I’m back with Chapter 39!
Sorry for the long wait. There was some complications and post surgical recovery took longer than expected. As much as I would like to make up for the long break with higher release frequency, work and real life stuff has piled up and I now even had to dedicate time to attend two sessions of physiotherapy every week, draining whatever little free time that I have left to do translations.
For now, I will try to maintain a regular release schedule of 1 chapter per week without compromising on the TL quality. (╥﹏╥)
The System, who had been keeping tabs on them, updated Su Jin. “Host, the rats have withdrawn. How do you want to deal with them?”
“There’s no rush. I can clean them up after sending my darlings home,” Su Jin sneered internally. Many had approached her in the recent years, attempting to entrap her or plot her demise, but none of the perpetrators lived to see another day. There seemed to be some who still weren’t afraid of death.
The gang from the Dark Reaper Guild had gathered outside the city.
“Boss, are we going to pass up on the golden opportunity tonight? This is the best chance we have had ever since accepting this job. We can kidnap the three kids first, then Su Jin…”
Yan Xing interrupted the pale-skinned man with a wave of his hand. With a malicious smile on his face, he expressed his thoughts. “Change of plans. I have set my eyes on a new objective on a higher priority. Surely everyone must have caught a glimpse of that child’s potential just now. A child with such talent should not be wasted. I want to bring him under the Dark Reaper Guild and groom him up.
His subordinates were taken aback. The child of their assassination target had caught the interest of their boss!?
But after giving it some thoughts, his decision made sense. The child was indeed too exceptional, killing him would be a shame.
“So should we kidnap the kiddo now, boss?”
“Fools! If we forcefully abduct him into the guild like this, we’ll be at the top of his kill list when he grows up…”
The only woman in the group, Hua Lian, did some finishing polishing touches her crimson painted nails as she looked at Yan Xing with an extremely enchanting smile. Her pair peach-blossom shaped eyes, capable of effortlessly bewitching and capturing the soul of any weak-willed prey, wandered around the group as she chuckled lightly.
“It seems that our boss has thought up of a plan?”
After all, appearances can be deceiving. Their boss might seem like a crude person on the outside, but those who know him would be aware of his cunningness and ability to concoct devious schemes. The sudden decision to withdraw just now must have been part of his plan.
Yan Xing glanced at her and shared his plan. “The stage is set for your entrance. Infiltrate Su Jin’s household and poison all of that child’s relatives. Leave no one alive.” His tone was flat but the contents sent chills down one’s spine.
A helpless orphan who had just lost all of his family members would be an easy target for manipulation. All he had to do then would be to reach out when the child was experiencing his most vulnerable moments, and he would gain the child’s trust and gratitude. All that remained then would be to fabricate an imaginary culprit responsible for the poisoning and the kid would become the most useful weapon under his command.
“Make sure to disguise yourself.”
Yan Xing had no qualms about revealing his plans to them, as these people were all his trusted subordinates. He was not worried about the risk of betrayal. After all, there were plenty of ways to control people. Once an individual had fallen into the hands of the Dark Reaper Guild, they would lose any chance of turning their back against the guild.
Hua Lian twisted and adjusted her extremely flexible body, buckled up her knees as she covered her face and replied with a smile, “Look forward to the new recruit.”
Yan Xing nodded in acknowledgement. He had full confidence in Hua Lian’s capabilities. With her unparalleled ability to disguise herself and easily slip deep inside the inner walls of her prey’s defence, anyone she targets would be akin to a sitting duck. Those victims would eventually lose the entirety of their wealth, or even have their entire family massacred. He could never imagine her failing in her mission.
……
A procession of cavalry was travelling along the main roads, heading towards Fengyuan County. The man at the forefront, presumably the leader of the group, was donned in a tight-fitting, black brocade robe embroidered with auspicious cloud patterns. His face was cold and expressionless, but that did not conceal his naturally suave disposition and handsome features.
The guards behind him were all geared in proper armour, with swords hanging from the side of their waists. Just one glance was enough to understand that this procession was no ordinary group of travellers, even when observed from a distance. Other pedestrians on the road tried to keep their distance as best as possible, not daring to look directly at the group.
When an inn finally came into view, Ming Jue dismounted from his horse, and his guards immediately stepped forward to take care of everything.
