Chapter 19: Chapter Nineteen: Yu'an — What Is…

In a distant grove, two people stood on the branches of a large, leafy tree.

Cheng Xin stared dumbfounded at the scene in the distance, nudging with his elbow the person beside him, whose jaw had likewise dropped in shock.

"Looks like… they don't need our help."

Cheng Sen's gaze was dazed; he watched Cheng Qiuluo's retreating back, his words stumbling over one another.

"Oh my heavens, I'm not seeing things, am I? That sound just now… they all fell — this is nothing short of a miracle!"

"Shh! Keep your voice down!"

Cheng Xin reached out to cover his mouth, then tipped his chin downward, signaling him to look below.

They saw a masked man push the corpse pinning him aside, struggle to his feet from the ground, clutch his hand that had been blown apart, and stumble off into the distance to save his own life.

This man was the leader of the assassins. When he had seen the Iron Lump flying toward them earlier, he had pulled the person beside him in front of him to take the hit — otherwise, he would have been done for!

The man glanced sideways toward the direction of the Cheng Family's womenfolk, and the scene from moments ago surfaced in his mind; a trace of fear flickered in his eyes.

They actually possessed such a bizarre ability — and that Iron Lump with its tremendous destructive power…

He had to deliver the news to his master as quickly as possible!

Suddenly, the hairs on his back stood up for no reason, and a chill ran through his heart.

"Who?!"

The instant he turned his head, a streak of white light flashed swiftly before his eyes.

Before he could react, a surge of fishy sweetness kept welling up from within; then he stared with wide eyes, clutched his neck, and toppled to the ground.

Cheng Sen wiped the Dagger clean and looked at Cheng Xin beside him.

"Nearly had one slip through the net — what do we do now?"

Cheng Xin patted him on the shoulder.

"Drag him back first, don't let the Old Madam and the others find out."

……

While clearing the battlefield, Cheng Qiuyun suddenly noticed that one of the assassins had a wound on his neck, but her gaze only lingered briefly — she assumed it was Cheng Qiuluo's doing and didn't think much of it.

And when burning the corpses, Cheng Qiuluo also noticed the wound on that man's neck; she turned her head and glanced toward Cheng Qiuyun's direction.

She figured the man had merely been knocked out by the blast earlier, and upon waking had tried to flee, only to be spotted by her elder sister.

And so, the two sisters each considered it a trivial little matter; neither suspected anything, and neither spoke up about it.

Elsewhere, after tallying the casualties and laying the fallen brothers to rest, Wu Meng — disheveled and covering his face — squatted on the ground in silence for quite a while.

Meng Shi, Cheng Qiuruo, and the mother-daughter pair Cheng Jiuling were bandaging the wounds of the injured Jiedai.

After a long pause, Wu Meng, his eyes bloodshot, looked toward Cheng Old Madam.

"Cheng Old Madam, you all should flee quickly. We'll pretend we never saw you — if we keep going, it'll only get more dangerous."

Of their twenty-odd men, counting himself and Feng Shan, only four remained.

The people above had never intended to let them reach Beihuang City safely.

And they, the Jiedai, would ultimately be silenced just like those villagers.

Better to seize this chance and each flee for their own lives.

Feng Shan sprang to his feet abruptly and slammed his blade heavily onto the ground.

"This cursed job — I'm done with it!"

Cheng Old Madam rose to her feet leaning on her cane, her expression calm as she regarded the two men.

"Do you want to live?"

Hearing this, Wu Meng and the other man were stunned for a moment.

"If there's a way to stay alive, who would choose to die?"

Cheng Old Madam continued.

"If we keep going, there may yet be a way out. But if you defy the Imperial Decree, there's only a path to death — and your families will be dragged down with you."

Hearing this, Wu Meng gave a bitter laugh.

Indeed — apart from pressing on down this single road to the bitter end, they had no other choice whatsoever.

No!

