Chapter 425: Home Robbed

Five boys were strung together and thrown over; they looked to be about the same age as the Great King.

The Great King walked around them in a circle, then squatted in front of them, saying, "We are not Qiang people."

The Great King felt their hostility was baseless; it must be a misunderstanding.

The leader of the boys initially didn't look at him properly, but upon hearing the Great King's words, he clenched his teeth and his expression turned fierce. "Pah!"

The lead boy spat a mouthful at him; the Great King hadn't expected this, and with no vigilance he squatted in front of them, and that spit landed directly on his shoulder.

The personal guards behind him saw this and immediately drew their straight swords; Lingyin signaled them to lower their weapons, not to rush, and to look at the Great King.

The Great King was still foolishly staring at his shoulder, then turned back with a bewildered look at the boy; since leaving the palace, aside from enemies, this was the first time he had encountered such naked hostility.

"What are you looking at! You know you're Jin people—are Jin people somehow good people?!"

That boy glanced at Wei Shen opposite him, his tone vicious: "It's you Jin people I knocked down! Not breaking your necks counts as your good fortune!"

"I see you're looking for death!" This time Wei Shen drew his sword, but Wei Ke held him back, signaling him to wait for the Great King's order—just a bunch of clueless kids.

The Great King finally came to his senses, stood up, began to take off his clothes, and flung the outer robe soiled by the spit onto the head of the boy who had spat at him, then turned and sat on the small stool the personal guard had given him.

"I reward you! Though young, you have great courage—I, the Great King, like those with bold guts.

"That spit you just gave the Great King is a capital offense, but I can also pardon you if you answer my questions honestly."

That boy was clearly the most quick-witted among them; hearing the Great King refer to himself as "this king," his face changed, he flung off the clothing on his head and began to scrutinize the Great King closely, and the Great King let him do so.

That gaze was already rude and overstepping; even the good-tempered Zhao Bao began to frown.

"Why do you harbor such great hostility toward the Jin people? This place used to be Liangzhou of the Great Jin; now it's Liangzhou of the Northern Frontier—aren't you yourselves Jin people as well?"

"We are not Jin people at all; we are slaves of the Great Permission Valley, the millet and grain of the Qiang people."

"What do you mean? Speak properly!"

"From what I hear, you're still some kind of king? If you have the ability, kill me—we here fear no death, and what's scary about dying?"

The few younger boys behind him also shouted, unafraid of death.

The Great King felt they were too hard to understand, their answers went off-topic, and they made themselves seem to welcome death, making him look like the villain instead.

Wei Shen clicked his tongue: "Only at an age farthest from death would you dare shout like that?" He casually drew his side sword again, saying, "You're not afraid of death, huh? Come on, knock your head onto my blade! It cuts iron like mud—I guarantee no pain, your head will just be relocated."

"Knocking yourself onto my blade counts as nothing; suicide is unfilial—if you have the ability, kill me."

The Great King was speechless: "If it were another person today, you might really be dead; your response isn't smart, and I withdraw my earlier praise of you. Before I change my mind, speak clearly—this is Northern Frontier territory—how did you become slaves of the Qiang people?"

"I won't say; saying it would be another capital offense—I only have one life."

Wei Shen lifted his leg and kicked him: "Impudent! You little brat..." You're being defiant beyond measure!

The Great King waved his hand to interrupt: "Send people to investigate right away! Even if they don't talk, I'll find out anyway—continue the march!"

The Great King sent troops ahead to scout the city; the five boys were tied to the back of the wagon and brought along. The Great King, for the first time, climbed onto his wagon; before boarding, he casually picked one of the five with an honest appearance and said, "Let him come up and ride with me."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Bao's brows knotted so tightly they could pinch a mosquito: "Your Highness, wait a moment—I'll take him to clean up before bringing him up?" The boy's tattered cloth hanging on his body hid no color, only covering his vital parts; combined with the dirt all over him, it was clear the pit was one he himself had just dug.

He wished he could find a river to wash the mud off the boy before letting him near the Great King.

The Great King didn't care about those details: "No need, just let him come up!"

Wei Ke gave Wei Shen a look; Wei Shen shamelessly climbed up as well. Zhao Bao took out a handkerchief, patted the boy to shake off the loose dirt, then wiped his face, and only then led him up to the Great King's wagon.

The boy looked about the same age as the Great King, yet it was his first time seeing up close a wagon, this 'luxury item,' and also his first time realizing how spacious and luxurious the interior was—his eyes couldn't take it all in.

Zhao Bao had him kneel outside the wagon's outer curtain; as soon as the Great King climbed in, he rummaged through the small drawer and pulled out a handful of rubbery candy and a handful of dried beef……

Wei Shen, who had come to monitor the 'assassin,' instantly forgot his duty: "Turns out you've been hiding all this private stash, huh? Dried beef—you actually have dried beef!" He began tapping and knocking on the various compartments and drawers……

The Great King: … "Speak properly—whose private stash is dried beef? That's too shabby!"

The Great King held two pieces of hard currency, sitting cross-legged in front of the boy.

"Having looked you over, I think you're an honest child. How about this: I ask, you answer; if satisfied, I'll give you dried beef to eat."

It's already afternoon; he had only drunk a bowl of thin porridge with barely any rice this morning. Upon hearing the Great King mention the dried beef in his hand, his eyes fixated on it and couldn't look away.

The Great King used a handful of sugar and dried beef to extract everything the boy knew; though the boy's limited understanding due to his youth and inexperience was helpless, this was enough to make the Great King furious.

"I don't know—how did my Golden Radiance City become the backyard of the Qiang people!"

The marching column also halted; the Great King wanted to wait for the scout's return before discussing, lest we startle the snake.

If the information gathered from the dried beef turns out true, he might even have to lay siege to the city.

"Find a place to set up camp, wait for the scout, and we'll enter the city tomorrow—no delay."

After the camp was set up, only he, White Marsh, and Cover Heaven remained in the tent; the Great King quickly called up a detailed view of Golden Radiance City.

"Golden Radiance City sounds like it has many Qiang people; Mengmeng, why have you never warned me? Back when the Eastern Xianbei moved south, just approaching You Prefecture triggered alarms. Could it be that only a large army entering the territory triggers a warning?"

White Marsh also stretched his neck to look beside him: "... Maybe they were already there before you came into possession. Does the Northern Frontier not alert when foreigners are present within its borders?"

The Great King examined the gate of Golden Radiance closely; during the western campaign it had been utterly insignificant, a remote little town he'd never passed through, appearing to blend into the loess.

"A city has appeared that could match the gate of You Prefecture from back then in strength!"

The Great King enlarged the gate, examined the city guards closely, and found that not a single one was standing.

Several people sat inside the gate like old masters; someone was driving sheep into the city, the sheep's dirty fur brushed against the leg of one man stretching it out, and that man stood up and gave the old sheep‑herder a whipping……

The Great King flared up: "This person definitely isn't from the Northern Frontier! Even if he were, I'd treat him like a Xiongnu and give him a sound thrashing!"

White Marsh: ……

The Great King soon gave up his own scouting; under the blazing sun of the northwest, relying solely on appearance on the map, he could hardly tell Jin from Qiang—everyone was swarthy.

Darkness fell quickly; the scout hadn't returned, so the Great King had White Marsh stand guard while he rushed home himself.

"White Brother, my home has been robbed!"