Chapter 088 – The Tragic Prefect’s Son – “Are the Hu people simple-minded?” (03/10)
Mu Xin’s eyes narrowed slightly. He knew his own strength; an ordinary person would’ve been knocked unconscious by that blow.
What was wrong with this man?
The physician was frantic inside. This barbarian didn’t seem to be joking around. If he really stabbed the young master…
Xie Chenyang: “Don’t even think about shaking me off.”
Mu Xin sneered. “You asked for it.” Then he hoisted Xie Chenyang over his shoulder and walked out.
The doctor cried out, “Young Master…”
Mu Xin shot him a gaze brimming with murderous intent. The doctor froze in his tracks, his heart nearly stopping from the sheer force of that look.
Now, many shops in Bozhu City had their doors tightly shut, inns and taverns included.
As forcefully as he’d broken into the clinic, Mu Xin checked into an inn with Xie Chenyang. Standing by the bed, he cupped his fingers to his lips and blew a long, drawn-out whistle.
Two quarters of an hour later, a falcon landed on the windowsill. Mu Xin pulled a red string from his robe and tied it around the bird’s leg.
The falcon preened against his hand before soaring away.
Xie Chenyang watched curiously. “Isn’t that bird a bit chubby?”
Mu Xin glanced at the falcon’s receding silhouette. “Don’t say that in front of him.”
Xie Chenyang: “Would he bite me?”
Mu Xin: “He would.”
Xie Chenyang: “Then I’ll call him Fat Bird from now on.”
Mu Xin: “As you wish.” A few pecks would teach him to be wary.
—— —– —–
The next day, the people of Bozhu City began to recover and move about again. Almost every street had someone holding a funeral.
Soon, news spread of the Yang family’s entire household being wiped out.
Many citizens, filled with sorrow, gathered spontaneously and prepared to help the Yang household collect the bodies and arrange the burials.
However, before they could take action, they discovered that the bodies from the Yang residence had vanished. Instead, numerous new graves had appeared on the back mountain.
The Yang family members were buried in separate graves while the servants were collectively interred in a large mound marked only by a simple tombstone inscribed: “Servants of the Yang Household, Victims of Murder.”
“When we went in that night, we didn’t see the young master’s body…”
“Doctor Meng also said he saw Young Master Yang, but then he was taken away by a barbarian. Who knows if he’s alive or dead now.”
“He must still be alive. This must all be his doing.”
“Who knows who actually broke into Bozhou that night to commit such atrocities…”
“We should also bury those guards who died outside without family to claim them. We can’t just leave them to rot. After all… they were protecting us.”
“You’re right…”
—— —– —–
Mu Xin led Xie Chenyang to the rear mountain of the Yang residence.
“Though you don’t remember them, we should still pay our respects.”
Xie Chenyang obediently lit incense and burned paper offerings, his face showing only pity, not a trace of sorrow.
Mu Xin wondered, if his family saw him like this now, how would they feel?
Suddenly, he felt compelled to speak, “Your parents… I truly did not kill them.”
Xie Chenyang didn’t even lift his head. “I know.” Even those guards weren’t killed by him, but by the original Mu Xin.
But even if they weren’t killed by him, it couldn’t be said he had no connection to it.
Besides, the man standing before him had very nearly died at his hands.
Mu Xin’s hand gripped the curved blade’s hilt, lightly stroking the gem inlaid upon it, his gaze filled with conflict.
He should have killed him.
Yet not only did he spare him, he kept him by his side. He even ordered his men to help bury the entire Yang family.
The memory of those eyes—filled with deep affection, utterly trusting and defenseless—made Mu Xin’s throat tighten.
The beauty trap of the Central Plains… was truly terrifying.
Xie Chenyang watched the paper money burn to ashes, then stood up and clapped his hands. “Was it you who helped bury my family?”
Mu Xin replied coldly, “No.”
“I know it was you.”
Not long after sending the Fat Bird away, Mu Xin had gone out. Xie Chenyang had long guessed he was contacting his men.
“Thank you.” Xie Chenyang stepped forward and embraced him, his voice gentle.
Mu Xin’s body stiffened. After a long moment, he returned the embrace, his voice low. “I gave you a chance to leave. You chose not to go.”
“Of course I wouldn’t leave. Wherever you go, I go.”
Mu Xin tightened his arms around his waist. “Even if you want to leave after your memories return, I won’t give you another chance.”
Mu Xin lifted him up and walked toward the city gates.
You Huang watched with mixed feelings: “That’s it? Even after all that bitter enmity? He inherited all of Mu Xin’s memories, and just like that, he could fall for you in such a short time?”
[What do you mean “fall for”? He’s always loved me.]
You Huang fell silent for a moment: “Sometimes I really can’t tell if you’re confident or just narcissistic.”
[What are you talking about? Because we love each other. I trust in his love for me no matter what, and surely he feels the same, doesn’t he?]
You Huang: “I see…”
Trust?
[Dad, what’s wrong?]
You Huang: “Nothing.”
[Dad, when can I hear your life story?]
You Huang: “When you return to your own world.”
[…Alright.]
They returned to the inn.
Mu Xin: “We’ll leave Bozhou City tomorrow. If you want to take anything back with you as a keepsake, gather it tonight.”
Xie Chenyang: “Where are we going?”
“Yangzhou.”
That was the fief of Prince Zhen’an.
Xie Chenyang’s hand touched the brocade box in his sleeve. “Then I’ll step out.”
Mu Xin: “Mhm.”
Xie Chenyang left the inn alone.
[Dad, is the person taking over Bozhou City coming soon?]
You Huang: “They temporarily transferred someone from the neighboring province to take charge. The person officially assigned to govern Bozhou is still en route.”
