Four Constables - Return to the Capital City by Wen Rui'an

[Jean]

The end of book 2!

Does anyone want me to continue with book 3?

***********************************************

By now the hall is silent. Blood, stained around the whole hall, the seven oil lamps still shimmering.

Shi Youming’s whole body, just like his hands, are so mangled one can no longer tell which is a body part and which is a bloody mess.

After a while. Shi Youming’s throat was gurgling and it took some time before he strangled out these words, “Zhui Ming… and that pair of young… boy and girl… I know where you still are… Zhui Ming… if not for your wine… and that two… kicks, all of you won’t… won’t be able to kill… to kill me… if not for the poison… on the ‘Divine Collecting… Needle’… all of you… I…. ai!” He finally breathed his last.

Only now did Zhui Ming heave a long sigh and say, “Shi Youming, oh Shi Youming, you cannot blame others. You were so close with ‘Bloody Concubine’ but you refused to save her when she was in trouble. Her ‘Divine Collecting Needle’ took your life, so what goes around comes around.”

Yin Chengfeng added, “Manor Master Shi, it’s all the result of your evil ways. Mister Cai was your good friend and treated you so well yet you wanted to absorb his energy. So it’s just retribution that you were injured by the poison in his body.”

The legend is indeed correct, those who learn the skill ‘Bloody Hand Alteration Skill’ really do die horribly. Shi Youming thought that he will gain great fame and reputation so even if he were to die horribly then, he would still be remembered by others. However, the evil will get their retribution and he has not even left the manor to let others know of his prowess, he is already dead. Fate does make fun of man.

Yin Chengfeng knows very well that in the battle earlier, if Zhui Ming had not distracted Shi Youming by spitting the wine in his face and making him close his eyes, his sword will not be able to pierce Shi Youming’s right shoulder so readily and the Xin brothers will not be able to break Shi Youming’s left shoulder. If Zhui Ming’s kicks have not broken Shi Youming’s legs and his wine blinded him, Qu Benlei’s axe will not be able to hit him and the corpse lying down on the ground will belong to them and not Shi Youming.


Zhui Ming heaved a long sigh, thinking that of those 20 who left the tavern earlier, together with those pugilists who left earlier, almost 40 have died, leaving only the three of them behind. Cai Yunfei felt that what has happened seems like a nightmare that she dare not even think about.

But no matter what, the case of the ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’ is finally solved, the so called ‘ghost’ in the manor is also ‘dead’.

Zhui Ming picked up the seven oil lamps, poured out the oil and lighted it. In a short while, a huge fire was burning, the fire cleansing this evil manor on a snowy night.

The snowfall is getting heavier, the snow getting whiter and whiter, as if it’s purity is cleansing all the evil on this world.

There were countless messy footprints on the snow, going towards the now burning ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’ but there were only 3 sets of footprints going away from the manor. Zhui Ming, Yin Chengfeng, Cai Yunfei turned back once in a while to look. The snow falling, the fire rising high in the sky, one red and one white, which became a unique scene in this snowy night.

[LuDongBin]

Yes, please. Thanks for your effort, Jean.

[Jean]

New book!

************************************************** **********

Book 3 – Poison Hand


Chapter 1 – Escaped Dragon from the Blood Prison

Cangzhou, ‘Iron Blood Prison’.

Winter, a snowy day.

Cangzhou’s ‘Iron Blood Prison’ is one of the three major death cells now. Any prisoners locked in ‘Iron Blood Prison’ are all guilty of the most heinous and unpardonable crimes. In order to prevent criminals caught killing or setting fire from escaping or being rescued, most of the time they will be sent to the ‘Iron Blood Prison’ before they are sentenced because it is more heavily guarded than normal prisons.

And now it is winter in Cangzhou, the ground is covered by snow at least a few feet deep. The frozen flowers on dried branches falls quietly on the thick carpet of snow because it cannot bear the weight of the frost.

This is the main door of ‘Iron Blood Prison’ and other than the seven to eight guards who were standing like statues outside the door, there are only the sounds of the freezing wind around, surprisingly bleak but also seemingly surprisingly quiet.

The northern wind howled.

There are two army officials in charge of Cangzhou’s ‘Iron Blood Prison’ and they are rotated every month. Once any mishap happens, the two army officials will be immediately removed from duty to be investigated and they can only atone for their mistakes and be reinstated to their posts after the criminal is caught again.

Therefore, the army officials in charge of ‘Iron Blood Prison’ must not only be of exemplary character, they must also be ever ready to venture into the martial arts realm and hence the risks they face are extremely large. In Cangzhou’s ‘Iron Blood Prison’ there are altogether 12 army officials, who will be rotated once every six months for a duration of one month. To them, they have to be extremely cautious during that one month and they are always on tenterhooks.

But after this month of hard work, they will enjoy five months of peace and comfort,

So these 12 leaders are not only highly skilled but they are also famous and well connected men in the martial arts world. If they are not well connected, once a criminal escapes, it’ll be like searching for a needle in a haystack in the vast martial arts realm so how will they be able to pursue the criminal?

