Chapter 27: A Series of Clever Plans

  Attack by stratagem

  Hongshan girl was shot by the foolish monk and excitedly said: "Master brother, don't listen to his nonsense, Lang Zhong said that this poison has no antidote. Zhu'er is already dead, can't be saved!"

  "Wait, Miss Pearl is not dead! The antidote is in the red rouge box in the drawer of the dressing table. Just take out one grain and drink it with water to neutralize the poison."

  Hongshan girl held the porcelain bottle, trying to break free from the crazy monk's hand. She said frantically: "Shixiong, don't believe her, what she says is all fake. That's not an antidote at all. Yu'er, quickly, quickly stuff the autumn cicada into her mouth. Let her body be covered in boils, let everyone detest her, and die in agony."

  Muguazi looked at the crazy Hong Shangu in horror and said, "I'm telling the truth, I didn't deceive you. Spare me, please don't make me eat Qiuluanluo. What I said is really true."

  Yun Xiang Tian took over the porcelain bottle and held it in front of Mu Nai Zi's eyes, saying: "What you said is true? Not deceiving us?"

  The wooden child nodded vigorously and said: "It's true, it's true."

  Yun Xiang Tian poured out two pills from the porcelain bottle and said, "It seems what you said is true. This medicine, you don't have to take it, I'll substitute for you." He put the pill in his mouth and then asked, "Auntie, this person's Dan is used to prevent heatstroke in summer, what use does it have in winter?"

  The wooden pear suddenly enlightened, she angrily scolded: "Bastards, you deceived me, you bunch of bastards."

  Yun Xiang Tian ignored her and put another pill in his mouth, saying: "Oh, it's so cool."

  Hong Shangu took the porcelain bottle from Yun Xiangtian's hand, and she also poured out a grain into her mouth. She said with a smack of her lips: "Oh, it's just a bit cool." As she spoke, she turned around and walked away. Chi Tun, the monk, followed behind her, stretching out his hand and saying: "Hey, hey, give me one too. I'll try some too."

  Successfully excavating the cherry blossom made Wang Furen very happy. She exceptionally hosted a banquet in the cave for Hong Shangu and Yun Xiangtian. During dinner, she mentioned Wu Zhuang Mountain.

  Wu Zhuangshan, Feng Tianxiong and Wang Yuanwai's son, Wang Furen's husband Wang Jizhou were sworn brothers. By age, Wu Zhuangshan was the oldest, followed by Feng Tianxiong. Wang Jizhou was the youngest. The three traveled together with swords in the Jianghu world, laughing at the heroes. After the construction of the Wang family's large stronghold, the three returned to the stronghold and Wu Zhuangshan and Feng Tianxiong were taken as adopted sons by Wang Yuanwai. In the second year after the completion of the Wang family's large stronghold, Wu Zhuangshan brought back a seriously injured person and hid him in the mountain stronghold behind Wang Yuanwai's back, which led to the arrival of police from the Lingfeng Police Station. Thanks to Feng Tianxiong's help, they managed to evade the police search and turn danger into safety. As a result, Wu Zhuangshan also violated the stronghold rules and was punished by family law before being expelled from the Wang family, after which there was no more news of him.

  Yun Xiang Tian curiously asked: "Does Wang Furen know what he wrote on the table for Feng Er Xia?"

  Madam Wang said: "I also asked him, he just said 'A thing that has been made into a dog for the little devils, what good things can it write?' He didn't say anything else."

  Yun Xiang Tian asked again: "Where did Feng Er Xia go today? Why didn't I see him?"

  Madam Wang said: "He's been locking himself in his room since he got back, who knows what he's doing?"

  "Madam, may I go see him? We need to understand some things from him. Old Lady Feng is still in the hands of the little devils. We must rescue Old Lady Feng before the devils discover that Sakura has been exposed and Feng Er Ye's betrayal is fake."

  Hong Shangu nodded and said: "That's right, once the little devil becomes aware of it. Old Lady Feng will be killed. We must catch him off guard."

  Feng Tianxiong was extremely cold towards Yun Tianxiang's arrival, pointing to a chair with his hand and saying: "Sit down, does Young Master Yun have something to discuss with me?"

  Yun Xiangtian was not surprised by Feng Tianxiong's coldness, and he smiled saying: "It's nothing big." After sitting down, he continued: "I heard from Wang Furen that Feng Erxia is well-versed in mechanical techniques, the mechanisms he sets up are ingenious and unmatched, no one can break them. I have always admired him, so I came to pay my respects and learn a trick or two. Would Feng Erxia be willing to teach me?"

  Feng Tianxiong said indifferently: "I don't dare, those are just children's toys, it would be laughable to let Yun Gongzi see them."

