Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 491 Revenge
Liu Yigui was secretly pleased when Zhao Zhongliang made such a request.

“Don’t worry,” Liu Yigui said, “I will definitely give you some pointers.”

At this point, Liu Yigui pondered for a moment: "When we set off later, you and your men will come with me, and I will tell you where the Third Manager is."

"Remember, the priority is to ensure the Third Manager's safe departure. Then come the Fang family, Ge Ying, and Xia Wulang. If the imperial troops come after us, we'll have a hard time escaping, so you don't need to worry about them."

Zhao Zhongliang looked at Liu Yigui: "Then... we'll just let them be arrested by the authorities?"

A ruthless glint flashed in Liu Yigui's eyes: "Of course not. If they can't escape, then leave them here forever. The men we sent are there to protect them, but when the time comes, we must take action to eliminate them. We cannot take them out, nor can we leave them to the government."

Zhao Zhongliang understood.

Liu Yigui said, "If things really get out of hand, I'll have to leave first. After all, I travel around the Northwest all year round and I'm bound to be seen by people. You guys stay behind. As long as you don't get caught on the spot, you'll be fine."

Zhao Zhongliang knew that Liu Yigui and the third manager were in a hurry to leave because they were afraid that Xia Mengxian would expose them.
Zhao Zhongliang frowned in thought, looking somewhat nervous. It was rare for Liu Yigui to see him like this. This man was truly courageous and always stood at the forefront when trouble came, which was why his bodyguards respected him so much.

With a heart that cherishes talent, Liu Yigui also revealed some sincerity: "As long as you do as I say, there won't be any problems."

Zhao Zhongliang said, "It's getting dark, and it's even harder to see on the water. I'm afraid I'll lose track of the Third Manager."

Liu Yigui said firmly, "Don't worry, it won't be lost."

After saying that, he gave a meaningful smile, but did not continue. Zhao Zhongliang did not press him further.

A moment later, two boats rowed over from the side. Zhao Zhongliang ordered the boats to dock, and then said to Liu Yigui, "I'll go and give you a few instructions."

Those two boats were all filled with his bodyguards.

Liu Yigui nodded: "I'll take some men to check ahead, and then I'll come back later to let you patrol."

The two parted ways, and only after Liu Yigui's boat had gone far away did Zhao Zhongliang enter the cabin, followed immediately by Sun Changchun from the militia.

"How's it going?" Sun Changchun asked. "Have you found out which ship the manager is on?"

Zhao Zhongliang shook his head: "They'll tell us when they leave."

“Bah, no one is more cunning than them,” Sun Changchun said. “You tell them that our militia is willing to work for them, but they still don’t believe us?”

Zhao Zhongliang looked out the window; the sky was growing darker, and there wasn't much time left to make arrangements. He had originally planned to use his defection as an opportunity to gather information from Liu Yigui, believing he would get results, but unexpectedly…

Zhao Zhongliang said, "They are just too cautious. Compared to Fang Min's family and people like Xia Wulang and Ge Ying, the Third Manager is very important."

In Liu Yigui's mind, his position as manager was higher than that of the officials. What kind of people were these? They treated officials as pawns to seek personal gain.

Zhao Zhongliang told Sun Changchun what Liu Yigui had said.

Sun Changchun frowned and pondered: "If they don't inform us in advance, we might not have enough manpower. We'll have to kill Liu Yigui, find that third manager, and ideally keep Fang Min's family under our control as well."

"It's getting dark, and we can't see any boats on the river at all. How are we going to make our move, brothers?"

Zhao Zhongliang knew that no matter how skilled his men were, they couldn't possibly handle so many people at once, not to mention...

He murmured, "I don't think it will be so easy for us to find out where the Third Manager is." Otherwise, Liu Yigui wouldn't have shown such a confident expression when mentioning the Third Manager.

Zhao Zhongliang rescued Sun Changchun from the bandits, and from then on, Sun Changchun followed him wholeheartedly, thinking only of him. Therefore, he became even more anxious when he saw the current situation. Sun Changchun said, "The people in the government are useless. They haven't caught up yet. Otherwise, if things got chaotic, we could have taken advantage of the situation."

Having witnessed the tragic deaths of eighteen members of his family, Zhao Zhongliang distrusts the government. He has come to Bianjing to seek revenge through his own means.

The reason he didn't kill Liu Yigui in the Northwest was that Liu's life wasn't enough to repay the Zhao family's blood debt; at least a shopkeeper and an official would have to be sacrificed. Relying on Liu Yigui's trust, he was about to meet the shopkeeper behind him when Xia Mengxian was unexpectedly arrested, forcing him to change his previous plans.

He still wanted to kill Liu Yigui and the third shopkeeper, but it would be best to hand over Fang Min's family, Xia Wu, and Ge Ying to the imperial court. After all, they were all on the same side as Xia Mengxian, and the imperial court could implicate more people by following their lead.

Only when all these things are accomplished can his deep-seated hatred be resolved.

Zhao Zhongliang looked at Sun Changchun: "What you need to do is kill Liu Yigui while I'm making my move. After that, you take your brothers and leave, and don't worry about what happens to me."

Zhao Zhongliang didn't want anyone in Baoding's team to lose their lives.

Sun Changchun said, "We all came here with you voluntarily, and we've already decided that we'll go together, even if we die together. In this world, it's hard to live a peaceful life. We brothers will brave mountains of knives and seas of fire together."

Zhao Zhongliang's eyes reddened. He knew he couldn't persuade Sun Changchun. People like them had survived life and death, and those who survived were all stubborn. He could only reach out and hug Sun Changchun's back.

Sun Changchun laughed and said, "What's the point of this? Keep your good intentions to yourself. Come back and warm my bed when it gets cold."

Zhao Zhongliang punched Sun Changchun on the shoulder again.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Just as the two were about to leave the cabin, the boatman called out, "Brother Chuan, Brother Chun, Liu Yigui is calling us over."

Zhao Zhongliang strode out of the cabin and saw Liu Yigui's ship rapidly approaching.

Liu Yigui, standing at the bow of the boat, looked slightly more gloomy than before. Before the two boats could even touch, he hurriedly jumped onto Zhao Zhongliang's boat.

"Two boats have come up on the river. Come with me and let's go check them out."

Zhao Zhongliang couldn't help but ask, "A government ship?"

Liu Yigui shook his head: "Our people said that there were several nuns standing on the boat, seemingly chanting scriptures and performing rituals."

"A ritual is being performed here?" Zhao Zhongliang asked. "Has someone recently drowned in the river?"

This is not surprising, as the Bian River claims many lives every year. This is what Liu Yigui thought, which is why he did not disturb everyone and disperse.

But we can't be careless.

Liu Yigui said, "Let's get closer and take a closer look. If we find anything unusual, we need to make plans immediately."

They might kill someone, or they might escape; they must act according to the circumstances.

Zhao Zhongliang nodded.

Liu Yigui handed a steel knife to Zhao Zhongliang, his eyes gleaming with murderous intent.

The boat moved forward for a while in silence. Zhao Zhongliang saw the flickering candlelight on the river. As he got closer, he saw clearly that the river lanterns were drifting along the current.