At the same time.
In a dilapidated temple outside Changzhou county town.
A man in tight-fitting clothes, wearing a veiled hat, placed the exquisitely carved infant he was carrying on his shoulder onto the ground, muttering to himself:
"Is this little one perhaps foolish?
How come they didn't cry or fuss, not even a peep, all the way here?"
Lin Zimo, who was busy dropping candy to leave a trail: ...
Just then, a burly man with a scar on his face approached:
"Hey, didn't I tell you to grab the Changzhou county magistrate's son? Make sure you don't grab the wrong one!"
"It shouldn't be wrong. With the constables meticulously attending to him, how could he not be the magistrate's son?
By the way, you said there was only one constable at the Changzhou county yamen, but you didn't tell me that constable was highly skilled in martial arts!
If it weren't for my superior Qinggong, I would have been finished today!"
After complaining, the man looked back at the infant on the ground, "Little one, what's your name? How old are you?"
...
"Why ask these things? Little one, is your father the Changzhou county magistrate, Lin Jingxing?"
...
Lin Zimo remained silent.
"I say, could this little one have been scared silly?"
The scarred man said, waving his hand, "Never mind, let's take this little one away."
Soon, someone came and took Lin Zimo, who had wide eyes, into a decrepit room.
"Go in!"
Lin Zimo stumbled as he was pushed, but thankfully, a pair of fair and beautiful hands reached out from the side, steadying him in time.
Seeing the door closed again,
Lin Zimo lowered his voice and said, "Pretty sister, were you also captured by these bad guys?"
The woman stared at Lin Zimo with an unreadable expression for a long time, then nodded.
"Pretty sister, don't worry, Mo'er's father is very powerful, he'll surely be able to rescue us!
Pretty sister, are you hungry?
Mo'er will treat you to candy?"
Looking at the little child making such confident promises, the woman reached out and took a piece of candy. She placed it in her mouth, and the sweetness spread, slightly calming her anxious heart.
On the other side.
The man took the money bag handed over by the scarred man and weighed it in his hand. "Third brother, as per your request, I've made an exception and captured two people for you. Now that I've received my payment, it can be considered repayment for saving my life back then.
May the green mountains remain, but we shall part ways now."
"Don't rush off, I've prepared good wine and food, and we're waiting for you to come back and celebrate!
You're not in such a hurry that you can't spare one meal, are you?"
The man, empty-bellied after a day's work, thought for a moment, then took off the veiled hat, "Third brother's hospitality is hard to refuse, so I shall accept with gratitude!"
The scarred man, called 'Third Brother', couldn't help but tease the man's handsome face,
"Your face is truly a work of art. If I were a woman, I'd gladly spend a night with you."
Mentally converting the scarred man's gender to female, the man frantically waved his hands, "Third brother, please stop!
You should know, I'm not easily impressed by just any woman.
By the way, third brother, it's one thing to capture women, but since when did you start dealing in child abductions?
And you even dared to abduct the county magistrate's son?
Don't tell me that magistrate offended you?"
"Offended is not the word. I was merely entrusted by someone, and I asked my brother here to help out."
"Entrusted?"
"Yes, someone in the capital offered a large sum of money for the life of Changzhou county magistrate Lin Jingxing's son."
The man's brow furrowed slightly upon hearing this, "Who would be so insane as to want the life of a four-year-old child?"
"We don't know the specifics of who it is. While it's indeed a bit unethical, we haven't shied away from doing unscrupulous things before.
After all, we brothers all need to make a living, don't we?"
The scarred man said nonchalantly, but the man's frown deepened, "Third brother, are you really going to kill that child?"
"It's not my place to kill him.
The client said that killing him is an option, but keeping him alive doubles the price.
If nothing goes wrong, the other party will send people to take the child away tomorrow morning.
I wonder what heinous crime Lin Jingxing committed to make that client so eager to personally end his son's life."
"What about the woman?"
"Hmph, that shrew's father is the newly appointed Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture. If it weren't for her father pulling strings behind the scenes, my elder brother Wei Dongting wouldn't be in prison!"
"Then what do you plan to do, third brother?"
"I'll have someone write a letter and send it to Fengtian Prefecture. As long as Xu Changling is willing to resign and admit that he framed my elder brother Wei Dongting in the case, I'll release his daughter.
If he doesn't do as I say, I won't mind having the entire populace of Fengtian Prefecture watch how his daughter serves men tomorrow!"
Upon hearing this, the man's face clearly showed his disapproval, "Third brother, wouldn't this be... a bit inappropriate?"
"A child pays for the parent's debt, it's only natural!"
"But..."
"There are no 'buts,' we just do it!
What, do you have feelings for that woman, boy?
I saw that woman earlier, she's truly a rare gem. If you're truly interested, I'll let you go first."
As they were talking, a subordinate ran in and whispered a few words into the scarred man's ear. The scarred man immediately flew into a rage, "What did you say?!"
"Third brother, what happened?"
"The informants in Fengtian Prefecture just sent news that a princess, who was visiting Fengtian Prefecture incognito, was abducted from her room last night and is missing.
Xu Changling dares not make a fuss and is secretly mobilizing the prefecture yamen guards to search the entire city."
"Princess?"
Thinking of the abducted woman's appearance and demeanor, the man felt a sense of inevitability.
"Third brother, a princess's words carry more weight than a prefect's daughter, don't they?"
"You don't understand, boy. This isn't his own daughter. Even if he makes a fuss, Xu Changling would at most be accused of negligence and perhaps dismissed from office.
No, boy, you need to sneak into the yamen again tonight and kidnap that daughter of Xu Changling for me!"
"Third brother, could this be a trap?
After all, why would a high-ranking princess travel all the way to Fengtian Prefecture?"
"You don't know, Xu Changling's daughter was once the princess's companion. They say their relationship is like sisters, so it's not strange for her to be staying in Xu Changling's daughter's room.
Moreover, my elder brother heard that the princess has a peculiar temperament, and it's not impossible for her to come to Fengtian Prefecture without a word.
In short, whether it's true or not, I need you to make another trip.
After all, with your skills, making a few trips is no problem."
"That's what you say..."
The man hesitated, but since the other party insisted, he couldn't say much more.
Night.
A cool breeze blew.
A dark figure silently flashed into the backyard of the Fengtian Prefecture yamen.
The dark figure circled the yamen's backyard several times, finally stopping at the door of a side room next to the main hall.
Smoking the room through the window.
He waited for a moment.
Skillfully prying open the window, he slipped into the room.
The series of actions were fluid and precise.
However, as soon as the man's feet touched the ground, he felt a flash of cold light before his eyes.
The next moment, a sharp, cold object was pressed against his neck...