Chapter 22 - Shall I Kill Him for You?
The sword flashed—blood sprayed through the air!
The false "Chu Qing" still wore an expression of cold killing intent, but his hands instinctively clutched his throat. His body swayed, staggered forward two steps, then collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud—motionless.
The attacker's figure vanished almost instantly. With a single stride, he vaulted onto the courtyard wall, turned his head briefly for one last glance, and then leapt away.
"Who was that?!"
"Did he just kill the Third Young Master of the Chu family?"
"Are you blind? That one was clearly fake! How could the real Third Young Master possibly kill his own father?"
"But… what if he's heartless enough to do it?"
The courtyard erupted in confused shouts and speculation.
Only Wu Qianhuan reacted at once.
She sprang forward, one foot landing on a nearby table, using it as leverage to propel herself into the air in pursuit of Chu Qing.
"It's him!!"
Though Chu Qing wore a wide-brimmed hat—and had even added a mask beneath it when no one was looking—Wu Qianhuan had seen his eyes in that brief backward glance.
There could be no mistake.
That gaze—she would recognize it anywhere.
He had discarded his servant's disguise and now masqueraded as one of the guests of the Chu family.
"Stop right there!!!"
But Chu Qing had no intention of stopping. In fact, he ran even faster.
Grinding her teeth, Wu Qianhuan gave chase, her focus razor-sharp.
This time, she locked onto him completely. No matter what tricks he used, there would be no escaping her sight again.
In mere moments, they left the Chu family estate far behind, the city gates now in view ahead.
Wu Qianhuan shouted from afar, "Stop him!!"
The Tianwu Guards stationed at the gate frowned in confusion. Who dared to give such orders? Did every random person think the Tianwu Guard would obey them?
Then they looked closely—and froze.
It was their own young lady!
They quickly formed up, attempting to block the oncoming swordsman. But just as they were about to close ranks, the figure before them leapt skyward, stepping into the air as though climbing invisible steps.
The guards could only crane their necks, watching as he soared overhead.
A few skilled fighters lunged upward, trying to grab him—but just as it seemed his momentum would falter, the man twisted midair, kicked twice off the city gate wall, and shot forward like lightning.
In mere breaths, he had vanished beyond the gate.
Wu Qianhuan's fury boiled over.
"Move aside!!"
The Tianwu Guards nearly wept. First you tell us to block him, now you tell us to move—what are we supposed to do?!
Before they could react, Wu Qianhuan herself vaulted upward, stepping on several of their heads in rapid succession to propel herself forward.
And instead of being offended, the guards looked… proud.
The young lady stepped on my head! None of you can claim that honor!
Wu Qianhuan, of course, had no idea what they were thinking. All she cared about was catching Chu Qing.
After clearing the gate, Chu Qing's thoughts grew distant.
He had sensed something wrong earlier—but couldn't quite pinpoint what.
Now, faint understanding dawned, yet when he glanced back at Wu Qianhuan relentlessly pursuing him, he could only sigh helplessly.
Judging by her expression, she clearly wouldn't give up until she caught him.
Recalling Chu Yunfei's words made Chu Qing's heart feel strange; originally Wu Qianhuan had been the responsibility of the body's previous owner, yet now that he had inherited this life, such matters inevitably fell upon him.
With that thought, Chu Qing sighed, turned, and stopped walking.
Wu Qianhuan also halted, her cold eyes fixed on him, the faint smile at the corner of her lips gone.
"Not running anymore?"
"Can't run any farther," Chu Qing said lightly.
"You're a fine young lady chasing a man this far—aren't you afraid something might happen? To tell you the truth, I'm not a good person."
"…Then tell me, who exactly are you?" Wu Qianhuan's mouth twitched, a trace of ridicule in her eyes.
"What reason do you have for breaking into the Chu family and saving the family head?"
"What if I don't tell you?" Chu Qing raised his brow slightly, his tone casual, teasing.
Wu Qianhuan placed her hand on her sword hilt.
"Then you won't be leaving here alive."
Chu Qing gave a helpless laugh.
"Fine, fine. To be honest, I'm just a man of the jianghu—one who takes money to kill and lives off odd jobs. Coming to the Chu family was merely at someone's request."
"A killer?" Wu Qianhuan's tone grew sharper.
"I've heard of killers who take money to kill, but not killers who take money to protect someone. Can't you even make your lies sound convincing?"
"A noble lady of Tianwu City wouldn't know how hard it is for us small folk at the bottom," Chu Qing said evenly.
"If you pay enough, I can save someone, or do anything else you ask."
"Good," Wu Qianhuan said, pulling out a gold ingot.
"Here's your payment. Take off your hat and mask."
Chu Qing fell silent.
Wu Qianhuan sneered.
"Didn't you just say you'd do anything for money?"
"You must understand," Chu Qing replied calmly, "our line of work isn't meant for daylight. If my identity is exposed, I'll lose my life. Your gold is tempting, but compared to my life, it's nothing."
Wu Qianhuan felt her irritation build.
His words were infuriatingly reasonable, leaving her with nothing to refute.
Anger rising, she stepped forward, voice cold.
"Talking to you is a waste of time. Since you won't remove it yourself, I'll do it for you and see who you really are!"
"Wait, miss!" Chu Qing quickly raised a hand.
"Men and women shouldn't touch each other. We just met—how can you ask me to disrobe? I may work for money, but not by selling myself… watch out!"
At that last word, his expression changed sharply.
"What I should watch out for is—" Wu Qianhuan's anger flared, but before she could finish, she sensed the wind shift behind her.
She spun around just in time to see a massive fist barreling toward her face.
The Overturning Sea Dragon Fist—Xin Youhen! How was he here?
Wu Qianhuan's face darkened, but her sword was already in hand.
The blade rose, shining like the moon.
With a loud bang, sword qi collided with raw force.
Caught off guard, Wu Qianhuan stumbled back with a muffled groan, glancing quickly at Chu Qing.
"Aren't you going to run!?"
Chu Qing looked at her calmly.
"You're not his match."
"So what!?" she snapped, nearly bursting a vein in her forehead.
But before she could say more, Chu Qing chuckled.
"Or… if you pay me some silver, I'll kill him for you."
(End of Chapter)
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