Have You Met My Brother?[Comprehensive Martial Arts + Sword Three] Chapter 10

Chapter 10 The Missing Person

Yan Bugui: Hmm…

Chu Liuxiang had not rested during this period, driven not only by his own curiosity and the pursuit of truth but also by his one-month agreement with Gong Nanyan of the Divine Water Palace. Starting from Jinan and the Cinnabar Gang, he had been running around searching for clues, determined to figure out why the five corpses he salvaged at sea had died and who had stolen the Heavenly One Divine Water.

After much effort, he finally learned that apart from the woman who had impersonated a Divine Water Palace disciple, the other four had been lured by a plea for help from a woman they had once loved—Qiu Lingsu. They had dropped everything and rushed thousands of miles only to be caught in a single net. It turned out that this venomous beauty, who had seemingly vanished from the jianghu for many years, had been living under an assumed name as the wife of Chief Ren Ci of the Beggar Gang.

Chu Liuxiang was previously acquainted with Nangong Ling, Ren Ci’s adopted son and the most outstanding talent among the younger generation of the Beggar Gang. He thought it might be possible to glean the whereabouts of the “Madam Ren” from him, or even arrange a meeting. However, when he arrived at Junshan and found Nangong Ling, he learned that “Madam Ren” had gone missing—and was suspected to have been forcibly abducted by villains.

Since Chief Ren Ci had only just been buried, his remains barely cold, the fact that his widow was silently snatched away was a huge humiliation for the Beggar Gang. Now, Beggar Gang disciples were searching everywhere for her. Because of this, the election assembly for the new chief had been repeatedly postponed. Publicly, they claimed the delay was because the Beggar Gang intended to invite the former Chief Huang Rong to preside over the assembly, and it would commence immediately upon her arrival.

When Chu Liuxiang first heard this, he vaguely sensed that the explanation was problematic. For one, he was curious if Chief Huang was even aware of this arrangement—although she might not mind the Beggar Gang using her name, if the assembly started and Chief Huang failed to appear, how would the Beggar Gang cover up the lie without damaging both Chief Huang’s reputation and their own?

Furthermore, he believed the Beggar Gang was not lacking in chivalrous individuals. Chief Ren had just passed away, and it was only right for them to help his widow in her time of crisis. However, the succession of the chief was a matter of paramount importance to the Beggar Gang. Even if they weren’t completely heartless, the scale of the effort dedicated to finding Madam Ren, to the point of postponing the assembly, felt incongruous.

When Nangong Ling heard Chu Liuxiang’s barrage of questions, he immediately shook his head with a wry smile and “surrendered,” saying, “It truly is you, Chu Liuxiang,” before revealing details he had previously concealed—it turned out that this entire matter was orchestrated by Chief Huang herself!

After Chief Ren passed away, the news reached Peach Blossom Island. Guo Daxia and Chief Huang, the esteemed couple, were tied up with other matters and couldn’t leave immediately, so they sent their three children ahead to offer condolences, promising to follow soon after. Unexpectedly, shortly after their children departed, the incident occurred where Madam Ren was abducted by unknown individuals, causing the Beggar Gang to lose face completely.

Originally, the Beggar Gang planned to select the new chief through internal nomination followed by a martial arts competition, a method approved by Chief Huang. However, after this incident occurred and Chief Huang learned of it, she immediately declared that she and Guo Daxia would arrive shortly to assist. At the same time, whoever first rescued Madam Ren would be considered the primary candidate for the next chief.

Therefore, finding and rescuing Madam Ren was not only honorable in terms of “reputation” but also highly profitable. Consequently, the vast majority of the Beggar Gang members were now focused on this task, and Nangong Ling was naturally no exception. Chu Liuxiang’s proactive arrival was a pleasant surprise for Nangong Ling, who immediately decided to drag the thief master into the fray and ask for his help in the search.

What could Chu Liuxiang say to that? He learned from Nangong Ling that his adopted mother, Madam Ren, had not disclosed whether she had sent pleas for help to her former admirers or if she had anticipated this calamity. Regardless of what Chu Liuxiang wanted to know, his goal, Nangong Ling’s, and that of the Beggar Gang members were now aligned—to find Madam Ren, the key person in question.

After the two reached a consensus, Nangong Ling led Chu Liuxiang to Madam Ren’s former secluded residence. Unfortunately, the room had already been investigated and searched by many people. Although they tried their best not to damage the scene, their activities still left many traces that interfered with later investigators.

Before splitting up, Nangong Ling specifically asked Chu Liuxiang not to publicize the matter—on the one hand, the Beggar Gang couldn’t even protect the chief’s widow, which was a huge “family shame” and should not be spread;

On the other hand, since the matter was tied to the position of chief, many ambitious Beggar Gang disciples were personally involved. The Beggar Gang prided itself on its numbers in the jianghu and was confident it didn’t need outside interference, yet Nangong Ling had brought in an “outside helper.” If Chu Liuxiang genuinely made a discovery, and it turned out that the efforts of the entire Beggar Gang were surpassed by one man, it would cause trouble later on.

Speaking of this, Nangong Ling sighed, full of worry, stating that Madam Ren was his respected adopted mother, and he didn’t care about “family shame” or the position of chief; he would be completely satisfied if she could be safely brought back.

Hearing this, Chu Liuxiang smiled and agreed verbally, but he still harbored many doubts, though he didn’t voice them in front of Nangong Ling—Madam Ren’s secluded spot was on a high mountain outside the city. According to Nangong Ling, Madam Ren mostly stayed on the mountain and rarely went out, which was why Chief Ren used to commute between the city and the mountain frequently.

