Chapter 229: Falsehood

Song Bei didn't realize Pan Yun was faking, but he could see Zhu Zixun was more seriously injured.

Song Bei's gaze flickered; he suppressed his inner fury and turned to give orders: "Quickly send Physician Zhao to examine Daoist Sanzhu."

Zhu Zixun had already sat cross-legged to heal himself; he heard it too, but didn't care—he assumed Pan Yun was more seriously hurt than he was.

But Hu Jing and Su Ying, who had watched the entire scene, realized Pan Yun's martial skill surpassed Zhu Zixun's—her injuries were lighter.

Yet Song Bei now instructed Physician Zhao to prioritize treating Pan Yun…

Hu Jing and Su Ying exchanged glances; both felt a pang of displeasure.

This was their third time cooperating with Song Bei, escorting his goods; the first two times went well, and they'd thought Song Bei generous and righteous, the kind of Heavy-hearted man.

But now it seemed he wasn't as generous as they'd thought, nor as righteous.

They'd only traveled with him twice, but Zhu Zixun was his longtime partner—rumor had it they'd worked together for years.

And all because his martial skill was inferior to Pan Yun's, Song Bei immediately abandoned him and favored Pan Yun.

Such prioritization of profit over righteousness gave Hu Jing and Su Ying a sense of shared vulnerability.

Song Bei didn't notice their shifting emotions; he looked at Zhu Zixun with feigned concern and shouted: "Send for another carriage, line it with thick cushions, help Grandmaster Zhu aboard, check what medicines we have on hand—everything must go to Grandmaster Zhu first."

The guards responded and left.

Zhu Zixun listened with satisfaction and opened his eyes to ask: "Is the cargo unharmed?"

Song Bei hurried to reply: "Just one cart of goods—how could it compare to Grandmaster Zhu's importance? I've already sent someone to secure it; you needn't worry."

Zhu Zixun nodded, then asked, "How about the young Daoist from Long Hushan?"

Song Bei: "He's badly injured."

Zhu Zixun snorted coldly: "Too young, too hot-tempered. Give her the healing medicine first."

Song Bei immediately said: "Grandmaster Zhu is truly magnanimous."

Seeing him close his eyes again to meditate and heal, Song Bei turned away and asked softly: "How's the cargo?"

"All the boxes have been lifted; luckily, the one that fell didn't get damaged."

Song Bei sighed in relief upon hearing this and said: "Have Physician Zhao treat Daoist Sanzhu properly—move my carriage to her."

The guard bowed and left.

Physician Zhao came to take Pan Yun's pulse; she glanced at Seeing Miao Zhen, then leaned against her again.

The moment Zhao's fingers touched her pulse, Seeing Miao Zhen quietly pinched the inner side of Pan Yun's arm and pressed two acupoints.

Pan Yun's complexion grew paler, her breath weaker; Physician Zhao frowned, staring at her, wanting to speak but holding back.

Pan Yun closed her eyes weakly, feigning unconsciousness.

Seeing Miao Zhen wiped her tears: "Doctor, just say it plainly—my junior aunt, is she… dying?"

Physician Zhao hurried to say: "No, no, not that serious—she is indeed badly injured, but needs quiet rest."

He emphasized: "Bed rest. Must not move."

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He both wiped their eyes, rubbing them even when no tears came; by the time Song Bei's guards arrived, both had red, swollen eyes.

The guard blinked in surprise—so serious? She only spat blood once; Grandmaster Zhu spat twice.

After hearing Physician Zhao's diagnosis, the guard frowned and said: "Doctor, come with me to check on Grandmaster Zhu again."

Grandmaster Zhu's pulse, in Physician Zhao's view, had improved significantly—at least no longer faint as a thread.

Song Bei heard this, fell silent for a moment, then asked: "Is she really that badly injured? Her complexion looked fine just now."

The guard: "Just now, her complexion looked worse."

Song Bei lowered his gaze in thought: "It seems Grandmaster Zhu still has the upper hand."

He asked: "Did you deliver the healing medicine to her?"

"Not yet."

"Give it to Grandmaster Zhu first," Song Bei said coldly: "We've just set out—we can't afford to lose two good hands."

The guard agreed.

"They say Daoist Sanzhu can't be moved, so they don't want to switch to Young Master's carriage."

Song Bei: "Then don't force them. Prepare extra hot water and medicine—don't neglect our esteemed guests."

The guard bowed and left.

Though an accident occurred, the carriage was soon lifted, the boxes reloaded and secured, and the afternoon journey resumed after only half an hour's delay.

Pan Yun's carriage was moved to the rear, ostensibly so Song Bei could lead the way and protect them.

Pan Yun leaned comfortably against Miao He, pinched her nose, and downed the medicine in one gulp.

She didn't want to drink it—she'd struck herself with perfect control; just a bit of blood, nothing more. With a little Qi cultivation, she'd be fine in two days.

But…

Song Bei had openly offered her his medicine stash; not taking even a little felt like a loss.

Yet Pan Yun didn't feel grateful to Song Bei; she popped a candy into her mouth and began muttering: "Heartless and unrighteous, pretending kindness—definitely Japanese pirates. Where's Pan Xiaohei? I'm nearly dead, why hasn't he returned?" Miao He said: "I just saw him, but he popped up and vanished back into the forest again—no idea what he's doing."

