Being held up by the collar ought to have looked humiliating, but Young Lady Wen’s face remained calm with the resolve of someone ready to die. When she saw Miss Huo’s corpse, she even revealed a trace of disdain.
Seeing that expression, Fu Xi Yan’s first words came out sharper than he intended. “The armies haven’t even moved yet. Has the Northern Lands already decided defeat is inevitable and sent Miss Wen over to inspect what treatment you’ll receive after surrender?”
Wen Ping merely lowered her gaze in silence in the face of his provocation.
Pei Yuan Jin dropped her to the ground, sealed her acupoints, and looked down at the corpse that still retained some warmth. “This is…”
“Huo Yuan’s daughter.” Fu Xi Yan paused and sighed. “Huo Yuan could be said to have devoted himself completely to the Northern Lands. Who would’ve thought losing his own life wouldn’t be enough, and even his own flesh and blood would end up buried by their hands.”
Wen Ping remained unmoved.
The messenger officer who had quietly stayed beside Fu Xi Yan could not help asking, “By Miss Wen, do you mean Wen Hong Xuan’s daughter?”
With the titles of daughter of the Northern Alliance Leader and prospective Young Madam of the Immortal Treasury Palace hanging over her, Wen Ping was somewhat famous along the northern frontier. Once the messenger officer received confirmation, his eyes immediately lit up. “The Patrol Commissioner has already rendered a great service without even leaving Northern Zhou. As expected of a descendant of the Fu family. How do the two of you intend to deal with her?”
Fu Xi Yan understood the eagerness in his gaze. “You want to take her?”
The messenger officer said, “She’s also one of the Northern Alliance’s leading figures. If we can get something from her…”
“Wait.” Fu Xi Yan pulled the Northern Alliance bounty booklet from his robes and indeed found Wen Ping’s name inside. There was no portrait, however, and she did not look particularly valuable.
But even the smallest mosquito was still meat.
Fu Xi Yan emphasized, “Make sure the credit is recorded under my name.” He could already see the moving sight of Jadeite Soil flapping invisible little wings as it flew into his pocket.
The messenger officer nodded repeatedly. “Of course, of course. If Lord Fu isn’t in a hurry, you can stay and wait for the interrogation results. We may be able to uncover something useful.”
Fu Xi Yan hesitated and looked up at Pei Yuan Jin. Sure enough, the man’s face carried the same message as always: up to you. He then looked toward the carriage where Yu Su Huan and the others were.
Jiang Xiu had poked his head out of the carriage to watch.
Fu Xi Yan went over and explained what had happened. In reality, he was asking Yu Su Huan’s opinion.
The closer they drew to the Northern Lands, the more complicated and uneasy Yu Su Huan’s feelings became. She feared reality might prove even worse than the worst scenario she had imagined. Hearing Fu Xi Yan suggest staying one more day instead made her feel a little relieved, so she agreed at once.
The messenger officer took Wen Ping and Miss Huo’s body away and also ordered the officers stationed at Yulin Town to screen the laborers building the wall all over again.
That evening, Fu Xi Yan received the first piece of intelligence. Wen Ping had not confessed yet, but her and Miss Huo’s movements over the past few days had already been traced.
“Three other people were traveling with Wen Ping and Huo Yuan’s daughter, two men and one sick person. The sick person was always carried on someone’s back and never showed his face. They stayed at an inn in town for two days. One of the men used the excuse that he was searching for a missing child and tried to bribe a military officer to let them leave town. He was driven off, and they checked out the next day. At the time, the town was conscripting laborers to build the wall. Wen Ping and Miss Huo disguised themselves, bribed a displaced laborer who had been conscripted, and passed themselves off as his sisters so they could work as cooks preparing meals for the laborers.”
The messenger officer had personally brought the information.
Fu Xi Yan asked, “Have you found the other three?”
The officer said confidently, “We’re searching the entire town. I expect we’ll have results soon.”
Fu Xi Yan was not nearly so optimistic.
He tried to infer the identities of Wen Ping’s three companions. The sick person whose face had never been shown should be Liu Huan. Of the remaining two, one might be Monk Wang Ku, who had been traveling with Miss Huo, and the other Mei Xia Ying.
