"Fine, I issue the arrest warrant for Tan Tio ng Li!" The Emperor said, distressed and worried about the abduction of Sung Hia ng Bwee.
Prime Minister Jin Kui was indeed cunning. He, of course, knew that the one who abducted Hiang Bwee was not Tiong Li but Si Muka Tengkorak, and that he was the one who arranged it all. And to strengthen the pursuit of Tio ng Li, he needed the Emperor's order so he could mobilize the entire army.
What if later Tiong Li is arrested and Hia ng Bwee cannot be persuaded to return? Simple. Kill the young man, end the matter, and tell the Emperor that Hia ng Bwee was killed by him.
Prime Minister Jin Kui began to implement all his plans for avenging the death of his son. Hiang Bwee, who was the cause of his son's death, has been avenged, and now she must have become the concubine of the Great Commander Wu Chu, and Tiong Li is now a fugitive from the government.
Then he mobilized the troops led by Kui To Cin-jin and his two lieutenants who had arrived from the north, the Ouw Yang brothers, to storm into the Valley of Death to annihilate Ban-tok Sian-li and his subordinates who were considered to have helped the rebels! This force was also tasked to search for the rebel bands and exterminate them, especially those led by Gak Liu.
With the arrest warrant for Tan Tiong Li from the Emperor, now everywhere there were announcements about Tan Tio ng Li as a wanted man. At that time, Tiong Li was visiting the village on the slopes of Liong-san to pay his respects at his father's grave and also to pay his respects at the former hut of his master, Рек Hong San-jin, which he had once burned with the old man's body.
After finishing his respects, he left the Liong-san mountains and a few days later he arrived in the city of Cun-keng. Upon entering the city, he saw many people gathering to read a notice that was pasted on the wall. He joined the crowd to read it and was shocked to see his face displayed on the notice stating that whoever could capture Tiong Li, the rebel and kidnapper of the princess, would be rewarded by the Emperor!
Tiong Li was extremely shocked and at that moment he heard someone shouting next to him. "Wow, here he is, the rebel and the princess's kidnapper!"
"No! I am not a rebel let alone a princess's kidnapper!" Tio ng Li denied.
However, the people had already recognized him from the picture painted in the announcement and many people immediately reached out to catch him. Tio ng Li did not want to fight them who were only acting because of the announcement, so he dodged and ran away quickly out of Cun-keng city, chased by the crowd and soon there were city guards joining the chase. But he had run far away from the city and arrived in a forest outside the city.
He stopped running and sat on a rock, deep in thought. He had become a wanted man. And the emperor himself announced that whoever could capture him would be rewarded. The princess had been kidnapped by someone.
Who was this princess? Was Hia ng Bwee kidnapped again and the emperor thought that he was the one who did it? Such a malicious slander!
The word 'slander' reminded him of Jin Kui. That man was full of cunning schemes and malicious slanders. Even before when he helped Hiang Bwee, he was going to be slandered as her kidnapper, and when he left the city, he was attacked by his son with slander of rebellion.
Prime Minister Jin Kui should be suspected as the slanderer and if he was the one who threw the slander, he must also know who kidnapped the princess. There was no other way, he had to go to the royal city to conduct an investigation. But since his picture was displayed everywhere, he couldn't just enter the royal city. He would be captured before he could do anything, as soon as he entered the gate he would be surrounded by troops and captured.
After thinking it over, Tio ng Li continued his journey by disguising himself as a beggar. He dirtied his face and hands, wore shabby shoes, his clothes were also shabby and patched up, wore a wide damaged hat that covered his face. With such clothes, indeed he was ignored by people and could travel freely.
Who would suspect a beggar dressed shabbily, with shabby shoes, wearing a damaged hat, and dirty hands and face like someone who hadn't bathed for days?
Similarly, when Tiong Li entered the royal city gate of Hang-couw, the security guards at the gate did not pay attention to him, even looked disgusted and scolded him to go quickly and not to linger at the gate!
However, unbeknownst to Tio ng Li, someone was watching him since he entered the gate, and even when he was walking into the city, the person was tailing him from afar, unaware that he was being followed because the person walking behind him, a bit far away, was a beggar holding a black stick. That person was still young and had a handsome and formidable face, even though his clothes were those of a beggar. Indeed, the young beggar was none other than Gan Kok Bu, the son of the head of the Hek-tung Kai-pang, who had once helped Ban-tok Sian-li and who fell in love with The Siang Hwi. When Kok Bu saw a beggar in shabby clothes enter the city gate, he didn't recognize the person, and there were no signs of a beggar's association, so he became suspicious and followed. He suspected that the beggar in the damaged hat was someone in disguise, and he didn't know which side the person was on.
A fighter or a spy from the Kin Kingdom sneaking in? Because of his suspicion, he followed. His suspicion deepened when he didn't see the beggar heading to the market or crowded places but instead was strolling around the city and passed by the residence of Prime Minister Jin Kui several times.
