Chapter 016: Attacked

In her previous life, it was Zhou Yinzhi who investigated the Yongyi Marquis’ residence.

Later, when Shen Jie ascended the throne, he exonerated the Yongyi Marquis’ residence.

After that, Zhou Yinzhi was shot to death by Xie Wei and his head was nailed to the palace gate.

This shows that he never did anything good.

This person was always focused on power and high positions, and would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. However, he was meticulous and cautious in his actions, leaving no trace, making it difficult for anyone to catch his mistakes.

This was the reason Jiang Xuening found him useful in her previous life.

But in this life, she didn’t even want to enter the palace, and having too deep a connection with this person was like seeking skin from a tiger. However, he was her only channel to understand the old case involving the Yongyi Marquis’ residence and the Pingnan Prince, and there was also Xie Wei who might take her head at any time. Even if she didn’t want to contact him, she had to.

She hoped that in this life, she could escape the mundane disturbances and achieve the kind of “freedom” that You Fangyin had mentioned.

She sighed in her heart, got back on the carriage, and said, “Go to Cengxiao Tower.”

*

By this time, the sky was gradually darkening.

In late autumn, the traces of wild geese were gone.

There were only a few people left drinking at Cengxiao Tower.

Chen Ying, who had been promoted to Assistant Minister of Justice six months ago, was playing with a wine cup filled with fine wine. He was relaxed and said, “The Jinyiwei always follow the emperor’s orders. Investigating the Yongyi Marquis’ residence is probably also the emperor’s intention. Those remnants of the Pingnan’s party have been in the Ministry of Justice’s prison for several days, and they haven’t been able to get anything out of them. Today, they specifically called me to see if I could get something out of them. Master Xie, you are often by the emperor’s side, can you give me a hint of what the emperor wants to know from them?”

Chen Ying was a notorious harsh official in recent years, known for his cruel methods of torturing prisoners, even to the point of being inhumane. But he had also solved several major cases and had a good track record in local governance.

This even included a major case of wiping out the followers of the Tianjiao sect in Jiangsu.

However, he also liked to guess the thoughts of those above him.

When working under the emperor’s nose, sometimes the truth didn’t matter; what mattered was what the emperor wanted to hear.

The person sitting opposite him, who neither attended the court lecture today nor entered the palace, was dressed in simple white clothes with wide sleeves, without any adornments, and his hair was tied up with a plain ebony hairpin.

At this moment, he didn’t even look up at Chen Ying.

On the table was a newly made qin, which had gone through the first eleven processes, its lacquer shining like a mirror, and its goose feet full. He lowered his eyes, threading the strings one by one.

Chen Ying’s eyes flashed, and he said, “Our emperor seems lenient, but I privately think he is too suspicious.”

Xie Wei finished threading the first string and then wound it around the goose foot on the right side of the qin’s back.

Chen Ying couldn’t help but observe his expression: “Master Xie, you were a meritorious official who assisted the emperor in ascending the throne, right? But now you are only given the title of ‘Xie’ without any real power, not even ‘Taishi’. If you really think about it, you have the reality of an imperial teacher but not the name. But that monk Yuanji, who has never done any real work, was not only made a national teacher by the emperor but also put in charge of the Ministry of Rites, rising to the rank of minister. If I had even a tenth of your ability, I wouldn’t be able to tolerate such things. Master Xie, don’t you feel any resentment?”

Xie Wei’s fingers were naturally suited for playing the qin.

His nails were clean and transparent, showing a gentle appearance.

He didn’t stop threading the strings and said, “Minister Chen, be careful with your words. The emperor is the supreme ruler, how can we presumptuously guess his thoughts? Besides, I am just a scholar who only knows how to talk on paper. Master Yuanji’s Buddhist knowledge is profound and not just an empty reputation. The emperor has his reasons for making him a national teacher. Thunder and rain are all the emperor’s grace, why should I feel any resentment?”

Chen Ying laughed, seemingly unconvinced: “Whether it’s fair or not, everyone in the court knows. Please give me some guidance, how should I interrogate these people?”

Xie Wei said, “Interrogate them as you see fit.”

Chen Ying frowned: “What if I still can’t get anything out of them?”

Xie Wei said, “If Minister Chen can’t get anything out of them, someone else who thinks they can will take over.”

Chen Ying’s heart tightened, and he had already made up his mind. He immediately put down the wine cup, stood up, and bowed deeply: “Thank you for your guidance, Master Xie.”

Xie Wei continued to focus on threading the strings, occasionally plucking them lightly to test the sound.

The sounds on the tower were intermittent.

The setting sun in the west cast a soft glow on him, but it couldn’t change his color at all, only elongating his shadow behind him.

