Returning to an Old Place

The starlight had faded, the moon's shadow was gone, it was the moment just before dawn.

At this time, the back door of the Chu Family was quite lively.

When Chu Qing, carrying a shoulder pole, arrived here with the others, the staff from the other inns and restaurants had also arrived.

They were crowded here, jostling each other. After all, the back door wasn't large. Even though it had been opened long ago and people were let in one by one, it still took time.

The Chu Family's head steward, along with several servants and martial artist guards, was stationed here. They would briefly check the items people were carrying before letting them in.

After a long while, it was finally Chu Qing's turn.

He glanced at the head steward, Zhou Miao, and lowered his head slightly.

As the third young master of the Chu Family, he had practically been raised by this head steward since childhood. He was far too familiar with him.

Although Chu Qing had disguised himself last night, there was no guarantee he wouldn't be detected.

Zhou Miao, looking at this young porter, did indeed feel a strange sense of familiarity.

However, it was too busy today, with too many things happening, and he didn't have the time to examine him closely.

He took a couple of glances, didn't recognize him, and didn't think anything of it.

After the servant beside him checked, confirmed there were no issues, he let Chu Qing in.

Only when he was out of Head Steward Zhou's line of sight did Chu Qing let out a sigh of relief... This was the first hurdle to entering.

But after passing this hurdle, the rest wouldn't be difficult.

Looking up, everything around him was too familiar.

The Chu Family was vast, but every corner was etched in Chu Qing's memory. After all, this was his home.

If he wanted to, he could have directly reported his identity and entered openly. No one would have stopped him.

However, doing so would have brought a lot of trouble.

It wasn't that he minded having an extra father and two brothers... After all, inheriting this body, while a bit strange, wasn't something he couldn't accept.

The problem was that he was still being hunted by the Sin Mirror Platform.

If no one knew his identity, it would be fine. But if they did, it was hard to say they wouldn't be dragged into it.

Furthermore, under the current circumstances, hiding in the shadows was more advantageous for him.

Following the servant's guidance, Chu Qing carried the wine to a storeroom in the backyard.

The servant told Chu Qing to put the wine here and that he could leave after it was checked and found to be without issues.

Chu Qing nodded to show he understood. The servant didn't linger and returned to the back door.

Upon entering the storeroom, there were also a few servants on guard.

Several of them were yawning, clearly not having slept enough... This was normal. These servants were young, some fourteen or fifteen, others sixteen or seventeen.

Young lads who could eat and sleep well, up before dawn, how could they not be tired?

Chu Qing put down the wine for inspection. One of them, yawning, took out a silver needle about half a foot long and carefully inserted it into the seams. After taking it out and seeing that the needle hadn't changed color, he nodded and set it aside.

After everything was counted, he told Chu Qing he could leave.

Chu Qing agreed and left with his shoulder pole.

When he arrived, a servant had guided him. When he left, there was no one. It was still too busy; both the front and back courtyards needed manpower. They couldn't waste time on these porters. Having the martial artist guards watching was enough.

But how could those martial artist guards keep track of Chu Qing?

Taking advantage of a blind spot, he turned with his shoulder pole and ducked behind a rock garden.

He hid the shoulder pole in a secluded spot and followed the winding path of the rock garden. In a moment, a wall blocked his way.

Without hesitation, he climbed directly over the wall.

At this time, there shouldn't be anyone in this courtyard. If there were, they certainly wouldn't be from the Chu Family.

Because this was Chu Qing's courtyard.

His footsteps landed silently. The courtyard was indeed empty, but it wasn't messy, indicating it was cleaned regularly.

The doors and windows of the room were closed. Chu Qing approached the door and gently pushed it open. With a creak, the door opened.

The furnishings inside the room came into view one by one.

On the left was the living area. The bed was covered with a new set of bedding.

Hanging by the head of the bed was a wooden sword. It was a birthday gift that Chu Yunfei had personally carved and given to Chu Qing when he was three years old.

On the right was the study. There were many books, but he didn't read much.

The young man was lazy and preferred leisure, liking martial arts but limited by his talent. He detested studying.

Chu Qing casually picked up a book. It was well-preserved, clearly someone had taken it out to air it occasionally to prevent rot and insect damage.

Everything was unchanged, just as it was when he left home.

He pulled out a chair and sat down, letting out a soft breath. He felt an indescribable sense of relief.

"Just because you held a grudge in your heart, abandoning a good life and choosing to run away from home, what was the point of all this suffering?"

"These past seven years haven't been easy. I was just trying to make something of myself, but ended up being tricked into becoming an assassin..."

Thinking of this, Chu Qing couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

At the moment of his death... what was on his mind?

For the past month or so, he hadn't recalled that moment at all.

But sitting here now, he suddenly felt that perhaps... he was homesick?

The dawn light was faint, the long night about to break.

As the morning light shone in, Chu Qing suddenly snapped back to reality. Why was he getting sentimental on a return to his old haunts?

Shaking his head, he was about to get up.

When he suddenly heard footsteps approaching. His expression remained unchanged, his gaze merely shifted slightly:

"So... they've come."

He stood up at a leisurely pace, leaping onto the beam before the figure appeared.

The next moment, a figure appeared before the room.

Dressed in black, wearing a mask with a grotesque face.

The Sin Mirror Platform.

A cold smile flickered across Chu Qing's lips.

He hadn't come here merely to revisit old places.

He understood that person too well.

Since that person had come to Heavenly Dance City, they would have gathered the information they needed.

Therefore, they would definitely know that Chu Yunfei had a son who had been away from home for seven years.

Furthermore, this head of the Chu Family missed his son dearly and often visited his youngest son's room to reminisce.

No matter who it was, everyone had moments of vulnerability. Even though Chu Yunfei's martial arts were peerless, at this moment, he was just an ordinary father.

Therefore, taking advantage of the early morning, when the Chu Family was busy, they had infiltrated the estate beforehand and hidden in Chu Qing's room.

When Chu Yunfei arrived and fell into sorrow, it would be the perfect moment for a surprise assassination!

It was a pity that Chu Qing had arrived first.

The assassin entered the room, surveyed it, and then leaped up, intending to hide on the beam.

But in that instant, his peripheral vision caught a glint of sharpness.

His pupils contracted, and he reached out to draw his sword... but it was already too late.

A long sword, only half drawn from its sheath, was pushed back in. A severed arm dangled from the hilt.

Blood sprayed everywhere, dripping like rain, like plum blossoms.