Jianghu Qimen Lu

Stinky Feet could only laugh awkwardly and say, "Forget it, Shadowless Sword has done too many evil deeds and will surely perish. Heaven will not let him off the hook sooner or later! Let this matter end here, and no one should mention it again!" The heroes of the Red Flower Society felt a lump in their throats and wanted to argue, but seeing that the strategist, Iron Abacus, had been giving them subtle winks, they had no choice but to give up. With a sigh, they all returned to their chairs.

Just then, a monk rushed over in a panic, reporting, "Abbot, something terrible has happened! A large number of government officials have stormed into the temple and surrounded the entire Daming Temple!" The abbot and everyone else were shocked, but he was deeply cultivated and remained calm, saying, "From my observation, those who come are not good people, and those who come are not good people! They are here for you!" The monk with the stinky feet said somewhat strangely, "The Shadowless Sword only left recently; he probably hasn't even left the temple yet. It couldn't have been him who informed us! Then, who could have tipped off the government?!"

At this moment, Xiangquan walked over and asked the monk in charge of receiving guests, "Are the people leading this group from the Yangzhou County government?" The monk nodded in affirmation. Xiangquan was relieved and loudly announced to the crowd, "Don't panic, everyone! This group of soldiers led by the Yangzhou County magistrate isn't here to arrest us. They have another mission: to capture Wuyingjian!" Everyone looked at her in confusion. She smiled slightly and said, "Just now, after my brother was drugged by Wuyingjian, he stole the 'Complete Guide to the Martial World' and attempted to kill him. Luckily, I witnessed it, and he fled in panic. To find him, I set up a checkpoint in front of the temple gate, strictly checking all passersby. Finally, I noticed a young peasant woman with her child acting strangely. It turned out that her second daughter had been secretly switched by Wuyingjian, who wanted to escape the temple in the chaos, but unexpectedly, he was caught by me..." Intercepted! But the peasant woman's second daughter had disappeared; her fate was unknown. When interrogated, Wuyingjian refused to speak, and it was highly likely he had killed her! The peasant woman probably went to the county magistrate to file a complaint, asking him to uphold justice for the people. Therefore, the county constables and runners gathered at the mountain gate, clamoring to arrest some murderer. The Red Flower Society heroes were suddenly invigorated, rushing out of the room, declaring they would capture Wuyingjian for the government to vent their anger.

Unexpectedly, Stinky Feet roared, "Come back, all of you!" Seeing the heroes reluctantly returning to the house one after another, he said indignantly, "We must never forget our identities! Although this magistrate is here to arrest the murder suspect, Shadowless Sword, he must have already received the nationwide notification from Emperor Qianlong in Hangzhou! Brothers, these are critical times, everyone must be on high alert and never let your guard down! We should try to minimize contact with government officials, avoid them if possible, and if we really can't avoid them, we should at least try to communicate with them indirectly and handle the situation carefully!" The heroes responded in unison, their hearts filled with unease: "It seems this place is not a safe haven either. We'll probably have to wander the world again, making our home wherever we go!" Stinky Feet then ordered the monk who was in charge of receiving guests to go and find out the movements of the magistrate and his troops.

Unexpectedly, not long after, the monk in charge of receiving guests rushed back with news: "This time it's really bad! That damned Shadowless Sword not only didn't escape, but he personally went to the government troops. I don't know what he said to them, but the magistrate was furious and immediately sealed off the temple gates, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving! He also gave Shadowless Sword a fast horse, and he rode off like the wind towards Hangzhou!" Xiang Quan's face changed color in horror. "This is bad! Shadowless Sword has probably exposed our whereabouts and reported us! He's riding a fast horse to Hangzhou, undoubtedly to ask Emperor Qianlong for a large number of government troops!" Chou Jiao looked around and said, "We shouldn't delay! Everyone, prepare to leave at any time!" He then looked at the abbot and said, "Master, I'm afraid this time we'll implicate your temple again!" The abbot smiled slightly. With a slight smile, he remained calm and composed: "Amitabha! The world is in turmoil, and the people are suffering terribly. Our Buddha, with compassion, saves all beings and takes it upon himself to uphold justice and uphold righteousness. Chief, we've known each other for quite some time now, we have a mutual fondness and trust, and we both understand each other perfectly on the principle of overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming! There's an old saying: 'A scholar will die for his confidant, a woman will adorn herself for her lover!' That's the truth!" Stinky Feet was filled with awe and excitedly grasped the abbot's hand, saying emotionally, "Master, you are truly a chivalrous monk! Your kind heart and heroic spirit are rare indeed! Master, the Red Flower Society is determined to be your friend! If there is ever any need for our society to help, the Red Flower Society will go through fire and water without hesitation!"