  Yun Xiang Tian looked around Feng Tianyong's room and said, "Child's play? Able to save people from under the opponent's nose, able to clean up Wangjia Village without a single leak, this is called child's play. Feng Er Xia, you're being too polite."

  Feng Tianxiong still looked down, rubbing his fingers together and said: "Those are all useless things. Can't be put on the table. If Young Master Yun has nothing else to do, please leave. I'm tired, want to rest for a while."

  Yun Xiang pretended to be absent-minded, ignoring Feng Tianxiong's words. He picked up the water cup on the tea table and said: "Feng Er Xia, you are a hero with a reputation for being chivalrous and having many friends in Jianghu. This time when you came down from the mountain, did you stay at 'Wen Xiang Zui' winery for a few more days? The owner of Wen Xiang Zui is said to be a generous person who likes making friends with heroes."

  Feng Tianxiong's body shook, and he slapped the table as he stood up, saying: "Bullshit! Is he a chivalrous hero? I spit on him! He's just a despicable beast. If it weren't for me being caught by those little devils' scheme, I would go there..."

  Yun Xiang Tian looked at Feng Tian Xiong, who suddenly stopped talking. He put down his teacup and stood up, walking to the wall to take down a bow hanging on it, saying in a low voice: "Oh, I see. I remember that Wang Qi's and Hu San Cai's families were also invited by him, locked in a small black room, quite safe."

  "Feng Tianxiong asked nervously: 'And then what happened?'"

  Yun Xiang Tian glanced at him and said, "Wang Qi and Hu San Cai don't want to trouble others, afraid of dragging down the happy occasion. Tiger Village Master, Mountain Village Master, I'll just quietly bring a few people back up the mountain." He spoke lightly and easily, as if he were visiting relatives.

  Feng Tianxiong, however, felt incredulous. He knew that Wen Xiangzui had more than a dozen henchmen, all of whom were well-trained thugs. To be able to rescue someone from their clutches without them even realizing it was no easy feat. He looked at Yun Xiangtian, who seemed distracted, and asked: "They really were rescued by you guys?"

  Yun Xiangtian hung the bow on the wall again, clapped his hands and said: "China is our territory, we are walking in our own territory, can the little devils stop us? What do you want to do, isn't it easy as taking something out of your pocket?"

  Feng Tianxiong's eyes widened in surprise, and with an expectant expression, he said: "Then, can my mother also be rescued?"

  Yun Xiang Tian said affirmatively: "We can. We have been planning and preparing to rescue your mother, but you must provide relevant intelligence. Can you tell me what Wu Zhuangshan wrote?"

  Feng Tianxiong thought for a long time, and his emotions suddenly became extremely low. He slowly sat down and said: "Thank you for your concern, but whether my mother can be rescued or not depends on fate. Wu Dage is indeed a traitor, I've already forgotten what he wrote."

  Yun Xiangtian wanted to laugh, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. He knew what Feng Tianxiong was thinking in his heart - this straightforward man might not have even realized it himself, but the words "Wu Dage is indeed a traitor" had already revealed the complexity of emotions within him. Yun Xiangtian didn't want to pressure him any further, so he walked over to Feng Tianxiong's side, grasped one of his hands and said: "Alright, let's just forget about it for now. But in order to successfully rescue your mother, you still need to tell me a bit more about the situation."

  Feng Tianxiong's eyes shone again, and he said without hesitation: "Alright, I'll tell you what I know right now."

  Feng Tianxiong said his mother lived in Lingfeng City, and he went back to visit her once a month. More than half a month ago, Feng Tianxiong went to visit his mother as usual. After sitting for a while, someone came in from outside. His mother was very happy to invite the person to sit down, then said to Feng Tianxiong: "Xiong'er, this is Tiankui from next door. When you're not at home, he's the one who takes care of me, doing all sorts of chores like fetching water and chopping firewood, but he never troubles anyone." She pulled Tiankui's hand and continued to say: "What a good kid! Xiong'er, you must thank him properly."

  In the course of their conversation, Feng Tianxiong learned that Tian Kui worked at Wenxiang Zuijiu Fang and that they had the best wine in Lingfeng City. Unable to resist Tian Kui's enthusiastic invitation and the fine wine, Feng Tianxiong entered Wenxiang Zuijiu Fang. Under Tian Kui's repeated urging to drink, he slowly lost consciousness. When he came to again, he found himself strung up, with several sinister-looking men standing in front of him. Feng Tianxiong silently regretted his carelessness, not having been on guard against the seemingly honest and kind-hearted Tian Kui, who had apparently drugged his wine.

