Hua la la.
As the sky gradually darkened, the torrential rain fell on a private school in the west of the city. More than a dozen students who couldn't go home sat properly in the schoolhouse, doing their homework for the day.
On the side of the school, in the room where the teacher rested, Nangong Shaofeng was dressed as a Confucian scholar. He stood by the window, looking in the direction of Mingyu Building, with his hands behind his back clasped tightly together.
Liu Qiansheng, the former Boxing Champion in a white robe, was also dressed as a teacher. He held a cup of tea in his hand and tapped the cup with his fingers, creating tiny ripples in the tea:
"From the moment we make a move to escaping from the capital, it will take at most a quarter of an hour. Are you sure that all the other preparations are foolproof?"
Nangong Shaofeng turned around and sat down beside the tea table. Although his brows were furrowed, his tone was still calm:
"The city gate officials at Kaiyuan Gate have been bribed, and most of the guards have been transferred away. There are a hundred traps set up on the retreat route, and Xiao Yuan and the others are already ready to go in various places. As soon as Cao Anning gets close to Lord Cao and successfully rescues him, the White-Haired Di Ting, the Eight-Armed Di Zang, Yejingtang, and even the 'door god' in the palace will surely go to the rescue. By then, there will only be a few imperial guards left in Yuning Marquis's Mansion. A quarter of an hour is enough to rescue His Majesty and escape from the city."
Liu Qiansheng held the tea cup and thought for a moment:
"Lord Cao is a few years younger than me. He has been imprisoned in the dungeon for ten years. Are you sure he can make the whole city take it seriously?"
Nangong Shaofeng nodded: "It is said that Eunuch Cao has practiced the four Minglong Diagrams of Golden Scales, Jade Bones, Dragon Elephants, and Evergreen for sixty years. Even if he has lost all his skills in the dungeon, relying only on his body, if he just stands there and lets others hit him, he can hold off countless masters for a long time."
As the former Boxing Champion, Liu Qiansheng was now old and had suffered internal injuries. He was very interested in the "Face-Rejuvenating Diagram" and the "Fire-Bathing Diagram", and asked:
"The Evergreen Diagram is said to practice the 'qi' among 'essence, qi, and spirit'. After practicing this diagram for sixty years, apart from keeping one's appearance unchanged, are there any other effects?"
As a person from the prince's mansion, Nangong Shaofeng knew quite well about such imperial secrets and explained:
"People are born from qi, and qi follows the spirit. By cultivating qi and concentrating the spirit, one can master the way. By practicing the Evergreen Diagram every day, the body and internal organs will remain strong every day. Coupled with the other three diagrams of 'bones, muscles, and skin', the effect can be imagined. As long as Lord Cao comes out and has a little physical strength, the court will have to spend an hour or so to put him back in prison. The time is enough for us to leave."
Liu Qiansheng thought for a while and was slightly puzzled: "For such an immortal being that no one can do anything about, why didn't the court just kill him directly?"
"Lord Cao has been protecting the founding emperor since the founding of the country. After the founding emperor passed away, he protected the previous emperor. In terms of loyalty and heroism, none of the civil and military officials in the court are worthy of holding his shoes. "
Nangong Shaofeng sighed softly: "Moreover, the Minglong Diagrams have been scattered. Only Lord Cao knows so many Minglong Diagrams in the world. Lord Cao can easily live to be a hundred years old, and the older he gets, the more powerful he becomes. Where can the court find a second one if they kill him? The empress should still want to persuade Lord Cao to serve her loyally. Otherwise, she wouldn't have not removed Lord Cao's position as the eunuch in charge of the seal until now."
Liu Qiansheng suddenly understood and didn't ask any more questions.
After chatting about Lord Cao for a while, Nangong Shaofeng felt that the success rate of this plan was extremely high, and he felt more at ease. He continued:
"According to the time calculation, it's almost time. As soon as the drumbeat at Mingyu Building sounds later, all the masters in the city will rush to Mingyu Building, and then we can..."
Ta ta.
While they were talking, the sound of footsteps came from the door of the private school.
Nangong Shaofeng and Liu Qiansheng simultaneously stopped talking and exchanged a glance.
Nangong Shaofeng hesitated for a moment, put down the tea cup, and like an ordinary teacher, he took a ruler and walked slowly out of the room to the front of the private school.
Hua la la.
The heavy rain poured down.
The light in the bluestone alley outside the private school was dim. Three figures stood in front of the door.
Nangong Shaofeng looked up and saw that the two people behind were wearing black-green constable robes, with official knives hanging on their waists and bamboo hats on their heads. They stood still in the rain without moving a muscle.
The person in the lead was a cold and handsome man in a black official robe. He had sword-shaped eyebrows and star-like eyes, a face as smooth as jade, and a waist token with the character "Jing" hanging on the side of his jade-inlaid belt. He held a black oil-paper umbrella in his right hand, his left hand was behind his back, and a straight knife was hanging on his waist. He stood upright, looking gentle and refined, but the spirit in his eyes was like two sharp knives.