This month’s army official on duty are two famous martial arts expert, Main Officer ‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhendong, Assistant Officer ‘Tri-armed Divine Ape’ Zhou Lenglong. Both of them are extremely highly skilled so if they join forces to deal with the enemy, only a handful will be able to take on more than 30 stances from them.

Besides, both of them started as righteous outlaws and are very experienced. As they have been robbers but now they are court officials, both the orthodox and unorthodox realms will give them some respect.

In ‘Iron Blood Prison’, besides two army officers, there are four other prison officers who are rotated like the army officers. They are ranked slightly below the army officers but higher than the other official staff in the prison. The difference in their duties from the army officers is that the army officials are the backend supervisors whereas they have to personally execute the duties of escorting prisoners and locking them up. These four are the prison guards, if anything untoward happens in the prison, they will bear the same punishment as the army officials.

Therefore these prison guards are naturally martial arts experts.

The four prison guards on duty this month are: ‘Iron Balls’ Sheng Yibiao, ‘Long Blade’ Shen Yunshan, ‘Gold Splitting Hand’ Tian Dacuo, ‘Flying Swallow’ Liu Yanping.

‘Iron Balls’ Sheng Yibiao is the eldest among the descendants of Sheng Family Fortress in Changjiang and his pair of flying balls can be considered astonishing. The Sheng Family of Changjiang places more emphasis on the use of broadsword but this eldest son of the family decided not to use the broadsword but flying balls instead. He is extremely accomplished in its use and not only that, his courage and insight for innovation is surprising. Ever since Sheng Yibiao started working for the government, he has captured uncountable scumbags of the martial arts realm so once the outlaws hear the words ‘Iron Balls’, it’s enough to make them shake with fear.

‘Long Blade’ Shen Yunshan is very quick-witted, cunning and agile. He is invincible and adept at executing the blade skill 'Falling Horse Chop’ using a Long Blade that is 7.1 feet long. The villains of the martial arts world, once they see ‘Long Blade’, will not dare to battle him and choose to surrender instead.

Both hands of ‘Gold Splitting Hand’ Tian Dacuo are his weapons, which he has trained them to be as good as blades and as hard as metal. He once went up ‘Ten Wolves Mountain’ empty handed and captured the ‘Ten Wolves and Nine Tigers’, which resulted in a big boost to his reputation. His is a rash and straightforward but public spirited person.

‘Flying Swallow’ Liu Yanping is one of the best in Lightness Skill and thieves who bump into him are akin to insects who bump into the swallow. Even if they were to grow an extra pair of wings, they cannot escape. He is smart and quick thinking and amongst the four, he is the youngest.

But there is a discernable gap in the martial arts of these four when compared to ‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhendong and ‘Tri-armed Divine Ape’ Zhou Lenglong.
With all these people in ‘Iron Blood Prison’, it’s so secure that even a bird cannot fly in and a fly cannot fly out.

But…

***********************************************

[LuDongBin]

Another of the Four Constables? Thks Jean for continuing.

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue....


***********************************************

There is something that actually broke out of ‘Iron Blood Prison’, not a fly, not a bird, but a human.

A criminal.

Not just any criminal, but almost the number one felon in ‘Iron Blood Prison’.

‘Iron Blood Prison’.

At the door of the prison.

The eight guards were chatting when they suddenly heard footsteps - urgent marching, coming. They lifted their heads to see a row of nine men coming towards them. The leader, who looks about 30 years old, is dressed in a black cape with bright red fleece lining. He has slender brows with narrow eyes and looks like a resourceful person. On his back there is a ling and thin looking long blade, so who else could it be but Shen Yunshan!

The eight guards hurriedly paid their respects and one of the guards asked Shen Yunshan respectfully, “Commander Shen, you… you’re going in?”

The wind and snow is howling. Shen Yunshan asked with an icy smile, “If I am not going in, do you think I’m staying here to be tortured by the wind and snow?”

The guard hurriedly replied, “Yes, yes, yes…”

Using his large set of keys, he opened the metal door. Shen Yunshan turned his head back to tell the eight men behind him, “Come in with me.”

He was halfway in when he suddenly asked the guard, “How many commanders are left in the prison right now?”

The guard replied with a smile, “The two generals are not around but Commander Tian, Commander Sheng, Commander Liu etc are making their rounds in their various sections.”

Shen Yunshan muttered to himself before he suddenly asked, “Do you know where Commander Sheng is?”

The guard scratched his head before answering, “I think he’s patrolling at Section Three.”

Shen Yunxian did not say anything else but just nodded his head and led the 8 men into the prison. The guard saw the 8 men walking past him woodenly so he can’t help but take a glance at them. What he saw gave him a shock for these 8 men were either missing a left eye, or blind in the right eye, or some of them had a broken left arm or leg, the right sleeve of some of them are fluttering in the wind and some of them have a metal rod in place of their right leg. There’s also a person with a scar across his face, almost cutting it in half and there’s another one with both ears missing. These 8 are all handicapped men.

What is most puzzling for this guard is that although the 8 men are dressed in the magistrate office’s uniforms, their hair were messy, they were dirty and smelly, with protruding eyes and teeth and they looked absolutely ghastly, like walking corpses. The most puzzling thing is, the 8 of them all looked wooden with no expression at all. Only after the 8 of them disappeared into the corridors of the prison did the guard manage to exclaim, “My god!”

