The Legend of the Condor Heroes: From Being Expelled from Peach Blossom Island

Chapter 439 Heading South to Find the Trail
The leader of the Suzhou branch was a middle-aged beggar who looked somewhat like Brother Sharp. He was dressed sloppily and unkempt, but had thick eyebrows and big eyes. He looked like a member of the "dirty clothes" faction. He was probably in his forties, but looked much older. People would believe he was fifty.

As he shouted, he stared intently at the note in his hand. Grandma Mo was the successor of the Beggars' Sect leader, Hong Qigong. Her martial arts skills improved rapidly, and within a few years she stood out in the Beggars' Sect. Apart from a few elders, no one was her match.

Moreover, this old lady always got along well with the beggars below and was never ashamed of being a beggar. Apart from those who violated the gang rules and were punished by her, the other Beggar Gang disciples loved and respected her very much.

Mo Ku has gained fame in recent years. His Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms are unmatched. He is known as the number one master of the younger generation in the Jiangnan martial arts world, which brings great honor to the Beggars' Sect.

Now they're saying Mo Ku is missing, which means he's obviously in danger. How could this leader not be worried? If something happens to Mo Ku, it'll be like stirring up a hornet's nest, and the entire Beggars' Sect will be furious.

Just then, his vision blurred, and a person appeared beside him, and the note in his hand somehow ended up in that person's hand.

Wu Chengyu frowned as he looked at the note, which contained only one sentence: "The Inspector General was ambushed in Zhejiang and has mysteriously disappeared. It is understood that the Inspector General originally intended to go north to Jiangsu. It is hoped that the branch in the Jiangsu area will immediately investigate her whereabouts."

The branch leader retreated three steps, a pair of short swords appearing in his hand, as if facing a formidable enemy: "Who are you, and why are you trespassing on my Beggars' Sect branch? That note is not for you to read."

The surrounding beggars also gathered around, some wielding dog-beating sticks, some taking out sharp weapons, and some even pulling out two poisonous snakes.

Wu Chengyu put down the note and took out a palm-sized black iron token: "Don't be anxious, Master. I am friends with the Beggars' Sect, not enemies. This is the token that Chief Hong gave me back then."

This token was left behind by Hong Qigong when he took Aku away. At that time, Wu Chengyu was going to assassinate Shi Miyuan, so he naturally couldn't carry the token with him. He buried it behind his parents' tomb. It was only recently taken out, and it was for the purpose of finding Aku in the Beggars' Sect.

The leader accepted the token. Such tokens were rare in the Beggars' Sect, possessed only by Hong Qigong and a few elders. Those who could obtain the token were definitely one of their own, and might even possess power similar to that of an elder. Therefore, the tokens were given out with great care, and not just anyone could obtain them.

"Greetings, sir. May I ask your honorable name?"

When he came to find A-Ku, he naturally used his true identity. Wu Chengyu replied, "My name is Wu Chengyu, and I am Mo Ku's older brother."

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned to look at a beggar standing to the side, the one who was holding two poisonous snakes: "Liu Laoliu, do you still recognize me? In the back alley of Wuweilou, you ate quite a lot of my Wu family's braised meat."

That Liu Laoliu was the same guy who had been reminiscing about the braised pig's face that A Ku had made. Now, looking at Wu Chengyu's face, he was also clicking his teeth, with a puzzled expression.

"Are you the former manager of Wuweilou? It's been so many years, you've gotten so thin."

Another person who saw Wu Chengyu now was someone he didn't recognize because of his physique. However, Liu Laoliu was neither Wu Zhengliang nor Wu Jinshui, so Wu Chengyu didn't need to explain to him.

Liu Laoliu quickly realized: "Master, this is indeed Grandma Mo's brother. We met him at Wuweilou back then."

The leader was finally relieved. Wu Chengyu wasted no time and hurriedly asked the question.

"They just said that A-Ku is missing. What exactly happened?"

The leader also looked troubled: "Your Excellency, Inspector Mo is responsible for inspecting all the branches of my Beggars' Sect. As you know, my Beggars' Sect is very powerful, so she has always been unpredictable. I don't know which audacious person would have designs on her, let alone why she disappeared."

This note must have been sent by the Beggars' Sect brothers in Zhejiang who discovered that Granny Mo was in trouble. They sent a message by carrier pigeon to the main headquarters. The main headquarters is in Hunan, and the message must have traveled through various branch headquarters and changed carrier pigeons countless times before finally reaching me. I must also send the message out immediately.

Wu Chengyu asked in a deep voice, "Is your Chief Hong in Junshan right now?"

