Jianghu sects like the Immortal Treasury Palace, which possessed numerous extraordinary combatants, had in most circumstances already broken free of state control. So when they set out, they had never considered how they were supposed to cross the Northern Lands-Northern Zhou border while the two sides hovered on the brink of war without actually fighting.
This time, however, border control was unexpectedly strict. The Censorate’s token only carried them smoothly as far as the outskirts of Yulin Town. Once they reached Yulin Town, even the title of “Northern Patrol Commissioner” stopped being useful. After all, an official of Northern Zhou going to the Northern Lands to “take office” sounded absurd no matter how one heard it.
Because they did not know what the Northern Alliance’s current situation was, they had avoided revealing their connection to the Immortal Treasury Palace throughout the journey and had relied entirely on Fu Xi Yan’s official position to open the way.
Fu Xi Yan had not originally thought there was anything wrong with his new appointment. But after the other side sternly questioned him, even he became confused and answered blankly, “The emperor gave it to me.”
The petty official guarding the town found him even more suspicious. What official would so casually refer to His Majesty as “the emperor”? Where was the proper respect? On top of that, this man was simply too good-looking, almost too beautiful to be human, while his carriage was so battered it barely looked like a carriage at all!
The Yulin Town area had suffered incursions from the Northern Lands for years and lived in relative isolation, so they had never paid much attention to the famous beauty of the fourth son of the Count of Yongfeng.
The petty official detained both the people and their carriage, then immediately sent someone to report upward.
His rank was simply too low, and the report had to climb level after level. By the time the Prince of Pingluo received the news, a full day and night had passed.
The emperor had already written to brief the Prince of Pingluo, so he knew that the “Northern Patrol Commissioner” was Fu Xi Yan. Even so, he could not help feeling uneasy. Afraid Fu Xi Yan would lose patience and simply slaughter his way out, he immediately ordered them released.
By the time the order made its way back, Fu Xi Yan and the others had already spent two days at an inn. Only their carriages remained outside town. The petty official was staying at the same inn under the fine-sounding excuse of “allowing the authorities to keep them under close observation.”
The petty official, who had somehow become the one detained for two days, dared not be angry and dared not complain. The jianghu expert the Prince of Pingluo had specially recruited had performed far too miserably in front of this group. Before he could even make a move, he had dropped to his knees on the spot, so fast and so devoutly that it shattered the clerk’s entire worldview. The poor clerk did not even know what the “three views” were, yet somehow all three had already shattered.
The expert felt wronged too. Other people worked hard when they took a job. He had nearly worked himself to death. Who could have imagined a Martial King-level expert would emerge from that broken-down carriage?
Fortunately, Fu Xi Yan was still relatively “reasonable.” Aside from finding himself a comfortable place to stay, he cooperated with everything else.
Once the Prince of Pingluo’s release order arrived, even the accusation that he had detained the petty official disappeared. The petty official had first detained a Patrol Commissioner and offended his superior, so whatever countermeasure Fu Xi Yan had taken afterward was defensible.
The petty official apologized in fear and trepidation, but behind his back he could not help muttering, “Why would His Majesty send someone to the Northern Lands to take office? Could it be… a death squad?”
Fu Xi Yan: “…” Pah! Auspicious words only! If you don’t know how to talk, you can learn to shut your mouth.
After two days of resting at the inn, they had shaken off some of the fatigue from the long journey. When they set out again, even Fu Gui Gui’s crest feathers stood straight up, making her look full of spirit.
Speaking of Fu Gui Gui, Fu Xi Yan had noticed that she had been growing very quickly lately. It felt as though not long ago she had still been a little bird he needed to hold in his arms, yet in the blink of an eye she had become huge and burly.
Looking at the bird’s head already level with his chest, he asked in confusion, “What’s the upper height limit for Fu Gui Gui’s species?”
Pei Yuan Jin answered, “She has already surpassed it.”
Fu Xi Yan looked at his carefree daughter and asked with some difficulty, “So every inch she grows now is setting a new record? Can she still find a wife?”
Pei Yuan Jin was silent for a moment. “She’s female.”
“Oh. Then can we still recruit a live-in son-in-law for her?”
Pei Yuan Jin, whose father had arranged three marriages for him since childhood, had never considered marriage something difficult. He turned his head and looked at Fu Xi Yan… There could also be accidents and pleasant surprises.
Fu Xi Yan had no idea that in those few short moments Pei Yuan Jin had already reviewed their entire journey from falling in love to getting married. He was still worrying uselessly. “Maybe we should just find her an ostrich!” A well-matched Red Peng was probably hopeless.
Spies from the Northern Lands and Mengwu frequently came to scout outside Yulin Town. Especially after Northern Zhou began constructing walls, the scouting became noticeably more frequent. The messenger officer who had come to deliver the Prince of Pingluo’s order suggested that they wait until the spies had come and gone before leaving, so they would not run into them head-on.
The hired expert muttered beside them, “Wouldn’t running into them be even better?”
Fu Xi Yan turned to look at him.
The man hurriedly explained, “With everyone’s abilities, you’d surely beat them senseless and frighten them away from coming again. That would ease the situation in town.”
Fu Xi Yan laughed dryly. “Excellent, excellent. We can also conveniently lure away the enemy’s main force. Better yet, capture their leaders, kill the Northern Alliance Leader and the King of Mengwu, and make all one hundred thousand troops retreat on the spot.”
The expert could still distinguish real praise from sarcasm. He immediately sealed his mouth and did not dare say another word.
Everything looked better by comparison. Fu Xi Yan suddenly found the messenger officer extremely pleasing. “Fine. We’ll wait for the spies.”