One of the guards who saw this was almost speechless as he said, “I wonder which department these 8 men are from, most likely they are going to escort some of the villains of the martial arts world to be executed.”

Another guard said with trepidation, “I’m just afraid that the person who is going to be taken will not need to be beheaded.”

Another one of the guards couldn’t understand what he meant so he asked, “Why?”

That guard replied, “He’ll be scared to death, so why bother with the execution!”

Everyone laughed and they started chatting and laughing and soon the conversation changed to other topics, until a blood curdling scream was heard from within the prison.

This scream is extremely familiar to them. This voice originally sounded extremely stern and imposing but now it has become twisted with pain.

This is Commander Sheng’s blood curdling scream.

The 8 guards glanced at one another and just as they were wondering what to do, the sliding bolt inside the door has been opened. However, the design of the fail-safe prison is that the last sliding bolt is on the outside so if those on the outside refuses to open the metal door, those inside will not be able to come out.

One of the guards opened the small window on the door and asked, “Token!”

A small gold and green token was pushed out of the little hole. Only with this token can one go out of this door and these tokens are only given out by ‘Iron Blood Prison’s’ commanding officer on duty for the month.

Another guard asked, “Secret password.”

The person inside answered, “Long in the day but short at night, not winter.”

The guard replied, “Rely on friends at home.”

The person inside immediately added, “Outside the house enemies abound.” Afte that he shouted impatiently, “Hurry up and open the door, I am Commander Shen!” The guard frantically took out his keys and opened the door, only to see 12 men walking out from inside and the leader is indeed Shen Yunshan, looking a little harried.

But the person next to Shen Yunshan is not flustered at all. He’s about 50 years old, with shoulder length hair and very composed. He has a high forehead and his eyes not only looks extremely ferocious, there is a strange gleam that makes one fearful at one glance.

The two men behind Shen Yunshan are about 40 years old and well-built with bright, piercing eyes. The one on the left is slightly shorter and fatter while the one on the right is slightly aller and thinner. The common thing amongst the three of them is a dark green brand on their forehead, obviously they are death row inmates in ‘Iron Blood Prison’.

********************************************

[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue.....


********************************************

They kept on rubbing their wrists and there are marks on their ankles, obviously made by the chains and locks due to long term use and now that the chains are removed, they have not gotten used to the difference yet.

And behind these four men, are the 8 handicapped man, still looking expressionless and moving woodenly.

The few guards took a deep gasp upon seeing this but as the criminals are out of their chains, they had to ask for the reason. So one of the guards braced himself as he asked, “Commander Shen, you…”

Right at the same time, Shen Yunshan’s piercing eyes is staring at him and the two men behind Shen Yunshan, one with eyes like daggers and another with eyes like swords looked directly at him, their fierce gaze hurting his own eyes. Only the person standing next to Shen Yunshan remained motionless.

The guard is unable to continue the rest of his sentence, so he can only stammer, “You… heh heh… you… the snow and wind is so heavy outside, all of you are… going… going out?...”

Shen Yunshan gave a cold snort of acknowledgement and after giving him a sweeping look, led the 11 men and quickly disappeared into the snowy distance. The guards saw with their own eyes the 12 men disappearing so quickly that for a while, they just looked at one another, speechless. Suddenly one of them went ‘Ah’ and pointing at the snow on the ground, cried out, “Come and take a look!”

It turns out that where those men had walked, there were two straight and neat lines of footprints but they were all very faint so one can tell that these men have powerful internal energy. But the most shocking thing is that next to Shen Yunshan, there’s not a single footprint at all and the two men behind Shen Yunshan also left very light prints. But because of the heavy snowfall, they quickly disappeared as well.

Isn’t this the extremely famous ‘Traceless Snow Step’ skill in all of the martial arts realm? It is rumored that only Zhui Ming of the ‘Four Famed Constables’ have such supreme lightness skill.

Could it be that the martial arts of these few men are even higher than their respected Commander Shen?

The 8 guards looked at one another, not knowing what to say.

Suddenly someone jumped out from inside the unclosed cell door, dressed in light green and disappearing into the snowy plains in an instance.

The 8 guards cried out in alarm, “Commander Liu!”

But they hear a roar from inside the prison and a burly looking man dressed in gold jumped out from inside. The snow that fell on his body immediately evaporated and the smoke from the heat rise up from his body. They heard this person roar, “Did you guys see where that cursed Shen Yunshan went?!”

One of the guards cried out in alarm, “Commander Tian!”

‘Gold Splitting Hand’ Tian Dacuo shouted, “Where did they go?!”

That reverberation from that shout made the guards all dizzy, for Tian Dacuo is standing right in the doorway and his massive shout echoed through the walls.

They know very well that Commander Tian is just like Commander Shen, both very hot-tempered but they have never seen him so furious. They were scared stunned and one of the guards braced himself to answer, “… Commander Shen and the rest went towards that way.”