It seemed that they would be spending the night at the inn.
Zuo Yi received the tea from the waiter and confirmed its contents before serving it to Ming Jue, as he reported to his master.
“Your Highness, we have just received information that traces of activities belonging to the Dark Reaper Guild had been found in the Fengyuan County.”
A trace of gloom flashed across Ming Jue’s eyes. He twirled the teacup in his hand and instructed Zuo Yi with an unchanged expression. “We will stop over at Fengyuan County for a few days, and dispatch someone to investigate what they are plotting.”
In his previous life, his eldest brother had brought the Dark Reaper Guild under his command, using them to secretly eliminate those who opposed him through underhanded means.
Since their paths had crossed, might as well leverage on this opportunity to deal with them now to root out any potential troubles in the future.
Prince Li was originally tasked to inspect the situation of the drought at Qianyang prefecture and was currently on his way back to the capital to report the situation to the emperor. There was no problem if he stopped by Fengyuan County for several days.
Zuo Yi nodded to acknowledge the orders.
……
“Mommy, look at Guaibao’s lantern. Isn’t it awesome? Erbao won this for me,” said the little girl in a pink silk dress, holding the carved paper lantern taller than her with a radiant smile on her face.
“Mom saw it, Erbao is amazing!”
Not expecting his mother’s sudden compliments, Erbao couldn’t resist but subtly straightened his tiny back, as he tried his best to suppress the edges of his lips from curling upwards and hide the sparkle in his eyes.
The System looked at the children with a smile like a godparent looking after its godchildren, as it whispered to Su Jin. “Erbao secretly smiled just now. What an adorable child. Who do you think he inherited this personality trait from?”
Su Jin looked at Erbao with a hint of amusement in her eyes. Besides his dad, who else could he have inherited that from?
In terms of appearances, Dabao and Erbao seemed to take after her. Guaibao on the other hand… perhaps the saying that a daughter inherits more traits from her father did hold some credibility to it. There was not much resemblance between Guaibao and Su Jin, but she did possess the exquisite features of her father.
As Su Jin’s mind drifted away while she was lost in her thoughts, the carriage shook and came to a sudden halt. Su Jin reflexively supported her children to ensure their safety.
Housekeeper Xiao could be heard from outside the carriage. “The person in the middle of the road, identify yourself!”
As the sun had already set, the road was completely deserted other than Su Jin’s carriage. At the intersection, there was a figure lying flat in the middle of the road. If it weren’t for housekeeper Xiao’s skills honed from years of martial arts training and excellent ability to see in the dark, they might have ran over that person without even realizing it.
“Go check the situation. Stay on alert.” Su Jin had received intel from the System that the person lying in front was a young woman, so she instructed housekeeper Xiao to sound out the circumstances of the other party.
Housekeeper Xiao acknowledged her orders and secretly prepared to draw the weapon on his waist as he disembarked the carriage to approach the person.
As he closed in, the circumstances of the individual became apparent. He was somewhat surprised at the state the young lady was in. She had a demure and delicate appearance, but her entire body was riddled with countless wounds. At this moment, her eyebrows were furrowed tightly and lips clenched red, as if she was trying her best to endure the pain. It was such a horrible sight that anyone who saw it would immediately reach out to help without a second thought.
That was, if the person who discovered the scene was an ordinary person.
Housekeeper Xiao maintained his composure and looked at the young lady indifferently. He lightly nudged her with his foot and asked, “Miss, wake up. What happened to you?”
The woman groaned in pain, but her eyes remained closed. She felt extremely annoyed inwardly.
(What’s the problem with this crude uncle? After seeing a beautiful, delicate and weak woman, seriously injured and lying on the ground, shouldn’t he have acted immediately and carried her into the carriage? Instead, he even nudged me with his foot!?)
Housekeeper Xiao frowned and used his foot to nudge her again, this time increasing the volume of his words, “Missy, are you still alive?” Could you please shift over to the side of the road?”
Hua Lian: “…”
(You insensitive bastard! Do you hear me? God damn it! Is this how a normal person should act in this situation? You human trash!)
TL Corner: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Do let me know in the comments or discord if there are any errors or mistakes.
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Thank you!