Although Nangong Shaofeng didn't see Yejingtang's face when he fought with him last time, it was very difficult to find a second person in the capital with such an "aggressively" handsome appearance. So at the first glance, he recognized this newly emerged fiend.
Nangong Shaofeng thought something was wrong in his heart, and his footsteps unconsciously slowed down a bit, but his expression remained normal. He came to the door and clasped his hands together:
"So it's an official from the Black Yamen visiting. May I ask who you are?"
"Yejingtang."
"Oh, so it's Lord Ye. I've long heard of you."
Yejingtang took a step forward, stepped onto the white stone steps of the private school, and looked at the schoolhouse inside:
"Mr. Nangong is a retainer of the heir apparent of the Prince of Wu. Why are you teaching here?"
Nangong Shaofeng smiled and raised his hand to invite Yejingtang to enter:
"I was a teacher in Wuzhou. Since His Highness the heir apparent has already come of age, I can no longer teach him. I had nothing to do in the mansion, so I set up a private school in the city to teach the children of the poor families around here."
Yejingtang put away the umbrella and walked in slowly, looking at the tidy courtyard:
"Mr. Nangong's virtue is indeed admirable. If I had met a teacher like Mr. Nangong when I was young, I wouldn't have ended up in the martial arts world, fighting and being on tenterhooks all day long."
"Hehe. Lord Ye, you are wearing this robe at such a young age. Saying such words is really too flattering to me."
Nangong Shaofeng stood beside him and looked at two students in the schoolhouse:
"Help the teacher make a cup of tea to entertain the guest."
"Yes, teacher."
Two students, about eleven or twelve years old, quickly stood up.
Yejingtang slightly raised his finger: "No need. I'm just here for a routine inspection. It's getting dark. Why haven't you dismissed school yet?"
Nangong Shaofeng pointed to the sky: "It's raining heavily. Many children didn't bring umbrellas. I'll let them go back when the rain stops, so as not to catch a cold."
Yejingtang turned his head and looked at the constable behind him:
"Go and find some umbrellas. Children are growing up, and it's not a good thing to study on an empty stomach."
"Yes."
One of the constables of the Black Yamen behind him clasped his hands together in a salute and quickly ran out of the alley.
Nangong Shaofeng looked calm, but his hands in his sleeves were involuntarily rubbing gently:
"Lord Ye, did you suddenly visit because there was a case in the vicinity?"
Yejingtang looked at the well-behaved students in the schoolhouse and said calmly:
"Someone reported just now that there were people of unknown origin lurking in this block, so I came for a routine inspection."
"I've been here all afternoon and haven't seen any unfamiliar faces passing by the door. The neighborhood head lives at the corner of the alley. Why don't you go and ask him, sir?"
"The rain is too heavy. I'll take shelter here."
Yejingtang turned to look at another constable: "Go and call the neighborhood head over."
"Yes."
The remaining constable also ran out.
Seeing that Yejingtang had no intention of leaving, Nangong Shaofeng's heart sank. But at this critical moment, since the other party didn't make trouble, he couldn't expose himself actively, so he stayed there and chatted about some irrelevant gossip.
After waiting for a while, the sound of footsteps came from behind. A constable came in holding more than a dozen umbrellas.
Yejingtang looked at the sky, raised his hand, and called to the students:
"Alright, it's getting dark. Go home and have dinner."
The students in the schoolhouse, seeing this, all put down their pens and looked at Nangong Shaofeng.
Nangong Shaofeng hesitated for a moment, then smiled as usual:
"Dismiss school. Come back early tomorrow. If you don't finish your homework, you'll get a spanking."
"Yes, teacher."
The students in the schoolhouse quickly stood up, ran to the constable of the Black Yamen, took the umbrellas one by one, and then happily ran out the door.
Ta ta ta.
Yejingtang stood at the door, his hand only inches away from the handle of the knife, paying attention to every move of Nangong Shaofeng.
Just as he was about to make a move after the last hostage left safely, the sound of drums came from the far distance of the city:
Dong dong dong.
The drumbeat was from the war drum, warning of the approaching of a powerful enemy and calling for immediate assistance.
Yejingtang frowned and looked in the direction where the drums were sounding:
"Is it Mingyu Building?"
The constable of the Black Yamen standing behind him had a solemn expression:
"Some thieves are robbing the prison, and the Black Yamen is asking for help."
Nangong Shaofeng, who had been extremely nervous, immediately felt relieved when he heard the drumbeat. He knew that Cao Anning had started to act according to the plan, using a "feint" to cover for them and attract firepower.
Nangong Shaofeng quickly said:
"Is there something wrong at the Black Yamen? I know some martial arts. Why don't I go with Lord Ye to take a look?"
Yejingtang had received the order to clear out the thieves here. Since the imperial city hadn't been attacked and Benben hadn't sent a signal to withdraw, he had to carry out the current task according to the order.
Yejingtang ignored the distant drumbeat and looked up at the room behind the schoolhouse:
"Liu Qiansheng, you are also an elder in the martial world. It's not decent to hide. Come out."
When Nangong Shaofeng saw that something had happened at the Black Yamen but Yejingtang didn't leave and directly revealed Liu Qiansheng's presence, his face changed suddenly. He knew that there must have been a major accident in some part of the plan.
