Joy of Life

Chapter 694: Rain At The Qing Temple

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

A slight sound of footsteps rang out in the courtyard outside. The sound was very light, particularly as the market at the end of the alley was still noisy and would be so until dusk. Thus, these quiet footsteps had almost been obscured by the sound of bargaining.

However, these gentle footsteps rang out with unusual clarity in Fan Xian’s ears. He narrowed his eyes and focused on the sounds outside. His index finger and middle finger unconsciously moved slightly. Only then did he realize that this black dagger had long fallen in the rain in front of the Royal Palace and was not with him. But, he remained calm, still confident that he would be able to subdue the person outside in one strike.

Hong Yiqing gripped his dagger tightly. He carefully and silently crouched behind the door. He temporarily held his breath and looked at the figure coming closer. Strangely, the person approached the door and gently knocked. Hearing the rhythmic knocking, Hong Yiqing relaxed visibly because this signal was a way to identify the members of the Qinian Unit.

Fan Xian did not relax because he was not confident about whether the Qinian Unit had been infiltrated by the court or if contact had been made. After all, starting from the Dazhou incident and pushing back from the existence of Gao Da, the Emperor’s regard for intelligence reports had far surpassed Fan Xian, as well as Chen Pingping’s deductions. Furthermore, the internal court probably had many loyal officials hidden in the Overwatch Council. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for Yan Bingyun to control the sinister Council within seven days.

“It’s me,” the person said in a raspy voice. He seemed to know there were people inside.

Hearing this voice, Hong Yiqing did not recognize who it was, but Fan Xian’s expression immediately changed. It was somewhat joyful, emotional, and surprised.

The door was pushed open. A middle-aged man with an unfamiliar face and wearing clothing commonly seen on farmers in the outskirts of Jingdou walked in.

“Leader Wang?” Hong Yiqing lowered his voice and looked in disbelief at the person. He deduced the person’s identity from the familiar warm smile in his eyes. After all, he had been personally chosen by Wang Qinian to join the Unit. However, in the heart of most Overwatch Council officials, Wang Qinian had died three years ago in the Dong Mountain incident. How could he be standing alive in front of him now?

The disguised Wang Qinian patted Hong Yiqing’s shoulder. He then intently focused his attention, while forcefully suppressing excitement, and bowed deeply to Fan Xian standing behind the desk.

“We’ll talk another day. We’ll see each other again. Go do what needs to be done.” Fan Xian smiled and threw the little knife in his hand to Hong Yiqing. The expression on Hong Yiqing’s face was one of disbelief and surprise. He knew matters were urgent, so he did not waste time. He bowed to each of them and headed toward the grasslands in to search for Songzhi Xianling.

Fan Xian walked out from behind the desk and stood in front of Wang Qinian. He looked at him silently for a moment. He then hugged him and patted his back with force. He straightened and saw the tiredness that Wang Qinian’s disguise could not hide.

Fan Xian gazed at Wang Qinian, and Wang Qinian also gazed at him. The two did not speak for a long time. Fan Xian eventually sighed and said, “It really has been a long time since we met.”

On the road back to the capital from Dongyi, Wang Qinian had desperately stopped the Overwatch Council carriages and informed Fan Xian of the startling news. At that time, neither of them had time to say anything or sigh about anything. Fan Xian had immediately charged to Jingdou to rescue Chen Pingping.

Calculating carefully, it had been exactly eight days since Fan Xian had returned to the capital. Now, Wang Qinian had returned to Jingdou. Before this, Wang Qinian had traveled rapidly and with great difficulty from Danzhou straight to the northeast. Two such long-distance treks had exhausted the aging Wang Qinian. Even though he was one of the two wings of the Overwatch Council, he had reached the end of his strength.