Ita Era

Chapter 149 Escort (Part 2)
Ding rushed forward at a very fast speed.

The man was prepared. He pulled out the Jiao Wei Qin from his back with his right hand and plucked it with his left. A blue water splash exploded in front of Ding Shi, who was shocked and staggered backward. He finally managed to regain his balance by jumping a small step.

Ding Shi asked, "Are you a musician?"

The man said leisurely, "The Martial Arts Demon with the Qin."

Internal strength, internal skills, and martial arts are different terms, but they all refer to the same profession.

Ding Shi plunged the knife into the soil, stared into the man's eyes, and began his second attack. The man plucked the strings of his zither, and another blue splash of water erupted. Ding Shi channeled his primal force into his right hand, slicing the splash in two with a chop. Force against force, point against surface.

The man's hand swept across the strings, and blue internal energy, like ocean waves, materialized and surged forth. Ding Shi slashed at the waves with his hand, scattering them one by one. But as the man played, wave after wave surged in, slowly forming a monstrous force. Ding Shi not only couldn't advance, but was also pushed back step by step, until he was pushed all the way to Su Su's side.

The man stopped, and the blue ripples in the air dissipated.

The man said, "You are no match for me."

Su Su said, "You always say that there is no certain death situation for Ita, so there should be a way to get through this."

Ding Shi called out: "Liu Guangzong."

Soon, a handsome 18-year-old man stepped out of the carriage, walked up to Ding Shi and Su Su, and asked, "My lords, I am Liu Guangzong."

Ignoring Liu Guangzong, Ding Shi loudly asked, "Senior, why did you keep him here?"

The man lightly touched the ground with his toes, flying seven meters away. He then touched the fallen leaves again and landed in front of Liu Guangzong. After looking him over for a while, he asked, "Did you save a woman in Xiahu, Daohua Township, Yongning County seven days ago?"

Liu Guangzong clasped his hands in a fist and replied, "Yes."

The man said, "That's my younger sister. Since you treated her so disrespectfully, you should marry her."

Liu Guangzong was taken aback and hurriedly said, "I did not take liberties with your sister."

The man said, "You touched her."

Liu Guangzong replied, "That was merely a temporary measure; please understand, brother."

The man said, "Her reputation is ruined. She can either marry you, become a nun, or hang herself with a white silk ribbon."

Ding Shi turned his head and whispered in Su Su's ear, "The farmer and the snake."

Su Su disagreed: "It can't be considered a snake, can it?"

Liu Guangzong firmly replied, "I'm sorry, but I am already engaged to my childhood sweetheart, Zhang, and we will get married after the prefectural examination. I dare not try to marry into a higher social class. Please forgive me."

For the first time, the man's eyes flashed with murderous intent. He struck a pine tree by the roadside with his palm, and the pine tree, as big as a bowl, snapped in two.

The man tried to suppress his anger and said, "I am the heir of the Duke of Protectorate, and my sister is the eldest daughter of the Duke of Protectorate, who is both beautiful and talented. Would you like to reconsider?"

Liu Guangzong was startled and took a step back, insisting, "I dare not presume to presume upon this."

The prince stretched out his hand: "I will go and kill the entire Zhang family right now."

Liu Guangzong angrily said, "Even if you kill my fiancée, I will not marry your sister."

The prince was furious: "Then I will kill you!" He struck Liu Guangzong with a palm.

Just as Liu Guangzong was about to turn into Liu Songshu, Ding Shi punched the Crown Prince in the left ribs. The Crown Prince turned his hand and collided with Ding Shi's fist. Ding Shi retreated repeatedly until he crashed into a pine tree by the roadside and stopped.

Seeing that the prince was about to make a move, Ding Shi hurriedly said, "Your Highness, this matter can be discussed."

Crown Prince: "How can we discuss this?"

Ding Shi said, "Liu Guangzong is probably embarrassed, after all, he is only a student in the preliminary examination. If he can win the title of Xiucai in this prefectural examination..."

The prince interrupted, "My family will take care of things. I dare not say anything high, but we can at least get a minor official position of the fifth rank."

