Chapter 9: National Criminal?

  "Mr. Song."

  "Mr. Song, we must avenge Brother Wang."

  "This grudge will not be avenged in vain!"

  As soon as Song Jiaoren entered the room, he saw Wang Tianjie's body on two eight-immortal tables together. The clothes were also very disheveled, and it seemed that they had been searched by the police patrol. The wound torn open by bullets at the chest was even more shocking.

  The party members next to him saw Song Jiaoren and Deng Xiaoke, each with a look of indignation, shouting that they wanted to go take revenge. To be honest, he hadn't expected that Yang Qiu had killed Wang Tianjie before taking him hostage earlier. If he had known, perhaps he would have thought of a way to stop him, but now...

  "Brother Deng, what do you think we should do about this matter?"

  Deng Xiaoke couldn't help but mutter to himself, from what Yang Qiudao said earlier about Song Jiaoren's identity and yet still let him go, it can be seen that this person is not the rumored Qing dynasty running dog, nor is he a butcher who kills at will, otherwise, he and Song Jiaoren would have died several times already. So why did he still want to kill Wang Tianjie? Since he could ask the piercing four questions and reveal Song's identity in one breath, he wouldn't be unaware of Wang Tianjie's identity and make a mortal enemy with the party people.

  What kind of person is he?

  Deng Xiaoke shook his head and thought that things were not so simple, so after thinking for a moment, he said: "Mr. Song, at this time Deng shouldn't have spoken out of turn, but there's something I still want to say."

  "Thank you, Brother Deng."

  "At this critical moment, Mr. Song felt that it was better to fight the new army of Hubei immediately, or to prioritize the big things?" Deng Xiaoke said anxiously: "Moreover, Wang Yishi is dead, and his belongings have been taken away. You must have all been exposed in Chengdu, so I think you should temporarily avoid first!"

  Song Jiaoren nodded and was about to speak when suddenly outside there were rapid footsteps, followed by the sound of gunfire like popping beans.

  Everyone's face changed color.

  Exposed!

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  "Well done!"

  In the Sichuan Governor's Office, Zhao Erfeng hastily arrived with the news and looked at the list several times, his face revealing an even more triumphant expression: "Heaven will not betray me, nor I it!"

  "Congratulations, sir, on obtaining this list." The teacher next to him also hurriedly flattered and smiled: "With this list, sir can sweep away those rebellious parties in Sichuan at once. Without these troublemakers, Pu Dianjun and his men are just a minor illness."

  "Spoken well, immediately dispatch people to arrest according to the list!"

  "Don't worry, sir, I've already sent someone to take care of it." The teacher said, taking a step closer and continuing, "If we can really capture the rebels this time, it will definitely be a great achievement. Take Yang Qiu for example..."

  "I understand what you mean." Zhao Er Feng stroked his beard, thought for a moment, and decided it was unnecessary to monopolize this credit. He said, "I'm not afraid of taking credit from Yang Qiu, just don't forget the people behind him!"

  "Does the adult mean General Zhang Biao of the new army?"

  "It's not bad, Zhang Biao has always been arrogant and doesn't even put the Governor of Hubei, Rui Cun, in his eyes. If he finds out about Yang Qiuli's great achievement, he will definitely immediately petition the imperial court for credit. Wouldn't I be offending him if I took it away? Besides, although we have a list in hand, revolutionary parties are everywhere now, and who knows, one day we might still need to rely on him. It's better not to mention this matter."

  "Adults are wise, but yesterday you publicly discussed the merits and rewards, Yang Qiu is now killing the leader again, I'm afraid it will be a big expense for you."

  "Heh heh, a little expense doesn't matter, you'll go see Yang Qiu later and remember to reward him in person! I want to tell the world that I never go back on my word! Besides, as long as we capture the revolutionaries in Sichuan, this merit will definitely be credited to me." Zhao Er Feng stroked his beard, his eyes suddenly turning cold: "Pass down the order, apart from Chengdu, all other places must also take action immediately and make sure to catch all these rebels!"

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  A succession of urgent alarm whistles threw Chengdu into chaos, and to avoid drawing attention to himself, Yang Qiu had no choice but to steal a set of clothes to change into, and even found a straw hat before quietly making his way back.

  As soon as they arrived at the school grounds, they saw hundreds of Qing soldiers rushing out in a hurry. Xiao Anguo and others also came out with guns, looking like they were facing a great enemy.

  What's wrong?

  As soon as they saw Yang Qiuxiao and An Guo, they immediately swarmed over. Seeing that he was wearing a dress with an obviously smaller size, and even wearing a bamboo hat, they hastily asked: "Brother, what's this...?"

