Su Jin stared at Liu Chaoming in a daze, unable to understand for a moment why he would appear here.

The torch in the Feathered Forest Guard’s hand fell to the ground with a “hiss.”

Liu Chaoming glanced at him without speaking, turned and walked away. After two steps he turned his head back and looked at Su Jin who was still hesitating: “Aren’t you coming?”

This deep alley was a back street. To avoid the Feathered Forest Guards’ search, they could only pass through the fork ahead and hide in the residential houses across the way.

However, two Feathered Forest Guards were already stationed at the fork.

Liu Chaoming walked to the end of the alley and said to Su Jin: “Wait.” Then he crossed the alley entrance alone and walked toward the fork.

The two Feathered Forest Guards saw clearly that the person approaching was actually Liu Chaoming. Along with their vigilance came astonishment: “…Lord Liu?”

Liu Chaoming didn’t respond. He walked straight up to the two of them, curved the corner of his lips in a smile, and inexplicably said: “Su Shiyu, come out.”

Su Jin instantly understood Liu Chaoming’s meaning and walked out from the dark alley.

The two Feathered Forest Guards couldn’t help but look behind Liu Chaoming. In the firelight’s illumination, Ministry of Justice Assistant Minister Su was actually wearing women’s clothing.

Both were greatly shocked. Just as they reacted and were about to call for people, unfortunately it was already too late. In that instant when they were distracted, Liu Chaoming had already raised his hand and drawn it across their throats.

This time Su Jin saw clearly—hidden between Liu Chaoming’s fingers was a small, thin blade. The edge of the blade should have been coated with some kind of poison that sealed the throat upon contact with blood.

Though the two Feathered Forest Guards guarding the fork were dead, the crisscrossing residential alleys ahead were no longer a safe place either.

Su Jin knew that within half a quarter-hour, the Feathered Forest Guards would discover their colleagues’ bodies and send additional personnel to search households door by door.

She looked at Liu Chaoming walking half a step ahead and couldn’t help asking: “Does Your Lordship know martial arts?”

“No.” Liu Chaoming said. “I only know how to kill people.”

When he said this, he didn’t turn his head back, but his steps paused. He frowned and glanced at the small path ahead. After thinking briefly, he turned and walked toward a fork they had just passed.

This actually coincided perfectly with Su Jin’s thoughts at this moment—that fork led to the residence of Minister of Personnel Zeng Youliang, and Zeng Youliang was Zhu Zhaowei’s man. As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest place.

However, judging from the current situation, going to the Zeng residence was also a last resort. Given Zeng Youliang’s vigilance, as long as the two of them entered, they definitely wouldn’t be able to leave.

Su Jin looked at Liu Chaoming’s back. She was headed for a dead end anyway, so going to the Zeng residence to fight for her life was acceptable. But why would Liu Yun also go there together?

Thinking of this, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind. She said in shock: “Your Lordship actually came alone?”

Liu Chaoming paused: “What do you take me for?” He frowned slightly. “A fortune teller?”

If he hadn’t already known she was a woman, if his informant hadn’t reported that the Fourth Miss of the Qi Manor had gone to the Ministry of Justice, how could he have calculated that Su Jin would use her female identity to deceive everyone?

The situation was urgent. When he guessed that Qiling’s maid was Su Jin, there was simply no time to deploy forces, not even time to inform anyone. His appearance just now in that back street alley was merely one step ahead of her. If he had been one step later, she would have died.

Liu Chaoming looked Su Jin up and down: “Dressing like this, you’ve truly gone mad.”

Su Jin lowered her eyelids: “Your Lordship shouldn’t have come.” She paused. “By coming here, Your Lordship has placed yourself in danger.”

Zhu Zhaowei wanted her life, but didn’t he also want the life of the Left Censor-in-Chief who had always balanced against him in the court?

It was just that Liu Chaoming’s power was overwhelming, making it extremely difficult to move against him. But tonight, with him and her alone together in these deep alleys, it was perfect for Zhu Zhaowei to kill two birds with one stone.

Liu Chaoming said nothing and quickened his pace toward the Zeng residence.

The two walked to the side door of the Zeng residence but didn’t knock. Instead, they hid in a recessed section beside a wall pillar.

Su Jin asked: “How do we get in?”

Liu Chaoming glanced at the alley entrance and saw two Feathered Forest Guards hurrying over with torches, so he said in a low voice: “Wait.”

These two Feathered Forest Guards had probably discovered the bodies at the fork and been ordered to come have the Zeng residence go on alert.

After they had said barely two sentences to the old servant who answered the door, Liu Chaoming was first to emerge from behind the wall pillar. Together with Su Jin, they used their earlier method to seal the throats of the two Feathered Forest Guards.

The old servant who had answered the door showed an expression of alarm and was about to cry out when Liu Chaoming reached out and grabbed his throat: “Want to live?”

The suffocating feeling in his throat accompanied sharp stabbing pain. The old servant’s face flushed red as he nodded with difficulty.

Liu Chaoming added: “Lead the way. Turn your head back and you die.”

This was a side courtyard. Probably because Feathered Forest Guard bodies had been discovered near the Zeng residence, the manor’s guards had all gone to the front courtyard to receive orders, so there weren’t many people in the side courtyard.

The old servant did as told and led Liu Chaoming to the servants’ quarters. Just as he was about to take out a copper key to unlock the door, he suddenly heard someone call out: “Uncle Zhong, they are—”

It was actually a guard returning from the front courtyard.

Liu Chaoming made a snap decision. In two or three steps he was there. Letting the guard defensively restrain his elbow, he flicked his wrist back and used the blade between his fingers to draw a gash on the guard’s forearm.

The blade was coated with poison from the upas tree. No matter where the wound was, as long as it drew blood, it would definitely take a life.

