24: Chapter 24 Zhang Yan secretly helps

Xia Shaoxin stepped onto the man's wound, and fresh blood gushed out from under his sole.

He turned his head to see Brother Xiao Niu slumped on the ground, his arms not long enough to reach, and hurriedly shouted, "What's wrong with you?"

Brother Xiao Niu was motionless; having exerted too much force, and with his head having struck the man's waist, he had actually fainted.

Seeing that the man under his foot had also passed out, he released his foot and went to check on Brother Xiao Niu first, pinching his philtrum.

"Wuwu, Brother Xia, I'm so scared." Brother Xiao Niu opened his eyes and struggled to climb up.

"Hehe, with me here, what is there to be afraid of!" Xia Shaoxin stroked his head.

Seeing that Brother Xiao Niu was fine, Xia Shaoxin walked back to the side of the attacker and flipped his body over.

The man in black had hazy eyes, and when his back wound was pressed against a stone, he groaned.

"Did Liu Xinglong send you to kill me?"

"Cough, cough."

The man in black coughed violently, remaining silent.

"Why? I really don't understand."

The man in black's eyes were hazy. Seeing that he really couldn't get anything out of him, Xia Shaoxin stabbed his chest with his sword; the man kicked his legs once and died.

Brother Xiao Niu turned his head away, not daring to look.

Xia Shaoxin searched the man in black for a while but didn't find anything.

He stood up, pondered for a moment, took out the remaining silver banknotes from his bosom—about two hundred taels—and handed them to Brother Xiao Niu.

"You helped me out tonight, and I must thank you."

Brother Xiao Niu didn't know what it was; holding the silver banknotes, he thought it was a book.

"These are silver banknotes, you fool, haven't you ever seen them?"

Brother Xiao Niu rubbed his eyes, too shocked to speak.

Having grown up, he hadn't even touched many copper coins, yet here he was, touching silver banknotes.

"About two hundred taels, over two hundred thousand coins."

Ah! Brother Xiao Niu's eyes widened, completely beyond his imagination.

"Hide them well. When you grow up, take these silver banknotes and stay in Liushu Ao, or go somewhere else; it will be enough for you to live the life of a middle-class family."

"Wait, are you giving them to me? Why are you giving them to me?"

"I have to go kill a few more people. It might be very dangerous, and I don't know if I can come back." Xia Shaoxin smiled and stroked Brother Xiao Niu's head.

"Then don't go."

"Can I not go? Where do you think I can hide?"

Brother Xiao Niu was speechless.

That's right, someone had already come to his door to kill him; there was nowhere left to hide.

"Then be careful. I'll keep these silver banknotes for you for now."

"No need. If I manage to kill those people, I might not come back anyway. Remember, you are still young; don't let anyone know you have silver banknotes, otherwise, you definitely won't be able to keep them."

Mm, Brother Xiao Niu tucked the silver banknotes into his bosom.

"Goodbye, we shall meet again!"

Xia Shaoxin sheathed his long sword and strode forward.

The villagers had been alarmed by the raging fire and were pouring in one after another; seeing Xia Shaoxin, they were all stunned.

"Your house is on fire."

"Thank you, dear neighbors, but don't worry about it. My house is beyond saving, but it won't burn your homes."

"Who came to kill you?"

"Don't ask. In any case, that person is about to die."

Xia Shaoxin did not stop his pace and, under the gaze of the villagers, left Liushu Ao.

Tears suddenly welled up in Brother Xiao Niu's eyes. Watching Xia Shaoxin's retreating figure, he softly called out, "Brother Xia, take care."

The moonlight shone on the muddy road, leading straight to Li Family Hollow.

In the distance, the city walls of Li Family Hollow had appeared before his eyes when, suddenly, a figure appeared by the side of the road ahead.

Looking closely, it was actually Zhang Yan.

Xia Shaoxin vigilantly scanned his surroundings. Seeing no one else, he secretly gripped a strength pill and walked straight toward Zhang Yan.

The blade of his sword was illuminated by the moonlight, looking soul-stirring.

"Cough, I knew you would be able to kill those three."

Zhang Yan carried no weapons and stood quietly, saying to the rushing Xia Shaoxin:

"I am here to help you."

