Chapter 16 Rescue

More than twenty members of the White Lotus Society fled in disarray through the winding alleys, barely managing to resist the encirclement and suppression by the Martial Virtue Guard's constables and soldiers.

These White Lotus Society members belonged to the private army of the Guangmu Protector. They had only arrived in Luzhou City yesterday, specifically to assist the Luzhou branch in seizing the auspicious object.

They were originally stationed in a residential house in the west of the city, waiting for the Luzhou branch to snatch the auspicious object and send a signal before helping them escape through the city gate. They never expected to wait all night without receiving a signal. Instead, they heard several explosions from within the city,

followed immediately by the Martial Virtue Guard's constables leading a large number of soldiers to their doorstep.

The enemy was numerous and well-prepared.

The White Lotus Society members hastily engaged in battle, and more than a dozen brothers died in the first exchange. They could only escape from their stronghold and rely on the terrain of the alleys to deal with the Martial Virtue Guard.

"Damn it!"

A youth with feminine features, who was subtly being protected in the center of the group, said resentfully, "What the hell did Song Jie and those good-for-nothing bastards do?! If I ever catch him, I'll chop him into pieces and feed him to the pigs!"

This effeminate youth was the Guangmu Protector's嫡son (dí zǐ - son of the first wife), named Gongyang Han.

In the eyes of these fanatical White Lotus Society members, he was an object that needed to be protected with their lives.

And that was exactly what they were doing.

*Zheng*——

A dense rain of crossbow bolts shot from afar,

and a bald, burly man with four steel sabers and black tattoos all over his body voluntarily stood at the rear of the group, vigorously wielding his blades against the rain of arrows.

The four rapidly moving steel sabers gleamed brightly in the moonlight.

The blades generated gusts of wind, stirring up dust from the ground and condensing it into a hazy sphere.

The incoming rain of crossbow bolts was drawn by the wind, sucked into the sphere, and crashed into the blades.

Accompanied by a pleasant clanging sound, all the crossbow bolts were chopped into fragments, and the splintered wood of the fletchings scattered all over the ground.

"Hah... hah..."

The bald, burly man slowly lowered his arms, his eyes bloodshot. "Go!"

He roared at his comrades behind him without turning his head, his trembling palms already cracking at the tiger's mouth, constantly dripping with blood.

"Hmph."

The middle-aged constable with a beard, who was riding a horse, sneered at the scene before him and waved his hand forward. "Release!"

Another rain of arrows came. The bald, burly man chopped down more than twenty arrows before finally running out of strength and staggering backward, the four steel sabers clanging to the ground.

His body, covered in black tattoos, was riddled with arrows.

His sacrifice only slightly delayed the constables' hooves. The constantly rising flames around them had already attracted more and more soldiers, who were surrounding them,

The constables could even leisurely hang back in the distance, only using crossbow bolts to exhaust their enemies' strength.

After all, it was only a matter of time before these White Lotus Society members were caught...

"Young— Master—"

A shrill cry came from afar. The White Lotus Society members and the Martial Virtue Guard constables looked up,

and saw several men clad in black robes running toward them, stepping on the roof tiles of the houses.

The leader was none other than Song Jie, the leader of the White Lotus Society's Luzhou branch.

"Young Master?"

The bearded constable raised an eyebrow. Anyone in the White Lotus Society who could be called "Young Master"

was either a holy son or the son of a protector or commander.

Luzhou was under the jurisdiction of the Guangmu Protector, so the Young Master they were talking about should be his嫡son(dí zǐ - son of the first wife)...

"Good! We've hooked a big fish."

A glint flashed in the constable's eyes, and he waved his hand, leading the team to accelerate forward.

The pressure on the chased White Lotus Society members increased sharply.

They cursed inwardly, wishing they could tear Song Jie to pieces.

Gongyang Han, who had been identified, had an even more ashen and purple face. His pale hands clenched into fists, making cracking sounds.

