The road from Huayan back to Chongqing city passed a place called Egongyan.
There's an amusing anecdote about Egongyan.
This was originally a cliff near the Yangtze River, close to Huangjia Pier in Chongqing. In the past, white cranes often flew and rested on the rocks above and below.
In the 25th year of Daoguang's reign, Gong Jinggao, a renowned scholar from Baxian, was on his way back to his hometown after taking the imperial examination. As he passed by, he stood on the cliff, gazing at the river. The sun was bright, the river was dotted with white sails, and the calls of boatmen filled the air, bringing him a sense of peace and joy.
At that moment, a pair of white cranes flew from the river and soared in the mountain forest on the cliff. He was suddenly reminded of a line from the "Book of Songs, Xiaoya, Hemings": "The cranes cry in the marsh, their calls heard in the wilds." Overwhelmed by inspiration, he immediately wrote three large characters on the cliff face: "Hegao Yan."
He means white crane, and gao means a high place by the water, implying this is a favored high rock for white cranes.
How did "Hegao Yan" become "Egongyan"? This has to do with the linguistic characteristics and temperament of Chongqing people.
The three characters "Hegao Yan" sounded rather awkward. Coupled with the rich imagination of Chongqing people, the name "Hegao Yan" gradually morphed into "Egongyan."
And now, Lu Qingqing and her companions were standing at the edge of the cliff. Looking down from the cliff, they saw a high precipice, with the surging Yangtze River below, a truly perilous sight.
Not far away, four or five people stood on the riverbank. They were pointing towards the center of the river, and it was unclear what they were saying.
Huh?
Is that someone surfacing in the water?
As a senior disciple shouted loudly, Lu Qingqing also spotted a dark spot in the middle of the river.
The dark spot bobbed in the water, moving with the current. Due to the distance, it was not very clear.
"This is bad, someone must have fallen into the water!" Those with better eyesight reacted and shouted loudly, waving their hands.
Their intention was to alert the people on the riverbank below the cliff to rescue the person.
Lu Qingqing and Guan Jinsong also began to look for a path down the cliff. The cliff was nearly 50 meters high, and the man-made path wound its way down, making the descent quite arduous.
Perhaps the shouts of the senior disciples attracted the attention of the people by the river. They glanced back at the people on the cliff, then turned away as if they hadn't seen them.
The crowd was speechless.
Were these people visually impaired or simply unable to swim?
Regardless, they remained standing by the river, doing nothing.
"Let's go!" Lu Qingqing called out to Guan Jinsong. Although the path down the cliff was winding, it was still better than standing on the cliff and stamping their feet anxiously.
The two moved with incredible speed, their foundational training allowing them to leap several meters downwards with each stride.
"Qingqing, look!" Guan Jinsong pointed towards the riverbank. A man had appeared at some point, and it seemed he intended to enter the river to rescue the drowning person. However, the people who had been standing on the bank stopped him.
Lu Qingqing had seen people who refused to help, but never had she seen people preventing others from helping. A sense of doubt arose in Lu Qingqing. Did the people standing on the riverbank have no intention of rescuing the person, and perhaps even wished them harm?
The man was still struggling, and even after jumping into the water, he was pulled back out. However, the men by the river only stopped him from rescuing, they did not assault him.
The impression given was as if they wanted him to watch the person in the distance drown.
"Hey!" Lu Qingqing shouted, trying to deter the men's actions. But instead of stopping, the men burst into laughter.
Damn it!
Lu Qingqing grew anxious because she recognized the identity of the man being stopped.
Li Yongqiang!
Lu Qingqing never expected to see Li Yongqiang here.
Lu Qingqing accelerated her descent, not slowing down even when she bumped against the cliff wall several times. If the person on the shore was Li Yongqiang, then the person in the river was likely Feng Si.
As soon as Lu Qingqing reached the group, she unleashed a flying kick: "Go, save him!"
Upon seeing Lu Qingqing, Li Yongqiang was greatly relieved. He turned and leaped into the river.
