Charge Into Battle With Me

At midnight, Shen Qian returned.

He brought back bad news: Hu Jian was dead!

Hu Jian was the scholar who had mocked Yang Yi in Qiao'an City that day.

Of the six from the Qiao Household, five had returned, while one had fallen in battle.

Yang Yi suddenly realized he had underestimated these old hands of the martial world. He had thought that, aside from himself and Qin Siniang escaping, the rest would be more likely dead than alive. The outcome before him was vastly different from his initial judgment.

It seemed they all had some means of preserving their lives. As the saying went, beneath a great reputation there were no hollow men; anyone who could enter the Qiao Household as an Attendant had a few tricks up their sleeve.

Only...

"You didn't notice anything wrong?" Yang Yi stood by the window and asked Shen Qian, who had barely any injuries on him.

"What's wrong?" Shen Qian looked utterly bewildered.

"See for yourself!" Yang Yi raised his thumb and pointed behind him.

"There's movement outside!" Zhuang Laosan's expression suddenly changed. He immediately realized something and looked at Shen Qian. "You led the pursuers here?"

"I didn't, I'm not, I..." Shen Qian instinctively denied it. His face gradually turned pale, and his voice grew softer and softer. At last, he understood.

Of those who had escaped the city, aside from Yang Yi, who for some reason was completely unharmed, everyone else bore injuries of varying severity. Clearly, they had all gone through more than one bloody battle. Lü E, the strongest among them, had even fallen unconscious.

Yet compared to them, Shen Qian looked disheveled but was fundamentally unscathed.

The scene of fleeing the city earlier replayed swiftly in his mind, and countless things he had not understood became clear in an instant.

"Fuck!" Shen Qian cursed fiercely. He finally understood that if Clearwind City had not wanted to leave a tail behind, how could he possibly have escaped back?

The pursuers outside had indeed been led here by him, but in his panic, he had not noticed at all.

"We're finished!" Zhuang Laosan muttered. Qin Siniang's expression was equally ugly.

Faint firelight shone outside, coming from every direction. The enemy had clearly surrounded them, and the distant whinnies of horses could be heard.

Gradually, the firelight grew much brighter. The enemy was closing in.

Someone shouted from outside, "People of the Qiao Household, you are surrounded! Surrender at once, and your lives may be spared!"

"Song Du, you bastard!" Shen Qian could no longer hold back and cursed loudly.

Though he could not see the man, he knew who was speaking merely by the voice. After all, they had spent years together in Clearwind City. Who would not recognize whom?

"Hahaha, isn't this Brother Shen Qian?" Song Du's laughter rang out, brimming with smug delight. "I must thank Brother Shen for leading the way. Without you, it would not have been so easy to catch these people from the Qiao Household in one net. Rest assured, Brother Shen. When the time comes, I'll make it quick and guarantee you won't suffer!"

This drew a burst of laughter from all around.

Shen Qian launched into another torrent of vicious abuse.

Song Du treated it as a dog barking. His voice suddenly sank as he said, "Qin Siniang, Zhuang Laosan, the two of you are merely Attendants of the Qiao Household. There is no need to risk your lives. Besides, wherever you go, won't you still be an Attendant? Bring me the head of either Shen Qian or Lü E, and I, Song, will treat you as brothers."

Shen Qian's life absolutely could not be spared. They had already torn their faces apart, and there was the enmity of clan extermination between them. Even if Song Du wished to spare him, Shen Qian would never let the matter rest. As for Lü E, she was Qiao Yaoyao's personal guard and naturally could not be won over.

Inside the room, Zhuang Laosan's expression did not change, and no one knew what he was thinking. Qin Siniang, however, turned to him. "Which side has fewer people?"

Zhuang Laosan shook his head. "We're surrounded. There's too much commotion, and it's dark. There's no way to tell."

If they knew which side had fewer men, they could break through in that direction.

"Otherwise, we can only do as we did in the daytime—scatter and break out, each praying for their own fortune."

"No!" Qin Siniang decisively shook her head. "Lü E is unconscious. We cannot abandon her."

The current situation differed from the daytime. Back then, everyone had been uninjured, but if they scattered now, who would take Lü E?

Whoever took her would have no chance of survival.

