Green Mountain-Chapter 666 - 523: All In

Chen Ji stood alone in the darkness outside Taiye Pond, watching the bright lights of Chessboard Street in the distance.

He risked his life, not hesitating to use himself as bait to go to Changping, trying to use Princess Liyang and Yuan Cheng to lure out Si Caoding.

He had been enduring and planning for days, even started a newspaper for the Military Intelligence Department, all just to catch Si Caoding.

Today, he risked the danger of being punished by the Prime Minister, used the Divine Palace Supervisor to impersonate Si Caoding, all just to save one person.

But he still failed.

Chen Ji got back into the carriage, lightly shook the reins, and drove towards the Outer City.

Only three hours left, but he didn't rush as before, instead letting the horse walk slowly. Spending a whole month without success, what could be done in the remaining three hours?

The carriage entered the Eight Great Hutongs and ultimately stopped at the back door of Meihua Ferry Crossing.

The ruffian guarding the door took the reins from his hand: "Landlord, Brother Pao is in Meirui Building."

Chen Ji nodded and walked inside. The ruffian lifted the curtain and was almost scared out of his wits: inside the carriage lay three corpses with black faces, the Divine Palace Supervisor died uneasily.

Chen Ji heard the commotion and turned: "Sorry, I forgot to tell you... find a place to put them for now, I'll think about how to deal with them later."

The ruffian hurriedly clasped his fists: "Yes."

Chen Ji walked along the path to the foot of Meirui Building, the clerks had already rested, only pieces of bamboo Water Plates hung on the wall. He ascended the stairs and upon reaching the top floor saw Brother Pao leaning against the railing, leisurely smoking a pipe.

A warm summer breeze blew in at night, causing the black cloth shirt on Brother Pao's shoulders to flutter.

On the table was a half-drunk pot of wine, Chen Ji took the wine pot and walked towards Brother Pao.

Brother Pao looked at the myriad lights in the Eight Great Hutongs, not turning his head, he said: "Seems like you've encountered trouble, your steps are slower than usual."

Chen Ji smiled: "Nothing much, just feeling a bit frustrated after a month of planning without success."

Brother Pao took a puff of smoke, the gray-white smoke drifted in the night wind.

He spoke slowly: "The elder brother who brought me into the business taught me that people always magnify the difficulties in front of them. Back in school, making a small mistake and being called in by the parents felt like the world was ending; at work, saying a wrong word would lead to overthinking for half a day. But many obstacles that seemed insurmountable in the past, when looked back at now, aren't really worth worrying about."

Brother Pao turned to look at him: "Don't stretch yourself too thin, stop if you're tired, sleep if you're defeated. As long as you're alive, there's always a chance."

Chen Ji came to the railing and stood shoulder to shoulder with Brother Pao, exhaling a long breath: "True."

Brother Pao looked at his profile and suddenly laughed.

Chen Ji was puzzled: "Why is Brother Pao laughing?"

Brother Pao chuckled and said: "I'm laughing because you're insincere. Landlord, we are the same type of person. When I first entered the industry, everyone told me the most important thing was to cut losses. Don't think about the lost money, don't hold onto the people who leave. But I refuse, my dictionary doesn't have the words 'cut losses,' only 'accept defeat.'

Chen Ji sighed: "Indeed, unwilling to give up. Now without catching Si Caoding, wanting to save Princess Bai Li, I don't know when I'll find the next opportunity. And after this, Si Caoding probably won't use the Capital Morning News anymore, finding him again will be like searching the vast seas."

Brother Pao scratched his head with his pinky: "No more chances?"

Chen Ji nodded: "There are three hours left until the time I agreed with the Prime Minister, but three hours isn't enough to do anything."

Brother Pao suddenly said: "My English isn't good, but when I played Texas Hold'em I learned two terms, one called 'NiceFold,' meaning 'rationally give up with regret,' and another called 'HeroCall,' meaning 'persistently follow despite knowing there's danger.'

Chen Ji was astonished, standing in the Ning Dynasty, looking at the gray tiles of the buildings before him, unexpectedly hearing Brother Pao speak English, it brought an unreal and absurd sense of discord.

Brother Pao gazed at Chen Ji: "Landlord, NiceFold or HeroCall, which do you choose?"

Chen Ji quietly watched the distant inner city tower, suddenly raised his hand and took a huge gulp of wine.

In his mind, every piece of information he had ever doubted since his arrival flashed by: Luocheng City, Guyuan, Imperial Capital, Changping... He had doubted so many things, and those doubts converged at this moment, like rivers flowing into the Yellow River, surging and unceasing.

Chen Ji suddenly turned and walked towards the staircase: "I choose 'All.In.'

Brother Pao laughed heartily: "Landlord, since knowing you, every time you've gone All-In, never giving yourself a retreat."

Chen Ji stood in front of the staircase, looking back at Brother Pao: "What do you choose?"

Brother Pao lowered his head and tapped his shoe on the ground to remove the ashes, when he raised his head again he smiled and said: "I choose HeroCall."

Chen Ji turned to continue downstairs: "Then bring the most reliable people with me to Glass Factory, if we succeed it's great, if not, we'll both go to the Imperial Prison together."

Brother Pao put on the black cloth shirt, buttoning it one by one: "I've never been there, I want to go and see."

...

...

Between the Eight Great Hutongs and Glass Factory is less than half a mile.

Chen Ji led the way into the dilapidated alleys of Glass Factory, followed by Brother Pao and Er Dao, along with ten of the most reliable ruffians usually.

Chen Ji looked back at the five ruffians: "Can I trust them?"