Before he could finish his words, there was a flash of gold so fast that the guard could not utter another word and by the time he took a second look, the bulky gold shirt is more than ten feet away, running hastily away. Where he passed, the snow was all smashed from his footsteps. This may not be the lightness skill ‘Traceless Snow Step’ but it’s the internal energy from ‘Fallen Gold on Ground’, a skill that can cause others envy and alarm.

The 8 guards were flabbergasted and for a moment could not decide what to do. They heard voices again and from within another 30 to 40 guards with drawn sabers and spears, carrying chains and locks and asked the 8 guards, “Where did they run off to?”

One of the guards cried out, “What really happened inside?”

One of the guards holding a sabre reprimanded, “Outrageous, all of you were on guard here, didn’t you see anything?”

One of the 8 guards complained, “We did see, but we don’t understand what was happening.”

Another guard holding an iron claw cried out in exasperation, “We’re not too clear either, we only know that Commander Sheng is dead. ‘Twin Evils of Lingnan, Heavenly Sword and Absolute Sabre’, the Shi brothers and ‘Absolute Destoyer’ Chu Xiangyu have all escaped. It seems that Commander Shen released them and even killed 10 odd of our brothers.”

The 8 guards were absolutely stunned!

What?

‘Twin Evils of Lingnan, Heavenly Sword and Absolute Sabre’, the Shi brothers are out of prison!

‘Absolute Destroyer’ Chu Xiangyu have escaped too!

**************************************************

[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean..

[Jean]

to continue....


**************************************************

These guards are not too familiar with ‘Absolute Destoyer’ Chu Xiangyu. But they are after all part of the martial arts realm so they have heard of ‘Twin Evils of Lingnan, Heavenly Sword and Absolute Sabre’, the Shi brothers.

The Shi brothers, one of them is called Shi Zhenchong and the other Shi Zhenfeng. There should be another older brother but it’s rumored that he is lost in Jianghu.

The Shi brothers, the elder is nicknamed ‘Heavenly Sword’ and the younger nicknamed ‘Absolute Sabre’ and their evil deeds are not only known to those within the martial arts realm, but even a 3 year old child would have heard of them. Especially those from the area of Lingnan, they would often reprimand their children by saying, “When you grow up, you must remember not to be like Big Evil Shi and Small Evil Shi.” Every kid will know the answer that ‘Big Evil Shi and Small Evil Shi’ refers to Shi Zhenchong and Shi Zhenfeng.

These two have committed many evils and have killed without remorse. Even their own parents were killed by them, the horrific act indeed makes one bristle with anger.
　
While these two were terrorizing others in Lingnan, the authorities have never stopped trying to capture them. Those in the martial arts realm also hates the both of them so they are more than happy to work with the authorities. Although the government offers huge reward for their capture, but over the last 8 to 9 years, the army officials who died in their hands were at least 40 and almost 70 to 80 from the martial arts world perished as well, yet these two are still running around scot-free.

Even up to 3 months ago, two of the famous ‘Four Famed Constables’ Leng Xue and Zhui Ming, who were under the tutelage of Mister Zhuge, the ‘Smartest Man in the World’, happened to meet the ‘Twin Evils of Lingnan’ in Cangzhou. They joined forces to defeat the twin evils and locked them up in ‘Iron Blood Prison’. They were to be executed 3 days later but now they have been rescued.

Now that these two have returned to Jianghu, how can there still be peace in the world?

And to think that this matter is connected to ‘Long Blade’ Shen Yunshan!

These 8 guards dare not hesitate further as they pointed out the way and the group of constables hurriedly ran after them in the snow.

The wind is blowing; The snow is falling.

The wind and snow are like gods, the land is like a carpet while the humans are like ants, running hurriedly in the white and vast land.

The 8 guards all heightened their senses as they closed the door of the prison and stood guard outside the door.

Cangzhou’s ‘Iron Blood Prison’ has again returned to its imposing and serene state amongst the wind and snow.

In the majestic hall, a middle aged man wearing a snowy white robe was pacing up and down. He is of slender build, with long beard and side burns, a jade ring on the middle finger of his right hand. He has a serious looking face that looks imposing even when he is not angry.

This person’s forehead is beaded with sweat, he is obviously very frantic, as if he is waiting for someone to arrive.

Suddenly there was a flash of shadow in the hall and a huge man dressed in royal blue brocade has already appeared in the hall. The man in the snow white robe, upon seeing the man in blue appear, asked immediately, “You know about what happened at Iron Blood Prison?”

The man in blue replied as he wiped off his sweat, his voice a little panting, obviously he has travelled a long way. “I know. I was supposed to be on my way to Jinsha Town when the Special Messenger came with the report so I hurriedly turned back. I was worried that the horse would be too slow so I abandoned the horse and ran here instead, that’s how I got here.”

This person actually complained that the horse was slow and chose to run here instead.

The man in the snowy robe said somberly, “Brother, for something like this to happen in an area under our control, it seems that we will soon no longer be able to wear this official hat.”
　
The man in blue frowned and said, “General, I will lead everyone to pursue them in the Central Plains. Even if we have to go to the ends of the earth, we will capture them.”