"Chief Hong is always elusive, so how can we know where he is? However, the Junshan headquarters is always guarded by elders, and the decision on how to handle this news is usually made by a few elders."

Wu Chengyu cursed inwardly. This Hong Qigong was even more like a street urchin than he was. The leader of the number one gang in the world could never find anyone when something happened.

He had criticized the Beggars' Sect's organizational structure back then, and it seems there has been no improvement.

If something happens in Zhejiang, send a carrier pigeon to Junshan Island in Hunan first, wait for a meeting there to make a response, and then order an expert to go to Zhejiang. At the same time, send a carrier pigeon from Hunan to Jiangsu. In other words, at least one or two months have passed since A-Ku disappeared. If A-Ku really is in trouble, it's too late.

Just then, a Beggars' Sect disciple suddenly ran over, holding a white dove in his hand: "Master, another message has arrived by carrier pigeon."

The leader quickly took it and removed the note from the pigeon's leg: "Inspector Mo is suspected of being injured and being chased. Our Zhejiang Beggars' Sect disciples went to the rescue, but suffered heavy losses. Inspector Mo has gone missing again and is suspected of heading south. We hope the headquarters can provide immediate assistance."

Wu Chengyu stood to the side, reading each word on the note with growing coldness in his eyes. There were few people in the world who could be considered his Achilles' heel. Hong Niangzi was one, A Ku was another, and even his fourth uncle, Wu Zhengliang, was slightly inferior to the two of them.

Now that A-Ku is injured and being hunted down, the most terrifying thing is that his whereabouts are unknown. Wu Chengyu's urge to kill is almost uncontrollable.

His voice also turned unusually cold: "Master, please send a message to the Junshan headquarters for me, and tell your Chief Hong that if anything happens to A-Ku, Wu Chengyu will hold Hong Qigong accountable."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Chengyu's figure disappeared from the Guandi Temple. His arrogant words earlier made the Beggar Clan disciples present unconvinced, but everyone could tell that Wu Chengyu was absolutely serious.

Wu Chengyu left Gusu City immediately, changed back to Murong Xiu's face, and rushed back to Yanyun Manor.

Song Mu and the others were astonished to see that Wu Chengyu, who had said he was leaving for a while, had returned after only half a day.

"Song Mu, gather the brothers. Leave fifty men to guard the manor. You choose one person to stay and be the manager."

"Reporting to the Master, Jiang Fei is a steady and reliable person, good at defense. He studied stonemasonry and bricklaying in his youth, so it is sufficient to keep him here."

Jiang Fei was also one of the children Wu Chengyu rescued from Helian Fort along with Xiao Lu. He was one of the best among the Beiwei Army and was absolutely trustworthy.

“Jiang Fei, we don’t have enough manpower right now. Go to Wujiapo in Suzhou and find the current head of the family, Wu Zhengliang. Tell him that I, Murong Xiu, sent you. Ask him to find some craftsmen to help repair the manor. While we are away, you will look after everyone. Remember, no one is allowed to freeze or starve to death here.”

Furthermore, upon meeting Wu Zhengliang, one must treat him with the respect due to an elder, and must not be negligent; any disrespect will be severely punished.

"Your subordinate obeys." "Song Mu, gather the brothers, pack your weapons and luggage, we're going to Zhejiang."

"May I ask, Master, what brings you to Zhejiang?"

"If we can't find the person, we'll kill people, we'll kill a lot of people."

~
Wu Chengyu led his men directly to the dock, chartered several large ships, and headed south along the Grand Canal. At this time, traveling by water was the fastest way, but Wu Chengyu was extremely anxious and sat upright at the bow of the ship with his brows furrowed.

Even with ancient shipping methods, it would take at least seven or eight days to travel from Suzhou to Hangzhou. Wu Chengyu had been trying to figure out how to find Aku, but he had no clue what to do.

In the Zhejiang area during the Southern Song Dynasty, apart from the Beggars' Sect, there were no other major sects. The Seven Heroes of Jiangnan were considered local heroes, and he couldn't imagine anyone in Zhejiang daring to make a move on Ah Ku, the young lady of the Beggars' Sect.

The key point is that although Wu Chengyu has never seen A-Ku's current martial arts skills, with her talent and the painstaking cultivation she has received from Hong Qigong, she is definitely extraordinary and not something that ordinary martial arts people can covet.

Anyone who could attack her, even if it was a coordinated assault, would be no ordinary person. Unfortunately, he knew nothing about the martial arts world of Jiangnan except for the Beggars' Sect and Peach Blossom Island.

At this moment, Song Mu stood behind him like a javelin, without saying a word, silently guarding him.

"Song Mu, do you know who I'm going to find?"

