The Legend of the Condor Heroes: I became one of the Five Great Masters by drawing cards

Chapter 117 An old friend is in trouble
The noodle stall owner was puzzled when he saw that the young man was well-dressed but so easy-going with the two beggars.

Gu Ping'an ignored his strange look and took the two beggars to find a shady place.

"What are your names, brothers? What do you want from me?"

Seeing that he was not at all arrogant, the two men showed even more admiration on their faces.

He looked at the older man and said, "I am Feng Da, and this is my younger brother Feng Er. I am here on the orders of the old hero Li to seek your help."

"Rescue?" Gu Ping'an was a little confused. "What difficulties did Senior Li encounter?"

"It's not Mr. Li, it's Brother Tian."

"Tian Jiangen?"

"Yes!" Feng Er seemed to have a good relationship with Tian Jiangen and looked visibly anxious. "He's been thrown into prison by the government. I heard it's a capital offense!"

Gu Pingan was also shocked when he heard this: "Is it so serious?"

Feng Da's face was filled with indignation: "This crooked official wrongly accuses a good man. Brother Tian was framed!"

"Come on, take me to see Senior Li."

The two nodded, took Gu Ping'an out of Houchao Gate and headed south to Niujia Village.

From afar, I saw the doors and windows of Qu San Tavern open, and thought that Li Sheng really knew how to choose a place.

In addition to him and Yu Zhaoxing and his nephew, the elder of the Dirty Clothes Sect, Lu Youjiao, was also in the tavern.

However, he looked exhausted, as if he had come from far away and had just entered the room.

"Mr. Li, look who's here!"

The two Feng brothers shouted before they even entered the room. When they entered and saw the elder, they quickly bowed and saluted.

Lu Youjiao nodded to the two of them, then walked up to Gu Ping'an, crossed his hands over his chest, and bowed deeply.

"Lu Youjiao, the elder from the West Route, has met 'Young Hero Ping'!"

His gesture was too big, and Gu Ping'an felt uncomfortable all over, so he quickly helped him up.

"Why does Elder Lu need to perform such a grand ceremony?"

Lu Youjiao stood up and shook his head, saying, "Boss Huang has given orders. Young man, you have done a great favor to the Beggars' Sect. Meeting you is like meeting the Boss himself."

Seeing Li Sheng and others also coming forward, Gu Ping'an quickly waved his hand to stop them.

Li Sheng was previously an eight-pocket disciple, but now he has one more pocket on his back, and it turns out he has become one of the elders.

Elder Peng of the Jingyi Sect colluded with outsiders and betrayed the sect and was killed. It was because of his resolute protection of Jingrong and the others and his meritorious service that he replaced the position of Elder of the South Route.

"Let's talk about the specific situation. How did Brother Tian end up offending the government for no reason?"

"That's a strange thing."

Li Sheng was also concerned about Tian Jiangen, so he stopped being polite and got down to business.

"Young Master Gu, do you know a scholar named 'Jiang Ziyuan'? I heard Jiang En mention him before. He seemed to be a student of some kind?"

"Jiang Ziyuan and Jiang Lin?"

Gu Ping'an immediately thought of Jiang Wanli, with whom he had drunk by the West Lake.

"I know him. Could this matter be related to him?"

"Perhaps." Li Sheng nodded. "We don't know the details. We just arrived in Lin'an that day and ran into this person in the south city. Jiang En went up to greet him."

From what he said, it seemed that they were not around on the day Tian Jiangen met Jiang Lin.

"When they mentioned you, they became even more animated. The scholar invited him to go to West Lake for some fish and some wine. We weren't in a hurry to leave, so we didn't stop him."

As Yu Zhaoxing spoke, his brows furrowed slightly, as if he was a little confused.

"But he didn't come back all night after he left. I think they have a close relationship, so the scholar shouldn't harm him." Gu Ping'an started chatting with Jiang Lin over a plate of "West Lake Vinegar Fish" that day, and he could tell that this man had lofty ambitions and was upright.