"Lord Ye, what do you mean? I'm the only one here..."
Yejingtang couldn't sense Liu Qiansheng's position, but the information showed that Liu Qiansheng's hiding place was here. He didn't dare to enter the room rashly, so he turned his head to look at Nangong Shaofeng:
"Mr. Nangong, I saw through your plan last month. I wanted to catch you all in one fell swoop, so I let you and His Highness the heir apparent be at ease until today. Now that the situation has become clear, why do you still pretend?"
Nangong Shaofeng's expression froze, and his original calmness disappeared completely. He took half a step back, and his hands behind his back dropped down.
Yejingtang stood with his hand on the knife, ignoring Nangong Shaofeng, and looked at the door in front:
"As the saying goes in the martial world, 'A phoenix without feathers is worse than a chicken'. I didn't believe it in the past, but now it seems to be true. A person who was ranked among the top ten in the world thirty years ago and reached the peak in the art of boxing is so scared by a junior like me that he doesn't dare to go out. He really doesn't deserve his past reputation."
"Boy, you didn't come alone."
A powerful voice came from the room.
Liu Qiansheng, dressed in a white robe, knew that he was surrounded. There was no point in hiding any longer. So he walked slowly out from the side of the door and stood with his hands behind his back in front of the hall, separated from Yejingtang by the rain curtain in the courtyard:
"In terms of martial arts attainments, you are miles away from me. You only have the advantage of youth. Although I am over eighty years old, it's still hard to say who will win if we fight one-on-one. You came with helpers and bullied the few with the many. Do you think you are qualified to speak arrogantly in front of me?"
Yejingtang said calmly: "I'm a law enforcement officer. I arrest thieves according to the law. How can there be such a thing as bullying the few with the many?"
Shua shua.
As soon as the words fell, the sound of breaking wind came from outside the courtyard wall.
Eight chief constables of the Black Yamen, holding various weapons, landed around the courtyard wall of the private school, surrounding the private school tightly.
When Liu Qiansheng saw this situation, he knew that his path in the martial world might come to an end today. But his momentum was still strong. He swept his eyes around and said disdainfully:
"Just you few?"
Yejingtang walked into the rain curtain:
"I'm also from Liangzhou. I often hear the elderly talk about the 'Hongshan Bandits'. If I remember correctly, that was your former sect. Being regarded as bandits by the common people, I guess you didn't do anything good. Do you want to be decent, give up your pointless resistance, kneel down and surrender, or do you want me to send you away myself?"
Liu Qiansheng's eyelids twitched, and there was obvious anger in his eyes. He walked down the steps slowly:
"Young man, you will surely become the Martial Champion in the future. I have been roaming the martial world for eighty years. I became famous all over the world by defeating the previous Martial Champion. Dying in the hands of the next Martial Champion in my old age can also be considered a good beginning and a good end, completing a cycle. Why should I be afraid?"
"Your path in the martial world ended in the hands of Jiang Zahu twenty years ago. Now you are just a lingering thief in the martial world. Don't try to make yourself look good."
It became quiet in the rain curtain. The two of them didn't speak anymore, just staring into each other's eyes.
The chief constables of the Black Yamen on the wall knew how powerful Liu Qiansheng was. Seeing this, four of them watched Nangong Shaofeng, and the remaining four fell into the courtyard, pressing towards Liu Qiansheng's back with long spears, knives, and shields, creating an opportunity for Yejingtang to deliver a fatal blow.
Ta ta.
Although Liu Qiansheng was eighty years old, he could still knock down these small soldiers with one punch. But if he turned around and threw four punches, with Yejingtang's strength, he would definitely be able to stab him two or three times. Clenching his fists behind his back, he gritted his teeth and said:
"Yejingtang, it's not fair for you to win like this. Do you dare to have a fair fight with me?"
Yejingtang stopped three zhang away, looking at the white-haired Liu Qiansheng in front of him with indifferent eyes, as if looking at an old fool.
One of the chief constables of the Black Yamen who had sneaked to the side and rear saw that the old man in the white robe in the courtyard was fully on guard against Yejingtang and made the first move. He suddenly swung his left hand.
Sa sa sa.
Five snowflake darts flew out from his sleeve, like butterflies piercing through the rain curtain, drawing five oval arcs in the air and shooting towards all parts of the old man in the white robe.
Peng.
At the same time, Liu Qiansheng's motionless figure almost disappeared from the spot out of thin air. Relying on his astonishing explosive power, he created a white mist in the courtyard and threw a punch directly at Yejingtang's face.
Yejingtang reacted extremely quickly. He took a big step back, pulled his right hand behind his back, and his momentum instantly soared, dispersing the surrounding rain curtain. It seemed that he was about to deliver a City-Rushing Cannon punch.
But in their last fight, Liu Qiansheng had already seen that Yejingtang was too strong. If they clashed with their fists, he was too old to stand firmly. Once his lower body lost balance, he would be beaten down and didn't intend to take the punch head-on at all.
The moment the heavy punch came, Liu Qiansheng brought his lifetime of martial arts attainments to the extreme. His figure