After the Immortal Disappeared

Chapter 102: Chapter 103: Mrs. Zhu’s Secret Letter

Lui Han chuckled. ”I did business on the road for a few years, so I’ve seen a bit more of the world. It’s nothing worth mentioning.”

Hee Lingchuan cut in, ”What kind of business did you do?”

”I used to run an Escort Agency in Yunyang City and escorted goods for merchant caravans. But the good times didn’t last more than a few years before the world fell into chaos, and I couldn’t continue that line of work.”

Hee Chunhua thought for a moment. ”Yunyang City? That’s right, the rebels besieged Yunyang City six years ago. They nearly took it.”

Hee Lingchuan asked, puzzled, ”If the world is in chaos, shouldn’t your business be booming?”

In times of chaos, martial prowess is prized.

Lui Han sighed. ”Easier said than done.”

Just then, someone in the distance shouted to him, ”Boss Lui!”

Lui Han said, ”Looks like something’s come up in the village. I’ll go take care of it.”

The moment he turned around, his smile vanished.

”Dinner should be ready. Let’s go back.” Madam Ying was very hungry.

...

Lui Han, with four or five of his subordinates, sat down brazenly on a bench in the grain-sunning yard.

The area was open. Anyone approaching would be spotted immediately, which conversely made it a good place to talk.

”That dog official is pretty sharp. He wouldn’t go with me to see Double Moon Bay.” Lui Han scoffed. ”What a shame.”

”To catch bandits, first catch the king.” His original plan was to lure the Lord Official and his whole family to a secluded spot. A flash of the blade, and down they’d go, one by one... though he could spare the women.

He asked his subordinate, ”What’s this about the cooking? Did he bring his own food?”

The owner of the house where Hee Chunhua and his wife were staying replied with a pained expression, ”The flatbread my wife made looked too unappetizing, so the Madam wouldn’t eat it. She brought her own servant girl, who used our stove and firewood to cook several dishes. The fermented rice wine, especially, smelled incredible.” He swallowed hard as he finished.

Lui Han’s face fell. ”You were supposed to put the poison in the water. They have to drink water, don’t they?”

”I was about to, but one of their old servants made me dump it and boil a new pot. He just stood there staring at me, didn’t even blink.” The subordinate sounded troubled. ”I couldn’t make a move.”

Lui Han hissed in frustration, turning to the other three. ”Do you have any good news?”

These were the three men Hee Lingchuan had flushed out by the lake with pebbles. One of them spoke up, ”Yes. Seven hundred of our brothers have been dispatched from the town. They’ll be here soon.”

”They’ll arrive around the fourth or fifth watch, just when the officials’ guards are asleep.” Lui Han mused, ”Forget it. Since we haven’t been exposed so far, let’s not make a move on them just yet.”

His men were surprised. ”General, have you changed your mind?”

”Not exactly. My original thought was that taking out the dog official would be best, and his men would scatter like birds. If we couldn’t, we’d just let them leave tomorrow morning.” Lui Han smiled. ”We need to get our priorities straight and not jeopardize tomorrow’s operation. Have the brothers from town set up an ambush first, just in case we end up clashing with the dog official.”

...

The four members of the Hee Family walked back. Hee Yue chatted and laughed with his parents, but Hee Lingchuan’s mind was on Lui Han.

When he fought alongside the Great Wind Army in the Dream Realm, one of the lasting impressions he had was the thick, bloody aura of its Warriors—a gift from a hundred battles. The strange thing was, he sensed the same kind of aura from Lui Han.

The man was doing his best to suppress his aura. He claimed to have been an Escort Master, a standard-issue wanderer of the martial world who had traveled far and wide.

’Does that line of work require someone to slaughter people like flies?’

Hee Lingchuan looked up at the sky, his thoughts returning to the silent forest, devoid of birdsong, from before they entered the village.

’Something has been wrong ever since then.’

The Hee Family had only made it halfway back when they saw the village chief up ahead, hurrying past with his head down.