"Forget him," Pan Yun said. "He won't get lost. He'll come back when he's hungry tonight."

Seeing Miao Zhen: "Junior aunt, what did you send him to do?"

Pan Yun rubbed her chest: "I sent him to find me some cute little treasures—I hoped he'd bring back something to investigate the boxes, but in the end, I had to act myself. My chest aches."

She whispered: "What did you get?"

Seeing Miao Zhen shook her head, lowering her voice: "I looked into my consciousness—the item was tied with straw, hard to see clearly, but the shape… looked like a sword."

Pan Yun frowned, thought for a moment, then said: "Find a place tonight to take it out and examine it."

Seeing Miao Zhen agreed.

The caravan halted only as the sun set; the guards had already found a campsite.

They often traveled this route and frequently rested here—the clearing they found was large, trees sparse, thickening toward the sides, a river nearby, and scattered remnants of old campfires on the ground.

!. Reading

The caravan had barely stopped when the merchants and travelers behind them immediately rushed to snatch up all the fire pit traces on the outskirts.

They didn't dare fight the caravan for the central spots, so naturally the closer to the caravan's center the better — in their view, the closer, the safer.

Song Bei wanted to keep Pan Yun and her group protected right in the middle, but Pan Yun flatly refused. "I don't want to be with them."

She casually pointed to a spot by the edge and said, "We'll sit over there."

Looking every bit the childish child who just didn't get along with them and refused to play with them.

Song Bei was silent for a moment, then agreed. He had the guards bring them firewood, helped them start a fire, and said, "You're injured. I'll have the cook prepare some blood-nourishing food for you."

He offered an explanation for what had happened at noon: "At noon we only stopped briefly — there wasn't time to light a fire and cook. All we had were the food boxes brought from the inn. It was my failing as host, Song."

Pan Yun said weakly, "I don't blame the boss. You're the boss, I'll listen to you in everything. But they're all hired thugs — what right does he have to bully me?"

Pan Yun sniffed, her eyes reddening as she said, "He's so old, and he still bullies a child. First he cursed me, then he hit me. If I weren't so capable, my skull would've been smashed by him."

Song Bei: …

This sounded like a childish squabble, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond. Mainly because their fire pit wasn't really that far from here either.

Wu Gong was highly skilled — he was sure to be able to hear.

Sometimes he too wanted to tear aside some of the pretenses, and stop treating these people with such mildness and courtesy.

Once Song Bei had finally soothed Pan Yun and left, Hu Jing — who had been quietly watching this side — withdrew his gaze. The moment he looked away, he met Su Ying's eyes. The two exchanged a glance without changing expression, then looked away.

It was Zhu Zixun who was quite warm toward Song Bei, his face showing that he was very satisfied with how Song Bei had handled it.

Seeing Miao Zhen took all this in and couldn't help saying, "Little Xiao Shishu, I've been watching for a long time, and it seems like only that Hero Zhu's brain isn't working well. Song Bei is so fake, and he didn't even notice."

Pan Yun's gaze swept toward Hu Jing and Su Ying, and she said softly, "That's why we have to be even more careful of the other two. Where's Pan Xiaohei?"

Pan Xiaohei returned just as night had fully fallen, with a string of… mice trailing behind his backside.

These mice looked rather pitiful — their fur was scruffy and matted — as they obediently queued up behind Pan Xiaohei, then scurried over with a whoosh.

Once they arrived, they didn't dare just sprawl there brazenly. Instead they burrowed under the fallen leaves, hiding their bodies completely, leaving only a pair of eyes peering out at Pan Yun and the other two.

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He: …

The two weren't afraid of mice — girls who'd grown up in the mountains, how could they not have seen mice before?

But… this many, and lined up in such neat order — they had never seen that.

The two silently pressed close together, turned their heads toward Pan Yun in unison, and waited for her to lose her temper.

Pan Yun swept a glance around, nodded in satisfaction, and asked Pan Xiaohei, "Have you trained them all?"

"Meow meow meow."

Pan Yun: "Got it. Tell them to stay hidden for now — we'll make our move a little later."

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He gaped their mouths open, then quickly shut them again. So this was what Little Xiao Shishu meant by her cute little babies?

Pan Yun met those mung-bean-sized eyes of the mice, smiled faintly, and said softly, "Don't worry, I won't make things hard for you. I just need you to help me scrounge up some things."

Mice: "Once the job's done, you won't eat us, will you?"

Pan Yun: "I don't eat mice."

Mice: "Then will you kill us?"

Pan Yun: "You're my meritorious subjects — I'll reward you."

Pan Yun pulled out a steamed bun and handed it straight to Miao He.

Miao He knew this drill well. Even though she couldn't understand the squeaking of the mice, she could understand Pan Yun's words — she didn't even need to think to know what they'd been discussing.

She immediately tore the bun into pieces and carefully tossed them in front of the mice.

The mice, having received their payment early, were very pleased, and immediately raked the bun crumbs under their bodies.

Pan Yun nodded in satisfaction, waved at Pan Xiaohei, and said, "Take them off to play."

Pan Xiaohei stared at her quietly for a while, then still rose and led the mice burrowing into the woods to hide well.

(End of chapter)