CHAPTER 604: CHAPTER 604 IT’S TIME TO VISIT THE INTERNAL GUARD BUREAU

Lian Wanzhen was even more abruptly enraged, turning around to leave, he called out, "Let’s go, brothers, we’ll go right now, even if it means we have to fight, we must rescue Uncle Ma."

A group of people picked up their weapons, clamorously ready to storm out.

Only Lian Bao remained calm, grasping Lian Wanzhen and stopping everyone, "Second Brother, all of you listen to what Qian Chen has to say first."

Lian Wanzhen barely held back, turned around, and everyone looked back at Qian Chen in unison.

Qian Chen spoke succinctly, "Guo Neng was ambushed, the Guo family has fallen, Uncle Ma is inside, along with officials from the government."

Everyone was shocked, "What?" They all doubted if they had heard correctly.

Qian Chen repeated, "The Guo residence has been raided."

Everyone was stunned, their eyes widened in disbelief, looking at each other with their mouths opening and closing, none dared to believe it.

Such news was too shocking, ludicrous to everyone, and they couldn’t digest it for a moment, after all, just one shichen ago, Guo Neng had wanted to wipe them out, and now in the next shichen, his house had been raided, this...

This was too fast!

It was still midnight, and the sky hadn’t even brightened yet; dreams weren’t this quick.

And since when did the Yamen work after dark?

Lian Wanzhen looked utterly shocked, as if the sky was spinning, dizzy with good fortune.

The raid on the Guo family was the Lian Family’s longstanding wish, an event so coveted it had never even featured in their wildest dreams; wasn’t all their effort over the years for the day they could see Guo Neng, this vile criminal, punished?

Even Lian Bao lost his usual calm, his voice urgent with excitement as he inquired whether the Guo family truly had been raided and the exact nature of the raid.

Qian Chen nodded, briefly describing the scene he had witnessed.

When he arrived at the Guo residence, it was brightly lit; people were bustling inside, bundling up individuals from the Guo household together, with some saying not a single one should be spared, to arrest them all.

Lian Wanzhen asked in a daze, "Is it the Guo family that wanted to steal our Dew Tea, the one that has been troubling us for so many years?"

Qian Chen nodded.

Rash Ge interjected, "Is it the Guo family that was to trade with us tonight?"

Qian Chen still nodded.

Skinny Monkey followed up, "Is it the Guo family that captured Uncle Ma?"

Qian Chen continued to nod.

Suddenly, a loud laugh woke everyone up:

"Ahahaha, Father was indeed not deceiving me, praying and cursing on the first and fifteenth of the month is most effective! The Guo family is done for, hahaha, karma, Father was right, good is repaid with good, evil with evil, justice is clear and unerring, hahaha, the Guo family is really finished, I must go back and tell Father, tell Mother, the Guo family is done for, hahaha..."

Overwhelmed with excitement, Lian Wanzhen started to bounce and jump, hugging Skinny Monkey and Rash Ge, exclaiming his joy to each other.

Joy was overflowing throughout the household.

Lian Bao, too, laughed along, but as he laughed, something occurred to him, and his laughter subsided, turning solemn.

He pulled Qian Chen to one side and began to inquire.

It turned out that after Qian Chen had encountered the ambush on Guo Neng, he didn’t intervene, proceeding to the Guo residence in search of Uncle Ma, only to find someone had surrounded the place.

Observing for a while, he realized it was officials from the government conducting a search and seizure of the entire Guo family.

At his last glance, he saw that those people had also taken Uncle Ma, who seemed very heavily injured and unconscious, but they were tending to Uncle Ma’s injuries; only upon seeing this did he return.

Qian Chen said with a slight sense of apology, "As a man of the jianghu, I do not interfere with the affairs of the government."

It would cause great trouble for Young Master.

Lian Bao shook his head, "Enough has been done."

His chest felt as if doused with a basin of ice water, chilling him to the core.

