Chapter 4: 4 Cracks

4 Cracks

Once the main gate closed, the previous clamor instantly fell silent.

Tang Zhao stood before the gate, looking up at the lintel of Xue Fu.

Regardless of wealth, commoners without official rank are not permitted to add a lintel to their gate, yet Xue Daxia, a mere martial artist of the pugilistic world and a forbidden Knight-Errant, now has a very conspicuous lintel.

On the sandalwood lintel, a sword shape is intaglio-carved, as if it were a Sword Sheath waiting for a Treasure Sword to Return Storage.

Below the sword shape, four large characters are carved:

"Suppressing the Region!"

Tang Zhao was lost in thought when he suddenly heard an unusual sound behind him.

A yellow, fuzzy shadow leaped down from the wall.

It was a tabby cat, walking past his side with a swaggering, arrogant gait.

Tang Zhao thought: This cat... so fat! I didn't expect Xue Fu to have both cats and dogs.

The tabby cat waddled past, then suddenly turned its head, squinting at Tang Zhao, a look of disdain appearing on its fat face.

Huh?

Tang Zhao was startled, his heart skipped a beat, and he secretly thought: The dog is a vicious dog, and the cat is a fierce cat!

Clop, clop, clop...

The sound of horse hooves rose up behind him.

A date-red horse galloped like the wind, driving straight toward Xue Fu, and was reined in at a distance of one zhang from the gate.

The rider jumped off the horse, a bright red cloak Drifting in the wind.

The person who arrived was a military officer; he came to the gate, pushed it open, and strode straight in.

Tang Zhao was stunned; he had witnessed how difficult it was to enter the gates of Xue Fu, yet this person could barge in so brazenly—he must be a big shot. From his hurried glance, he only felt the other party was not very old; he wondered what official position he held?

Once the big shot entered, it became quiet outside again.

Time passed continuously, and Tang Zhao gradually felt his legs go numb.

"Zhaozi?"

Hearing the voice of Sui Feng, Tang Zhao turned his head and saw him hurrying over, saying: "Why don't we leave first? A big, wealthy household like this isn't meant for us anyway. Father instructed me before that if the situation looks wrong, don't be stubborn, and I must bring you back safely. It's nothing to go back; you can just join us for meals, where can't you find a bowl of rice?"

Tang Zhao looked up at the wide lintel and said: "Yes. Just now I wanted to leave directly. But he gave me his dying wish... no matter what, since I delivered the token, I must take it back. I already lost one in the woods just now; how could I lose another?"

Then, footsteps were heard from inside the gate, and that old gatekeeper came out.

Tang Zhao's heart sank.

By the looks of it, he was not in a good mood.

The little old man did not look at Tang Zhao directly, but looked into the distance, saying: "The one just now... that... who?"

Tang Zhao steadied his breath and said: "Student Tang Zhao."

"I don't care if you are Tang Zhao or Water Zhao—" the old man's voice suddenly rose, very piercing, "You came to Xue Fu to swindle; you've found the wrong place! Open your eyes and look, what kind of place is this? Is this a place for a poor scholar like you to come and mooch off of?"

Tang Zhao was speechless for a moment, and Sui Feng stepped forward in fear, saying: "Sir, we didn't..."

"Slap—"

The little old man threw a box at Tang Zhao's head; Tang Zhao hurriedly caught it and gripped the box tightly in his hands.

He opened the box, revealing an object rarely seen in the world. It looked like a metal frame with two crystal pieces.

It was a pair of Glasses.

The lenses were covered in cracks.

One lens had a thick crack that cut it in half, while the other was crazed, cracked like the glaze on porcelain.

Tang Zhao looked down, staring intently, his fingers trembling as he opened the Glasses and lifted them toward the Sunlight.

Because the lenses were shattered but held together by the frames, light could not pass through. Tang Zhao's eyes were hidden behind the Fragments, making it impossible to see his expression; one could only see his lips pressed tightly into a line.

The old man had probably never seen Glasses before; his expression softened slightly, but his tone did not: "Take your ghostly contraption and that nonsensical, gibberish-filled letter of yours and get out!"

As he spoke, he threw the letter at Tang Zhao, hitting him directly in the chest, and it fell to the ground along his lapel.

Tang Zhao bent down, picked up the letter, crouched on the ground, folded the Glasses, and carefully placed them back into the box.

The entire process was silent.

