Volume 1 Chapter 8: The Setting Sun in the Courtyard
After Lin Hongfeng finished speaking, he raised his palm and slapped it back on his head! Lin Longqing knew that Lin Jianlan had just walked through the gates of hell. He just breathed a sigh of relief, and then he saw Lin Hongfeng was going to commit suicide. He was heartbroken and could only watch the blood of the sister he had grown up with splattered on the spot. It was too late for everyone to rescue her, but they saw Lin Jianlan gritting his teeth and holding Lin Hongfeng's sleeve tightly. Instantly, the two guardians Qin and Zhang rushed forward, grabbed Lin Hongfeng, and persuaded her bitterly: "Madam Cao, why do you want to commit suicide? Even if there is no token in the gang, we brothers are grateful for Mr. Cao's kindness and will do our best to assist."
Lin Hongfeng laughed up to the sky and said, "You can't kill him. Even if you lead the whole gang, it's not legitimate. Lin Longqing, you did a good job." After that, a mouthful of blood suddenly spurted out of his mouth. Seeing this, Lin Longqing was shocked and asked, "Sister, what's wrong with you?"
Lin Hongfeng giggled and said, "Brother Qing, I won't live long either. In order to avenge Shujian, I have spent the past three years practicing the Thirteen Jade Styles. My internal organs and meridians have been damaged. Doctor Cheng said I won't live more than seven years, but I am a loser and can't bring myself to do anything to you."
Lin Longqing said sadly: "Why...you must be so cruel to yourself!"
Lin Hongfeng's face was alternately sad and happy, and he said, "Brother Qing, you are good to me and considerate of me, but it is not as pleasing as when Shujian called me 'Sister Feng'. You don't know what he looked like when he was dying. He, he spat a large mouthful of blood on me and held my hand tightly. It hurt me so much that I asked him to let go, but he just stared at me and opened his mouth to speak, but he couldn't speak anymore! My clothes were all stained red by his blood... Woo woo..."
Then Lin Hongfeng laughed again, "Brother Qing, I won't kill you. In seven years, just wait. The Kuangyi Gang will have a good show for you to watch!" After laughing loudly, he swung his sword and cut off Lin Longqing's thumbs, saying, "I will make it impossible for you to use your life's skills. Just watch!"
Suddenly, Lin Hongfeng's eyes turned gentle again, and he said, "Brother Qing, since you don't admit to killing Shujian and you don't admit to colluding with the court, I won't kill you. But I will take this good nephew away. Logically, he should call me 'Aunt', right? Don't worry, I won't hurt him. When you figure it out, take the Kuang Yi Order to the gang to exchange for your adopted son." As he said that, he touched Lin Jianlan's neck with his hand. Lin Jianlan felt a chill and was unable to move a step. But he heard Lin Hongfeng say softly, "I will treat him 'well'. Hey, good adoptive father, good son!" After that, he pressed Lin Jianlan's acupoints, clamped them under his ribs, and ran out of the hospital.
Yin Yin looked at Lin Longqing coldly, not hiding the hatred in her eyes for the murderer of her father, and clenched her fist lightly before turning around and leaving the courtyard. The hall masters in the courtyard looked at each other, all feeling that it was difficult to fulfill both gratitude and righteousness, and they didn't know how to persuade the brother and sister. Although they found the leader today, they still had no clue about what happened three years ago, so they all dispersed to chase Lin Hongfeng.
After a while, Qin Tianxiong and Doctor Cheng turned back and said to Lin Longqing: "Boss, there are so many things going on back then. I'm afraid you can't explain all the circumstances... You have your own reasons for killing and making decisions. Alas, what happened to Manager Cao may not be what you thought. Let's go back and try to mediate. I hope that the matter will be resolved soon and you and Madam Cao can put aside their past grudges."
Seeing that Lin Longqing remained silent, Doctor Cheng said, "I have watched you two siblings grow up, and I don't want you to kill each other today. Well, since you have adopted this child as your adopted son, he will be the young master of the Lin family. We will protect him at the risk of our lives." Only then did they see gratitude in Lin Longqing's eyes. The two of them felt bitter in their hearts. They said, "Take care, boss," and flew out of the hospital, following Lin Hongfeng.
Lin Longqing was in a state of great change. Thinking of Lin Hongfeng's actions just now, his eyes were sometimes sharp and sometimes scattered, and his tone was sometimes sharp and sometimes soft. It was obvious that he was greatly stimulated mentally. I am afraid that he will act more extreme and perverse in the future. He struggled to take a breath and stood up. After walking a few steps, the wound on his chest was in great pain again.
Thinking back to three years ago, Cao Shujian secretly mobilized the black team twice, which was only controlled by the gang leader and the general manager. The next day after these two operations, news came that the main figures of the "Taihu Banner Gate" and "Luomazhai" factions were killed.