Just as Guo Neng was about to set Uncle Ma free, he was taken away by the government officials, truly a tale of twists and turns.

For a moment, he didn’t know whether to rejoice at the Guo family’s downfall, or to worry about Uncle Ma’s safety.

It was one thing to suspect that the treacherous Guo Neng would use severe torture on Uncle Ma, but hearing it was another matter.

Lian Bao clenched his fists, feeling a mix of hatred and pain—Uncle Ma was like a real uncle to him, even closer.

Whenever there was danger, Uncle Ma would shield him; he supported him unconditionally, trusted him, and no matter what he wanted to do, Uncle Ma was there beside him, never questioning.

For their family, Uncle Ma was even more, their benefactor, the main contributor to them quickly gaining a foothold during their flight.

Uncle Ma had long become a member of their family.

But all this was unrelated to Qian Chen. Lian Bao could understand Qian Chen’s concerns. Not to mention whether Qian Chen could rescue Uncle Ma from so many government officials, even if he could, with Uncle Ma so gravely injured, how could he withstand the bumps of the journey?

Moreover, the government officials had the means to treat Uncle Ma, these people did not want Uncle Ma to die, so he was not in immediate danger. The greatest threat came from his injuries.

Qian Chen was right to do what he did. If Lian Bao were in Qian Chen’s shoes, he would have done the same.

Lian Bao’s emotions stabilized somewhat, and he asked, "Which Yamen’s people was it?" He still wanted to find a way to rescue them.

Qian Chen pondered for a moment, hesitantly saying, "It seems familiar." But he couldn’t remember.

He described their actions and attire in a few words.

Upon hearing this, Lian Bao immediately understood—it was the Internal Guard Bureau!

If it was the Internal Guard Bureau, then the midnight raid made sense.

But why would the Internal Guard Bureau suddenly raid the Guo residence?

Could it be that the Ancestral Master of the Internal Guard Bureau had returned?

Originally, when he and Uncle Ma gave that Ancestral Master the clues, they had specifically mentioned it was the Guo residence smuggling supplies.

If that Ancestral Master had discovered something...

At this thought, Lian Bao’s chill suddenly turned to heat; it was time to make a trip to the Internal Guard Bureau...

While Lian Bao was contemplating his next moves, Lian Wanzhen was noisily laughing about going out to celebrate. They were so overjoyed that they lost themselves.

Someone boastfully suggested, "Let’s use that dog thief Guo Neng as a dish to accompany our drinks, air Uncle Ma’s grievances, and seek justice for the Young Master and his family!"

Only then did the group come to their senses, exclaiming in shock, they had been happy too soon—where was Uncle Ma? Still not rescued!

The earlier joys and excitement vanished instantly, and they grew anxious again, realizing two important questions: Where had Uncle Ma gone, and whether that dog thief Guo Neng was truly dead—they wanted to dig up his grave.

Lian Bao was filled with helplessness; these people had only heard the Guo residence was raided, and naturally assumed Uncle Ma would be safe. Alas...

His gaze flickered with determination. He needed to go to the Internal Guard Bureau, to rescue Uncle Ma and, at the same time, earn the trust of that Ancestral Master.

...

At dawn the next day, the returned Shadow Guard went on his way.

On the road, he encountered a weary traveler, heading in the direction, it seemed, of Star Palace.

At the morning court, as usual, a minister stood up to denounce the Xu Family father and daughter. These ministers seemed to have an endless supply of accusations, listing more with each passing day, every charge spoken as if witnessed firsthand, completely convincing.

Today was extraordinary, more intense than ever before, as many ministers cried out to heaven and earth, tearfully demanding the execution of the women of the Xu Family, claiming that allowing the vile Treasonous Consort who plotted against the Imperial Heir to live another day would endanger the empire, shake the Altar of Soil and Grain, and they even kneeled to pressure the Emperor to dispose of the matter, otherwise, they would kneel to death in the hall.