That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

Therefore, following behind is actually the safest way out.

"it is good!"

Having made up their minds, the group slowly climbed down the back mountain again, carefully walking along the dark village road.

Almost all the villagers were awakened by the sudden investigation. When they pressed themselves against the wall, they could vaguely hear some whispers, mostly speculations about the purpose of the Divine Capital Guard.

There was also a young man who stole a chicken yesterday. He was so scared that he cried and repented under the covers.

"Jingming, do we really look like good people if we keep hiding like this?"

Xie Yunqi carefully walked along the wall, but his mouth couldn't stop talking; he couldn't help but strike up a conversation with Jiang Jingming:

"What if the Imperial Guards don't find us, but the righteous villagers do?"

"The Imperial Guards are still searching the village. Everyone's reaction is probably to avoid trouble. And with such a thunderstorm, they probably don't dare to wander around."

Although Jiang Jingming felt that this was not the right time for casual conversation, he still answered her in a low voice.

The group followed the Divine Capital Guards from a distance, watching them kick down doors one by one, which frightened the villagers so much that they stood barefoot and trembling in the rain.

"Who taught them to scare people like this? We are the Divine Capital Guards, not bandits and robbers!"

Xie Yunqi was indignant.

"Compared to the local constables and yamen runners, their attitude is quite good. After all, they all work under Vice Envoy Chen, where the discipline is strict, and those who make mistakes and are caught will be punished in public."

Lu Zhao sighed.

How should I put it? Perhaps it's all the fault of the world.

? Chapter 94 Meeting an old friend

The situation was already difficult, and the rain was getting heavier and heavier, pouring down and hitting them head-on.

"Aqing, Aqing! Can I hold your hand? I can't walk anymore."

The dirt roads in the village were full of potholes, and Xie Yunqi waded through puddles, finally unable to bear it any longer and asked for help.

The young lady was too embarrassed to ask Jiang Jingming for help, so she had to ask Aqing instead.

Although Aqing was always cold and aloof, Xie Yunqi never cared about that.

Even the gods in heaven would be rendered speechless by Miss Xie's noise and would have no choice but to bend down and listen to her.

"No."

Aqing walked ahead of her, refusing without turning her head.

"What if I can't walk anymore?!"

Xie Yunqi stomped his feet defiantly behind him, as if to say, "If you don't help me, I'll just fall into the puddle and drown myself."

"..."

After a long silence, Ah Qing had no choice but to back down for the sake of the bigger picture.

She slid the dagger out of her sleeve, pushed it back, and handed the end to Xie Yunqi.

“Hold this hand.”

"Okay, okay!"

Xie Yunqi was easy to deal with, gripping the scabbard with both hands.

With Aqing leading the way, the muddy road full of puddles became much easier to walk on.

Jiang Jingming walked behind the two, secretly amused.

Then he paused and looked at Fang Zhiyi, who was lagging behind at the back of the group.

This usually carefree and composed doctor, after being inexplicably lured onto their pirate ship, always seems to end up in a sorry state.

However, she didn't seem to care about it. She covered her forehead with one hand, making it difficult to see where she was going, and even had a casual smile on her face.

"Feel sorry."

Jiang Jingming hesitated, but when she walked to his side, he reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her out of the ankle-deep puddle.

"Apologize for what?"

Fang Zhiyi looked up at him. The wind and rain had soaked her hair, but her eyes, hidden beneath the veil, were still gentle and captivating.

"If you're sorry, just walk in front of me and shield me from the wind."

She gave him a gentle push.

Jiang Jingming turned around and suddenly felt that he wished the spring rain could be lighter.

A gentle breeze and light rain, sneaking around in the rainy night—that would certainly evoke the romantic spirit of a young swordsman.

Unlike now, when everyone was covered in dirt and mud, looking like a bunch of wild men who had come out of the mountains.

As expected, the adventures I imagined were completely different from reality.

……

Finally, the faint glow of the Shen Du Wei's fire could be seen gathering at the village entrance.

They had searched Xinghua Village thoroughly, but found nothing except for a few slightly suspicious villagers.

"Make a note of these people's names and addresses, and have someone keep an eye on them."

The leader of the Imperial Guards pushed away the umbrella offered by his subordinate, his expression cold and hard.

"Vice Envoy Chen has ordered that we all stay here tonight and conduct a thorough search again at dawn."

"Yes!"

The Divine Capital Guards responded in unison.

"..."

Xie Yunqi, hiding behind the wall, clicked his tongue in annoyance:

"This guy is clearly Chen Sha's last disciple. His smug demeanor and tone of voice are exactly the same."

