“…I have other uses for her.”

Upon hearing these words, the expressions of those present became rather peculiar. 

The experts under Wanyan Liang’s command, knowing his nature, quickly revealed looks of understanding—it was exactly as they had expected. 

Although Guo Jing and Huang Rong were unfamiliar with Wanyan Liang’s character, the lewd undertone in his voice was impossible to conceal.

Huang Rong’s delicate face flushed bright red. As the daughter of the Eastern Heretic, the wife of the widely respected Guo Jing, and the leader of the Beggar Gang, she had encountered many lecherous men over the years. However, due to her status, those men had always kept their desires buried deep, never daring to act upon them. She had never been so blatantly humiliated in person.

Guo Jing was also furious, but he was well aware that the enemy currently had the upper hand. There was nothing he could do at the moment except hold onto a single thought: ‘I must never let Rong’er be defiled!’

With a sudden roar, Guo Jing disregarded his own safety, adopting a desperate fighting style that aimed for mutual destruction. 

Ouyang Feng and the others, despite having the advantage, were unwilling to risk injury from a cornered beast, so they temporarily avoided his attacks. As a result, even though he was fighting three against one, Guo Jing unexpectedly gained the upper hand.

“Rong’er, run!” he shouted.

Huang Rong’s face was flushed, her eyes brimming with tears. Gritting her teeth, she cried out, “Brother Jing, I will come back to save you!” With that, she activated her Qinggong and dashed outside.

Under normal circumstances, Huang Rong would have chosen to stay and fight alongside her husband. However, Wanyan Liang was far too despicable, and his subordinates were too numerous. She feared that she wouldn’t even have the chance to take her own life if captured. If she stayed, there would be no escaping the fate of being dishonored, which she could never bear to let happen. Thus, she had no choice but to flee with tears in her eyes while her husband held back the enemy.

As expected of a strategist among women, even in such dire circumstances, Huang Rong had devised a plan to save her husband. When she declared that she would return for him, she wasn’t saying it for Guo Jing’s sake—she was deliberately letting Wanyan Liang hear it.

Since Wanyan Liang harbored such vile intentions toward her, Huang Rong intended to use that to her advantage. Hearing her words, Wanyan Liang would certainly refrain from killing Guo Jing immediately in order to lure her back into his grasp. As long as Guo Jing’s life was temporarily preserved, she would have a chance to rescue him.

“Stop her!” Wanyan Liang roared in a mix of shock and fury, immediately ordering his men to capture her. It wasn’t that he had seen through her scheme—he was merely enraged at the thought of his prey escaping.

Unfortunately for him, Ouyang Feng, Qiu Qianren, and Murong Bo were all entangled with the berserk Guo Jing and couldn’t afford to split their focus. Yang Guo could have intervened, but in the end, he remained still, making no move at all. Although he hated the couple for their role in his father’s death, he couldn’t just stand by and let Huang Rong be defiled by Wanyan Liang.

Even though the top-tier experts couldn’t take action, Wanyan Liang’s forces consisted of the finest warriors of the Jin Empire. The operation to capture Guo Jing and Huang Rong had been meticulously planned, with an inescapable trap laid in advance. 

Just as Huang Rong leaped over the courtyard wall, she was met with a volley of arrows.

She pushed her Beggar Gang’s Carefree Fist to its limits, managing to evade most of the arrows, but a few still proved impossible to dodge completely.

Huang Rong knew that if she was captured, both she and Guo Jing would be doomed. Clenching her teeth, she resolved to break through even if it meant sustaining severe injuries.

As the arrows closed in, a thought flashed through her mind: ‘I wonder if my Soft Hedgehog Armor can keep me safe?’

Just as she was about to resign herself to fate, a figure suddenly darted in from the side, pulling her into a firm embrace. With a seemingly casual wave of his free hand, the incoming arrows all lost their momentum and fell harmlessly to the ground.

Huang Rong looked up at the man holding her. Though he wore a mask, his familiar brows and that annoyingly smug smirk at the corner of his lips made it obvious—it was none other than Song Qingshu!

Despite being intoxicated earlier, Song Qingshu’s profound martial arts allowed him to sober up instantly upon hearing the commotion in the courtyard. He had quickly expelled the alcohol from his system and rushed over in silence, witnessing everything that had transpired.

By the time he arrived, Guo Jing was already injured. After a moment of hesitation, Song Qingshu chose not to reveal himself. While he admired Guo Jing’s character, the two had no personal friendship. Risking his life against so many top-tier masters for Guo Jing’s sake was something he couldn’t bring himself to do. His life was no longer his alone—his fate was tied to the thousands of soldiers in the Golden Serpent Camp and to the many women who cared deeply for him. Taking reckless risks would be irresponsible toward all of them.

However, saving Huang Rong in passing was still within his means.

Holding Huang Rong in one arm, Song Qingshu casually picked up a weapon with the other. Wherever he went, none could stand against him. Huang Rong was secretly astonished: ‘This scoundrel may be a shameless womanizer, but his martial arts have truly reached an extraordinary level.’

Unbidden, an image from that afternoon surfaced in her mind—those long, snow-white legs wrapped around a str0ng male t0rso. Her face flushed, and she quickly spat in her mind: ‘Ugh! Of all times, why am I thinking of such nonsense now?’

With the three top masters occupied by Guo Jing and Yang Guo deliberately letting her go, Song Qingshu easily broke through the encirclement. He activated his Qinggong, vanishing into the night with Huang Rong in tow.

Wanyan Liang shot an unsatisfied glance at Yang Guo but quickly regained his composure. He refrained from reprimanding him and instead sighed as he gazed in the direction the two had disappeared: “There are truly such martial artists in this world… I wonder which esteemed master has graced us with their presence?”

Ouyang Feng had seen the entire process of Song Qingshu rescuing Huang Rong. With his keen eyes, he had naturally recognized him. However, since he had a personal connection with Song Qingshu, he hesitated for a moment and chose to remain silent.

Tang Kuo Bian, who lay injured to the side, had also recognized Song Qingshu. After all, Song Qingshu had only covered his face in a hurry, without changing his clothes. Having spent so much time drinking together, Tang Kuo Bian could naturally recognize him.

However, weighed down by his serious injuries and recalling how Wanyan Liang had stood by idly earlier, a wary thought crept into his mind: ‘Could it be that Wanyan Liang intended to use another’s hand to get rid of me?’

To avoid arousing Guo Jing and Huang Rong’s suspicions, Wanyan Liang and his men had remained hidden in a separate courtyard next to the provincial commander’s mansion. He had even forbidden his subordinates from showing themselves to avoid alerting their targets. All intelligence had been relayed through Tang Kuo Bian’s trusted aides.

For some unknown reason, Tang Kuo Bian had chosen to conceal Song Qingshu’s presence, keeping Wanyan Liang completely unaware of it. Now, as doubts about Wanyan Liang’s motives began to surface in his mind, he became even more determined not to reveal anything.

Meanwhile, Song Qingshu carried Huang Rong as he sped through the night. After making a large detour, he unexpectedly returned to the provincial commander’s mansion.

Huang Rong’s face was full of surprise. Song Qingshu chuckled, “The most dangerous place is often the safest.”

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay