All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

Seeing Bai Jingqi's dark complexion and pitiful appearance, it's heartbreaking to see!

Upon seeing the bearded man's words, the two soldiers realized that the man in front of them was the kidnapped seventh young master of the Bai family. Seeing the seventh young master's miserable appearance, it was clear that he had suffered a lot. The two soldiers stopped keeping watch and went outside to report the news. This gossip was still fresh and hot. Judging from the situation, the Bai family had suffered a lot!

Soon, the bearded man carried Bai Jingqi into the Bai residence. Everyone in the Bai residence rushed out, and upon seeing Bai Jingqi dressed like this, they all burst into tears.

Finally, Bai Wenshi and Bai Yingxuan heard the news of their son's return. They helped each other to the front of the courtyard. When they saw the black soot on their son's body and face, they were filled with mixed emotions of sorrow and joy. They hugged Bai Jingqi and cried bitterly for a long time.

"My son, oh dear, you've suffered so much! Oh dear, my son! Oh dear!"

Bai Wenshi almost burst into song from crying. Finally, the old man heard the news and rushed to the place. When he saw his grandson dressed like this, he was also overcome with grief and told Bai Wenshi to quickly take Bai Jingqi to take a bath and change into clean clothes.

Bai Wenshi then came to her senses and hurriedly ordered the servants to quickly fetch hot water from the kitchen while she went to find clothes for her son. He needed new clothes and new shoes to say goodbye to the past.

Seeing everyone so heartbroken, Bai Jingqi didn't want to interrupt them. He thought that crying occasionally was good for his health. Finally, with the help of his maid, Bai Jingqi was stripped naked and entered the bathhouse. Bai Wenshi personally stepped in and scrubbed Bai Jingqi from head to toe. She even scrubbed his little sparrow almost until it bled. This mother was truly a loving mother!

Wearing new clothes and shoes, another handsome young man appeared, with white teeth and red lips. Bai Wenshi looked at Bai Jingqi's belly with some doubt. How could he look like he had suffered? He looked like he had gained half a size.

Bai Jingqi ignored his mother's doubts and went to eat with his maid leading him by the hand. To be honest, he hadn't had the Bai family's snacks for a few days and was quite craving them.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Bai Jingqi was led to the old man's study, where everyone gathered, except for Bai the eldest and Bai the third.

Bai Jingqi asked with some curiosity.

"Grandpa, where are my eldest uncle and third uncle?"

When Old Master Bai heard Bai Jingqi's words, he was stunned for a moment, and then quickly asked.

"Jingqi, I was about to ask you the same thing. Your eldest uncle and third uncle went to pay the ransom, so why did you come back first? Didn't you meet with them?"

Bai Jingqi's eyes darted around, and he quickly realized what was happening and said...

"After my uncle and his family paid the ransom, the other party told me to get lost. I was tired and hungry at the time, and I was afraid that they would come after me, so I quickly ran down another road. I wandered around and finally got to my doorstep!"

Upon hearing Bai Jingqi's words, everyone immediately imagined the scene from that moment, and they nodded repeatedly, praising Bai Jingqi for his intelligence.

Upon hearing this, Old Master Bai realized what had happened and immediately sent his servants to find Old Master Bai and his companion.

The crowd then surrounded Bai Jingqi, asking him to recount his experiences over the past few days.

Since everyone wanted to hear it, Bai Jingqi naturally couldn't refuse. He quickly squeezed out two crocodile tears and began to recount the cruelty and ruthlessness of the kidnappers. Every day, they ate coarse grain buns, which contained pebbles that were not only gritty but also black. The six kidnappers and he, a total of seven people, shared one bed. He had nowhere to go but to squeeze around the firewood in the kitchen, relying on the warmth from the earthen stove to keep warm. As he recounted the past, Bai Jingqi's tears flowed again on the spot!

Those who hear it are moved to tears; those who are saddened are heartbroken!

Bai Yaping, that silly girl, couldn't help but pull Bai Jingqi into her spacious embrace, letting him feel the care from the silly girl.

After chatting and sharing their stories, they finally heard a commotion outside. Two figures rushed in; it was none other than Boss Bai and Third Master Bai. Both were covered in dust, and upon seeing Bai Jingqi unharmed, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Master Bai was overjoyed and patted his chest, saying...

"I knew it! Snakes have their ways, and rats have theirs. Paying money to release people is only right and proper. Now, everyone's back safe and sound, and we're all happy!"