It was then that Lu Qingqing noticed Feng Si was holding onto a piece of wood. Fortunately, there was that piece of wood.
"What kind of silly woman are you, daring to interfere with our business of killing people?" one of the burly men grumbled, displeased with Lu Qingqing's intervention.
Killing people?
Lu Qingqing had heard of this name. It was a relatively well-known underground organization in Western Sichuan.
"You 'Dao Ren' have become a bit too audacious these past two years," Lu Qingqing said, her gaze sharp.
She recalled that the 'Dao Ren' organization was registered with the municipal bureau, and the leader of the organization had publicly stated that they would not engage in activities that took lives.
Yet, this time, they were attempting to harm someone!
And it was Feng Si they were trying to harm.
"Is that so? Perhaps you know too little about us." With that, the man gestured for everyone to attack.
Lu Qingqing's toes dug into the sandy riverbed, kicking up sand and dirt that immediately halved the fighting capacity of the first attacker.
Then, taking advantage of the opponent rubbing his eyes, she sprinted and leaped, delivering a kick to each of two attackers, instantly breaking through their encirclement.
At this moment, Guan Jinsong also joined the fray. A man and a woman, they were incredibly powerful, and within moments, they had flipped everyone to the ground.
"Damn it!" the man standing farthest away spat, "Looks like we've run into some tough opponents."
He pulled a cleaver from his waist and assumed an attacking stance.
Lu Qingqing squinted. This knife?
It looked familiar!
Before Lu Qingqing could fully process it, the man swung the knife towards her. Lu Qingqing was unafraid. She and Guan Jinsong kicked the man far away in just a few moves.
Lu Qingqing glanced at the middle of the river. Li Yongqiang and Feng Si were already reunited. She walked forward slowly, picked up the cleaver, and examined it closely.
"Isn't this?" Guan Jinsong also noticed the unusual nature of the knife.
Lu Qingqing nodded, then looked at the man, "What is your relationship with 'Dong Dao De Ren'?"
The man was taken aback. "How do you know 'Dong Dao De Ren'?"
Lu Qingqing held up the cleaver in her hand, her meaning clear: she had seen it before.
Seeing this, the man showed a hint of smugness. "Since you know 'Dong Dao De Ren,' why don't you let me go? Let me tell you, 'Dong Dao De Ren' is the elite hall of our 'Dao Ren' organization. If you offend me, you'll surely face dire consequences."
Dire consequences?
Lu Qingqing chuckled. I've already killed one 'Dong Dao De Ren' and captured another, and you think I'll let you go?
Furthermore, this 'Dong Dao De Ren' inexplicably appeared in Huayan, and now they were attempting to harm Feng Si. Clearly, their motives were not simple.
"I ask you, does your 'Dao Ren' organization use guns?"
"How is that possible? 'Dao Ren'! What does 'Dao Ren' mean? Using guns? That's an insult to us." The man became agitated, then muttered, "Besides, firearms and ammunition are so expensive, who can afford them?"
Uh.
Lu Qingqing raised an eyebrow. It seemed his last remark was the most sincere.
At this moment, Li Yongqiang and Feng Si also returned.
"Qingqing." Li Yongqiang greeted her proactively, a smile on his face. However, Feng Si merely offered Lu Qingqing a thank you, his expression unreadable.
Lu Qingqing didn't mind. After all, he was different from Li Yongqiang. Li Yongqiang had more contact with her and understood her character, while Feng Si had less interaction with her, so it was normal for him to be wary and doubtful.
"Let me take you somewhere to change your clothes first," Lu Qingqing said, seeing them shivering and soaked.
"No need, we have our own arrangements," Feng Si refused directly. Li Yongqiang, on the other hand, offered Lu Qingqing an apologetic smile.
Lu Qingqing didn't press the issue. "Alright then, come find me after you've settled in."
Without waiting for Feng Si to speak, Lu Qingqing said to him, "You should trust Yongqiang's judgment."
Fine, Feng Si said no more.
Watching their receding figures, Lu Qingqing turned to Guan Jinsong. "Go, tell Tong Meng to come down and tie them up!"