The man in the snowy robe heaved a long sigh, “I can’t sit here idling when something like this has happened. It’s not so bad that the ‘Twin Evils of Lingnan’ has escaped but even ‘Absolute Destroyer’ has run away, I’m afraid they won’t be so easy to pursue. And it’s rumored that ‘Eight Handicapped’ are involved in the prison break as well, this matter will not be an easy job to handle.”

The man in blue sounded urgent as he replied, “But if we don’t get Chu Xiangyu back here, I’m afraid our heads will roll too.”

The man in the snowy robe looked heavenward and sighed, “But the world is so big, and Chu Xiangyu is such a capable person, where can we find him? Seems liken there is only one way out now…”

The man in blue immediately asked with gleaming eyes, “What way?”

The man with the snowy robe said each word slowly, “Go and find Mister Zhuge. Mister Zhuge is recognized in the martial arts realm as a virtuous person, a friend of the Emperor, an immortal among the literary circle, a friend of gallant heroes so if we have his help, he’ll definitely give us some suggestions so there will still be some hope in pursuing Chu Xiangyu.”

The man in blue jumped up, “That’s right! As Mister Zhuge for help! Why didn’t I think of that?”

The man in the snowy robe said somberly, “There’s no time for delay, go right now!”

The man in blue turned around and shouted, “Men! Prepare 2 swift horses; Zhou Fu, go back to ‘Xiang Bi Pavilion’ quickly and take out my treasured collection of 16 ancient paintings, quick!”

************************************************** ******

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean..

[Jean]

to continue....


************************************************** ******

On the official road of Cangzhou, 20 to 30 horses were suddenly seen running past in the wind and snow, the riders on the horses wore capes and were dressed as constables, riding past as fast as lightning.

Everyone in Cangzhou knows that something major must have happened in Cangzhou because the 2 leads in front, the one in the snowy robe is an important general and high ranking official in the imperial court, known in the martial arts realm as ‘Divine Spear’ General Shi Zhendong. Next to him, dressed in blue, is the great general of Cangzhou’s borders, ‘Tri-armed Divine Ape’ General Zhou Lenglong.

The two men right behind them; one is dressed in a gold wide robes, stoutly built, obviously he is ‘Gold Splitting Hand’ Chief Warden Tian Dacuo of ‘Iron Blood Prison’, the other was dressed in a green colored light outfit, young and good looking. He is obviously ‘Flying Swallow’ Liu Yanping, well known in the martial arts realm for his Lightness Skill.

That these few men are riding so hurriedly in the snow on the official road of Cangzhou, it obviously means that what has happened is definitely out of the ordinary.

In an exquisitely white jade-like decorated hall as white as jade, on a white jade-like table, under the dim yellow candlelight, 16 rolls of ancient paintings are on the table. In front of the table, an elderly man is standing there with a smile, admiring these ancient paintings that came out of the hands of famous painters as he stroked his silvery white beard. He looked extremely relaxed, as if he has immersed himself in the painting and totally forgot about everything else.

This old man’s weather beaten face have a lot of wrinkles but it still retains a boyish, handsome look. Because of his advanced age, it looks very lean. One can imagine that in his youth, this man would be pleasant looking, suave and charismatic.

This old man is dressed in a long white robe with a black lining embroidered from his neck to his stomach which makes the black look blacker and the white even more eye-catching. This is like his life, he may be quick-witted, well respected and highly skilled, it is said that his skill is comparable to the world’s 3 greatest fighter; Chief Situ Yongle of ‘Changxiao Sect’, Manor Master of ‘Jiejian Manor’, Chief Escort Long Fangxiao of ‘Fengyun Escort Agency’, but he sees things very clearly in black and white. In all the things he does, one means one and two means two, he has never wavered in his belief of chivalry and upholding of justice.

This person is Mister Zhuge.

Everyone in the martial arts realm knows that Mister Zhuge loves the following: zither, chess, poetry, books, paintings. Therefore these 16 scrolls of ancient paintings are placed right in front of Mister Zhuge.

Mister Zhuge smiled as he stroked his long beard with his slender fingers, and a young man next to him who does not look older than 30 years of age was also smiling.

Anyone who stands next to Mister Zhuge will look as if an ancient painter has expertly drawn grand mountains and waterfall with a refined and superior man standing next to it but somehow the painter has added an unbearably common man in the painting as well which decreases the value of the piece of art. Except for this youth, wearing a light blue long robe and standing next to this aged man, he is comparable with Mister Zhuge in terms of manner, bearing, temperament, style and vigor and in no way is he any paler by comparison.

This person is none other than one of the Four Famed Constables that Mister Zhuge personally trained: his second disciple among the names Wu Qing, Leng Xue, Tie Xhou, Zhui Ming. He is Tie Shou. Amongst the four, Leng Xue is the youngest, followed by Wu Qing. Tie Shou is older than Leng Xue by a little and the oldest is Zhui Ming.

In the 30 odd years, Mister Zhuge has only trained 6 constables personally and the 6 all achieved fame far and wide. However, two of them died young.

