The sedan chair slowly left Chang Street. The warrior with the longbow also disappeared with it. All that was left on the empty ground was snow and white fog.
Following the departure of the sedan chair, the coughing gradually weakened. The fog on Chang Street gradually dispersed. Although it was still dark all around, it appeared much clearer than before. Snowflakes quietly fell from the sky, swaying gently and gently, as if there was a deity high up in the sky gently shaking a flowering tree.
The clouds parted. A large crack suddenly appeared in the middle of the layers of dark clouds, revealing the crescent moon. The clear light gradually spread and illuminated this Chang Street clearly.
The eaves of the stacked private residences behind the street that stretched into the middle of the street cast strange shadows on the ground because of the illumination of the moonlight.
One of the black shadows suddenly trembled, twisting like some kind of living creature. Then, it slowly and silently retreated, shrinking back into the large mass of shadows, no longer able to be separated from it.
…
…
Fan Xian lay on the corner of a building in the distance. He was wearing a snowy robe with white interspersed between black and white. He withdrew his gaze from the corner of the street blocked by the stone beasts and gently sighed, blowing out a white mist in the dark night. The threads of ice on his eyebrows cracked and shattered. Tiredly, he faced the sky and stretched out the aching muscles all over his body. His eyes stared in a daze at the crescent moon in the night sky above his head.
Touching the hard chest beside him, he unconsciously shook his head and narrowed his eyes. He had put in a lot of effort tonight and had prepared sufficiently. It looked like he was about to succeed, but Eunuch Hong had broken the plan. It was truly a failure.
He had not prepared to use the chest. After all, this thing was too sensitive. Until the last moment, he could not use it lightly. However, if he wanted to kill Yan Xiaoyi, a warrior who already stood at the peak of humanity, he did not have much confidence without his palm touching the hard chest. This was the support of his confidence and the last thing he could rely on.
Fan Xian lay in the remaining snow on the roof and took a few deep breaths, calming his emotions of failure and the anger that came from nowhere.
Someone crawled over. Fan Xian lifted the snowy robe and covered the object. A complicated emotion flashed through his eyes.
Wang Qinian moved closer to his side and said, "It's Eunuch Hong."
Fan Xian nodded. "Thank you for your hard work today."
Tonight, everyone in the Overwatch Council was busy with bloody matters. Fan Xian's most trusted aide, Wang Qinian, appeared to have nothing to do. Only Fan Xian knew that the mission he had given him was for Wang Qinian to keep an eye on Yan Xiaoyi's movements.
He knew that Yan Xiaoyi wouldn't miss this opportunity, so he didn't want to miss it either. Moreover, Wang Qinian's performance didn't disappoint him. An expert at Level Nine didn't even notice that he was under Wang Qinian's watch.
The two wings of the Overwatch Council, the most adept at tracking in the world, were indeed worthy of their reputation.
Wang Qinian's face was very pale, even paler than the snow on the rooftop and the silver light in the street. Following Governor Yan was undoubtedly the most terrifying task in his life. That kind of fear and pressure made this forty-year-old middle-aged man almost unable to bear it, and his mind had long reached the point of collapse.
And he didn't know if he saw something he shouldn't have.
Fan Xian calmly said, "I trust you. More accurately speaking, many of my things are built on my trust in you."
Wang Qinian understood what these words meant. Sir Fan junior had bumped into him when he first entered the capital. Then, with this as the center, he began to form the Qinian Unit. Through the unit, he gradually controlled the Overwatch Council in his hands.
Furthermore, he was, without question, the person in the world who knew the most of Sir Fan junior's secrets, such as that night after reciting poems in front of the palace, that key …
The next day, news came that there was an assassin in the Palace. Wang Qinian knew who the assassin was. As for the key, it was certainly used to open something.
Thus, Fan Xian still hadn't killed him to silence him. Wang Qinian was surprised and moved. He was truly moved. There was an urge in his heart to die for someone who understood him. This urge was clearly very dangerous and not worth it for him, who was over 40 years old, but he still kept this beautiful feeling in his heart.
From below the gate came the cry of two owls. Fan Xian tilted his ear to listen. After confirming it was clean, he made a hand gesture to Wang Qinian beside him.
A glimmer of fear flashed through Wang Qinian's eyes because he had also vaguely heard of that legend. He also knew of the connection between that legend and Sir Fan junior's mother.
He knew that, from now on, his life was completely in Sir Fan junior's hands. This was the trust between them. This kind of trust in itself was a terrifying and life-threatening thing.
