Chapter 27: August 15th, Kill the Tartars

  Xiong Chu Building, once one of the three famous buildings in Wuchang, unfortunately, this place has been a must-contend site for military strategists since ancient times. During the Qing army's entry into the pass, the two armies fought fiercely here for several days. In the end, this building, which was said to be comparable to the Yellow Crane Tower, was destroyed by the Qing army's artillery fire in the late Chongzhen era.

  So the people of Wuchang did not like the Manchu rule, especially after the foreign concessions extended to the opposite bank of Hankou, this place became the most active area for new ideas in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and even the entire southern region.

  Walking on the old streets near the Xiongchu Building, you can occasionally see people with their braids tied very short or their hair combed around their heads. The golden rat tails of yesteryear are now hardly visible; in the past, this would have been enough to get one's head chopped off, but nowadays even the patrolling soldiers couldn't be bothered to care - for them, having nothing better to do was not as enjoyable as going to a smokehouse to take a big puff of opium.

  Qiu Wenbin turned into the alley along the main street and saw the doorplate of No. 10 Xiongchu Building, with a red paper strip as wide as a palm next to it, on which was written "Liu of the Accounting Department".

  With this note, it's clear that this is a family of some distinction, and ordinary people aren't allowed to enter without permission. Even the soldiers who searched the place last night didn't dare go inside. Of course, Qiu Wenbin knew that this was necessary for covering up their actions; otherwise, Liu Gong wouldn't have been so ostentatious.

  After knocking on the door with three long and two short beats, Qiu Wenbin made a secret signal with his left hand on his chest and his right fist clenched. The eyes behind the door crack looked clearly at the visitor before opening the door. A woman in a flag dress came out, he recognized her as Liu Gong's wife, so he didn't dare to be slow, and hurriedly paid respects: "Yizhi Society Qiu Wenbin comes to see Mr. Liu."

  "So it's Brother Qiu, come on in."

  Li Shuqing glanced outside, made sure no one was following, and then led Qiu Wenbin into the house. However, before they could enter the living room, a quarrel broke out from the inner room.

  "We can't either, if we don't leave now, we'll be caught up."

  "So you're just going to abandon Miao!"

  "He and Yang Qiu still have an unclear relationship, I heard..."

  "Bang!"

  "Sun Wu, you can't......" Before Liu Gong could finish speaking, Sun Wu slapped Li Xiping's face with a loud slap, leaving a dark purple handprint on his handsome face. The handprint showed that he had used all his strength.

  Li Xiping, who had been slapped in the face, didn't cry out, but covered her cheek and glared at Sun Wu with eyes that were red and swollen.

  As soon as Qiu Wenbin stepped into the house, he was also startled. He had never seen Sun Wu get so angry before. What's strange is that after Li Xiping was slapped, she didn't even cry out in pain. Jiang Yiwu, who was standing beside her, was already indignant: "Sun Wu, what's going on? Isn't it just about killing a dog leg? I think Li Xiping not only didn't do anything wrong, but actually deserves credit!"

  "What the f**k!" Sun Wu exploded in anger, "I told you before what to do! Don't move Yang Qiu for now, don't move him, why? Is it because I'm afraid of him? No, it's because we have a big event coming up and we can't be careless. Now you not only didn't listen to me, but also put Miao girl in danger, her life or death is unknown, how am I supposed to explain this to Mr. Song?"

  Jiang Yiwu and Li Xiping exchanged a glance, they didn't dare say that Jin Zui opened fire on Miao Luo, only saying that he got lost while running away. Now hearing Sun Wu's angry rebuke, a faint sense of unease rose in their hearts - how did this matter get linked to Mr. Song again?

  "Mr. Song is also reasonable, at that time it was so chaotic, we didn't want to either." Jiang Yiwu whispered, Sun Wu almost wanted to give him a slap in the face too, scolding: "You know what, this Miao girl is not an ordinary family's daughter!"

  Liu Gong, who was standing next to him, saw Sun Wu and became anxious. He hastily explained: "The Miao siblings by Mr. Song's side are from the Mei Zhou branch of the Hongmen society! They're the second-generation leaders! They're the grandson and granddaughter of Old Master Miao Zhiyuan, who were pampered as precious jewels since childhood. To support us, Old Master Miao gritted his teeth and let them return to China to protect Mr. Song. Now that something has happened to Old Master Miao's granddaughter while she was with us, and it's because of your carelessness... how can we explain this to others? Ah......"

