Chapter 1408: Thanks

When Liu Songping and Qi Wang fled with Wei Zhongxian, Li Zhao and his men immediately gave chase on fast horses, while the bailiffs from Guangping Prefecture followed on foot. By all rights, even on foot, those reinforcements should have arrived by now, shouldn't they? If they had gotten here, they could certainly have rescued us from the danger we're facing right now.

So why haven't they come? Did they get lost on the way? Didn't we leave markers along the entire route, and we haven't even gone that far! Li Zhao's heart grew all the more frantic with bewilderment as he barely fended off Qi Wang's attacks.

What he didn't know was that those Guangping Prefecture bailiffs had actually arrived long ago. At this very moment, they were off in the distance, observing the fight between the Eastern Depot men and the two Embroidered Uniform Guard. Strangely enough, even though they could see the Eastern Depot side was losing ground in this fight, they still made no move.

"Mister Bai? Those Eastern Depot men look like they won't hold out much longer. If we don't go in now, I'm afraid it'll be too late!" Beneath the shade of a tree, the head bailiff quietly asked the middle-aged man beside him.

Mister Bai was the prefect's trusted personal advisor. Word had long since spread privately that without Mister Bai, the prefectural yamen probably couldn't even function. Moreover, before they set out, the prefect had repeatedly stressed that Mister Bai was in command of this assignment and that they must obey his orders completely. So in front of this middle-aged scholar, he dared not take the slightest liberty, respectfully following his commands.

However, although Mister Bai appeared gentle and refined, his temperament was far from pedantic; he was instead quite easygoing. Even his stamina on the march was remarkably good, and he hadn't slowed the group down at all. As a result, they had gotten along rather pleasantly on the journey, and inwardly they all quietly admired him, feeling it was no wonder Mister Bai was worthy of being the prefect's right-hand man — he truly had some ability.

After catching up, they had been hiding here the whole time awaiting orders, yet Mister Bai had never given the command. Seeing the situation turning dire, the head bailiff had no choice but to steel himself and ask.

"Don't rush, don't rush." Mister Bai's face held a faint smile, showing not a trace of tension. "We can wait a little longer."

"But... if we wait any longer, I'm afraid it'll be too late!" The big man was growing anxious. "The Eastern Depot men look like they're about to collapse!"

"Aren't they doing rather well? I'd say they can still hold out." Mister Bai cast a few more glances in that direction, but showed not the slightest intention of making a move.

"Sir, you must not be someone who often trades blows with others, right? We can all see that Lead Clerk Li and his men are already spent arrows at the end of their flight — their lives are in danger at any moment!" Because of his urgency, the big man's tone grew a bit more vehement. "Sir, please let us go in and fight now! While the Eastern Depot men can still fight, we can join forces and capture and kill those two vicious criminals. Otherwise, if they're defeated, we... I'm afraid we won't be able to hold out on our own either!"

"Won't be able to hold out on your own? Why would you need to hold out on your own?" Within Mister Bai's ever-present smile, a hint of sternness finally showed through. "Who told you to go and hold out?"

"Uh... this..." The big man's eyes widened as he stared at Mister Bai in confusion. "Didn't the prefect order us to help these Eastern Depot men capture those imperial convicts?"

"Imperial convicts? Since when did the prefect say they were imperial convicts?" Mister Bai waved his hand with perfect composure. "Capturing them is the Eastern Depot's job. The prefect never said we had to get involved..."

So this is about sitting on the hill and watching them slaughter each other? The big man felt a jolt of shock in his heart.

But if that's the case, why were we told to follow them here? He still felt some doubt in his mind.

"Alright, I know that young man wounded you, and you're burning for revenge. But some things can't be rushed. Keep watching, just keep watching." The smile returned to Mister Bai's face. "If the Eastern Depot men win, we'll go over and add flowers to the brocade."

The hidden meaning was clear: if the Eastern Depot men lost, then they would simply ignore it.

The big man wanted to say something more, but seeing Mister Bai's expression, he no longer dared. When they left the prefectural seat, the prefect had repeatedly instructed them to obey Mister Bai's orders. If he kept questioning him, he might truly anger Mister Bai, and that would be disastrous.

Compared to that, the earlier grudge, and even the lives of these Eastern Depot men, truly counted for nothing.

"Yes, this humble one obeys only your commands, sir." He bowed and cupped his hands toward Mister Bai. "Sir, just give the order, and even if it's a mountain of blades or a sea of fire, we will charge through it!"

"You're a clever one!" Mister Bai burst out laughing. "Fine, rest assured, as long as I remain in the yamen for a single day, you won't be short of benefits!"

……………………

Li Zhao, of course, could not hear this conversation between the two. He was currently flustered and scrambling under Qi Wang's unending onslaught, while inwardly cursing those bailiffs for still not coming to help.