After analyzing the current situation, Tie Suanpan said, "According to the Qing Dynasty's bureaucratic system, a county magistrate's yamen runners and constables would only number a few dozen. But this time, how come the Yangzhou magistrate brought more than five hundred people? That's almost the size of an entire Eight Banners army camp! It's said that the Yangzhou magistrate is very adept at officialdom, not only experienced in extorting money from the people, but also recruiting some local ruffians as slaves to act as his henchmen for guarding his house. This time, in order to capture murderers and robbers, he actually mobilized his entire force! Although this force is a motley crew, their numbers far exceed ours, so they shouldn't be underestimated." "The journey from Yangzhou to Hangzhou is quite long. Their main force from Hangzhou won't arrive in two or three days, so we don't need to worry about them!" Stinky Feet decisively said, "In that case, we just need to fight our way out and break through the encirclement!" Thousand-Hand Guanyin said, "And the sooner the better! Because now we're racing against time with the Qing court!" Fragrant Fist immediately went to the door, urgently saying, "I'll go and gather the people from our Southern Fist School right now to discuss how to break through!" Stinky Feet nodded and said, "Please go, sister!"

As soon as Xiang Quan left, Chou Jiao jumped off the bed and released the pressure points for Pi Liang Ban and Long Juan Feng. Pi Liangban, his anger rising, retorted, "That Shadowless Sword is a future menace! Chief, look, if your elder sister hadn't stopped me and Sixth Brother, that villain Shadowless Sword might have been dead long ago. Why all this trouble?" Chou Jiao sighed and patiently advised, "It's true that it was wrong for your sister to obstruct your killing of the bandits, but your words were too harsh and uncompromising. That's equally unacceptable! If both sides calmed down, analyzed the current situation, recognized the advantages and disadvantages, and treated each other with tolerance, unity, and friendship, how could any conflict have arisen?" Pi Liangban glanced at him, wanting to say more, but Tie Suanpan patted him on the shoulder, smiling and smoothing things over, "Eighth Brother, Headmaster Xiang is a top figure in the martial arts world, one of the four great families, and she's very high-minded! Even our Chief gives her some leeway! Don't provoke her without respect in the future, lest you make a fool of yourself."

As they spoke, Xiang Quan led the Southern Fist Sect members into the room. The six famous fist styles and over a hundred Southern Fist Sect disciples instantly filled the small room to capacity. Looking at the dense crowd, which seemed poised to devour the Red Flower Society heroes in the blink of an eye, a chill involuntarily rose in his heart.

Stinky Feet raised his arm and shouted, "This room is too small, let's go sit in the outer hall!" He took the lead and walked out to the outer hall. The others followed. Fragrant Fist was the first to express his feelings: "Regarding the matter of forcibly releasing Shadowless Sword, I, the sect leader, would like to apologize to the heroes of the Red Flower Society! In fact, I know that Shadowless Sword is a scoundrel, but as the leader of a martial arts world, I cannot go back on my word! Today, I allowed that traitor Shadowless Sword to sneak back and report to his master, which led to the army besieging the city and sealing off the mountain gate. The blame lies entirely with me! To atone for my sins, I am willing to lead my Southern Fist Sect disciples to take the lead and cover the brothers of the Red Flower Society as they break out of Daming Temple!" As soon as he said this, a thunderous applause erupted. The heroes of the Red Flower Society were deeply moved upon hearing this, and they all secretly gave him a thumbs up, praising, "Truly worthy of being the leader of the Jiangnan martial arts world! The Southern Fist Sect's leader, Xiang Quan, is indeed fair in rewards and punishments and strict with himself! He has the demeanor of a great general!"

Stinky Feet declared passionately, "With a formidable enemy before us, whether it's the Southern Fist School or the Red Flower Society, we should unite as one, regardless of who we are, and face this common foe! Because we share a common enemy: the corrupt Qing Dynasty, the brutal and cruel Qing court, and their heartbroken and insane henchmen! When we break through the encirclement, we will reunite at the ancestral hall of Shi Kefa, the Grand Secretary of the late Ming Dynasty!"