Song of Everlasting Regret - Chapter 29

When the waiter returned to clear away the dishes, Yu Jingqiu and the others had already poured out all the food, leaving only empty bowls and plates upon the table.

As he cleaned, the waiter asked, “Was the food to the honored guests’ liking? Our inn lies rather far north, so everything is prepared with plenty of oil and salt.”

The four exchanged glances.

One of the fellow disciples rolled his eyes thoughtfully, rubbed his stomach, and laughed.

“We have been hungry all day. Even if you served us a plate of grass, it would taste delicious.”

The waiter smiled broadly.

“As long as the honored guests enjoyed it. Judging from your clothing and bearing, you must also travel through the martial world.

“This humble servant has welcomed and seen off many martial artists, yet few have possessed the same impressive presence as the four of you. You must come from a renowned sect.”

Lang Ye straightened proudly and assumed an arrogant expression.

“I would not call it renowned. Have you heard of the Qingfeng Sect?”

The waiter froze, secretly delighted.

So they belonged to an obscure little sect no one had ever heard of.

Outwardly, he remained respectful.

“This humble servant is ignorant, but I have heard the name mentioned once or twice.”

Lang Ye said, “No matter. You will have the opportunity to witness our abilities with your own eyes in the future.”

Yu Jingqiu could not help smiling.

She lowered her head slightly to conceal the curve of her lips.

There was no Qingfeng Sect. Lang Ye had invented the name on the spot.

The waiter nodded.

“Yes. I see that the honored guests are traveling north. Do you have important business there?”

Lang Ye replied, “An elder friend of our family is celebrating his birthday. Our seniors sent us to offer congratulations.”

“Oh, then you must be careful.”

The accompanying disciple propped an elbow upon the table and turned toward him.

“What do you mean?”

The waiter said, “The north has been unsettled recently. A group of bandits has been ambushing travelers, murdering them, and stealing their possessions. Many passing merchants have already suffered at their hands.

“I advise the honored guests to take another route.”

“I see.”

Lang Ye cupped his hands toward the waiter.

“Thank you for the warning.”

After the waiter departed, one of the disciples opened the door a crack and looked outside for a while.

“He has gone downstairs.”

The other disciple turned to Yu Jingqiu.

“Junior Sister, I believe this inn is a den of thieves.”

The disciple by the door returned and said quietly, “Agreed. We should strike first.”

Yu Jingqiu said, “The two of you return to your rooms and prepare yourselves. Ah-Ye and I will go downstairs first to investigate.”

“Very well. Be careful.”

The two disciples returned to their respective rooms and lit their lamps, pretending to prepare for sleep so the bandits would lower their guard.

Once they had left, Lang Ye turned and saw Yu Jingqiu staring at the oil lamp.

He walked over.

“Senior Sister, is there also something wrong with the lamp?”

“Smell it.”

Lang Ye leaned closer and gently fanned the air above the flame toward his nose.

He detected a faint, foul odor.

It was so weak that no one would notice it without approaching and smelling carefully. To Yu Jingqiu’s extraordinarily sensitive nose, however, it was unmistakable.

“I fear it is human fat.”

Lang Ye frowned in disgust.

“Who knows how many lives have been lost inside this inn?”

Yu Jingqiu sighed softly.

She raised her sword and covered the lamp with its sheath, extinguishing the flame.

A thin strand of scorched smoke curled upward.

The window facing the rear courtyard opened without a sound.

Yu Jingqiu and Lang Ye flew outside one after another, light as swallows. Only the faint rustle of their robes against the night wind could be heard.

After landing, they saw light spilling from the kitchen.

Moving silently, they quickly reached the outside wall and looked through a small latticed window.

A broad-waisted, thick-armed man was chopping meat within.

His cleaver struck the block with repeated thuds.

“Damn it, that last sheep did not have a single scrap of fat on him.”

The burly man cursed, then turned toward the person beside him.

“Are the new sheep fat?”

The other man was the waiter who had taken their horses earlier.

“Very fat. The Second Chief says they have plenty of money and are all inexperienced youngsters. There is also a beautiful woman among them—truly tempting.