"Young Master! This old servant is late in rescuing you, I deserve to die!"

Song Jie led his men, stepping on the roof tiles and running wildly along the rooftops.

While dodging the constables' rain of arrows, he still had the energy to shout at the White Lotus Society members below, "Young Master, Young Master, are you there, Young Master?

Reply if you hear me, reply if you hear me."

The effeminate youth almost spat out a mouthful of blood. Would you die if you didn't talk? Are you shouting so loudly because you're in a hurry to hold a funeral for me?

He remained silent.

However, on the rooftop, Song Jie still refused to give up. "Young Master, why aren't you talking, Young Master? Has someone kidnapped you?"

Song Jie paused and said in a low voice, "Huh? Did I see wrong? The Young Master isn't in there?"

Yes! You saw wrong! Hurry up and get lost!

Gongyang Han silently chanted in his heart. If the current situation weren't inappropriate, he would have personally taken action and killed Song Jie.

"Wait! I see him!"

Song Jie shouted excitedly, "The one wearing the white robe is the Young Master!"

???

An indescribable expression appeared on Gongyang Han's face. The constables chasing behind him became even more excited, and another more intensive rain of arrows came, attacking the center of the White Lotus Society members.

Gongyang Han had already killed Song Jie thousands of times in his heart. In the end, he quickly took off his white robe and threw it to a subordinate next to him, telling the subordinate to put it on.

"Eh?"

Song Jie, who was still running wildly on the rooftop, was slightly stunned. He squinted his eyes and observed for a while before shouting again, "The one with the fairest complexion is the Young Master!"

You!

Gongyang Han only felt his throat tighten, his eyes turn red, and the hatred in his eyes almost overflowed.

"Young Master..."

The old man next to him silently took out a handful of black ash from his bosom. Gongyang Han gritted his teeth and smeared a handful of black ash on his face,

silently switching positions with his subordinate, placing himself at the very front of the group.

"The one without a beard is the Young Master!"

Gongyang Han stuck on a fake beard that a subordinate handed him.

"The one who is 1.6 meters tall is the Young Master!"

Several White Lotus Society members next to Gongyang Han who knew bone shrinking twisted their bones, adjusting their height to be the same as Gongyang Han's.

Song Jie kept shouting loudly.

The constables on horseback were visibly shortening the distance between themselves and the White Lotus Society members.

At this rate, they would be caught up sooner or later.

The White Lotus Society members were disheartened. If they were facing ordinary soldiers, they might still be able to hijack the commoners in the residences on both sides of the street as hostages at this time,

hoping that the enemy would hesitate and give them a little room to breathe.

However, the ones chasing them now were the Martial Virtue Guard constables. Even if more Luzhou commoners died, they would not negotiate with the White Lotus Society members.

*Shua la*——

The sound of chains dragging across the bluestone road sounded ahead.

The White Lotus Society members were stunned to find that heavy black chains were stretched across the three roads ahead, suspended in mid-air.

The chains were also covered with densely packed yellow paper talismans.

Constables and soldiers carrying torches appeared on the streets in all four directions, completely blocking the White Lotus members.

Could it be that they were going to die here today...

A sense of despair rose in Gongyang Han's heart, and his feminine and handsome face became ferocious and twisted, like a fierce beast forced into a dead end.

"Release!"

The bearded constable shouted loudly, and dense crossbow bolts fell from all directions.

"I'd like to see who dares to harm my Young Master!"

Song Jie shouted loudly, kicked the roof tiles to pieces, fell from the building, and slapped away eight doors, sending the wooden doors flying out, barely blocking most of the arrows in mid-air.

"Loyalty that isn't absolute is absolutely disloyal,

This subordinate is late in rescuing you!"

Song Jie shouted at Gongyang Han outside the door with a face full of loyalty, "Young Master, come in quickly! There's a secret passage to the underground here!"