Chapter 620 Bai Zhantang

Chai Xin and Zhan Zhao soon arrived at a maple forest thirty miles east of Lin'an City.

It was almost September, the Mid-Autumn Festival had just passed, the sky was high and the air was crisp, and the geese were flying south.

The maple forest sparkles with a red and yellow hue in the sunlight, as if the setting sun is dyeing the entire world.

"Mr. Zhang has previously investigated that Bai Yutang came this way after leaving the palace. I have made an appointment with Mr. Zhang that he will continue the pursuit while I will go to seek help from my brother. We will meet here at this time."

Zhan Zhao carried the Juque sword on his back, his long flowing hair dancing in the wind. Under the shade of the maple forest, he looked even more handsome.

Chai Xin was wearing a black robe, standing not far in front of him, with his black hair flowing over his shoulders like a waterfall, letting the breeze brush his face. He looked at the maple forest that stretched for miles and was suddenly overwhelmed by its beauty.

Not long after, a staggering figure slowly walked out from the deathbed, taking a sip from the gourd from time to time.

"The five-flowered horse and the golden coat will exchange for fine wine, and I will sell the eternal sorrow with you!"

The words he was muttering were "Song of the Wine" by the great poet Li Bai. Who else could this person be other than the world's number one detective?
"Mr. Zhang, what's going on? Have you found out where Bai Yutang is?"

Zhan Zhao stepped forward quickly and asked in a serious voice.

"Young Master Chai, nice to see you again, nice to meet you!"

Zhang Jinjiu did not answer him immediately, but saluted Chai Xin from a distance with his fists clasped.

Chai Xin smiled slightly and returned the greeting by clasping his fists: "Mr. Zhang, nice to meet you."

Zhang Jinjiu nodded, then looked at Zhan Zhao, shaking his head and saying, "Zhan, is there anything in this world that I can't find out? Don't worry, there is a definite result."

As he spoke, he took another sip of wine and said, "There are rumors that Hulong Villa and Dongchang have been dispatched. We must hurry."

"Then why waste time? Please lead the way, Mr. Zhang!" Zhan Zhao couldn't help but feel anxious when he heard that.

Both the East Factory and the Hulong Villa are from the imperial court and have always been lacking in goodwill towards the underworld forces.

Especially this time, Bai Yuting broke into the Forbidden Palace without permission, which could be said to be a crime, and this gave the court even more excuses.

If Hulong Villa or Dongchang finds him first, the consequences will be disastrous.

The leaders of these two organizations are the famous Iron-Hearted God King Zhao Wusi and the powerful eunuch Cao Zhengchun.

The strength of either of these two people is enough to crush masters like Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang!
Without saying much, the three of them used their Qinggong skills to rush to the east of the maple forest.

"You two, did Zhao Wusi and Cao Zhengchun personally take action this time?"

While hurrying on the road, Chai Xin said with some curiosity.

Even though his strength has greatly improved and he can suppress most of the top masters head-on, he is still afraid of Cao Zhengchun, especially people like Zhao Wusi.

Cao Zhengchun might be slightly inferior to him, but as for Zhao Wusi, he is definitely stronger than him, and by a lot.

If he faced Zhao Wusi head-on at this moment, Chai Xin would not be able to win at all, so he had to find out the situation clearly.

"I don't know the situation of the East Factory. But Hulong Villa... as a prince, he will definitely not go out in person. The three secret agents are here."

Zhang Jinjiu mumbled out the information he had obtained.

Zhan Zhao frowned slightly upon hearing this and asked, "Master Shangguan has come in person as well?"

He had received favors from Shangguan Haitang before, otherwise he would not have agreed to temporarily join the No. 1 Manor in the World and complete three tasks for him.

At this time, for the sake of his old friend, he had to have a head-on conflict with Shangguan Haitang, and he felt a little burdened.

"So, I've prepared a face towel, do you want to cover it with it?"

As Zhang Jinjiu spoke, he took out three black face towels from his arms.

Zhan Zhao was a little surprised when he saw this, and smiled bitterly: "With our figures and attire, is it possible that if we cover our faces with a black scarf, Master Shangguan and Brother Duan will not recognize us?"

Zhang Jinjiu glared and said, "You are usually quite clever, why are you saying such stupid things now? The mask is not only to hide the identity, but also to give each other a way out!"

Zhan Zhao was stunned when he heard this, then he suddenly realized and took the mask and covered his face.

He just didn't think deeply because of the hurry. After Zhang Jinjiu reminded him, he understood the deeper meaning.

After all, they are all people from the number one manor in the world now. If they go to rescue Bai Yuting in a brazen manner, wouldn't it make Shangguan Haitang's job difficult?

Based on their understanding of Shangguan Haitang, the other party will definitely hold back after seeing them show up.