He flipped his palm and slid down from below the gate. His sliding posture was very strange and comical. He was like a large praying mantis with long arms and legs, but he was silent. In a moment, he had reached the ground and walked to the center of the street. He crouched down and checked the aura of the person in disguise. After confirming that he was still alive, he made a hand gesture toward the air.
This hand gesture was for Fan Xian to see. Fan Xian looked at this scene and couldn't help smiling. Lao Wang indeed had some skill. With this qinggong, it was no wonder that the Brocade Guard hadn't been able to find anything to use against him after moving around in the North for a year.
The person in disguise who had been injured by Yan Xiaoyi's flux will was the substitute Fan Xian had brought with him at all times when he had gone to Northern Qi. Back then, this substitute had helped him greatly. Today, he took it out to lure the enemy.
A few more strange bird cries rang out from below the gate. A few secret agents wearing black robes arrived with the Fan manor's carriage. They picked up Wang Qinian and the substitute. All of this appeared peaceful and natural. At this moment, the clouds in the sky gathered again. The clear light disappeared. Jingdou sank back into darkness.
… …
Before dawn, when it was the darkest, snowflakes began to fall again. Fan Xian came alone to a shop in the west of the city. All of the residences were still asleep. The shops had not begun to make preparations. Even the noodle stall that had opened the earliest had not begun to prepare the minced meat. Only this shop had already opened. It used the alluring bean fragrance inside to disperse the darkness before dawn and wait for the arrival of the morning sun.
Under the snowflakes, Fan Xian sat at a small table outside the shop. He held a bowl of tofu pudding in his hand and slowly drank it. The taste of the tofu pudding was not bad. There was not much bean flavor. The fragrance wafted through the nose. It was even better than what Dong 'er made in Danzhou.
This was a very natural reason. This tofu shop was the most famous in Jingdou. It was the first business the young master of Count Sinan's manor had set up after entering the capital.
This tofu shop was Fan Xian's own.
Fan Xian slowly drank the tofu pudding. His expression was calm, but he smiled bitterly in his heart. He had been reborn 20 years and truly was a useless second-generation ancestor. He had not brought much change to this world. The biggest change was probably the way he made tofu, right?
His mother was too capable and too miraculous. In that short period of time, she had rushed to do everything that could be done. What was left for him to do?
Was he going to be like all those powerful officials in history, playing with power and enjoying riches and honor, not thinking about the lives and deaths of those below him and living a muddled life?
Just as he had thought about it before, worry gradually appeared on Fan Xian's face. He always felt that there was a great desire in the depths of his heart, but he still could not grasp what that desire was.
He was annoyed and depressed. Thinking of the incident on the street and the longbow on Yan Xiaoyi's back, his mood dropped.
"F * ck …" Fan Xian used a very soft voice and a very gentle attitude to curse.
The fog tonight was actually not good. Although this was the environment the Shadow had long determined, he had not thought that Yan Xiaoyi's state of mind would be so powerful that he could not fear the layers of fog and accurately determine his position.
Furthermore, the medicine hidden in the fog seemed to have no effect on this ninth-level ultimate ace. Once one's zhenqi had reached a certain depth, normal medicine was indeed not very useful. Fan Xian smiled self-mockingly. There was indeed no perfect thing in this world. The effect of the odorless white medicinal fog was indeed much weaker.
Even so, in the murderous environment he had painstakingly created tonight, Fan Xian would still bravely try to kill Yan Xiaoyi.
He was not the Emperor. His confidence came from his own strength and luck that was better than anyone else's. He was not as inexplicable as the Emperor. Thus, he was used to being the first to strike and eliminating all powerful figures that could threaten him. Yan Xiaoyi was the first person to bear the brunt.
If there was great unrest in the Qing Kingdom in the future, Fan Xian persisted. If he could weaken the other party's strength, it would be a wonderful thing for his side. Yan Xiaoyi was not in the military. Instead, he was in the capital. Furthermore, he was the first to strike. This was the best opportunity. If he allowed the other party to return to the camp on the Northern expedition, it would be a pipe dream to try to kill him.
Thus, Fan Xian sat at the table feeling very defeated and angry.
Why had old Eunuch Hong come out to break the situation?
…
…
Fan Xian's right hand holding the bowl trembled slightly. He furrowed his brows and threw the bowl in his hand to the ground. The porcelain bowl shattered into countless pieces. It was rare for him to have such an uncontrollable display of anger. From this, it could be seen that old Eunuch Hong's sudden appearance had indeed made him extremely angry.
