Zhao Changhe had no idea why the lovely older sister who was in such a good mood just a moment ago suddenly lost her temper.
Just when the atmosphere seemed right for a small peck on the lips, they were so close to making it happen.
And then she covered his snout with her hand and gave him a head full of bumps.
With a wronged expression, Zhao Changhe held his head and crouched defensively, "Everything was fine... Why did you start hitting me..."
Vermilion Bird didn’t know how to explain her sudden outburst either, so she simply ignored reason, "Not happy about it? If you can beat me, then you can talk. A little brother as weak as you is only meant to be bullied, you know!"
Zhao Changhe glanced at her while holding his head, "So you mean... if I can beat you, we’ll have our peck?"
"Heh!" Vermilion Bird crossed her arms and scoffed coldly, "If you can beat me, I’ll take off my mask and let you have it, do you have the guts?"
"Don’t believe your gamble."
"Believe it or not!" Vermilion Bird snatched his ear angrily and lifted him up, "Stop playing the pity card. We need to leave. How much longer do you want to mooch off this rundown inn?"
"Um..." Zhao Changhe muttered to himself, if it wasn’t for your sudden craziness, we could have spent another sweet night here.
But it really was time to leave.
The main reason for coming to Sword Lake City was to verify if the Heavenly Book could analyze any of the Ancient Times script from the Sword Room. It turned out there wasn’t much script to analyze after all, but he did manage to understand a lot of the Sword Intent. There was no chance to delve into it for now, but at least he didn’t need to pull it out and check; he could ponder over it when he had some free time.
The initial purpose of coming to Sword Lake City hadn’t been fulfilled, but he accidentally debunked some rumors and helped the Four Symbols Sect expose a traitor, which made for quite a fruitful trip. Now, it really was time to leave, what was the point in staying? Compete with Sha Qi for the title of City Lord?
Staying any longer would only invite danger...
Vermilion Bird was saying, "Our arrival in the city was quite abrupt, and neither the pursuers from the Wang Family nor anyone from Tingxue Tower have found your trail. Yan Lianping covertly informed us, and only Qin Ruhui managed to arrive in time. Logically, a stronger presence should be arriving soon, maybe even Wang Daozhong himself. Staying would be dangerous."
She paused and then snorted coldly, "If it wasn’t for me being with you, Yan Lianping would have made his move right away. He should have killed you at first chance. It’s clearly me protecting you, and you’re saying you helped me..."
"Yes, yes, yes." Zhao Changhe said with a mix of crying and laughter while holding her hand, "Dear sister, please continue to protect me."
As he finished speaking, both of them froze for a moment and then both looked down at the hand they were holding.
Vermilion Bird didn’t know why she never thought to pull away, only feeling it was wrong when she actually grasped his hand.
Was it because he did it so naturally?
Zhao Changhe also realized this was the first time he had held this older sister’s hand, but why did it feel so natural...
It must be said that in the martial arts and fantasy world, having Inner Strength really thickens one’s skin. In the modern world, if a girl wielding swords had a hand, it would certainly be rough, but not here. Whether it was Chichi or this lady, their hands were tender and soft, smooth as cream...
"Bang!" Lost in his reverie, Vermilion Bird finally reacted and fiercely gave him a judo throw, "Pervert, to the death you go!"
"Damn..." Zhao Changhe clutched his aching back, "Just holding hands... Aren’t you guys part of the Worldly Society? And you call yourself a demoness..."
"A demoness should let you touch her hand?" Vermilion Bird crouched down, speaking sweetly, "Should I go out and shake hands with others?"
"Bang!" A stack of unknown books was thrown from the table, landing on Zhao Changhe’s head, "To you, I’m a demoness, to others, I’m the Holy Daughter, right? Just die!"
Zhao Changhe twitched twice and then went limp.
"Stop playing dead. We should leave before nightfall," Vermilion Bird picked him up, "The Venerable tasked me with protecting your safety, not to flirt and banter with you!" Updates are released by novel·fiɾe·net
"Just a moment." Zhao Changhe sighed and got to his feet, "I need to write a letter to Chief Tang first."
Vermilion Bird suddenly felt uneasy and gave him a sidelong glance, "Just to report on Wei Zicai’s matter? You are really a dedicated Secret Agent."
"It’s not that. The matter with the rumors isn’t likely limited to just this place; they’re probably spreading in multiple locations. The Imperial government should have ample experience and resources to handle such incidents. I have to inform her to take care of it. That’s the most important gain from this trip to Sword Lake..."
Vermilion Bird didn’t respond, although she was feeling annoyed watching him write to Tang Wanju, she knew this matter was important.
But why was it becoming more irritating the more she watched?