Of the remaining four, Wu Qing is well known for his strategies and secret weapons; Leng Xue’s character is steadfast and persistent, and his swordplay is swift and extremely vicious; Tie Shou is famous for his unrivaled Iron Fist and profound internal strength; Zhui Ming is extremely good in his Lightness Skill and unparalleled in his kicks.

This story is exactly about Tie Shou’s personal experience in Jianghu, his narrow escape in a harrowing fight with the fierce and powerful in the martial arts realm.

Mister Zhuge said with a smile, “This is a famous painting.”

Tie Shou replied with a laugh, “Such artistic strokes are not something that painters now are able to achieve; it’s an ancient painting.”

Shi Zhengdong added with a smile, “The person is a famous person.”

Mister Zhuge responded, “Oh?”

Shi Zhendong laughed, “If it’s not a famous person, how can he appreciate a famous painting?”

Zhou Lenglong hurriedly added, “If Mister likes them, these painting are treasured collections in my family, I can give them all to you.”

Mister Zhuge seems distracted for a while before he suddenly replied with a smile, “Please have some tea.”

‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhengdong and ‘Tri-armed Divine Ape’ Zhou Lenglong are all men who have seen the world and involved in grand battles, famed generals on the battlefield but when they see Mister Zhuge now, they are acting a little unnatural due to their profound respect for this man. Zhou Lenglong is offering the paintings as a gift but did not expect Mister Zhuge to change the subject so he was a little taken aback. Tie Shou lifted his cup and said with a smile, “Generals, please have tea.”

The two of them hurriedly lifted their cups and took a tiny sip as a form of courtesy but they did not expect that once they tasted the tea, the fragrance went straight into their bodies and they can’t help but finish the tea in one gulp. Both of them looked at each other and Shi Zhendong said with a slight smile, “It turns out that Mister is a tea expert as well. I have drank tea all my life but never have I tasted such marvelous tea.”

Mister Zhuge answered with a nonchalant smile, “This tea is the famous ‘Concubine Xiang’ tea from Chaozhou, the pot used to brew this tea is the ‘Red Clay Pot’ from Quanzhou, the water used is from the Number One spring in the world, the firewood is Tongzhou’s ‘Redwood’. Therefore, the human is just a collector. The reason that the tea is nice, fragrant, excellent is because the ingredients are all naturally exceptional, not because of the work of man.”

Shi Zhendong laughed, “Excellent insight from Mister.”

Mister Zhuge waved his hand and said, “Please, take a seat.” He randomly sat on a wooden chair and said with a smile, “Both of you rushed here from Cangzhou in such a wintry period and this General Zhou here even came with his paintings so there must be an issue. Please feel free to speak your minds, otherwise I’ll feel bad for taking up the time of two outstanding generals who risk their lives in the battlefield for our country!”

‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhengdong and ‘Tri-armed Divine Ape’ Zhou Lenglong looked at each other and went red in the face. They did not expect Mister Zhuge to figure out at once that they came to visit with a motive.

‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhengdong said with shame, “Mister, your eyes are so keen and perceptive; indeed we are here to seek your advice.”

************************************************** *************

[LuDongBin]

So, its Tie Shou this time round. Thks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue.....


************************************************** *************

Mister Zhuge smiled, “I won’t dare say advice, but I am willing to hear what’s going on. It must be something major for both generals to be alarmed.”

Shi Zhendong sighed and said, “Heavenly Sword and Absolute Sabre’, the Shi brothers, have escaped from prison.”

Tie Show, who was at the side, shuddered a little and asked, “General is referring to the ‘Twin Evils of Lingnan’, the brothers Shi Zhenchong and Shi Zhenfeng?”

Shi Zhendong sighed, “Indeed.”

Mister Zhuge stroked his beard as he said, “The Shi brothers have committed many evil deeds. When Leng Xue and Zhui Ming were going after them at that time, they have to spend quite a lot of effort. We were just celebrating the capture of these two, and never expected that they still managed to escape.”

Shi Zhendong sighed quietly, “This is all because of my carelessness that Mister and your disciples have to trouble yourselves over this matter, I really don’t know what else to say… the problem is, Chu Xiangyu is also one of the escapees.”

Mister Zhuge’s brows were initially lowered in deep thought when he heard the name ‘Chu Xiangyu’ and his brows suddenly shot up and his eyes turned sharp that even the experienced fighters like Shi Zhendong and Zhou Lenglong were taken aback. Mister Zhuge uttered, “You mean ‘Absolute Destroyer’ Chu Xiangyu?”

Shi Zhendong replied with shame, “Indeed.”

Mister Zhuge heaved a long sigh, “If this person escapes from prison, there will be no peace in Jianghu!”

Zhou Lenglong can’t help but ask, “I’ve heard that ‘Absolute Destroyer’ Chu Xiangyu’s ‘Icy Gleam, Fiery Flame Skill’ is famous in the world. He’s resourceful but has done many evil deeds but I don’t know… why…” He hesitated, as if he finds it difficult to continue talking, and just took a look at Mister Zhuge.