“The First Chief already has one in his bed. Once the Second Chief has finished, the brothers can take their turns. Merely thinking about it makes me unable to restrain myself.”

Yu Jingqiu understood every individual word, yet not the meaning of the whole sentence.

She turned and whispered, “Junior Brother, do you understand what they are saying?”

Lang Ye replied quietly, “It is thieves’ cant.

“‘Sheep’ refers to the travelers they have chosen as victims. The cook is complaining that the previous guest possessed nothing worth stealing.

“The new sheep are probably us. They are saying we have considerable wealth and are inexperienced newcomers to the martial world.

“They also said there is a beautiful young woman among us and that they intend…”

Lang Ye’s expression became livid.

He did not finish, silently cursing the bandits in his heart.

Although he left the sentence incomplete, Yu Jingqiu could roughly understand the rest.

Lang Ye changed the subject.

“Judging from their words, another young woman has already fallen into their hands. Senior Sister, what do you think?”

“If we can help someone, we naturally should.”

Lang Ye nodded.

“Yes.”

They raised their eyes and saw that the lamps in the rooms of their two fellow disciples had gone out.

The bandits would probably act soon.

At that moment, the waiter emerged from the kitchen carrying a roasted suckling pig and headed toward the front of the inn.

The two followed him in secret.

They watched him enter the side storeroom and push aside an old elmwood cabinet against the wall.

A curtain was revealed behind it.

The waiter felt around behind the cabinet for a moment, then lifted the curtain as a concealed door opened in the wall.

He carried the roasted pig inside.

A moment later, the cabinet returned to its original position.

A cunning rabbit kept three burrows.

This was probably a hiding place the bandits used when fleeing danger.

Yu Jingqiu and Lang Ye approached, pushed the cabinet aside in the same manner, and lifted the curtain.

They discovered that the door could be opened only from within.

Looking at the place where the waiter had felt around, they found a thin cord.

They guessed the cord might be connected to a bell or similar device, allowing people outside to signal those within to open the door.

There was probably a specific pattern for pulling it.

If they tugged carelessly, they might alert the enemy.

They were still deciding whether to lure the bandits out or wait for someone to emerge when the hidden door opened from within.

The martial siblings exchanged a glance in perfect understanding.

Lang Ye suddenly rushed forward.

His fingers flashed like lightning, striking several acupoints on the person emerging.

It was the same waiter who had entered earlier.

By the time he realized what was happening, he could no longer shout.

His knees weakened, and it seemed as though all the bones had been removed from his body as he began to collapse.

Yu Jingqiu swiftly took the serving tray from his hands.

Lang Ye caught him beneath the shoulders and slowly lowered him to the floor, preventing even the slightest sound.

Yu Jingqiu gently placed the tray upon the cabinet and slipped through the concealed doorway.

Lang Ye dragged the waiter beside the cabinet and followed closely behind.

The passage beyond the door was extremely spacious.

At its end was a two-level chamber.

The upper level contained a receiving room and a small side chamber, while beneath it lay a storeroom filled with supplies.

The receiving room was brightly lit.

A wine table stood inside, covered with disorderly cups and plates. Clearly, the bandits had held a feast there earlier.

Only two men remained drinking at the table.

One said, “The drug should have taken effect by now. The First Chief is enjoying himself. I will go help the brothers slaughter the sheep.”

A man with dark circles beneath his eyes stood.

Without exchanging empty courtesies, he drank a cup with the other man and happily entered the side chamber.

Lang Ye whispered, “They are about to act. I wonder whether the two senior brothers can handle them.”

Yu Jingqiu gestured toward the side chamber.

“Capture the leader first.”

The remaining man beside the wine table began walking toward the passage where they were hiding.

Yu Jingqiu felt somewhat uneasy.

She knew that hidden dragons and crouching tigers could be found throughout the martial world and did not dare underestimate this group of bandits.

She had originally expected a fierce battle.

Instead, they appeared to be nothing more than a disorderly rabble.

The approaching bandit’s martial arts were far inferior to theirs.