A while ago, Chief Ren suddenly felt unwell and was taken to the mountain by Madam Ren to recuperate. Since then, ordinary gang members rarely saw Chief Ren; only a few elders and doctors were allowed up the mountain. Even the news of Chief Ren’s death was conveyed to the Beggar Gang by Madam Ren. Afterward, the Beggar Gang held a funeral for Chief Ren, but Madam Ren never came down the mountain, claiming she was too grief-stricken to accept reality.

The discovery of Madam Ren’s disappearance was made when an elder of the Beggar Gang went up the mountain to visit her, intending to ask if she wanted to come down to watch the chief election assembly to distract herself. Instead, he found the room full of signs of struggle, and Madam Ren was nowhere to be found.

In Chu Liuxiang’s view, Madam Ren had been missing for many days. If the Beggar Gang disciples, spread across the world, had searched inch by inch and failed to find her, then for him, only just stepping in, to wander around hoping for luck would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. Therefore, he planned to return alone to Madam Ren’s mountain residence to look for overlooked clues or gain some inspiration.

He hadn’t expected that before even leaving the city, he would unexpectedly spot Yan Bugui, the man he had salvaged onto his boat along with the five corpses! It had been many days since they parted ways ashore. The swordsman was now wearing a different outfit—the upper half was a bright blue satin jacket with dark leather shoulder pads, and the lower half was white silk, like feathers. The overall design style was identical to when they first met.

It had to be said that the attire of this unidentified “Young Hero Yan” was truly striking and unforgettable, unique in the entire jianghu. So, even though the other man was wearing a blue bamboo hat that obscured his face, Chu Liuxiang still recognized him—well, he wouldn’t deny that he first spotted the blue pom-pom sword, which matched the outfit better, before confirming the person’s identity from other details.

His supposedly discreet observation seemed to have alerted the swordsman—Yan Bugui suddenly raised his head, his gaze sharp as an eagle, looking directly at him. Caught in the other man’s sight, Chu Liuxiang chose not to look away. He simply moved to a spot where he wouldn’t obstruct anyone and waited for the swordsman and the young girl beside him to approach.

Hearing Yan Bugui ask if he was there for the Beggar Gang assembly, Chu Liuxiang raised an eyebrow and replied with a smile, “Indeed. Hearing Young Hero Yan, are you also here to join the excitement? Since we parted that day, I never expected to see Young Hero Yan here again. It would be a disservice to such a coincidence not to share a drink. By the way, is this young lady your…”

“This is Miss Guo Er, who kindly helped me with directions,” Yan Bugui nodded. He didn’t take up the offer for a drink but introduced the two to each other—even though he didn’t actually know either of their real names or backgrounds. “This is Great Hero Chu, who once helped me out of a predicament.”

Upon hearing the title “Miss Guo Er,” Chu Liuxiang’s already subtle scrutiny became even more cautious. His expression was somewhere between subtle and thoughtful. He softly replied, “So it is Miss Guo Er.”

Guo Xiang’s eyes, meanwhile, were bright as stars as she stared at Chu Liuxiang. Clearly, compared to Yan Bugui, who was a bit refined yet sharp and overly young, she preferred or appreciated Chu Liuxiang’s appearance—thick eyebrows and large eyes, a blend of righteousness and roguishness, combining coldness and warmth with the charm of a mature man. The fatigue from traveling for most of the day seemed to vanish.

“Greetings, Great Hero Chu. May I call you Elder Brother Chu, like Elder Brother Yan?”

“Of course. To be honest, if you call me ‘Great Hero,’ I feel uncomfortable all over,” Chu Liuxiang rubbed his nose, smiling gently, his eyes conveying a sense of deep affection. “Have you found a place to stay? The city has seen an influx of jianghu people recently, and the inns are almost full.”

“Ah! We just arrived and haven’t looked for an inn yet! Could it be that there isn’t a single room left?” As Guo Xiang replied, her small nose twitched slightly. She seemed to faintly catch a pleasant floral scent, yet it was elusive, like scratching an itch through a boot, leaving a little cat scratching at her heart.

Chu Liuxiang looked at her meaningfully: “The inns should have no rooms left, but if the two of you have acquaintances here, you might be able to borrow a place to stay for a few days.”

Guo Xiang sighed heavily: “That’s troublesome… Elder Brother Yan and Elder Brother Chu, do either of you have acquaintances here?”

Yan Bugui looked at Chu Liuxiang and then at Guo Xiang, feeling like the two were engaging in some kind of verbal sparring, but he ignored it and asked, “Brother Chu, how long have you been here? I thought you looked like you were heading out of the city earlier?”

Chu Liuxiang replied, “I only arrived a couple of days ago. Fortunately, I have friends in the Beggar Gang who took me in, so I didn’t have to sleep on the streets. I did intend to leave the city, but the sky is darkening now, and I’ve coincidentally met new and old friends. There’s no need to rush the trip out of the city—Young Hero Yan, you and Miss Guo Er probably haven’t eaten yet. Why don’t I treat you to dinner?”

Guo Xiang looked very tempted by this, but she didn’t immediately reply, instead secretly glancing at Yan Bugui’s expression. The swordsman pretended not to notice her small movement and replied, “If it won’t inconvenience Brother Chu…”

Chu Liuxiang immediately responded, “Not at all. Please, this way, both of you!”

At this, Guo Xiang naturally had no objections and repeatedly said, “Thank you, Elder Brother Chu.” Yan Bugui adjusted his bamboo hat and silently followed them.