Chapter 35: Side Quest
Sure enough, 'Jiang Ten' quickly attracted the attention of the entire street, and even the noisy chatter gradually quieted down, with everyone putting down their work and coming out to watch.
Looks like my face customization has reached the level of a devastating beauty, Yan Qing thought.
However, keywords like 'rainy day', 'wet clothes', and 'barefoot' probably added quite a bit to it as well.
At this moment, four libertines were walking down the road toward her.
The reason one could tell they were libertines at a glance wasn't just because they had bare chests, idle hands, strange haircuts, and were covered in pretentious accessories, but also because they were walking in the rain without umbrellas—only brainless thugs would not even think to avoid the rain.
The four thugs were naturally stunned when they saw 'Jiang Ten' for the first time.
Clearly, they had never seen a girl more beautiful than 'Jiang Ten' in their entire lives, and without exception, they all showed lustful and dazed expressions.
Just as Yan Qing was preparing to kill a few people to liven up the atmosphere, one of the thugs saw something, turned pale with fright, grabbed a companion and whispered something.
The rest of the thugs immediately changed their expressions and hurried to the side of the road to avoid 'Jiang Ten'.
It was the first time Yan Qing had seen such perceptive passersby.
Were the local thugs this polite?
Could it be because 'Jiang Ten' was carrying a White Iron Straight Blade?
Thinking carefully, it made sense.
'Jiang Ten' was also walking in the rain without an umbrella, holding a blade in hand.
So others would naturally think of her as 'not right in the head' + 'armed'.
On this street, she was at the top of the food chain.
Of course, mere 'not-right-in-the-head' thugs wouldn't dare provoke her—like anyone here had a working brain!
But as time passed, Yan Qing began to feel something was off.
Not only were the passersby avoiding her, they were even closing doors and windows.
'Jiang Ten' was like Moses parting the sea—as she approached, all the shops and homes ahead shut their doors, and the pedestrians vanished without a trace.
The entire town became so quiet that only the curtain of rain remained between heaven and earth.
Suddenly, a group of tall horses broke through the curtain of rain, neighing as they blocked the road.
The riders, wearing straw raincoats and bamboo hats, dismounted one after another, walking slowly and deliberately toward 'Jiang Ten'.
Some pulled out chains, others removed long spears from their backs.
Though no words were spoken, the malice was clear in the wind and rain.
Yan Qing had no intention of dodging.
He had 'Jiang Ten' grip the hilt with her left hand, thumb pushing lightly against the guard to draw the White Iron Straight Blade an inch out—this was the Koi Mouth Draw, which would allow a 0.2-second faster draw in the coming battle.
If the enemy was an ordinary person, then he would fight like an ordinary person.
If the enemy was a Messenger, Yan Qing also had his own way of fighting as a Messenger.
At that moment, the sound of wheels and hooves came from behind.
A pincer attack?
Yan Qing turned to look and saw a four-horse carriage bursting through the wind and rain, speeding toward them.
Atop the carriage was a silk flag embroidered with the character 'Qian'.
The horses were fine beasts, each with black coats and white manes.
The carriage itself was of excellent quality—despite the rough road and high speed, it barely shook, with deep and steady wheel tracks.
The carriage was nearly the size of a house.
Even the driver was not ordinary.
He wore no hat or raincoat, yet his clothes were completely dry.
Even the coachman was a Messenger with defensive token—what a grand display.
Because they couldn’t tell if the carriage was friend or foe, both Yan Qing and the straw-clad knights halted their actions until the carriage slowly stopped behind 'Jiang Ten'.
Before the person appeared, the voice came first as the curtain on the carriage door rolled up like a scroll.
"Why are you blocking the road?" The girl’s voice was as cold as the rain. "If you dare to stop this four-horse carriage bestowed by the throne without reason, it is equivalent to insulting the Baiyun Qian Clan. By propriety, being granted the right to kill yourselves is already a mercy!"
Yan Qing raised an eyebrow at this.
Block the road and you must die?
Seems every place has its own difficult scripture...
One of the straw-clad knights responded loudly, his voice piercing through the rain.
"Reporting to the noble, we are arresting officers from the county office. We received word that someone suspicious and undocumented has appeared in the Eighteen District. We suspect a fugitive from Taihu is on the loose and came specifically to arrest them. Please wait a moment—we'll catch the rebel and return to report."
"Taihu rebel?"