Although the old man was not tall—not much taller than the not-yet-grown Tang Zhao—he looked down on him because of their different postures. He sneered: "When I say get out, I don't mean for you to roll into some corner outside the wall. At least get out of... Heiyang County! Heiyang County is not small, but there is no place here for a swindler to stand. Today! By tonight! Before tomorrow, get out of the county border for me! Otherwise... go ask around who Xue Daxia is; taking a person's head is just a matter of a single sentence! You're lucky, kid; my dog hasn't returned yet, otherwise, do you think you'd be leaving in one piece?"

As he spoke, he turned around, his voice slowing down, and he said sullenly: "What bad luck, meeting two beggars in one day..."

Seeing that he was about to leave, Tang Zhao, who had been silent all along, suddenly said: "Please wait a moment."

The old man frowned and turned back.

Tang Zhao stood up slowly, put the letter and the token into his bosom, his face still pale, and he folded his hands in a bow.

"Many thanks for the generous gift from Xue Fu, and many thanks to you, sir, for your golden words; I only regret that this junior is useless."

The old man's expression was uncertain, and he said: "Don't bully an old man who doesn't read; I know you sour scholars are used to being sarcastic. What... do you mean?"

Tang Zhao's expression was calm, and his tone was peaceful: "Just as you said, sir, this junior is a useless scholar, and anything I say is in vain. I will follow your instructions and flee in the night as you commanded..."

At this moment, Sui Feng became even more restless, wanting to speak several times but stopping, finally pulling on the Donkey's reins.

Tang Zhao spoke clearly, his voice ringing out:

"Regardless, I will keep today's events in my heart. Today I am powerless and ashamed beyond measure; if I achieve something in the future and the household is still as peaceful as before, I will certainly come to visit again, and there will surely be a generous reward then."

The old man slapped the door frame and said: "I understand. You really were mocking us! Wait until my dog returns—"

Suddenly, someone laughed out loud and said: "This kid talks quite interestingly!"

A flash of red rushed toward them, and a person looking like a military officer strode across from the middle gate, showing no intention of yielding as he passed by the old man. The little old man was squeezed aside by a few steps, nearly falling, and stood to the side with an extremely ugly expression.

At the same time, Sui Feng found an opportunity to pull Tang Zhao back.

The red cloak stood between the two, looking down at Tang Zhao. Because of his height, it was only natural for him to look down at Tang Zhao. Even Sui Feng was nearly a head shorter than him; no one could look him in the eye.

This was also the first time Tang Zhao faced him; he appeared to be twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with sword-like eyebrows slanted upward and a spirited, heroic air. Over his black official uniform, he wore a red cloak, and a sheathed long sword hung at his waist, along with other items that were unclear at a glance.

Glancing at Tang Zhao, the Red Cloak laughed and said, "This kid looks sharp, yet has a stubborn streak; he's particularly interesting."

The old man said indignantly, "My lord, this is our..."

The Red Cloak waved his hand and said, "That's enough. Didn't you tell him to get lost? What else do you want? Do you expect this Town Protector to give him a ride?" He paused, then added, "Or is it that he has no travel money?"

Tang Zhao was stunned for a moment and said, "Student... has his own."

The Red Cloak said, "I've taken a fancy to you, I insist on giving you something." He brushed his waist casually and tossed out a glimmer of light, "Picked it up in the woods, it's yours."

Tang Zhao caught it instinctively, and when he fixed his eyes on it, he was stunned.

That golden, glittering object was his Longevity Lock.

The gold was still the same gold, and the jade was still the same piece of jade.

Only, a shocking scar had appeared on the jade, nearly splitting the white jade in two.

It had also shattered...

Tang Zhao stared at that scratch, feeling as if he were staring at the deep trench in front of the manor gate, even deeper than that natural chasm, deep and bottomless. Staring for too long, his vision gradually blurred, and everything around him began to tilt and spin...

"Zhaozi... Zhaozi..."

Sui Feng's urgent voice made him a little more clear-headed, but his head began to feel heavy.

He pressed his fingers against his temples, forcing himself to remain clear-headed.

Turning his head back, the Red Cloak was still standing there. The headache made his vision blur, and even the person's features and expression became eerie.

He endured the discomfort in his brain, lowered his head, and said, "Student thanks you, my lord..."

Suddenly, his body stiffened. Cold sweat dripped down.

He saw that the red cloak was splattered with spots of blood; because it was all a bright red color, it was hard to notice without looking closely, but once seen, the blood color felt dazzling and piercing!

Following the bloodstains upward, he saw a bloody human head hanging, half-hidden, inside the cloak!

His vision went black, and Tang Zhao completely lost consciousness.