Chapter 1739

Although coincidences are many in this world, they never come in threes; many people understand this, yet only few bother to link these coincidences. Hu Xiaotian has always been a lazy person, especially in such hot summer; he really wants to find a shady spot and sleep comfortably, but the situation does not allow him to stop.

After having a deep talk with Hu Xiaotian, Mu Rongzhan became even more silent; he intentionally avoided Hu Xiaotian, too lazy to deal with this brat again.

Hu Xiaotian didn't worry that Mu Rongzhan would harm him; he could almost conclude that Mu Rongzhan had long been colluding with Hu Buwei, at least for now their interests don't conflict. Thinking of Hu Buwei, he couldn't help but think of Old Lady Xu; could Mu Rongzhan also be one of the sparks she created?

Although the old lady told him many secrets, Hu Xiaotian still couldn't trust her. A clever liar never spouts pure lies; they may even tell you ninety-nine percent truth, with only one false sentence, and that sentence is exactly the deadly one.

Li Tianheng's death shocked many; mourners kept arriving, the first to send condolences being the bandits of Tianlang Mountain. Li Tianheng and Yan Kui had fought for years, yet in the end he was the first to die. Huo Ge, eighth prince of Shajia Kingdom and Li Tianheng's son-in-law, naturally came to mourn. Earlier, when the Xichuan earthquake struck, Li Tianheng had sent people to request aid, but Huo Ge avoided the envoys, clearly unwilling to help Xichuan. This time he came without his wife, reportedly because she fell gravely ill after hearing of her father's murder and is now bedridden, so Huo Ge could only come alone.

The Southern Yue Kingdom, whose territory had been more than half invaded by the Shajia, also sent an envoy.

On the day Hu Xiaotian's party arrived in Xizhou, another aftershock occurred; although the damage was minor, it still drove the jittery populace into streets, squares, and open spaces, preferring to camp outdoors rather than return home.

The present Xizhou bore little resemblance to his memory, yet although the streets were chaotic, the patrols of soldiers were orderly, showing that Xichuan's troops had not lost their bearings after Li Tianheng's death. After entering Xizhou, Hu Xiaotian separated from Mu Rongzhan; they had agreed before entering the city to spend two days clarifying the situation, then decide how to mourn Li Tianheng, but first and foremost they needed to confirm Prince Zhou's safety.

In fact, Hu Xiaotian and Mu Rongzhan each had their own matters to attend to, and they lacked trust in each other. Splitting up made things easier; they agreed on a meeting point, then went their separate ways after entering Xizhou City.

Hu Xiaotian was not unfamiliar with Xizhou; Meng Guangxiong knew the Xichuan region even better. While he went to contact the Xizhou Beggar Gang disciples, Hu Xiaotian alone went to the Hall of Hundred Herbs to visit his old friend Zhou Wenju.

Arriving at the Hall of Hundred Herbs' gate, he saw a long queue; due to the earthquake's many casualties, the hall had been busy almost nonstop day and night.

Seeing everyone lining up properly, Hu Xiaotian knew entering through the main gate would provoke public anger, so he circled around to the back wall, lightly climbed over and entered the rear courtyard. The courtyard was empty, with collapsed houses on both sides. Exiting the rear courtyard, he heard a medicine boy ahead remind the crowd: "Keep your voices down; the master hasn't slept in three days and just fell asleep—let him rest." Outside indeed fell silent.

Zhou Wenju enjoyed high prestige in Xizhou; during this period, toiling to treat the populace, all the people saw his efforts.

Taking advantage of the moment, Hu Xiaotian sneaked onto the small building, went up to the second floor, and indeed heard faint snoring. Peering through the open window, he saw Zhou Wenju lying on a bamboo couch, sound asleep, with a young medicine boy beside him fanning him.

Hu Xiaotian slipped in, lightly tapped the medicine boy's sleep acupoint, and the boy went limp. He took the fan and fanned Zhou Wenju twice, but still decided to wake him, patting his shoulder. Zhou Wenju turned over in bed but remained asleep, so Hu Xiaotian had no choice but to lean close to his ear and say, "Sir, a patient has arrived!"

This trick worked wonders; Zhou Wenju sat up with a start: "An emergency?" Rubbing his sleepy eyes, he only then felt something was off; taking a closer look, he recognized the person before him as his long‑unseen friend Hu Xiaotian, hastily rubbed his eyes, and exclaimed in shock, "Old man, am I dreaming?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Master Zhou, you don't recognize me?"

Zhou Wenju replied: "How could I? How could I dare forget!" His gaze fell on the sleeping child on the floor.

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Master, rest assured; I merely used a trick to let the child nap a while."

Zhou Wenju sighed, picked up the medicine boy and laid him on the bamboo couch: "He should sleep a while; these days everyone at the Hall of Hundred Herbs has been run ragged." Turning around, he laughed: "Lord Hu… uh, right, as a commoner I should now address you as Prince."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Master Zhou, you have the great kindness of saving my life; please never utter such polite words again."

Zhou Wenju chuckled: "Let's go next door for a cup of cool tea!"

