Yu Da Bu was absolutely certain he had never seen the sisters before him.
Knowing full well that the two before him were trouble, Yu Da Bu didn't waste time speculating on their identities. He immediately issued an order to kill: "Guards, execute these two criminals who dare intrude upon the court!"
Several individuals in yamen runner uniforms rushed out from behind the hall. They moved with swiftness and agility, appearing before Nan Shi Ying and the other in the blink of an eye.
The cook lifted the long plank at her feet, using it as a weapon. Compared to the yamen runners who had been dealt with like mere dishes earlier, these individuals displayed skills several times more formidable. As the fight progressed, blood began to seep from the wounds on the cook's chest and back, soaking through the bandages and her clothing. Yet, her movements remained as fluid as ever. Her broad, sweeping techniques made the plank whistle through the air with formidable force.
The official planks were long and heavy. The rushing wind generated by their swing stung the faces of those nearby. However, they were not truly suitable weapons, and the cook, unable to fend off so many enemies, soon found herself outmaneuvered. Some broke through her defense and lunged towards Nan Shi Ying.
A blade, aimed directly for her neck.
Nan Shi Ying did not dodge, seemingly frozen in terror. Granny Bian strained with all her might, pulling her back and turning to shield her within her embrace.
She exposed her back to the long blade, closing her eyes in fear.
The expected sharp pain never came. Instead, the piercing clang of colliding steel echoed beside her ear. Granny Bian turned her head, catching only a blur of motion.
A swordsman in white, brandishing a long sword, had joined the fray.
Nan Shi Ying patted Granny Bian's shoulder. Granny Bian recoiled as if shocked, quickly withdrawing the hands that had shielded her. She appeared flustered and uneasy—how could she dare touch a noble's head with her own soiled hands!
"Thank you!"
Nan Shi Ying's voice was clear and cool, devoid of any discernible gratitude. Yet, Granny Bian's unease and apprehension were soothed and comforted by this seemingly perfunctory thanks.
She waved her hand, choking back a sob, "I was presumptuous!"
"Rebellious! Utterly rebellious! Are you planning an uprising?"
Yu Da Bu snatched up the divination sticks and smashed them violently onto the ground. Pointing at Nan Shi Ying and the others, he roared, their heads instantly branded with the label of rebels intent on insurrection.
As he spoke, he began to slowly retreat towards the back of the hall.
The cook retreated. After Nan Shi Ying handed Granny Bian over to the cook, she walked directly towards Yu Da Bu.
Yu Da Bu's pupils contracted. He shouted to capture her.
More individuals in ill-fitting yamen runner uniforms darted out from behind the hall. However, before they could even approach Nan Shi Ying, they were intercepted by other shadow guards hidden within the crowd. She advanced as if treading a path of slaughter, the glint of steel and blood painting a scene of her stepping on corpses to ascend a throne.
The common folk outside the hall watched, dumbfounded, frozen in terror by the spectacle before them.
When had they ever witnessed such a scene!
Step by step, Nan Shi Ying reached Yu Da Bu. She reached out, plucked the arrow that had pierced the plank and lodged itself in the official desk, and with a sudden sweep, flung it forward.
Yu Da Bu retreated quickly and kicked the desk, sending it hurtling towards Nan Shi Ying. Nan Shi Ying's pupils narrowed, a golden hue spreading from her eyes. The desk burst into flames mid-air, turning to ash in the blink of an eye.
Nan Shi Ying tore through the flames, the arrow thrusting forward. One arrow pierced Yu Da Bu's clavicle, eliciting a shrill scream.
He broke off the arrow shaft with a swipe of his hand and turned to flee.
Nan Shi Ying watched his retreating back, raising her hand and extending her fingers: "One, two, three..." As the third word fell, Yu Da Bu seemed to be drained of all strength, collapsing heavily onto the ground.
Nan Shi Ying walked forward, grabbed his hair, and, like dragging a dead dog, hauled him back into the hall.
"Dong dong~"
"Dong dong~"
The thunderous sound of footsteps echoed from outside the yamen gates. The common folk turned to look, seeing General Lin Xie leading the Langhuan Army, their imposing presence advancing through the street towards the yamen.
Lin Xie dismounted, raising his hand with a powerful gesture. The clash of armor produced a ringing sound. "Surround the Prefecture Yamen! Do not let a single fly escape!"
"Yes!"
The soldiers responded in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.
The crowd naturally parted, creating a path for Lin Xie and his deputy as they entered the hall.
Seeing Lin Xie as the one leading the troops, a flush of blood rose to Yu Da Bu's eyes.
"Envoy!"
Lin Xie cupped his fists towards Nan Shi Ying. His gaze swept past Yu Da Bu, who was now being trampled underfoot. The fight was nearing its end, and a thick scent of blood permeated the hall. After the last person in yamen runner attire, who was not a yamen runner, was felled by a sword, Lin Xie ordered the scene to be cleared.
"This, this..."
The common folk looked at each other, their fear reaching its peak. Would they be silenced?
The gates of the yamen remained open, but with soldiers of the Langhuan Army, blades in hand, surrounding the perimeter, no one dared to step outside.
Nan Shi Ying lifted Yu Da Bu and grasped his jaw. "Lord Yu, is there anything you wish to say now that it has come to this?"
Yu Da Bu ignored Nan Shi Ying and turned to Lin Xie, roaring with a pained voice, "General Lin, why are you in league with these people? Brazenly storming the yamen and holding an official of the court hostage! Have you defected to the Liao rebels and intend to rebel?"
Lin Xie looked at Nan Shi Ying. Nan Shi Ying took a step back. Lin Xie strode forward and delivered a forceful kick, sending Yu Da Bu flying. Yu Da Bu slammed into the partition wall beneath the plaque bearing the bright mirror of impartiality, crashing heavily to the ground.
"Heh, this is the first time this general has heard a Liao person refer to themselves as Liao rebels!"
Nan Shi Ying turned to the crowd, raising a token high in her hand, and declared loudly, "I am an imperial envoy, dispatched to investigate the mist incident at Changming Mountain. Unexpectedly, I discovered that Yu Da Bu, the Deputy Magistrate of Wucheng County, has colluded with the Liao and trafficked the people of Linyuan. The evidence is now conclusive. I am here to arrest him and bring him to justice!"
With a resounding "Boom!", Nan Shi Ying's words ignited the nerves of the assembled common folk, and a roar of discussion erupted.
"What? Lord Yu trafficked people? He's the culprit behind the disappearances?"
"So, the missing people of Wucheng all these years were sold to Liao territory? How dare he, how could he commit such a heinous act!"
"Hiss, does that mean everything the recently deceased... no, that's not right, what Granny Bian said was the truth? Was the Song family indeed silenced? And the murderer was Lord Yu?"
"So, the Song family was really involved in kidnapping? Was it really them who abducted Granny Bian's son?"
"How did Granny Bian's niece, who came to seek refuge, become an imperial envoy?"
"Pah, what niece, she's a secret investigating envoy!"
Aunt Wang stared, dumbfounded, at the Luan sisters standing in the hall, her mind replaying the moments they had gently called her Aunt Wang.
She had actually intended to introduce an imperial envoy to her nephew, and had secretly thought the envoy had too small a backside to bear children?!
Oh, my heavens!