Liu Guangzong: "Your Highness, please do not force me. I will absolutely not abandon my wife to marry another."

What idiots! Would it kill you to touch him? Isn't this saving someone? Are you trying to dive into the ground from a distance? What kind of bullshit feudal society is this?

While Ding Shi was ranting and raving, he casually picked his toe and threw it at someone who was unaccustomed to the local environment: "Get out of here and go to the outhouse!"

But then the prince frowned, suddenly experiencing a splitting headache and stomach cramps.

Ding Shi stepped forward obsequiously and asked, "Young Master, are you feeling unwell?"

"It's alright." The Crown Prince looked at Liu Guangzong: "Give me an answer. Do you want wealth and glory, or do you want your whole family to die?"

Ding Shi could see the beads of sweat on the prince's forehead and admired him for being a ruthless person. Su Su, on the other hand, was very obedient and offered him a water bag: "Prince, you seem to be feeling a little unwell. Have some water first, honey passion fruit."

The prince initially didn't want to pay attention, but upon hearing that honey had been added, he took a small sip, then a large gulp, and immediately felt much better. He continued to look at Liu Guangzong, wanting an answer.

Is the Crown Prince unreasonable? In feudal society, this is not the case. He is of noble birth. Even if he killed Liu Guangzong out of spite, let alone due to cause and effect, he would not be severely punished.

Men should not expose their knees, and women should not expose their skin. If a man touches a woman's skin, the woman will not move away after marriage.

Under the constraints of these traditional social norms, the fact that the Crown Prince himself came to offer his precious sister to Liu Guangzong demonstrates his impeccable character.

But Liu Guangzong's reasoning wasn't wrong either: a gentleman is open and honest, and keeps his word. Life is precious, but love is even more valuable.

As expected, Liu Guangzong stubbornly insisted, "Even if it means death, I, Liu, will not marry your daughter."

"Then die."

As soon as the prince finished speaking, a water pipe came crashing down like a cleaving mountain.

The prince narrowed his eyes and slapped the water pipe away. A sudden pain shot through his waist; it turned out that Ding Shi, who had been by his side all along, had made a sneak attack, plunging a dagger into the prince's waist. The prince struck Ding Shi in the chest with a palm strike, a move both swift and ruthless. Ding Shi only had time to use his Force to protect himself before being sent flying five meters, crashing into a tree trunk and spitting out a mouthful of misty blood.

Just as the prince was about to make another move, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen. Oh no, he'd been poisoned. Purple energy swirled around him as he began to circulate his internal energy to expel the poison.

Ding Shi threw out the blank book and pulled out a golden bamboo slip: Indestructible.

This was an old, familiar technique. Ding Shi grabbed the gold character, and his entire body's primal force surged, rapidly condensing into his fist. He instinctively felt he could shatter a universe.

Su Su drew her musket and launched a move called "Universal Salvation" directly at the prince's face. The prince dared not be careless. He drew his zither with his left hand and plucked the strings with his right. Waves of water, like serpents, coiled around the musket.

At that moment, Ding Shi's fist arrived from behind the Crown Prince. The fist struck the Crown Prince's spine, and the Crown Prince felt as if he had been run over by a large truck.

Even with internal energy protecting him, the prince's spine snapped under such an indestructible force.

Ding Su wants to protect the student, while the Crown Prince wants to kill him. Regardless of law and etiquette, the two sides are already at an irreconcilable point.

The Crown Prince turned around, and Ding Shi threw a second punch at the Crown Prince's groin. Although this punch did not have the added power of invincibility, it was still a punch that could smash through the coffee table.

If you can win, fight; if you can't, resort to dirty tricks. Ding Shi never said he would run away if he couldn't win. In the world of martial arts, ruthlessness is the foundation of survival.

The prince squeezed his legs together, which could have trapped Ding Shi's fist, but the staff of Universal Salvation struck the back of his head, and the momentary dizziness allowed Ding Shi to take advantage of the opening. Others steal peaches, Ding Shi smashes peaches; whether there are peaches or not, it doesn't diminish the destructive power of this move.