"Why?" His brows were furrowed deeply. He still couldn't understand this point. It was clear that old Eunuch Hong coming out of the Palace to break the situation was either the Emperor's or the empress dowager's. But, what exactly were the mother and son, the most powerful people in the Qing Kingdom, thinking? Did they still not see the present situation clearly? If he could kill Yan Xiaoyi and had already cleaned out the Second Prince's power, the Eldest Princess's side would become increasingly weak. On the contrary, it would calm the situation of the entire royal family.
Perhaps that terrifying ripple would gradually calm down.
The Emperor clearly knew this. Why did he nod his head and have Eunuch Hong come out to stop his confrontation with Yan Xiaoyi? Could it be that the Emperor was a madman who liked to see his sister step by step on the path of rebellion?
A masochist?
Fan Xian thought angrily. A bitter smile rose to the corners of his lips. It looked like the royal family was truly a nest of perverts. They all thought the world was too boring.
But, was the Emperor not afraid that he would be chased down from the throne? The repeated questions, the one that had troubled Fan Xian for a long time, made his expression become somewhat ugly. What exactly was the Emperor thinking?
Only the Emperor himself knew what he was thinking. Chen Pingping also knew. Just as Chen Pingping had said in the past, a person would have the kind of vision they would have based on the kind of position they stood in and the judgments and choices they made in accordance with their position.
Presently, Jingdou was still in a fermenting stage. Fan Xian wanted to take a risk and stop this process to prevent the dough from suddenly expanding in the future. Eunuch Hong's appearance today clearly indicated that the Emperor did not need Fan Xian to worry about this.
Thus, Fan Xian was very vexed.
— — —
The first new plate of fresh tofu was brought out. It was still steaming. The worker in the tofu shop respectfully and cautiously scooped out two bowls. He put in white sugar, pickled mustard, sesame oil, chopped onions, and soy sauce. The fragrant sweet and salty flavors were delivered to the small table and then retreated.
The people in the tofu shop all knew of Sir Fan junior's strange habit. This owner didn't throw away the tofu shop because it didn't make much money. He also never came in during the day to look. He would only come in every month or two at the darkest hour of the morning to order two bowls of tofu. Not many people knew of Fan Xian's hobby.
Fan Xian was very tired tonight. He felt both mentally and physically exhausted. He used a porcelain spoon to randomly scoop up a bowl of tofu and sent a mouthful into his mouth. It was sweet and very tasty. Snowflakes also fell into the bowl, making him suddenly think of shaved ice, a long-forgotten term. He felt slightly better. He shaved a few mouthfuls and suddenly seemed to recover a great deal of his energy.
There was another bowl that he didn't touch.
The three carriages broke Jingdou's peace and slowly drove to the front of the tofu shop. The swordsmen in the front and back of the carriages jumped down and vigilantly watched the surroundings, setting up defenses.
Yan Bingyun lifted the curtain and walked down from the carriage in the middle. After a busy night, it was clear that Fan Xian's brain was also very tired. There was a trace of haggardness on his pale face.
He walked to Fan Xian's table and was clearly surprised that Fan Xian would be eating tofu here alone.
Fan Xian nodded and indicated for him to sit. At the same time, he pushed the bowl of tofu mixed with chives and pickled vegetables over.
Yan Bingyun didn't eat. He took out a file from his clothes and began to explain the situation tonight in a low voice. After hearing that the people he wanted to kill and the people he wanted to capture were basically in place, Fan Xian nodded his head with satisfaction.
"Huang Yi didn't die." Yan Bingyun glanced at him.
Fan Xian raised his head and asked, "What happened?"
"The poison from the nails was very strong, but it seems that the Princess' manor has an expert at detoxification …" Yan Bingyun said. "So, Huang Yi was able to keep his life."
Huang Yi was the strategist of the Princess' manor. Although he hadn't caused any harm to Fan Xian and hadn't displayed any extraordinary abilities, since Fan Xian had acted, he had to eliminate all potential threats. Thus, Huang Yi was also a part of the plan tonight.
Fan Xian didn't want to, in the future, have a melodramatic scene of hostages being captured because of his moment of soft-heartedness.
"It's not an expert at detoxification." Fan Xian shook his head. "I understand the methods of the brothers in the Third Bureau. The poison master in Dongyi is not of the same faction as us … it looks like the Eldest Princess' infiltration into the Overwatch Council back then was very effective. Other than the dead Zhu Ge, she also prepared a number of detoxification pills."
Yan Bingyun said, "The spy buried in the Princess' manor hasn't been exposed. I acted on my own and had him withdraw."
