"You sent out a scout, and it was killed on the spot?" He thought for a moment. "That hawk demon had been with Uncle Hao for years, always perched on his shoulder. I even fed it myself."
"It was tortured to death." Hearing his father call the hawk demon a "scout," He Lingchuan felt a weight lift from his heart. That meant they wouldn't treat it as just some little monster. "Nian Songyu and State Preceptor Sun must have learned from it that I sent it out."
He couldn't fight alone. He had to remember that his old man was his solid backing.
If his old man, an official with real power, couldn't handle this, then he had even less chance.
He Chunhua merely said, "It was only a hawk. So it died. What's the big deal?" He picked up his brush and continued writing.
He Lingchuan froze. "Father!"
He hadn't expected He Chunhua to react like this, and hurriedly tried to persuade him:
"They clearly need something from He Manor. They clearly know Little Gray was sent by me. They clearly know this is just a small misunderstanding, yet they still crushed it to death with one squeeze!"
He lightly thumped the table. The Four Treasures of the Study all jumped. "Father, those two don't take our family seriously at all. They think they can knead us into a ball or flatten us as they please, make us bow our heads and work for them, and we're not even allowed to complain!"
"Sun Fuping is a great state preceptor favored by the emperor, while I'm merely a prefect in a barbarous land. There's a world of difference between us. In ordinary times, he could knead me into a ball or flatten me as he pleased, then press you to death with his little finger. Otherwise, why would the hierarchy be so strict?" He Chunhua laughed rather than getting angry. "You've been too comfortable in Blackwater City. You don't know your place, and you don't know how high the heavens are!"
The last few words came out in a chilling tone.
It wasn't as if he felt no indignation. The other side looked down on them from the bottom of their hearts.
They'd crushed your scout to death, and you still had to work for me, even risk your life for me!
Right. That was what it meant to be a cut above.
But a higher-ranking official could crush a lower-ranking one. State Preceptor Sun had even come bearing the king's orders. What could Governor He do?
He Lingchuan protested, "But Uncle Hao..."
"If you serve under someone, you have to accept your fate!" He Chunhua frowned. "He couldn't accept it?" The man was already decades old.
He Lingchuan promptly changed the subject. "You said it yourself—that was in ordinary times!"
"Less grumbling, less clever talk, more solutions." He Chunhua tossed down his brush and stood up, rapping his eldest son on the forehead. "But we can't just stay on the defensive, either. This is still He family territory, after all. Tell me, how do you plan to make them complain?"
"It'd be better to let Second Brother come up with a plan. He's full of tricks. But if you ask me—" He Lingchuan gave a cold laugh. "Even if we have to do their work in the end, we can drag our feet for now and take them down a peg. Besides us, who knows the exact whereabouts of the Sand Leopard's relics? And they killed one of our people... well, a monster. Shouldn't there be a price to pay?"
"A price?" He Chunhua smiled faintly. Those two words struck a chord with him. "You have a point."
His eldest son was making progress. It pleased him a little.
"By the way, what about those two guards from Donglai Manor?" He Lingchuan knew He Chunhua had originally planned to let them go.
"Leave them be." He Chunhua was just as casual. "We'll deal with them in a few days. They don't care anyway."
Nian Songyu and Sun Fuping cared about the whereabouts of the token, while Donglai Manor cared about the Great Square Pot. The guards themselves were of no importance.
That evening, the two sides chatted and laughed, and the host and guests parted on the best of terms.
Riding the wine, He Chunhua all but thumped his chest as he promised he would find the pass to the Coiling Dragon Desert.
Then ten hours passed.
To Nian Songyu, every moment naturally felt like a year. He pressed them once. He Chunhua admitted he had found nothing, while once again promising to do everything in his power.
Only then did he send people to Blackwater City, putting on a show of posting notices and searching the whole city.
Excellent attitude, abysmal efficiency.
Of course, a search like that was bound to turn up nothing.
The He family's advantage was time. They weren't in a hurry.
The dignified State Preceptor finally couldn't sit still. He and Nian Songyu came calling together, but Governor He was out, so his second son, He Yue, had to receive them.
The moment they saw He Yue, both men's eyes lit up, and they lavished him with praise. Nian Songyu in particular seemed to hit it off with He Yue after a few exchanges. He even said, "We're about the same age. We should talk more from now on."
He Lingchuan sullenly took a sip of tea. Speaking of age, wasn't he closer in age to Nian Songyu? How could the man say that with a straight face? His second brother had always been more likable thanks to his handsome face, but weren't these two laying it on a bit thick?
At his father's behest, He Yue was going through the official motions. "The whole of Blackwater City has been mobilized, but with the Redcliff trade route about to close, traffic in and out of the city has surged. With all kinds of people mixed together, the search has become much more difficult."
Afraid that his second brother might suffer a loss, He Lingchuan sat nearby to keep him company. He watched the lad act so earnest on the surface while refusing to budge an inch underneath. He was the spitting image of their father, He Chunhua.
Nian Songyu grew impatient and couldn't be bothered with pleasantries anymore. "Then close the city gates and search! This concerns the fate of the kingdom. What's the big deal about closing the city for a few days?"
"That won't do." He Yue smiled bitterly. "The Baling Kingdom's delegation will arrive in Blackwater City in the next two days, then head west from here on their way home. This is their last chance to return home this year. If they're delayed, it could cause a serious misunderstanding between our two kingdoms!"
He paused. "The Baling Kingdom has always had its eye on Great Yuan, and there have been repeated clashes along the border. They're just looking for an excuse."
Nian Songyu laughed in anger. "So Blackwater City can't be closed, because closing it might spark a border war?"
"Very likely!" He Yue replied with conviction. "Qiansong Prefecture can't bear the consequences!"
Sun Fuping couldn't stand watching them bicker and waste time, so he cut straight to the point. "I heard the eldest young master of the He family was injured and shut himself away to recuperate for forty or fifty days?"
"Yes. It nearly cost me my life." He Lingchuan had been sipping tea on the sidelines for ages; at last, the conversation had turned to him. He opened his collar, revealing the wound on his neck. "Look."
Back then, the Sand Leopard had sunk its teeth into his neck and refused to let go. The wound had healed, but it had left a savage, ragged scar—a testament to the peril he'd faced.
Nian Songyu stared at the scar. "How did you get that?"
"I went to Gourd Mountain..." He Lingchuan broke off as if struck by a thought. "Wait, Commandant Nian, where did you hear that I was badly injured? There aren't many people who know about that."
Nian Songyu replied without a second thought, "My men found out. Just as you said, Blackwater City is crowded and full of gossip. You can't keep information under wraps."
"How dare those bastards spread rumors about me?" He Lingchuan put down his cup in indignation. "Who was it, exactly? Tell me, Commandant Nian. I'll make sure he pays!"
Nian Songyu fell silent, his gaze growing sharper.
That needle-pricking-the-face feeling came again. He Lingchuan glared right back, refusing to back down.
A staring contest? He'd never been one to flinch.
Before you continue