But there must be other people present. Once this matter gets out, Shangguan Haitang will definitely be blamed in the court.

Even if the emperor personally asked about it, Zhao Wusi would probably be criticized for it.

Instead of doing this, it is better to cover the face with a veil. Although everyone knows it, there is still a layer of window paper that has not been broken, and there is always room for maneuver.

Chai Xin waved his hand and refused to take the face towel: "I don't need it. I'm just a nobody and won't bring any negative impact to the owner of Shangguan Manor."

He was telling the truth. Although Duan Tianya and Shangguan Haitang knew him, others did not.

Even if someone remembers his appearance, it will not implicate Huolong Villa and Tianxia Diyi Villa.

Zhang Jinjiu nodded, but did not force it. He put away one face towel and covered his face with the other.

Soon, a ruined temple appeared on the horizon.

"Bai Yutang and his cousin Bai Zhantang are in the temple right now."

Zhang Jinjiu pointed at the dilapidated temple in the distance and said to the two men.

Zhan Zhao nodded silently, without any emotional fluctuations.

Chai Xin was stunned when he heard this and asked in surprise: "Bai Zhantang?"

This name is very well-known to him.

In his previous life, he was the hero of a famous martial arts sitcom called "Wulin Wai Zhuan", and was nicknamed "The Saint of Thieves".

In the original novel, his martial arts skills are roughly on par with those of the leaders of various sects, and his lightness skills are particularly outstanding, seeming to be the "second best in the world."

According to the original description, the story background should be the Ming Dynasty.

However, the "world of heroes" itself is very different from the history that Chai Xin is familiar with. It is a world formed by the integration of multiple martial arts works.

Since Zhan Zhao could appear in this era, the appearance of Bai Zhantang does not seem surprising.

"Yes. This person is one year younger than Bai Yutang. He is a rising star who has gained fame in the martial arts world recently. His martial arts skills may only be ranked first-rate, but his Qinggong is excellent and is not inferior to many top-notch masters."

Zhang Jinjiu nodded, with a look of surprise on his face.

"All signs indicate that Bai Yutang's night break-in to the Forbidden Palace was most likely the result of this brat's bad idea. These two brothers, one is nineteen and the other just turned eighteen, have such martial arts skills at such a young age. No wonder they are so lawless."

At the age of eighteen or nineteen, his martial arts skills are ranked among the best in the world, even top-notch, which is enough to be called amazing talent.

The most important thing is that both brothers are so gifted, no wonder Zhang Jinjiu sighed like this.

"That boy has been gifted in Qinggong since he was young. When he was twelve years old, he heard that Chu Liuxiang stole the 'Jade Beauty' and was revered as the 'Thief Master' by the world. He was envious and determined to become a 'Thief Saint' who is even more powerful than the Thief Master..."

Zhan Zhao fell into reminiscence upon hearing this, and his expression suddenly froze while he was speaking.

"Could it be that he broke into the palace just to gain the title of 'King of Thieves'?" Chai Xin rolled his eyes when he heard this. There are really people with all kinds of hobbies in this world.

Why do you have to be a thief when you can do something else?

It's really youthful and frivolous!
The matter has been made so big that I really don’t know how these two brothers would have escaped this disaster if I hadn’t taken action.

Inside the ruined temple.

Two heroic, handsome young men, who looked about 60% similar, were sitting on the ground leaning against the damaged base of the Buddha statue.

In front of them was a jumping bonfire, on which were two hares, which were roasting with a sizzling smell of oil and the aroma of meat.

"What a pity! The Nine Dragon Lamp was on the table in front of the little emperor's bed. I almost got it! Brother, you still need to practice your Qinggong skills. You stepped on the tiles and broke them at the critical moment. I should have known that I wouldn't have asked you to go with me."

The handsome young man with a tougher face looked distressed, and there was a hint of complaint in his tone.

This young man is Bai Zhantang, who is only eighteen years old.

The other young man had a much calmer temperament and a more delicate appearance. If it weren't for his attire and his thick, sword-like eyebrows, he would probably have been mistaken for a woman.

This person is naturally Bai Yuting, who is one year older than Bai Zhantang, but if you look at his appearance, you might think he is younger.

"How dare you say that? If you hadn't lost your temper, how could I have made such a mistake? I must have gone crazy to follow you into the palace to steal the Nine Dragon Lamp!"

Bai Yuting was furious when he thought about what happened last night.

Many years ago, my cousin had been dreaming of becoming a thief king and stealing the Nine Dragon Lamp, which was more precious than the Jade Beauty, in order to surpass the legendary Chu Liuxiang.

Bai Yuting was really annoyed by the nagging, so he agreed to go with him to the palace to investigate.

Originally, I just wanted to check it out and make some advance arrangements.

After all, in Bai Zhantang's view, the title of Thief Saint must be earned through one's own strength, so how can he rely on his brother's help?