When passing by the house, the beggar looked at it attentively. Also when passing the announcement board about the rebel to be captured, the young beggar looked at it attentively. Gan Kok Bu became more suspicious and he now approached, looked attentively, and finally, his sharp eyes recognized the young beggar as the person depicted in the government's wanted announcement, named Tan Tiong Li. He understood that this person was the fugitive, a rebel, meaning a fighter! He should warn him because many spies sent by Prime Minister Jin Kui were spread throughout the royal city.
Tiong Li was greatly shocked when he saw a young beggar approaching him and whispering, "Brother Tan Tio ng Li, come with me and let's talk."
Since the person obviously recognized him, Tiong Li had no choice but to follow him wherever he went. He did not anticipate any harm, however, he remained on alert so that if the person had bad intentions, he could protect himself. The man took him through narrow, quiet alleys and then invited him into an old, vacant building. There a lot of beggars of different ages and conditions had gathered. Some were crippled, some were blind, and some had children, both men and women.
As the man passed by, the beggars seemed to bow down to him and they made way for him with respect, even in a room inside when the man entered and gave a signal, the beggars who were there then retreated without saying anything.
In the old, vacant building there were at least twenty beggars and it seemed to be their shelter or place to spend the night.
After the room was emptied, the man invited Tiong Li to sit on the floor, facing him. For a moment they stared at each other and Tiong Li spoke in a whisper.
"Brother, who are you and how did you recognize me?"
"My name is Gan Kok Bu, the son of the chief of the Hek-tung Kai-pang. I can recognize you because no matter how good your disguise is, if someone is suspicious and observes you carefully, they will certainly be able to see the similarity between you and the picture on the announcement board."
"And with what purpose did you invite me here?" Tio ng Li asked, looking sharply.
Kok Bu smiled. "Not with bad intentions, mate. You should know that we all sympathize with and support the struggle of the fighters."
"But I am not a fighter," Tiong Li said.
Gan Kok Bu smiled. "A person who is called a rebel by Prime Minister Jin Kui, is a fighter."
"Prime Minister Jin Kui?"
"Yes, it's certainly him who is behind that announcement. Whatever crime you have committed against him, he posted that announcement on behalf of the emperor. Be careful, mate, because the Prime Minister is very cunning and he has spread many spies in the royal city."
Tiong Li realized that this person had been following him for a long time and saw him pass by the Prime Minister's house twice. Thus, he didn't need to pretend anymore.
"Here's the thing, brother Gan Kok Bu. It's true that I want to conduct an investigation because I am completely innocent. I did not kidnap the princess. Can you provide me information about that? First, who is the princess that was kidnapped? What's her name?"
"The most famous princess in the royal city, her name is Sung Hia ng Bwee. She was kidnapped by someone a few days ago, kidnapped at night by a masked person who paralyzed the guards and maids."
Secretly, Tiong Li felt very worried. Sung Hiang Bwee was kidnapped again! Perhaps the previous kidnapper was back in action. The person was indeed very skilled, and it wouldn't be difficult for him to topple the guards and kidnap the princess. But who was behind all this? Considering how Prime Minister Jin Kui was the one behind the slander thrown at him, perhaps that high official also knew about the princess's kidnapping.
"It seems that if Prime Minister Jin Kui slanders me that I'm the one who kidnapped the princess, he knows who the real culprit is."
Gan Kok Bu nodded, "It's quite likely, although I'm still doubtful whether he orchestrated the kidnapping. If that's the case, why? If his son, Jin Kiat, was the mastermind, it's quite possible because his son was lustful. But Jin Kiat has been killed by the fighter Gak Liu, so it's difficult to guess who the puppet master is."
"But at the very least, the Prime Minister must know it," Tiong Li said.
Glossary:
- Tan Tio ng Li: One of the main characters in the story, currently being sought by the Emperor.
- Sung Hia ng Bwee: The princess who has been kidnapped.
- Jin Kui: The cunning Prime Minister who is the antagonist of the story.
- Si Muka Tengkorak: A character in the novel, literally translates to 'Skull Face'.
- Gak Liu: A character referred to as a fighter in the story.
- Ban-tok Sian-li: A character who is believed to have helped the rebels.
- Kui To Cin-jin: A character leading the troops to annihilate Ban-tok Sian-li and his subordinates.
- Ouw Yang: The brothers who arrived from the north to assist Kui To Cin-jin.
- Liong-san: A place where Tiong Li paid his respects at his father's grave.
- Рек Hong San-jin: Tiong Li's master whose hut was burned along with his body.
- Cun-keng: The city where Tiong Li saw the announcement of him being a wanted man.
- Hang-couw: The city where Tiong Li entered in disguise as a beggar.
- Hek-tung Kai-pang: A group that Gan Kok Bu, who helped Tiong Li, is associated with.