Green Mountain
Chapter 243 - 188, Mr. Feng_2

Chapter 243: 188, Mr. Feng_2

Bai Long nonchalantly said, "Ranting nonsense in front of me in the middle of the night, be careful or your head might fall."

Chen Ji calmly replied, "Mr. Feng, the prince has already informed me of your identity."

Bai Long was slightly taken aback, then responded, "Are you trying to deceive me, boy?"

Chen Ji shook his head sincerely, "It’s not a deception. The prince laid out his plans before he died and asked me to assist you..."

Before he could finish, Bai Long burst into raucous laughter as if he had heard some preposterous joke, "To deceive me, the boy dares to fabricate such an outrageous lie. Are you not afraid I’ll kill you right now? Truly audacious!"

Suddenly, Chen Ji said, "Mr. Feng, my master told me if I ever encountered a great difficulty, I should seek you out."

Laughing, Bai Long set down the vermillion brush on the rack and took off his mask, revealing Mr. Feng’s face, "I’m tired of your wild fabrications. If I listen any further, I might not be able to restrain myself from killing you. I thought you might have guessed further, but it seems that’s it."

Chen Ji remained silent.

Bai Long, still smiling, said, "I asked you time and again if you wanted to work with me, and you refused every time. What changed your mind now?"

Chen Ji replied, "I have decided to abandon the dark and seek the light."

With a lazy wave of his hand, Bai Long said, "I know why you have come and what you are thinking. But times are different now, what you seek is no longer within my power. Please leave."

Chen Ji, standing across the desk, asked, "Mr. Feng, do you know what I am seeking?"

Bai Long lifted his teacup and sipped lightly, casually saying, "There aren’t many things in this world worth dying for, so it is not hard to guess. But the case of Prince Jing conspiring and involving the Commandery Princess is adjudicated by the emperor himself, others dare not speak up. Not just me, even the Lord Prime Minister or Lord Wu Xiu wouldn’t dare plead for her."

After a long silence, Chen Ji bowed deeply with his fists clenched, "If Mr. Feng does not mind, I am willing to go through fire and water for you. Mr. Feng’s plans are grand, and he needs people to work for him."

Bai Long stood up and looked down at Chen Ji’s bent back, half-smiling, "Bending your back for such a trivial matter, how can you achieve great things?"

Chen Ji did not stand up but reiterated, "I hope Mr. Feng will fulfill my wish. I am willing to serve before and behind you."

Bai Long offhandedly said, "As you can see, I am surrounded by strong and capable followers, why would I need a mere boy like you?"

Chen Ji stood upright, looking directly at Bai Long, "If Mr. Feng has followers aplenty, why is there no one by your side now?"

Bai Long’s brow quirked.

Chen Ji said, "Because I’ve lured them away."

Bai Long exclaimed admiringly, "You really do not want to live, daring to say such a thing. But do you really think you can outplay other spies? If it weren’t for someone delaying me for a block of two hours here, do you think you would have had the chance to get the Princely Heir out of the inner prison?"

Chen Ji instinctively glanced at the teacup on the desk... So, someone had come to the Spy Department’s government office and delayed Bai Long for two hours?

Turning his gaze back, he said, "That is also my skill."

Bai Long was taken aback, then laughed helplessly, "I never realized how thick-skinned you were. All right, even if that’s your skill, do you think you can get the Princely Heir out of Luocheng City? Let’s make a bet. By midnight tonight, if you manage to keep me from capturing the Princely Heir and Liang Gou, then you win and are qualified to work under me. If you lose..."

Chen Ji confidently said, "I will not lose."

...

...

At East Market, Caoyun Pier.

Even in heavy snow, porters and strong men would be busy at night, with northbound and southbound goods converging here, making it one of the world’s hubs.

So it is said, with merchandise amassing like mountains and masts standing like forests, days see thousands bowing their hands while nights glow with ten thousand bright lamps, creating a scene of bustling activity.

At this moment, however, the entire pier lay eerily quiet. Many large ships had dropped anchor, remaining on the pitch-black river’s surface, unwilling to draw near the shore, waiting for the storm in Luocheng City to subside.

Snow fell onto the lake surface while Han Tong, wearing a bamboo hat, darted and leaped between the decks of the ships as if treading on flat ground. Some of the ships’ decks had night watchmen who, upon seeing him, merely nodded slightly without a sound, allowing him to move through their midst like a ghost.

Han Tong arrived at the ship on the outermost edge and pulled a fire inch from his sleeve, prying open its wooden lid to spark the phosphorus into a burst of red sparks.

He waved the fire inch thrice in the air, paused for three breaths, and then shook it another five times.

Moments later, a twin-masted fast boat silently raised its anchor in the middle of the river and approached the dock.

As the ship docked securely, someone leaped down from the high railing, "Sect Leader, why suddenly deploy this ship? It’s meant for Yangzhou."

Han Tong replied gravely, "Don’t ask what you shouldn’t, don’t anchor the ship, and be ready to depart from the dock at any moment. Tonight, you need to smuggle a few people. Is there anyone in the secret chamber?"

The middle-aged man replied, "There’s a Jianghu Guest hiding inside. He supposedly slept with a young lady from a high-ranked official’s family in the Imperial Capital; they hired ’lamps’ to kill him. Without our Cao Guild’s protection, he’d be dead for sure..."

"I didn’t ask you that," Han Tong cut in. "Clear everyone else from the ship’s secret chamber. The people I’m bringing aboard must not come to any harm, remember, even if you encounter trouble, they mustn’t."

The man chuckled naively, "Alright, then I’ll go kill that Jianghu Guest later. He should have a couple of small yellow fish on him."

However, just then, a sail on the ship at the very edge of the dock suddenly rose halfway—a secret signal among the Cao Guild!

Behind him, the middle-aged man spoke in a hushed tone, "Sect Leader, hawks and dogs from the court have arrived, hurry!"

Han Tong’s eyes narrowed slightly. How did the Eunuch Party trace him here?

"Sect Leader, has someone betrayed you? Please, follow me and leave; this place is not safe to stay."

As the middle-aged man spoke, he moved to re-board the ship, calling the sailors to sail away, but Han Tong grasped his wrist, saying firmly, "I will draw the Eunuch Party away, you stay and wait for the others!"

The man startled, "Who exactly are you sending that is so important?"

Han Tong looked at him, "More important than my life."

The man fell silent for a long moment, "Understood... Have you not found Ayun yet?"

Han Tong shook his head, "No, she’s hidden herself well; not trusting anyone."

As they spoke, footsteps were heard approaching from afar, with many treading on the wooden planks of the dock, drawing close.

Without further hesitation, Han Tong turned and leaped onto the deck of another ship. Grabbing the ropes on the mast like an ape, he swung towards the distance, using the ropes to propel himself.

Next to him was the canal; if there were any true danger, he could dive into the water at once. With his swimming skills, even if multiple Jiefan Guards were involved, they couldn’t catch him in the water.

Yet just as Han Tong was about to flee, he saw a squad approach with torches in hand.

He perched atop a mast, narrowing his eyes to get a clearer view. His expression changed dramatically upon recognizing them!

At the dock, dressed in black amidst the heavy snow, Yun Yang held a torch in his left hand and with his right, pushed, Bai Li, whose hands were bound behind her back.

Yun Yang waved the torch towards Han Tong, smilingly shouted, "Sect Leader Han, surrender now. Otherwise, the Commandery Princess will perish tonight."

Han Tong’s pupils dilated abruptly. How had Bai Li ended up here?