"I've always been the only one to take advantage of others."
Xu Youde's voice was very light, sounding somewhat ethereal amidst the patter of the rain, but the hand he brought down carried the weight of a thousand pounds.
Twang!
It wasn't just one sound, but a continuous, teeth-setting cacophony of mechanical triggers. The air was torn apart in that instant.
The black-clad assassins, who had been grinning fiercely with raised swords, didn't even have time to change their expressions to terror.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Mists of blood erupted in the torrential rain, even denser than the raindrops.
The seven or eight assassins in the front shuddered violently; with every twitch, another bloody hole appeared on their bodies.
The crossbow bolts were too fast and carried too much force. They pierced straight through their bodies, taking bits of flesh and blood spray with them before pinning into the bluestone pavement.
In the blink of an eye, the previously imposing encirclement collapsed in swaths.
The heavy stench of blood masked the watery smell of the Qinhuai River.
Duan Tiande felt his scalp tingle. His torn ear was still bleeding, but he couldn't even care about the pain.
The hairs all over his body stood on end.
This kind of crossbow penetration, this killing efficiency—these were methods only the Great Qian Imperial Guards possessed!
That old bastard Xu Youde had actually raised an army in his own home!
"Run!"
Only this one thought remained in Duan Tiande's mind. A hundred thousand taels of silver, his reputation in the martial world—at this moment, it was all bullshit.
As long as he survived, he could make a comeback.
He suddenly exerted his strength, ignoring the lives of his subordinates, and turned to dart toward the broken bridge.
As long as he jumped into the Qinhuai River, with his swimming skills, not even the Dragon King himself could catch him!
"Trying to run?"
Xu Youde didn't even bat an eyelid; his tone was cold.
"Pin him down."
He didn't even need to waste words. The heavily armored soldiers who had charged out had already sealed off all avenues of escape.
Duan Tiande had just leaped onto the stone railing of the broken bridge, his body still in mid-air.
With a swoosh, a long spear thrust toward his lower abdomen, carrying the sound of the wind.
Duan Tiande was a ruthless character. With nowhere to leverage his strength in the air, he actually twisted his waist and narrowly parried the spear with his water-parting daggers.
Clang!
Sparks flew.
But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, three Mo-swords slashed down simultaneously with imposing momentum from his left, right, and even above his head.
"Ah!"
Duan Tiande let out a hoarse roar and could only roll wretchedly on the ground, trying to slip between the soldiers' legs.
But he underestimated the coordination of these soldiers. The moment he landed...
Splat!
Two long spears, one from the left and one from the right, pierced right through his collarbones.
"Up!"
The two heavily armored soldiers shouted in unison. The muscles in their arms bulged as they forcibly hoisted Duan Tiande into the air!
"Ahhhhh!"
The excruciating pain made Duan Tiande howl miserably. He struggled desperately in the air, blood flowing down the spear shafts.
"Go."
A cold-faced captain drew a short iron javelin from his back. He didn't even look Duan Tiande in the eye, merely raising his hand to aim.
Thud!
With a muffled sound, the short javelin pierced through Duan Tiande's chest.
The momentum sent his body flying backward, crashing into the stone pillar of the broken bridge.
Clang!
The tip of the javelin sank deeply into the stone, pinning Duan Tiande entirely to the pillar.
His limbs were still twitching, and copious amounts of bloody froth bubbled from his mouth. His single eye stared wide, filled with nothing but fear and regret.
But he could no longer make a sound.
In just the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, the siege had turned into a one-sided massacre.
The rain was still falling, but the shouts of killing suddenly stopped.
There was only the splashing sound of rain washing over the ground, and the faint groans of the assassins.
Xu Youde didn't look at the dead man on the pillar. He threw away the Tang sword in his hand.
With a clatter, the sword hit the bluestone pavement, and Xu Qinghuan's heart trembled along with it.
The old man, radiating murderous intent from head to toe, stepped through the blood and mud covering the ground, walking over step by step.
He walked very slowly and carefully, as if afraid of disturbing something.
Xu Qinghuan was still clutching the broken half of an arrow in her hand. Her whole body was shaking—a primal reaction to surviving a disaster, and also from the freezing cold.
She looked at the familiar yet strange old man in front of her. His copper-coin patterned cloak was splattered with mud, its hem completely soaked and clinging to his legs, making him look somewhat bedraggled.
But his eyes—the eyes that had been so cold just moments ago—softened the instant he looked at Xu Qinghuan, leaving only overflowing tenderness and heartache.
Xu Youde walked up to Xu Qinghuan. He didn't speak; he just reached out his hand.
That hand trembled slightly.
He didn't use his palm. Instead, he turned his cuff over and used the silk lining inside to wipe away the dried blood on Xu Qinghuan's face, bit by bit, with extreme gentleness.
His movements were very light, terrified of hurting her.
"Father is late."
Xu Youde's voice carried a hint of a choke.