"Commander Xie, are you not usually like this?"

Jiang Jingming sat next to her, somewhat curious.

"Of course not!"

Xie Yunqi shook his head, rested his chin on his hands, and looked at the dense rain outside the eaves.

The group was quite lucky to find an abandoned local temple at the village entrance, which provided shelter from the rain and allowed them to observe the movements of the Divine Capital Guard.

"Although my father can be quite stubborn when it comes to important matters, he's not like Chen Sha in ordinary times; he's a well-known good-natured person."

“I can attest to that.”

Lu Zhao, standing nearby, wholeheartedly agreed.

In fact, he always felt that the Divine Capital Guard should be like Commander Xie, who was obviously the truest hero in the world.

He was a commanding figure on the battlefield, yet a courteous and respectful man in private. Just his presence made people feel that justice was about to be served.

The scions of prominent families in the capital had been clamoring to join the Imperial Guard since childhood, mostly because they admired Xie Jichuan's charisma.

Half of it is overt worship, and the other half is covert worship.

"However, I don't think Vice Envoy Chen is a bad person."

At this point, Lu Zhao sighed:

“Last night when he called me over and put me in charge of watching over you, I felt... the way he looked at me, it was as if he already knew what was going to happen.”

"Too."

Jiang Jingming nodded.

Otherwise, how could someone as vigilant as Chen Sha have so easily allowed Lu Zhao to steal all of their weapons?

Human nature is truly contradictory. On one hand, it is ruthless and determined to carry out its plans, while on the other hand, it is lenient and seems to want to see what kind of trouble these teenagers can cause.

"But they're blocking the way here, how are we supposed to get out?"

Xie Yunqi squatted to one side, looking worried.

I'd been looking forward to a good night's sleep for so long, but I'd only been asleep for a short while when I was dragged out of bed and forced to flee again. Now I'm stuck here in the rain and wind.

Once this matter is resolved, she will definitely gather all the Divine Capital Guards who arrested her tonight and teach them a good lesson.

"We can only take it one step at a time."

Jiang Jingming looked up and watched the raindrops gather into beads and fall drop by drop from the eaves of the dilapidated temple.

"and many more!"

Lu Zhao, who had been keeping watch from the side, suddenly lowered his voice and said urgently.

"what happened?"

"Come on!"

Lu Zhao turned around abruptly and beckoned everyone to follow.

"They seemed to have also discovered the dilapidated temple and wanted to come in to take shelter from the rain."

The rain showed no signs of stopping. After being soaked all night, even if one didn't develop a high fever the next day, they would still cough and feel weak for a while.

So the team leader decided to take turns on duty, allowing most people to go out and rest in the rain.

It's really a leak in the house that happened to rain in the night.

Jiang Jingming and his group had no choice but to leave by going around to the other side of the dilapidated temple.

"wrong."

Just then, the team leader frowned and realized something was wrong.

Although the dilapidated temple could barely provide shelter from the rain, the wind and rain were blowing in all directions, leaving most of the ground wet, while a few areas were much drier than the rest.

"Someone was here just now! Chase them!"

"Yes!"

The Shen Du Guards were invigorated and immediately split into several teams to quickly give chase.

Jiang Jingming dragged Xie Yunqi along as they ran. The young lady was already furious and just wanted to turn around and beat him up.

Just then, a startled cry came from the top of the wall.

Jiang Jingming suddenly looked up and saw a little boy lying on the earthen wall of the yard.

He was holding a lotus leaf as an umbrella, clearly having sneaked out to see what was going on after hearing the commotion.

The child saw them, but instead of being afraid, he opened his eyes wide in surprise.

"Sister Aqing!"

When he said that, Aqing was slightly taken aback.

Jiang Jingming then recognized that this was actually the child from the mother and son who had been bullied by Master Fu in Shulan City.

The child immediately climbed down from the wall and opened the door for them.

The footsteps of the Divine Capital Guards were approaching through the rain behind him. Without further hesitation, Jiang Jingming stepped inside and fastened the door latch again.

Chapter Ninety-Five: A Glimmer of Hope Amidst the Darkness

Where is your mother?

Jiang Jingming leaned against the wooden door and looked the child up and down.

Back in Shulan City, the child was sallow and thin, like a sick chicken. But in just a few days, he looked much stronger and more like a normal child.

"Inside the house."

The child pointed to the dim candlelight in the room and asked curiously:

"Big brother, are you the ones the Divine Capital Guard is after?"

"It's better if you don't know."