After all, he wasn’t someone who practiced martial arts. This move exposed his back.

In the blink of an eye, the old servant’s hand that had been reaching for the key suddenly moved to his waist. He pulled out a dagger and stabbed it toward Liu Chaoming’s back.

Fortunately, Su Jin had been on guard early on. She cried out: “Your Lordship, watch out!” She raised her hand to block in front of Liu Chaoming. The dagger cut a gash in her left arm, but she stabbed the small knife from the gold hairpin she had been gripping in her palm into the old servant’s shoulder blade.

Whatever was on Qiling’s gold hairpin knife, though the wound was clearly not deep, the old servant staggered two steps in a daze and fell to the ground, not knowing if he was alive or dead.

Liu Chaoming glanced at Su Jin. Seeing blood continuously seeping from her right arm that she was covering, he silently crouched down, found the copper key on the old servant, and opened the side room door nearby. Only then did he say: “Come in.”

Entering the side room, Su Jin had no time to attend to her wound. She rummaged through the cabinets and found a set of men’s long robes and straight jacket. Enduring the pain, she changed out of the maid’s dress she was wearing.

Liu Chaoming somehow found a bottle of wound medicine and placed it on the table: “Apply the medicine yourself.”

Su Jin’s wound was on her right arm. Applying medicine with one hand was very inconvenient, and she would have to remove and put on her clothing again. She tried and felt it would waste too much time, so she simply found a cloth strip in the room and wrapped it around the wound, hastily stopping the bleeding.

Liu Chaoming watched silently from the side. After a moment, he inexplicably said: “My blade has poison on it. Some might have gotten on my hands.”

Su Jin was stunned for a moment before realizing he was actually explaining why he wasn’t helping her apply the medicine. She immediately shook her head: “This small wound is nothing.” After wrapping her wound, she walked outside the courtyard, wrapped some stones in the maid’s dress she had been wearing, sank it to the bottom of the lake, and said to Liu Chaoming: “Let’s go first.”

Though she didn’t say where they were going, both knew that to seek self-preservation in the Zeng residence, they had no choice but to take Zeng Youliang hostage before the Feathered Forest Guards entered the manor.

It was past the second watch. The further they walked toward the front courtyard, the more heavily guarded each area became.

Moreover, Zeng Youliang was no incompetent person either. Liu Chaoming and Su Jin had just stepped onto the corridor leading to the main hall when they saw that at the arched bridge not far away, a line of guards holding torches was searching toward the rear courtyard. Walking among these guards, heavily protected, was none other than Minister Zeng from the Ministry of Personnel.

Liu Chaoming thought this was bad. He turned back and grabbed Su Jin’s wrist, pulling her to quickly retreat back to the high wall they had come from.

Pressed against the high wall, only then did he release his grip on Su Jin’s wrist. With no time to think carefully, he instinctively said: “Leave quickly.”

Su Jin was stunned: “Your Lordship?”

The guards were advancing closer and closer. The path they had come by seemed to be getting blocked section by section. Outside the high wall came clamoring sounds—presumably the Feathered Forest Guards and servants who had died inside and outside the side courtyard had been discovered.

Liu Chaoming lowered his eyes and said softly again: “Find a place and hide.”

Su Jin finally reacted: “No, Your Lordship fell into danger because of me.” She thought for a moment and said, “They don’t know Your Lordship is here. They’re only looking for me. I’ll go find Zeng Youliang. Your Lordship can find an opportunity to leave.”

As she spoke, she was about to walk toward the front courtyard.

Liu Chaoming immediately grabbed her elbow and pulled her back. Before he could say a word, he suddenly saw firelight flash ahead. The guards had already searched this area and shouted: “My lord, over here!”

The pitch-dark night suddenly became bright as day. Dozens of guards holding torches surrounded Su Jin and Liu Chaoming in layers.

Zeng Youliang emerged from the crowd of guards. Seeing Liu Chaoming, he raised an eyebrow in surprise: “Lord Liu?”

Then he smiled: “The Left Censor-in-Chief and the Ministry of Justice Assistant Minister both appearing in my Zeng residence at the same time—those who don’t know might think my Zeng residence is harboring some treasonous, rebellious, utterly unforgivable criminal.”

Speaking to this point, his eyes turned cold as he asked: “Has Wu Yusheng arrived?”

A guard beside him answered: “He’s arrived. Hearing that Lord Su is here, Lord Wu has already brought the Feathered Forest Guards rushing over.”

Su Jin’s heart turned ice cold. Wu Yusheng bringing the Feathered Forest Guards here together had only one purpose—to take her life.

Oh no, wait—also to take Liu Chaoming’s life.

Then frame her for killing Liu Chaoming? Or claim that the departed Thirteenth Prince killed two important court ministers?

The glowing firelight stretched the shadows of the two people on the ground. Su Jin’s gaze fell on Liu Chaoming’s shadow, and she suddenly wanted to ask him why he had come tonight.

She knew Liu Chaoming had promised the old Imperial Censor to look after her.

But what kind of promise would make him willing to risk his life?

Wu Yusheng arrived with the Feathered Forest Guards. He looked at Liu Chaoming and Su Jin each once, showing inevitable hesitation and silence.

But then he thought, since he had already led people to kill Zhu Minda, adding two more strokes to the death register—even if they were pillars of the court—what did it matter?

When sin runs too deep, even a moment of mercy becomes a luxury.

Thinking of this, Wu Yusheng cupped his hands: “Lord Liu, Lord Su, my apologies.”

However, just as he raised his hand to give the order, a servant suddenly came stumbling from the front courtyard: “Lord Zeng, Lord Wu, the Fourth Prince is coming this way with several campaign guards!”