Xia Shaoxin's sword was already pressed against Zhang Yan's nose when it stopped abruptly.

"You sent people to kill me—to help me ascend to heaven?"

"Liu Xinglong doesn't know that I obtained the strength pill prescription and sold it to you; otherwise, he definitely wouldn't have just sent three people to kill you."

Xia Shaoxin thought about it carefully; it seemed those three really didn't know he also had strength pills.

"Liu Xinglong wants to kill you, but he doesn't want to kill you himself, so he forced me to provide someone. I had no choice but to send a capable subordinate to kill you."

"The person who tried to kill you was also my friend. Years ago, he committed a crime, and I took him in; he has been loyal to me ever since."

Xia Shaoxin was stunned: "You mean, for my sake, you betrayed your good friend?"

"There was no other way; it was his fate. Liu Xinglong pointed him out by name to go, because Liu Xinglong also knew his background."

Zhang Yan lowered his head, his eyes looking very weary: "I didn't even have a chance to give him any instructions, so this really was his fate."

"What's the deal with them taking strength pills?"

"Liu Xinglong never skimps on doing things. You killed Li the Toad and his two sons all by yourself, so you have some martial arts skills. He was willing to spend three strength pills to kill you, just because he wanted to do it discreetly."

Zhang Yan's eyes were bright as he looked Xia Shaoxin up and down, asking curiously: "All three of them took strength pills, so why were you able to escape?"

"I took the strength pill first, and they took theirs later, but the effects of their strength pills wore off earlier than mine. I don't know why."

Zhang Yan said: "There are many factors that affect the efficacy of the pill, such as the quality of the pill and the physical constitution of the user."

Xia Shaoxin had guessed it had to do with quality, but he hadn't expected it to also have to do with the user's physical constitution.

Could it be that this body of mine is actually very suitable for taking drugs?

"Why does Liu Xinglong want to kill me?" Xia Shaoxin asked the question he most wanted to ask.

"You have committed several major taboos."

"Oh, I'd like to hear the details."

"First, you obtain Poisonous Insects too easily and in too great a quantity; paper can never wrap up fire. It's like if there were only four or five butchers in the market usually selling two or three pigs, but then you appear and sell ten pigs every day; the market would collapse. It would have a huge impact on other Bug Catchers and the entire System of the Gu Bureau. I've mentioned this before; you should understand."

Xia Shaoxin admitted that such a possibility did indeed exist.

"But that doesn't mean it has reached the point where you must kill me, right?"

"Second, getting removed from the register is difficult. According to Liu Xinglong's suggestion to find a wealthy merchant to pose as a relative and pay to redeem you, it's actually not very reliable."

"In other words, you were just lying to me the whole time."

"That method isn't entirely impossible, but it's not that easy; it takes time to find someone, and three or five thousand taels simply isn't enough."

"Still lying to me. It was a lie from the very beginning."

Zhang Yan smiled slightly and continued: "Third, you must have discovered a better way to collect Poisonous Insects from Dawu Mountain. Since Liu Xinglong cannot obtain it, he won't let you live."

Xia Shaoxin didn't want to listen anymore. This reason, that reason—essentially, they just didn't view him as a human being.

"He wants to kill me, yet you didn't tell him that I have strength pills. Why are you helping me?"

Zhang Yan raised his head, curled his lips, and snorted coldly: "You are my direct contact. He barged in, and on top of that, wants to kill you—why should I follow his wishes?"

Xia Shaoxin sheathed his sword and asked again: "Do you still want to kill me now?"

"I never wanted to kill you. Although I've only known you for a few months, I feel like we get along quite well."

Get along well?

Xia Shaoxin was taken aback. It didn't seem like it, did it?

But recalling their transactions, they had indeed been smooth; he could be called an honest business partner.

"Do you want to kill Liu Xinglong?"

"Of course."

"I will help you kill him."

Xia Shaoxin asked in surprise: "Why help me?"

"To tell you the truth, I have some connections in the imperial court. If Liu Xinglong dies, I am absolutely certain that I can replace him."

"Why should I help you kill Liu Xinglong?"

Zhang Yan smiled slightly: "Even if I don't help, you will kill him anyway. Besides, after you kill him, I can help you escape from Li Family Hollow."