Mister Zhuge smiled, “General Zhou is right, if Chu Xiangyu is just a regular fiend of the martial arts world, there is no need to fear him. But he is a wanted criminal by the imperial court who made 3 unsuccessful assassination attempts on the Emperor. He has the ambition to take over the world and once made contact with the 72 branches of Forest Outlaws, 26 Leaders of the Changjiang Three Gorges waterways and with these groups of outlaws attempted to attack the capital city. This person may be quite old but his face is still as smooth as jade and no matter how arduous the surroundings are, he still looks handsome and well groomed. He has leadership capabilities and the reason his Majesty has given orders to keep this person in custody first is because he is thinking of recruiting this person for his own use. But now that he has escaped, I’m afraid this person will not give up just like that. He’ll stir up trouble amongst the people and threaten the Dukes, by then… hai.”

General Shi Zhendong sighed, “That’s right. In the past when ‘Absolute Destroyer’ Chu Xiangyu tried to cause an uprising, luckily Mister Zhuge went alone to the 26 waterways and convinced them to leave the rebel army. He then went to talk to the Forest Outlaws and gave them appropriate assurance and finally suppressed Chu Xiangyu’s uprising. Chu Xiangyu saw his plot failed so he tried to assassinate the Emperor thrice. The first time he was found out by the imperial guards and he escaped after being surrounded by a thousand odd people; the second time he got nearer to the Emperor but was stopped by the martial arts experts employed by his Majesty, who risked their lives to protect him so Chu Xiangyu failed again; the third time he tried, Mister Zhuge happened to be in the Forbidden Palace and fought hard against ‘Absolute Destroyer’. Therefore, Chu Xiangyu was finally captured.”

Zhou Lenglong was taken aback, “This means that… if his Majesty finds out about this matter… won’t our crime be unpardonable… our heads… heads will have to roll?”

Mister Zhuge said with a straight face, “This is a serious matter. I will definitely not let someone like Chu Xiangyu escape scot-free… Generals, please tell me in detail what happened so that I can think of a way to go after that evil fiend.”

Shi Zhendong answered gladly, “Yes. We were hoping for Mister’s advice and help.”

Mister Zhuge replied, “You’re welcome.”

“This is what happened. This month, Cangzhou’s Iron Blood Prison is still under the care of me and Brother Zhou as well as four other officials and they are ‘Iron Balls’ Sheng Yibiao, ‘Long Blade’ Shen Yunshan, ‘Flying Swallow’ Liu Yanping and ‘Gold Splitting Hand’ Tian Dacuo…”

Mister Zhuge nodded his head and said, “Iron Blood Prison is a well-built prison and security has always been tight. With both of you personally guarding the area and the help of Sheng, Liu, Tian and Shen, by right nothing should go wrong.”

Shi Zhendong sighed, “Yes, by right nothing should go wrong. But this morning, when the wind and snow were still strong, Shen Yunshan actually brought 8 men dressed as constables and killed Sheng Yibiao who was stationed at the second cell and injured a number of prison guards. He snatched the keys and saved Chu Xiangyu and the Shi brothers.”

Mister Zhuger asked seriously, “Is Shen Yunshan usually under you?”

Shi Zhendong nodded his head, “He is one of the outstanding men in my army. He was originally under the Minister of Defense, General Zuo but later because of a lack of military support in Cangzhou, he was transferred to me.”

Mister Zhuge asked, “How does he behave normally?”

Shi Zhendong replied systematically, “His sabre skills are sharp and swift and he is has a sharp mind although sometimes he’s a little cunning. He achieved 3 meritorious deeds but while under me, he once committed two minor wrongdoings but I did not give him a heavy punishment because firstly he did not commit a major crime and secondly I am in need of such a talent.”

As a great general, ‘Divine Spear’ Shi Zhendong is really ahead of his peers as he could actually know so many details about one of the men under him and remember all of them. He obviously knows that Shen Yunshan is a cunning person yet has no choice but to tolerate him. Mister Zhuge understands this point very well because as a leader, such a talent is greatly needed but yet one have to be on guard as well.

Mister Zhuge asked, “What wrong did he do?”

Shi Zhendong replied, “The first time he stole army provisions and after I found out, his punishment was to be whipped 60 times and 3 days of hard labor; the second time he attempted to take liberties with decent ladies and was found out. I slapped him twice and he was give 12 strokes of the cane.”

Mister Zhuge suddenly interrupted, “Hold it! The second case of him attempting to take liberties with decent ladies, was it you who found out about it?”

Shi Zhendong looked at Zhou Lenglong, who hurriedly replied, “It was me who brought them to Xuzhou at that time, Brother Shi was not with us. It was only upon our return to the main camp that I reported this to Brother Shi. The person who discovered and stopped him was ‘Iron Balls’ Commander Sheng Yibiao.”

Mister Zhuge uttered, “Oh?”

************************************************** *****************

[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue....


************************************************** *****************
Shi Zhendong continued, “That’s why I think that the reason Shen Yunshan released the prisoners is not only because he is friends with the prisoners but also to seek revenge. This can be seen from the fact that the only person he killed is Sheng Yibiao.”

Mister Zhuge looked up and asked, “Why do you say that he only killed Sheng Yibiao?”

