15 Meeting the pas

In the gloomy and eerie wood shed, there were sounds of the occasional mouse climbing around, as if it was eating the firewood and coming with the movements of the night, it made one's heart cold.

Jiao Yu was all alone inside. After three years, she'd thought that she had already gotten out of that mess, without anyone knowing. She played an important role in the play, they devised to scheme against her and meant to kill her but now they had appeared from nowhere and Jiao Yu did not know how or why did they know that she was the 'Jiao Yu' they were looking for, even after taking someone else's identity.

Regardless of how, she could not bother to ignore such blunt attack from whoever it is.

She was no stupid like she was before, falling again in the web that others spun for her. Jiao Yu planned to act that she did not see the envelope that she'd read, making 'them' think that she's indeed not the one they were looking for, but because there's a huge possibility that Liu Sheng xiao fell upon their schemes, she needed to go to the place that was written on the back of the last envelop and see things through.

The thin black clothes that were worn could not resist the cold at night but it did not matter as her heart was colder than her body. Jiao Yu's heart was filled with rage as she thought about the maliciousness of the people she treated with love and care. However, she could not help but worry about Liu Sheng Xiao's fate as their methods were indeed ruthless.

Jiao Yu did not think that they would easily let her live on, once they found out that she'd been alive all this time, but she didn't expect that they would found her this soon. Because Jiao Yu destroyed something of theirs, they want payback for it. Cynically, they only looked at what was theirs and didn't care or think about what they had done to her before. And by seeing her tonight, how would they easily spare her?

Just as she was thinking, the sounds of footsteps were heard and were particularly clear in the silence of the night.

Jiao Yu's body was erected like a ram rod, and her eyes didn't hide the coldness within them.

There seems to be excitement but also thrill. What was behind the door, was it the same faces she hadn't seen for three years ? Or perhaps it was the face of her beloved father, the one who abandoned his own blood for the sake of his village's promise.

The footsteps were unhurried but were like a holy charm that hastened one's beat as it hits Jiao Yu's heart.

'Da—' The door was pushed open, creaking slowly.

Three people came in and had a yellowish-green lantern, making the color appear like a ghost, sucking people's soul. Jiao Yu slightly squinted her eyes.

There was only that yellowish-green light from the lantern that emitted a ghastly glow. The people who came in finally unclasped their cloaks. Jiao Yu expected that they were someone she knew but who would have thought that it was three faces she'd never saw before.

The three people stood in front of her, they had a vile and deviant look in their faces, as if they were here knowing that they got the grand prize that was promised to them.

Jiao Yu was momentarily stunned before she spoke, "Who sent you?"

The man in the middle put down the lantern on the floor and walked unhurriedly to Jiao Yu, halting just three paces away from her, "So it was true."

"The young lady of the Liu family turned out to be a person from Xiangli."

With the light coming from the lantern, it created a half shadow on the person's face. The man chuckled and said, "We were able to meet someone from the village you came from, leading us to this place, meeting you. However, how pitiful were the people who was left behind, when you are enjoying the life of someone else's."

"Pitiful? Who? Are you telling me that they were the ones who should be pitied at?" Jiao Yu softly suppressed the anger in her voice.

"Yes, in this world who wouldn't pity the people who was schemed by you?" The man said impatiently.

"Ha.." Jiao Yu laughed while shaking her head in disbelief, "I want to know how a stupid person like you, were able to get answers from them."

"Isn't it because they wanted to get you punished that they were willing to give me the truth." The person said before continuing, "We heard that it was your fault why they are suffering now, isn't it?"

This time, Jiao Yu couldn't stifle her laughter and laughed wickedly, "I can't believe this."

Jiao Yu had been in a heck of a ride because of them and now they were able to get to her, she didn't know whether she should laugh or cry. Jiao Yu had thought of countless plans and means on how she should face them, but compared to her imaginations. It seems that she had overestimated them.

However, Jiao Yu did not know that during these three years, the one that drastically changed was her, herself. She's got all the means, method and ability within her hand. And with the help of Liu Sheng Xiao, she was able to become a new person and instead of treating it as a second chance, it became her rebirth.

Jiao Yu was actually impressed, because they could not tell the truth to anyone outside the village, they hired three scoundrels whom they can dispose of anytime to solve their problems for them.

"That is right, it is all me."Jiao Yu's voice was very soft and her eyes were smiling. So soft that only the man in front could hear it. She said, "The person who was supposed to fall in that pit of ground, but why at the end it turned into the whole land of Xiangli village burned to the ground? Naturally it was not a coincidence. It was all me."

Before he could register what she just said, Jiao Yu had already got closer to him and opened her mouth to speak softly by his ear, "I want to repay them with such a big gift like this. Do you three think that it is alright?"

The man only stared at her but then, his eyesight were cut in to two and he saw red. One did not know when Jiao Yu got her hands on her small knives hidden in her sleeves and slashed it unto the man's face as a horizontal line drawn in red was already on his face, blood splashed everywhere and the man gurgled as he tried to speak and hold his face together.

The two men behind him did not seem to notice such big movements and only did they became aware of what had just transpired when splashes of liquid sprayed on them when the man in front turned around to them.

Both was startled and was about to pull the knives and daggers on their belt but it was too late as a shadow swiftly leaped towards them, like a tiger hunting its prey in the darkness.

Two bodies fell limply on the ground and once again, a long silence was heard inside the wood shed as a single person emerged outside.

Jiao Yu thought that the night show had finished, however, when she just got out of the wood shed, an arrow was shot passed her and plunge itself on the door. Jiao Yu immediately dodged it and was only scratched by it slightly, her eyes darting towards where the arrow came from and a man in a scruffy clothes was already running from a distance.

She sprinted and followed the man, with her blood boiling hot with the thirst of blood.

.....

Jiao Yu ran without stopping and darted one knife at a time to secure a hit on the already running man, however, because there were too many trees around them, the man made good use of them as shields.

But it did not matter to Jiao Yu, who has more experience in terms of these type of location. This was her arena and her bode. Instead of following the trail of the man, Jiao Yu took a detour and climb up a tree when she had reach a desire position to hunt.

The man was full of fear and was momentarily happy when he looked behind him, that no one was following him anymore, but who would've thought that when he just got to pass a tree, something fell on him, tackling him on the ground.

Jiao Yu who had successfully got her hands on the man, swiftly jabbed her hand on the man's throat with no rest and took one arrow from the quiver and thrusts it on the man's face.

However, before the tip of the arrowhead reached the man's face, Jiao Yu's hand was flung away by a force with the arrow thrown to the ground with a 'thud'.

When the man under Jiao Yu, saw that he finally had a chance, he pushed Jiao Yu aside and ran away. Jiao Yu stared viciously at the instigator who let the man escape and was about to turn away to follow the man, a silver flash passed her eye and halted her steps.

Near her right foot was a silver knife with a jade handle. Jiao Yu could not pinpoint the location of the instigator and looked around her but to no avail.

"Show yourself!" Jiao Yu said impatiently.

A low chuckle was heard and a voice said lightheartedly, "So hot headed and impatient."

"I did not know that a fragile and weak young lady as you are, have such an adorable personality."

The voice spoke somewhere but Jiao Yu still could not point where was the person located.

As the wind blew, the leaves from the tree flew around. Under a tree, a man stood there with his hands clasped at his back, leisurely taking one step each forward and the moon slowly casts its light towards him, from his feet, robe and until to his face.

It was the same man she saw at the qinwang's fu.