Chapter 1665: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind! (1/2)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

The manservant was startled at the voice. He immediately sensed that something wasn't right. As someone who had frequented this shop for more than a year, he was incredibly familiar with the shopkeeper's voice, and this was not it.

But then the manservant looked down and saw the man's dark palms and shriveled fingers, and immediately felt his heart thump.

The shopkeeper spent every day making rice tofu, and after being immersed in rice milk and rice residue, his hands were fair and delicate, not rough and coarse, and certainly not like the hands he now saw.

”Wait, you're not Shopkeeper Liu! Who are you!?”

The manservant's heart shivered as he suddenly raised his head, but what greeted him was a lethal palm. At almost the moment he had spoken, 'Shopkeeper Liu' had suddenly reached out and seized his neck.

”Foul brat, you're just a manservant, but you've got a rather fast reaction!”

'Shopkeeper Liu' raised his head, and while his face was identical to the real deal, it was suffused with an evil and savage aura.

Crack! Before the manservant could react, the man's fingers clenched, immediately breaking his neck.

After doing all this, the man passed his hand over the manservant's face, and a moment later, the manservant's face was peeled off and put on as a mask by that man.

The man dressed in the manservant's clothes and then silently left the store. Passing through the various streets, he traveled to Zhangchou Jianqiong's residence. In the entire process, no one was alarmed, and no one in the residence realized that the manservant had been switched out for another person.

……

The back garden of Zhangchou Jianqiong's residence was home to scattered flowering shrubs and ponds, which complemented the flying arches and eaves of the galleries and bestowed a refined and ancient atmosphere to the entire place.

According to the laws of the Imperial Court, all official residences for those of the second rank and above were designed according to a standard set down by the court.

But at this moment, Zhangchou Jianqiong's back garden had a row of new wooden racks, upon which peonies and chrysanthemums grew, all of them brimming with life.

Zhangchou Jianqiong was standing in front of a wooden rack, a small medicine hoe in one hand and a watering pot in another as he tended to his plants.

Zhangchou Jianqiong had a serene expression. At the start, he truly had been rather uncomfortable in his estate, but as the days went on, he had slowly come to appreciate this calm lifestyle.

Zhangchou Jianqiong meticulously loosened the soil in the pots and removed any weeds, finishing off with a sprinkle of water. The sight of these energetic plants relaxed Zhangchou Jianqiong's mind.

It's about time to prune the leaves, Zhangchou Jianqiong suddenly thought to himself as he gazed at the lush plants.

Unbelievably, the mighty Minister of War and former Annan Protector-General, a man who had spent most of his life on the battlefield, was now living a leisurely life of watering plants and pruning leaves.

”Bring me the shears!” Zhangchou Jianqiong suddenly called out.

”Yes, Milord!”

A gardener came up and bowed as they offered a pair of metal shears with both hands.

Zhangchou Jianqiong reached out for the shears without turning his head, but a moment later, schlick! Whoosh! There was a gust of wind as two sharp blades suddenly protruded from the fingers of the 'gardener', gleaming with the blue luster of poison.

The gardener had a bizarre expression as he swept the two blades across Zhangchou Jianqiong's palm. This was so abrupt that Zhangchou Jianqiong was caught completely off guard. There was a cold gleam of light, and a bloody wound was cut across his palm. The gardener immediately backed away now that he had succeeded, creating distance between him and Zhangchou Jianqiong.

”Just who are you?”

Zhangchou Jianqiong held his wrist as he backed away, his face paling.

This gardener had been a member of his estate responsible for taking care of the garden, though he was now tasked with assisting Zhangchou Jianqiong as he did his own gardening. As this was an employee of his estate, Zhangchou Jianqiong had not been vigilant and had never imagined that the gardener would attack him.

But given the move he had just made, this clearly wasn't the gardener he remembered.

”Heheh, Lord Zhangchou, we meet again!”

The gardener gave a sinister chuckle from several dozen feet away. His hand reached to the edge of his face and pulled, immediately revealing a completely different face: sinister, savage, and brimming with a dangerous energy.

”It's you!”

Zhangchou Jianqiong grimaced. He immediately recognized this man as one of his would-be assassins from before.

”Lord Zhangchou, waiting for your guards? Don't waste your time. I've already taken them all out!”

The gardener smugly smiled.