Chen Ying knew that this qin had been made for three years and was very cherished. Now that it was time to string the qin, being able to talk to him for a few words was already giving him enough face. Naturally, he knew his limits, bowed, and took his leave, going downstairs.

After Chen Ying left, Jian Shu, who had been standing with a sword by his side, frowned. Despite his youthful appearance, he was not impulsive. After thinking for a while, he hesitated and said, “Sir, are we just going to let them investigate like this?”

Xie Wei replied, “If it’s not Chen Ying, it will be someone else.”

Jian Shu fell silent.

After a while, a waiter came upstairs with a tray full of food and wine. “Sir, your order has arrived.”

Jian Shu said, “When did our master order anything?”

The waiter looked surprised, “Wasn’t it the gentleman who just went downstairs who ordered it for you?”

This waiter looked like an ordinary person but seemed unfamiliar. When he spoke, there was a slight Wu-Yue accent.

Since when did Cengxiao Tower have such a waiter?

Jian Shu suddenly sensed something was wrong. He raised his eyebrows, drew his sword, and shouted, “Sir, be careful!”

“Crash!”

As Jian Shu shouted, the “waiter” knew he had been exposed. The previously innocent and pleasing expression turned into a fierce and vicious one. He pushed the tray of food and wine towards Jian Shu and pulled out a one-and-a-half-foot short knife from under the tray, attacking Xie Wei directly!

“Die!”

Xie Wei was just getting up with his qin when the short knife reached him. There was a sharp “twang” as the four newly strung qin strings were cut by the knife’s tip!

There was also a new knife mark on the qin’s body!

His previously calm and gentle expression instantly turned icy cold.

The alley was not far from Cengxiao Tower. Jiang Xuening thought Yan Lin should have arrived by now, so she had the carriage stop on the roadside opposite the tower and instructed the driver to go inside and fetch someone.

But she never expected that just moments after the driver left, a shadow would attack from outside!

A flash of bright knife light, and the short knife was pressed against her neck. Tang’er, who was in the carriage with her, didn’t even have time to scream before being struck on the back of the neck and losing consciousness, falling at Jiang Xuening’s feet!

At that moment, feeling the coldness on her neck, only one thought came to Jiang Xuening’s mind—

Damn it!

Xie Wei really wants to silence me!

However, she quickly realized something was wrong: there seemed to be shouting from the building opposite, with people calling to search inside and out, followed by a flurry of footsteps.

Someone reported that the person was missing.

Jiang Xuening couldn’t see what the person holding her looked like, only feeling the slight tremor in the hand holding the knife, as if they had just been through a fierce fight, or were as nervous as she was.

Soon, footsteps approached the carriage.

Someone stopped in front of the carriage.

Jiang Xuening heard a voice say, “Is Second Miss Ning in the carriage?”

Only Xie Wei would call her “Second Miss Ning.” Even if she didn’t recognize the voice, she could tell who was speaking!

Her mind raced.

The person holding the knife to her neck was most likely an assassin; Xie Wei was trying to capture this person. The other party hadn’t acted yet, probably judging from her carriage that the person inside was not ordinary and wanted to use her as a hostage..

On the surface, her life was threatened by the person with the knife, but…

Outside the carriage was an even more terrifying demon!

This situation was far more frightening than simply encountering Xie Wei trying to silence her!

Because Xie Wei could easily kill her under the pretext of executing an assassin or rebel, and then blame it on the rebels; or he could let the other party use her as a hostage without meeting any demands, deliberately waiting for the assassin to kill her!

This way, he wouldn’t even need to cover it up or explain.

There was no easier way to die that would completely absolve Xie Wei of any connection to her death. At most, he would say “I was unable to save her,” and no one could blame him.

Just thinking about this made Jiang Xuening’s scalp tingle. She didn’t dare to look back at the assassin holding the knife. After being pushed by the other party, she immediately said, “It’s me.”

Outside, Xie Wei asked again, “Are you alone?”

Jiang Xuening couldn’t guess the assassin’s intentions behind her, so she didn’t dare to answer.

The assassin, however, laughed darkly, “Of course she’s not alone.”

The servant beside Xie Wei reacted too quickly, causing the assassination attempt to fail. Immediately, people surrounded the assassin, trying to capture him. It seemed that Xie Wei had quite a few people secretly protecting him when he went out.

With no other choice, the assassin fled and hid in the carriage. Xie Wei, who had helped the unworthy emperor ascend the throne, had some insight and guessed that the assassin was in the carriage, which was not surprising. Therefore, the assassin didn’t need to hide. On the contrary, he vaguely heard that Xie Wei actually knew the girl in the carriage.

In that case, there was room for negotiation.

Touching Jiang Xuening’s neck with the knife, he asked her, “Do you know Xie?”

