang didn’t have to go looking for someone; Mu Huichun, upon hearing they had returned, came over directly. Due to his contribution in aiding the Eldest Prince, this wandering physician received special treatment and had no obstacles in the military camp.
“Lin Qingyang, you finally came back. They didn’t take me to the mountain. Take me there. I want to see who did all this poisoning,” Mu Huichun rushed in with enthusiasm.
Seeing so many people, he blinked in confusion.
Lin Qingyang hurriedly said, “There are patients here; you check on them first. I’ll find an opportunity to take you up later.”
Mu Huichun glanced around, first noticing Xu Wenze and then spotting Chu Lishu.
Chu Lishu was staring straight at him.
Mu Huichun paused, his nose twitched, and immediately wore an incredulous expression. He quickly approached.
Chu Lishu suddenly spoke, “I’m fine; check him first.”
Mu Huichun paused, furrowing his brow slightly, then turned to examine Xu Wenze first.
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