Everyone nodded in agreement with what Master Bai had said.

The Third Master Bai handled the ransom payment matter brilliantly, earning unanimous praise from the entire Bai family. Bai Jingqi raised his head and looked at his smug Third Uncle Bai, who was also smiling broadly. If he wasn't mistaken, his Third Uncle was probably the mole. This guy with the peculiar thought process would never have imagined that Guiwu had already passed away.

That evening, Old Master Bai had the kitchen prepare several highly nourishing dishes for Bai Jingqi to make up for the losses he had incurred over the past few days. Bai Jingqi reluctantly agreed and ate with great relish, his mouth greasy with oil.

The news of Bai Jingqi's rescue spread quickly, and for several days in a row, relatives and friends came to visit him. After hearing about Bai Jingqi's ordeal again, everyone was relieved for him. It was a stroke of luck that the matter could be settled with money!

The Bai family returned to its former tranquility once again. However, from then on, it became more difficult for Bai Jingqi to go out. In addition to Hu Zitou, the family also hired a guard to watch over the house. From then on, whenever he wanted to go out, the two guards would keep a close watch on him, which put Old Master Bai at ease.

But no one noticed that since Bai Jingqi returned home, the Third Master of the Bai family's expression had become increasingly grim each day.

How could he not look bad?

They agreed to split it 50/50, but Bai Jingqi has been home for a week now, and that bastard Guiwu has taken the money and disappeared without a trace.

Master Bai had searched the capital thoroughly during this time, but he couldn't find Guiwu. He hadn't expected that Guiwu was already dead. His only thought at the moment was that that bastard Guiwu had taken his money and gone to another place to enjoy himself.

This matter made Master Bai's face grow uglier day by day. Not only had he not seen the ten thousand taels, but he had also invested two thousand five hundred taels of his own money. Damn it, he couldn't live like this anymore. Once he found that bastard, he would be in for a beating.

Another week passed, and it was already half a month since Bai Jingqi returned home. Bai Sanye searched high and low but still couldn't find out any news about Guiwu. Finally, Bai Sanye exploded.

Since you, Guiwu, have been so unrighteous, then don't be unjust to me. Damn it, you, Guiwu, are hiding from me? Fine, I have a way to deal with you!

So, on this day, Master Bai tricked the old man who used to drive the carriage at Prince Zhan's mansion out of his way. After some kind words of persuasion, he finally found out the whereabouts of the two children that Guiwu and the eldest princess had back then.

So, on this day, Master Bai and the old man rode in a horse-drawn carriage all the way out of the city, and finally met the old man who had taken in the two children years ago in a small village more than 30 miles outside the city.

Upon inquiry, it was learned that when the coachman gave the child to the old man, the old man did not have good intentions. Upon seeing that there was a boy among them, he sold the boy the following year to buy food, while no one wanted the girl, so he had no choice but to raise her.

They've been raising her for almost six years. The old man wasn't so kind. The girl was not even six years old, pale and thin, barely any flesh. A child under six years old being asked to gather firewood and cook was clearly being prepared to be used as a laborer.

Seeing this, Master Bai immediately threatened the old man, hoping to extort some silver from him. Unfortunately, he didn't get anything and could only put Huang Chun, who was not yet six years old, into the carriage.

Since they couldn't find a boy, they found a girl, and that was all they could do for now. Anyway, Guiwu didn't know if he had found a boy or a girl. He would wait until he met her, then blackmail her and get the money.

But what Master Bai never expected was that he would probably never see Guiwu again in his lifetime!

Chapter Nine: Hunting Time at the City God Temple

Master Bai brought Huang Chun back to the capital, but dared not make it public. He placed Huang Chun in the care of the West City Church, where the white priest raised him.

He spread the word to some of Guiwu's frequented places that he had Guiwu's son in his possession, and that if Guiwu wanted to see his son, he would have to come out and meet him.

But more than half a month has passed since the announcement, and Guiwu still hasn't shown up, not even a shadow of him has been seen. Now, Master Bai is completely out of options and can only continue to wait and see.

Bai Jingqi knew a little about these churches scattered throughout the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, after all, his own Third Master Bai was a believer in this religion. However, Third Master Bai's belief in this foreign religion was not devout at all; he didn't even know whether God's surname was Ji or Ma.

Bai Sanye had a pretty good relationship with the priest at the church. Occasionally, when the Bai family held a performance, they would invite the old white man to come and listen to the opera together.