The day passed quickly. Just as Fu Xi Yan thought they would receive no further news before leaving, the messenger officer arrived with a new statement, though his tone was apologetic. “Wen Ping has already been sent to Suzhou. There wasn’t enough time. We only learned that she and Huo Yuan’s daughter had intended to use the wall construction as cover to slip out secretly, but the work these past few days had all been concentrated near the town gate, so they never found an opportunity.”
If Fu Xi Yan’s guess was right and Monk Wang Ku and Mei Xia Ying had been traveling with them, then with those two men’s martial arts, taking Miss Huo and Liu Huan away together should not have been difficult. Why would Wen Ping and Miss Huo stay behind?
Could Wen Ping have been lying and hiding something? Had they intended to leave some hidden weakness in the city wall so that when the Northern Lands army attacked, the fortifications would collapse?
Fu Xi Yan reminded the messenger officer, “You’d better inspect the sections of wall they worked on.”
They were already doing exactly that, but the messenger officer put on an expression of great enlightenment. “Yes. Lord Fu is wise.” His face was so sincere that Fu Xi Yan’s sense of satisfaction swelled enormously.
Although the two pieces of intelligence had been mostly useless, the extra day of rest in Yulin Town left everyone, from Yu Su Huan and Jiang Xiu to the Flower-Guarding Unit, looking much more energetic. Jiang Xiu deserved some credit for that as well. During the break, he had replenished medicinal supplies at a pharmacy and brewed everyone a bowl of tonic.
Fu Xi Yan held the black medicinal soup and delayed drinking it. “What exactly is this supplementing?”
Jiang Xiu said impatiently, “If you’re sick, it treats illness. If you’re healthy, it strengthens the body.”
Fu Xi Yan muttered, “That doesn’t sound like something a proper physician would say.”
Jiang Xiu looked at him. “Are you drinking it or not?”
Fu Xi Yan’s face lit up. “I’m allowed not to?”
Jiang Xiu snatched the bowl from his hands and shoved it into Pei Yuan Jin’s hands beside him.
Fu Xi Yan looked even more delighted. “Someone else can drink it for me?”
Jiang Xiu gave a cold snort and walked away.
Deeply moved, Fu Xi Yan patted Pei Yuan Jin’s arm. “A husband is raised for a thousand days to be used in a single moment. It’s time to demonstrate your boyfriend power.”
Pei Yuan Jin lifted the bowl and took a large mouthful.
“Impressive!” Fu Xi Yan had barely finished speaking and had not even managed to close his mouth when it was sealed directly. A mouthful of medicinal soup was passed over, bitter enough to make him suffer.
Fu Xi Yan stared at him with wide eyes.
Pei Yuan Jin calmly lifted the bowl for a second mouthful. Fu Xi Yan spun around to run, but he had barely taken a step before an arm wrapped around his waist and hauled him back.
The situation was stronger than the man, and Fu Xi Yan surrendered quickly. “Cough. I’ll drink it myself.”
Pei Yuan Jin, however, had no intention of accepting his surrender. He passed over another mouthful before saying, “Didn’t you want me to demonstrate my boyfriend power?”
Fu Xi Yan stared in disbelief. “Are you sure you know what ‘boyfriend power’ means?”
Pei Yuan Jin smiled faintly. “Judging by your reaction, I don’t think I misunderstood.”
“…”
Unable to steal the bowl away, Fu Xi Yan simply leaned his head over and gulped down the rest in one go. Then he stuck out his tongue. “So bitter. Why do I feel like there’s a whole jin of coptis in this bowl?”
Pei Yuan Jin thought for a moment. “Mine is more bitter.”
Fu Xi Yan believed him. Pei Yuan Jin was not the type to say pretty words just to coax someone, so it was probably genuinely more bitter. Thinking of it that way… still did absolutely nothing to comfort him!
He sighed. “What if every time you kiss me from now on, I remember this bitter taste?”
Pei Yuan Jin’s brows slowly drew together. He was clearly very dissatisfied with that outcome.
Watching him walk away with a dark expression, Fu Xi Yan felt a little regretful. Pei Yuan Jin had meant well. How could he blame him? If anyone deserved blame, it was Apothecary Jiang. The man clearly knew how to make pills, yet insisted on brewing soup. Now look, he had caused a domestic dispute, and this world did not even have television mediation programs. Fu Xi Yan was still brooding when he saw Pei Yuan Jin return.
Fu Xi Yan had just opened his mouth, preparing to say a few sweet things, when it was forcefully sealed again. A sweet flavor slowly passed between their entwined tongues…
A long while later.
Pei Yuan Jin asked softly, “Still bitter?”
Fu Xi Yan swallowed and raised a thumb. “Sweet straight to the heart!”
They set out that night. For one thing, darkness could conceal their movements. For another, the Northern Lands probably would not expect Yulin Town to let anyone out in the middle of the night.
After another group of Northern Lands scouts departed, Fu Xi Yan and the others finally rode their swaying carriages out of Yulin Town. Beyond the town stretched an endless plain. If not for the darkness, two carriages traveling across it would have been extremely conspicuous.
Fu Xi Yan did not head directly north. Instead, they followed the wall and circled around the area occupied by the Northern Lands army. Their destination was the Northern Alliance headquarters. There was no need to face an army of one hundred thousand.
The farther north they went, the bleaker the scenery became. It was not that the Northern Lands were badly governed. This region had originally belonged to Mengwu, a people of the saddle whose true home was the grasslands. After the territory was leased to the Northern Lands, it became a buffer zone between the two sides, with only a few small military structures and no real towns.
The group traveled for a day and a night and finally slipped past the eyes of the Mengwu-Northern Lands coalition, entering the Northern Lands proper.
The towns of the Northern Lands looked quite similar to those of Northern Zhou, but they had not existed for many years. Everything inside had been built around practical needs, so the towns looked somewhat rough and simple. Their residents included people from Northern Zhou, people from Mengwu, and merchants from other regions. It had to be said that when the Prince of Yunzhong had earned his old reputation for “good governance,” Wen Hong Xuan deserved much of the credit.
Yujing housed the Northern Alliance headquarters and served as the Northern Lands’ political and economic center. Unlike other towns where loose controls meant paying a fee was enough to gain entry, Yujing was strict.
Fu Xi Yan stood in line and watched the soldiers at the gate not only inspect travel permits but question people in extraordinary detail. Anyone dressed like a Northern Zhou resident practically had the guards pressing their eyeballs against the person’s face.
When Fu Xi Yan’s turn came, he could clearly feel the other side’s heightened vigilance. Jiang Xiu and Yu Su Huan had made minor alterations to Fu Xi Yan and Pei Yuan Jin’s appearances, yet their excellent features still could not be hidden. Among the weather-beaten faces around them, they stood out sharply.
The soldier asked, “Business? What business?”
Fu Xi Yan smiled ingratiatingly. “We brought some sugar from the south and plan to exchange it for Northern Lands glass.” Glass was one of the Northern Lands’ specialties, while sugar was scarce here. As long as the round trip was safe, exchanging one for the other could be profitable.
The soldier asked, “Where’s the sugar?”
Fu Xi Yan hurriedly and carefully helped Jiang Xiu down from the carriage, then lifted a panel in the carriage floor and took out bundle after bundle of carefully wrapped malt sugar.
“Why does this packet contain less than the others?”
The soldier observed extremely carefully and asked questions so picky they were practically unreasonable.
Fu Xi Yan had no choice but to answer. “We’ve been traveling for a long time and were afraid the sugar had absorbed moisture, so we opened one to taste it.”
The soldier did not relax. He continued asking how much sugar they had brought, how much they intended to sell it for, how much glass they intended to buy, where they planned to sell it, who their companions were, and where every one of them came from, practically questioning them down to the roots.
By now, the line waiting to enter the city was growing longer and longer, yet the soldier showed no impatience at all. He repeated questions he had already asked again and again. Fu Xi Yan’s smile grew stiffer by the moment as he began praying someone behind them would start trouble.