“An Jiu.” Mo Sigui lifted An Jiu and fed her an antidote pill. He then pressed her acupoints to stop the bleeding before anxiously looking up to check on Elder Qi’s battle situation.
Mo Sigui’s internal organs had been injured, leaving him without the strength to carry An Jiu.
“Hand her over to me,” Cui Yichen said, suddenly appearing before them.
Remembering An Jiu’s selfless act of saving him earlier, Mo Sigui would rather die than hand her over. Unable to fight back, he tried to buy time. “Do you have a grudge against her?”
“Yes,” Cui Yichen replied. He had always been his family’s pride, rarely facing setbacks. The last time he tried to capture An Jiu, he fell into Chu Dingjiang’s trap, suffering heavy losses and severe punishment from his master. Known for his vengeful nature, he vowed to seek revenge on Chu Dingjiang sooner or later, with An Jiu being just an afterthought.
Mo Sigui couldn’t fathom why Cui Yichen would want An Jiu dead over such a trivial matter.
Cui Yichen glanced around. “If you keep stalling, the Mei clan will be finished.”
Mo Sigui and An Jiu were positioned in the north, upwind. The wind wasn’t strong, but it was enough to carry a bit of poison! He discreetly opened a vial with the hand supporting An Jiu while speaking to distract Cui Yichen. “When someone dies, that’s the end. She’s so young—what unforgivable crime could she have committed against you that you’d want to desecrate her corpse?”
“Mo Sigui,” Cui Yichen identified him, suddenly smiling. “You should worry about yourself.”
Cui Yichen raised his hand, and over a dozen black-clad men surrounded them. He said calmly, “Capture him alive.”
If they couldn’t secure Elder Qi, capturing Mo Sigui would suffice. Their master might even be more pleased, given that Elder Qi had become less passionate about medicine in recent years and was quite sentimental. The master had failed several times to capture Elder Qi’s son, who had joined the Crane Army. Mo Sigui, on the other hand, seemed easier to control.
A sweet plum blossom scent gradually filled the air.
Some of the lower-ranked black-clad men began to feel weak, their swords clattering to the ground.
Cui Yichen noticed the change—where could this plum blossom scent come from amidst the blood and fire? He leaped backward, covering his nose and mouth.
A madman’s voice came from nearby, “Old man! Surrender quietly, and I won’t hurt you!”
Mo Sigui glanced over quickly, his heart aching—Elder Qi was covered in blood, his white beard stained red, his face pale.
“I know you want to capture Elder Qi,” Mo Sigui said, his eyes carrying a hint of charm as always. “I’ll go with you. My medical skills are now on par with his. My condition is that you let Elder Qi leave with her body.”
“Your suggestion is good, but your behavior hasn’t been very friendly,” Cui Yichen said, glancing at the black-clad men falling around them.
Mo Sigui raised his hand slightly, causing Cui Yichen to step back immediately. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was just a porcelain vial that had rolled to his feet.
Mo Sigui’s lips curved into a lazy, mocking smile. “The antidote. Do you dare to try it?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Cui Yichen raised an eyebrow, bent down to pick up the antidote, and tossed it to one of the poisoned men.
The man grumbled inwardly—of course, Cui Yichen dared, he wasn’t the one being poisoned!
Despite his thoughts, he didn’t hesitate. He caught the antidote, pulled down his mask, and swallowed a pill.
Before they could observe its effects, a flash of cold light struck. The poisoned men around them had no strength to resist.
Mr. Mo easily broke through the encirclement, carrying Mo Sigui.
“Take her too,” Mo Sigui said, refusing to let go of An Jiu.
Mr. Mo lowered his eyes for a moment before scooping up An Jiu.
“Yinsha!” Cui Yichen called out, wary of this unexpected intruder. He could only try to persuade verbally, “You have no connection to the Mei clan. Why meddle in this affair?”
How could there be no connection? When no other place dared to shelter him, the Mei clan had taken him in. They didn’t require him to carry out missions or live a life of constant hiding.
An army raised for a thousand days is used in a crucial moment. If not now, when?
Zhao Shanzhang and the others might be cold-blooded killers, but they had their principles—honor and loyalty. Without these qualities, the Mei clan wouldn’t have expended so much effort to recruit unrelated individuals.
“A good dog doesn’t block the way,” Mr. Mo said coldly, turning to face Cui Yichen. Meeting the anger in his eyes, he sneered, “Don’t force me to act.”
Cui Yichen gripped his sword hilt tightly, almost grinding his teeth, but ultimately didn’t dare to attack.
“Yinsha” was renowned for his skills. When he first emerged, he could kill eighth-rank experts while only at the sixth rank himself. Later, he took on increasingly unbelievable jobs. Cui Yichen was no match for even a casual strike from him.
“Sir!” Mei Ruye ran over.
Mr. Mo handed An Jiu to her and called a Mei clan shadow, “The enemy’s numbers are growing. I’ll cut a path for you to escape Meihua Li. Use the Mei clan token to enter Bianjing tonight.”
The Mei clan, as imperial servants, naturally had some privileges. As founding contributors to the nation with a duty to protect the royal family, during the Taizu era, the Mei clan could bring a thousand-strong army into the city with their token. Later emperors felt this power was too great and tried to revoke it, facing protests from the major Crane-controlling families. After three generations of emperors, the matter was finally settled. To appease the families, the form of this privilege was retained but limited to no more than ten people.
“Elder Qi gave me the token!” Mei Ruye said.
Mo Sigui hesitated. An Jiu was on the brink of death and needed his treatment, while Elder Qi was surrounded and losing ground… His mentor or his lifesaver—how to choose?
Seeing Mo Sigui’s hesitation, Elder Qi shouted, “Get out of here!”
Mo Sigui’s eyes moistened, his vision blurred by tears. He closed his eyes, turned, and followed Mei Ruye.
After a few steps, he stopped again. “Fifteen, take Fourteen and leave first. I’ll catch up soon!”
Mei Ruye nodded, “Alright.”
Mo Sigui released all his jade-scented clothes and ran back. Elder Qi had treated him like a son; he couldn’t bear to watch this father figure face certain doom alone.
Mo Sigui thought silently, “I’ll do my utmost to survive and save you. But Mei Fourteen, I’m sorry. At this moment, I couldn’t choose you!”
The battle had raged for nearly an hour. The enemy’s numbers kept growing, these relentless waves seemed endless. Mr. Mo’s white clothes were finally stained with blood, like red plum blossoms blooming in the snow.
They fought their way to a small ravine at the exit of Meihua Li. Seeing the pursuers growing more numerous, Mr. Mo said, “I’ll hold them off. You go first.”
With dozens of pursuers, facing them alone was almost certain death.
“I won’t go!” Mei Ruye grabbed his sleeve, her gaze resolute. “If we die, we die together!”
“Live,” Mr. Mo turned away, using his sword to cut off his sleeve. “If I live, we’ll meet again. If I die, avenge me.”
Was this an acknowledgment of their feelings?
Tears burst from Mei Ruye’s eyes. She hugged him briefly. “Alright.”