At that time, when Luo Zhenwu was stabbed to death, Tang Wanju stood on the opposing side. It was clear she was originally on my side.
"Let it go," Vermilion Bird said, curling her lip, "I will also send a message to the Venerable. The issue of the rumors will be handled by the Four Symbols Sect too. Our hidden forces are spread all over the world, don’t think that Tang Wanju is the only one who can help you!"
Zhao Changhe was taken aback, "Who will you send to deliver the message to the Venerable? The people from the Pinghu Association can no longer be trusted."
Has the Venerable already received the message or not? Vermilion Bird said stubbornly, "That’s none of your concern, take care of yourself. The rest of the Demon Suppression Department here may not necessarily be trustworthy either. Who will you find to deliver the message? Oh, right..."
She suddenly recalled the perfect excuse for her own trip to the Capital, "I think Tang Wanju won’t likely stay in the south for long. By this time, she might have already returned to the Capital. Since you are heading north anyway, you might as well take a detour to the Capital and see her in person."
Zhao Changhe hadn’t expected that she was doing this for her own return to the Capital to reveal her true identity. Upon hearing this, he found it quite reasonable, "Not bad, we were planning to head north anyway, so let’s take a trip to the Capital first."
Vermilion Bird was the one who tricked him into going, but at hearing his agreement, she hesitated, "Do you... really suit to go? Do you need to disguise yourself?"
Zhao Changhe smiled, "I’ll be passing by to handle some matters. If that alone provokes reactions from all sides, then it’s far too sensitive. To be honest, I don’t like to disguise myself. It’s only convenient for specific tasks like investigations, not for living under another identity. My parents gave me this face; it’s not something to be ashamed of."
Vermilion Bird felt like she had taken an arrow to the knee for all those who wear masks, but she didn’t refute anything.
Who wouldn’t want to show their true self openly if the situation permitted?
In the afternoon, Wuzhui carried the two with pig heads straight out of Sword Lake City and dashed north.
Just less than half an hour after their departure, a white-clothed swordsman appeared ghostly in the courtyard of the inn. He frowned at the empty scene and soon, his figure flickered and vanished.
A moment later, at Kangle Gambling House,
"Zhao Changhe? Of course, he’s already gone. Do you think he’s a fool?" Sha Qi lazily leaned back in his chair, "Your Listening to Snow Tower is too late this time. The dishes have gone cold."
The white-clothed swordsman said, "There’s a change of personnel on short notice, which took some time. Old rule, we come to you for information. Where did he go?"
Sha Qi smiled, "Can do. It’s the old rate, one thousand taels."
The white-clothed swordsman frowned, "Since when did information about persons of the Fifth or Sixth Layer of the Mystical Gate cost one thousand taels?"
"Why don’t you ask yourself, since when did persons of the Fifth or Sixth Layer of the Mystical Gate merit the attention of the top fifty from the Human List? You’re from the Secret Treasure after all. Isn’t it bullying to go after someone of the Fifth or Sixth Layer? Have some shame."
The swordsman silenced for a moment, passing over a silver note, "Then, one thousand taels it is."
"All right, all right," Sha Qi immediately beamed, squinting his eyes, "He went south."
The swordsman was stunned for a moment, "South again? But hasn’t he just left from there?"
"That’s the art of being deceptive when you’re weak and elusive when you’re strong. If you guessed it, would it still be Zhao Changhe? Anyway, I don’t know the specifics. I just know he went south, and it’s highly likely he’s headed to Hangzhou, perhaps planning something against the Maitreya Sect headquarters?"
The swordsman nodded, seemingly trusting the long-term collaborator’s credibility. Without another word, he disappeared.
Somebody nearby couldn’t hold back and asked Sha Qi, "Young master, is this..."
"What’s the matter? Afraid we’ll lose our credibility? The south is so vast if he can’t find the person it’s his own incompetence, what does it have to do with us?"
The subordinate inwardly thought this was too much... Deceiving others was one thing, but weren’t you deceiving yourself too?
In a few days, when Zhao Changhe stirs up trouble in the north, won’t it become obvious that they’ve been duped? Who deceives , what’s the difference between this and burning bridges?
The subordinate could only ask tentatively, "Young master, why protect Zhao Changhe over our allies?"
Sha Qi said, "Because I want to watch the show."
"They’re heading north, whether to the Capital or to Yanmen, isn’t it all a spectacle? If Listening to Snow Tower cuts them down halfway, where would I go for my entertainment?"
The subordinate fell silent for a moment, "Young master, he almost strangled you."
Sha Qi was taken aback and suddenly jumped up, "Where did Ying Shuang go just now, send him north quickly! Damn, I forgot!"
However, the speed of an assassin from the Human List is not something one can easily track down, is it?