"Very good." Fan Xian nodded his head approvingly. "You make your own decisions on these matters. Don't let the people below take unnecessary risks. It's best if they can live."
Although he said this, Fan Xian knew in his heart that this was the second failure of the night.
Yan Bingyun opened his mouth again and said, "The living witness you wanted to get a statement from is dead."
Fan Xian raised his head and glanced at him. He knew he was talking about the only living witness in the valley attack, the Qin family's private soldier. There had never been any clues or evidence in the valley attack case. The only hope was that living witness. Furthermore, since he was locked in the Overwatch Council's Celestial Prison and had the protection of the Seventh and Third Bureau, it was impossible for him to die like this.
He forcefully suppressed the strange emotion in his heart and glanced at Yan Bingyun with a not-quite-there smile. Strangely, he didn't fly into a rage.
"Just now, Eunuch Hong came," Fan Xian said to Yan Bingyun. "What do you think?"
Yan Bingyun was slightly startled. A moment later, he quietly said, "First, the master feels that you crossed the line tonight. Second, regardless of whether he or you die, the master doesn't want to see it. "
"Don't talk about the master. I'll think of the old cripple's hateful tone," Fan Xian said with a furrowed brows.
Yan Bingyun smiled and changed the subject. "Although the Emperor has given his nod, you took the opportunity to make such a big deal out of it tonight. In tomorrow's court conference, the Council will certainly be attacked by a group of officials. I'm afraid that Shu the Scholar and Hu the Scholar will both speak. Under this kind of pressure, the Emperor will have a certain attitude. You'd better be prepared."
"What are you afraid of?" Fan Xian glanced at Sir Yan junior's pale face and said self-mockingly, "The Emperor has long wanted to reduce the Overwatch Council's power. Didn't this give him a good opportunity? If I didn't know this, I wouldn't have rushed to attack everywhere tonight. Before reducing power, I have to wipe out some of the enemies. "
With a clang, he threw the spoon into the slightly cold porcelain bowl. His face was like frost. "Tonight, I didn't do a single thing I truly wanted to do. What a great loss."
Yan Bingyun said, "In a few hours, it will be the court conference. You have to go to court to report on your work. Prepare to be demoted by the Emperor."
Fan Xian closed his eyes and slowly said, "A few days ago, the Emperor had you young officials enter the Palace. His intentions were clear. However, how could those old people be willing to give up their positions? Tonight, the Overwatch Council conducted a large scale investigation. Even if we will be punished afterward, some of those unclean people will have to step down. The court will have to make some space so that the Emperor can place people in. We are working for the Emperor, so he will have to owe us a favor. "
Yan Bingyun furrowed his brows slightly. It was still difficult for him to get used to Fan Xian calling the Emperor like this. He was also displeased, so he could only maintain a suitable silence.
Fan Xian couldn't be bothered to look at his expression. Minding his own business, he quietly said, "Tonight's matter is pretty much over. I just feel a bit regretful that the family I've been waiting for still hasn't made a move."
Yan Bingyun knew which family he was talking about, but he pretended not to know. For a moment, his expression was hesitant. Shortly after, he smiled bitterly and said, "Do you think it's not lively enough? You don't have anyone by your side right now. You have to be careful of your safety. "
Fan Xian glanced at the Overwatch Council swordsmen scattered around and shook his head. "I'm different from you. You have to bring these people. As for me … whether I bring them or not, it doesn't make much of a difference."
"If I brought people, how could those people dare to make a move? They're all a group of cowards who only know how to kill people in the dark, "Fan Xian said mockingly. Fan Xian said mockingly, "I've been sitting alone in this shop for an hour, but no one has come. It makes me look down on the so-called Iron Blood Army."
Yan Bingyun shook his head and was speechless. Fan Xian turned his head and glanced at a small alley in the darkness. Using his finger to knock on the table beside the tofu bowl, he said, "Eat it. It doesn't taste good when it's cold."
…
…
In a small alley some distance from Fan's Tofu Shop, there were seven people dressed in black moving corpses onto carriages. Blood slowly dripped down from the carriages and landed on the snow, giving off a faint stench.
The three corpses had been chopped into a dozen large pieces of meat. It was clearly the terrifying damage caused by a long knife. The leader of the seven night walkers sat in the driver's seat. Glancing at the faint light of the tofu shop in the distance, he used the reins to rub the slightly itchy calluses between his thumb and forefinger. Opening his mouth into a smile, he said in a quiet voice, "Young master, eat slowly." (To be continued, if you want to know what happened afterwards, please log on to WWW. QIDIAN. com. More chapters. Support the author. Support original reading!)
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