The two spoke rapidly. Neither wavered in the slightest because of Song Du's attempt to sow discord. Having wandered the martial world for so many years, how could they not know that the more divided their hearts were at a time like this, the faster they would die? Even if they truly turned against one another and surrendered, they would most likely not be accepted. More likely, they would be ruthlessly killed once they had been used.

No one wanted to work with someone who might stab their own people in the back at any moment.

"At a time like this, we can't worry about Lü E! Besides, she's been poisoned. Who knows whether she'll even wake up?" Zhuang Laosan was somewhat impatient.

Though the two had not wavered in their allegiance, they had begun to argue over how to proceed.

If Lü E were still awake, they would not be like this. But with no one to lead them, their individual views naturally differed.

Shen Qian was still trading insults with Song Du, the two quarreling fiercely.

"There's no time for you to keep arguing. They're already gathering archers. They'll launch their attack very soon." Yang Yi, who had been observing the situation outside, suddenly spoke.

This was just a rundown shack. One volley of fire arrows from the enemy would leave them dead or stripped of a layer of skin.

Zhuang Laosan turned toward him. "Kid, who do you think we should listen to?" He clearly wanted to pull in an ally.

Qin Siniang also looked at him. Only Shen Qian wore a dark expression. He had led the pursuers here, so he had no standing to voice an opinion now.

Yang Yi pondered briefly before saying, "You should listen to me instead."

Zhuang Laosan froze, then sneered. "You brat, you think you are—"

Before he could finish, he stared fixedly at the plaque Yang Yi had suddenly pulled from his robes.

"Grade-A!" Zhuang Laosan thought he had seen wrong.

Yang Yi said in a low voice, "Grade-A Attendant Yang Yi of the Qiao Household. I now require the three of you to cooperate with my actions. Do you have any objections?"

When Qiao Wuwang had handed him this Grade-A plaque, he had mentioned that it could not only be used to requisition the Qiao Household's manpower and supplies outside, but under certain circumstances, it could command Grade-B Attendants.

Yang Yi's thinking was simple. Since there was no leader now, while Zhuang Laosan and Qin Siniang each insisted on their own views and Shen Qian was useless to count on, siding with either one would cause everyone's morale to fall apart. Since that was the case, he would be the leader himself.

No matter what, it was better than having hearts that were not united.

Zhuang Laosan still could not recover from the shock. This brat before him had joined the Qiao Household as an Attendant less than two months ago, not even a fraction of his own time. How had he become Grade-A?

Even Shen Qian had forgotten to curse. The scene in Xiude Hall, when he and Yang Yi had joined the Qiao Household together, remained vivid in his mind. Yet today, he had suddenly become a head shorter than someone else?

The crucial point was that Yang Yi was a country brat he had always looked down upon.

It was truly difficult for him to accept.

But that Grade-A plaque was undoubtedly genuine.

Qin Siniang, however, cupped her fists and said solemnly, "Siniang has no objections. I am willing to follow your orders!"

She had fled here alongside Yang Yi, and Yang Yi had saved her life earlier. Seeing him produce the Grade-A plaque, she naturally cooperated.

Though Yang Yi was young, his actions during the day had shown a steadiness far beyond his years. Now that Lü E was unconscious, everyone was a Grade-B Attendant. By rights, once Yang Yi displayed the Grade-A plaque, they truly had to obey his orders.

"And you?" Yang Yi looked at Zhuang Laosan and Shen Qian.

Zhuang Laosan blinked, then finally cupped his fists. "No objections!"

Shen Qian also forced out the words. "Shen has no objections either!" An arm could not twist a thigh. Right now, he had no choice but to go with the flow.

"Since that is so, then charge into battle with me!" Yang Yi rolled his neck, and a series of dense explosions sounded from within his body.

Zhuang Laosan was dumbfounded.

Charge into battle?

Charge at whom?

Charge in which direction?

Yet Yang Yi did not explain. He merely turned back to look at the three of them, his expression unfathomable. "Whatever you do, don't fall behind!"

After saying that, he drew a deep breath, leaned slightly forward, and assumed a charging stance.

Zhuang Laosan felt his scalp go numb. "Wait, that's—"

Boom... Before he could finish, Yang Yi had already driven off with both feet, charging straight ahead.

That was Song Du's direction! Zhuang Laosan wailed inwardly.