Hua Wu Que followed her into the room and sat down. Seeing her anxiety, he gently comforted her, "Perhaps something has delayed him. Let's wait here for a while."
Luo Bing thought his words made sense, remembering that similar situations had happened before. She calmed down, turned to him and smiled, "You're right, then..." Before she could finish, she heard a knock on the door. Her face lit up with joy, and she hurried to open it.
A young man in a grey long robe, dressed like a scholar, entered before the door was fully opened. He glanced back a few times before closing the door gently and slid down to sit against it.
Luo Bing realized something was wrong and rushed forward, anxiously asking, "Seventh Brother, what happened? Where are you injured? Where are Fourth Brother and the others?" Only then did Hua Wu Que realize that the newcomer was Xu Tian Hong, the strategist of the Red Flower Society, the brilliant "Wu Zhu Ge" in the original story.
Xu Tian Hong took a few breaths to regain his composure, then slowly stood up and said with a wry smile, "Fourth Sister-in-law, we were ambushed by Zhang Zhao Zhong outside the city. Many brothers died. Fourth Brother stayed behind to cover us and is now likely, likely in the hands of the enemy!"
Luo Bing felt like she had been struck by lightning when she heard this, trembling as she asked, "How could this be? How could this be? Your movements were so well-planned. How could Zhang Zhao Zhong know about it?"
Seeing her agitation, Xu Tian Hong felt ashamed and couldn't bear to face her. He sighed, lowered his head and said, "I can't understand it either. This time, fearing that our movements might be exposed, I specifically arranged for three teams to leave at the same time, heading in different directions. Only a few knew the real route. But judging by Zhang Zhao Zhong's actions, he knew our route beforehand and set up an ambush. By the time we realized it, it was too late. Poor Thirteenth Brother, who was scouting ahead, was shot through the heart by a hail of arrows to warn us. He was shot to death! The other brothers, I don't know where they are now." His voice choked as he spoke, and tears uncontrollably streamed down his face.
Luo Bing couldn't control herself any longer and snatched up the twin blades from the table, about to rush out. Xu Tian Hong grabbed her tightly, "Fourth Sister-in-law, you can't go. Fourth Brother specifically asked me to stop you before you go. Find the Big Brother and join forces. Don't go to rescue him rashly!"
Luo Bing sighed bitterly as she heard this, "Find the Big Brother? If you had come half a day earlier, it would have been okay. Now, now I have no face to ask for help!" She then told Xu Tian Hong about her encounter at the meeting earlier today.
Unlike her straightforward nature, Xu Tian Hong understood something was amiss halfway through her story. He had noticed some inconsistencies during this time, but because of brotherhood, he didn't want to be a villain and remained silent. Secondly, Wen Tai Lai was also very forthright, and he thought that as long as he had a clear conscience, he didn't need to explain too much. Now, hearing Luo Bing's words, and connecting them with a series of questions, he couldn't help but doubt his own guess.
Seeing his dazed expression, Luo Bing didn't say anything, thinking that he also misunderstood her. She said sadly, "Seventh Brother, if you also think that I, Luo Bing, am a woman who doesn't keep her virtue, then you can just ignore me. I'll go save Fourth Brother myself!" She tried to break free.
Hua Wu Que, seeing their behavior, slammed his fist on the table and said sternly, "I heard about the great reputation of the Red Flower Society, but seeing it today, I'm truly amazed. You're going to rush out like this, who are you going to save?"
Xu Tian Hong finally noticed that there was someone else in the room. He turned to see that although Hua Wu Que was young and handsome, he had a calm and imposing air. He quickly composed himself, bowed and said, "Xu has been hit by a great misfortune and didn't notice the young master. Please forgive me."
Luo Bing also regained some composure and slumped to the ground. For a moment, she felt lost, not knowing what to do.
Hua Wu Que tapped the table and said in a low voice, "Since Zhang Zhao Zhong has troops at his disposal, yet you still managed to escape, it seems that the goal is clear, to capture Wen Si Xia alive. Then Wen Si Xia should be safe." He paused, ignoring Luo Bing's hopeful look, and asked Xu Tian Hong, "Think carefully, has Wen Si Xia done anything alone recently? Or has there been anything unusual about him?"
Xu Tian Hong thought for a moment and said, "We are in different units, so I don't know much about Fourth Brother's movements. But now that you mention it, I do remember that Fourth Brother went out with the Old Dragon Head a few days ago, and when he came back, he was acting strangely. He would often stare blankly into space. We thought he was worried about this mission and didn't ask much."
Hua Wu Que nodded, "That's right. There's no use thinking too much now. You all go to rest now. Tomorrow morning, we will go out and investigate to see if we can find out where Wen Si Xia is being held, and then we can devise a plan to rescue him!"
He saw Luo Bing was reluctant and said sternly, "You're already exhausted, who's going to save your Fourth Brother?!" Luo Bing was reprimanded and reluctantly nodded in agreement.
Xu Tian Hong also nodded, agreeing with his plan, impressed by his meticulous arrangement.