Frostlike moonlight spilled into the narrow alley between two warehouses, where several figures waited patiently in the dark corners, weapons in hand.
Telescope in hand, Tang Yudan lay on the warehouse ridge, watching the distant convoy as he said quietly:
"They'll be here within fifteen minutes. No bystanders around. Take your positions and finish this quickly."
At his words, Xu Tianying and the others silently emerged from the secret passage and concealed themselves above the eaves on either side of the little street or among piles of clutter.
King Gouchen had already made arrangements. The warehouses had been closed for the night, and the patrol personnel had been temporarily reassigned to go with Tushu. There wasn't a soul on the little street between the warehouses. Hu Yanjing would deliberately take a shortcut through here later. Barring any surprises, Cao Aning and the others would soon finish their "Entry Assessment."
Unfortunately, someone else had witnessed all of this.
Not far from the little street, atop another warehouse ridge.
Ye Jingtang raised his head slightly to study the street, a trace of gravity entering his eyes as he whispered:
"These people all look quite skilled. If they're here to assassinate Prince Liang's youngest son, Hu Yanjing certainly won't stop them."
Perfected Person Xuanji lay beside him and shared his opinion:
"They obey orders without hesitation and move in unison. They look less like martial artists and more like death warriors trained by the Imperial Court. I'd guess Northern Liang's court sent them to deliberately kill Prince Liang's youngest son in Langxuan City, setting the Western Sea Tribes at odds with Prince Liang while using it as a pretext to bring the tribes to heel. Two birds with one stone..."
Ye Jingtang nodded slightly, finding the explanation reasonable.
If ordinary mounted bandits had