sbdcsierra Chapter 771 Let’s negotiate terms!
Chapter 771 Let’s negotiate terms!
It's quiet at night.
Lu Wei's family lived not far from the foot of the mountain. After Lu Wei became the top scholar in the imperial examination, he asked someone to send back some silver. Lu's mother did not ask anyone to demolish the old house and build a new one. She only spent some money to have a wall built around the house and the roof renovated.
There's a dog in the yard; He Jingze already knew about it when he sent someone to scout the place the day before yesterday.
So before they even got close to the courtyard, He Jingze had his subordinate throw in a chicken leg with extra seasoning.
Before the dog could even bark, it was drawn by the aroma and quickly fell asleep.
The neighbors lived some distance away, and without the dogs to disturb them, He Jingze led his men straight into the Lu family's courtyard.
However, the moment he stepped into the courtyard, he sensed something was wrong. His body reflexively stepped back, and with a wave of his hand, he decisively ordered, "Set it on fire!"
Upon receiving the order, the subordinates immediately scattered and ran as fast as they could towards the houses in the village.
Just then, Lu Yangyang arrived at the foot of the mountain with her men. The moment she saw the firelight in the distance, she knew that the other side had indeed made their move.
Lu Yangyang immediately gave the signal and led her men to rush into the village.
He Jingze got into a fight with a man in black outside the Lu family's gate.
The commotion immediately alerted the villagers, and lights began to be turned on throughout the village.
At that moment, He Jingze's men threw torches into the villager's yard without hesitation. The weather was dry, and the fire started to burn quickly.
The quiet village was filled with the panicked cries of its inhabitants.
He Jingze's men split into several groups. Two groups guarded the village entrance and the exit at the end of the village, while the other two groups stayed inside the village to keep watch. As soon as anyone came out, they would immediately take action.
The fire had barely started when, before they could even make a move, a signal from the foot of the mountain shot into the sky. Lu Yangyang led her men into the village and started fighting with the group guarding the end of the village.
When He Jingze's subordinates saw the dozens of people who suddenly rushed out, they cursed under their breath. While leaving some men to block Lu Yangyang's path, they hurriedly went to report to He Jingze.
He Jingze was still locked in a fierce battle with the man in black when he heard his subordinate report: "Master, the government has arrived. One group has already come, probably several dozen people, but they have sent out a signal, so we don't know how many there are on the other side!"
He Jingze's expression changed slightly, and a hint of struggle seemed to flash between his brows and eyes, but he quickly made a decision, "Retreat!"
The subordinate realized something was wrong and, without hesitation, immediately whistled.
The subordinates who were waiting in the village for the harvest quickly realized what was happening and, without worrying about the villagers, rushed back to provide support.
With reinforcements, He Jingze quickly broke free from the men in black's entanglement, but before he could leave, he ran into Lu Yangyang and Hongyu.
Lu Yangyang glanced at the black-clad men still fighting with He Jingze's subordinates, then gave Hongyu a signal. Hongyu immediately understood and quickly distanced herself from Lu Yangyang, sending a flurry of hidden weapons flying towards He Jingze and the others.
He Jingze and the others hurriedly raised their weapons to block, and Lu Yangyang took advantage of the chaos to slash out with her sword.
She was strong, precise, and agile. Although she lacked martial arts skills, with Hongyu's hidden weapons interfering with her, she managed to defeat the group of subordinates surrounding He Jingze in no time.
The man in black seized the opportunity and approached He Jingze again.
The group of people started fighting again.
Huo Lin arrived at this time with his men and immediately ordered them to quickly surround the entire village to help put out the fire and protect the people.
Seeing that things had taken such a turn for the worse, He Jingze dared not linger and, under the cover of his subordinates, decisively retreated towards Qingyuan Mountain.
But just as he narrowly escaped the encirclement of Lu Yangyang and the others, before he even reached the foot of Qingyuan Mountain, he suddenly felt a blur before his eyes, and a long sword was strangely placed against his neck.
He Jingze tensed up, immediately realizing that he had been too careless.
He thought that as long as he avoided the people who were betting on him, he could leave quickly, but he didn't expect that there was a master hidden here.
He was too confident, thinking no one could easily get close to him, which allowed someone to take advantage of the situation.
"Whose man are you?" Knowing he had fallen into their hands, He Jingze quickly realized what was happening and began to probe: "There shouldn't be such an expert in Qingzhou Prefecture. Are you Sheng Junyao's man, or the deposed crown prince's man?"
The other man was taller than him and had appeared behind him without him noticing. A long sword was held to his neck, and he couldn't see the other man's face clearly. His gaze fell on his several subordinates who were nervously staring at him, preparing to make his move.
To his surprise, his attempt to test the waters only earned him a faint sneer from the other party.
Then several hidden weapons flashed by, and several of his subordinates cried out in pain and fell to the ground.
He Jingze's expression changed drastically. If he hadn't misheard, the person who was holding him hostage could use one hand to hold him hostage while simultaneously using the other to accurately launch hidden weapons that took down several of his subordinates.
This one person alone, let alone him, even if all the people he brought were combined, would not be a match for him.
This person is on a completely different level from the men in black encountered at the Lu family's residence and those who chased after them!
Is he really going to perish here today?
For a moment, He Jingze was at a loss for what to do.
When Lu Yangyang finally shook off He Jingze's subordinates and caught up, this was the scene she saw: He Jingze had been taken hostage, and the subordinates who were protecting him were lying on the ground, their fates unknown.
She stared in shock at the person holding He Jingze hostage, and at the same time, she breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Aren't you going to cover your face?"
The other person scoffed, "Is it necessary?"
Looking at the stiff He Jingze, Lu Yangyang thought to herself, "It really wasn't necessary."
He Jingze's martial arts skills are not low; if he didn't have some ability, he wouldn't have achieved his current status.
Unfortunately, the person He Jingze met was, in Aunt Jing's words, someone who was "cheat-like".
Sheng Junyi arrived just in time; otherwise, even if they could capture He Jingze tonight, it would have taken a lot of effort. She thought He Jingze couldn't bring many people, but she underestimated him. Just the people who covered He Jingze's escape just now numbered at least thirty, and each one of them was a master. She and Huo Lin's hundreds of men could have stopped them, but the casualties would have been heavy.
Now that we've dealt with He Jingze, the biggest problem, the rest of the people are no longer a threat.
But with things progressing so smoothly, Lu Yangyang's gaze fell on He Jingze, and she felt that there was more to the story.
Lu Yangyang took out a porcelain bottle from her bag, poured out a pill, and tossed it over, saying, "Give it to him."
Sheng Junyi took the medicine bowl and held it to He Jingze's lips. He Jingze did not resist or struggle, opened his mouth and cooperated by swallowing the pill. Then he stared straight at Lu Yangyang and said, "I remember you. Let's talk terms."