Jiang Xuening knew that her life was in the assassin’s hands. She didn’t hesitate to lower herself and answered honestly, “Yes, I know him. Four years ago, I saved Master Xie’s life. Although I don’t know who you are, Master Xie is known for his virtue and wisdom. Please, don’t act rashly. Let’s talk this over.”

This was not only addressed to the assassin but also to Xie Wei.

Back then, at the end of her life, to preserve Zhang Zhe’s reputation, she had used the favor from many years ago; now, just a few days after being reborn, she had to use it to save her life!

Xie Wei stood outside the carriage, separated from the people inside by a hanging curtain.

He was not surprised to hear the assassin’s voice.

However, Jiang Xuening’s words made his eyebrows move slightly, finding them somewhat interesting.

The surrounding pedestrians had long disappeared, and the street was filled with a murderous atmosphere.

Jian Shu looked coldly at the carriage.

Xie Wei glanced at another young man in tight clothes with a bow on his back beside Jian Shu, made a slight gesture for him to go, and then said to the people inside the carriage, “That’s right. Second Miss Ning saved my life, and her father is a good friend of mine. Brave man, you are dissatisfied with the court, which is a matter of public concern; now holding an innocent girl hostage is somewhat harming the innocent. Between capturing a rebel and saving a benefactor, I choose the latter. I believe you don’t want to die here either. If you are willing to release Second Miss Ning, I can have someone bring you a letter of safe conduct, open the city gate for you, and ensure your safe departure from the capital.”

“Nonsense!”

Jiang Xuening didn’t believe a word of it.

But she was at the mercy of the assassin and couldn’t speak rashly. Moreover, she didn’t dare to speak in front of Xie Wei.

The assassin, however, didn’t expect his luck to be so good. He had randomly barged into the carriage and caught Xie Wei’s former savior, so he laughed loudly, “It seems that heaven is favoring me, giving me a way out. I’ve heard that Master Xie is devoted to Daoism and avoids women, but I didn’t expect him to have a tender heart. Since you say this is your savior, and you want her safe, it’s simple. Why don’t you come and exchange places with her? I’ll take you out of the city instead. Otherwise…”

His voice suddenly turned extremely vicious.

“I’ll kill this woman right now!”

Cold sweat broke out on Jiang Xuening’s back, and she cursed the assassin for being an idiot! No wonder the rebels of the Pingnan Prince and the followers of the Tianjiao sect all fell into Xie Wei’s hands in her previous life. This pig-headed fool was far too inferior!

Could Xie Wei’s words be trusted?

And he expected to use her to threaten Xie Wei into taking her place!

If Xie Wei agreed, she would be able to take her own head off and carry it in her hand!

Outside, there was a moment of silent stillness.

The assassin grew impatient, “I’ll count to ten. If you haven’t decided by then—”

“No need to count.”

Xie Wei’s calm voice interrupted him.

Jiang Xuening’s heart leaped into her throat.

Then she heard him say, “Please send Second Miss Ning out, and I will take her place.”

Jiang Xuening: “…”

No matter what she thought, the assassin was overjoyed, thinking that the legendary imperial teacher Xie Wei had finally made a mistake, believing that everyone wanted to live and was negotiating with him.

Little did he know that since he had made his move, he had no intention of returning him alive today.

Letting Xie Wei take the woman’s place was just a ruse. His real intention was to kill Xie Wei during the exchange.

“You, open the curtain.”

He ordered Jiang Xuening harshly, the knife still pressed against her neck. Jiang Xuening moved slowly, leaning forward, and reached out to gently lift the curtain.

The reddish twilight immediately poured in.

She saw Xie Wei standing three zhang (about 10 meters) in front of her carriage. His long eyebrows were indifferent, his eyes deep and calm, dressed in wide-sleeved robes, pure and unstained. His features were extremely handsome, but what everyone noticed at first glance was always his restrained demeanor, serene and imposing, with a hidden weight. He reminded people of mountains, seas, ancient sages, or reclusive hermits.

His gaze fell on her through the void, peaceful and profound.

Jiang Xuening shivered.

She suddenly remembered: besides Jian Shu, who was skilled with the sword, Xie Wei also had another silent companion, Dao Qin, who was an expert archer, never missing a shot, capable of hitting a target from a hundred paces!

Looking around again, she saw the tall Cengxiao Tower outside…

The moment the assassin left the carriage and came into view, it would be his death!

She wondered if Xie Wei would “conveniently” deal with her as well…

The assassin behind her also glanced around and said to Xie Wei, “Tell your people to retreat thirty zhang away!”

All the armed men looked at Xie Wei.

Xie Wei gestured for them to retreat and then said to the assassin, “Rest assured, I would not endanger the life of my benefactor and the beloved daughter of a friend. A gentleman’s word is his bond. If you release her, I will not harm you.”

