Chapter 966

Before departure, Hu Xiaotian specially came to his parents' residence to say farewell. His father had already been summoned early to the Ministry of Revenue; only his mother was present. When Hu Xiaotian arrived, his mother was chatting with Murong Feiyan. The two got along extremely well, speaking and occasionally laughing. Seeing Hu Xiaotian enter, Murong Feiyan stopped laughing, rose, and said: "Madam Xu, I'll take my leave now, not to disturb your mother-son chat."

Xu Fengyi nodded. When Murong Feiyan and Hu Xiaotian brushed past each other, neither cast a glance at him.

Hu Xiaotian's gaze followed her graceful figure until Murong Feiyan's silhouette vanished outside the door, then he turned to his mother.

Xu Fengyi could naturally see her son's disappointment, smiling: "What's wrong? Are you sulking?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "No, it's just that I feel she's been deliberately distancing herself from me these past two days."

Xu Fengyi said: "Feiyan has a strong personality; your engagement to the Yongyang Princess is a considerable blow to her. Still, as a mother I can see that deep down she still likes you and cares about you—just now we were talking about you."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "Mother, what were you saying about me?"

Talking about how you were an idiot mute for sixteen years, then suddenly became smart!

Hu Xiaotian gave a wry smile: "Wouldn't that be exposing my son's shortcomings?"

Xu Fengyi laughed: "Heaven has eyes, giving me a clever, lively, wise and brave son. Initially the Zhou family broke off our engagement; now let them regret it."

Hu Xiaotian secretly felt ashamed; Xu Fengyi would never have the chance to know that he had merely borrowed this body for rebirth, his consciousness and mind were fundamentally not that idiot. The dangers of the journey to Xichuan were hidden in his heart by both Hu Xiaotian and his father. Hu Xiaotian naturally did not want his mother to worry, so although Xu Fengyi felt some reluctance, she did not have the feeling of life-and-death separation she had when Hu Xiaotian was sent on a mission to Da Yong. Today Hu Buwei specially left early, aiming to dispel the sorrow of parting, making his wife think that his son's trip was not a major matter.

Xu Fengyi took out a letter: "This is what your father left for you; when you reach Xichuan, personally hand it to Li Tianheng."

Hu Xiaotian solemnly received it. Hu Buwei and Li Tianheng had a deep relationship; if not for Long Yelin's plot to usurp the throne, perhaps the two families would have already become one. When Hu Xiaotian went to serve in Azure Cloud, Li Tianheng had his chief strategist Zhang Ziqian go to investigate and understand this future son-in-law, showing how much he valued this marriage alliance. Later, Hu Xiaotian escorted the Zhou Prince to Xiezhou, but was trapped by Li Honghan; if he hadn't managed to escape from Xichuan then... we don't know how the final outcome would have been.

Xu Fengyi said: "Our Hu family and the Li family were engaged first; although you are now favored by the Emperor and betrothed to the Yongyang Princess, becoming the future consort of Dakang, some things still need to be clarified. The Emperor has enfeoffed Li Tianheng as a prince. That means Li Tianheng and your father may still serve together in the same court; even if we don't become in-laws, there's no need to harm harmony. Your father has already written everything clearly in this letter; when you go to Xichuan and meet Li Tianheng, you must also explain it well to him."

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "Mother, rest assured, I know what to do."

Xu Fengyi said: "Feiyan has decided to accompany your father to Luosong; I originally wanted to persuade her to stay and keep me company, but this girl is very stubborn."

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Her going this trip is also a good thing; the court already knows she was rescued from the imperial mausoleum. An arrest warrant has already been issued, listing her as a wanted criminal. Staying in Kangdu would surely be fraught with danger."

Xu Fengyi sighed: "Go see her; after this parting, we don't know when we'll meet again."

Hu Xiaotian nodded, bade farewell to his mother, then went to the place where Murong Feiyan was temporarily staying. Seeing her standing in the courtyard, it seemed she had been waiting for him all along.

Hu Xiaotian gave a light cough to draw Murong Feiyan's attention.

Murong Feiyan did not turn around, speaking softly: "These past two days I have been constantly thinking about what happened in Azure Cloud; I suddenly realized that was the happiest time of my life."

Hu Xiaotian said: "In this world, there are far too many things that go against our wishes; wanting to find a corner of peace and enjoy simple tranquility and joy has become a luxury."

Murong Feiyan slowly turned her head, tears glimmering in her beautiful eyes: "Take care on your journey!"

Hu Xiaotian pressed his lips, strode forward, and embraced Murong Feiyan's delicate figure.

Murong Feiyan's lovely face pressed against his cheek, she trembled: "Promise me you will return safely!"

Hu Xiaotian nodded heavily: "You too!"

Just after leaving the west gate of Kangdu City, the sky began to drizzle. Hu Xiaotian silently cursed his bad luck, wondering if an inauspicious start meant his journey would be fraught with setbacks. Xiong Tianba rode up on his large black horse from behind, riding alongside Hu Xiaotian, and said: "Third Uncle! It's raining; should we take shelter?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "No need, put on rain gear and keep moving."