He held no weapon and had no idea that enemies were lying in ambush within the passage, leaving him completely unguarded.

Lang Ye’s flying sword sheath struck him directly in the dantian.

The man was thrown backward and landed face-down upon the floor, retching dryly.

Before he could recover, a sword was already resting against his neck.

The curses in his throat became stuck.

He could not decide whether to behave like a fearless villain who would rather die than surrender or kneel and beg to preserve his miserable life.

Suddenly, a piercing scream came from the side chamber.

It was immediately followed by the sound of tables and chairs being overturned and furious cursing.

Yu Jingqiu faintly heard a woman’s voice and hurried to the door.

A pair of red paper wedding characters had been pasted outside, and red silk hung around it, as though the room had been decorated for newlyweds.

Yu Jingqiu pushed the door open just in time to hear someone shout, “You bastard! Come any closer if you dare!”

A woman lay upon the bed.

Her hands had been bound to the headboard. Her bare feet were tied with red cords around the ankles and fastened to the bedposts.

Her clothing had been partly removed, leaving only her undergarments.

Bright red blood covered her lips.

The man with darkened eyes had a torn lower lip from which blood poured.

It was obvious that the woman had bitten him, and the blood upon her mouth belonged entirely to him.

The man was naked from the waist upward. His waistband had been untied, and his trousers were nearly falling.

Yu Jingqiu immediately averted her eyes and frowned.

“Ah-Ye!”

Lang Ye had already knocked the bandit outside unconscious and hurried over.

“Senior Sister, help the young woman.”

Without needing any explanation, he raised his sword and went to deal with the man.

The man had initially been startled when someone entered.

Then he saw an extraordinarily beautiful woman of rare and refined appearance.

When he noticed how Yu Jingqiu turned her face away upon seeing his naked body, lust immediately overwhelmed him.

Disregarding life and death, he wanted only to rush forward and seize the beauty in his arms.

He had not expected another man to arrive with a sword.

Only then did he awaken from his lustful daze.

He hastily tied his trousers, grabbed the broad saber hanging upon the wall, and blocked the approaching sword.

The sword appeared light and effortless, yet it carried the weight of a thousand catties.

When it struck his saber, the web between his thumb and forefinger immediately went numb.

Only then did he understand how powerful his opponent was, and fear arose inside him.

Yu Jingqiu cut through the ropes binding the woman’s hands and feet and helped her sit up.

Although her eyes remained open, her body was weak and limp, without strength.

Yu Jingqiu called to Lang Ye, “She has been drugged. Make him hand over the antidote.”

By then, Lang Ye had already forced the man into a corner.

Yu Jingqiu picked up the clothing beside the bed and draped it over the woman.

The woman leaned against her and took several breaths before struggling to stand.

Yu Jingqiu supported her.

The woman glanced at her and placed a hand upon the hilt of Yu Jingqiu’s sword.

“Elder Sister, lend me your sword.”

A sword was among the most important possessions a swordsman carried.

The moment the woman grasped its hilt, Yu Jingqiu instinctively caught her wrist.

The woman immediately released it.

“Never mind. There is no need to dirty your sword.”

Swaying unsteadily, she walked toward the table without caring that the clothing draped around her was slipping.

She lifted a wine jar and gulped several mouthfuls.

The exposed skin of her neck and arms became faintly flushed with a delicate pink.

She wore only her undergarments yet showed no concern about the men present, nor did she care for rules of modesty.

She raised her brows and glared furiously at the man.

“You merely possess an extra two ounces of flesh between your legs, yet you think yourself the emperor of heaven and dare control your grandaunt?

“If I do not castrate you today, then my surname is not Nie!”

The woman possessed astonishing strength.

With one hand, she lifted a spiked club and swung it toward the man.

Lang Ye saw that her clothing was disordered and large areas of skin were exposed, yet she did not care in the slightest.

His handsome face reddened, and he awkwardly turned his eyes away.

The woman staggered as she swung the club.

Her strike went wide.

Instead, it landed squarely upon the bandit chief’s head.

Blood immediately sprayed outward.

She killed the bandit leader with a single blow.