Although they had been traveling together for a long time, Xiang Qingniu still maintained a respectful distance from Mu Xiaoyao. Even when forced to share a carriage, he chose to sit as far away from Mu Xiaoyao as possible. Fang Jie was certain that this man was not the kind of despicable person who would resort to such low means to win Mu Xiaoyao's favor. Because every time Xiang Qingniu saw Mu Xiaoyao, or more precisely, every time he saw a woman, he would sweat.
Fang Jie had once asked Xiang Qingniu if a certain woman had caused him a painful childhood, so that now this fat man was afraid of any woman—a genuine fear.
But Xiang Qingniu simply wouldn't say, not even when he was being beaten.
So, after Fang Jie resolved his weakness from hunger, he immediately pulled Fang Jie out of the carriage, ran to the front, sat down next to the large dog, and only calmed down after panting heavily several times. For him, a woman as alluring as Mu Xiaoyao was simply too much pressure. Xiang Qingniu noticed a subtle hint of disappointment in Fang Jie's eyes as he looked towards the Hongxiuzhao convoy a few hundred meters ahead. He knew it was because the Hongxiuzhao people were deliberately keeping their distance, which made Fang Jie uncomfortable.
Xiang Qingniu smiled and said, "Actually, this is only human nature. You don't need to blame them for being indifferent."
Fang Jie shook his head: "This world is inherently indifferent. I'm the kind of person who only cares about my own affairs, how could I expect others to come to my aid in times of trouble? Human relationships are inherently cold; where are all the heroes and chivalrous women in the stories?"
"Then why are you acting like this?"
Xiang Qingniu scoffed, "Feeling bitter inside while trying to hide it... how pretentious."
Fang Jie was startled and couldn't help but want to kick the fat man off the carriage again. The fat man quickly made a pleading gesture, flatteringly saying, "Actually, if you ask me, why pretend to be so upset? Just chase after them and go with them; they won't leave. If it were me, I would do the same."
"There's no need to implicate others."
Fang Jie sighed, "Although I'm not a good person, there are some things I just can't do."
As he said this, he suddenly thought of something and turned to look at Cui Lueshang, who was riding silently with his head down. This young master from a noble family had suffered a series of blows, and his face was terribly pale. Perhaps still grieving over the death of his guards, he hadn't spoken a word all day. Since Fang Jie and the others buried the bodies on the spot, he hadn't spoken to them.
Fang Jie had tried to comfort him a few times, but he remained silent.
"Brother Cui."
Fang Jie called out, but Cui Lueshang turned to look at him without responding.
Fang Jie thought for a moment and said, "There's something I'm hesitant to say, but I have to. I know Brother Cui is righteous, but when it comes to life and death, I have to advise you… You and I are not on the same side, you don't need to get involved in this. The Red Sleeve Pavilion's caravan ahead has skilled protectors; you can go and join them. Even just riding behind their caravan is a hundred times safer than staying with me."
Cui Lueshang paused slightly, then shook his head.
Fang Jie continued, "Speaking of which, we are merely strangers who met by chance. You really don't need to travel with me. You probably already guessed that those assassins are no ordinary people; getting entangled with them would be extremely troublesome. You have a bright future ahead of you, why throw your life away?"
Cui Lüshang was silent for a moment, then looked at Fang Jie seriously and said, "We are not just casual acquaintances."
Fang Jie was so angry he almost laughed: "Regardless of our relationship, you don't need to stay."
Cui Lüshang said in a hoarse voice, "You saved my life once at Mushan, that was a life-saving grace. Although I may not be a great man, I understand the principle of repaying kindness. Now that you are in trouble, if I turn around and run away, how will I ever have the face to stand in this world?"
He paused and continued, "Besides… my followers are all dead, it's not like I'm no longer involved… Killing my family, even if they were just servants, is a blood feud for me!"
Fang Jie was shocked; he really hadn't expected Cui Lüshang to have such audacity. He wanted to say a few more words of advice, but didn't know what to say.
Xiang Qingniu sighed, "He's a fine man, but too much of an idiot."
Cui Lüshang glared at him and said, "A true man has things he won't do and things he must do."
Daquan thought for a moment and said, "Your father will be angry if he finds out."
Cui Lüshang was silent for a while, then shook his head and said, "He doesn't only have me as his son. If I unfortunately die, I'll be reborn as a cow or a horse to repay my father's kindness in my next life. If I'm lucky enough to survive, my father will probably think what I'm doing is right."
Fang Jie rubbed his nose, then suddenly grabbed Xiang Qingniu by the neck and asked fiercely, "See that kind of courage and spirit? And look at your cowardly and despicable character! If you don't tell me who those people are, believe me, I'll strip you naked right now!" "You think I'd just use a whip to poke open your backside?!"
"No need to ask him... I know."
Cui Lueshang looked at Li Xian solemnly and said, "Although I am unlearned, I still remember some court secrets my father once mentioned. My father once said that the most terrifying people in this world are not martial arts masters, but a group of highly disciplined assassins. While you were talking just now, it suddenly occurred to me that perhaps these assassins are the people my father mentioned."
"Who?"
"The Great Sui... the Intelligence Bureau."
...
...
Cui Lueshang only knew some secrets his father occasionally mentioned, and these secrets came from the concubine of the Cui family in the palace. However, her status was not high before, and she didn't know the details. Besides, these things didn't arouse Cui Lueshang's curiosity at all. But today, in his heartache, he suddenly remembered them. However, he didn't know much to begin with, and no matter how he tried to explain, he couldn't give a clear answer.
Very few people knew about the Great Sui Intelligence Bureau. But it was clear that Fang Jie was certain Xiang Qingniu knew everything. The old cripple at Hongxiuzhao's place definitely knew too. Otherwise, he wouldn't have given Fang Jie that look before leaving, nor would he have said, "They were assassins who kill assassins, scouts who kill scouts."