The fine rain had continued for many days, sending the temperature that had only just begun to warm plummeting again and making the air chilly. Fu Xi Yan bought several padded garments with local northern characteristics from a clothing shop. He had barely changed into them when the messenger officer sent someone running over with word that the spies had arrived.
Fu Xi Yan pulled Pei Yuan Jin quickly toward the town gate. Sure enough, several men dressed as herders were riding outside, brazenly circling along the wall on horseback.
Beside the wall, conscripted laborers were busily reinforcing the fortifications. The project had only recently begun, so the workers’ figures could still be seen from the gate.
Fu Xi Yan curiously asked the messenger officer, “There are archers on the wall, right? Have those people been staying outside bow range the whole time?”
“Even if they enter range, we can’t fire casually.” The officer paused. “At present they’re only encamped outside the town. War has not officially begun.”
Fu Xi Yan disliked war, but the situation before them was already one of two armies facing each other. He sighed. “This battle is unavoidable, isn’t it?” They had already shoved their feet right in front of Northern Zhou’s face. Were they supposed to pinch their noses and pretend they could not smell the stink?
The messenger officer said, “The Northern Alliance can field troops only because it relies on Mengwu’s support. If the King of Mengwu withdraws, naturally the battle cannot be fought.”
Fu Xi Yan’s heart stirred. He instinctively asked, “And what strategy do you have?”
“The Prince is currently sending people to persuade the King of Mengwu.”
The man looked so honest and answered every question so readily that Fu Xi Yan instead began to feel uneasy. His eyes flickered and he gave a short, firm “Oh,” intending to end the conversation in a hurry.
But every answer the officer had given was obviously leading somewhere. He continued on his own, “Which is why we need Lord Fu’s cooperation.”
Inside his head, Fu Xi Yan was already singing, Here it comes, here it comes, here it comes with a purpose and a request, while his face remained composed. “Unfortunately, our itinerary is already fixed. We aren’t going to Mengwu.”
The messenger officer said, “I know Lord Fu is going to investigate the Northern Lands. I hope you can divert as much of the Alliance’s attention as possible.”
Fu Xi Yan tried to dodge the request. “I’m planning to investigate in secret.”
The messenger officer stared for a long moment at his face, beautiful enough to dim mountains and rivers, before saying, “Then please divert the Alliance’s attention… secretly.”
Fu Xi Yan: “…” In three sentences, the difficulty level of his exam had somehow risen again for no reason.
While the two spoke, the spies finished their reconnaissance and disappeared beyond the horizon. Fu Xi Yan seized the chance, jumped onto the carriage, and was just preparing to leave when a thin figure suddenly rushed out from among the laborers reinforcing the wall. The figure held half a coarse-grain flatbread, hard as an iron disk, and hurled it toward the carriage with all the force they could muster.
Fu Xi Yan’s ears twitched. He was just about to raise a hand to block it when Pei Yuan Jin flicked the bread aside first. The instant it hit the ground, the person who had thrown it staggered and collapsed. Behind the fallen attacker, another figure was rapidly disappearing into the crowd.
From the thrown bread to the killing, everything happened too quickly. While the messenger officer was still bewildered, Fu Xi Yan and Pei Yuan Jin had already shot forward.
The Flower-Guarding Unit had all been assigned to the rear carriage. At present, only the two of them were in the battered carriage at the front.
Pei Yuan Jin went after the killer. Fu Xi Yan went to examine the person who had thrown the bread.
Perhaps because the attack had been rushed and somewhat panicked, the bread-thrower had not yet died. Fu Xi Yan turned the person over and discovered a familiar face. “Miss Huo?”
He hurriedly sent true qi into her body to keep her alive.
Miss Huo opened her eyes wide, trying desperately to see clearly the face she had once loved and hated, but the image only grew blurrier. Her mouth opened as she struggled to speak. “Bao… bao…”
“Bao? You want a hug?” Fu Xi Yan released one hand and used only the other to send qi into her. Pei Yuan Jin might not be here right now, but… he would be back very soon!
Elio’s Notes: The joke is a homophone. 抱, “to hug,” and 报 in 报仇, “to take revenge,” are both pronounced bào, so Fu Xi Yan initially thinks the dying Miss Huo is asking him to hold her.
Men and women were not supposed to be so physically intimate…
“Revenge.” Miss Huo finally managed to say what she wanted.
Ah, revenge. Fu Xi Yan gathered his thoughts. “Revenge on whom?” The instant he asked, he realized the question was pointless. Miss Huo was Huo Yuan’s daughter. Huo Yuan had died in Jiangling, and the enemy responsible was Liu Tan Du. Naturally she wanted revenge on Liu Tan Du.
He quickly switched to a useful question. “How did you end up here?”
Even with true qi sustaining her life, Miss Huo’s internal organs had already been shattered and her vitality was draining away. “Northern… Northern Lands… I hate…”
When she forced out that final word, it seemed almost to carry blood with it. Her unfocused eyes suddenly sharpened, and for one instant Fu Xi Yan seemed to see again the proud, high-spirited young woman from the riverbank.
Unfortunately, the instant passed, and the young woman stopped breathing.
Although his own hands had already taken many lives, watching a living person die before his eyes still left Fu Xi Yan a little sorrowful. He laid down the body and rose, only to see Pei Yuan Jin approaching while carrying another young woman.
She was dressed almost exactly like Miss Huo, in ragged padded clothing with disheveled hair, but Fu Xi Yan still recognized her identity almost immediately.
Compared with Miss Huo, who had merely dirtied her face while leaving her general appearance unchanged, Wen Ping had been far more ruthless with herself. She had cut her hair into a ragged mess like a rough man’s, blackened her face, thickened her eyebrows, and even added a mole the size of a bean.