Arriving at the adjacent study, he poured Hu Xiaotian a cup of cool tea, presented it with both hands, and Hu Xiaotian respectfully accepted.

Zhou Wenju asked: "Young Master Hu, have you come this time for the affair of Grand Marshal Li?" Recently, the two biggest matters in Xichuan have been the earthquake and Li Tianheng's death.

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "Exactly; I am here on the orders of the Dakang Court to offer condolences."

Zhou Wenju, not very interested in politics, merely knew that Hu Xiaotian was already Dakang's King of Zhenhai and had recently taken a consort; as for Hu Xiaotian's relation to Dakang, he was unclear, and said: "Perhaps you shouldn't have made this trip."

"Why?"

Zhou Wenju said: "Don't you know, rumors are rampant outside that the Grand Marshal was killed by an assassin sent by the Dakang court, and the Young Marshal has sworn to lead troops into Kangdu to avenge the Grand Marshal."

Hu Xiaotian scoffed; although Li Honghan's slogan sounded loud, it now looks like mere wishful thinking—given Xichuan's current state, even self‑preservation is difficult, let alone marching into Kangdu. Hu Xiaotian still knows his brother‑in‑law Li Honghan well: narrow‑minded, vicious and selfish; back when he fled Xiezhou, he had almost died at Li Honghan's hands.

Hu Xiaotian asked: "Have all the Grand Marshal's family returned?" What he really wanted to know was about Xi Yan; her true name is Li Wuyou, daughter of Li Tianheng.

Zhou Wenju replied: "Not quite clear, since the Grand Marshal died by assassination, the Young Marshal is investigating; the Grand Marshal's shrine also bars outsiders from paying respects, and even if allowed, the folk of Xizhou lack the mood." Over these years, Xizhou under the Li family's management has deteriorated, so Li Tianheng's prestige and popular support have worsened; ordinary people do not feel the expected grief over his death—in fact many wish for Xichuan's defeat and a swift return to Dakang's embrace, especially as Dakang is now reviving and the populace's eyes are sharp.

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "How does Li Honghan conclude that the killer of his father was an assassin sent by Dakang?"

Zhou Wenju said: "He must have found evidence; otherwise he wouldn't be so certain. By the way, the Young Marshal was also poisoned at that time."

"Poisoned?"

Zhou Wenju nodded: "Precisely, it should be a kind of bewitching drug that makes the whole body go limp."

Hu Xiaotian asked: "Do you know the ingredients of this bewitching drug? Can we trace its source from it?"

Zhou Wenju said: "It should be the Wuxian Sect's Powder of Soft Bones!"

Hearing this, Hu Xiaotian's heart jumped; his first thought was Xi Yan. Yet she had no reason to harm her own brother—what exactly happened here? Perhaps the answers lie in the Wuxian Sect, and Li Honghan must know as well. Hu Xiaotian set the matter aside for now and whispered: "Master, do you have any news of Prince Zhou?"

Zhou Wenju shook his head: "It's been a long time since I've heard any news of Prince Zhou; I only know he resides in the Autumn Splendor Palace."

Meng Guangxiong and Hu Xiaotian met at the agreed teahouse; Meng Guangxiong that day contacted the brothers of the Xizhou branch, basically grasping the general situation of Xizhou. After Li Tianheng's death, Xizhou's overall condition remained fairly stable; Li Honghan, having inherited power, heavily relied on his sworn brother Yang Haoran and suppressed a faction led by Yao Wenqing that advocated peace, most of whom are now imprisoned on suspicion of colluding with Dakang to murder the family head. Another major event is the successive arrival of envoys: Shajia, Southern Yue, and Heavenly Fragrance Kingdoms have all sent envoys to offer condolences.

The fate of Nanyue is already perilous due to Shajia's invasion, which does not attract much attention from Hu Xiaotian; Shajia's coming to offer condolences was expected, but the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom's condolence mission makes Hu Xiaotian curious, for the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom and Xichuan share no border, with the Redwood River lying between them, which is Hu Xiaotian's own territory, and there has never been any heard of interaction between them, so he does not know why the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom attaches so much importance to this matter; what further puzzles Hu Xiaotian is that the envoy the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom sent this time is actually Zhou Mo, who is the sworn brother he made in Xichuan back then and also one of his most trusted friends in this life, yet later he betrayed him and single-handedly abducted Long Xi Yue to the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom, a matter that dealt a great blow to Hu Xiaotian; although in the end he and Long Xi Yue, as lovers, finally became a couple, the rift between Hu Xiaotian and Zhou Mo has never been mended to this day, and perhaps there is no possibility of reconciliation in this life.

What truly puts Hu Xiaotian on alert is the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom's appointment of Zhou Mo; various signs indicate that Zhou Mo is undoubtedly a person of Hu Buwei, and the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom's using Zhou Mo as an envoy proves that the relationship between the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom's Empress Dowager Long Xuanjiao and Hu Buwei remains unbreakable; if all this is proceeding under Hu Buwei's manipulation, then the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom, as the most important ally in the Gold and Jade Alliance, poses a great hidden danger. (To be continued~^~)