’Didn’t they say the old man was in poor health and had to sleep early?’

The thought had barely crossed his mind when a woman darted out from the side of the road, blocking the old man. ”Village Chief, what about the Water Spirit Altar?”

The village chief, clearly preoccupied, was taken aback. ”That? Let’s talk about it later!”

”Why later?” the woman pressed, refusing to back down. ”You said this morning that you’d confront my husband tonight and demand an explanation!”

Hearing words like ”confront my husband” and ”demand an explanation,” Hee Lingchuan’s interest was piqued. He stepped forward and asked, ”What Water Spirit Altar?”

”It’s nothing.” At his interruption, the village chief’s expression changed slightly. He tried to smooth things over. ”Probably just knocked over by some wild monkeys. A small matter, a very small matter!”

He scurried away, giving the woman no chance to pester him further.

The woman sighed. As she was about to turn, she tripped on a tree root and fell to the ground.

THUD. It was a hard fall.

Hee Yue couldn’t help but step forward to help her up. ”Are you alright?”

”I-I’m fine. Thank you, young master.” The woman’s voice was soft and gentle as she gave him a small curtsy.

Hee Yue suddenly froze.

Hee Lingchuan eyed the woman with a smile. ”You’re very articulate and composed for a simple village woman. Hmm, and not bad-looking either. What’s your family name, and where do you live?” ’This woman is a bit strange, too.’

’Sigh. I’m getting way too good at playing the part of a rich fop. What’s up with that?’

Seeing his eldest son behaving like a libertine, Hee Chunhua’s face darkened. ”Chuan’er, don’t be rude!”

The woman glanced at Hee Lingchuan and said softly, ”My family name is Zhu.” With that, she turned and left.

After this brief interlude, the four of them continued on their way.

Hee Yue dropped back two steps to walk beside his brother and whispered, ”There’s a situation.”

Hee Lingchuan tensed. ”What is it?” His nerves had been stretched taut.

”When that woman got up, she slipped a ball of paper into my hand.” Hee Yue himself was still a little surprised. ”She covered it with her sleeve, so I don’t think anyone saw.”

Hee Lingchuan let out a snort of laughter. ”There’s a situation, alright. She’s probably taken a fancy to you!”

”She looks to be in her early twenties. Maybe she just has a taste for a tender young thing like you!” Hee Lingchuan patted his brother’s shoulder. ”Don’t be scared. A young man must rise to the challenge... and get on top of it!”

Hee Yue’s eyes were full of scorn. ”Brother, what right do you have to talk?”

’His older brother was the one practicing the Virginity Technique, not him!’

Hearing them, Madam Ying turned back and shot Hee Lingchuan a glare. ”Chuan’er, this isn’t Black Water City! You can’t fool around here!”

”I know, I know.”

The four of them smelled the fragrant aroma of food before they even stepped into the house where they were staying.

But Hee Yue couldn’t be bothered with dinner. He made an excuse to use the latrine and slipped away.

Hee Lingchuan just smiled, knowing his younger brother wanted to use the opportunity to read the paper ball.

But he had only just sat down and taken a couple bites of shredded bamboo when Hee Yue hurried back in, leaned over, and whispered to Hee Chunhua, ”Father, this is bad!” He then handed over the paper ball. ”It’s from that woman.”

The host was nowhere to be seen, leaving only the four members of the Hee Family in the dining room.

Hee Chunhua put down his rice bowl, picked up the wad of paper, and his expression changed the moment he read it.

He passed it to Hee Lingchuan, then stood up, pushed open the door, and ordered his Personal Guard, Zhao Qinghe, and the steward, Old Mo, to come inside. He also instructed his guards to watch the surroundings and allow no one to approach.

The hostess of the house was in the main building, separated from the Hee Family by a small courtyard. With the Personal Guards on duty here, the family could speak freely in the dining room.

Hee Lingchuan took the note, and Madam Ying leaned in as well. Together, they saw a single line written in red on the paper: