Chapter 133: Wild Fight

Duan Rong sucked for a while, feeling his tongue already somewhat swollen and numb, as if he were holding a small piece of wood in his mouth; he could see that no more poisoned blood could be sucked from the tooth marks on Xiao Yu's calf.

Duan Rong suddenly drew his Ox-Tail Saber, held it in his hand, looked up at Xiao Yu, and said, "It might hurt a little, bear with it!"

Xiao Yu looked at Duan Rong's face and gave a hum as faint as a mosquito.

Using the tip of the blade, Duan Rong carefully sliced the two tooth marks open a little, letting the flesh and skin turn up slightly, and then began to suck with his mouth again; as he sucked, he used his hand to squeeze Xiao Yu's calf, which was as smooth as congealed fat, until the blood he sucked out began to turn bright red, and only then did he stop.

Duan Rong lifted his robe, tore off a corner of his undergarment, and then carefully wrapped Xiao Yu's wound tight and tied it up.

Xiao Yu's complexion had changed from its initial shyness to something slightly moved; her eyes were fixed tightly on Duan Rong's face, and her breathing became somewhat rapid and disordered...

Duan Rong finished bandaging the wound, pulled down Xiao Yu's pant leg, stood up, gave an honest smile, and said, "Hala!"

In truth, what Duan Rong wanted to say was "Hao le" (It's done), but under the erosion of the toxin, his tongue was now even more swollen than before, like a thick tongue, and he could not speak clearly.

Hearing this, Xiao Yu let out a giggle; she had actually understood what Duan Rong said immediately, looked at him with clear eyes, and said, "Let's go, let's head back!"

Xiao Yu dragged her right leg along the ground, stepping only with her left leg, while Duan Rong kept to her side without stepping forward to support her.

Duan Rong knew very well that whether he wanted to support her or carry her on his back, she would not accept it; there was, in fact, a very unyielding side to this girl's character.

The two left the alley and walked to the entrance of a brewery, where Xiao Yu struck up a conversation, asking, "Shopkeeper, how did the Zhao Fu in this alley become so desolate?"

The middle-aged woman tending the shop, seeing that the two were dressed as Escorts, said, "Two months ago, the whole family was wiped out. The Ya Men has been investigating for two months without a definite word! It was a perfectly fine household, but now at night, one can always hear ghosts wailing inside; it's terrifying!"

Hearing this, Xiao Yu and Duan Rong looked at each other; Xiao Yu tucked the Letter Escort into her bodice, and then she and Duan Rong left.

Feuds in the jianghu were not a rare occurrence in the lands of Jiuzhou.

When the two returned to Liuhe Xinguan, the main hall was empty, with only Sun Huang sitting there, drinking strong tea and seemingly pondering something.

Seeing the two walk in, Sun Huang caught sight of the limping Xiao Yu at a glance; his gaze swept coldly toward her leg as he asked, "What happened to your leg?"

"I was bitten by a venomous snake," Xiao Yu replied. "It's no longer a serious matter."

Sun Huang fished a brown Porcelain Bottle from his bosom, tossed it to Xiao Yu, and said, "Antidote Powder; apply some to the wound, and it will heal faster."

Xiao Yu reached out to catch the Porcelain Bottle and said, "Thank you, Escort Head."

Sun Huang nodded vaguely, remaining seated with his brows tightly locked, and continued drinking his strong tea.

Xiao Yu and Duan Rong returned to their respective rooms.

Duan Rong was still sharing a room with Li Yuliang; Li Yuliang had been exhausted from the night's toil and was overly frightened, so when Duan Rong entered, he was already fast asleep on the bed, and Duan Rong did not have the heart to wake him.

Duan Rong walked to the table by himself, rinsed his mouth with tea, then pulled over three benches, lined them up, placed a pillow under his head, and fell asleep.

Xiao Yu returned to her room, first unwrapped the undergarment bandage Duan Rong had used to dress her wound, then opened the brown Porcelain Bottle and poured some Antidote Powder into her hand; it was a grayish-brown powder, and as Xiao Yu covered the wound with it, a sharp pain surged forth; Xiao Yu's brows furrowed tightly, and she bit her silver teeth; a moment later, as the pain faded, Xiao Yu caught her breath and wiped the sweat from her forehead with her sleeve.

Xiao Yu used the undergarment bandage Duan Rong had torn off to re-wrap the wound before lying down on the bed.