Later, Bai Jingqi met Huang Chun at a traditional opera performance. In the original novel, she was Bai Jingqi's legal wife, but at the moment she was just a little girl under six years old. Bai Jingqi had no interest in her at all. He would leave it to fate. If there was an opportunity in the future, he might take her in, since she would indeed be quite pretty when she grew up.

The Bai family is open to all kinds of beliefs, including both vegetarian and non-vegetarian food, and they believe in freedom. Bai Jingqi doesn't have a good impression of these churches either, because he has read history and knows that most of the priests in these churches will become collaborators in the future. The burning, killing, and looting committed by the Eight-Nation Alliance were largely due to the "achievements" of these people.

A month has passed since the kidnapping incident, and Bai Jingqi has resumed his daily exercise and studies. Since experiencing the fun of climbing over the wall to go out, Bai Jingqi has also started to climb over the wall at night to take a stroll.

He had visited the City God Temple a few days ago. He wandered in late at night and saw that there were more than twenty beggars lying inside. He didn't dare to check and could only leave.

Since seeing blood, Bai Jingqi has found himself much bolder, because he has discovered that his abilities in this world are actually more powerful than he imagined.

From that day on, Bai Jingqi began to eat and drink excessively during the day, go to bed early at night, and secretly get up at three in the morning to climb over the wall and start jogging alone along the sparsely populated areas of the outer city.

In this era, there were no cameras, no streetlights, and even fewer people would wander around at night. Occasionally, there would be night watchmen, but they wouldn't dare to go to sparsely populated areas. If someone were to actually spot Bai Jingqi, they would only see a dark shadow whizzing past in the night, leaving the person with deep fear and awakening some ghost stories.

With the soul of an adult in his mind, combined with the body he had trained since childhood, Bai Jingqi discovered that his body indeed possessed skills and strength beyond those of ordinary people.

In this era, houses were generally several meters high. He could easily leap onto the walls with just a little leverage and walk on the rooftops as if they were flat ground. The exhilarating feeling he experienced was something that ordinary people could hardly enjoy.

He even considered visiting the palace once, but ultimately decided against it because he felt his kung fu skills weren't up to par. After all, he knew that there were many kung fu masters in the palace during that era.

Over the years, he hadn't actually learned any kung fu; it was all based on memories from his previous life, which were essentially skills used by modern special forces. He always believed that even an ordinary person, if trained in some everyday kung fu from a young age for ten or twenty years, could develop the ability to protect themselves, let alone someone who had mastered countless killing techniques.

He really wanted to learn about the traditional Chinese martial arts of this era, and Mr. Ji Zongbu was the person he was currently planning to contact.

Since their last parting, he had inquired about the address Ji Zongbu had left behind and learned that it was the residence of some officials of the Shenji Camp. He planned to visit them next spring, just like in the original story, and he intended to become their disciple.

He also found out what exactly the Shenji Camp was.

The Shenji Battalion of the Qing Dynasty was established in 1861. It was an imperial guard that used modern weapons and had more than 30,000 men, most of whom were the sons of the Eight Banners. This force was equipped with the most advanced firearms in the Qing Dynasty and should have been the most powerful force in the Qing Dynasty. However, in reality, it had long been corrupt.

After staying at home for two months, Bai Jingqi finally celebrated his sixth birthday. With the end of the year approaching, Bai Jingqi was still a little worried about the silver notes he had left at the City God Temple. So, in the middle of the night, he secretly slipped out again.

As soon as Bai Jingqi approached the City God Temple, he sensed something was wrong. There seemed to be a fire inside the temple, and he could faintly hear wailing sounds. He quickly quickened his pace and, once he reached the outer perimeter of the temple, he used a lever to climb onto the roof of a small building on the outskirts. He hid in the darkness and peered into the City God Temple not far away.

Inside the City God Temple, there was a group of seven or eight burly men wearing tattered cotton-padded coats, each carrying a torch and gleaming weapons, including long knives and spikes. On the ground knelt a group of ragged teenagers, and two others were already lying unconscious, looking like they were in grave danger.

The bloodstains around them were particularly glaring. The group of teenagers were of varying ages, ranging from seven or eight to ten years old, and there were more than twenty of them. They looked like the beggars he had encountered at the door that day.

Bai Jingqi was a little confused about what was going on, so he could only continue listening to the conversation inside.

Then they heard a burly man on the other side raise his long sword and curse at the two men lying on the ground, their lives hanging in the balance.