Shi Zhendong explained, “When their group of 9 dashed into ‘Iron Blood Prison’, they passed by the first cell and turned into the second cell and at that time Commander Tian was there. He did not react in time and Shen Yunshan sealed his acupoints. After that they went into the third cell, rescued Chu Xiangyu and killed Sheng Yibiao.”

Mister Zhuge said slowly, “This means that, in ‘Iron Blood Prison’, one must first pass the first cell to reach the second cell, and from the second cell to get to the third and fourth cell…”

Shi Zhendong replied, “That’s right.”

Mister Zhuge continued asking, “What about that Commander Tian whose acupoint was sealed?”

Shi Zhendong replied, “He was only sealed on his ‘Softening Acupoint’ and ‘Mute Acupoint’, he could only watch as Shen Yunshan killed the prison guards and save the Shi brothers but could do nothing about it.”

Mister Zhuge said, “So this means that the Shi brothers are being kept in the second cell, under the guard of Commander Sheng.”

He then added, “How does Sheng Yibiao behave usually?”

Zhou Lenglong replied, “That Sheng Yibiao, no matter what, he can be considered a very good man. His pair of iron balls will always hit the intended target and he is very brave with exceptional skills. I really think highly of him.”

Shi Zhengdong added, “Sheng Yibiao is a good man and very responsible. The only bad point about him is he is very hotheaded. Amongst the few, only Tian Dacuo is on slightly better terms with him and as for the rest, they’ve all had arguments with him so there’s no real friendship. I did not expect he will perish under Shen Yunshan, hai…”

Mister Zhuge asked, “Is this Tian Dacuo around?”

Shi Zhendong replied, “Since this thing has happened, everyone is involved so I have already brought him along. Mister, do you want to see him?”

Mister Zhuge said seriously, “I have questions for him.”

Shi Zhendong called out loudly, “Good, summon Commander Tian in here.”

A burly looking man dressed in gold strode confidently into the hall. He cupped his fist in respect to Shi Zhengdong and Zhou Lenglong before turning to Mister Zhuge and paying his respects. Mister Zhuge said with a smile, “A good man indeed, Warrior Tian, please take a seat.”

Tian Dacuo answered in his thick voice, “Thanks.”

He sat down roughly on a wooden chair and was surprised that he didn’t smash the chair into pieces with his weight.

Mister Zhuge continued with a smile, “When the incident happened, you were in the second cell, right?”

Tian Dacuo replied loudly, “Exactly.”

Mister Zhuge asked, “Can you repeat again what happened?”

Tian Dacuo said loudly, “Sure. This morning, I woke up in the second cell and was feeling bored so I started practicing my martial arts. Right at this time, that bastard walked in with another eight bastards, damn it… I didn’t expect that bastard to be this kind of a person, so I asked him if he has any wine but he suddenly struck and sealed my ‘Softening Acupoint’ while I was unprepared…”

Mister Zhuge interrupted, “The ‘bastard’ you were referring to, is it Shen Yunshan.”

The more Tian Dacuo recollected what happened, the more furious he got and he shouted, “Who else but him is the bastard? He’s the son of a turtle.”

Shi Zhendong suddenly interrupted him with a shout, “Tian, how can you speak to Mister Zhuge thus…” He turned to Mister Zhuge and continued, “Dacuo is just a fighter and not familiar with proper manners, I hope Mister and Brother Tie would forgive him.”

Mister Zhuge replied with a smile, “It doesn’t matter, I am very impressed with his straightforward character instead. Please continue talking.”

Tian Dacuo softened his words as he continued, “That fellow sealed my ‘Softening Acupoint’ so I could not move. The few men under me who were guarding walked over but I did not expect those eight handicapped bastards to be so vicious and killed all of them in no time. That bastard took my keys and released the pair of Shi brothers. I couldn’t bear what I saw so I started cursing him from the floor and those eight handicapped bastards wanted to rush up and kill me but at least that bastard have some humanity left in him and stopped them. After that he rushed into the third cell with the Shi brothers and I was so pissed that my lungs were about to burst…”

Mister Zhuge suddenly asked, “Wait, it was Shen Yunshan who stopped those men from killing you?”

Tian Dacuo answered openly, “That’s right. I may hate that fellow but I will remember this kindness.”

Mister Zhige asked again, “You were originally on good terms with Shen Yunshan?”

Tian Dacuo answered angrily, “We were all working in the same prison and were all on good terms but that bullying bastard, after I had a fight with him 3 months ago, he started ignoring me.”

Mister Zhuge asked, “Oh? You fought before?”

Zhou Lenglong added, “That’s right. At that time Shen Yunshan was bullying one of the prison guards and kicked his food tray over. Tian and Sheng Yibiao were both around then and they wanted to make Shen Yunshan eat up the rice that dropped on the ground but he refused so the two of them fought against him. Later Liu came to inform me so I rushed over to stop their fight…”

Shi Zhendong stared at Zhou Lenglong and said quietly, “Why didn’t you tell me that something like this happened in prison?” Zhou Lenglong went ‘oh’ and for a moment have no answer for him. Mister Zhuge continued, “What happened next?”

************************************************** *******

[Abhay]

Thanks Jean.