How could such a well-read gentleman frame a chivalrous man?

"Is there any other news?"

Yu Zhaoxing continued, "We saw he hadn't returned home late that night, and we searched everywhere but couldn't find him until midnight. The next day, we went out to inquire again, and just then we heard that a murder had occurred on a pleasure boat in West Lake. The murderer was a beggar, and he had been apprehended."

Murder on a painted boat?

What a joke, one of them is a poor scholar and the other is a little beggar, where do they get the money to listen to music on a pleasure boat?

"Where is the deceased? Was he a prostitute on the pleasure boat? Or some wealthy businessman?"

The only reason that could have led Tian Jiangen to that place was to seek revenge.

"Well..." Yu Zhaoxing sighed and shook his head. "The soldiers and officers of the Imperial City Division were extremely formidable. They would draw their swords and arrest anyone who came too close. We didn't dare to ask any more questions."

"Wait, the Imperial City Division?" Gu Ping'an immediately sensed something was wrong. "Are you sure he's in the Imperial City Division, and not the Criminal Division?"

"Is there any difference between the two?" Li Sheng looked puzzled, but still said with certainty, "The information I personally gathered is indeed from the Imperial City Division."

According to the official system of the Song Dynasty, minor cases were generally handled by the Xianggongshi Office, while major cases such as homicide were handed over to the Ti Dian Xingyu Si, also known as the Ti Xing Si.

As for the Imperial City Bureau, it was a secret agency similar to the Jinyiwei of the Ming Dynasty in later generations.

A murder case on a painted boat was ordered to be investigated by the Imperial City Bureau, which was obviously not right.

"There may be other hidden reasons behind this matter. The two elders should not act rashly."

Lu and Li had already witnessed Gu Ping'an's wisdom on Junshan Mountain. Seeing his serious expression, they naturally obeyed his advice.

"Fortunately, the Feng brothers were lucky enough to meet Young Master Gu, otherwise, we old beggars would be completely clueless."

Li Sheng didn't mind his young age at all. He just felt that he had a backbone and couldn't help but feel fortunate.

"Brother Tian's Qinggong is quite good, and his swordsmanship has also improved quite a bit. Ordinary soldiers and yamen runners can't deal with him at all." Gu Ping'an added, "To capture him, they must have a large group of people or another expert."

"It must be a large group of soldiers," Yu Zhaoxing said. "I heard from a fisherman on the lake today that they saw a large group of soldiers passing by last night. They argued for a long time on the shore. There must be at least a hundred of them."

"About a hundred people."

With Tian Jiangen's current strength, although it is difficult to deal with more than a hundred armored soldiers, it is not difficult for him to escape by relying on his lightness skills.

But if he wanted to protect Jiang Lin, who had no martial arts skills, he might not be able to do so.

The one who can mobilize the Imperial City Bureau's 100-man team must be someone with great background. Could it be that
Gu Ping'an's mind moved and he had a guess.

"I have a rough idea of who is going to make things difficult for us. Please wait here for a moment while I go to the West Lake to take a look."

Lu Youjiao mistakenly thought that the West Lake was just an excuse, so he quickly stepped in front of the door.

"Young man, if you want to rob the prison, this old beggar will go with you."

"Li is going too!"

Li Sheng followed closely behind, and the remaining beggars, both big and small, also asked to join.

Seeing that everyone was excited, Gu Ping'an pinched his brows helplessly.

"Elder Lu has misunderstood. Who would break into a prison in broad daylight? Do you really think the soldiers' bows and crossbows are just for show?"

After hearing what he said, Lu Youjiao sneered and stopped trying to stop him.

Gu Ping'an left Niujia Village and headed straight for the small shop that Jiang Lin had taken them to.

We went around Lin'an City and hurried along the shore of West Lake and soon arrived.

The willow trees were still the same willow trees, but the thatched hut and tables and benches were in a mess. Uncle Song's thatched hut was wide open, and there was no one inside.

(End of this chapter)