"You little brat, you're asking for trouble. We told you to work for us, and we'd make sure you live a life of luxury. You still want to go it alone? You're asking for it!"

As he spoke, another burly man shouted to the people beside him.

"Cut off all their hands and legs. Those that can survive, let them rest for a while, then get them all to work. Find some water to wash their faces. Keep the good-looking ones to sell to the garden tomorrow!"

Upon hearing this, Bai Jingqi was immediately shocked. He never expected to encounter such a person. This kind of scum has existed since ancient times, but there are just more of them in times of chaos.

Bai Jingqi looked down again and saw more than twenty children kneeling on the ground, trembling all over, but few of them resisted. They had obviously given up hope of their fate. He guessed that the two who resisted had already been killed.

Soon, several burly men began the selection process. One of the older boys couldn't bear his impending fate and tried to stand up and run outside. Just then, one of the men raised his long knife and slashed it viciously at the boy's back.

Seeing this, Bai Jingqi didn't think much of it. He picked up a piece of tile and struck the other person's wrist from the darkness.

The tile struck the burly man's wrist precisely. Perhaps due to his young age and the distance, the force was insufficient. The man merely cried out in pain, gripped the hilt of his knife, and frantically slashed around while shouting for his accomplices.

The boy who had just escaped took this opportunity to flee into the darkness and escape into the distance.

The people around them couldn't care less about the boy at this moment. They left two people to guard the rest of the people, while the others picked up sharp weapons and rushed out the door.

Bai Jingqi stood opposite them, coldly watching them wave their daggers and torches around in the darkness. Clearly, the other side didn't know how many people were on their side either.

Bai Jingqi picked up another tile and smashed it hard into one of the men's eyes. The man cried out in pain and pointed at Bai Jingqi's location, yelling loudly.

The people around him quickly raised their torches and rushed towards Bai Jingqi's position.

Bai Jingqi laughed and jumped off the roof, and the Dark Hunting Game officially began!

Bai Jingqi quickly led the group a hundred meters away from the City God Temple. Weeds and low mounds of earth were everywhere. The group was obviously worried that the other side had a large number of people and dared not be alone. The four of them lined up in a straight line and chased after Bai Jingqi.

Suddenly, a noise came from the bushes not far away. The group quickened their pace and rushed towards the bushes. They leaped over a mound of earth, and just as the last person stepped over it, a dark figure suddenly darted out from under the mound. The figure, like a monkey, quickly climbed onto his back. Before he could react, an iron nail pierced through the back of his neck.

The other man clutched his neck, groaning in pain on the ground. When the others came to their senses, they rushed over and found that their accomplice was lying on the ground, his face flushed, clutching a handful of grass roots in agony, and making screams. Unfortunately, his voice grew weaker and weaker until he finally fell silent.

But at this moment, there was no trace of the enemy except for darkness. Everyone felt a chill run down their spines and looked at each other in bewilderment.

This was only the first prey, and Bai Jingqi wasn't done playing around yet. As the group looked at each other in dismay, a stone hit one of them on the back of the head again, and a stomping sound could be heard not far away. This time, the group rushed over again.

Half an hour later, the darkness returned to calm once more, as if the commotion had never happened.

Bai Jingqi wiped the blood from his hands and rubbed his still sore hands. He had almost been ambushed on the last one. The other party was too strong and struggled in his dying moments, pinning him down. Bai Jingqi managed to stab the other party in the eye socket with his hand and escaped to kill him in the brief moment.

The near-death experience made Bai Jingqi realize that at his age, he still needed to rely on skill; if he fought head-on, he might not be able to beat an adult.

Five have been dealt with so far. There should be three left in the City God Temple. One of them should be the leader of the opposing side. He was just hit by me, and his eye is probably still hurting.

Bai Jingqi approached the City God Temple again and looked inside. Sure enough, three people were holding sharp weapons and hiding behind the kneeling boys. The three of them even only lit one torch and nervously watched the outside of the City God Temple.

The three had clearly heard the screams of the others. Now they were in a dilemma, unsure of how many enemies there were, and could only wait and see with Bai Jingqi.

Bai Jingqi wasn't in a hurry. He had just exhausted himself and was still feeling a bit weak, so he climbed up a corner of the wall and rested against it.

And so, the two sides were once again locked in a stalemate. Time passed by, and finally, the sky in the distance was beginning to lighten. The three people in the City God Temple breathed a sigh of relief. They looked outside for a long time and, seeing that there seemed to be no more movement, they cautiously walked out of the City God Temple.