Qin City was not far away, and the journey from Tanyang County took only half a day. Tao Mo rose early, changed into his official robes, and allowed Hao Guozi to carefully tidy his appearance before setting out with Adviser Jin and Old Tao.
Although Adviser Jin lived in Tanyang, he had accompanied previous county magistrates to the prefectural yamen several times and had some connections within the city. Should anything happen, he might be able to help. Old Tao went without saying. His position as an elder of the Demon Sect was no empty title; looking throughout the area around Tanyang County, one would probably struggle to find anyone capable of exchanging a hundred moves with him. Together with Hao Guozi, who could run errands, even if the prefect harbored ill intentions, Tao Mo was unlikely to suffer any great loss.
However, before they could leave, Gu Xiaojia stopped them outside the gate. He stared wide-eyed at Tao Mo. “Where are you going so early in the morning?”
Ever since Yi Yu’s burial, Tao Mo had drawn Gu She a little closer within his heart. Hearing the question, he did not conceal anything and answered honestly, “I am going to Qin City to meet the prefect.”
Gu Xiaojia looked at him suspiciously. “What for?”
“The prefect wants to see me,” Tao Mo said.
Old Tao had no patience for Gu Xiaojia’s relentless questioning and interrupted, “Young Master, it is getting late. We should depart.”
Tao Mo also found it strange that Gu Xiaojia had been waiting outside the yamen so early. “Did you come to see me?”
Gu Xiaojia answered absentmindedly, “Young Master was afraid you might still be grieving, so he sent me to check on you.”
Warmth surged through Tao Mo’s heart.
Gu Xiaojia paid no attention to how profoundly moved he was. The moment he finished speaking, he darted away.
Tao Mo and the others boarded the carriage.
As Adviser Jin climbed aboard, he muttered as though to himself, “I wonder whether Gu She will come.” Over the past few days, he had seen clearly how Gu She treated Tao Mo. Although he did not understand why the habitually proud and aloof Young Master Gu had suddenly taken a liking to an illiterate county magistrate who could barely keep his official position steady, it was undeniably true that Gu She took Tao Mo’s every matter to heart and involved himself in all of them.
No one at the Gu residence or Master One-Hammer’s household would reveal Gu She’s origins. But in Adviser Jin’s view, Lu Zhenxue was probably far beneath him.
The carriage had traveled for a little over an hour when the sound of hoofbeats arose behind them and drew steadily closer.
Old Tao lifted the curtain and looked outside. It was Gu She and Gu Xiaojia.
Gu She wore flowing green robes with wide sleeves that billowed in the wind, giving him an indescribably free and dazzling air.
The two horses quickly caught up with the carriage. When Hao Guozi saw who it was, he immediately pulled the horses to a halt.
Tao Mo leaned his head outside. When he saw Gu She, he was both surprised and delighted. He had heard Adviser Jin’s earlier muttering and had secretly hoped Gu She might come, but he had not been confident. He had never expected Gu She truly would.
Gu She dismounted and walked toward the carriage.
Tao Mo tried to climb down, but Gu She pressed him back and boarded the carriage himself.
Old Tao frowned deeply at the sight.
The carriage was not spacious to begin with. With Old Tao, Adviser Jin, and Tao Mo already seated inside, they had been tightly packed together. Once Gu She joined them, they were practically shoulder to shoulder.
Adviser Jin looked at Old Tao.
Tao Mo looked at Gu She.
Old Tao looked at Gu She.
Gu She looked back at Old Tao.
Sparks invisible to everyone else seemed to flicker between their eyes.
The atmosphere inside the carriage became subtly strange.
From outside, Hao Guozi suddenly shouted, “Why are you getting in?! The carriage will collapse! It cannot carry so many people.”
Gu Xiaojia said, “Then you ride a horse.”
“This is my family’s carriage. Why should I ride a horse?” Hao Guozi cried. “If anyone has to go, it should be you!”
Gu Xiaojia chuckled. “Could it be that you do not know how?”
“Whether I know how or not, I am not going!” Hao Guozi said sulkily.
“Go hitch those two horses to the carriage as well. It will move faster that way. If we rely solely on your two old nags, who knows when we will arrive?” For once, Gu Xiaojia did not argue further with him.
“My horses are unfamiliar with yours. Putting them together without warning will only cause trouble,” Hao Guozi said.
“How do you know they will cause trouble when you have never tried it?”
“I know even without trying!”
Everyone inside the carriage listened silently without speaking. In the end, Old Tao could bear it no longer. He climbed out, mounted one of the horses, and said, “Do not delay the journey!”
Seeing Gu She look toward him, Adviser Jin smiled bitterly. “I appreciate Young Master Gu’s good intentions, but I do not know how to ride.”
