Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 690 Escape
As the large ship drew closer, the figure became clearer. Although she wore a veil and her face was obscured, Yang Jun knew that she was Xu Shu.

Because Xue Er and the others were standing right next to her.

Yang Jun ended up in this predicament because of Xu Shu's scheming. The victor is king, and the loser is villain. Since he has lost, he would rather die than beg for mercy from Xu Shu.

However, after he swallowed a few mouthfuls of seawater, all those thoughts vanished, and he began to struggle to survive.

A plank was thrown into the sea, and Yang Jun and his general clung to it tightly to prevent it from sinking.

Yang Jun pleaded, his lips trembling, "Chief Xu... save me... I'm still useful to you and the Holy Church."

The woman at the bow of the boat remained silent, and Yang Jun continued, "There is a lot of silver hidden on this small island, but... it is only a part of it. Xie Yizhi... still has a place to stay in Nanyang. There are many fields and merchant ships on the island, which the imperial court cannot find. As long as Chief Xu takes me with him, we can get our hands on them."

“No… these all belong to the Supreme Leader. I am willing to… join the Manichaeism and from now on… serve the Supreme Leader.”

A voice came from above: "The Holy Church has so many followers, one more of you won't make a difference. With the money on this island, we don't need to risk going to Nanyang."

Xu Shu's voice sounded somewhat unfamiliar, different from what he had heard before. However, this thought only flashed through Yang Jun's mind. In his current state, with his vision blurring and the sound of seawater lapping against the wooden planks in his ears, it was normal for him to be unable to make out what he was hearing.

"Besides, who knows if I'll be the next Xie Yisong?"

Xu Shu would certainly not avenge Xie Yisong and his wife, but weren't Xu Shu and her father also being used by them? Perhaps because he was soaked in seawater and felt cold all over, Yang Jun trembled uncontrollably after hearing these words.

"It wasn't me," Yang Jun slid down and immediately swallowed a mouthful of seawater. Fortunately, the general beside him was loyal enough to reach out and pull him up. However, the general was also exhausted and slid off the wooden plank.

Yang Jun looked at the dark gray seawater, with waves rising on its surface, and the generals never came up again.

Yang Jun scrambled fearfully onto the wooden plank, terrified that he too would be swallowed up. His voice hoarse, he struggled to survive: "That matter had nothing to do with me. It was… Xie Yizhi who discussed it with the merchants of Sanfoqi, because… because…"

Xu Shu at the bow of the boat remained unmoved. She lightly flicked her sleeve, clearly having lost patience.

Yang Jun knew that dawn was approaching and the government officials would likely arrive soon. Xu Shu certainly didn't want to delay any longer, so he hurriedly raised his voice and said, "Before Xie Yisong offered amnesty to the Manichaeans, Xie Yizhi was already smuggling goods with merchants from Srivijaya. The old master must have heard about the smuggling. Although it's unclear who's behind it, we can find Xie Yizhi sooner or later by following the clues. Furthermore, Xie Yisong's intention in offering amnesty is to incorporate the Manichaeans into the patrol bureau, ordering them to learn boat handling and naval warfare to facilitate patrolling the seas. If this really happens, Xie Yizhi's source of income will be cut off."

"So even though Xie Yisong is his own brother from the same mother, he can't be kept alive... This was really Xie Yizhi's idea all these years, and I've just been following orders."

Yang Jun looked at Xu Shu; even after he had said all that, she still wouldn't speak.

“The deaths of Old Madam Xie and Old Master Xie may be related to Xie Yizhi,” Yang Jun said through gritted teeth. “If the Supreme Leader wants to take revenge on Xie Yizhi, we can start from there and surely avenge the Supreme Leader and the brothers of the Holy Sect.”

Finally, Xu Shu looked at Yang Jun calmly and said, "Do you have evidence?"

Yang Jun paused for a moment, then nodded: "There's a doctor who treats Old Madam Xie. I know where he is. We can go find him and then hand him over to the yamen."

Under Yang Jun's gaze, "Xu Shu" made a move. She shook her head and said, "You can't find a doctor."

Yang Jun's face immediately turned even paler.

"Xu Shu" said, "If you can get the evidence, you can use it to blackmail Xie Yizhi. Why bother leading people all the way to Longde Prefecture to intercept and kill Xie Yuyan and the Holy Cult members?" Yang Jun felt a wave of dizziness. He hadn't expected Xu Shu to see through him.

Xu Shu said, "What you have should be evidence of your dealings with Xie Yizhi and Sanfoqi."

Yang Jun's face showed a look of surprise.

"Xu Shu" continued, "Back then, Xie Yisong was killed because of his acceptance of the imperial pardon. Xie Yizhi, Ma Yue, and you were all implicated. Ma Yue died, but you stayed in Fujian to work for Xie Yizhi. This shows that you and Xie Yizhi had long been on the same side. If you hadn't been plotting together, how could Xie Yizhi have trusted you to stay in Fujian?"

“Since we planned this together, there must have been correspondence, which is easier to preserve. But you can’t hand these over to the court. Even if you can bring Xie Yizhi down, you won’t escape punishment. The reason you won’t give them to me is because you’re afraid that if I can’t catch Xie Yizhi, I’ll kill you first to vent my anger.”

Yang Jun's lips trembled, the sound of his teeth chattering could be heard, and his throat tightened, preventing him from uttering a single word.

"Let's go!"

Xu Shu gave the order, and the large ship was about to leave when Yang Jun frantically struggled: "The idea really was Xie Yizhi's. I... I'm just afraid that things will be exposed. I'm willing to give the evidence to the leader."

"The evidence...the evidence is right here, on me."

Fearing that Xu Shu no longer believed him, Yang Jun fumbled in his belt, squeezed out a wax pill, and then waved it in his hand toward the large ship: "Here it is, the letter is here."

“I have several wax pills on me, all of which I carry with me… Your Majesty allowed me to board the ship, and these are all Your Majesty’s. I only beg Your Majesty to spare my life.”

“I didn’t give you the complete list of officials that the leader wanted. There are several hidden ones who have also received benefits from Xie Yizhi. Once the storm has passed, we can resume our dealings with those officials and have them take care of everything so we can continue our smuggling business.”

Xu Shu looked at Xue Er beside her, and Xue Er understood and ordered a few people to pull Yang Jun out of the water.

Yang Jun lay sprawled on the deck, panting heavily in a disheveled state. He was soaking wet, but he still managed to kneel down and kowtow, saying, "Thank you, Your Excellency. Thank you, Your Excellency."

In Yang Jun's eyes, the people of the Demon Cult saved him because of the wax pills he had hidden, and they might not necessarily let him live. Therefore, he had to find a way to move Xu Shu.

"From this day forward, my life belongs to Your Majesty."

As soon as Yang Jun finished speaking, his body was pinned down, and the wax pills on his body were searched out.

Yang Jun stared at Xu Shu expectantly, fearing that she would take his life immediately. But to his delight, Xu Shu took the wax pill and walked straight into the cabin.

If we don't kill him now, he probably won't be killed later!

With that thought in mind, Yang Jun lay down completely.

Now the ship can leave here, right?

(End of this chapter)