No matter what, he knew he couldn't count on those people for now. He could only count on his own men, who were stumbling and staggering as they ran toward him.

Stall for time first, let them come and help kill this young man. As long as we can kill this young man, that old one is already gravely wounded and can be easily finished off together afterward. Just hold on a little longer, just a little longer...

Clinging to this belief, he endured the searing pain in his hands, swinging his blade to parry incessantly. Though hard-pressed on every side, he still barely managed to preserve his life. Then, inch by inch, he edged his way over toward his men.

Step by step, though stumbling and staggering, he was getting closer and closer to them, closer and closer to escaping safely. Li Zhao's heart began to ease just a little.

However, perhaps because he had noticed the same thing, Qi Wang's attacks grew more and more urgent. He swung his blade relentlessly, hacking at Li Zhao's head and abdomen, even adopting a stance of mutual destruction, utterly heedless of his own safety, with an overwhelming momentum as if he were ready to trade his life for Li Zhao's right here.

How could Li Zhao possibly trade lives with someone like this? So he focused solely on defense, without the slightest intention of striking back, which made him appear all the more hard-pressed on every side.

This short stretch of travel felt like half a lifetime in Li Zhao's heart, but at last, he finally reached a spot just a few steps away from his men. Their shouts and cries reached his ears in full, vivid detail, sounding now like celestial music.

"Kill him!" He stamped heavily on the ground, then leaped backward into the air, pointing his blade forward in a feint.

Yet at that very moment, he suddenly heard a faint hissing sound again, like a low hum, yet also like a sharp whistle... His eyes widened as he turned his head to look behind him.

A sharp blade was hurtling toward him at great speed, the figure in midair growing larger and larger. He wanted to dodge, but he simply could not move. He could only watch, with boundless terror, as the tip of the blade came straight at him.

With a muffled "Thwump," under the horrified gazes of those nearby, Li Zhao, who had already leaped back into the midst of their group, was stabbed clean through from behind by a blade. Blood burst forth in a spray, splashing onto them.

And Qi Wang, spurred to even greater ferocity by that muffled sound, let out a great roar, stomped heavily on the ground, and then leaped forward, charging at Li Zhao. Then, ignoring the blades slashing at him from the side, his eyes blood-red, he hacked viciously down at Li Zhao's arm!

Qi Wang took a slash across his back, but he severed Li Zhao's right arm. Blood spattered onto his face, as if painting a layer of pigment onto him.

Qi Wang shrieked again, then swung his blade back around in a heavy sweep, forcing the people beside him to retreat.

"Come on! Come on!" He laughed wildly, raising his blade to point at the remaining few. "Come and meet your deaths!"

Qi Wang, covered head to toe in blood and grime, shouting with such madness, once again intimidated the enemies whose hearts were already wavering. They hesitated and moved no further, then looked at Li Zhao, who was already lying collapsed on the ground.

Although his back was still faintly rising and falling, anyone could see that with wounds this severe, Li Zhao was as good as dead.

"Come on! If you won't come, then I'm coming!" Qi Wang raised his blade and took a few steps toward them.

No one mustered the courage to step forward and fight him again. First one man turned, and in the end, they all scrambled over each other to flee backward, terrified of having to face this god of slaughter again. They ran back desperately, heedless of everything, reached the horses, then vaulted into the saddles and fled without looking back. No one paid any more attention to whether Li Zhao lived or died.

Qi Wang did not pursue. He merely stood there holding his blade, letting the others leave. His head was spinning violently, and the wound on his back was still bleeding ceaselessly. He felt as if he might pass out at any moment, yet he still stood there swaying unsteadily, walking step by step toward the place where Li Zhao had fallen.

"How fearsome..." Not just the remaining Eastern Depot agents, but even the bailiffs standing in the distance were awestruck by Qi Wang's performance, fierce as a mad tiger. "Truly, he has no regard for life or death!"

"Indeed, these Eastern Depot people really have no eye for judgment, provoking a man like this." Mister Bai remained perfectly calm, as if not the least bit shaken. "Now that things have come to this, it's only fitting that they count themselves unlucky..."

"Then... then what should we do now, sir?" The burly man asked him hesitantly.

"What to do? Since the Eastern Depot men have failed, why should we get involved any further?" Mister Bai smiled. "What, could it be you still want to go up and have another round with him?"

"This humble one wouldn't dare!" The burly man hurriedly waved his hands in denial. "It's just... if we wash our hands of this now, what will the prefect say... and besides, what about the imperial court..."

"Don't hem and haw like that. What's so hard to say?" Mister Bai was still smiling. "I understand what you mean, but why are you worrying about this? You acted on my orders; no matter what, the blame won't fall on you. If the prefect blames anyone, I'll bear it. If the imperial court blames anyone, the prefect will bear it. What need is there for you to worry?"

