Chapter 534: [Covert Guidance] (Part 2)

Tang Tiexin said: "Sir Hu, among the four carriages, two are loaded with the princess's dowry."

Hu Xiaotian furrowed his brows; if the carriages held only everyday supplies, that would be fine—we could restock after passing Peak Forest Gorge—but the dowry is another matter: losing it would be a grave crime. Even though Hu Xiaotian had already prepared to help Long Xi Yue elope en route, he had no intention of just walking away and never returning to Dakang, after all his parents still live in Kangdu; doing so would be tantamount to sending his parents to their doom with his own hands, something he would never do.

Wen Boyuan and Wu Jingshan also heard about this; the two came before the Tang brothers, and Wen Boyuan shouted angrily: "In times of danger you only look out for your own lives, ignoring the princess's dowry—do you know what crime you have committed?"

Tang Tiexin looked panicked: "General Wen, we don't want to lose the dowry either, but at that time there was simply no chance to protect it..."

Wen Boyuan's attitude was extremely overbearing: "I don't care about the circumstances; losing the princess's dowry is a serious crime. If we cannot recover it in time, everyone from top to bottom cannot escape responsibility."

Wu Jingshan, though not as fiery in his words, was also anxious and uneasy, repeatedly saying: "Oh dear, what are we to do? What are we to do..."

Tang Tiehan, by nature hot-tempered, had developed a rift with Wen Boyuan after the Black Pine Forest; seeing Wen Boyuan still so arrogant, pushing all blame onto them, he could no longer restrain himself and shouted: "We certainly know we are at fault, but if we are at fault, General Wen, you cannot escape responsibility either. When the Emperor investigates, he will first pursue your responsibility; even if he has us all beheaded, General Wen, you cannot save your own head."

Wen Boyuan shouted angrily: "How dare a reckless madman be rude to me!"

Tang Tiehan, his anger flaring and forgetting fear, shouted: "What's up? At worst we'll part ways—Wen Boyuan, what prestige are you flashing? If it weren't for your father's high office and your sister's marriage to the Emperor, when would it be your turn, you uneducated princeling, to bully me?"

Wen Boyuan's face flushed with anger; his right hand had already gripped the hilt of his sword.

Wu Jingshan hurried forward to mediate: "Everyone, calm down and hear me out—losing the princess's dowry is no trivial matter; if we cannot recover it, how will we explain ourselves to Da Yong? The Emperor will surely mete out punishment. I certainly cannot escape responsibility, and none of us can stay uninvolved." His words amounted to supporting Tang Tiehan's earlier statement from the side.

Hu Xiaotian added his support: "What Sir Wu says is reasonable—if the dowry isn't found, we'll all be doomed: Sir Wu will be doomed, I will be doomed, General Wen will be doomed. At a time like this we need unity more than ever—weathering the storm together, sharing weal and woe, overcoming hardship—not rushing to clear our own names, shirking responsibility, and dumping all trouble on others." As he spoke he glanced askance at Wen Boyuan, clearly aiming his words at him.

Wen Boyuan gripped the sword hilt tightly, almost squeezing water from it, forcibly suppressing his inner anger. He slowly nodded and said: "Good! Good! Good!" Saying "good" three times in a row, he looked at Tang Tiehan and said: "You lost the dowry—you are responsible for retrieving it. If by tomorrow morning's departure you still haven't found it, bring your heads back to see me." Having said that, he turned and left in a huff.

Although Tang Tiehan put on a tough front, he inwardly knew it was a major matter; if they failed to recover those two carriages of dowry, not only would he and his brother suffer disaster, but the Tang family would also be implicated.

Wu Jingshan sighed anxiously: "What are we to do?"

Tang Tiehan said: "Sir Wu, you needn't worry—we brothers aren't afraid of trouble, nor will we shirk responsibility. The dowry we lost, we'll go retrieve it right now." He turned to those behind him and said: "Brothers, follow me!"

Hu Xiaotian stopped him: "The dowry is important, but the brothers' lives are just as important."

At this point Tang Tiehan's former hatred for Hu Xiaotian had vanished; indeed he now felt only gratitude. He pursed his lips and said: "Sir Hu, your kindness we brothers feel in our hearts. After all, losing the dowry this time is our fault—rest assured, we brothers will certainly retrieve it."

Hu Xiaotian said: "We must search, but we must ensure the personnel's safety—today we have already lost many brothers; we absolutely cannot allow any further mishaps."

"But..."

Hu Xiaotian patted Tang Tiehan's broad shoulder, then lifted his gaze to the group of horse handlers behind him. Because the dowry had been lost and because of Wen Boyuan's earlier threats, the lowest-ranking members of the troupe were visibly panicked. Hu Xiaotian smiled and said: "In this world nothing precious outweighs a human life. Although I still cannot recall everyone's name, we have come all the way from Kangdu, enduring wind, frost, snow, rain, and danger; without everyone's united effort we could not have reached this point or come this far. In my heart I already regard you all as brothers. Since we set out together, we must return together—not a single one missing." Hu Xiaotian's words were heartfelt, each sentence striking deep into their hearts.