Lin Longqing originally thought that he was just using the Black Team to pick up some assassination business to enrich himself, but after investigation, he found that he was actually involved with the court. Cao Shujian made friends with countless precious medicinal materials and gave them away. Most of them were probably only collected in the imperial palace. The silver used to buy people's hearts, excluding the small change, was as much as 2.8 million taels. Lin Longqing just realized that if it wasn't for the court's bribery, how could he have so much silver? Later, Lin Longqing immediately replaced the captain who acted in accordance with Cao Shujian's orders, and ordered the Black Team to only obey the "Kuang Yi Order" from now on and not to act at will. Unexpectedly, Cao Shujian came to him to argue that night. Lin Longqing thought that he had contributed a lot to the gang and was Lin Hongfeng 's husband, so he advised him kindly: "The grudges in the rivers and lakes are the rivers and lakes. In the past, there were sects that insulted our Kuang Yi Gang, and we went out in full force to destroy them that day. What's wrong with that, but the most hateful thing is to collude with the government and violate the rules of the green forest."
Cao Shujian scoffed, "What green forest rules? Now the only way out is to rely on the imperial court. Look at the Shaolin Temple. It was originally in decline, but later it saved the emperor by chance. How glorious is it now? Not to mention how much money the imperial court allocates to expand the temple every year, just look at the fact that the Shaolin Temple can now have its own monk soldiers. No other gang in the martial arts world can compare to it!"
The two debated for a long time, but Lin Longqing still couldn't convince Cao Shujian, so he had to say: "I won't tell anyone in the gang about you using the black team to assassinate the leaders of 'Taihu Banner Gate' and 'Luoma Village', and I won't pursue it. You can do whatever you want. If I find out that you have any dealings with the court again, I will have to remove you from your position as chief steward. Don't blame me for hurting our brotherhood then."
Cao Shujian did not listen to the advice, but grinned and said: "I am wholeheartedly planning for the leader. It would be fine if you don't thank me, but you want to dismiss me? It is beyond your control now. You can just listen to me now. We are still operating in secret. In public, we are still a big gang respected by everyone in the martial arts world. Otherwise, I will announce it to the martial arts world tomorrow and just say that the leaders of the two factions were killed by me, the general manager. How will the people in the martial arts world see you then? I am afraid that you will not be able to clear yourself of the responsibility. They will definitely say that I was instructed by you, the leader. At that time, the reputation of the Kuangyi Gang will be tarnished. Humph, you will have to surrender to the court in the end! However, it is hard to say whether the court is willing to accept you!"
Lin Longqing was naturally very furious, and the two of them started fighting. However, Lin Longqing took into consideration that Cao Shujian was his brother-in-law, and he reduced his strength by 20% when he slapped him on the chest. However, he still severely injured Cao Shujian, and then left in a huff. He was alone in the study, feeling depressed and not knowing what to do. Not long after he sat down, Hongfeng asked her personal maid to bring him a cup of heat-reducing tea. He thought that his sister was very understanding and that Cao Shujian might be more honest if Hongfeng mediated between them. Therefore, he drank it all in one gulp. Unexpectedly, two hours later, Hong Feng rushed in with a face full of hatred, raised his sword and stabbed. He didn't even have time to ask questions. He found that his whole body was weak and his internal strength could not be gathered. Lin Longqing had to withdraw from the study and fight and retreat, but he was unexpectedly intercepted by the people in the main hall. He vaguely heard someone say hatefully: "Such a ruthless and righteous person who colluded with the court to harm Brother Cao, why should we give him face?" Suddenly, all the brothers were indignant. He still couldn't forget that cold voice, but he didn't know who took advantage of the chaos to speak in secret. He managed to escape from the crowd and was attacked by a group of masters when he arrived at the waterside pavilion. The number of people in the main hall of the Kuangyi Gang was originally large and mixed. He couldn't tell whether these people were brothers of the main hall. Each of them was cruel and merciless, and all of them were killing moves. He couldn't help but hate Cao Shujian even more for daring to attack him openly. Unexpectedly, he had been poisoned to death at that time... Who was it that messed up the deep water of the Kuangyi Gang? He had sophisticated means and meticulous thoughts, and he had no clue about it. Even though he escaped from the headquarters, he was still followed and hunted by someone along the way. He had very little internal energy left at that time. If it weren't for the mysterious master who kept reporting the news, he would have died several times. He also suspected which brother in the gang this person was, but he never knew his identity.
