Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 530, page 529: The Secrets of the Hidden Forest Clan
So that's why?

Hua Changrui was speechless for a moment: "Can I make it up for you now?"

He suddenly realized, "No, you're the one who lured them here to beat me up."

Feng Xiuhu pretended not to hear: "This is not the place to talk, let's go first."

The earlier gunshots and the golden light emitted by the magical artifacts could not be concealed, and it would probably not be long before the police arrived.

After saying that, Feng Xiuhu picked one up in each hand and prepared to climb over the wall to get out.

Shen Morou quickly called out, "Take my suitcase with you!"

"What box?"

Feng Xiuhu looked into the room through the window. There was an open leather suitcase next to the chair, filled with various clothes and a jumble of bottles and jars.

Shen Morou bit her lip: "These are Hei Sanniang's clothes and cosmetics. I can't go back to the Copper Whistle Gang with this face on—pack the things on the table in too."

Feng Xiuhu thought it made sense. He went back into the house and quickly stuffed everything back into the box. Then he used a horsewhip to tie Shen Morou and the box together before leisurely leaving the place.

The main road out of the city was guarded by police, but this did not stop Feng Xiuhu. He used the power of his authority to turn the three of them into shadows and slipped away from the police.

The three reappeared on an abandoned field ridge.

Hua Changrui stared intently at Feng Xiuhu, his eyes flickering as if he were lost in thought.

Shen Morou was also very curious: "Are you a priest of the Church of the Night?"

Before Feng Xiuhu could speak, Hua Changrui answered for him: "He is not."

Now it was Feng Xiuhu's turn to be curious: "How did you know that?"

Unable to move, Hua Changrui forced a smile at Feng Xiuhu with his face pressed to the ground: "The methods and spells of the Night Church are incomplete, and they cannot use our methods."

Following up on the conversation, Feng Xiuhu asked, "And who are 'you'?"

This time, Hua Changrui didn't speak, but Shen Morou revealed his secret: "It's the Ghost Lantern Society. As long as you're willing to spend money, they can do any dirty work. Everyone in Taijing City knows this."

But this was not the answer Feng Xiuhu wanted.

Hua Changrui's cheek smeared on the ground, and Feng Xiuhu noticed something amiss.

He reached out and vigorously rubbed the lines on Hua Changrui's face, causing the dark green dye to come off and reveal the true silver underneath.

No wonder Hua Changrui was so careful when he washed up this morning; he was afraid of washing away his disguise.

But Feng Xiuhu was stunned: "Why is it silver?"

Hua Changrui, unsuspecting, replied, "I am a cultivator, a member of the Lin Yin Clan with profound cultivation. The markings on my body will naturally turn silver over time."

Feng Xiuhu knew that the color of the markings on the Owlman's markings would change after cultivation, but he was puzzled by something else.

So he tentatively asked, "Why not gold?"

Hua Changrui paused, raising his gaze to Feng Xiuhu's face, seemingly trying to determine whether Feng Xiuhu had asked unintentionally or with a hidden meaning.

After a moment, he slowly said, "Gold... that is an honor reserved for those chosen by the Lord of Dream Forest. Since the Lord of Dream Forest abandoned us, there has never been a Lin Yin Clan with golden patterns."

Feng Xiuhu seemed to be lost in thought.

Shen Morou couldn't understand their conversation: "Who is the Lord of Dream Forest? What does 'Chosen One' mean? What are you talking about?"

"Almost forgot about you."

Feng Xiuhu looked at her: "The Heroines Society is really ambitious, they've even extended their reach into the Great Xuan Army—is Wei Su'e not afraid that the President will execute her for doing this?"

Shen Morou's expression changed drastically: "Who exactly are you!" Feng Xiuhu was also shocked: "You need to understand the situation, Third Sister. Your lives are in my hands now. Do you have the right to question me?"

Hua Changrui also advised, "Why don't you confess? This person's skills are above mine. If we anger him, he might really kill us both, which would be a huge loss—mainly because it's not my loss."

Feng Xiuhu turned to look at him: "You're an assassin, why are you so talkative?"

Hua Changrui smiled ingratiatingly: "Hey, that's how old ladies in Beijing are."

Feng Xiuhu became interested: "I've never been to Taijing before. You can tell me which places to visit in Taijing? Are there any local delicacies?"

Hua Changrui immediately launched into a long explanation: "Wow, that would take a whole day and night to tell! Let's start with Xi Jun's Sunset Gate and the Bai Du River..."

Shen Morou was furious and embarrassed: "Are you going to ask or not!"

Feng Xiuhu then realized he had gone off-topic again and quickly pulled his attention back to Shen Morou: "Tell me, what exactly is your plan?"

Shen Morou said, "Let me go first."

Feng Xiuhu wasn't stupid: "I didn't gag you—do you think your mouth is on your hand?"

Hua Changrui chimed in, "Hey! That's pretty scary."

Shen Morou glared at the two of them fiercely: "I need to put on makeup! I'll have to do it later, whether you want to or not.

These words were so reasonable and well-founded that Feng Xiuhu immediately lifted the curse on her.

Shen Morou sat up, rubbing her wrist. As she opened her suitcase and pulled out a mirror, she muttered with dissatisfaction, "There's not even a light in the middle of nowhere. I don't know if I can even do a decent makeup job."

Hua Changrui spoke again: "Would a tinderbox work?"

He thumped twice on the ground: "In my pocket."

Feng Xiuhu waved his hand to dispel the curse on him as well: "Then you come and light the lamp for her."

Shen Morou protested again: "What if he takes the opportunity to stab me in the neck?"

Hua Changrui quickly assured him, "Of course not! If I killed you, would this brother let me go? Business is business, but what's more important than my life?"

Feng Xiuhu said impatiently, "Hurry up, or she'll be doing her makeup until dawn."

Shen Morou busied herself in an orderly manner.

As she applied her makeup, she slowly began to speak: "The plan... of course, is to kill Abbott—at least that's what we thought the plan was."

"you?"

Feng Xiuhu plopped down on the edge of the field, gazing at the distant city skyline, and slowly lit a cigarette: "You mean, you and Zhou Xiuqing over there?"

Shen Morou paused, glancing at her: "You know quite a lot."

She continued applying the ointment: "That's right. Zhou Xiuqing used the Self-Reliance Association to unite all the students, and then used the Fellow Villagers Association to expand the situation to all the universities in Yu'ai Prefecture, thereby mobilizing the entire student body and even involving the teachers, in order to put pressure on the government and force the foreigners to make concessions."

"If Zhou Xiuqing's mission is to hinder the foreigners' ambitions on a large scale, then my mission is to break through the surface by targeting specific points and undermining their strength."

Feng Xiuhu exhaled a column of smoke: "Kill Abbott?"

Shen Morou nodded in agreement: "That's right. He was the helmsman of the foreigners' industrial expansion in Yu'ai Prefecture. As long as he dies, all of the foreigners' plans will come to a standstill."

Feng Xiuhu shook his head: "You're not really a roughneck, you shouldn't be so short-sighted—you should know that Abbott is just a 'manager' who does the work, it's the Heretoz Empire, or rather the Church of War, that wants to expand the industrial system."

PS: The Ghost Lantern Society had already appeared in Chapter 281; Feng Xiuhu had also seen the Lin Yin Clan with golden patterns before.

(End of this chapter)