With just those few words, the taut string in Xu Qinghuan's mind snapped.
She hadn't cried when facing death just now, hadn't cried when facing Duan Tiande's humiliation, and hadn't even cried when she was fighting desperately with the broken arrow.
But the moment those words entered her ears, the tears flowed out unstoppably.
"Dad..."
Xu Qinghuan's lips quivered. She could no longer hold the broken arrow in her hand, and it fell to the ground.
She threw herself violently into Xu Youde's embrace, crying bitterly, as if to weep out all her grievances and fears in this single moment.
Xu Youde's body stiffened for a second, and then he hugged his daughter tightly.
His hands, so adept at calculation, now clumsily patted his daughter's back.
"It's alright now, it's alright."
"Dad is here."
"As long as Dad is here, even if the sky falls, Dad will hold it up for you."
While coaxing his daughter, he raised his head, his gaze passing over Xu Qinghuan's shoulder to land on a mud puddle not far away.
There, Xu Wuyou still maintained his posture, kneeling on one knee, his hands resting on a blunted horizontal sword.
His face was covered in blood, and his body was riddled with wounds, especially the bloody hole in his thigh, where the flesh was peeled back.
But even though he had passed out, that body still stood in front of the corner where Xu Qinghuan had just been cowering, having not retreated a single step.
Xu Youde's eyes turned red. He let go of Xu Qinghuan and strode over to Xu Wuyou.
He crouched down, his trembling hand checking his son's breath. It was weak, but still there.
"Silly boy..."
Xu Youde muttered to himself, his voice trembling.
Normally, he always scolded this son for being stupid, scolded him for only knowing how to eat, scolded him for being a spendthrift.
Yet it was this silly boy who had protected his sister with his life.
"Doctors! Where the hell did you all die off to!"
Xu Youde whipped his head around and roared, the veins on his neck bulging.
"Hurry!"
The Jiangning doctors who had been waiting in the back stumbled and crawled forward, carrying their medicine boxes.
"Please rest assured, Magistrate Xu! Young Master Xu has a tough constitution. Although he has lost a lot of blood, no vital organs are injured!"
The old doctor reported while wiping his cold sweat, quickly stopping the bleeding and applying medicine.
Over there, Li Sheng was also loaded onto a stretcher.
His leg bone was broken, and an arrow was stuck in his back. He was already unconscious, but he still gripped that broken sword in his hand.
Xu Youde watched this scene, looking at the mess all over the ground, looking at his severely injured son and loyal servant, looking at his still sobbing daughter.
He slowly stood up. The rain flowed down his face and into his collar, freezing cold.
But the fire in his heart was burning furiously.
"Cut off Duan Tiande's head for me."
Xu Youde stood with his hands behind his back, his voice terrifyingly calm.
"Gather all the weapons from these scumbags on the ground. Pick up every single one that bears the Wang family crest."
Lao Zhang, a steward who rarely showed his face on ordinary days, stepped up from behind and asked in a low voice, "Master, how should we deal with these things?"
Xu Youde sneered, turning around to look toward the Wang family estate in the east of the city.
A hint of pale white had already appeared on the horizon; dawn was breaking.
"Find a brocade box and pack Duan Tiande's head inside."
"Then find a few coffins and put all these weapons in them."
Xu Youde adjusted his rain-soaked collar, restoring his appearance as a respectable merchant.
However, his eyes gleamed with a predatory, murderous light.
"As soon as the sun rises, beat the gongs and sound the drums, and deliver them right to the front gates of the Wang family."
"Tell Wang Ruhai."
"I, Xu Youde, have accepted his gift."
"It is impolite not to reciprocate."
"Today, I am sending him a return gift."
"Since he doesn't want to keep things civil, then none of us will be civil."
"It will be a fight to the bitter end!"
"Today, tell Xie An about the matter concerning Madam Shen of the Xie family."
Steward Lao Zhang shuddered. Having followed the master for so many years, he had never seen him so resolute.
"Yes! This old servant will get it done right away!"
The atmosphere at the scene was extremely heavy. The soldiers silently cleared away the corpses.
Rainwater mixed with blood flowed into the Qinhuai River, and the air was thick with the stench of blood.
Rumble—!
Immediately following that.
A flurry of frantic, almost maddening hoofbeats violently shattered the tranquility of the rainy night.
Clatter clatter clatter!
The Xu family only sensed a fast horse charging toward them.
Xu Youde immediately took a step forward, shielding Xu Qinghuan behind him.
Xu Wuyou tightened his grip on his weapon.
Although heavily wounded, Li Sheng still forced himself up, wanting to stand in front of his masters.
Covered in blood, Xu Qinghuan looked ahead past Xu Youde's shoulder.
Another flash of lightning struck, yet it was still impossible to see who was approaching.
The crowd only heard a loud shout:
"The Imperial Edict has arrived!!!"
......
End of this volume.