However, he had often used stealing methods to play tricks on some notorious villains in the underworld over the years, and had long developed the habit of never leaving empty-handed.

Seeing the priceless Nine Dragon Lamp right in front of him, he finally couldn't bear it and wanted to take action immediately.

Bai Yuting knew his character. Even if he succeeded at that time, he would definitely regret it afterwards, so he tried to stop him.

The two men exchanged a few moves. Bai Yutang's lightness skill was slightly inferior to Bai Zhantang's. He accidentally stepped on a tile and broke it, alarming the guards on duty.

Afterwards, they naturally faced various blockades by the palace guards. Fortunately, Cao Zhengchun was punished by the emperor for the disappearance of the empress dowager and had to face the wall for three months to reflect on his mistakes. He failed to take action in time, otherwise the two of them might not have been able to escape from the palace!
However, since Cao Zhengchun had not taken any action, and since the two brothers, one of whom was a top-notch master and the other had stronger martial arts skills than ordinary top-notch masters, did not feel that last night was very dangerous.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have the leisure to stay around Lin'an and hide in a dilapidated temple to roast wild rabbits.

"Ok?"

"There's movement!"

The two brothers jumped up from the ground almost at the same time, the relaxation on their faces completely disappeared, replaced by a look of vigilance.

"Three masters, the worst one is better than me."

Bai Zhantang's face was full of solemnity, without any trace of his previous frivolity.

Bai Yutang didn't say anything, but just pointed at the roof.

Bai Zhantang understood immediately, nodded, stepped lightly, and floated up like a swallow. Without any sound, he poked his head out from the broken part of the roof.

He held onto the beam with one hand and looked around, and immediately saw Chai Xin and his two companions approaching rapidly.

He lowered his head and pointed Bai Yutang in a direction.

Bai Yutang immediately understood and quietly went in the direction he pointed.

However, at this moment, the two men's expressions suddenly changed again, and this time they became even uglier.

Outside the ruined temple.

Chai Xin and the other two were less than a hundred feet away from the temple when they suddenly stopped.

“These people arrived really quickly.”

Chai Xin stood with his hands behind his back, his clothes fluttering, and his eyes swept across the grass and trees around him.

Zhang Jinjiu sighed, "After all the planning, I still became someone else's pawn."

It was obvious that the people who were gathering around them were following in their footsteps.

"I don't know if they are from the East Factory or the Hulong Villa."

Zhan Zhao looked a little solemn. It was not because he was worried about the upcoming battle, but because he did not want to become an enemy of Shangguan Haitang.

Upon hearing this, Chai Xin laughed and said, "I'm afraid we're being attacked from both sides."

He had noticed that on the damaged roof of the dilapidated temple, a head was cautiously spying on the three of them.

"In this case, we might as well hold our ground for now. The Bai brothers still can't tell the difference between friend and foe. Now that the situation has developed to this point, let's wait for a while and wait for the right opportunity to act."

Zhang Jinjiu suggested.

Although they came to rescue the Bai brothers, the other party was unaware of it.

According to this situation, the Bai brothers might have a misunderstanding and think that the group of people rushing around were brought by the three of them.

By then, we will be attacked from all sides and the situation will only get worse.

"Mr. Zhang is absolutely right. Let's hold off for now."

Chai Xin nodded and agreed with Zhang Jinjiu's opinion.

But at this moment, a figure with snow-white hair and dressed in official uniform jumped out from the woods, crossed dozens of feet, came directly to the ruined temple, and stood on a big tree.

Soon after, hundreds of Jinyiwei swarmed out from everywhere and surrounded the ruined temple.

A man who looked like a small leader stepped forward and shouted in a cold voice: "Listen, the criminals inside, surrender immediately and follow my master back to confess your crimes, or you may be spared from physical pain!"

From his words, it can be heard that the old man with white hair and official uniform is the famous East Factory Supervisor, Cao Zhengchun.

At this moment, Cao Zhengchun was not paying attention to the ruined temple. Instead, his eyes fell on Chai Xin and the other two.

He looked at the three people with a smile for a moment, and then slowly said: "The court is arresting the criminals. If you are not related to us, please leave immediately."

From what he said, it was clear that he didn't take Chai Xin and the other two seriously at all.

This is not surprising. With Cao Zhengchun's martial arts skills and the fact that he has been in a high position for many years, how could he take a few unidentified people from the martial arts world seriously?

Even Zhan Zhao, with his temperament, felt a little chilled by Cao Zhengchun's casual glance. Zhang Jinjiu's face also became gloomy, and he felt a great deal of pressure in his heart.

At this time, Chai Xin took a step forward unnoticed and blocked the two men behind him.

"We came here on a whim, and I don't think we have violated any law. Just arrest your criminal, why interfere with others?"

(End of this chapter)