Ding Shi's big fist punched the Crown Prince solidly, hitting him in the balls and flesh.

The crown prince was repeatedly attacked because his spinal nerves were severed, which made him unable to coordinate his hands and feet.

The prince took a step back, vomiting blood. It was unclear whether the peaches had been stolen, he had been attacked on the back of the head, or he had drunk poisoned passion fruit honey tea. As soon as he paused, Su Su and Ding Shi attacked him from both sides, striking him on the head with sticks from behind and punching him in the face from the front.

After using the Universal Salvation Technique, Su Su temporarily lost all her internal energy, but that did not prevent her from still having the strength of a human being.

Finally, the crown prince, who had been buffed with all sorts of debuffs, collapsed in humiliation and resentment.

Ding Shi and Su Su huddled together, quickly rummaging through the prince's body, still not missing his clothes. Afterward, they dragged the prince's body into the woods, found an open area, and started burning it. They didn't need much firewood; they didn't intend to burn it to ashes, just enough to make sure even his own mother wouldn't recognize him.

Su Su was thrilled, thrilled to have defeated the big boss. The prince was the strongest human they had encountered in the dungeon so far. This caused her to laugh like a psychopath while burning the corpse.

The two men squatted beside the corpse, supervising the use of fire while rummaging through the spoils of war.

Loot: A jade pendant, a token of the Protectorate of the Nation, which can be withdrawn at the Four Seas Bank for up to 50,000 taels of silver. Su Su's eyes sparkled, and so did Ding Shi's.

Su Su: Solve the financial problems.

Ding Shi: Two hundred and fifty knives for each person, plus one hundred and one hundred and fifty knives.

Loot 2: Truth 40, Ace of Hearts. Truth 40: Does humanity fear the eternal sleep after death, or the cycle of reincarnation after death?
What the heck? The truth is asking a question in return? The Ace of Hearts doesn't have any special skills, but it does have one additional function: fusion enhancement.

The so-called fusion enhancement means that after fusing with other cards, it can greatly enhance the skills of those other cards. It can be said to be a very special card.

Ding Shi said, "I want this card."

Su Su: "Take it."

Ding Shi swiped 1750 coins and gave them to Su Su, along with the jade pendant: "Two thousand."

Su Su didn't stand on ceremony and threw the money into the account, then said with dissatisfaction, "Only $1750."

Ding Shi explained: "The jade pendant is worth 50,000 coins. 100 silver coins can be exchanged for 1 knife, so we can exchange it for 500 knives. You get half and I get half, so we each get 250 knives."

Su Su: "I feel like you're trying to take us all down with you."

Ding Shi nodded repeatedly, "Mhm." He liked Su Su, a girl who saw through things but still spoke her mind; she was honest.

Loot 3: Two thousand taels of silver notes.

Loot 4: Jiao Wei Qin (焦尾琴), a martial arts profession quest item, exclusively for female characters. Unlocks a personal dungeon; completing the challenge allows you to join the Miao Yin Sect.

Su Su hesitated: "I already have the Dugu Nine Swords, do I still need to play the zither?"

Ding Shi comforted her, "Silly girl, you haven't even learned the Zero Sword yet, how can you be qualified to choose?"

Su Su pushed Ding Shi over and stormed off.

Ding Shi returned to the road, beckoned everyone to leave the carriage and gather in front of him, produced his official seal, explained his identity as the Chief Censor, and then pretended to take statements about the four encounters with bandits. He had to put on a show; who knew how much freedom these NPCs had? Ding Shi specifically told Liu Guangzong, who had witnessed the whole thing, to shut up if he didn't want to die. It wasn't that he would kill Liu Guangzong, but that the Duke of Huguo's mansion would kill him.

Continuing on their journey, Ding Shi finally asked the question he had been wanting to ask: "Where did you get the poison?"

Su Su replied, "Hua Shan gave it to me. When she was buying wound medicine, she mixed some poison with the herbs from the shop."

Ding Shi asked, "Does the clinic also sell poison?"

Su Su said, "Many herbs are poisonous, and highly so. We were lucky. Although the young master is highly skilled in martial arts, he lacks experience in the martial world."

