Chapter 1 Leaf Tao, a Pillar of Support

Immobile, Ye Tao continued to pay attention to Xiao Qingyin's lecture, remaining everyone's pillar of support. Seeing Ye Tao so calm, everyone naturally calmed down as well. Although Dai Yun's hand rested on her sword hilt, it was merely a habitual gesture that wouldn't attract attention. The guards subtly observed everyone around them, while only a few at the very back of the large classroom, under the cover of their companions, silently unfolded and strung their crossbows. It sounds simple, but it was a very skillful maneuver, requiring the elimination of all sound by forgoing ratchets and pawls, pulling the string barehanded, with only the central section, wrapped in a thin layer of cowhide, available for the fingers to touch. These guards were able to hook the trigger and load the bolts without any strained expressions, indicating their abilities were undoubtedly much more formidable than some might imagine.

Although the guards were only subtly on alert, doing their best to control their movements and expressions, they couldn't control the atmosphere's subtle shift. The assassins hidden in the crowd felt a slight pressure. Should they act? Were they confident? This subtle pressure and deterrence was something only a group of experts could resonate with. Liu Yong and Jin Ze's vigilance couldn't possibly make the assassins and Mr. Sun's spies' skin prickle, but the air of alertness could be perceived.

Standing on the podium, Xiao Qingyin was also a man of the world. Even now, the Leiyin Demon Sect operated in Xiling as if treading on thin ice. Almost everyone was skilled at controlling situations and detecting danger. After noticing the slight movements of Ye Tao's guards, Xiao Qingyin became alert and began to realize the strangeness of the atmosphere. The old swindler's skills weren't just in his mouth; his instant judgment was also excellent. In Xiling, after many lessons learned, he understood that actions planned on such occasions were mostly covert assassinations, aiming for a single, decisive blow. Once they failed, they usually wouldn't get a second chance. Now, Ye Tao's guards were already on alert, but the other side hadn't made a move yet, and they probably wouldn't even get a first chance. But Xiao Qingyin suddenly changed his calm demeanor from behind the podium and began to walk around the entire stage, using chalk to create diagrams on the large blackboard. He drew simple charts effortlessly, and the students and other attendees felt enlightened. With the combination of charts and board writing, Xiao Qingyin's explanations became much easier to understand. Ye Tao smiled and applauded Xiao Qingyin's quick wit. Clearly, Xiao Qingyin had also noticed the peculiarity of the atmosphere. Unlike Ye Tao, who had many experts around him providing layers of defense, Xiao Qingyin didn't. Ye Tao's people knew Xiao Qingyin was important but couldn't openly take action to protect him, so he had to rely on himself. Walking back and forth made it even more difficult for the lurking assassins to choose a time to strike.

Sure enough, the dwarf assassin lurking under the floor felt that the situation was not good and had no perception of the outside atmosphere. Finally, at the agreed-upon precise time, as the chimes from the distant Danyang bell tower drifted into the classroom, he launched his attack.

The entire floor exploded with a bang, and the dwarf assassin jumped out, his short sword shimmering with a faint azure light as he stabbed towards Xiao Qingyin. Xiao Qingyin rolled away, and although his head slammed heavily against the wall under the blackboard in the chaos, he dodged the dwarf assassin's first strike. When the dwarf assassin attacked again, he found himself facing a situation where he had to fight Xiao Qingyin to the death. Although his sword was pointed at Xiao Qingyin, short arrows had already arrived behind him. He could certainly kill Xiao Qingyin on the spot, but he would also die. The dwarf assassin was clearly not prepared for this and jumped to the side. When he tried to approach Xiao Qingyin again, he found a burly man standing in front of him. While he was stunned, the sharp whistling of arrows reached his back again, and there was more than one… Zheluo had struck. The Northern Kingdom's number one archer had now reached a point where he didn't know how to improve his skills further, and his abilities were no longer limited to archery alone. He was now proficient in all ranged weapons and had no problem commanding ranged units. His skill and awareness of lead time had reached a refined state. Moreover, Zheluo's own fighting skills were not bad, and he had some understanding of the assassin's movements. The dwarf assassin had the advantage of being slender, shrinking and rolling away again, but in doing so, he completely lost the initiative on the podium.

