Chapter 953 - 792: Birth and Background

Behind the battlefield, Huang Que carried a long sword and walked slowly in the street. As he passed by a residence, he heard laughter inside: "This copper mirror is nice, how much money is it worth..."

Huang Que paused in front of the door, and after a while, four Salt Gang Green Forest men came out of the house, joking and talking, with bulky things in their arms.

Seeing Huang Que, the four smiled and greeted him: "Landlord."

As they approached, Huang Que casually sliced one man’s neck with his sword. The faces of the remaining three changed: "Huang Que, what the hell are you doing? You killed our Tianmu Mountain man, have you asked our Big Leader at Tianmu Mountain?"

Huang Que said calmly, "I told you days ago, we are just salt merchants. Once on my ship, forget your old dealings. Even if your Big Leader breaks the taboo, I’ll kill him all the same."

One Green Forest man said sternly, "Brothers risk their lives with you, why does scavenging some unowned goods matter?"

Another cursed, "Have you forgotten your origins? Recently, I heard someone promised you a big official position. They were just empty words, and you really think you’re an official?"

In the next moment, a flash of sword light appeared, and a thin line of blood emerged from the neck of the speaker, followed by a spray of fresh blood. The remaining two had their faces painted red.

Huang Que wiped the blood off his sword and said slowly, "My origins? I am a legitimate top scorer in the county examination of the Xin-Mao year, a scholar under Mr. Li."

The remaining two Green Forest men were petrified.

Huang Que looked at them: "I’ve said many times, I’ll give you the chance to make Silver. I’ll lead you to Jinling to sell private salt... but I have to finish what I need to do first."

The two Green Forest men dared not utter a single word.

Huang Que stepped aside from the door: "Go kill the pirates."

The two bowed their heads and passed him, Huang Que’s voice was indifferent: "Wait."

The Green Forest men trembled: "Wh... what is it, Landlord?"

"Take out what’s in your arms," Huang Que said calmly, "and tell your Big Leader that if there’s another offense, I’ll kill not just you, but him."

The two men threw their loot into the courtyard and fled.

Looking at the two corpses on the ground, Huang Que was silent for a long time, then he murmured to himself: "I am a legitimate top scorer in the county examination of the Xin-Mao year, a scholar under Mr. Li..."

He laughed self-mockingly, and continued to walk toward the battlefield with his sword.

Huang Que arrived at the edge of the battlefield, saw the Salt Gang and Cao Guild horses spread in the alleys fighting pirates, the city filled with the sound of weapons clashing.

As the sky darkened, he looked up to see Jin Zhu protecting Heavenly Horse, standing on the county school’s rooftop, drawing and shooting arrows, meteor-like sparks occasionally lighting up the sky.

But Heavenly Horse seemed to shoot arrows less and less frequently, as if he was exhausted.

Huang Que did not rush into the fray but walked leisurely around the battlefield, searching for the whereabouts of the enemy chief. Everyone knew the strategy of capturing the leader first, everyone was looking for the Great Wokou Leader, as the pirates were defeated segment by segment, screaming to find the whereabouts of their leader.

But the Great Wokou Leader was nowhere to be found.

...

...

Jiang Chai and Yuan Xing led four people out of an alley. Yuan Xing got lost: "Where have we come killing all the way?"

Jiang Chai said confidently, "West of the city, the neighboring street is the county government office. You have no sense of direction on the battlefield, you can only guard the city. If you were asked to lead troops to Chongli Pass’s south, you’d deliver the Right Martial Guard into Ning Dynasty’s Three Major Camps."

Yuan Xing cursed: "What the hell is the situation now, can we stop arguing? We’ve searched so many streets, where is the Japanese Chief? Why hasn’t he appeared on the battlefield? These pirates seem leaderless, he’s not escaped early, has he? The pirates are near defeat, why do we still look for him?"

Jiang Chai deeply inhaled: "He definitely hasn’t escaped, just hidden somewhere. That bastard broke my city, I’ll be damned if I don’t kill him. Keep searching, don’t let him escape!"

He then led Yuan Xing and others toward the county government office, killing through another alley, Jiang Chai suddenly stopped.

In front of the county government office lay over twenty pirate corpses, the Great Wokou Leader in Do-maru Armor was on the ground, barely alive, his tendons cut by the sword seed.

Chen Ji didn’t use a sword to end the Great Wokou Leader, instead he removed his helmet, grabbed a blue brick from somewhere, hitting the leader’s face until his breath ceased completely.

Old Ears was stunned beside him: "Isn’t this your first time in Jiangnan, how come you act like you have a vendetta with pirates? Have you dealt with them before?"

Chen Ji slowly straightened: "It’s nothing."

He weighed the blood-stained brick in his hand, glanced at Jiang Chai and others, walked back to the county government’s wall, placed the brick back into the gap carved by the pirates, said softly, "Ning Dynasty and Jing Dynasty fight back and forth, ultimately it’s a family affair, today you take my land, tomorrow I take yours, it doesn’t really affect me. I just want to go home and live peacefully. But pirates are different, they need to be watched closely."

Old Ears puzzled: "A small piece of land, what’s to watch out for?"

Chen Ji exhaled a long, thick breath: "Many people thought the same way before. Many even believed their intent to replace China with Japan was recent, but it isn’t. This idea started with Oda, it’s flawed from the root."

Old Ears didn’t understand: "What’s this gibberish, what nonsense is this?"

Chen Ji smiled: "It’s nothing."

Just then, Jiang Chai approached to report: "Foster father, two groups of troops have entered from outside the city, although they’re not the court’s reinforcements, they are seasoned veterans..."

He looked at Chen Ji’s expression and lowered his voice to probe: "Foster father, in Jiangnan territory, there are so many private armies, enough to besiege cities. With diligent training, they might become elite... are these people your troops, Foster father?"

Chen Ji shook his head: "No."

But just as he stopped speaking, ten pirates retreated from an alley.

Yuan Xing was about to intercept and kill them, but sensed something was amiss. These pirates weren’t attacking, they were forced back here.

In the next moment, Huang Que strolled out of the alley, his long sword dripping blood, his gray cloth coat soaked to dark red with blood, his face smeared numerous times with dried blood stains, even his hair strands clotted with blood.

Huang Que swiftly dashed into the pirates, his swordsmanship crisp and clean, within three breaths, he killed all ten pirates.

Yuan Xing’s pupils shrank: "Seeking Dao Realm? Is he the head of those two supporting troops?"

Huang Que gasped faintly, turned searching for the voice, and hesitated upon seeing Chen Ji’s masked face, refrained from approaching.

Chen Ji proactively gestured a Red Gate sign, Huang Que saw it, suddenly understood, and approached with his sword: "Landlord, I’m late."

Jiang Chai was startled, whispered muttering: "...and he said he isn’t planning a rebellion?"