Fang Yong's tone was bone-chillingly cold, his gaze as sinister as a venomous snake, sending shivers down one's spine.
"You dare kill me?" Li Zhongcheng glared at Fang Yong, gritting his teeth. "Do you know who I am? I am an official of the imperial court. Killing me is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family. His Majesty the Emperor will not forgive you!"
"Extermination of nine generations?" Fang Yong scoffed dismissively. "Don't worry, do you think I'm afraid?"
"You!" Li Zhongcheng's eyes widened, disbelief etched on his face.
"I don't care who you are. I'm telling you, go back and tell Chu Chen that if he wants to know something, he should come himself," Fang Yong said coldly.
"What?" Li Zhongcheng was stunned.
Fang Yong snorted, "What, you think I don't have the authority to know?"
"This..." Li Zhongcheng hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Very well, I will report back to my lord immediately."
"Go, and remember to bring your master's head," Fang Yong said indifferently.
Li Zhongcheng wasted no more words and turned to leave Jinshan Village.
After he left, Fang Yong finally breathed a sigh of relief. He had deliberately put on that act to intimidate Li Zhongcheng, as the Embroidered Uniform Guard was not what it used to be. If it weren't absolutely necessary, Li Zhongcheng would never have betrayed Prince Jing so easily.
"Someone, clean up the mess," Fang Yong ordered, then turned to go inside. He sat down and immediately took out his pocket watch to examine it carefully.
"There's half an hour left until the plan begins. I hope Chu Chen can stall for time. Once I'm done with Jinshan Village, I'll rush to the rescue," Fang Yong murmured to himself. He and Chu Chen had agreed on the time and place for their operation, and with only half an hour remaining, Fang Yong couldn't help but worry.
Not long after, Fang Yong led the Embroidered Uniform Guard to quickly depart from Jinshan Village, preparing to head to the dilapidated temple in the northern suburbs of the city.
"Whoosh!" Just then, a whistling sound suddenly cut through the air. Fang Yong's pupils contracted sharply, and he instinctively swung his saber, slashing towards the source of the sound.
"Clang!" A metallic collision echoed, and a black iron ball was sent flying, sparks scattering. Fang Yong looked closely and saw it was a miniature hand grenade, its power not to be feared.
"These damn scoundrels!" Fang Yong's eyes were filled with resentment. These guys were truly cunning. At this moment, he noticed a letter tucked beside the grenade. Opening it, he read:
"If you want to negotiate with Jinshan Village, you must first solve their problems. Otherwise, you will never know the answer. If you want to save people, please come to the dilapidated temple."
The handwriting was hasty, but it was still recognizable as Chu Chen's.
"It's as I suspected. It seems he has already guessed what I'm up to," Fang Yong frowned in thought. "It looks like I need to speed things up."
"Someone! Search!" Fang Yong immediately issued an order. Soon, hundreds of Embroidered Uniform Guards split into three groups, heading towards different targets, while he himself rode towards the dilapidated temple.
At the same time, inside the dilapidated temple, Chu Chen and Zhao Yunyang sat opposite each other, each holding a teacup and savoring the fragrant tea.
Zhao Yunyang narrowed his eyes and asked casually, "Do you think the people from Jinshan Village will send someone to rescue Li Zhongcheng?"
"They probably won't, because they're not foolish," Chu Chen shook his head. "Besides, even if they wanted to, they probably couldn't, unless Li Zhongcheng cooperated."
"Then I can rest easy," Zhao Yunyang smiled slightly. "Brother Chu, you are truly prescient. I was worried that Jinshan Village would send someone to rescue Li Zhongcheng."
Chu Chen took a sip of the fragrant tea and smiled, "If I'm not mistaken, Jinshan Village must have a secret passage in their stronghold. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to escape so silently."
"Nephew Chu is wise. You are correct. Li Zhongcheng does have a secret passage, but it can only be used once. Once activated, he will become a cripple, completely reduced to an ordinary person," Zhang Yihai said with a chuckle.
"So, they already know our plan and are deliberately luring you over?" Chu Chen asked.
Zhang Yihai nodded slightly and sighed, "Alas, what a pity for young Fang Yong."
"Fang Yong is a good prospect, but unfortunately, he has followed the wrong master. Otherwise, with time, he would surely become another martial arts master," Chu Chen slowly shook his head.
Zhang Yihai nodded in agreement, then fell silent for a moment before suddenly speaking, "Nephew Chu, since Jinshan Village has already detected our scheme, there's no need for us to wait any longer. What is your plan?"
"Plan?" Chu Chen smiled slightly. "No rush, it's almost dawn in half an hour. We just need to wait and see."
"Nephew Chu, do you have a way?" Zhang Yihai's spirit was lifted, his eyes fixed on Chu Chen with burning intensity.
"I want to see how audacious these bandits are, daring to stir up trouble in front of the Great God!" a ruthless glint flashed in Chu Chen's eyes.
"Good, good, haha, I've been looking forward to this," Zhang Yihai was overjoyed. He immediately took out paper and brush and quickly sketched a map, handing it to Chu Chen.
"Hmm, it's roughly within this area." Chu Chen glanced at it, having a general idea.
"Nephew Chu, I'll have to trouble you!" Zhang Yihai clasped his fists in gratitude. Although they were soldiers, they had never participated in a war, nor had they even touched a firearm a few times. Dealing with ordinary enemies was fine, but facing highly skilled bandits, they were inevitably helpless.
"Uncle Zhang, there's no need to be polite. This is what a junior should do," Chu Chen smiled.
Outside the dilapidated temple, an Embroidered Uniform Guard scout ran up to Fang Yong and reported, "Captain, we've found a secret passage leading to the eastern suburbs of the city."
Fang Yong's spirits immediately soared. He immediately ordered, "Gather your men, and follow me to capture the leader of the Jinshan Village bandits!"
"Yes, sir!" everyone shouted in unison. Fang Yong mounted his horse and took the lead towards the dilapidated temple.
"Rumble!" The moment they stepped into the dilapidated temple, a violent explosion suddenly erupted, startling the villagers in the entire mountain stronghold.
"Ah!" Screams and moans filled the air. Fang Yong was caught off guard and was thrown back by the intense explosion, landing on the ground in a sorry state, spitting blood uncontrollably. His chest was covered in blood, clearly indicating he was seriously injured.
"Captain!" The other Embroidered Uniform Guards swarmed around him.
"I... *cough*..." Blood trickled from the corner of Fang Yong's mouth. He struggled to lift his head and saw a corpse fall at his feet. It was the scout who had just reported.
"Captain, these bandits are despicable and shameless, resorting to sneak attacks!" one Embroidered Uniform Guard roared in anger.
"Damn it, these sons of bitches!" another Embroidered Uniform Guard couldn't help but curse.
"Captain, let's retreat quickly, or it'll be trouble when those bandits catch up!"
Fang Yong struggled to stand up, wiped the blood from his lips, his expression uncertain. "No, we cannot retreat, or all our efforts will be in vain!"