Everyone put on raincoats and bamboo hats. This time they had twenty-six people heading to Xichuan, including three horse-drawn carriages; except for one carriage carrying Yang Lingqi, the other two were fully loaded with the dry provisions and supplies needed for the journey.

Hu Xiaotian had thought it would be a brief shower, but the rain grew heavier; by the time they reached the ten-li pavilion, it had become a downpour. Even with rain gear they inevitably got wet, so Hu Xiaotian ordered everyone to take shelter in the pavilion.

Upon entering the pavilion, they discovered two people already resting inside, which surprised Hu Xiaotian: they were old acquaintances—one was Meng Zizai, the other Qin Yutong. His first thought was that Qin Yutong had come specially to see him off, but looking at the luggage on the two horses, they seemed to be setting out on a long journey.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian, Meng Zizai couldn't help but burst out laughing: "What a coincidence! I never expected to meet Commander Hu here!"

Hu Xiaotian clasped his hands in salute: "Mister Meng, where are you headed?"

Meng Zizai laughed: "Where I come from is where I return to; although the capital is prosperous, it is not my hometown. I am returning to the Azure Cloud Black Stone Stronghold in Xichuan."

Hu Xiaotian smiled, looking at Qin Yutong: "Miss Qin, are you here to see Mister Meng off?"

Qin Yutong replied calmly: "I am accompanying my master-uncle."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "Then that means we're traveling together!"

Meng Zizai exclaimed in surprise: "You're also going to Xichuan?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded: "Exactly! If Mister Meng and Miss Qin don't mind, would you like to join us? We can look out for each other along the way."

Meng Zizai stroked his beard and smiled: "Good, certainly the best." Qin Yutong said nothing, but her expression seemed not to object.

As they spoke, the rain stopped; everyone resumed the journey. Hu Xiaotian invited Meng Zizai to ride in Yang Lingqi's carriage and sit together.

Although Qin Yutong was dressed as a man, she still covered her face with black gauze. Hu Xiaotian slowed his horse to ride alongside her, feeling quite curious about her attire. She had several times given him human-skin masks; with her skill in disguise, making and wearing such a mask would be easy, yet he had never seen her wear one. Their meeting today at the pavilion was indeed a coincidence. Hu Xiaotian had known Qin Yutong for not a short time, yet he still knew little about this mysterious girl, only that she was the favored disciple of Ren Tianqing, the chief of Xuantian Guan. Recalling how they first met in Azure Cloud, Qin Yutong had voluntarily requested to join the escort for the Zhou Prince.

Recalling all that, Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel suspicious, even suspecting that this chance encounter at the pavilion was their careful arrangement.

Qin Yutong was the first to break the silence: "Commander Hu, what is the purpose of your journey to Xichuan this time?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "To celebrate a birthday!"

Qin Yutong said: "Li Tianheng's fiftieth birthday is indeed a world-shaking event."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Miss Qin, what brings you to Xichuan?"

Qin Yutong said: "Commander Hu, are you suspecting us of having ulterior motives?"

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "How could I?" Actually, Qin Yutong had seen through his thoughts; he indeed suspected her and her companions of having ulterior motives.

Qin Yutong replied calmly: "If you harbor suspicions, why bother inviting us with false sincerity? Commander Hu, aren't you afraid we'll follow and ruin your great undertaking?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Miss Qin, your words are quite amusing; why don't you tell me what great undertaking I have?"

Qin Yutong did not answer his question, speaking softly: "Forgot to congratulate you—you are now the future consort of Dakang."

Hu Xiaotian said: "There's nothing to congratulate about; marrying a princess is like inviting an ancestor back—you can't touch, offend, strike, or scold her; I don't see it as a joyous occasion."

Qin Yutong said: "You'd better not let the Yongyang Princess hear that, or she'll surely make you regret it."

Hu Xiaotian said: "The mountains are high and the Emperor far away; I can say whatever I want now."

Hu Xiaotian quickly realized the benefits of traveling with Qin Yutong and Meng Zizai. Meng Zizai shared a carriage with Yang Lingqi; after interacting with him, he greatly admired this young man's talent, which gave rise to a cherishing-of-talent mindset. Seeing Yang Lingqi's hands disabled, he felt sympathy and voluntarily offered to treat Yang Lingqi's left hand. Meng Zizai's treatment method was to use golden needles to separate the adhered muscles, which could partially restore Yang Lingqi's finger function; however, for fundamental improvement, the ruptured tendons would need to be resutured. After Meng Zizai's treatment, Yang Lingqi's left hand had regained some function, creating favorable conditions for Hu Xiaotian to perform surgery later.

This journey to Xichuan went as smoothly as Hu Xiaotian had anticipated; he believed the old emperor would not dare to act against him en route, and could almost be certain that danger would only begin after they reached Xizhou. Qin Yutong was naturally aloof; although she traveled with Hu Xiaotian, they seldom spoke. Thus the party proceeded smoothly into Xichuan territory.

After crossing Pengyin Mountain, it was time to part ways. Hu Xiaotian headed northwest toward Xizhou, while Qin Yutong and Meng Zizai went southwest toward Azure Cloud.

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