  Feng Tianxiong said: The little devils used all sorts of torture on him, and he suffered all kinds of hardships. When the little devils saw that he still refused to surrender, they caught his mother. Feng Tianxiong knew that no matter what, his mother would not be able to escape the little devils' clutches, so he thought it was better to pretend to surrender and then escape to avenge his mother later. So he pretended to surrender and deceived the little devils. After letting him see Wuzhuang Mountain, they covered his eyes and sent him back to Wenxiang Zuijiu Fang. Feng Tianxiong said: He only remembered that on the table at Wuzhuang Mountain was written: Cherry Blossom, Chuan Xiong Mu Nai Zi group leader, traitors in Anmin Village, he couldn't remember anything else.

  Yun Xiang Tian asked: "Do you know where the place is to interrogate you?"

  Feng Tianxiong said with embarrassment: "When I left, I was confused by others, and when I came back, my eyes were covered by others. Where can I remember? However, at that time, I took a horse-drawn carriage to come back, according to the speed of the horse-drawn carriage, it should be about two or three miles away from Wenxiangzui."

  Yun Xiang Tian did not receive any helpful intelligence for the rescue, but a bold idea had formed in his mind.

  As soon as winter arrived, Lingfeng City was covered in snow, and the dancing snowflakes hit Wang Qi and Feng Tianxiong's faces. The Fragrant Wine Workshop was just ahead, Wang Qi wrapped his cotton-padded jacket tighter, glanced at Feng Tianxiong, who nodded slightly to him.

  Perhaps due to the snow, there were only a few customers in the wine shop. Feng Tianxiong found a table close to the stove and sat down. Wang Qi walked to the counter, made a hand gesture to the waiter inside, and whispered: "Heat up a good pot of wine and bring two small dishes." The waiter responded loudly: "Alright, sir, please sit down, the wine and dishes will be here soon." After finishing speaking, he winked at Wang Qi. Wang Qi nodded slightly and blinked his eyes, looked around and said: "I'm in a hurry to use the restroom, where is it?" The waiter replied: "Please follow me, I'll take you there."

  Wang Qi followed his companion into a room, where two people were seated. One was Xia Kai Xin, and the other Wang Qi had never seen before. Xia Kai Xin sat in his seat, speaking haughtily: "What brings you here?"

  Wang Qi said, "Feng Tianxiong received an important piece of information that he had to hand over to you personally. That's why I took the risk and brought him here. To be honest, I also wanted to see my family."

  His eyes, which had been narrowed in pleasure, suddenly opened wide, shooting out a fierce glare. He let out a low hum and sneered, "Didn't we just see each other a few days ago? Why do you want to see me again? It's really fucking annoying, let's talk about it in two days." He said to the guy who brought Wang Qi in, "Go, bring that Feng guy in."

  Wang Qi secretly smiled to himself as he scolded his ancestors for 70 or 80 generations. It wasn't until Feng Tianxiong walked in that he stepped aside and said, "Old Feng, bring out your intelligence report, let me bask in your glory and meet the family."

  Feng Tianxiong said irritably: "Get out of here, don't delay important things."

  Xiang Kai Xin was also helping on one side and said: "Get out of the way, what important information does Feng Er Xia have."

  Feng Tianxiong said mysteriously, "The first piece of information is that the Imperial Army's special warfare battalion sent to Fengling Mountain was completely annihilated. It's said they were bitten to death by the evil spirits guarding the mountain. And the second one..."

  The person sitting next to Wang Kai Xin grabbed Feng Tian Xiong's collar and shouted: "Nonsense! A dignified warrior who fought against the Japanese imperial army, a samurai of the emperor, how could he be killed by a ghost? It was clearly, it was clearly..." He didn't know what to say next.

  Feng Tianxiong, who was caught, was so angry that he wanted to punch the person's nasal bone into pieces. Wang Qi's heart was filled with joy and he secretly thought: "It's clear, it's clear, your family's ancestors must have cleaned up their own household. Well-behaved grandson, you're next in line for cleaning."

  "Ah, Mr. Kameyama, Mr. Kameyama, please calm down! Listen to his second piece of information before making a decision. Feng Erxia, tell him about your other intelligence."

  Kameida Yūnu slowly loosened his grip on Feng Tianxiong and sat back, Feng Tianxiong slowly unclenched his tightly clenched fists, muttering in his heart: "Damn you, Kameida, I'll make you die today." But on the surface, he pretended to be extremely afraid and said: "This information was entrusted by Kawabata Mokuzai, and can only be told to you alone."

  "What a load of nonsense, wooden milk bottles and pig's milk..."

  He didn't finish his sentence when Kameda, who rushed over, slapped him hard on the face and scolded: "Bastard, Kawano Mokuzu is the Emperor's most excellent agent, you insult her like this, don't you want to live?!" Kameda pointed at Wang Qi and that guy and said: "You two get out." After the two closed the door, Kameda said again: "Mr. Feng, what information did Mokuzu have you transmit?"

  Feng Tianxiong took a step back and said: "I must see my mother first before I can say anything."

  "Listen up, you son of a bitch. I want you to tell me right now, or else I'll kill you on the spot."