The Double
Chapter 292 - 113 East Mountain_5

Chapter 292: Chapter 113 East Mountain_5

Even the servants knew that Princess Yongning wouldn’t blink an eye when taking a life, let alone him. Feng Yutang paced impatiently around the room, and suddenly slammed his hand down on the table, exclaiming, "I’ll do it! It’s better to be a wretched survivor than to die a good death. Killing her might mean death, but not killing her means certain death, right now. Kill her!"

Once he had thought it through, even if he killed Jiang Li, it would still take some time for the men sent by Jiang Yuanbai to investigate the case to arrive in Tongxiang. At the worst, he could take this chance to abscond. After all, the silver he had accumulated in Tongxiang was more than enough to ensure he would not have to worry about food and clothing. Besides, he was doing this deed for Yongning, and surely Yongning would protect him to some extent. Even if the noble princess with her golden branches and jade leaves wouldn’t bother with such a small fry as him, the reward in silver would not be insignificant. However, if he didn’t do this deed, Yongning would immediately send someone to take his life.

With such thoughts, he figured it was better to secure the safety of the present first and worry about the future later.

"How many people are in Jiang Li’s party?" Feng Yutang asked.

The servant replied, "In total, eight people, including six guards, one tall man, and Jiang Li herself."

"Eight people..." Feng Yutang murmured. After a moment’s contemplation, he said, "Not too many. The master left behind a few assassins. Now, call them over. It’s time for them to take action since we don’t have enough hands."

As they were speaking, someone suddenly rushed in from outside, exclaiming, "It’s terrible, master, terrible!"

Feng Yutang had just made up his mind and was in a state of unrest when he suddenly heard this, becoming even more irritable. He snapped, "Stop yelling! What’s so terrible?!"

"Master," the servant dared not say any more, simply stating, "The people in the East Mountain Mine Path have been abducted by someone!"

"What?" Feng Yutang flew into a rage. "What are those guards for? How could well-guarded people be abducted right under their noses? Drag them down here! Did you see who did it?"

The servant shook his head.

"Hmph, you don’t need to tell me. I already know." Feng Yutang sneered. "The only people who would dare to stir up the case of the Xue Family in Tongxiang now are those people. The government officers dispatched are no better than cripples. No one ordinary would bother with them; it’s clearly Jiang Li’s doing!"

"But the mine path is complicated in its layout. How did they find the exit?" the servant asked.

"Who knows." Feng Yutang snorted, growing increasingly uneasy. Jiang Li should have been a lady who knew nothing, but she seemed to be very familiar with everything in Tongxiang. Because of this familiarity, she managed to accomplish many things with ease, putting Feng Yutang at a disadvantage.

"They abducted the officers to overturn Xue Huaiyuan’s case," Feng Yutang said with a grim face. "Search! Deploy every man from the county government office. Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find those officers. I refuse to believe so many people could just vanish into thin air!"

The servant hurriedly obeyed the order and left, but Feng Yutang felt a sense of blockage in his heart, unclear of its cause, but sensing that some uncontrollable event was happening.

Regardless, there was still one thing he had to do, and that was to assassinate Jiang Li.

After all, Jiang Li was the source of all unrest. As long as Jiang Li died, those officers would soon be found. Without a leader, what storms could they possibly stir up?

"This Miss Jiang the Second is quite capable," a hint of ferocity flickered in Feng Yutang’s eyes. "But, it ends here."

...

In the Tongxiang Tavern, there was not a soul in sight.

Ever since Lu Jiu had handed over a sizeable silver note, the tavern keeper had vanished and never reappeared. Even though he now had an additional tavern in Tongxiang, Jih Heng didn’t care.

"Those must be Feng Yutang’s men," Lu Jiu observed the procession from his spot near the window as the officers from the county government office emerged one after the other, seemingly due to some important event.

"They’re heading to East Mountain," Lu Jiu smiled. "Miss Jiang the Second moves quickly." The more he saw of Jiang Li’s actions, the more he admired the girl, impressed by how she had managed to whisk away Xue Huaiyuan’s men from a foreign place like the East Mountain Mine Path. For others, just successfully finding an exit in the mine, without getting lost or trapped, would be a cause for headache.

That’s why Miss Jiang the Second was truly remarkable.

"Now it’s too late to go after them," Jih Heng glanced down at the street below and said, "The people have already been taken to the secret chamber. There’s nothing to find."

"How did Miss Jiang the Second find this place’s secret chamber?" Lu Jiu wondered. "She’s never been to Tongxiang before, nor has she met anyone. How could she possibly find such a well-hidden secret chamber?"

"Don’t you think she’s as if she has grown up in Tongxiang?" Jih Heng said with a smile that was not quite a smile.

"What do you mean?" Lu Jiu didn’t understand.

"Nothing in particular."

Lu Jiu paused for a moment and then said, "The letter from Princess Yongning should have already reached Feng Yutang. What do you think, will Princess Yongning have Feng Yutang do?"

"She’s malicious at heart, unlike me, who is tender and cherishing. Of course, she would nip the problem in the bud," Jih Heng said nonchalantly while playing with his folding fan.

"Will Feng Yutang do it?"

"He will."

Lu Jiu fell silent for a while, then tentatively asked, "Miss Jiang the Second is always astute and brave. She shouldn’t run into trouble, right?"

For some reason, having watched Jiang Li for so long, what was once the detached interest of an outsider had shifted. Lu Jiu felt as if he was fostering a child, not wanting the child to be abruptly taken away mid-raising—at least not now.

"Not necessarily," Jih Heng said.

Lu Jiu asked, "Will you step in?"

Jih Heng answered, "No."