He frowned. “This room is not big enough for a large number of people to fight in, so at the very most there cannot have been more than two or three of them,ugg online sale,” he said. “Their kung fu must be extraordinary.”
“Since they already have the Emperor, why should they come and kill these bodyguards?” asked Commander Li. “From the look of it, last night’s assassins and the people who kidnapped the Emperor are not the same bunch.”
“That’s right!” exclaimed Fu Kangan. “The assassins came, planning to kill the Emperor, but found he wasn’t there.”
“I would guess that you are correct,” said Bai Zhen. “If the men who killed the bodyguards were from the Red Flower Society, then the Emperor has fallen into someone else’s hands. But apart from the Red Flower Society, who else is there whose kung fu is so good?” The Red Flower Society’s fighters were already difficult enough to handle: the sudden appearance of yet another group of powerful enemies froze his heart.
Bending over to look at the corpses again, Bai Zhen noticed that some of the wounds appeared to have been made by the claws and teeth of a dog, and he hurriedly asked Commander Li to send someone to find some hunting hounds.
About two hours later, a soldier appeared with three hunters and six hounds. Bai Zhen ordered the hunters to let their charges sniff around the corpses,ugg sale, and after a second the dogs charged out of the chamber on the trail of a scent. They ran straight to the lake and barked madly across the water. After a moment, they raced off again along the lake shore to where Qian Long had stepped ashore following the courtesan contest, then turned towards the city. The streets were crowded and the scent confused, and the dogs were forced to slow down, but they continued to head towards Beautiful Jade’s establishment.
There should have been troops on guard outside the entrance, but none were to be seen, and as they entered the courtyard they found a dozen corpses lying on the ground. The ruthless assassins had not left one bodyguard alive. Some had had their throats ripped out by dogs, which Bai Zhen thought appeared from the wounds to be very large animals, possibly a cross between dogs and wolves such as were bred in the northwest. Could the assassins have come from there?
The dogs sniffed their way around Beautiful Jade’s chamber several times, then began scratching and pawing at a certain point on the floor. Bai Zhen ordered the soldiers to prise up the floor boards with their swords and underneath they found a stone slab.
“Lift it up!” Bai Zhen ordered urgently. The soldiers heaved the slab up,Ultra Short Uggs, revealing a deep hole into which the dogs immediately leapt. Commander Li and Bai Zhen looked down at the tunnel glumly. The kidnappers had avoided the heavy guard by coming and going via the tunnel. Full of shame, they led their troops down into the darkness.
Part 6
　
** 1 **
After two days and nights of being starved, frightened and angered, Qian Long’s resistance was virtually worn away. On the morning of the third day, a boy appeared and said: “Master Dongfang, our master invites you to come and talk with him.”
Qian Long recognized the boy as Chen’s attendant, and he followed him down to the floor below.
As he entered, Chen, smiling broadly, advanced to greet him, and bowed. Qian Long returned the bow, and the two sat down. Xin Yan served some tea.
“Bring some titbits to eat,” Chen ordered. A moment later, Xin Yan carried in a tray on which was placed plates of spring rolls, prawns, chicken and ham. He set out two sets of bowls and chopsticks and poured wine for them both.
“Please forgive me for not being able to see you sooner. I had to go to visit a friend who was wounded,” said Chen.
“It is nothing.”
“There is something I wish to talk to you about, but please eat first,” Chen added. He chose a morsel from each plate, then put down his chopsticks and watched Qian Long wolf down the food.
When he had finished, Qian Long sat back, unspeakably contented, and raised his tea cup. He looked closely at the tiny Dragon’s Well tea leaves and took a leisurely sip, savouring the feeling of the liquid seeping into his stomach.
Chen walked over to the door and pushed it open. “All the others are downstairs standing guard. There could not be a more convenient place for us to talk. No one will hear us,” he said.
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