The men under Tang Tiehan's command usually do the roughest, lowest work; in the bridal procession they occupy the lowest rank. Even the Tang brothers had never spoken to them so candidly, yet Hu Xiaotian, as the deputy escort envoy for this mission, could speak such plain, approachable words—how could they not be moved?

Wu Jingshan listened from the side; although he understood that Hu Xiaotian's remarks were largely meant to win hearts, he could not deny that Hu Xiaotian indeed had a knack for winning people over—without spending a penny, relying solely on his silver tongue he had already gained the support of those horse handlers, and the longer he interacted with this young man the more he felt he was no ordinary fellow. Though Wen Boyuan enjoys fame and early success, he is arrogant and looks down on everyone; compared to Hu Xiaotian, his conduct is clearly inferior. As the saying goes, "When people compare themselves, the loser dies; when goods compare, the inferior is thrown away." Wu Jingshan's inner scales had unknowingly tipped toward Hu Xiaotian. The bridal journey had covered less than half its route, yet so much had already happened. Hu Xiaotian was right: we should not place too much hope in Wen Boyuan's protection; at a life-and-death juncture we must rely on ourselves.

Wu Jingshan quietly called Hu Xiaotian aside and whispered: "Sir Hu, if we cannot recover those dowry items, we're likely to be in trouble—big trouble."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Sir Wu, rest assured—I'm not saying we won't search; I'm saying this matter must be planned meticulously. If that gang of the Hunshui Bandits isn't eliminated, not only will we fail to recover the dowry, but even making it smoothly out of Peak Forest Gorge will be difficult."

Wu Jingshan nodded, agreeing that Hu Xiaotian made sense, and whispered: "But those bandits are all hidden underground—how could eliminating them be easy?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "When soldiers come, generals block them; when water comes, earth dams it—getting rid of them is General Wen's problem."

Wu Jingshan gave a wry smile and shook his head, having lost all hope in Wen Boyuan.

Hu Xiaotian told Wu Jingshan not to rush, first go to Princess Anping's tent to pay respects; Long Xi Yue had already calmed down by then, she too had heard of the missing dowry, and said to Hu Xiaotian: "Those two carriages of dowry are lost—lost. There's no need to have them risk their lives searching; in this world nothing is more important than a human life." Her view coincided with Hu Xiaotian's.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Your Highness, you needn't worry about these trifles; I will handle any matter."

Seeing Long Xi Yue's weary face, recalling that she hadn't rested properly these past days, a feeling of pity arose in his heart, and he whispered softly: "The princess still needs proper rest; she must certainly look after her health."

Long Xi Yue's lovely eyes reddened slightly as she said: "Seeing so many people die for me, how can my heart find peace? It seems I am truly an ominous person, bringing misfortune to so many."

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Princess, please don't think that way—they didn't die for you. Having you marry into Da Yong was the Emperor's idea; they came here following his orders. The reason so many casualties occurred is entirely due to General Wen's poor command, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with the princess. The princess is kind-hearted and sympathetic to the world's suffering, but these responsibilities clearly aren't yours—why burden yourself with them?"

Tears glistened in Long Xi Yue's beautiful eyes as she said: "Xiaotian, if my marriage could bring peace and stability between the two states, reducing some bloodshed and sacrifice, I would resign myself to fate."

Hu Xiaotian lowered his voice: "If you resign yourself to fate, how am I supposed to go on living? Dakang and Da Yong will certainly not achieve lasting peace merely because of a marriage..." At that moment Hu Xiaotian suddenly stopped speaking, gave Long Xi Yue a glance. She immediately understood, and softly sighed: "Sir Hu, please comfort those soldiers."

Hu Xiaotian darted to the tent flap, flung it open, saw no one outside, and frowned. As he glanced around, the voice of Xumi Tian sounded again in his ear: "Come over to the right-side earth wall."

Hu Xiaotian looked up and indeed saw an earth wall on the right, formed of naturally weathered loess; a few wounded soldiers were leaning against it to rest, and there he indeed spotted Xumi Tian's figure—she was still dressed as a man, her head wrapped in bandages, only her eyes and mouth exposed, making her true appearance unrecognizable. Hu Xiaotian silently marveled at her cunning variability, walked over calmly, and glanced at the wounded soldiers on either side.

A flicker of smile appeared in Xumi Tian's eyes as she transmitted via voice: "You needn't worry; I have already numbed their hearing—even if you shout into their ears, they won't hear what you're saying."

Hu Xiaotian pretended to check her wounds, using the voice-transmission technique she had just taught him, and asked: "Just now, were you following me?"

Fifth update uploaded— to facilitate counting extra chapters, we've decided to shift the update/vote exchange to tomorrow afternoon at five; we still guarantee two updates minimum, still one hundred monthly tickets earn an extra chapter—as long as you dare to vote, Zhangyu will surely dare to update! (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please come...)

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