dognovel Chapter 2080 Escape
Chapter 2080 Escape
The sound of horses' hooves grew louder as a group of soldiers escorted a man, the leader of whom was none other than Su Zhenhai.
Liu Jiulang composed himself and took two steps forward: "Envoy Su, everyone is waiting for you at today's sacrificial ceremony, but you did not come. What is your purpose in bringing troops here now?"
Su Zhenhai remained seated on his horse, his gaze sweeping over Liu Jiulang with undisguised disdain.
He paused for a moment before speaking slowly, his voice not loud, but loud enough for everyone around to hear: "Who do you think you are? How dare you question this envoy?"
Governor Ding stood to the side, his eyes wide open, his heart pounding: What's wrong with Su Zhenhai? He didn't dare say much when his military rations were confiscated a while ago, so why is he suddenly so assertive today?
He secretly glanced at Su Zhenhai, who was sitting upright on his horse, wearing thin armor. He then looked at Liu Jiulang, and even though he couldn't see his face, he knew that his expression must be extremely unpleasant.
Before Governor Ding could figure out the details, Su Zhenhai's gaze fell on him again, the contempt in his eyes even stronger than before.
“Ding Hengshou, you are a high-ranking official appointed by the court, the local magistrate of a prefecture, yet you are completely controlled by a merchant, working as his lackey and helping him oppress the people. You are a disgrace to all officials in the world.”
"How dare you!" Liu Jiulang couldn't hold back any longer. "Su Zhenhai, don't try to spout nonsense just because you have troops at your disposal. My Liu family has an imperial token bestowed by the Emperor. How dare you..."
Before he could finish speaking, Su Zhenhai suddenly raised his hand and lashed out with a horsewhip.
The whip whistled through the air, aimed straight at Liu Jiulang's face.
Su Zhenhai did it on purpose. Huo Changhe's words to him yesterday were still ringing in his ears: "Find an opportunity to knock off Liu Jiulang's mask and see his true face."
He had long wanted to vent his anger, but he hadn't had the chance before. Now that Huo Changhe was backing him up, he could take advantage of the situation.
Liu Jiulang really didn't expect Su Zhenhai to make a sudden move. He tried to dodge, but the whip came too fast, and he didn't have time to completely avoid it.
In desperation, he twisted his body forcefully and leaned his shoulder forward. With a sharp "crack," the riding crop lashed his shoulder, tearing the fabric instantly and drawing blood that dripped down his arm.
Liu Jiulang groaned in pain, his body swaying, but he didn't back down. He just gritted his teeth and stared at Su Zhenhai with a fierce look: "Su Zhenhai, do you dare to lay a hand on me?"
Su Zhenhai sneered, and was about to speak when he heard a commotion coming from the riverbank.
Following the sound, everyone looked and saw the boat approaching the shore. Huo Changhe and Yan Ruyu disembarked, with a huge, dark object trailing behind the boat, which looked terrifying.
When the people saw the thing, they all stepped back, but couldn't help but peek inside.
Yan Ruyu said loudly, "Everyone, don't be afraid, this thing is already dead."
Her voice was clear and resonant, carrying throughout the entire dock, and the surroundings instantly fell silent.
Upon hearing this, Liu Jiulang felt a sudden jolt in his heart, as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer, and his face instantly turned deathly pale—the divine beast was really dead?
He had promised his superiors that he would take good care of the mythical beast, but now that it's gone, how is he supposed to explain this?
He abruptly turned to look at Governor Ding, his tone filled with urgency and anger: "What are you all standing there for? Quickly send men over and arrest them all! Anyone who dares to resist, execute them!"
Prefect Ding was also flustered. He had been pondering Su Zhenhai's unusual behavior, but Liu Jiulang's shout brought him back to his senses. He hurriedly shouted to his attendants, "Quickly, go and call everyone here!"
"Ding Hengshou," Huo Changhe took two steps forward, his voice filled with obvious sneer, "as the governor of a prefecture, instead of thinking about how to protect the people, you help such a villain to do evil. You are truly unworthy of being an official, let alone a local magistrate!"
When Prefect Ding was addressed by his given name by Huo Changhe and heard him say such things, his face turned bright red. He pointed at Huo Changhe and angrily said, "How dare you! How dare you call me by my name? If you dare to disrespect me, you are disrespecting the court!"
Today you have injured the divine beast and publicly insulted an official of the imperial court; you will not leave this place alive!
Huo Changhe sneered: "Someone like you, who only knows how to curry favor with the powerful and oppress the people, is qualified to represent the imperial court?"
Governor Ding was rendered speechless by Huo Changhe's words and could only angrily shout to those around him, "What are you all standing there for? Move! Arrest them all!"
But the people around him looked at each other, none of them daring to move—Su Zhenhai's soldiers were still standing by, their knives drawn, clearly protecting Huo Changhe and the others.
Seeing that Prefect Ding was still putting on a brave face, Su Zhenhai was too lazy to waste any more words with him and directly ordered: "Men, arrest Liu Jiulang and Ding Hengshou!"
They colluded with treacherous officials, deceived the people, and even attempted to defy the imperial court. Lock them up first, and I will report this to the court for their judgment!
As soon as he finished speaking, the soldiers behind him immediately stepped forward and surrounded Liu Jiulang and Governor Ding.
Seeing this, Liu Jiulang took a step back, drew the knife from his waist, and looked back at Zhou Lie.
"Get me out of here!"
Zhou Lie nodded emphatically, gave a whistle, and Yin Ding, Wu Liang, and several other people who had been watching from the shadows all came over.
Liu Jiulang sneered: "Su Zhenhai, you just wait. With just one word from me, you won't be able to hold onto your position as the city's protector!"
Su Zhenhai wasn't buying it at all. He walked up to him, looking down at him condescendingly: "I'll find out who's behind you. But for now, you should think about how to get out of this mess."
Liu Jiulang and Zhou Lie exchanged glances, and Zhou Lie made a hand gesture. The group then surrounded Liu Jiulang, protecting him from all sides.
Zhou Lie gave the order: "Charge!"
The crowd protected Liu Jiulang and rushed out.
These people are all highly skilled and were carefully selected in the past. They have come in very handy this time.
Although Su Zhenhai's soldiers were quite skilled, they were no match for these people, and it wasn't long before they were overtaken.
Zhou Lie had already arranged horses by the roadside. He helped Liu Jiulang mount the horse and ride away.
When Prefect Ding saw that he had run away, he became anxious. His men were just constables and yamen runners, no match for Su Zhenhai's men.
He then thought that he was an official appointed by the imperial court, the highest-ranking official in Rongzhou, and no one could deal with him arbitrarily.
Even Su Zhenhai couldn't.
Liu Jiulang ran away, which is perfect. We can pin everything on Liu Jiulang and his family; he doesn't deserve to die.
Thinking of this, Governor Ding regained his composure.
“Envoy Su, I too was deceived by Liu Jiulang. Now that his ambitions have been exposed and he has fled, I will return to the government office immediately to issue a warrant for his arrest and bring him to justice as soon as possible!”