The Passerby Hidden Guard Picked Up the Villain [Transmigration] - Chapter 19

Raising Xiao Hongyin all these years made it impossible to say they were still strangers, so He Yanzhi decided that he would not only escape the bloody storms of the imperial court himself but pull the boy out along with him.

Xiao Hongyin was now a man grown, skilled in both scholarship and martial arts, and more than capable of looking after himself. Now was the best time to leave Xizhou.

Yang Kuan was utterly bewildered by He Yanzhi’s words. “东州! What are you two going there for? It is a literal backwater! This, A-Yin has such great potential; it is a waste if he does not take the imperial examinations!”

However, He Yanzhi’s mind was made up. He paid no heed to Yang Kuan’s protests.

“This is your future we are talking about! A-Yin, say something!” In his agitation, Yang Kuan knocked over his wine cup, spilling the liquid across the floor.

Xiao Hongyin remained silent, his gaze fixed solely on He Yanzhi.

Beside them, Yang Kuan was scratching his head in frustration. Finally, after a long silence, Xiao Hongyin opened his mouth and uttered a single word: “Fine.”

Yang Kuan gave them both a look that suggested they were being completely irrational and stomped out of the courtyard in a huff. After he left, the entire room fell into silence.

Xiao Hongyin picked up the flask to pour wine for them both. He Yanzhi glanced at the cup, but before he could say a word, Xiao Hongyin moved his own cup away. “Yanzhi does not want me to drink, so I will not.”

“Since when did you become so obedient?” He Yanzhi picked up his cup, holding it in his hand without any real desire to drink.

“Have I not always been this way?” Xiao Hongyin replied with a smile, swapping the wine for a cup of tea.

Xiao Hongyin thought, secretly calculating his own plans, that it did not matter if they went to Dongzhou. Once He Yanzhi was safely settled there, he could just return to the capital.

Meanwhile, He Yanzhi was busy calculating how to deceive He Yu. If he were to leave Xizhou just like this, the informant who delivered his medicine at regular intervals would discover his absence immediately.

After sitting for a while, Xiao Hongyin went to the kitchen to clear the dishes. He Yanzhi practiced his swordplay in the courtyard for a bit, and after washing up, both retired early.

The following day, both were free from duties. Not long after He Yanzhi had lain down for a rest, he was dragged up by Xiao Hongyin to exercise. Unable to withstand Xiao Hongyin’s nagging, he decided to head out for a stroll.

Carrying some silver, He Yanzhi tracked down a newly opened iced-cream shop and joined the queue in front of its doors. Gazing at the long line, he could not help but yawn.

The iced-cream was delicious, truly, but if the crowd were smaller, he would happily come to buy it every day.

He waited listlessly. Ahead of him, a procurement agent for a wealthy family bought an entire basin at once; others brought their whole families, one person taking the place of three. He waited for nearly an hour before it was almost his turn, making him wonder how Xiao Hongyin managed to buy it so easily before.

“Two portions.”

Just as He Yanzhi was about to pull out his money, a man dressed as a government official squeezed in front of him and shouted to the shopkeeper, “How much do you have left? My Master will take the rest!”

Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper beamed with joy, but the people in line began to clamor in protest.

He Yanzhi, also suppressed by a simmering anger, spoke up: “Might I ask which Master is such a gluttonous hog that he can consume an entire cart’s worth of iced-cream?”

The official seemed uneducated; he did not realize that “gluttonous hog” was an insult comparing his master to a pig. Instead, he boastfully announced his master’s identity: “The Vice Minister of Justice, Lord Zhao! Do you commoners think you are worthy of even asking His Lordship’s name?!”

He Yanzhi thought that the official blurted it out anyway, regardless of whether they were worthy or not. He suddenly remembered Yang Kuan mentioning that someone from the higher-ups was coming. Perhaps he meant this man.

“We commoners have lived in Xizhou for a long time and have never heard of any Lord Zhao. Are you perhaps a fraud?”

