The Passerby Hidden Guard Picked Up the Villain [Transmigration] - Chapter 12

He Yanzhi and Xiao Hongyin were tied up firmly with thick ropes and carried onto the boat by two burly men. They were blindfolded and sat closely together at the stern of the boat. The oars entered the water, making a splashing sound as they propelled the small boat forward. The swaying of the vessel caused both of them to lean to one side simultaneously.

A soft mattress was laid out on the central floorboards, where Jiang Beihai was placed. Feeling bored, he chatted with He Yanzhi from time to time. Jiang Beihai stared at the ceiling of the cabin and asked, “Since you are not busy flogging people at the magistrate’s office, kid, why are you out here in the middle of nowhere?”

He Yanzhi replied casually, “A boy in my family ran away from school. I came out to catch him and take him back.”

Hearing this, Jiang Beihai glanced at Xiao Hongyin and asked, “Your son?”

“My cousin,” He Yanzhi replied.

“No wonder you look alike. Both of you are quite effeminate.” There was no logic to his words. Seeing that He Yanzhi no longer responded, Jiang Beihai began to boast. “But my Old Jin is the same. Usually, when I take him out, people say he is the lady of my mountain stronghold. Hey, I wonder if he feels disgusted hearing that.”

He Yanzhi sensed something unusual. Recalling Jin Lanye’s attitude toward Jiang Beihai, he asked curiously, “What does the Leader think about that?”

“Well,” Jiang Beihai fell into deep thought, seemingly struggling to find the right words. In the end, he only managed three words: “I do not know.”

He Yanzhi rolled his eyes internally and rephrased the question: “Hearing others say such things, is the Leader happy or angry in his heart?”

“About that,” Jiang Beihai pondered for a moment again and shook his head, saying, “I am not sure. To be honest, I do not actually feel much. It is just Old Jin. I feel that he might be a little unhappy. Take this prison break, for example. That day, he sneaked into the jail alone. I thought he was going to take me out then. Who knew he would start by scolding me severely? Do you not think that is strange? Should a normal person not discuss how to get out first?”

He continued his complaint, “It was just that I did not tell him when trouble arose. I just wanted him to run away quickly. He did not appreciate the sentiment and even specifically ran into the jail to scold me. He truly does not recognize a good heart.”

“And then?” He Yanzhi asked.

“And then he just ran off on his own! He said something about three days later. Tell me, since he was already inside, why could he not just take me with him? And when he came to rescue me today, he kept insisting there was an ambush. Here we are, out safe and sound. He is just paranoid.” Jiang Beihai leaned closer to He Yanzhi and whispered, “Tell me, do you think Old Jin has some sort of mental illness?”

The cabin door opened at that exact moment. Jin Lanye stood at the bow, looking inside. Seeing Jiang Beihai leaning extremely close to He Yanzhi, the corners of Jin Lanye’s mouth, which were originally tilted upward, immediately tightened into a straight line.

“Old Jiang,” Jin Lanye walked slowly into the cabin and stopped in front of the two men. He asked, “What are you doing?”

He Yanzhi was blindfolded and had his hands tied, so he naturally could not be doing anything. Therefore, when Jin Lanye spoke, his gaze remained fixed solely on Jiang Beihai.

“Nothing, just talking,” Jiang Beihai replied with a look of pure sincerity.

“Oh?” Jin Lanye raised an eyebrow and asked, “What are you talking about?”

“Um, I asked if this was his son. He said no, it is his cousin. I said no wonder they are both good looking. And then I said,” Jiang Beihai was counting the sentences they had spoken on his fingers when Jin Lanye, unable to listen any longer, interrupted him.

“You, come out with me.”

Jiang Beihai pointed to himself and asked, “Me?”

He Yanzhi coughed and said to Jin Lanye, “Please untie me.”

After regaining his sight and freedom of movement, He Yanzhi stood up from the floor. Xiao Hongyin called out to him anxiously.

