Suspicion

With Yizhe joining them, Qing Shi immediately led the group onward toward the Land of Iron.

The farther north they traveled, the colder it became. The snow along the road grew deeper, and the caravan stopped to rest more and more often.

There were around thirty people in their party. Aside from Qing Shi and the other four merchants, the rest were guards.

"Lord Yizhe, look at these dozen or so samurai. They are loyal retainers we raised ourselves!" During a rest break, Qing Shi pointed at the fully armed samurai standing near the pack beasts and introduced them to Yizhe.

Although Yizhe was only ten, his years of taijutsu training had made him far sturdier and more mature-looking than boys his age. He looked more like he was thirteen or fourteen.

His manner of speaking and conduct were also like those of an adult.

Qing Shi found the boy increasingly extraordinary and did not dare slight him.

"They look quite formidable. You must have invested a great deal in them, right?" Qing Shi's household retainers were all spirited and imposing, far beyond ordinary samurai. Yizhe could not help praising them.

"Of course. When we travel, we try to make money through harmony and rarely clash with others, but there are always petty thieves eyeing us. It is impossible to hire samurai and ninja long-term, so raising loyal retainers to protect ourselves becomes the inevitable choice," Qing Shi explained helplessly.

"Then... the others must be guards you hired temporarily, I suppose." Yizhe glanced at the mixed group of remaining samurai.

"That's right! We lost several guards in our previous encounter with the Red Ant Bandit Group. So, while resting at the inn, we recruited some passing samurai to replenish our numbers," Qing Shi continued.

"Then I find it strange. You already encountered the Red Ant Bandit Group, so how exactly did you escape?" Yizhe looked at Qing Shi with a faint smile.

A sorrowful expression appeared on Qing Shi's face as he lowered his voice. "Perhaps we had only just entered the Red Ant Bandit Group's territory and were still far from their main force, so they did not send their full strength at first. They merely dispatched a small group to intercept our goods. Later, our brave guards detonated the Explosive Tags in the last two carriages and perished with the enemy. That was how our caravan escaped disaster!"

"I doubt those samurai were that noble. You used them to cover your retreat, didn't you?" Yizhe gave Qing Shi a cold look. He was not some child who understood nothing. He immediately realized that Qing Shi had likely deliberately detonated the Explosive Tags on the last two carts, blowing up both the guards and the bandits to escape.

"H-Heh... Lord, you jest." Qing Shi gave a stiff laugh and kept wiping sweat from his forehead.

Too lazy to bother with the embarrassed Qing Shi after exposing his true intentions, Yizhe slowly began inspecting the caravan.

Besides the caravan's original personnel, nearly twenty of the samurai had been hired.

Naturally, their quality varied greatly. Yizhe even spotted a middle-aged man in his forties, carrying a battered old sword and following the group as a guard.

It seemed the Red Ant Bandit Group had truly frightened Qing Shi badly. He had even recruited a samurai in his forties without hesitation. Yizhe raised his assessment of the Red Ant Bandit Group's danger by several degrees.

"Hm?" Yizhe noticed a young samurai of fourteen or fifteen. The boy gave him a strange feeling.

The other samurai were either dozing where they sat, wiping down their swords, or chatting in small groups during the break.

Only that youth neither rested nor maintained his sword. Instead, he kept looking around as though searching for something.

If the youth had been some unconventional swordsman, that would have been one thing. But Yizhe did not believe a boy of fourteen or fifteen could have reached such a free and uninhibited realm.

This young samurai might have a problem. Suspicion arose in Yizhe's heart.

"Hello." Yizhe stepped forward and greeted him.

"Hello." The youth responded politely.

"May I borrow your sword? I have not practiced swordsmanship in a long time, and my hands are itching for it. I would like to borrow your sword for a little practice," Yizhe said with a smile.

"A sword?" The youth froze for a moment before responding, "Sure!"

As he spoke, he casually reached for his waist, only to grab empty air.

"Sorry, please wait a moment. I do not know where I put my sword!" The young samurai blushed in embarrassment and apologized.

"It's fine. I can wait," Yizhe said with a smile.

Though his expression remained unchanged, Yizhe was filled with doubts.

He might not be a samurai, but he understood how important a sword was to one!

The sword remained where its wielder remained! That was no empty saying!

It would have been one thing if a samurai was not carrying his sword, but this fellow did not even know where his own sword was!

There was definitely something wrong with this young samurai!

After searching for a long time, the young samurai finally dug out a battered longsword from beneath a pile of miscellaneous items.

"My lord, here." The youth handed over the longsword.

"What is your name?" Yizhe accepted the sword, drawing the blade as he casually asked.

"My name is He Feng," the young samurai answered softly.

"Then... tell me, how is my swordsmanship?"

With that, Yizhe raised the sword and began swinging it about in the snow by himself.

"My lord, your swordsmanship is excellent!" After Yizhe finished testing the sword, He Feng praised him enthusiastically.

"Is that so?"

"It really is! It is even better than mine!" He Feng's face reddened as he praised him earnestly.

"Shall we spar sometime?" Yizhe sheathed the sword and returned it to He Feng.

"Time to set out—" A shout came from ahead, calling for the group to depart.

"Next time. We can talk again when we have the chance." Yizhe waved farewell and headed toward the front of the convoy.

"Definitely, definitely!" He Feng smiled as he watched Yizhe leave.

But he had no idea what turbulent waves had risen in Yizhe's heart.

Yizhe did not know swordsmanship. He had merely relied on his exceptional physical abilities to hack and slash wildly. Anyone with even a little knowledge of swordsmanship could see that, yet the young samurai had still praised his skill.

Even if he was flattering him, he should not have done it so blatantly!

All these abnormalities showed that the youth truly had a problem, and Yizhe could not help raising his guard.

"Leader Qing Shi!" Yizhe called out to the short, plump middle-aged man.

"Lord Yizhe, what can I do for you?" Qing Shi answered with a smile.

"You have traveled to and from the Land of Iron so many times. You should have a map of the route, right?" Yizhe stared at the short, plump man as he asked.

"Um... my lord, what do you need it for?" Qing Shi's smile faded as he looked at Yizhe warily.

After all, every caravan's route map was of vital importance. If it fell into the hands of someone with ill intentions, it could deal the caravan a fatal blow.

"Your caravan has traveled this route so many times that the Red Ant Bandit Group is probably familiar with your path as well. I want to examine the terrain along the route and estimate where they might set up an ambush, so you can prepare in advance and avoid being caught off guard," Yizhe explained patiently.

"Oh—so that's it! Wait here! I'll get the map right away! Right away!" After hearing the explanation, Qing Shi hurried off on his short legs to find the map.

Before long, Qing Shi came jogging back with a scroll in hand, panting so hard he could barely catch his breath.

"My lord... this... this... this is our route map!" He handed over the map while gasping heavily.

When Yizhe opened the map, the caravan's route and the surrounding terrain were all laid out clearly before him.

"How long until we reach this place?" Yizhe pointed at a spot along the route and asked Qing Shi.

Judging from the terrain, it appeared to be a stretch of canyon.

"About... one day, I think?" Qing Shi lowered his head to consider it, then answered with certainty.

"What? Could the Red Ant Bandit Group be planning..." Qing Shi saw a trace of worry between Yizhe's brows and made a guess.

"It's nothing." Yizhe shook his head, his furrowed brows relaxing. A strange glint flashed through his eyes as he said softly, "Keep moving."

"But..."

"Don't worry. I have my own plans."