Chapter 189: Chapter 102: The Incident (2)

The two of them ate quietly, making occasional small talk. When Yang An asked about the Martial Arts Hall, Yang Jing kept the conversation light.

The vegetables were crisp and the Exotic Beast Meat was nourishing. It was a simple, yet exceptionally pleasant lunch.

Just as Yang Jing was picking up a second piece of Exotic Beast Meat, a sudden, frantic KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK came from the courtyard gate. The heavy, urgent sounds shattered the yard’s tranquility.

Yang Jing furrowed his brow slightly and put down his chopsticks.

’Who could it be at this hour?’

’The knocking is so frantic. It must be something urgent.’

Yang An also put down his chopsticks and stood up. "I’ll get the door."

"I’ll go." Yang Jing held him back by the arm and stood up himself. "Knocking that frantically... something might be wrong."

He had just reached the doorway of the main hall when he heard Jiang Haoyang’s frantic shouts from outside the courtyard gate. "Senior Brother Yang! Senior Brother Yang! Are you home? Something’s happened!"

Yang Jing’s heart sank. From the sound of his voice, Jiang Haoyang was clearly in a panic.

He didn’t hesitate, striding quickly to the courtyard gate and pulling back the bolt from the inside.

With a CREAK, the gate swung open. Sure enough, Jiang Haoyang was standing outside.

The young man’s face was a mask of panic, his forehead slick with sweat. Seeing Yang Jing, he cried out, "Senior Brother Yang, it’s terrible... Something awful has happened!"

Seeing that Jiang Haoyang was so panicked he was babbling, Yang Jing gripped his shoulders and said in a steady voice, "Calm down. Speak slowly. What happened?"

Jiang Haoyang gasped for breath a few times. His expression remained grim, and his voice trembled. "I... I was on my way to Shuiyun Square. As I passed the entrance to Tongyi Square, I saw the Liu Family Medical Hall’s caravan rushing back... Every one of the guards was injured. Some had their arms wrapped in bandages, others had faces covered in blood. They were in a terrible state!"

He swallowed hard and continued, the words tumbling out. "I also saw... I saw Elder Liu! He looked like he was seriously injured. They had him on a stretcher in a carriage, completely covered by a blanket. You couldn’t even see his head! They took him straight back to Liu’s Medical Hall!"

"What?" The color drained from Yang Jing’s face, and his heart plummeted. The warmth from the meal vanished instantly, replaced by a chill that shot up from the soles of his feet.

His grip on Jiang Haoyang’s shoulder tightened unconsciously. "And Senior Brother Liu? What happened to Senior Brother Liu?"

Jiang Haoyang winced at the grip but paid it no mind, rushing to explain, "I was so scared, I grabbed a guard—one I recognized from when I went to the medical hall with you—and asked him what happened. He said... he said the Flying Horse Thieves took Senior Brother Liu!"

"The Flying Horse Thieves..." Yang Jing repeated the three words, his gaze suddenly turning sharp as a blade.

He turned to Yang An, who had walked up behind him, and said urgently, "Brother, something’s come up. I have to go out. I’m not finishing my meal!"

Yang An could also tell how serious it was and nodded quickly. "Go on, then! Be careful!"

Without another word, Yang Jing grabbed Jiang Haoyang and strode quickly out of the alley.

Their hurried footsteps clattered on the bluestone path, a rhythm that matched the frantic pounding of Yang Jing’s heart.

On the way, Yang Jing’s heart felt as heavy as a stone, his mind in turmoil.

He had worried that the Flying Horse Thieves would retaliate, but after hearing what Liu Maolin said last time, he’d thought he might have been worrying for nothing.

He never expected that the inevitable would still happen—and that it would come so swiftly and brutally.

Even Elder Liu was gravely injured, and Liu Maolin had been taken!

"Which direction did the caravan return from? Did he say where they were ambushed?"

Yang Jing asked as he walked swiftly, his voice thick with an anxiety he couldn’t suppress.

Jiang Haoyang half-ran to keep up, shaking his head. "He... he didn’t say. The guard was in a hurry to go. That’s all he told me..."

Yang Jing fell silent, his pace only quickening.

A cold wind whipped against his face, stinging his cheeks, but it did nothing to lift the weight in his heart.

When the two of them reached the Liu Family Medical Hall, they could sense the chaos inside before even stepping through the door.

The once neat and orderly front courtyard was now in disarray. A group of guards paced back and forth, their arms crossed and their faces etched with anxiety.

The apothecary apprentices had lost their usual composure, their hands trembling as they carried bowls of medicine.

In a corner, a few older serving women huddled together, sobbing quietly. A palpable sense of panic filled the entire medical hall.

"Young Hero Yang is here!"

A guard spotted him and quickly stopped pacing to greet him.

The medical hall’s elderly steward, who was directing the staff to clean up, also spotted Yang Jing. His eyes lit up as he hurried over, clasping his hands in greeting. "Young Hero Yang, you’ve come!"

"Steward, what in the world happened?" Yang Jing got straight to the point, his tone grave. "How was my Senior Brother taken by the Flying Horse Thieves?"

The steward sighed and led Yang Jing toward the inner courtyard, explaining in a low voice as they walked. "The medical hall had a large order with An Hall in the Prefecture City. To ensure its safety, both the Hall Master and the Young Hall Master went personally, along with over forty of our best guards to escort the medical supplies. We thought that with all of our elite forces present, there wouldn’t be any trouble on the road..."

His voice dropped lower. "But who would have thought? When they reached Black Wind Valley, they were suddenly ambushed by the Flying Horse Thieves! They were outnumbered and outmatched. Their side had four or five elite masters alone. Our men stood no chance..."

"They wiped out the entire caravan in one fell swoop. Not only did they steal all the medical supplies, but they also captured everyone alive."

The steward wiped his face, his voice growing heavy. "The Flying Horse Thieves are ruthless. They’re keeping Young Master Maolin as a hostage, but they gravely injured the Hall Master. They let a few guards bring him back with a message: prepare one hundred thousand taels of silver and go to Black Wind Valley in three days to ransom him. If a single coin is missing, if we dare report it to the authorities, or if we involve Sun’s Martial Arts Hall, they’ll... they’ll kill the hostage!"