Tao Mo said awkwardly, “Neither do I.”
Gu She said, “Go ride.”
He did not specify whom he meant, but after spending so many years at his side, how could Gu Xiaojia fail to understand? He obediently climbed down from the carriage and mounted the remaining horse.
Once the seating had been rearranged, the group finally settled down and continued toward Qin City.
Adviser Jin knew the road from Tanyang to Qin City well. In the end, he simply squeezed onto the driver’s bench beside Hao Guozi. The wind was stronger outside and the weather colder, but at least Gu She was not beside him, so he finally felt relaxed and at ease.
Thus, only Tao Mo and Gu She remained inside the carriage.
Nervousness, shyness, delight, and uncertainty tangled together inside Tao Mo until his thoughts were a complete mess. He could only avoid looking at Gu She as much as possible, lest his feelings be exposed.
“Did you sleep well?” Gu She asked.
“Yes.” Tao Mo twisted the single word through several turns, stammering as he spoke.
Gu She asked, “Do you know why the prefect summoned you?”
At the mention of official business, Tao Mo steadied himself. “I do not know. I only received his invitation.”
Gu She was unfamiliar with the officials of the various cities and counties. Although Tanyang County lay close to Qin City, its large number of litigation masters made it a notoriously difficult place to govern. The Prefect of Qin City had therefore always avoided interfering when possible and refrained from asking questions whenever he could. When questioning became unavoidable, he would summon the relevant person to Qin City. Tao Mo’s present situation did indeed resemble one that had become impossible to ignore.
Hao Guozi suddenly called from outside, “Could he be planning to promote Young Master?”
Adviser Jin scoffed. “What wishful thinking. A prefect has no authority to decide promotions. At most, he can submit a recommendation. Master has only recently taken office. He has no seniority, no achievements, and no background. Unless the prefect’s mind has been clouded by lard, why would he recommend Master?” Once he finished, he abruptly realized that his words sounded rather mocking and silently scolded himself for losing his composure. Tao Mo was probably so easygoing in ordinary life that teasing him felt entirely natural. Yet Tao Mo’s easygoing nature was one matter; none of the people around him, from Old Tao to Gu She, were easy to deal with. If one careless remark caused them to resent him, that would be extremely troublesome. He hurriedly added, “Once Master has remained in Tanyang for a year or so and the prefect sees that his official evaluations and achievements are outstanding, he will naturally recommend him.”
Hao Guozi asked, “Could he be planning to assess Young Master first?”
“That is possible,” Adviser Jin said. However, the kind of assessment he imagined was different from the one Hao Guozi had in mind. Local officials generally liked cultivating trusted followers to consolidate their influence and establish territories of their own. Adviser Jin wondered whether that was the prefect’s intention.
Gu She seemed to say something inside the carriage, but he spoke so softly that neither Adviser Jin nor Hao Guozi heard clearly.
Only two people heard him: Old Tao, riding outside, and Tao Mo, seated within the carriage.
Old Tao possessed excellent internal strength and had also been closely monitoring everything happening around the carriage.
Tao Mo heard because, when Gu She spoke, his face was extremely close to Tao Mo’s. He seemed merely to have shifted into a more comfortable position, since this carriage was nowhere near as luxurious or comfortable as the Gu residence’s. Yet after adjusting himself into that position, Gu She remained there without moving.
“After meeting him, I will take you around the city.”
Tao Mo’s heart thudded wildly. His head nodded several times of its own accord.
“I am going to sleep for a while,” Gu She said.
Tao Mo nodded again. Then he felt his shoulder grow heavy as Gu She rested his head upon it. Tao Mo’s entire body nearly stiffened into stone, and he did not even dare move his toes. After only the time it took an incense stick to burn, every part of him felt sore and painful, yet his heart was overflowing with sweetness. He wished that this moment could last until the end of time.
After sitting that way for so long, he finally could not endure it and shifted one leg slightly.
Gu She showed no reaction.
Tao Mo moved his hips and edged backward several inches.
Gu She still did not react.
Tao Mo breathed a sigh of relief and was about to adjust himself further when the weight on his shoulder suddenly disappeared. He turned and saw Gu She looking at him expressionlessly.
“Are you comfortable now?” Gu She asked.
Tao Mo froze before realizing what he meant. He immediately sat cross-legged with his back pressed against the carriage wall and nodded. “Yes.”
Gu She looked at him, then leaned against his shoulder and continued sleeping.
Perhaps Gu She had rested there for so long that Tao Mo’s shoulder had already gone numb. This time, the weight upon it seemed lighter than before.
After sitting for a while longer, Tao Mo vaguely remembered that he had not yet asked why Gu She had come. He turned his head and looked at Gu She’s handsome sleeping face, then suddenly realized that, to him, the answer was no longer important.
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