The moment the words left He Yanzhi’s mouth, and before the man could retort, several officers surrounded them, driving away all the queuing citizens. These officers were all equipped with high-quality blades. They encircled He Yanzhi, and their leader stepped forward.

He Yanzhi remained calm and composed, looking him in the eye. “What are your orders, officer?”

The man produced a token and said, “Master He, Lord Zhao requests your presence.”

Seeing that they had come prepared and that he had no choice, He Yanzhi readily agreed.

As he followed them back to the familiar yamen, He Yanzhi felt a strange sense of displacement. Upon entering the study, he saw a middle-aged man in official robes sitting behind the desk with a smile.

“Master He has arrived.”

Zhao Mengjie rose to greet him. He Yanzhi took a step back and bowed. “Lord Zhao.”

Zhao Mengjie told him to dispense with the formalities and called for tea.

“Master He, try this Snow-Topped Silver Frost tea. I have a preference for bitter tea; I wonder what Master He’s taste is like?”

He Yanzhi glanced at the teacup and smiled slightly. “Lord Zhao, please speak plainly regarding why you sought me out.”

Zhao Mengjie had heard of this man’s temperament, but he had not expected him to be quite this direct. He chuckled. “Since Master He requests it, I shall be blunt. I have heard that you are exceptionally skilled in solving cases and interrogations; you are a rare talent. I wish to invite you to serve in the Ministry of Justice. What do you think?”

Without a second thought, He Yanzhi declined. “Lord Zhao flatters me. I was previously nothing more than a lowly runner. I have no skill in solving cases, and I was dismissed for negligence. I am not fit for the responsibility.”

Seeing the firm refusal, the smile on Zhao Mengjie’s face did not fade. He took a slow sip of tea. “Master He, do not be so modest. I have traveled far and will be staying in Xizhou for a few more days. It will not be too late to decide once you have given it proper thought.”

As he finished speaking, an officer entered and whispered in Zhao Mengjie’s ear. Zhao Mengjie turned back to He Yanzhi. “I have urgent matters to discuss. I shall have someone escort you back. Please accept those iced-creams as an apology for the earlier trouble.”

He Yanzhi nodded and took his leave. As he passed the mulberry tree outside the yamen, a hand suddenly reached out and pulled him back.

“A-Yin?”

Xiao Hongyin made a shushing gesture and pulled him forcefully behind the mulberry tree.

The tree grew near a corner, its trunk and the wall forming a narrow space. He Yanzhi was pressed inside by Xiao Hongyin, the two of them hiding behind the tree face-to-face.

Xiao Hongyin’s face was inches away. He Yanzhi could almost count his eyelashes. For a moment, his limbs went stiff.

The two made eye contact in silence for a long time. Just as He Yanzhi was about to ask what was going on, the faint sound of footsteps came from above.

He Yanzhi tilted his head slightly. Several men dressed as officials were leaping across the rooftops, searching for someone.

“Them again?”

He Yanzhi was referring to the comrades of the two secret guards from before, the ones sent by He Yu. He assumed Xiao Hongyin did not know about He Yu yet, so he used the word “again” to generalize.

Since the previous two guards had vanished, He Yu had sent three waves of men to search for Xiao Hongyin near Xizhou. Xiao Hongyin had usually hidden his tracks well, but the commotion at the market today must have drawn them out.

“Mm.”

Xiao Hongyin gave a soft affirmative. His breath brushed against He Yanzhi’s cheek, stirring the fine hairs there.

It felt itchy, but He Yanzhi held back from moving given their current position. They waited quietly for the men to move off into the distance.

After some time, they finally emerged from behind the tree. He Yanzhi let out a long sigh of relief.

Xiao Hongyin looked at him. “I heard you were arrested over some iced-cream?”

He Yanzhi did not know whether to say yes or no, so he simply confessed: “A Lord Zhao from the Ministry of Justice arrived. He said he wanted me to work for him, but I refused.”

“Lord Zhao? Zhao Mengjie?” Xiao Hongyin recalled the man. In his previous life, Zhao had originally been a member of the Xiao family’s faction before switching sides to the Crown Prince. His visit to He Yanzhi was likely an attempt to recruit talent.

