The Double-Chapter 307 - 116 Protection_5

Before they reached the backyard, they smelled a heavy scent of blood. Feng Yutang suppressed the urge to vomit and continued forward. Before even reaching the center, he saw twenty neatly arranged corpses on the ground of the courtyard.

To call them corpses, Feng Yutang hadn’t even made out the details, but there was no need to see more. Due to the snow that had fallen all night, a layer of snowflakes covered the bodies, cold and stiff, long devoid of breath. The bloodstains had already congealed, and Feng Yutang stepped back, barely steadying himself against a pillar to avoid falling.

In his heart, he counted, three times in all, exactly twenty people.

Twenty people—he had sent out twenty of his own men, plus three of Princess Yongning’s. Now here lay twenty, but where were the other three?

Feng Yutang asked, "Where are the others?"

The subordinate who spoke first stepped forward, his voice still laced with uncontrollable panic, "My lord, a total of twenty. The other three are nowhere to be found; we couldn’t discover their traces."

If they couldn’t find them, perhaps they were still alive. Right, the people of Princess Yongning were highly skilled; they wouldn’t die so easily. Hope suddenly surged in Feng Yutang’s heart as he asked, "Is there any trace of them?"

The subordinate shook his head, "We found no trace of them, but in the Dark Forest’s swamp, we discovered their weapons... My lord, it’s more likely bad news than good."

A darkness swept over Feng Yutang’s vision, and he nearly fainted. Regaining his senses, he exploded in a stream of expletives, "They were twenty-odd men sent to kill seven! And they were entirely wiped out! Were they raised by a bitch? A bunch of trash!" His chest heaved with anger and panic as he spat out the insults—his urgent fury and fear palpable even to his subordinates.

Feng Yutang was afraid.

The twenty dead were his men. With the best among them gone in one fell swoop, the ones left were of no significance. Without Princess Yongning’s assassins, he was incapable of anything. Forget about going after Jiang Li and the others; if Ye Mingyu attempted to assassinate him, he didn’t even know if his own men could save his life.

Right, Jiang Li, Ye Mingyu—he still had no idea of their situation! Regardless of what became of Ye Mingyu, what about Jiang Li? If his people had taken Jiang Li’s life before their own demise, not all would be lost. At least he wouldn’t have bungled Yongning’s task, and she wouldn’t blame him; she would even help him escape this predicament. As long as Jiang Li was dead, that would be for the best!

"Where’s Jiang Li?" Feng Yutang grabbed the informant, demanding, "Is Jiang Li dead? Is she dead?"

His eyes bloodshot and his appearance somewhat terrifying, he intimidated his subordinate into retreating a step, who then slowly shook his head.

Despair began to seep into Feng Yutang’s heart.

"Miss Jiang the Second and that tall man, they both came out early from the residence in Green Stone Lane, walking around unharmed."

Feng Yutang weakly released his grip.

The assassination had failed; he had lost twenty-three people whereas Jiang Li remained unscathed, even daring to roam freely in the county town the very next day—a challenge, or perhaps an indication of her confidence.

Of course, the twenty bodies in the county government office’s backyard were Jiang Li’s response. It seemed that she had been aware of his men coming to assassinate her all along. After reaping all his men, she leisurely and deliberately sent the bodies back for him to see clearly—the outcome awaiting them.

She really wasn’t afraid at all.

Yet he had no way out. While recognizing the threats posed by Jiang Li and her cohort, he understood even more that Jiang Li couldn’t be left alive. Not only because Princess Yongning’s orders were irrefutable, but because Jiang Li knew he had struck at her. If he couldn’t kill her, once Jiang Li and Jiang Yuanbai reconciled—or even beforehand—he would be the one to die at her hands; she would not spare him.

This was a war between two parties, either Jiang Li would die, or he would. He had to follow through to the end.

"Continue sending people, hunt down Jiang Li," Feng Yutang commanded with hatred.

"My lord..." the subordinate looked at him in surprise, bewildered by his decision, "I’m afraid..."

"Afraid of what?!" Feng Yutang cursed, "What do you know? Go now, if you’re late, we’re all dead!"

This path, indeed, had to be followed to its darkest end.

...

Inside the tavern opposite the county government office, Wen Ji said, "My lord, Feng Yutang has dispatched more people to kill Miss Jiang the Second."

Jih Heng sat in the chair, gazing into his cup of tea. He seemed much calmer than usual as he looked out of the window, clothed in red that stood out vibrantly against the snowy landscape, his lips as alluring as petals.

After a while, he said, "Go and take care of it."

Wen Ji obeyed and departed.

Lu Jiu, sitting beside him, thoughtfully looked at Jih Heng and remained silent. Since learning that Miss Jiang the Second had been pursued by both Ji Shuran and Feng Yutang’s men the night before, a stone lay heavy on Lu Jiu’s heart. With such a coalition against her, Miss Jiang the Second, no matter how capable, seemed destined to not escape. Yet unexpectedly, it wasn’t Wen Ji but Jih Heng who had accompanied Miss Jiang the Second last night. Moreover, Jih Heng, who normally abstained from meddling in others’ affairs, had unexpectedly lent a hand, which was truly astonishing.

Jih Heng was never one to be soft-hearted or inclined to assist out of kindness, but in the end, he had taken action, and since then, had shown a protective stance toward Miss Jiang the Second. Regardless of his motives, whether they involved using her or some other scheme, Miss Jiang the Second had succeeded.

Through incredible means, she had drawn the lord into this riveting drama, pulling him into the game.

Unable to fathom the lord’s thoughts, Lu Jiu considered Miss Jiang the Second to be extremely formidable.