“I won’t ask since the manor lord didn’t say, but Song Mu has followed the manor lord for many years and has never seen him so anxious.”

"You are all people I rescued from the pile of dead bodies. You have experienced the greatest suffering in the world. On the surface, I am a member of a wealthy family and should have been well-off since childhood. Little do people know that I was once in the same situation as you."

At that time, I had broken a leg and almost died by the roadside. It was my adopted sister who saved me and went out to beg for food for me every day. Later, I went to beg for food with her on crutches, and we were even almost kidnapped.

My younger sister is named A-Ku, or Mo-Ku for short. I hoped she would never have to suffer again in her life. But I never imagined that she would have an accident so soon after I returned to Jiangnan. Now she is missing and her fate is unknown.

All I know is that the accident happened in Zhejiang, but I don't know how to save her. Song Mu, what should I do right now?

“Song Mu will naturally obey the orders of the manor lord. Whatever the manor lord asks me to do, Song Mu will do everything he can to help the manor lord accomplish it.”

“You are completely different from Little Deer and Geda in temperament and way of doing things.”

"Sister Xiaolu is good at planning before acting, sending out many spies and laying out layers of plans to find clues in a calm situation. I don't have her ability, but I always feel that I am a bit slower."

Geda is ruthless and will use the most cruel methods to capture and interrogate people. He acts without any scruples and does not care whether innocent people are harmed. If it weren't for the manor lord, no one could control him.

My ambition is to lead troops, and I believe in the principle that at the lord's command, we will sweep away all obstacles and, wherever the lord's banner points, we will fight to the death.

"You don't have many soldiers to lead right now."

"Our group of 250 people are linked together in battle formation, with our internal forces flowing together. Wherever our blades point, those mere martial arts practitioners are no match for me, Song Mu."

"You're quite bold, and you're also quite bloodthirsty. Most importantly, you're incredibly arrogant, Song Mu. Now, let me see if your abilities can match your arrogance."

Since we have no clue what to do, we might as well stir things up. If we don't hear from A-Ku after we get to Hangzhou, we'll throw the entire Zhejiang martial arts world into chaos.

When their ship arrived in Hangzhou, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty, Wu Chengyu had Song Mu set up camp first, while he himself went to the Beggars' Sect branch in Hangzhou.

The Hangzhou branch of the Beggars' Gang was different from other places. At least it wasn't a City God Temple or a Guan Yu Temple, but a mansion in the south of Hangzhou. It didn't look too luxurious, and no one would have guessed that it was actually a beggar's den.

Upon seeing Wu Chengyu's token, the Hangzhou branch leader immediately invited him into his residence.

This leader was completely different from the one in Suzhou. He was dressed simply, a little overweight, and had only a few symbolic patches on his shoulders and elbows.

However, the leader was injured, his left arm was strapped up with a cloth, and his face was pale. There were only a few people in the branch at this time, and he seemed quite flustered.

“I am Zhou Quan, the leader of the Hangzhou branch of the Beggars’ Sect. I greet you, Your Excellency. Since you have this token, please feel free to give us any instructions if there is anything we need.”

"I have come here because of Mo Ku, the inspector of your Beggars' Sect. I heard that Mo Ku was ambushed, injured and went missing in this Zhejiang area. I wonder if there is any news about him now."

Zhou Quan hesitated for a moment: "I don't know why Brother Wu is looking for Inspector Mo. Inspector Mo's trouble is an internal matter of our Beggars' Sect, and it's not appropriate for outsiders to disclose it."

Wu Chengyu narrowed his eyes: "I am Mo Ku's brother. If something happens to her, I will naturally inquire about it. Even your Chief Hong can't say anything about it."

Seeing this, Zhou Quan looked at the token in his hand again: "Alright, to be honest, Brother Wu, Inspector Mo had an accident more than a month ago."

First, they were ambushed and went missing. Later, when they reappeared, they were being chased. I was the one who led reinforcements. As you can see, most of my brothers in the Hangzhou branch were lost, and I was also seriously injured.

I have already sent a message to the Junshan headquarters by carrier pigeon. The headquarters will soon send experts to reinforce us, but no matter how we search, we still can't find any trace of Inspector Mo.

"To be honest, Brother Wu, I've been suffering terribly these past few days. If something happens to Granny Mo, how can I face Chief Hong?"

Wu Chengyu kept looking at Zhou Quan's expression. He looked haggard, and it was clear that he had been under a lot of pressure lately.

"In that case, please continue to investigate, Chief Zhou. Also, please provide me with a list of all martial arts forces, sects, and gangs in and around Hangzhou."

(End of this chapter)