“You know him?”

“I heard Big Yang mention him.”

Xiao Hongyin kept a straight face, and He Yanzhi did not suspect a thing.

“We leave tomorrow.” Since they had been found so quickly, they had to move as soon as possible.

After returning home and packing their bags, they realized they had not said goodbye to Yang Kuan, so they left a letter weighted down by a table leg.

That night, He Yanzhi lay in bed, unable to sleep.

On this summer night, the chirping of insects grew louder, surrounding the bed and offering no peace. He Yanzhi stuffed two scraps of cloth into his ears and faced the wall, forcing himself to sleep. But every time he closed his eyes, his mind filled with the image of the current Xiao Hongyin being stabbed through the heart by his own sword.

No, he absolutely could not let the original plot of the book repeat itself. To hell with Zhao Mengjie!

The thump-thump of his heartbeat became clearer amidst the insect cries. Suddenly, He Yanzhi’s right ear twitched. His hand slowly reached under his pillow.

Someone was there.

The sound of clashing blades cut through the night. He Yanzhi instantly drew his dagger and leapt out of bed. He saw a man in black already wounded in the right arm, forced back into a corner.

Xiao Hongyin had appeared out of nowhere, standing in front of He Yanzhi with a sword in hand, his eyes filled with endless killing intent.

The assassin, having failed his mission, turned to flee. Xiao Hongyin gripped the hilt, intending to hurl the sword through the man’s heart, but He Yanzhi stopped him just in time.

“Let him go. If the other guards do not hear back from him, they will mobilize immediately. Let him buy us some time. We need to leave now.”

Xiao Hongyin nodded. He and He Yanzhi grabbed their bags, vaulted over the wall into the alley, and disappeared into the darkness.

Drawing on their memory, they quickly reached the end of the alley and headed straight for the ferry crossing. They had tied a small boat by the river long ago for such an escape. However, when they reached the docks, the boat had been reduced to a pile of scrap wood.

He Yanzhi grabbed Xiao Hongyin to change direction, but dozens of secret guards descended from the sky, blocking their path. Quick as a flash, Xiao Hongyin led He Yanzhi up onto a bridge, racing toward the opposite bank.

Both possessed decent lightness skills, but these guards were master trackers. In no time, the gap between them closed.

He Yanzhi watched his surroundings out of the corner of his eye. Seeing three or four guards nearly level with them, he was forced to draw his sword and engage.

The silence of the deep night was shattered by the ring of steel. The guards threw several flying daggers, while simultaneously flashing in front of He Yanzhi to strike. He Yanzhi’s wrist moved with fluid agility, knocking the daggers aside before pivoting to parry the incoming blade.

Back-to-back with him, Xiao Hongyin also used his sword to drive back the lunging assassins.

With their skills, dealing with the guards was not overly difficult. What was troubling was that their numbers were constantly increasing.

The guards’ goal was to capture them. He Yanzhi tried his best to stay within three steps of Xiao Hongyin. Realizing he was the obstacle, the guards exchanged looks.

“Watch out!”

Several guards threw out ropes, attempting to bind Xiao Hongyin. He Yanzhi raised his sword, shielding him and hacking the rope net to pieces.

However, the moment the net was cut, dozens of blades thrust directly at He Yanzhi. Xiao Hongyin scrambled to pull him back, but it happened too fast; several bloody gashes were carved into He Yanzhi’s arm.

Xiao Hongyin’s eyes turned completely bloodshot. He raised his sword, intent on taking their lives, but the guards used a torrential rain of hidden projectiles to force the two apart.

“Yanzhi!”

Xiao Hongyin reached out to grab He Yanzhi, but a flash of sword light fell, pinning him in place.

On the other side, He Yanzhi was completely surrounded by a swarm of secret guards, his figure nearly vanishing from sight.

Xiao Hongyin’s breath hitched, his pupils instantly merging with the cold, dark night.