Suddenly, Wu Meng's breathing grew rapid.

He recalled the scene he had glimpsed in a daze moments ago, and those two tremendous booms…

His gaze burned as he fixed it on the Cheng Family.

Perhaps… they did still have another choice.

Wu Meng stood up and bowed respectfully to Cheng Old Madam.

"I beg Cheng Old Madam to point out a clear path for us."

Cheng Old Madam considered for a moment.

"First, write a letter back to the Capital, saying we encountered bandits on the road who tried to kill us, with heavy casualties, and request reinforcements."

"You must let the people in the Capital know that we are all still alive — only then will they have something to fear."

"Then find someone to notify your families and have them leave the Capital as quickly as possible."

Wu Meng frowned in thought.

"If we're to send a letter, we have to enter the city first."

Suddenly, a loud cry rang out.

"Ah — it hurts!"

Hearing his words, two Jiedai clutched their wounds, grimacing, and wailed in agony.

One Jiedai knelt on the ground, pleading.

"Colonel Wu! Our injuries are far too severe—we simply can't keep moving. How about letting us go into the city to deliver the message and tend to our wounds along the way?"

The other Jiedai put on a mournful face and chimed in from the side.

"Yes, Colonel Wu, please let us go. At home we have an eighty-year-old Grandmother above us, and our parents; below us, we have newborn children to raise. We don't want to die yet!"

The Cheng Family watched this scene coldly, saying nothing.

Wu Meng and Feng Shan exchanged a glance, then wiped their faces.

"Fine. You two go into the city to report."

Saying so, he tore off a large piece of his hem and, using the blood from his wound, wrote a Blood Letter. He stamped it at the end and handed it to the two Jiedai.

Wu Meng looked at the two of them deeply.

"You—look after yourselves."

The two Jiedai happily clutched the Blood Letter, nodding frantically in agreement.

"Understood, Subordinate understands!"

Watching the two of them run off at top speed, Feng Shan sighed.

"They probably won't be coming back."

Wu Meng let out a cold laugh.

"Brainless fools. Do they think they'll be safe once they're in the city? They're dreaming!"

Beyond the screen, An Luo watched and shook her head repeatedly. She rolled her eyes and began to roast.

"The Emperor is wary of the Cheng Family, not you lot. If you'd stuck together and escorted the Cheng Family to Liu Fang Land, you're just a few small fry—who'd go out of their way to pick on you?"

"But now? Aren't you just sticking your neck under the blade, rushing to let someone silence you?"

"Those two idiots!"

Meanwhile, in the Live Stream Room, Yu'an reached up to scratch her little head, blinking in confusion.

【Fairy Sister, what is 'stupid tea'?】

An Luo: "!!!"

"Pfft!"

Seeing that private message, An Luo, who had been drinking water, sprayed it straight out.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

She checked her phone while coughing violently.

She hadn't even sent a bullet comment just now—how did Zaituan hear it?

Hearing the commotion on her end, Xiao Yu'an hurriedly asked in her mind.

【Is Fairy Sister alright?】

An Luo glanced at her profile notifications. It showed the upgrade was complete and a new feature had been unlocked—one of which meant she could now talk directly to Zaituan in the Live Stream Room without sending bullet comments.

She tentatively replied.

"I'm fine. I just choked on my water."

【I see. Fairy Sister still hasn't answered Yu'an's question—what is 'stupid tea'?】

An Luo:... how awkward.

Can we just forget about this?

How is she supposed to explain?

Admit she blurted out a swear word in one careless slip?

But how can a little fairy say bad words?

"Yu'an misheard. Elder Sister said the tea by my hand spilled."

【Okay.】

Having gotten an explanation, Yu'an stopped dwelling on it and went back to staying by her Grandmother's side, bustling about helping hand over medicine.

Seeing that she didn't keep pressing, An Luo let out a breath of relief.

Thank goodness—she almost led the little one astray.