The assassins hidden in the crowd also acted. Just as the terrified crowd was about to scatter and flee, Liu Yong's deep and stern voice seemed to ring in everyone's ears: "Sit down, don't move!" At this moment, Liu Yong had personally plunged into the crowd, grabbed a lurking assassin, and threw him into the air. Zheluo's arrow accurately pinned the assassin, who was now unable to resist, followed by a second… Liu Yong had rarely made a move in recent years, but this time he showed off his skills, surprising the other guards. It turned out that Liu Yong, whom they usually called "Uncle Liu" and who always seemed like a nice guy, had reached this level of skill.

Jin Ze didn't move. He stood with his hands hanging down beside Ye Tao, Dai Yun, and Tan Wei Shi. Even when an assassin rushed to within five steps of him, he didn't move. Jin Ze didn't believe in the so-called "blood splattering five steps," at least not when he was prepared. Two short arrows had already locked onto the back of the assassin who rushed to their side, instantly killing him.

In just a few moments, the guards had cleanly and efficiently finished the job, even dragging the corpses out, leaving the assassins no chance to change their minds and try to take the students hostage to save themselves.

"Everyone, calm down. If you want to continue listening to the lecture, go to the lecture hall in the Yi Zhan Building tonight. Today… hehe, it looks like we can't continue now." Ye Tao said generously, and then left with his group. Ye Tao couldn't help but feel disappointed. A good opportunity to come out, listen to a lecture, and relax was ruined by someone. Although the guards didn't leave any survivors, so there was no chance to question who they were, it was easy to guess what was going on at this time. After all, assassinating Xiao Qingyin was not something just anyone would do. Ye Tao's guards were very calm. Dealing with these assassins was too easy, not reflecting their true level. In terms of personal martial prowess, they were definitely not weaker than the core guards who protected Tan Xiao Pei and others in the East Peace Palace, but in terms of guarding experience and the tacit understanding of cooperation, they had really not encountered many opponents.

Ye Tao couldn't go back at the moment, so he took his group to the Intelligence Bureau to communicate the situation with Nie Rui. Unexpectedly, Cao Pojun also returned with his team soon after. All four were captured, and they could basically determine that it was the butler of the Zou family.

The encirclement went smoothly. Except for a very powerful guy next to the butler named Zou Fu, who suddenly attacked and injured an intelligence bureau agent, no other conflict occurred. Speaking of which, this Zou Fu was really hiding in a very unexpected place. The Zou family was a very interesting family in Danyang. They were not very restrictive with their children, but the children all grew up to be good young people. Especially Zou Xing, the second daughter who married She Jingyun, the governor of Nanjun under the Yunhe Governor's Office, was a frequent guest of the Crown Prince's residence, got along very well with the Crown Princess Wang Fangpin, and was a very likable figure in Danyang's social circles. The other members of the Zou family were also like this, holding small positions or marrying small officials, guarding the family's small amount of property, living a life that was neither poor nor rich, with a slow and unhurried pace, which was very likable. Zou Fu, the butler, had been in Danyang for almost ten years. He was introduced by a friend of the Zou family at the time, and he had always been well-behaved and did not cause trouble in the mansion, which was very much in line with the family's tone. Suddenly, a group of intelligence bureau agents and inner palace guards broke into the door to arrest Zou Fu, which frightened the family. And the usually silly big guy, Xiao Sun, turned out to be a hidden master, which was even more unexpected. The children in the family, who were in their teens, did not realize what it meant for their family to have such a person hiding in their house, but they discussed how they were a little afraid of having bullied Xiao Sun in the past… The old man of the Zou family actually rolled his eyes and asked everyone to gather in the courtyard with their luggage before the intelligence bureau officials asked them to assist in the investigation, preparing to follow the intelligence bureau officials to Tian Prison… This kind of rough nerve and way of doing things made the intelligence bureau and the imperial guards very puzzled.

After listening to Cao Pojun's explanation, Ye Tao felt relieved. Perhaps this was the most interesting thing of the day. Ye Tao said: "The Zou family may not be aware of the situation. Although we need to investigate carefully, don't make things too difficult for them."

Nie Rui laughed and said: "The Zou family has been rough and careless for generations. Speaking of which, the Zou family used to be the Tan family's servants, and they were very close servants. It was because that generation of servants was too forgetful and seemed to have lost something important that they were beaten out with sticks. Later, the Tan family's elders felt that it was a bit harsh, so they set up a business for them in Danyang. They won't be spies or traitors, they are just… just too likable and too easy to trust people. Please rest assured, my lord. This time, we will be interrogating that ‘Mr. Sun.’ I wonder what we can dig out of his mouth."

Ye Tao smiled faintly and said: "No matter what you plan to dig out or how you dig it, I guess you don't need me here, right?"