From a tuberculosis patient to a martial arts master

The night rain is pattering.

Zhu Hong lightly touched the roof tiles with his toes, his whole body moving silently through the misty rain like a night bird.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

He had already traversed a small part of Jinyang City and landed on the eaves of a three-story pavilion, looking down at the white dragon painted boat moored on the river.

"Have you heard about what happened during the day...?"

Several men guarding the entrance were huddled under the eaves, chatting idly.

"I heard it's that constable surnamed Zhu again."

The speaker was a short, stout man who yawned with his arms crossed. "What bad luck."

"Shh!"

The person next to him quickly covered his mouth and whispered, "Are you crazy? If you gossip like that, you'll regret it."

The short, stout man broke free from him, dismissively saying, "How could he hear me? Besides, didn't Manager Ma go to Plum Garden to invite the Hall Master?" He curled his lip and sneered.

"Wait for the hall master to return."

"That guy surnamed Zhu is three heads and six arms, and..." He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a dark shadow flash by out of the corner of his eye.

"Yes, something's up!"

As soon as he shouted that, everyone looked in the direction he was pointing, and they froze instantly.

In the rain, a figure is flying along the riverbank.

The figure was incredibly fast, its feet barely touching the ground as it rose and fell, barely even splashing water.

"yes……

"That person during the day?"

Someone with sharp eyes spotted the black knife at the waist and quickly shouted, "Quick, go report this!"

The group instantly panicked; some drew their knives, some shrank back, and some turned and ran into the boat. But they had barely reacted.

"boom--"

A loud bang.

The ornately carved and gilded boat gate shattered with a crash. The red lanterns above the gate swayed violently, and in the flickering candlelight, a cold, stern face was revealed.

Zhu Hong stood there...

Suddenly, he drew his sword!

"Clang." A flash of cold light.

The men who had drawn their swords to meet the attack felt a blur before their eyes and a chill in their throats. Before they could even scream, they collapsed backward.

"what!"

The short, fat man was so frightened that he turned and ran away.

But after running only a few steps, he felt a tightness around the back of his neck and was lifted up. "Spare me, spare me..." he struggled desperately, kicking his legs wildly, his voice distorted.

"Sir, please forgive me.

The younger one did nothing.

Zhu Hong ignored him, simply carrying the fat man as he stepped into the brightly lit hall of the pleasure boat.

"That is?"

The music abruptly stopped.

The young men who were flirting with the girls all turned their heads and their eyes fell on the figure at the door. Even the musician who was playing the pipa froze in place, his fingers hovering on the strings, not daring to fall.

"The yamen, the people from the yamen!"

They were quite surprised.

"That's deadly."

Zhu Hong raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the crowd: "Get the hell out of here." He said, word by word:

"No customers tonight."

Everyone exchanged bewildered glances. Someone, emboldened by alcohol, tried to say something, but was quickly pulled back by a friend who gave him a meaningful look. The constable had killed several people upon arrival; this time he probably wasn't here on official business, and they couldn't afford to offend him.

"Let's go, let's go..."

It's unclear who started it, but a group of people hurriedly rushed out.

The girls followed behind, lifting their skirts, leaving a trail of perfume. The musician playing the pipa picked up his instrument and ran, the strings buzzing as they struck each other.

For an instant.

The hall then became empty.

Seeing this, Zhu Hong casually twisted the short, fat man's neck, snapping it with a "crack," and the head slumped limply. He released his grip, letting the corpse slide down.

At this time.

A group of people filed in from the back room of the hall.

Leading the group were seven or eight men in tight-fitting clothes, their gait powerful and imposing; they were clearly martial arts practitioners. The leader was a burly man with broad shoulders and a slightly protruding temple, indicating he was a martial artist who had mastered the art of muscle training. Behind them followed dozens of elite thugs from pleasure boats, armed with clubs, knives, and spears.

They swarmed in, a dense, dark mass.

Further on, there was a familiar face.

Horse Hand (a type of coin).

He huddled behind the crowd, his eyes darting around. When he saw that the person who came was Zhu Hong, he learned his lesson from the previous incident and didn't dare to say a word.

But secretly, I felt a surge of joy:

"one person?

He actually dared to come alone!

"Yuan Lie is a master of martial arts; with him here today, working alongside Feng Qi and the others, even if Zhu Hong had three heads and six arms, he would surely perish here tonight."

Just then, another person arrived at the bottom of the stairs.

Sai's mother.

She wore a light purple overcoat and slippers, and hurried downstairs.

But as soon as she ran down the last step of the stairs, she glanced into the hall and saw the dilapidated doorway, the corpse lying there, and the familiar figure standing in the center of the hall.

"What on earth is that scoundrel doing?!"

Mom's legs went weak, and she quickly reached out to hold onto the stair railing to avoid collapsing.

"You committed murder, do you have an order from the authorities?"

Suddenly, the leader's gaze sharpened as he fixed on Zhu Hong: "My name is Yuan Lie, and I am honored to be a protector of the Shantang." His tone was still polite.

"I have heard about what happened during the day."

"Sir, isn't the questioning already finished?"

Zhu Hong didn't respond.

He merely raised his eyes, looked past Yuan Lie, and glanced into the crowd.

Li Hang, the man he had dealt with three times, stood at the front, his expression extremely complex. He gripped the hilt of his knife, his knuckles turning white from the pressure.

"Lord Zhu."

Li Hang's throat felt like it was stuck with a fishbone, extremely dry and hoarse: "Why are you always picking on us?"

That's a strange question.

To be honest, he brought this trouble upon himself. Now it's Zhu Hong who's bullying him.

But he didn't refute it.

Zhu Hong simply shook his head and suddenly said, "You shouldn't have gone along with them."

These words seemed to come out of nowhere, but Li Hang understood them nonetheless.

His face twitched, something flashed in his eyes for a moment, then went out, like a lamp wick burning out.

"There's no right or wrong about it."

Li Hang lowered his eyes and said in a low voice, "There is only one path for me."

Good advice is useless when it comes to a damned devil.

If we hadn't dealt with him a few times and he hadn't shown that he still had some sense of morality, he wouldn't have said a word.

Yuan Lie frowned and said in a deep voice:

"Li Hang, step back."

He took a step forward, and his aura suddenly surged. His muscles bulged, his bones cracked, and he released the pressure of a fully-fledged martial artist without reservation.

"My lord."

Yuan Lie stared at Zhu Hong, his voice lowering: "I respect you because you are from the government office, and I have treated you to good wine and food, which is more than enough."

"But you think that with a tattered badge, you can defecate and urinate on the head of a charity."

He narrowed his eyes and sneered:

"You've miscalculated!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the dozens of people behind him pressed forward in unison, their swords drawn, their cold light flashing so bright it made one dizzy.

Yuan Lie stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at Zhu Hong.

"Those who know what's good for them should leave now while they still can."

If they don't know what's good for them...

He paused, a sinister smile creeping onto his lips: "Don't blame me for being ruthless."

……