Under Mister Bai's veiled rebuke, the burly man dared not ask any more questions. He bowed and nodded repeatedly in assent, none of his earlier swagger remaining.

"Then shall we go back and report now?" he probed once more.

"Of course we go back. If we don't leave now, when better to leave?" Mister Bai made a gesture, then turned and walked away. The others hurriedly fell in behind him.

Li Zhao was now breathing out more than he was breathing in. The wounds on his chest and arm were still oozing blood, staining a large patch of earth beneath him red. In his intense agony, he opened his mouth, gasping for air like a fish hauled ashore. His severed arm lay beside him, the fingers still faintly twitching.

Qi Wang walked up beside him, but did not raise his blade to finish him off.

"Why... why haven't you done it yet...?" When he realized Qi Wang had come closer, a faint glimmer of life finally returned to Li Zhao's vacant eyes. "Can't... can't you just give me a quick end?"

Qi Wang merely looked at him, still not making a move. The madness from moments before had passed, and reason had returned to his mind. Looking at the man before him, already on the brink of death, he suddenly felt how absurd it all was — the killing and being killed.

"Even if I don't kill you, you're going to die." After a moment's hesitation, he answered in a low voice. "You wanted to kill me, so we killed you. You can't blame us for that. But don't worry, I'll bury you all later. I won't leave your bodies exposed in the wilderness..."

"Pffthahaha..." Li Zhao suddenly burst out laughing, then coughed incessantly. Bloody froth gushed from his mouth in large amounts. "Then I suppose I must... must thank you for that... but... but..."

"No need for thanks. But what?" Qi Wang asked in a low voice.

"You think killing me... killing me will change anything...?" As the blood loss grew more severe, Li Zhao's face turned increasingly pale, and his voice was terribly weak, barely a thread like a mosquito's whine. "You... you won't escape either. Just living a little longer, that's all... Hahahaha, thanks, thanks... thanks..."

One thanks after another, his voice fading lower and lower, until at last it became silent and still.

Snowflakes drifted down beside him, like the final sobs of a living soul departing the mortal world.

Qi Wang simply stood there quietly, watching Li Zhao lying on the ground as if gazing up at the sky. Snowflakes landed on him and quickly melted, mingling with blood to soak his clothes through. The chill swiftly replaced the burning blood-heat from before, giving him a sudden sensation of icy blades piercing to the bone.

After an unknown stretch of time, he slowly recovered some strength, then forced himself to walk toward where Liu Songping was.

Liu Songping was now slumped and crouched on a rock, looking utterly dejected and listless, exhaustion written all over him. But if not for that knife he had thrown, both of them would likely have died here.

Qi Wang walked to his side, then half-crouched and embraced Liu Songping.

"Third Uncle, I've come to rescue you."

"Foolish boy." Liu Songping gave a bitter smile. "Help me up."

The sky had already darkened, turning half-light and half-dim. The wild grasses swaying in the cold wind looked more and more like phantom shadows in the darkness.

Wei Zhongxian was still sitting in the same spot as before, unhurriedly kneading his own feet with an expression of intense concentration, as if nothing in the world could disturb him anymore. Though being alone in the desolate wilderness at such a time was hardly a good thing, he showed not the slightest discomfort.

The rustling of the withered grasses grew louder and louder, until at last, beside him, they suddenly parted.

"Back?" Wei Zhongxian asked without raising his head.

"We've put you to trouble, Gonggong." Liu Songping smiled bitterly and apologized to Wei Zhongxian. "A sin, a sin."

"It's nothing. What matters is that you made it back!" Wei Zhongxian laughed as well. "Rest early. We must travel on tomorrow!"

"Does Gonggong still intend to go to Fengyang?" Liu Songping asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Go? Of course I'm going! The court ordered this old servant to go, and since they haven't revoked the decree, why wouldn't this old servant go?" Wei Zhongxian said without a moment's hesitation. "Besides, in this vast world, where else can this old servant go? But... you two needn't follow this old servant any further, need you? Fine, fine, fine. Part ways early."

Liu Songping and Qi Wang exchanged a glance. "Gonggong, we beg your pardon, but we cannot obey!"

"Oh? You won't?" Wei Zhongxian was instead somewhat surprised. "You've already reached this point — why still follow this old servant? Surely you don't still think you're men of the court?"

"Li Zhao's words were only one side of the story. The court has issued no order instructing us to alter our itinerary." Liu Songping spoke with considerable firmness. "That being the case, we must naturally rally our spirits and carry out our previous assignment, delivering Gonggong safely there. We dare not slacken in the slightest."

"You people... you people..." Wei Zhongxian understood, and then couldn't help laughing in spite of himself. "A bunch of stubborn fools, every one of you! Fine, fine. Then I must trouble you two. This old servant is grateful to you."