Fang Jie was a border scout; he understood the power implied in the words "scouts who kill scouts."
Finally, under Fang Jie's threat of withholding meat and wine, the shameless fat Taoist finally relented. But this relenting wasn't without consequence; he took all of Fang Jie's remaining candy.
"Everyone knows that in the capital of the Great Sui Dynasty, there is an office responsible for guarding the imperial city and protecting His Majesty the Emperor. They are also responsible for apprehending rebels and traitors. Although the head of this office is not a high-ranking official, their power is immense. Whether commoners or officials, everyone in the capital trembles at the mere mention of its name. Even high-ranking officials of the third rank or above speak respectfully to the head of this office, and many even fawn over him."
Xiang Qingniu cleared his throat and said, "It's the Imperial Guard."
Fang Jie was taken aback and couldn't help but ask, "You mean the people who ambushed and assassinated me were from the Imperial Guard?"
Xiang Qingniu waved his hand and said, "No, no, if the Imperial Guards were all this capable, then with so many people in the world wanting to kill His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Sui, how come the Emperor of the Great Sui is still alive?" "Alright and well? Even though you can't cultivate, you should at least know what's the rarest thing in the world, right?"
"What is it?"
"Idiot! Of course, it's a ninth-rank master!"
Xiang Qingniu said seriously, "There are only a handful of people in this world who can cultivate to the ninth rank, but there are two in the Imperial Guard. One is Luo Weiran, the commander of the Imperial Guard. Many people know that he is His Majesty's personal bodyguard. It is said that when the remnants of the Shang Kingdom sent many masters to ambush and assassinate the emperor during his southern tour of Jiangdu, the remaining masters of the Shang Kingdom came out in full force, but before they could make a move, their whereabouts were discovered. That time, Luo Weiran killed twenty-three Shang Kingdom masters with his bare hands."
"You always call yourself a master, a master, a master of masters, so what rank are you?"
Da Quan couldn't help but ask. Xiang Qingniu's face flushed slightly with anger. "Do you want to hear it? If you do, don't interrupt!"
He popped a piece of candy into his mouth, chewing as he spoke. "On the surface, the duties of the Imperial Guard are simple: protecting the capital and His Majesty's safety, and assisting the government in apprehending fugitives and rebels when necessary. But in reality… the Imperial Guard isn't just one department, it's two."
He raised his chin smugly. "Those who know this secret are all high-ranking officials in the Sui Dynasty. Although it's not something deliberately concealed, because of the responsibilities of the other department, the Emperor strictly ordered those who knew to keep it quiet. So even now, not many people know about this department, and coincidentally… I'm one of them."
"Many high-ranking officials don't know, so why do you know?"
Fang Jie asked.
Xiang Qingniu smugly said, "Don't worry about that. I won't tell you even if you ask. Even if you offered ten thousand taels of gold for this information, I wouldn't sell it."
"Actually, the Imperial Guards are divided into two departments. One is responsible for protecting the emperor, and the other is much more mysterious, called the Intelligence Department… Of course, it's not a department specifically for romance, but rather a group of madmen and perverts specifically responsible for intelligence gathering, and even assassination operations. The Intelligence Department is overseen by Hou Wenji, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards. He also holds the title of Intelligence Department Commander, and… he's the other ninth-rank master I mentioned. The most..." Two special individuals: Luo Weiran, the commander of the Imperial Guard, and Hou Wenji, the garrison commander of the Intelligence Bureau.
"These two can be described as the emperor's hawk and his hound."
Xiang Qing paused, perhaps because the candy was too sweet and soothing to the throat, and after taking a sip of water, continued, "The Intelligence Bureau's main duty is to secretly investigate anyone detrimental to the emperor. This includes not only those within the Sui Dynasty court, nor only those among the Sui people who oppose the court, but also spies from other countries who have infiltrated the Sui Dynasty. When necessary, they will also accompany the army on expeditions to eliminate enemy scouts." "That's why that old cripple at Hongxiuzhao, whose background is unknown but whose insight is remarkable, said that the Qingya (Secret Service) people are assassins who specialize in killing assassins, and scouts who specialize in killing scouts."
Hearing this, Fang Jie couldn't help but take a deep breath: "You mean, I'm being watched by the Qingya people now?"
"Nine times out of ten, it's those people."
Xiang Qingniu said, "The Qingya people can't tell the difference at all. Perhaps Zhang San, the butcher in the capital, Li Si, the peddler, even Wang Wu, the pimp in the brothel, or Sun Liu, the bodyguard in the casino—these lowly figures could all be..." "A secret agent of the Intelligence Bureau. Only Hou Wenji and His Majesty the Emperor know the exact number of agents within the Intelligence Bureau; even Luo Weiran doesn't know."
"The Intelligence Bureau has a specialized assassination team, not only filled with top-tier experts, but also some specially trained ordinary people who are even more effective at killing than the experts. Because these ordinary people are the most difficult to guard against."
Having boasted about his knowledge of secrets, he smugly said, "Now, don't you think meeting me is incredibly lucky?"
"Who exactly are you?"
Fang Jie looked at Xiang Qingniu and asked seriously.
Xiang Qingniu smiled, patting his magnificent chest—enough to make young girls jealous—proudly said, "Didn't I tell you? I'm a very, very high-level expert, and I also have an extremely mysterious background and a powerful connections. Although I've always tried to be low-key, I can't hide my dashing and unrestrained nature and my unparalleled cultivation."
He thought for a moment and added, "Besides, I really am the proctor for this year's Martial Arts Academy entrance exams."