Situ Tai's actions did not make the other guests at the banquet feel uncomfortable at all. Instead, they began to worry about whether what the soldier had said earlier was true.
"Sir, regardless of whether it's real or not, we should still send people to the dock. Even if it's just a trick by those two young girls, we have to go check it out so we can take precautions in advance."
Another military commander under him put forward the suggestion, and he was somewhat wary of the two rumored young commandery princesses.
Situ Tai did not give the order immediately. Instead, he turned his gaze to a young man in rich silk robes in the banquet. He was about seventeen years old, tall and handsome, with an air of noble elegance that made him stand out. Yet oddly, he also carried the free and unrestrained demeanor typical of people in the martial arts world, a seemingly contradictory combination. This young man was exactly the protagonist of the banquet today.
The young man gave a slight nod to Situ Tai. "Send people to the dock to take a look. It just so happens that I'm tired too, so I'll head back to rest."
With that, he got up and left his seat.
Situ Tai respectfully saw him off, and instead of using any other form of address, he simply said, "Safe travels, Young Master!"
After the young man left, Situ Tai immediately ordered his men to go to the dock to check the situation. He did not believe that his six hundred troops could not defeat Xi Qingyue's guards or the so-called hidden weapons they supposedly had.
Just as the young man was about to return to his residence, he saw raging flames rising from the direction of the dock. The fire blazed so bright that almost anyone who was outside could spot the glow from where they stood.
The young man paused where he was, thought for a brief moment, then came to a decision. He turned to the maid following behind him and instructed, "You go back first. I know the way myself."
After the maid left, he tapped his toes against the ground, leaped up to land on the rooftop, and with a few more bounds, he had already left the Governor of Xinzhou's manor.
Xi Qingyue arrived just after the young man had left, but her superpower still sensed that someone had been there and departed. She did not get a clear look at the young man's face, but she remembered his back. She did not give chase, and instead led Mu Jin and the others straight to break into the Governor of Xinzhou's manor.
The gate was blown open by a Gatling gun, and the sound of gunfire immediately alerted everyone in the manor that she had arrived.
She did not hide her presence, nor did she use martial arts to fly over the walls. She simply shot her way right in.
Before stepping through the main gate, she spoke a few just and forceful words in front of all the watching common people.
"The Governor of Xinzhou sent assassins to Liucheng to kill this Commandery Princess, and even tried to have men shoot me to death with a rain of arrows at the dock. He also slandered me as a water bandit. Such evil deeds cannot be forgiven. He even ordered his men to steal and snatch children everywhere, disturbing the peace of the people across all regions. Today, this Commandery Princess will act on behalf of heaven and rid the people of this tyrant."
After saying that, Xi Qingyue stepped into the Governor of Xinzhou's manor with Mu Jin and the rest.
The surrounding common people all looked extremely excited. Their governor was finally going to get what he deserved. It would be best if he dropped dead right today.
The group of soldiers that the governor's manor had dispatched to the dock had not even set off before they were all killed by Xi Qingyue. She was also holding a Gatling gun in her hand, because there were still hundreds of government troops inside the manor.
Xi Qingyue walked forward while using her superpower to scout the area, shooting and killing anyone who tried to block her path without the slightest hesitation.
The sound of gunfire echoed nonstop throughout the manor. She showed no mercy at all.
When she used her superpower to scan the entire manor and found no living children, the fierce look between her brows deepened, for she had spotted a number of human bones.
Screams and the sound of gunfire followed wherever they went, leaving piles of corpses all over the ground.
The soldiers in the governor's manor held their weapons and retreated in terror. They were stunned by the bodies lying on the ground, and even more unnerved by the look in Xi Qingyue's eyes.
Some people were so scared that they dropped their weapons, knelt down on the ground immediately and begged for mercy, "Commandery Princess, spare our lives! We surrender!"
Xi Qingyue stopped in her tracks. She looked at those soldiers kneeling on the ground and asked a question, "Where were the children from the governor's manor taken?"
