Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 163

Chapter 163 Night Attack Target
The night sky was as dark as ink, and the stars were dotted. It was already late at night.

Due to the curfew, the bustling and bustling Beijing City during the day had completely calmed down. There were few people on the streets, and only a few night-patrolling warhorses were routinely patrolling the main roads according to the established trajectory. The shops in the daytime had long since been closed. Only a few gaps in the door panels still gave off a few rays of light. That was the day’s harvest counted by the shop owner.

Of course, not all the places in the capital became quiet. At least the streets and alleys under the command of the Department of Religious Workshops in the eastern part of the city were still bustling with activity. It was even more lively than during the day.

Lanterns of varying colors emitted or burned, or gentle lights, illuminated the streets as bright as day. The smell of wine, spices, and women’s powder spread from the open door to the outside, mixed with the occasional sounds of Yingying swallows and threads of bamboo, giving off a different kind of temptation.

This was the place that men yearned for the most in Beijing. It was also the gentle hometown where countless people spent their money and couldn’t extricate themselves from it. How many young men wanted to obtain fame because they couldn’t escape the word’lust ‘and ruined their future? And how many women were entrusted with it because of various reasons and eventually became the smiling and delighted person who served others with her body.

The Spring Gathering Pavilion was situated on this flower street. Although it did not belong to the business of the Department of Religious Affairs, its reputation among the capital’s Huan-seeking guests was better than those official brothels. The women in this building were not only gentle and charming, but they were also very good at making men feel extremely happy on their beds. They were the most unforgettable.

Just like every day before, the Spring Festival Assembly House was already full of people. Even the lobby on the first floor was filled with these men who were willing to pay a huge sum of money for a night of romance. Almost every man held a pretty girl who smiled at Yan Yan in his arms, and she would occasionally take advantage of them. Although the women occasionally acted coquettishly and refused to comply, in fact, they were more currying favor with men to lure them into further aggression against them.

Even a gentleman like Liu Xiahui wouldn’t be able to restrain himself in such a situation.

However, at this moment, an exception appeared. The three men leisurely walked down from above. They all appeared to be very calm, as if they were not in an attractive brothel, but in an ordinary street. The handsome middle-aged man in the lead would occasionally tell jokes to some of the benefactors, but his footsteps did not slow down at all. He quickly passed through the crowd in the hall and headed out of the building.

If he didn’t know him, he would definitely find it strange. At this time, why would he suddenly go out instead of staying here for a night? But as long as he knew his identity, it wouldn’t be strange to see him, because he was the owner of the Spring Gathering Pavilion, Tang Qianchuan.

As the person in charge of the brothel, Tang Qianchuan naturally couldn’t be fascinated by the sound and expression here, but he went out because he had an urgent matter to attend to. After winking at the guards at the door, he bent down and got into a carriage that had been waiting for him for a long time, and then the carriage rattled away towards the dark southwest.

All of this fell into the eyes of a black figure hiding in an alley in the darkness. Seeing Tang Qianchuan come out, a cold smile appeared on his face. He immediately turned around and sank into the depths of the alley. He could only see that his two shoulders, one high and one low, were still a person with leg problems, but his movements were completely unaffected by his legs and feet, and he was still swift and silent.

He was naturally Lin Lie, the leader of the current Daxing County Yamen.

Five or six days ago, Lin Lie had been ordered by Lu Zhen to wait outside the Spring Gathering House every night to monitor the movements inside. Until today, he finally waited for this target called Tang Qianchuan to go out at night, so without much hesitation, he had already followed him.

Although the other party was riding in a carriage that was far faster than Lin Lie in terms of speed, he had relied on a familiar turn in the alley and was always able to rush to the front of the carriage before the turn, thus staying behind. Moreover, because he was walking through remote alleys and alleys, he was able to avoid being discovered by the night patrol officers and soldiers. On the other hand, the carriage was stopped twice by soldiers along the way, but was quickly dismissed.

Seeing this, Lin Lie became even more curious. A businessman who opened a brothel actually dared to swagger on the streets at night, and even made the patrolling officers and soldiers respect him respectfully. What kind of backer did he have behind him?

Just as he was thinking, the carriage suddenly accelerated and turned into a dark alley. This was somewhat beyond Lin Lie’s expectations. He had originally thought that the other party would follow the main road all the way forward, so he maintained a certain distance from it. Now that he saw that he had suddenly turned around, he hurriedly quickened his pace and followed.

