Chapter 823

Actually, Hu Xiaotian's worry was unnecessary. Huo Shengnan had been commanding troops against the Black Hu in Bei Jiang for years, experiencing countless battles big and small; she was practically always dealing with death, and in her view the dead were far safer than the living. If any real danger existed, it was Hu Xiaotian lying beside her—this scoundrel wasn't a bad person, but certainly no gentleman; along the way he had taken advantage of her more than once, and just thinking about it made her cheeks flush. While Hu Xiaotian was listening to the commotion in the next cabin, she quietly set her great sword upright between them, re‑establishing a boundary.

Fortunately, Hu Xiaotian's attention was diverted by the situation next door. Although he didn't fear that the dead posed a threat to them, the assassin was likely still nearby. If it were merely a revenge killing, there would be no need to worry, but if the one who had just sneaked into the neighboring cabin was a bandit, he would probably continue to infiltrate other cabins to commit murder, so Hu Xiaotian naturally had to stay alert.

That night each had their own thoughts, and neither could sleep well. At dawn, they heard a terrified scream from the next cabin, and Hu Xiaotian and Huo Shengnan sat up simultaneously, realizing that what had happened in the neighboring ship cabin had been discovered.

After a quick wash, not long later they heard someone knocking at the door. Opening it, they saw the shipowner standing outside, his face full of panic. Seeing they were unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately put on a mournful expression and said, 'Something big has happened! Gentlemen, come out for a moment.'

Hu Xiaotian asked, feigning ignorance: 'What happened?'

The shipowner gave no explanation, merely asking them to come out.

When they reached the deck, they found many people gathered, speaking in low voices in small groups, their faces filled with alarm, while two sturdy sailors guarded the cabin where the incident had occurred.

The shipowner told the crowd: 'Last night a murder occurred on the ship. For everyone's safety, we must recount the passengers to see if anyone is missing, so that when we reach Wuxing Jun we can cooperate with the local authorities' investigation.'

With so many people, opinions naturally diverged—some were willing to cooperate, while others loudly protested.

Hu Xiaotian and Huo Shengnan couldn't be bothered to join the debate. They went to the bow to enjoy the scenery, and after asking a sailor learned that because of last night's storm the ship's speed had slowed considerably; originally expected to arrive at Wuxing Jun by noon, they now would not reach it until evening, though the wind had ceased and the rain stopped since dawn, leaving clear weather.

Hu Xiaotian's gaze wandered. He did not see the handsome man and beautiful woman from yesterday on the deck; remembering they had lived next door to him, it seemed they were the two who had died.

After the shipowner lightly tallied the heads, he discovered that one passenger was missing—the very ragged red‑haired man from yesterday.

It was almost certain the killer was that person. Huo Shengnan said, 'After committing the murder, the assassin must have jumped ship and fled.'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'It's none of our business—let it hang high.' They already had enough of their own troubles to bother with such a trifle.

After the murder, nobody wanted to return to the cabins; everyone stayed on deck chatting. The shipowner wore a worried frown—two lives had been lost on his vessel, and his business would surely suffer in the short term.

At dusk the ship finally reached Yangjiao Port in Wuxing Jun, a mixed military‑civilian harbor with three civilian piers. Before docking, the shipowner lowered a small boat to send his men ashore to report, while the passengers aboard began to protest, knowing that alerting the authorities would bring trouble for everyone and that without an investigation they could not leave smoothly, inevitably causing delay. Moreover, since they had discovered a missing person, the assassin must have fled long ago—why should they detain this group of innocents?

The shipowner had no alternative; if he docked immediately he feared he could no longer control the passengers, and if they all left he would have no way to explain himself to the officials. Thus he could only adopt the approach of reporting to the authorities first and then docking.

In an instant the deck seethed with indignation as the passengers crowded around the shipowner demanding an explanation. He pleaded bitterly: 'Ladies and gentlemen, a murder occurred on my ship; the unluckiest one is actually me. I did not intend to make things difficult for you, but once you all leave I will be even less able to clear things up. I only ask for your patience—let the authorities investigate thoroughly, then restore everyone's innocence, and mine as well.'

Someone exclaimed angrily, 'Why should we be held responsible for what happened on your ship?'

'Yeah! The killer has already fled—why are you keeping us here?'

'We are people of Da Yong—why are you reporting to the Dakang authorities?'

Seeing the crowd's fury and the situation about to spiral out of control, the shipowner hastily offered to refund everyone's passage money, barely managing to calm their emotions.

Hu Xiaotian and Huo Shengnan never joined the fray from start to finish; the shipowner indeed had it rough—not only had people died on his vessel, but he also had to compensate a large sum of silver.

At that moment someone shouted, 'The government troops are coming!'

The crowd turned toward the pier and indeed saw a detachment of about twenty men arrive; the leading officer waved at the merchant ship, signaling them to come ashore.

After the ship docked, that group began to examine each person individually, not only searching and questioning them one by one but also inspecting everything they carried on their persons.

Hu Xiaotian and Huo Shengnan collected their luggage and horses, and were the last to go ashore, when a Dakang soldier pointed at them and said, 'Come here!'

