Zan Jin roared and tried to rush forward to rescue her, but was lashed by Xiang Shiyi’s whip. He neither dodged nor blocked—the whip tail scraped off a strip of skin from his neck, immediately beading with blood.
But it was Xiang Shiyi who screamed, because her throat was also seized.
“Release Brother Mo, or this woman dies.” Zan Jin’s two fingers formed hooks, sinking into Xiang Shiyi’s slender neck without the slightest mercy. The foolish boy from before now had the judgment to assess situations.
Qian Liang and Bai Liang immediately imitated Zan Jin, and with smiling ease, each grabbed one of Xiang Shiyi’s subordinates. “Release our Third Young Master, or these two also die.”
Xiang Shiyi struggled to call out, “Sister Tao…” Before she could say more, Zan Jin increased his force, preventing her from uttering another word.
Xu Jiu flew down from the high platform.
Fu Tian stood up and took a step toward Mo Zi’s side, the four men in blue robes following like shadows.
Jin Yin waved his fan and sat up straight, his gaze moving from Hu Tao’s fat hands to that person at that table. That person hadn’t moved, but his usually gentle expression was now ice-cold, his lips pressed thin into a straight line.
Would he finally rage?
He suddenly smiled, his gaze returning, his mouth corners curling up with bewitching beauty as he said to Qian Liang and Bai Liang, “If you two can’t rescue Third Young Master, you don’t need to follow me anymore.”
Qian Liang and Bai Liang’s eyes sharpened with killing intent.
“Eighth Sister-in-law, what do you want to do now? Whether you go or stay, I’ve already left it up to you. Why are you taking my guest hostage?” Xu Jiu frowned.
His people surrounded Hu Tao and her group, but because Mo Zi was in her hands, they dared not act rashly.
“No reason—I just want everyone to see the fate of those who followed the wrong person. Things have come to this, I won’t survive alone, but to die so uselessly would be unwilling. This bastard conspired with you—I can’t touch you one bit, so I’ll drag him to hell with me.” Hu Tao’s eyes were filled with bloodshot threads.
“Sister Xiang, our sisterly bond will continue in the next life—” She said to Xiang Shiyi, whose eyes were rolling back.
After speaking, Hu Tao pinched Mo Zi’s chin—with just a twist to the side, that neck would break.
Everyone saw Hu Tao’s face full of determination to die and cried out in alarm.
But something strange happened.
Hu Tao didn’t move. More accurately, she twisted, but couldn’t.
“If not now, when else?” A voice that chilled to the bone suddenly rang out.
Hu Tao’s whole body trembled, her head frozen as she instinctively searched for that voice. When she saw several figures gradually approaching but before she could clearly see which person had spoken to send her to the Yellow Springs, her eyes went black and she could no longer exert any strength, collapsing limply.
Zan Jin immediately threw aside Xiang Shiyi and rushed to Mo Zi’s side, anxiously asking if she was injured. Qian Liang and Bai Liang circled around her, repeatedly saying fortunately nothing happened.
Mo Zi didn’t hear a single word, staring blankly at Hu Tao’s ashen face on the ground. Everything around was so chaotic, yet she couldn’t shift her gaze.
Someone came up, draped an outer robe over her shoulders, and helped her walk. Her thoughts were in disarray—she only felt a buzzing sound growing louder and louder, then farther and farther away. In her unstable state, she seemed to have gotten into her own carriage. Sitting inside, she couldn’t figure out no matter how she thought—Hu Tao actually died just like that?
Hu Tao wanted to break her neck, so naturally she wouldn’t sit and wait for death. Using self-defense moves from close combat, she resisted Hu Tao’s force. In others’ eyes, she seemed powerless as a chicken, only able to wait for death, but she was confident about escaping such a predicament. Hu Tao’s long and short swords had been knocked away by Fu Tian’s people—there were no weapons to restrain her hands and feet. Moreover, the saying goes “know yourself and your enemy”—Hu Tao didn’t know she had martial arts foundation, so mentally she had already lost.
She, just now, originally, could have thrown Hu Tao off!
But by just that little bit, a living person became a dead person right before her eyes.
“I thought Brother Mo had seen all kinds of scenes—are you still afraid of dead people?” That voice was gentle.
Only then did Mo Zi realize there was someone in the carriage. She looked hazily: “Yuan Cheng…”
She closed and opened her eyes, her gaze clearing. “It’s you.”
Yuan Cheng looked at her as if a long time had passed, uttering two words: “It’s me.”
“Though she was detestable, her crime didn’t deserve death—you should have shown mercy.” That voice commanding action was cold to the point of unfamiliarity. Perhaps others couldn’t tell, but she had heard it before.
“If she didn’t die, it would be you dying. Brother Mo is a magnanimous person—I didn’t know you were magnanimous enough to not even want your life.” Yuan Cheng’s eyes gradually deepened. “I thought I’d saved Brother Mo again, but unexpectedly you don’t appreciate it—it was my meddling.”
Mo Zi was startled and looked up at him, seeing a face with fading expression. Her heart inexplicably tightened. “Yuan Cheng, I just—” Just what? She thought he didn’t know she had life-preserving skills, so naturally he thought it was a critical moment.
“Forget it.” Yuan Cheng lowered his eyes, the expression on his face hiding in the shadows. “Brother Mo was frightened—rest well.”
The wind moved the curtain, and only Mo Zi remained in the carriage.
Her eyes heated and two tears slid from her eye sockets. Unable to explain clearly, she could only conclude she’d been foolish. She shouldn’t have come to this Leopard Gang assembly at all, bringing trouble to herself and others.