"Many thanks for Gonggong's praise!" Liu Songping saluted him. "Additionally, this humble one has an presumptuous request. Could Gonggong give the item you previously promised me to Wang first? Gonggong may rest assured — even if Gonggong gives it in advance, this humble one will absolutely not go back on his word and will exhaust every effort to fulfill Gonggong's wish."

"No, don't speak like that. Your character — this old servant trusts it, of course. This old servant offered the item to the young lad just now; he simply refused it. If he wants it now, he can just take it directly from this old servant." Wei Zhongxian once more drew those few sheets of paper from his bosom. "Take them. Once this old servant reaches Fengyang, what use will these worldly possessions be?"

"Wang?" Liu Songping shot Qi Wang a glance.

Under his gaze, Qi Wang hesitantly accepted the paper sheets and tucked them into his own bosom.

Although he had taken the valuables as Liu Songping wished, deep in his heart there still lurked a faint hope — that the situation in the capital was not as dire as Li Zhao had said, that the Embroidered Uniform Guard had not yet branded the two of them as traitors, that they still had a chance to return to the capital, to the place where their ancestors and fathers had served.

How could the Great Ming court, which they had served generation after generation, be cast aside so easily?

"Third Uncle, these were earned with our blood and sweat. You told me to accept them, so I accepted them. But... but we haven't betrayed the Embroidered Uniform Guard! I... I don't want to just leave the Embroidered Uniform Guard like this, then hide my name and live out my life in exile far from home. Can't we at least try to see if we can go back?" Qi Wang asked Liu Songping. "How about this: once we've safely delivered Eunuch Wei to Fengyang, we'll leave there. Then, Third Uncle, you go first to Jiangnan and wait for me. I'll go to the capital to test the winds. If all is safe, I'll come back to fetch you, and we can both return to the Embroidered Uniform Guard. If something really has happened, I'll come find you, and we'll just hide our names and be done with it..."

"And if you don't come back?" Liu Songping glared at him. "Do you mean for Third Uncle to take these valuables, hide his name in Jiangnan, and live out the rest of his days in obscurity?"

Qi Wang sullenly lowered his head and did not answer.

"You... you really are a foolish boy!" In his anger, Liu Songping raised a hand to strike him, but halfway through the motion the movement pulled at the wounds on his body, making him gasp sharply in pain. Helpless, he could only lower his hand. "Foolish boy, I know why you think this way. I... I came from the same place as you! If there were any way at all, would I be doing this? Do you know how much effort I wasted trying to get out of this assignment before we left the capital? But you treat yourself as a hound of Great Ming — and what do they treat you as? We've served the Embroidered Uniform Guard for generations, yet the higher-ups tossed us out as easily as throwing something away, just because we had no money to grease the wheels and were pointlessly occupying two posts! The higher-ups treat us like this, and you... to think you can still say such things!"

"What..." Qi Wang was stunned once more. He had never imagined that before leaving the capital, Third Uncle, who had seemed so dejected and indolent, had seen the risks of this assignment and had still gone to such lengths to maneuver behind the scenes.

And yet, despite all that maneuvering, in the end there had been no way to avoid this assignment... The higher-ups had long since made up their minds to cast the two of them aside.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard... the Embroidered Uniform Guard... I gave them my wholehearted loyalty, and this is the result I get?

His mind fell into chaos.

"Enough, enough. The things are already given to you anyway, and it's up to you how you dispose of them." Seeing that he was truly too distressed, Wei Zhongxian spoke up to help him out of the awkwardness. "Don't quarrel for now. Once you've delivered this old servant to Fengyang, it won't be too late to discuss what you want to do. Right now you're both wounded. If you don't tend to your injuries first, why waste your vital energy on arguing?"

"Gonggong is right." Liu Songping nodded, then shot another glare at Qi Wang, but at least said nothing more.

"Don't be too hard on the young lad, either. This child is a sincere soul — just teach him slowly!" Wei Zhongxian sighed. "If Great Ming had a few more hot-blooded men like this, how could it have fallen to such a state!"

Yet when Liu Songping heard these words, he did not look gratified. Instead, a flicker of despondency crossed his face.

"Even if Great Ming had ten times as many such hot-blooded men, they'd still be done to death by their own people. What use would that be to the country or the family?"

With that, without waiting for the astonished Wei Zhongxian to retort, he turned and walked away.

Afterward, since the sky had grown dark, each of them gathered firewood and lit a campfire.

Fortunately, the light snow had now stopped, so they managed to get the fire going well enough. After changing into fresh clothes, they drew close to the fire and spread a bedroll beneath a tree to rest. The living and the dead soon greeted the same dark night amid the cold wind.