It was already evening, and the pear blossoms in the courtyard were reflected in a fiery red by the setting sun. Lin Longqing was unable to catch up, so he leaned against a tree, thinking of the great changes that night three years ago. It was so vivid in his mind, and he felt bitter. Lin Longqing thought to himself: "Article 7 of the gang rules says 'It is strictly forbidden for gang members to collude with the government and harm the outlaws. Violators will be beaten with 80 sticks and 13 knives to death'. Do you want me to make all these ugly deeds of Cao Shujian public? How will the people in the rivers and lakes view our Kuangyi Gang at that time? How can we explain to the 'Taihu Banner Gate' and the 'Luomazhai'? So I tried hard to conceal it, and I would not say a word about what happened that night. But unexpectedly, someone poisoned Cao Shujian, and pointed the spearhead at me instead. The handwriting of the letter was so good that I couldn't tell the authenticity. My sister and the hall masters didn't know the secret , and they only cared about revenge and gratitude. No one knew my painstaking efforts."
Looking at the green mountains outside the door, the glow of the sunset was like blood. Recalling the past of his childhood, and thinking that his sister only had seven years to live, he realized that even if she fell into such a situation, he had never hated this sister, and would always love her. At this time, Lin Longqing felt cold all over. He knew that his wound had never been bandaged and the bleeding would not stop. He had no intention of pressing the acupuncture points to stop the bleeding. He would die, but he would hurt Lan'er. Hongfeng's mind changed drastically. Although she would not hurt Lan'er's life, how would she treat Lan'er? Wang Po will be back later. How can I tell my benefactor about what happened today? Countless thoughts appeared in Lin Longqing's mind. He felt as if his heart was broken, and then his eyes went black and he fell to the ground.
Lin Longqing finally regained consciousness and slowly opened his eyes. What came into view was still the ordinary earthen wall and a few New Year pictures. Looking back, everything seemed to be the same as it was three years ago, the old square wooden table, the oil lamp, the teapot and teacups, and the wooden box covered with blue and white cloth. Footsteps were heard, and the door curtain was still opened, and a bowl of steaming medicine was handed in first, but his mood was very different.
Lin Longqing was filled with remorse. He stared blankly at the door curtain and watched Wang Po slowly walk in. His mind was filled with thousands of voices roaring, "If she asks about Lan'er, how can I answer her?"
When Wang Po saw him wake up, she breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You're awake. You've been in a coma for four days!" Seeing Lin Longqing struggling to get up, she hurried over to hold him down, tucked the quilt in again, and said, "I've asked the doctor to take a look. You've missed too much school and your wound is big. Don't move for the time being to avoid the wound opening." After saying that, she turned around and put the medicine bowl on the table. When she looked back again, she saw that Lin Longqing had already gotten up and was kneeling on the ground in front of her, hoarsely saying, "Auntie, why didn't you ask me where Lan'er was? I... I'm sorry for you! Lan'er..."
Wang Po sighed, helped him sit down on the kang, and said slowly, "That day when I came back, I saw blood all over the yard, the pear blossoms were chopped to pieces, you fainted under the tree, and Lan'er was nowhere to be found. Then I roughly knew what happened. Don't worry, tell me slowly."
Lin Longqing was speechless in front of his own sister and the hall masters at that time. He was so disheartened that he wanted to die. Seeing that Wang Po's tone was gentle and she didn't blame him too much, but her eyes showed understanding, he couldn't help but feel sad. He told her everything that happened that day in detail and told her the secret he had kept for three years. Men don't cry easily, just because they are not sad. After telling the story, Lin Longqing was already choking with sobs and tears fell like rain. He said, "If I had known this would happen, why did I do it in the first place? If Auntie had just treated me as a frozen corpse and abandoned me on the roadside, Lan'er wouldn't have been in trouble."
Grandma Wang shook her head and looked at Lin Longqing with a pair of kind eyes and said, "So you are the leader of such a big gang. You are famous in the martial arts world at a young age and manage the Kuangyi Gang. It can be seen that you are extraordinary in martial arts and intelligence. Lan'er is very lucky to have you as a master. The most fortunate thing is that his master is not a cold-blooded person without brotherly love and brotherly loyalty. Even if I knew about this disaster, I would still save you." Grandma Wang smiled and said, "Besides, it was Lan'er who found you alive at that time. I am afraid that the two of you are destined to be together and it cannot be broken. When you said that Lan'er stepped forward to save you, I know how much Lan'er respects and loves you."
Although Lin Longqing expected that Wang Po must be extremely distressed because of Lin Jianlan's kidnapping, seeing that Wang Po was so calm and composed and just comforting himself, he admired Wang Po even more. He couldn't help but clenched his fists and said, "My sister kidnapped Lan'er, and his life should not be in danger for the time being, but I don't know how my sister will treat him in the long run. After all, this is a disaster caused by me, I must find Lan'er back!"
Wang Po stared at Lin Longqing for a moment and said seriously, "Since you want to go find Lan'er, I have something to ask of you."
Lin Longqing said in panic: "Looking for Lan'er is my responsibility. I can never repay my benefactor in this life. Auntie, why are you so polite? Just say what you want to say."