This night had been full of twists and turns, and Xiao Yu felt exhausted; as soon as she lay down, she quickly fell asleep, though she seemed to have remembered something, as the corners of her mouth lifted slightly in a way that was hard to notice...

After resting at Liuhe Xinguan, the Escort Team set off again and arrived at Wancheng County on the afternoon of the second day.

Over these two days, because his tongue was swollen, Duan Rong's speech had been slurred, and he had been mocked by the members of the Escort Team for two full days.

Knowing he couldn't speak clearly, they instead deliberately teased him into talking, which became a daily amusement within the Escort Team.

After these two days, Duan Rong had gradually returned to normal, and those fellows didn't pay much attention to him anymore...

After the Escort Team had eaten at an inn in Wancheng County, Liu Ao suddenly walked over, looked at Xiao Yu, and said, "Yu girl, you have an injury on your leg; I will take your Disciple to deliver the Letter Escort for Wancheng County."

Hearing this, Xiao Yu glanced at Duan Rong before smiling at Liu Ao and saying, "Very well, then I will trouble you!"

Xiao Yu looked at Duan Rong and said, "Learn well from Escort Liu Ao; if there is anything you don't understand, ask for guidance!"

From the moment Liu Ao walked toward Xiao Yu, Duan Rong had been staring at Liu Ao's cold face and beast-like eyes, but Liu Ao's gaze was only on Xiao Yu, not even glancing at him.

Duan Rong knew that in Liu Ao's heart, killing him was likely no different than slaughtering a chicken or a dog!

Of course, Duan Rong would not expose Liu Ao in public; after all, he had no evidence whatsoever, and challenging him now would only make him look like a fool.

Duan Rong looked at Xiao Yu and smiled faintly: "I will, Master! I will certainly learn well from Escort Liu Ao!"

When he said the words "learn well," Duan Rong turned his head and once again looked at Liu Ao's face with a cold, sharp gaze.

This time, Liu Ao finally looked at Duan Rong as well.

Liu Ao's heart stirred slightly; Duan Rong's gaze was clear and bright, devoid of any anxiety or fear; on the contrary, he saw a kind of calm fighting spirit!

Liu Ao took the two Letter Escorts and left the inn with Duan Rong!

The first Letter Escort was delivered to a Weapon Shop not far from the inn; Liu Ao collected the payment, and the two left the shop together; standing on the streets of Wancheng County, Liu Ao suddenly shook the remaining Letter Escort in his hand and said, "This Letter Escort is to be delivered to a manor in the eastern suburbs of the county; you are coming out of the city with me!"

After Liu Ao finished speaking, he didn't look at Duan Rong and strode east along the street; Duan Rong also said nothing and followed him!

The two exited the East Gate of Wancheng County and continued walking east along the Official Road!

Duan Rong followed Liu Ao without a word, maintaining a distance of about a zhang...

And throughout the process, Liu Ao did not look back at Duan Rong once.

Near the city gate, there were still scattered pedestrians, but after the two walked along the Official Road for another stick of incense's time, there was no one to be seen ahead or behind.

After they walked a bit further, Liu Ao suddenly changed his pace and turned onto a side path off the Official Road!

Duan Rong's expression remained unchanged as he followed!

That side path had originally resembled a mountain dirt road, but as they walked, it became overgrown with desolate weeds, until only wild grass could be seen, and the road was gone!

It was also at this moment that Liu Ao suddenly paused his figure and turned his head!

The place where the two stood was truly a desolate wilderness, with neither villages nor fertile fields!

Liu Ao's face was as cold and hard as rock, and his indifferent pupils sized Duan Rong up before he said, "Little Disciple, your courage is not small!"

Duan Rong stood on the wild ground a zhang away from Liu Ao; he didn't take Liu Ao's bait at all and asked directly, "Did Luan Jingfu tell you to kill me?"

Liu Ao's complexion changed slightly.

Duan Rong caught the change in Liu Ao's expression, sighed, and said, "It seems it was him."

Duan Rong did not believe that Liu Ao was truly taking action against him because of Xiao Yu. Although Xiao Yu was quite attentive in teaching him, that was merely the attitude of a master toward a disciple; no matter how arrogant Liu Ao was, he would never commit murder over such a trivial matter!

After thinking it over, he guessed it was Luan Jingfu!

Wasn't it Luan Jingfu's idea for him to join the Escort Team early? He had felt at the time that this old thief had no good intentions!

(End of chapter)