  Yang Qi waved his hand and didn't explain first, pointing at the departing Sichuan army and asked: "What's wrong with them?"

  Xiao Anguo shook his head: "I don't know, I only heard that a big man of the party was killed on the street, and the police found a list on him. Governor Zhao has already ordered a city-wide search to capture the revolutionaries."

  This string of words was like a thunderclap on a clear day, stunning Yang Qiu so much that he was left speechless, and his body involuntarily retreated several steps to lean against the wall.

  He can be sure that the person who was killed is Wang Tianjie, but he didn't expect that this guy had a list on him and it fell into the hands of the patrol officers! Aren't those patrol officers on the side of the Elder Brother Society? How could they betray Wang Tianjie?

  Yang Qiuye thought more and more confused, as if it had become a small insect stuck in a spider web, the deeper it sank.

  "Yang, big brother Yang!" Bingwen was frightened by Yang Qiu's appearance and hastily grabbed hold of the dispirited Yang Qiu, anxiously asking: "What's wrong with you? Where did you go this morning? What happened?"

  Looking at the doll-like face of Wen, Yang Autumn shook his head woodenly. In fact, he didn't know where to start either. Should he tell him that it was because he had killed the leader of the party in Sichuan's list of important people that the information was leaked? Or should he tell him that he had seen Song Jiaoren?

  Xiao Anguo and Ma Kui also changed their faces, and from Yang Qiu's flustered expression, they secretly guessed something, and their hearts suddenly sank with a bad premonition.

  "Go back to Wuchang."

  "Now?"

  "Alright, let's go now!"

  Xiao Anguo made a prompt decision, and in order to prevent the situation from escalating, he immediately ordered the preparation of the car to depart. Unexpectedly, just as everyone was about to prepare the horse carriage, the Shifu of the Chuan Du Fu led a large team of personal soldiers into the courtyard.

  "Yang Zhuang, you've returned!" Master Ye grasped Yang Qiu's hand warmly and laughed loudly: "This time, if it weren't for you killing Wang Tianjie, that treacherous bandit leader, in the street and obtaining the list, our Sichuan Governor's mansion would have been in danger!"

  What!

  Yang Qiu killed the leader of the Sichuan Party?!

  Wen was stunned, he didn't dare to believe that Yang, who had taken care of him since his enlistment, treated him like a younger brother, and taught him revolutionary ideas, was actually the one who killed Wang Tianjie and put all the Tongmenghui comrades in Sichuan in danger.

  How can he be like this?!

  Even non-party members such as Xiao Anguo, Ma Kui and others were stunned. They had thought that Yang Qiu was just involved in the matter, but they did not expect that he was the one who killed him, and even handed over the list to the Sichuan Governor's Office.

  This is really getting out of hand!

  "The Governor is busy and cannot see you off, so he specially instructed us to bring 50 taels of gold to reward you. Moreover, the Governor also asked me to tell you that he has already sent a telegram to the imperial court, and within three days, the award will definitely arrive at Master Ma's place. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the best in your future endeavors." As the teacher spoke, he took out a small red cloth package from his pocket, and when it was opened, five glittering gold bars appeared before everyone.

  Fifty taels of gold can be exchanged for five thousand dollars, so after the teacher stuffed the gold bars into Yang Qiu's hands and turned around to leave, the guards were a little envious and whispered: "Teacher, isn't this too cheap for that kid?"

  "How could outsiders know that Yang Qiugan was the one who killed the leader of the rebel group if they weren't rewarded? This is called shifting the blame, learn from it! Master turned his head and looked at Yang Qiu again, who was as still as a wooden chicken, and sneered: "What a pity, he has no chance to spend this life."

  Yang Qiu stared at the golden hair, his mind a complete blank, and didn't hear Master's words. Not to mention five roots, even if it were fifty thousand roots, he wouldn't go help Manchu, but instead would use it to strengthen himself and accelerate the overthrow of this dynasty that brought shame to the Chinese nation for centuries!

  Although later generations thought that the party's hasty revolution actually harmed the country, at least they could have prepared for a few more years, been more patient and less impetuous, and tried to improve the team's quality instead of rushing to succeed and mixing in so many thugs. However, deep down, he still admired these heroes, after all, they had no predecessors, they were in an unprecedented era of change, and being able to break through the heavy iron curtain and finally overthrow the Qing dynasty was a great achievement.

  For several days in a row, he has been walking on the edge of life and death, making him realize that this is not an evil joke, but a true return to this great era that he had longed for countless times when he was a soldier.

  This is a real world, with real life and blood around you.

  Just as he hadn't figured out which path to take in the future, a series of twists and turns since his rebirth had unknowingly led him to stand on the opposing side.

  Have I really become a criminal of the state?

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