Brother Pao grinned and said, "We've only been in the Imperial Capital for a short time, so it's tough to raise Death Soldiers ready for battle, but these ten, other things aside, are willing to die with me."

Chen Ji casually replied, "It's not that serious."

Brother Pao curiously asked, "Where are we going?"

Chen Ji answered, "Wenyuan Bookstore."

When they arrived outside Wenyuan Bookstore, the courtyard behind the bookstore was still brightly lit.

Chen Ji did not rush in; he stood under the eaves in the alley, listening to Lin Chaojing inside talking grandly, "From now on, we'll hand over all our daily poems and articles to Xu Bin for a special print section. Not only to spread our works but also to help Wenyuan Bookstore. Ladies and gentlemen, just this one section will be enough to surpass that damn Capital Morning News."

Brother Pao was a bit stunned and whispered to Chen Ji beside him, "Where did this idiot come from, talking so arrogantly?"

Chen Ji stepped over the threshold, "That's exactly who we're here to catch."

As soon as they entered Wenyuan Bookstore, a clerk approached, "Ladies and gentlemen, our establishment has closed for the day. The courtyard is now hosting some distinguished guests..."

The words weren't finished when a ruffian dashed forward and held a dagger to the clerk's chin, forcing him into the corner, "Don't move, or I'll spill two pounds of your blood."

Chen Ji lifted the bamboo curtain, entering the courtyard, where the lively discussions abruptly stopped.

Qi Zhaoning immediately stood up, "Why have you returned?"

Chen Ji ignored him and pointed at Lin Chaojing, "Take him away."

Lin Chaojing calmly remained in his seat, staring at Chen Ji, "May I ask the Marquis of Wuxiang, where do you intend to take me?"

Chen Ji calmly stated, "Lin Chaojing is collaborating with Jing Dynasty spies, scheming rebellion." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Someone stood up and angrily yelled, "Marquis of Wuxiang, you came here because of your Capital Morning News, afraid we would overshadow your dull newspaper!"

"For a business dispute, you would accuse a Hanlin Academy Scholar of treason and betrayal? How disgraceful!"

"We are all involved in this, is the Marquis of Wuxiang planning to arrest us all?"

"The Marquis of Wuxiang himself accepted bribery from Jing Dynasty, and now he's falsely accusing others?"

Amidst the voices at Wenyuan Bookstore, Chen Ji wasn't given a chance to speak.

Suddenly, Qi Zhaoning stood up, "Chen Ji, are you jealous seeing me close with him?"

Chen Ji glanced at Qi Zhaoning, then turned to Lin Chaojing, "Let's go."

Lin Chaojing chuckled, "The Marquis of Wuxiang accuses me of treason, but is there evidence? If you can produce evidence, I would willingly go with you."

Chen Ji calmly responded, "I'll give you evidence shortly."

Lin Chaojing's smile widened, "So the Marquis has no evidence and intends to force a confession from me in an isolated place? Mr. Chen, your notoriety in the capital precedes you, do not act recklessly, lest the court won't tolerate you."

Chen Ji stopped wasting words and gestured behind him, "Take him away."

The ruffians stepped forward, clearing the way, as Wenyuan Bookstore's landlord, Xu Bin, blocked their path, "I am of the Xu Family, let's see who dares to abduct someone from my Wenyuan Bookstore! Right under the Emperor's nose, do you have no regard for the law?"

But at that moment, Brother Pao stepped forward and delivered a hook punch to Xu Bin's jaw, making Xu Bin fall backwards stiffly.

Brother Pao dusted off his clothes, "Noisy."

The ruffians pushed people away, carried Lin Chaojing, and headed out.

Chen Ji stayed back, his gaze suppressing the seated scholars and literati into silence. Brother Pao returned, smiling as he addressed everyone, "This has nothing to do with the Capital Morning News, because even if you band together, you won't steal its thunder, let's see if we can prove it."

Chen Ji turned and left, leading the ruffians towards Wenchang Bookstore.

In the night, Lin Chaojing was dragged by the ruffians but remained calm, "Mr. Chen, you're betting everything blindly, but do you even know the consequences?"

Chen Ji looked ahead, "I've thought about it for a long time; the first serving in Jinling, then in Luocheng capable of accessing Ritual Supervision dossiers, and finally arrived at the Capital, only your brother Lin Chaoqing qualifies."

Lin Chaojing appeared calm, "Does that mean he's a Jing Dynasty spy?"

Chen Ji glanced at him, "Lord Lin, I haven't said what matches."

Lin Chaojing was indifferent, "Aren't you targeting me because you're after Jing Dynasty spies? Besides, Lin Chaoqing and I have long severed ties; he is of the Eunuch Party, I am a civil servant, we are incompatible."

Chen Ji ignored Lin Chaojing's excuse and continued, "Earlier at the Qi Family Literary Gathering, you were the only one to ask about Guyuan, and with a poem, you mocked the Yulin Army for murdering the innocent and claiming undue credit, trying to provoke Qi Zhenzhuo to reveal the truth about Dragon Gate Inn. Someone surely instructed you to probe this matter, was it right or wrong?"

Lin Chaojing did not respond, instead looking towards the end of Glass Factory Street, "Perhaps Mr. Chen guesses correctly, or perhaps not. Regardless of my involvement tonight, you might already be in jeopardy. Wrongfully abducting a Hanlin Academy Scholar is a grave crime among grave crimes."

A distant sound of galloping hooves echoed from the end of the alley at Glass Factory Street.

Chen Ji looked up to see over twenty riders approaching, all wearing bamboo hats, straw coats, with swords ominously resting behind them.

Jiefan Guard had arrived.