Everyone retreated, leaving only Xie Wei.

The assassin said, “Come forward.”

Xie Wei stepped forward.

When he was six feet from the carriage, the assassin told him to stop, then pushed Jiang Xuening, holding her with the knife still at her neck, and slowly approached Xie Wei.

Jiang Xuening was trembling all over.

She felt as if the Grim Reaper was knocking at the door.

But unexpectedly, as they finally got close to Xie Wei, the assassin suddenly pushed her aside and swung his knife at Xie Wei!

Xie Wei’s expression didn’t change. In that split second, he pulled Jiang Xuening to his side.

In the air, there was a sharp whistle, and the sound of a bowstring echoed in the silent and dangerous air!

An arrow shot from the high tower like lightning!

Jiang Xuening’s pupils contracted.

Xie Wei calmly raised his left arm, his wide sleeve completely shielding her. All she saw was a patch of white. She heard the sound of an arrow piercing through a skull, as easily as through a watermelon, followed by splashes of blood staining the clean sleeve, shocking to the eye!

The assassin’s knife was only two or three inches from Xie Wei, his face still twisted in a grimace, but an arrow was already embedded in his forehead, penetrating his skull, with the arrowhead protruding from the back of his head!

The force of the arrow was terrifying!

The assassin was knocked backward by the arrow, and as he took his last breath, there was still a look of disbelief in his eyes.

Xie Wei glanced indifferently and then lowered his hand.

Jiang Xuening blinked. Without his sleeve blocking her view, she saw that the assassin had indeed been killed by the arrow. Looking up at the Cengxiao Tower, she saw a blue-clad youth with a quiver on his back putting away his bow and retreating into the shadows.

Blood and brain matter splattered on the ground.

The smell of blood made her face pale, and she felt nauseous. The guards who had retreated earlier hurried back. Some went to check on the assassin.

Jian Shu walked directly to Xie Wei’s side.

Xie Wei’s left sleeve was stained with blood, and his long, slender hand was also covered in it.

Seeing this, Jian Shu took out a clean silk handkerchief from his sleeve and offered it with both hands, “Sir.”

Xie Wei took it, then turned his gaze to Jiang Xuening’s ear.

He looked for a moment and then handed the handkerchief to her.

Jiang Xuening was stunned.

She raised her hand and felt something sticky. Looking at her hand, she saw a bit of blood on her earlobe.

She felt a chill.

She was terrified of Xie Wei, but he hadn’t taken the opportunity to kill her, which confused her. Now, handing her the handkerchief made her even more fearful.

After hesitating for a long time, her long eyelashes trembled, and she carefully reached out to take the handkerchief from Xie Wei’s hand, whispering, “Thank you, sir.”

Because of the terrible memories from her previous life, she was very cautious at this moment. She took the handkerchief without letting her fingers touch his hand. However, the handkerchief was soft and made of high-quality silk. As she took it, one corner brushed against Xie Wei’s palm.

His long fingers twitched slightly.

He watched her, then withdrew his hand and said, “Second Miss Ning, are you alright?”

Jiang Xuening wiped the blood from her ear.

The handkerchief was stained with blood.

She lowered her gaze, “Fortunately, I met you, sir. I knew you would have a way to save me, so I’m fine.”

“Is that so?” Seeing her wipe the blood and clutch the handkerchief, Xie Wei extended his hand and said calmly, “But I heard you mention your old favor of saving my life in the carriage, as if you were afraid I wouldn’t save you. It seems I was overthinking.”

Jiang Xuening was almost scared out of her wits by these words. Seeing him extend his hand, she instinctively returned the handkerchief, trying to stay calm, “I said that on purpose for the assassin to hear, to give him some hope so he wouldn’t kill me.”

Xie Wei took the handkerchief from her, lowered his head, and carefully wiped the blood from his left hand, saying nothing more.

The silence made Jiang Xuening’s heart pound.

Jian Shu, seeing this, silently put away another handkerchief he had prepared.

After a while, someone reported, “Master Xie, Young Master Yan is outside the street and wants to come in.”

The bloodstains on his hand were not easy to clean.

He would have to wash them later.

Xie Wei paused his wiping, looked at Jiang Xuening, and said, “Jian Shu, escort Second Miss Ning over.”

Jian Shu responded, “Yes.”

Jiang Xuening held her breath, bowed to Xie Wei, and followed Jian Shu across the long street to Yan Lin.

After they left, Dao Qin came down from the tower.

He was holding a qin.

Xie Wei took it, ran his hand over the broken strings and the deep knife mark on the qin’s body, his face expressionless. After a long time, he said, “A good qin is ruined. Send the body to the Ministry of Justice and have Chen Ying come to see me.”