Rather than saying she sympathized with Hu Tao, it was more that she’d never experienced someone dying right in front of her. In that unbearable past, the people who stayed by her side all had ulterior motives. Only much later did she learn it was because those who were sincere to her had all died, many losing their lives the moment she turned her back. All deaths faced away from her. So when one second ago her back could still feel the body heat of that arrogant woman Hu Tao, and the next second she lay at her feet without signs of life, she wasn’t hard-hearted and couldn’t remain indifferent.
But she also knew that blaming Yuan Cheng for this was excessive.
“Brother Mo.” Zan Jin’s cautious voice: “Xu Jiu wants to see you.”
After all, there were differences between men and women. No matter how much she pretended to be a man, encountering such scenes of life and death, in the end she still appeared green and lacking in spirit. She guessed that anyone with even a bit of perception would have questions seeing her so distracted.
Mo Zi lightly patted her cheeks, wiped both eyes dry with her sleeve, straightened her expression, and lifted the window curtain. “Ninth Master.”
She didn’t know what she should say. Congratulate him, or express sadness over Hu Tao’s death? The first rule of Leopard Gang wasn’t that brothers’ vengeance must be avenged? Were she and he enemies or friends?
“I’ve caused Brother Mo alarm—Xu Jiu is at fault. My Eighth Sister-in-law’s grief over losing her husband was excessive, leading to such madness. This way, it’s also a release. From now on, my Leopard Gang will no longer have rules that confuse right and wrong.” As gang leader, gang rules would be rewritten by him. “The wrongs Brother Mo suffered today, Brother Mo just remember them. Though Brother Mo and I have no brotherly name, we share brotherly righteousness. Whatever needs doing, I’ll certainly go through fire and water without hesitation.”
One frightening incident, one human life—Xu Jiu had become a force on her side.
Mo Zi smiled somewhat reluctantly. “Ninth Master is too kind.” Even if she had to lick blood from a blade, she would live well.
Xu Jiu clasped his fists. “Much to handle today—I’ll visit another day. Brother Mo, I’ll send a squad of brothers to escort you back to Hongyu to prevent further complications.”
After speaking, without waiting for Mo Zi to refuse, he turned and walked through the door.
Mo Zi lowered the curtain, then suddenly pulled it open again. She saw Xu Jiu with head high and broad back, striding with great strides. Behind him followed a group of Leopard Gang core members, matching his every step.
Was she overthinking? Would such a forthright man deliberately arrange for her to come and even have Wu You sit at her table? Because he already knew Hu Tao’s scheme—with her there, he could clear himself before the entire gang while displaying righteous distinction between right and wrong.
“Brother Mo, shall we leave?” Zan Jin was utterly regretful inside.
Leopard Gang had already changed hands—Xu Jiu’s era had arrived. And his power could be shared with her, so why should she think so much? In any case, he won, she lived—that was what mattered most.
“Zan Jin, don’t blame yourself. The incident was sudden—you did your best.” Mo Zi showed Zan Jin a slight smile. “Are the others all right?”
“Brother Mo, we’re fine.” Niu Gao led the horses over, his waist gleaming—an axe. Behind him, Ding Xiu and the others were all the same, axes tucked at their waists.
“Where’s the need for you to be nervous?” Mo Zi pointed ahead of the carriage where a squad of thirty to forty big men in white robes helped clear the way, all wearing black-sheathed large sabers, imposing and high-spirited.
“I see this Leopard Gang has problems that can be counted by the basket—better not get implicated.” Wei Qing was very clever.
Mo Zi also knew that Huo Ba was dead, Hu Tao was also dead, Xiang Shiyi might still cause trouble, there was still Chen San, those elders who changed colors at the sight of gain, and the three halls’ forces who decided on the spot to stay—all were hidden dangers. But she couldn’t manage those matters and could only say let’s go.
When everything quieted, what she thought about most wasn’t this conspiracy, wasn’t Hu Tao’s death, but rather Yuan Cheng’s face hidden in shadow. Because she couldn’t see clearly, her heart was chaotic. Was that an expression distancing himself from her? Or was he disappointed in her weakness?
Hongyu’s procession slowly departed.
Jin Yin turned around and rewarded Bai Liang and Qian Liang each with a knuckle rap on the head. “You two usually just brag, but at critical moments you’ve never been useful. What did I just say? If you can’t save her, you two don’t follow me. Now, hurry and leave.”
“Though it wasn’t our turn to act, Third Young Master was still saved.” Bai Liang was most glib.
“That was Yuan Cheng having someone save her, not you saving her.” Jin Yin gave Bai Liang another knuckle rap.
“Eldest Young Master saving her is the same as us saving her, isn’t it?” Bai Liang didn’t learn his lesson, rubbing his forehead, quite aggrieved.
Qian Liang dragged his brother outside. “Young Master, calm down—we’ll wait for you outside the door.”
“Yuan Cheng, you…” Jin Yin ignored the twins and turned to tease the person who just entered the main door, but after seeing the other’s expression, he froze for quite a while. If earlier he thought Yuan Cheng was angry, then now his gentle expression was excessively perfect. With his familiarity with this person, the more flawless this expression appeared, the more it indicated this person’s mood was terrible.
Yuan Cheng walked past Jin Yin as if turning a deaf ear, not even glancing once.
Jin Yin stood in place, watching from afar as Yuan Cheng smiled and spoke with those two officials—the two could still smile. Could they not see at all that this person held them in the palm of his hand? He curled his lips coldly, his phoenix eyes full of contempt for fools, and turned to walk outside.
Rather than waste time here, better to catch up with his Mo San and extract some interesting matters to hear about.