[Then there must still be the Emperor’s people in Bozhu City?]
No wonder Mu Xin had to leave.
[Then, with my father’s position, are there channels we can access, and someone reliable enough to ensure the item reaches the Emperor safely? Is there such a person in Bozhu?]
You Huang: “There is one.”
Under the cover of night, Xie Chenyang knocked on the door of a pawnshop.
“Look at what time it is! We’re closed. Come back tomorrow!”
Hearing the voice from inside, Xie Chenyang replied, “That won’t do. I have something valuable to sell now. Not a moment sooner or later. It must be done immediately.”
The voice inside became slightly deeper. “What is it?”
Xie Chenyang: “A shimmering, jet-black treasure—both large and small, both hard and soft, neither light nor heavy. A priceless treasure of the world.”
The pawnshop door swung open.
Xie Chenyang muttered under his breath: [What kind of secret code is that? Totally random!]
You Huang’s voice carried a hint of amusement: “That’s precisely the point—to avoid coincidences.”
If someone was in a hurry to sell something, the initial code might be stumbled upon by chance, but matching it precisely later would be much harder.
A middle-aged man with a slender mustache greeted Xie Chenyang. “Young Master Yang?”
The man naturally recognized the Prefect’s family. He had been the first to relay news from Bozhu City.
“It’s me,” Xie Chenyang said, pulling a brocade box from his robe and extending it. “This was entrusted to me by my father before his death—the very thing that brought this calamity.”
The man accepted it solemnly. “Did Lord Yang leave any final words?”
[He’s trustworthy, right?]
You Huang: “Yes.”
Xie Chenyang: “This is evidence of Prince Zhen’an’s treason and collusion with the enemy. The disaster in Bozhu City was also orchestrated by his second son, Yun Shuo.”
Yu Shuo was Yun Shuo—Yu being his mother’s surname.
“He befriended me under the alias Yu Shuo. Unaware of his true identity, I invited him into my residence to offer support. Little did I know he was secretly surveying our defenses. The city garrison also harbored Prince Zhen’an’s agents, who obtained Bozhou’s defensive layout…”
Xie Chenyang lowered his head. “Off-duty guards were poisoned to death. Those on duty were slaughtered by men brought by Yun Shuo…”
The middle-aged man clenched the brocade box. “They even slaughtered the common folk! Rest assured, Young Master, I will deliver this box.”
Xie Chenyang: “Thank you.”
The man’s eyes flickered. “Then how did you escape with your life, Young Master, and find me safely?”
Xie Chenyang lifted his head, meeting the man’s gaze. “My guards shielded me as I fled to the rear mountain, but a barbarian pursued. With all my guards slain, I dragged him with me over the cliff.”
The middle-aged man possessed his own analytical skills. Judging by Xie Chenyang’s facial expression and gaze, he detected no deception.
“You must know that beneath the cliff at the rear of the Yang residence lies a river. We fell into the river and, by sheer luck, survived…”
Xie Chenyang paused here, “That Hu man was the leader sent to liaise with Prince Zhen’an. When he woke up, he intended to kill me.”
The middle-aged man: “And the young master killed him instead?”
Xie Chenyang flashed a peculiar smile. “No. I pretended to have amnesia and claimed I saved him. He didn’t kill me—he even claimed to love me.”
Who could have guessed the assassin was actually his own wife?
The thought made Xie Chenyang want to laugh. Thankfully, even after inheriting those memories, his beloved hadn’t turned against him.
The middle-aged man: “But…” Were the Hu people that naive?
Xie Chenyang grew impatient with the endless chatter: “Anyway, I’ll stay by his side. Barring any surprises, he’ll take me to Prince Zhen’an’s fiefdom tomorrow. Could you give me the contact details for that place? I’ll pass any news I get to you.”
The middle-aged man pondered for a moment, then chose to trust his instincts and gave him the contact address and password.
Before leaving, Xie Chenyang said, “This brocade box must reach the Emperor as quickly as possible.”
The middle-aged man replied, “Rest assured, Young Master.”
Xie Chenyang stepped out of the pawnshop. [Ah-Xin never followed me. See? That’s the trust born of love.]
When Xie Chenyang returned to the inn, Mu Xin sat in a chair polishing his curved blade.
[Are these the two he dropped in the river?]
You Huang nodded: “Yes. His men retrieved them.”
[Hmph. His men. Who knows how many times he’s met with his men behind my back.]
“Aren’t you going to ask where I went?”
Mu Xin paused his actions. “Regardless of where you went tonight, from now on, you stay by my side.”
Xie Chenyang: “Could it be… you’ve fallen for me?”
Mu Xin stood up and walked to Xie Chenyang: “Love? I want you.”
Xie Chenyang: [Straightforward! Direct! I like it!]
“Where I come from, there’s a rule: what you want, you take by any means necessary. What you can’t have, you destroy with your own hands.”
Mu Xin leaned closer to him,
“You used your charms on me first. I gave you a chance to leave. But from now on, if you ever dare to think of leaving, I will kill you.”
Xie Chenyang sucked in a sharp breath: [A domineering assassin falls for me? Love this plot twist!]
Seeing not fear but anticipation in Xie Chenyang’s eyes, Mu Xin lowered his head to seal his lips into a kiss.
So bewitching—no wonder the Prince of Zhen’an’s son would sacrifice himself as bait.
Had he ever kissed him like this? Had he ever been gazed upon with such intensity?
The thought made Mu Xin’s kiss grow fiercer.
This time, Xie Chenyang couldn’t hold back.
He gripped Mu Xin’s waist, turning the tables and guiding him step by step toward the bed.
Edit: Krone
Proofread: Choux_choux