“It is fine. Stay here,” He Yanzhi said. He then followed Jin Lanye out of the cabin and stood facing him. Standing together, He Yanzhi realized he was actually half a head taller than the other man. He observed the foreign features before him and almost guessed Jin Lanye’s purpose for calling him out.

“Were you the one who picked up my silver ornament that day, Master He?” Jin Lanye did not beat around the bush, his face returning to that half smiling expression.

He Yanzhi did not intend to hide it either and replied, “Yes.”

“Then, Master He, you specifically transferred the original jailers and intentionally left a flaw to help us escape. What is the purpose of such painstaking effort?”

“The Vice Leader’s Mandarin is quite good,” He Yanzhi said as he stretched. “But why did the Vice Leader bother eavesdropping at the door? It would be much more convenient for everyone to speak openly.”

Jin Lanye gave a thin smile and asked, “Then may I ask, Master He, why are you helping us?”

“I am not helping you,” He Yanzhi leaned casually against the mast and said. “Finding the Birthday Gifts is my duty. You and I are simply taking what we each need.”

“The Birthday Gifts were stolen. They are not in our hands,” Jin Lanye explained kindly.

“I am aware of that. But Vice Leader, do you not want to clear the Leader’s name?” He Yanzhi looked directly into his eyes. His dark pupils were like the boundless night.

Jin Lanye took a step back silently and said to He Yanzhi, “Does Master He have a lead?”

He Yanzhi did not answer immediately. He looked ahead at the emerald green river water and asked, “Where are we heading?”

“The General Headquarters. We will arrive in about half the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn,” Jin Lanye replied.

The boat moved swiftly along the river. After He Yanzhi had spent a short while in the breeze, a large group of wooden buildings built against vertical cliffs over the water appeared in the distance. Jin Lanye commanded his subordinates to moor the boat and had Jiang Beihai carefully carried down. He Yanzhi untied Xiao Hongyin’s restraints and led him onto the shore.

Looking at the wooden buildings before them, Xiao Hongyin asked curiously, “Brother Yan, where are we?”

He Yanzhi replied, “The General Headquarters of the Canal Gang. Rest assured, we will be safe for the time being.” Xiao Hongyin did not doubt him and followed He Yanzhi into the wooden buildings, clutching the hem of his robe.

The stone platform where they landed was carved from protruding mountain rocks. After several dozen stone steps, it connected to an extending wooden ladder. Jin Lanye led the way, with Jiang Beihai following closely behind. He Yanzhi and Xiao Hongyin constantly observed their surroundings as they climbed the steps.

Burly men pushed open the heavy wooden doors, and the sea of heads inside immediately looked up. Jin Lanye did not look aside and stepped calmly into the room. As soon as Jiang Beihai’s figure appeared behind him, everyone in the room stood up.

“The Leader! The Leader is back!”

In the crowd, a brother wearing only a vest cried out in surprise. Then, he rushed urgently to Jiang Beihai, using his arms wrapped in thick cloth strips to support him as he was lowered from the burly man’s back. With him leading the way, the brothers nearby also scrambled over. They danced with excitement, shouting that the Leader was blessed with great luck and had escaped death.

Jiang Beihai was surrounded by his brothers. Looking at their thin, dark faces worn by worry, even though only a few days had passed, he felt a sense of how things had changed. A sour feeling rose in his heart. He shouted to the crowd, “Thank you, brothers, for your concern. I, your Big Brother, am back!”

The crowd cheered once again. Jin Lanye stood to the side, watching them quietly. Just as everyone was in high spirits, a voice drifted out gloomily from a corner.

“The Leader’s safe return is certainly a joyous occasion. But if our Vice Leader had not risked himself, how could it have gone so smoothly?”

Everyone followed the voice to the corner. Half of the brothers from the headquarters were squatting there; they were all influential branch leaders and incense masters within the gang. They were all quite young, except for the elderly, thin man squatting at the very front. He was the one who had just spoken. Although he spoke the truth, his tone carried a hint of contempt.