Ding Shi said, "He's only a few years old. He has to practice martial arts, be a prince, learn musical notation, spend time every day taking care of his hair, nails, and skin, and take care of his younger sister. How can he find time to gain experience in the martial world? No, this time he came to gain experience, but the martial world is dangerous, so we got him instead."

After saying that, the two of them lowered their heads and grinned smugly.

……

Yongkang Circuit comprised eleven counties, with Yongkang Prefecture as its capital. Located near an inland lake, it boasted well-developed water transport. Traveling north by boat from here, combined with the land journey, it would take as little as five days to reach the capital.

Su Su's next task is to arrange an inn. She needs to go to the Education Bureau to protect the students until 7:30 the next morning.

Su Su had considered many possibilities, but she never expected that Ding Shi would be the first to harm Tong Sheng.

Su Su returned from the Ministry of Education, only to find two students lying at the entrance of the inn, clutching their stomachs and groaning in pain. The murderer, Ding Shi, stepped on one of the students' chests and asked, "Are you still going or not?"

"not going."

"If you're not going, then go back home."

Su Su: "What's going on?"

Ding Shi replied, "They wanted to go out, saying it was a rare opportunity to come to the prefectural city. I said no, but they still insisted on going out. I tried to reason with them, but they wouldn't accept my reasoning, so I punched each of them, and they all thought what I said made perfect sense."

Su Su didn't expect Ding Shi to have the patience to dawdle with the NPCs, so she took out a piece of paper and handed it to him. Ding Shi was taken aback after reading it: "We've discovered the corpse of a novice scholar?"

Su Su: "According to the Education Department, a headless body was found downstream of the river in Yong'an County. The time of death was in the morning, and it is speculated that the murder occurred before the assembly. The body was carrying a notice I wrote. The notice was in a package, pressed under clothing. Most of the handwriting was legible, but unfortunately the name was damaged. The notice informed them to assemble at the county government office this morning to go to the prefectural capital together. I brought all the documents with me."

Ding Shi casually picked up a document and looked at it: Zhang San, 17 years old, 1.65 meters tall, from Taoshu Village, Yong'an County, with long eyebrows, a wide nose, and a small black mole on his right cheek.

Ding Shi said, "In other words, one of the 20 students we brought is an imposter."

Su Su nodded.

Ding Shi said, "I have other matters to attend to at the Criminal Investigation Department, so I'll be leaving now."

Su Su grabbed Ding Shi's clothes and pulled him back. Seeing Su Su's expectant eyes, Ding Shi said helplessly, "This stupid mission of yours is one thing after another, it never ends. After catching the imposter, there are other missions. I also have the responsibility of supervising the Yongkang Road prison."

Su Su wiped her eyes with saliva and said in a tearful voice, "The imposter might be the murderer. For you, this kind of case should be a piece of cake, right? Right? Right?"

Ding Shi replied helplessly, "Yes, yes, yes."

This inn is rather secluded, not a traditional two-story building, but rather a unique style combining a restaurant and private rooms. The front hall is the restaurant, and the back courtyard contains about thirty private rooms. Each private room is about 8 square meters in size, with a small bed, a table, and a chair, nothing else.

The restaurant is busy preparing lunch, and the staff will pack the lunches into portions, put them in food baskets, and deliver them to the door of each private room.

Before lunch, Su Su and Ding Shi began checking the identities of each student. After one round, all the students basically matched the descriptions in their records, with the only discrepancies being in height, ranging from 1 to 5 centimeters. This difference was understandable, as everyone's height is different in the morning and before bed.

During the verification, seven people were found to have carried the notification letters; the others had kept them hidden. To them, even if they failed the imperial examination, the government's notification letter served as proof of their status.

Ding Shi opened the second round of screening. What were the questions in the preliminary examination for candidates for the imperial examination? What poems did you write?

To Ding Shi and Su Su's surprise, all 20 students answered correctly, which stumped Ding Su. Well, only Su Su was stumped, and Ding Shi already had a plan in mind.

(End of this chapter)