  Li Xiping was shocked, never expecting Miao Luo to have such a background. Only Jiang Yiwu refused to give in: "What's the big deal about the Hongmen? To overthrow the Qing dynasty, we Han people should all be prepared to make sacrifices."

  "You..."

  Sun Wu didn't like Jiang Yiwu very much, and in fact, he couldn't stand any of the literary society's underlings. If it weren't for the circumstances, he wouldn't have handed over the position of commander-in-chief to him. So when he saw him speaking like that, he was furious. Not to mention the tens of millions of dollars donated by the Hongmen Zhigongtang from all over the world, just the hundreds of thousands of helpers at home and abroad were a considerable force.

  In order to gain this power, Mr. Sun had to entrust himself to the secret society at that time, and only then did he gain people's trust. Until now, many people still resent this matter. Now it's good, after tossing around for so many years, the revolutionary force is getting weaker and weaker, and even has to rely on assassination to support the great cause, especially after the failure of Huanghuagang, which made the southern elite lose everything, so he gritted his teeth and said that Wuchang can take the lead.

  With a major event imminent, first Sichuan was ruined by Yang Qiu, and now Miao Niang has been lost with an uncertain fate. More importantly, at the time someone heard Miao Luo mention the name "Hongmen"! If this gets out, how can he explain it to Mr. Sun and Hongmen?!

  "I... cough, asked around the prison and the governor's mansion several times, but there was no news of Miao Niang. If it's not wrong... cough, Miao Niang might have been caught by Yang Qiu." Liu Gong struggled to breathe, finally finishing his sentence with a series of gasps. Li Shuqin quickly stepped forward to pat his back and chest, saying: "If that's really the case, we're in trouble. Although Miao Niang doesn't know about our side's affairs, if Yang Qiu uses her as a shield..."

  Li Shuqing's words made Sun Wu and others change their faces, and Qiu Wenbin, who had managed to hear the general idea, gritted his teeth and said: "Let's just let our 42nd brother go kill him and rescue Miao Niang."

  Liu Gong and others only then discovered that he had entered, Jiang Yiwu even asked: "Wen Bin, how did you come out? Isn't today Yang Qiu's first day on the job?"

  "Never mind."

  Qiu Wenbin let out a sigh and recounted the events of Yang Qiu's first training session today. Jiang Yiwu burst into laughter after hearing it, and even Li Xiping, who still had palm prints on his cheeks, was full of ridicule. He had only heard of new officials winning people over when they took office, but he had never seen anyone give a warning shot on the first day. It would be strange if this didn't lead to an explosion.

  Li Shuqing also raised an eyebrow and said, "It's strange, Yang Qiu was previously low-key and didn't show off, but since he entered Sichuan, everything has been related to him. Has he really become our nemesis?"

  "Don't be absurd, restoring the Han dynasty is the trend of the times. Even if he has a clever trick or two, how can he go against the tide? Liu Gong finally showed some insight and stopped Li Shugeng, continuing: "However, this Yang Qiu... is not simple at all!"

  "Liu Gong's words, I think he's going to keep stirring up trouble, and even Rui Cheng and Zhang Biao will be fed up with him. Let's see how he ends up!" Just as Jiang Yiwu finished speaking, Sun Wu shook his head: "Don't underestimate this man, from the moment we entered Shu, how many things have been ruined by him? Moreover, as soon as he took office, he issued orders to Wen Bin and others with the four words 'command' and 'obey', so he should already know that we've infiltrated the military."

  "So we all thought that this person must be killed as soon as possible, lest he have many dreams at night." Qiu Wenbin said.

  "Not now, we can't kill him until we find out what happened to Miao Niang. Sun Wu stopped and looked at Jiang Yiwu and Li Xiping seriously: "During this period, no matter what happens, Yang Qiu cannot be moved temporarily! Also, inform Jin Ming Sheng to restrain his men and send people to find Miao Niang!"

  Seeing Sun Wu's serious expression, Jiang Yiwu and Li Xiping also knew that something was wrong, so they quickly nodded.

  "Liu Gong, although I don't know who wanted to assassinate Yang Qiu last night, after this incident, Rui Cheng and Zhang Biao will definitely strengthen their search and capture efforts. So you need to be careful here, otherwise if there's no big deal, temporarily reduce your activities, everything waits until I come back."

  "Keep an eye on Yang Qiu's affairs, you must think of a way to find out Miao Niang's whereabouts." After patting Qiu Wenbin's shoulder and entrusting the matter to them, Sun Wu scanned the crowd with his eyes, clenched his fist fiercely: "Tell everyone, my mind is made up... August 15th, kill the Tartars!"