The brothers surrounding Jiang Beihai immediately exploded with rage. The man in the vest strode up to him, pointed at his nose, and cursed: “Old Ge, what do you mean by that? Do not think that just because you have been in the gang for a long time, you can climb over the Leader’s head. Saving the Leader is Jin Lanye’s duty. It is not your place to sing his praises here.”

“A-Yong, do not speak so hastily. The Leader himself has not said anything yet. Why have you jumped out?” Old Ge smiled contemptuously, unsurprised by the man’s reaction.

“Who the hell are you calling a dog? What is wrong with being a dog? Is Jin Lanye not also a dog that the Leader picked up? Relying on his looks, he has enchanted all of you. It was thanks to the Leader saving you in the first place. Now you have grown teeth to bite people. What a pack of ungrateful wolves.” As A-Yong spoke, he spat at them. He was just an ordinary fighter in the gang, and at this moment, he showed no respect for these so called masters.

The brothers in the corner were provoked and leaped up from the ground simultaneously. The people behind A-Yong also stood forward, and both sides were full of hostility. Arguments and insults rose and fell one after another.

He Yanzhi and Xiao Hongyin were at the back. Before the argument broke out, they had found a corner to huddle in, watching the fight with great interest. Xiao Hongyin was accustomed to the schemes and infighting among scholars, but he had rarely seen such a direct confrontation. He looked up and asked He Yanzhi, “With them arguing like this, will the two Leaders not be very embarrassed?”

The people were too noisy, so He Yanzhi had to lean down and put his right ear close to Xiao Hongyin’s mouth. He replied, “No.”

Facing his proximity, Xiao Hongyin did not find it inappropriate, but he asked in confusion, “Why not? This place is about to be torn in half.”

Before He Yanzhi could answer, Jin Lanye spoke up to stop both sides. “Enough. Everyone, shut up.”

The crowd that had already started fighting was forced to stop. Old Ge glared at A-Yong and obediently pulled back his staff. But A-Yong did not care what Jin Lanye said and still wanted to continue fighting. However, since the opponent had stopped, he had to let it go even though he was full of unvented anger.

Jiang Beihai also quietly followed up: “That is right, A-Yong. Why argue? We are all brothers.”

Jin Lanye glanced at him and said, “You, shut up too.” Jiang Beihai obediently shut his mouth.

Old Ge smiled triumphantly, while A-Yong looked at Jiang Beihai with a look of disappointment.

“The government is pursuing us closely now. We must set off immediately. Everyone, hurry up and move the grain onto the boats,” Jin Lanye gave the order. Old Ge and the others left in response. A-Yong lingered for a while but was eventually kicked by Jiang Beihai to go move things.

The area was finally quiet. Jin Lanye calmed his mind and invited He Yanzhi and Xiao Hongyin to discuss together. “Master He, if you have any good plans, why do you not tell us?”

After helping Jiang Beihai sit down, Jin Lanye dismissed the others and personally brewed tea for them. He Yanzhi thanked him and took the bowl. He looked down and saw that there were no tea leaves in the bowl; there was only reddish tea water emitting the fresh scent of citrus.

“I do not have a brilliant plan. I have simply found the hideout of those thieves.” He Yanzhi picked up the tea bowl and took a sip. The tea was sweet and moistening to the throat, making him feel very comfortable. However, Xiao Hongyin, who was beside him, looked troubled and secretly poured the tea away when no one was looking.

Jin Lanye looked delighted upon hearing the news, but He Yanzhi interrupted him: “It is not the mantis that stole the Birthday Gifts, but another group of orioles.”

He briefly recounted the events to them and mentioned He Yu in passing. After listening, the two men opposite him both darkened their faces. Jiang Beihai slapped the table in anger: “They can play their power games all they want, but why do they come to our doorstep to act wildly?”

He Yanzhi looked at him and thought to himself: It is because you have almost monopolized the largest shipping waterways. But in the end, he refrained from saying it out loud.

“By the way, you two, you mentioned moving grain just now. Are you planning to flee from justice?”