All the soldiers shook their heads in unison. An older man among them quickly explained, "Commandery Princess, we truly have no idea. All of that was handled by the steward. We were only responsible for bringing the children to him."
The second his words ended, Xi Qingyue had already aimed her gun at them and opened fire.
She let out a cold snort. "None of you are good people at all. It turns out you all knew about the children. You deserve to die."
She and Mu Jin and the others killed their way forward, but they did not run into the governor.
This time, Xi Weilan did not make a move. She just held a small pistol and followed behind to guard against any sudden attacks.
Seeing the constant deaths of the people in front of her, Xi Weilan felt no fear or any other complicated emotions. She just thought these people were all man-eating monsters. The governor had ordered people to steal children from all over the place, and these people were all his accomplices who had taken part in the crimes.
She held her small pistol tightly, following closely behind Xi Qingyue, and asked with a head full of questions, "Sister, why haven't we seen a single manager in the governor's manor? Don't they know we're here?"
Xi Qingyue spared a moment to answer her question. "It's fine. They're all gathered in one place. We'll deal with all of them together later."
She had not expected that the Governor of Xinzhou and his core trusted subordinates, upon learning that she had broken into the manor, would choose to hide first. Shouldn't they have been furious, come out to yell at her, and order their men to kill her?
She could not understand what was going through these people's minds, but her superpower told her that the governor had immediately led his men into a secret chamber.
Inside the secret chamber, Situ Tai sat on a chair with a dark, livid face. He felt this was a total disgrace.
But his years of cautiousness made him instinctively choose to hide. Hiding might be humiliating, but it kept him alive.
Even his six hundred troops at the dock could not stop Xi Qingyue, so if he confronted her head on, he would definitely suffer a huge loss.
If Xi Qingyue was really as formidable as they said, hiding in the secret chamber would let them escape. If she turned out to be nothing special, they could just come back out again. None of the military commanders would dare to spread word of this, after all—they had all hidden together.
He cursed under his breath, "Dammit, how did she get here so fast? Are those people in Liucheng all useless? They couldn't even deal with two little girls, what a bunch of wastes."
The steward beside him guessed, "Sir, those people probably all failed in their mission, but the news hasn't gotten back to us yet. This Commandery Princess Cenyue is really strange. As long as we avoid facing the two sisters head on, we'll definitely get a chance to kill them eventually."
The steward's thinking was simple. The Guangling Pavilion still had plenty of people under its command. It wasn't like they only had forces in Liucheng. At worst, they would lose a few more men, and he just did not believe they could not kill two little girls.
After hearing the steward's comforting words, Situ Tai's expression softened a little. If he had known how formidable Xi Qingyue was, he would have mobilized every single troop in Xinzhou.
Suddenly, he thought of the young man who had left earlier, but then he relaxed again.
The courtyard the young man was staying in also had a secret chamber that he could hide in at a critical moment. What's more, the young man had excellent martial arts skills and an extraordinary background, so he should be fine.
A quarter of an hour later, the noise from outside gradually died down.
The steward let out a long sigh of relief. "They're finally gone."
One of the military commanders let out a disdainful snort. "Hmph, children are indeed ignorant. They never expected we'd be hiding in this secret chamber. This time we were careless, but once we make full preparations, next time we'll make her wish she was never born."
The next instant, he heard a soft chuckle, followed by a young and childish voice, "Are you talking about me?"
The military commandant who had been speaking paled in fright. That childish voice was like a demon coming to claim their lives, sending a jolt of terror straight to his bones.
The low, scraping sound of a bookcase sliding across the floor echoed through the room, and Xi Qingyue stepped out abruptly right in front of them.
Situ Tai's face went ashen with shock, and he toppled right off his chair onto the ground.
Xi Qingyue greeted them all with a bright, cheerful smile. "Hi there, everyone. Sorry to keep you waiting."
