Return of the Swallow

her waist.
Her weapon glinted coldly in the minimal light.

Roof tiles fell in explosively at the same time.
A man clad in black landed from the skies and ran at the bed, brandishing his sword.
Jiyun blocked him with a move as two more burst in through the windows, also wielding swords.

Their leader sneered.
“Little girl, get out of the way if you want to live.
We won’t kill you.”

“Just who are you and why are you trying to kill my mistress?!” Face full of sweat, Jiyun adopted a ready stance in front of the bed.
She didn’t back down in the slightest.
“I won’t leave the miss behind!”

“Haha! Since you’re such a loyal servant, I’ll tell you why so you can go to hell with your questions answered!” The man carved a fancy pattern in the air with his sword.
“We’re here on behalf of His Imperial Majesty of Great Zhou! Don’t they say that this nation won’t fall as long as this little girl exists? The emperor wants us to get rid of this talisman!”

“You!” Flabbergasted, Jiyun had never thought that the Great Zhou emperor was behind these men! No one knew better than those by Qin Yining’s side just how talk of a ‘talisman’ had come about.
It was something made up so the fourth miss could escape being eaten! “Does the Faithful Prince of the First Rank know you’re here??”

“Hrnn! You little girl know a thing or two, hmm?” The man snorted and couldn’t be bothered with an answer.
He raised his sword for a charge.

Jiyun hastily parried it, but quickly realized that these three were much higher skilled than the previous mass of assassins.
She couldn’t take them on just by herself!

Many things were becoming clear to her.
That large group earlier had killed indiscriminately because they didn’t know who their target was, while these three had remained in the shadows to ensure the success of their mission.

And indeed, Qin Yining lying here for treatment had given away who the Qin fourth miss was.
Now that the manor was a chaotic mess and everyone was preoccupied, that created an opening for these three to slip in.

Jiyun met each move with great difficulty, but she grit her teeth and hung on grimly.
She wouldn’t allow anything further to happen to Qin Yining on her watch.
She’d be dead meat if she did! Besides, she genuinely respected and loved the Qin fourth miss now, how would she possibly let the miss die?

However, martial arts was just like stamina, not something that could be increased just because one wanted to.
Jiyun slowly faltered and suffered several blows.
She cried out loudly for help, but no one answered.

When all seemed bleak, a white light flashed past the window.
The assassin that was about to bring his blade down on the bed suddenly halted.

The room door was kicked open and a white figure dashed inside, freezing the other two where they stood with a quick reach of its hands.

All three assassins had been apprehended in the blink of an eye!

The figure panted.
“Sorry I’m late!”

Jiyun had suffered shallow injuries in several places and was also huffing wearily.
But she refused to relax her guard.
“Who are you?”

The person produced a fire-starter from his clothes and lit the lamp again.

Jiyun took a close look and exclaimed with surprise, “You’re… Sir Mu?”

The newcomer was in his early twenties, tall, skinny, sporting delicate features, and wearing patched robes.
His breathing was unsteady due to the great rush he’d been in.
Mu Jinghu answered with a frown.
“That fox had me race here when he heard the news.
But it looks like I was still a bit too late.”

He turned back to look curiously at Qin Yining, cocking his head and considering the unconscious girl on the bed for a long moment.
He nodded solemnly and spoke without a change in tone, “Oh, no wonder he had me come.
She’s a beauty.”

Jiyun finally heaved a sigh of relief and collapsed on the footrest.
She pointed at the three immobile assassins.
“Sir Mu, what about them?”

“Do you want me to kill them? I actually think it’s better if we capture them alive.” Mu Jinghu rifled his worn sleeves for a small packet.
“This is some medicine I put together.” He turned back and jabbed roughly at the three assassins’ acupuncture points.

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