However, just as he leapt into the alley, a fierce wind blew towards his face. Lin Lie hurriedly retracted his footsteps. At the same time, he abruptly tilted his body and dodged the blow. When he looked down, his heart felt a chill-he saw that it was actually a ring-headed steel saber that was shining with a cold light!

In front of him was a burly man. He was one of the two people who had followed Tang Baichuan out of the Spring Gathering Building. He was also stunned when he saw that his sneak attack had failed, but then he flipped his hand, twisted his waist, and swung out another saber.

This time, his saber had turned straight into a horizontal slash, slashing straight at Lin Lie’s waist. He only saw the strength and momentum of this saber. If it really struck him, Lin Lie would probably be cut in half.

It was a pity that he was facing an expert with rich combat experience. Lin Lie had already moved the moment the opponent raised his saber. His footsteps were wrong, and he actually stuck to the opponent’s saber the moment he swung it. As a result, this powerful saber could only slash into the air behind him, and after the man slashed out, a huge flaw appeared in front of him.

“Bang!” While he was in a state of shock and panic, Lin Lie’s thick fist had already slammed into his lower jaw, causing him to throw up several feet of his body. Only then did he land on the ground and fainted instantly.

After Lin Lie threw out this punch, his footsteps spread out and he quickly pounced forward. Since there was an ambush here, it meant that the other party had sensed his trail, so he couldn’t let the other party run away like this.

As he rushed forward, Lin Lie quickly saw the carriage parked in the alley. The rolled up curtains showed that there was no one inside.

At the same time, he heard a burst of eager footsteps coming from the other side of the alley. It was obvious that the people in the car were running that way. This caused a trace of anxiety to flash across his face. If someone escaped onto the streets and alerted the patrol officers and soldiers, it would be too difficult for him to capture him.

Thinking of this, his figure unfolded. He pressed his hand against the edge of the carriage and leapt up by force, turning over the carriage and running towards the alley at the other end. However, he had only just taken two steps forward when he stopped moving. A smile appeared on his face and he slowly turned around. He said coldly, “Boss Tang, it’s better not to hide anymore. Come out!” As he spoke, Ru Ju’s gaze swept up and down the carriage and finally landed under the carriage.

Without much hesitation, he took two steps forward, bent down, and reached out to grab the carriage. He grabbed onto one of his arms and exclaimed, dragging out a man dressed in brocade.

This person fell to the ground in a sorry state, but looking at his appearance and calm demeanor, it could be inferred that he was Tang Qianchuan who came out of the Spring Gathering Pavilion in a horse carriage. However, astonishment flashed in his eyes at this moment. He had originally thought that the strategy he had used to divert the Tiger Leaving Mountain Golden Cicada’s shell was sufficiently brilliant, but unexpectedly, it was still seen through with a single glance and completely fell into the hands of the other party.

“Do you know who I am? If you want money, you can take a hundred taels of silver from me, but if you want to hurt me, you will definitely regret it!” Tang Qianchuan was someone who had seen the scene before. Although he was deeply trapped in a dangerous place, he still spoke calmly. However, his appearance of falling to the ground was not very convincing.

Lin Lie only looked him up and down for a moment before confirming that this person was indeed the Tang Qianchuan he was looking for. “I’m not here for the sake of making money, much less for the sake of harming you. I just want to ask you a few questions,” he said.

“Oh? What do you want to ask?” Tang Qianchuan asked curiously.

“Who are you going out so late to meet?” Lin Lie’s first question left Tang Qianchuan unable to answer, “What does this have to do with you? Who are you?” At the same time, he looked at Lin Lie. Suddenly, his pupils constricted and he stared at the thin-soled boots on his feet. “Are you from the official sect?”

Right now, the government’s official business was uniformly dressed. Among them were these lightweight and firm boots. Owner Tang, who had extraordinary experience, immediately recognized Lin Lie’s identity. This made him very sure in his heart, “I advise you to stop leaving no matter what you want to know about my whereabouts. In this way, I can still pretend that nothing happened.” Since he saw through his identity, he had nothing to worry about, and he even seemed a lot harder: “Otherwise, you, and the boss who ordered you to attack me, would be in great trouble.”

Lin Lie was indeed frightened by this sudden change, but he quickly calmed down. Seeing him threaten him like this, not only did he not panic in the slightest, he instead laughed, “It seems that we did not find the wrong person!” As soon as he finished speaking, his body quickly rushed forward. Just before Tang Qianchuan opened his mouth and was about to shout, a hand swiftly struck his carotid artery, causing him to collapse with a thud!