The girl looked at 'Jiang Ten', who was soaked and all alone between the two groups.
"You say she’s the Taihu rebel?"
"We can only confirm after interrogation," the straw-clad knight replied coolly.
"But it is confirmed that she is undocumented. In any case, that alone is already a major offense. She must be taken into custody and await the magistrate’s verdict."
Undocumented?
Only now did Yan Qing notice that everyone here seemed to have a band tied around their wrist.
The straw-clad knights all wore black bands, clearly visible when they raised their hands.
The coachman and the girl also wore bands—the coachman had a black one, the girl had a blue one.
Not just them—everyone on the street, from vendors to thugs, wore bands.
Theirs were gray or brown, blending with their clothing, which was why Yan Qing hadn’t noticed this detail along the way.
"Hey, you." The girl asked. "Where’s your band?"
"I don’t have a band."
"Are you a Taihu rebel?"
"No."
"Where is your home? Where are you going?"
"I don’t have a home," Yan Qing replied. "I’m heading to a forest in the east."
The girl was stunned. "Could it be that you’re also going to—"
"Miss!" the coachman snapped lightly, and the girl immediately stopped talking.
At this moment, the straw-clad knights seemed to realize something and surrounded 'Jiang Ten' from four directions.
In a calm, indifferent tone, one of them said, "Young lady of the Baiyun Qian Clan, please do not interfere with official duties."
"How could a Taihu rebel appear in a place like this!" the girl shouted. "Does she look like a rebel to you? She’s got nothing but a blade—no shoes even! She’s clearly just an ordinary person!"
"Undocumented people without bands are all barbarians and rebels who defy royal authority," the knight said. "Is the Baiyun Qian Clan trying to shield a rebel?"
"Miss," the coachman gently called, "it’s best not to…"
The girl bit her lip hard, clearly unwilling, and cast several glances at 'Jiang Ten’s' back.
But in the end, she sat back in the carriage without another word.
The coachman flicked the whip, and the four packhorses circled around the group, pulling the carriage forward again.
"Try to capture her alive," one of the straw-clad knights instructed. "Don’t injure her—especially not the face. Whoever hits too hard goes to the end of the line."
"I thought working in the pouring rain was just a crappy assignment, maybe worth a few taels of silver. Who knew we’d run into such a fine specimen?"
"If Old Huang's crew finds out, they’ll be jealous to death."
"Heh, she even knows how to use a blade. But I like ‘em with a bit of fire anyway."
Finally, time to fight.
Yan Qing had 'Jiang Ten' draw the White Iron Straight Blade, preparing to seize the right flank and retreat into a narrow alley to gain positional advantage.
Maybe due to the increase in Vital Energy and Blood, Yan Qing’s current control was almost as sharp as when he was seventeen.
Perfect dodges and parries came effortlessly.
That’s why he wasn’t afraid of fighting—against mortal-level enemies, his skill alone could make up for his gear disadvantage.
Neigh—
The carriage that should have driven off suddenly turned back and charged straight toward the straw-clad knights.
The knights seemed wary of the carriage and didn’t even try to slash at the horses, dodging to the sides instead.
Yan Qing also meant to dodge, but at that moment, the curtain of the carriage door rolled up and the girl reached out a hand toward 'Jiang Ten'.
"Get in!"
Faced with the girl’s invitation, 'Jiang Ten' moved.
She rushed forward, dashed toward the nearest straw-clad knight, and slashed a blade through the rain right in his stunned gaze.
The knight’s head flew skyward, and his headless body crumpled to the ground, a geyser of blood spraying into the sky from his neck.
The carriage halted once more.
Whether it was the girl, the coachman, or the remaining straw-clad knights, all of them stared blankly at 'Jiang Ten', who was now flicking blood from her blade.
Her face was expressionless, her posture graceful and relaxed.
If not for the headless corpse at her feet, no one would’ve imagined that this beautiful girl had just beheaded a patrol officer.
‘One down, three to go,’ Yan Qing thought.
The moment the girl reached out her hand, two thoughts flashed through Yan Qing’s mind.
The first was the main quest—grasp her hand and instantly escape this place.
The second was a side quest—kill all the enemies (optional).
Obviously, as a single-player Brahmin and a lover of full-trophy completion, Yan Qing would never pass up the chance to flush every toilet (complete every side quest).
And fleeing was never Yan Qing’s play style.