They walked over, and the soldier pointed at Hu Xiaotian's pack and said, 'Open it up and let's see!'

Hu Xiaotian did not want to reveal his identity just then, lest he invite unnecessary trouble; besides, he had nothing to hide. He placed his belongings on the table, opened his pack, and Huo Shengnan opened hers as well. They carried little besides the ash casket, some documents, and a fair amount of gold and silver.

Perhaps attracted by the gleaming gold leaves in the pack, the officer leading the detail approached, pointed at the gold, and asked, 'With all this gold, what do you do for a living?'

Hu Xiaotian replied, 'I'm a merchant; I brought the gold to Kangdu to trade in tea.'

The officer pointed at the great sword on Hu Xiaotian's back and said, 'A merchant carrying such a large sword?'

Hu Xiaotian laughed, 'For self‑defense!'

The officer eyed Hu Xiaotian suspiciously, his gaze falling on the wooden box containing the ashes, and asked, 'What's inside this?'

'Ashes!'

The officer pointed at the ash box and said, 'Open it!'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'It's better not to disturb the dead.'

In fact, if Hu Xiaotian revealed his identity he could have left without trouble, but he did not want to cause a big scene locally; slipping away quietly would be best, and becoming the focus of attention was hardly desirable. Having heard the soldier finish speaking, Hu Xiaotian expected the officer to let him go, yet to his surprise the officer pointed at the ash box again and said, 'Open it!'

Actually, if Hu Xiaotian revealed his identity, he should be able to leave smoothly, but he didn't want to cause too much commotion locally; slipping away quietly would be best, and becoming the focus of everyone's attention is certainly not a good thing. Hearing the soldier finish speaking, Hu Xiaotian had thought the commander would let him go, but unexpectedly the commander pointed at the ash box and said, "Open!"

The officer sneered, 'One look tells me you're no good—shifty‑eyed, full of deceit, either a thief or a bandit!'

Huo Shengnan beside him almost laughed out loud; although the officer's attitude was awful, his few remarks about Hu Xiaotian were actually spot‑on.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'This general probably misjudged us; we are honest merchants.'

The officer suddenly drew his sword from his waist and slashed at the ash box on the table.

Seeing his intent from the officer's gaze, Hu Xiaotian struck first—before the sword could fall on the box, he punched the officer's jaw with full force; his current strength was far beyond what a low‑rank officer could withstand, and one blow sent the officer flying backward, his sidearm flying from his hand, about to land in the crowd and provoke a panicked scream.

From that lackey's gaze, Hu Xiaotian had already sensed his intention first; before the commander's sword in hand could fall onto the ash box, Hu Xiaotian threw a punch that struck his jaw, this punch delivered full force—Hu Xiaotian's current strength is hardly something this ordinary junior commander could withstand; a single punch sent the commander flying backward, his sidearm flying from his hand, about to land in the crowd, provoking a burst of panicked screams.

At that moment the officer landed spread‑eagled on the ground, his helmet askew and armor twisted, dust flying, blood gushing from his mouth and nose.

Seeing the situation turn bad, a group of soldiers shouted and rushed to surround the two of them.

Hu Xiaotian calmly picked up the ash box, curled his fingers into an orchid‑like gesture, paired with his cold stare, adding a touch of allure; he said coldly, 'You blind fools, dare to offend the princess's spirit—who runs Wuxing Jun? Let him come and see the Zajia!' Hu Xiaotian's eating mannerisms were seventy percent an imitation of Ji Feihua, the most domineering eunuch; though his acting was superb, his lofty, overbearing aura instantly stunned the soldiers, who exchanged bewildered glances, unable to guess his origin.

At that moment a detachment of brightly armored cavalry came galloping from afar; their leader, a young officer in silver helmet and silver armor riding a spotless white horse, shouted angrily, 'Who is causing trouble here?'

Hu Xiaotian looked toward the voice; the officer was also looking this way, their eyes meeting and both blinking in surprise—the young officer was Zhao Wusheng! Hu Xiaotian had met Zhao Wusheng when crossing the river at Qinglong Bay in Cangmu on his way to Da Yong; at that time Zhao Wusheng had dispatched two hundred marines to supplement Wen Boyuan's force and had personally arranged a farewell banquet for him on Fenghuang Terrace. Zhao Wusheng was not only the nephew of Navy Commander Zhao Dengyun, but also an insider planted here by Ji Feihua.

It can be said that the two large ships that met with disaster on the Yong River were arranged by him in secret. Hu Xiaotian had not originally planned to meet this person in Wuxing Jun; he had wanted to leave quietly without drawing attention, but the murder on the merchant ship provoked a disturbance, and while Hu Xiaotian felt helpless, Zhao Wusheng was astonished—he never imagined Hu Xiaotian would appear here.

Extra chapter uploaded; tonight, once we reach 200 monthly tickets, the fourth chapter will be released immediately! (To be continued~^~)

Extra chapter first chapter delivered, tonight upon reaching 200 Monthly Tickets will immediately deliver Four more! (To be continued~^~)