Everyone remained silent. The officer leading the men threatened, "Put down your weapons, or we'll kill you in a storm of arrows."
The two guards shielded the Prince of Zhou from the front and rear. As for Hu Xiaotian, no one cared whether he lived or died. He silently cursed his luck. He had thought his streak of misfortune was over, that arriving in Xiezhou would put an end to it, yet he had barely arrived before running into trouble like this. He quickly analyzed the situation. This was certainly no misunderstanding. Given the Prince of Zhou's status, daring to surround him with swords drawn was an act of rebellion, punishable by beheading under the Great Kang Code. Even if these men had eaten bear hearts and leopard gall, they would never have dared act so rashly. There had to be a meticulous plan behind this.
Since their arrival in Xiezhou, everything had been arranged by Yang Daoquan. He was undoubtedly bound up in the situation before them.
Hu Xiaotian reminded himself to stay calm. He coughed, instantly drawing everyone's attention, then smiled. "Brothers, surely you're joking? Lord Yang invited us here. Since we're not welcome, we'll just have to leave." He winked at the Prince of Zhou and made a show of heading for the door, only to have two long sabers immediately bar his path.
The leader shouted, "Seize them all!"
A calm, steady voice suddenly came from outside. "Wait!"
A handsome young man strode toward them with the bearing of a dragon and a tiger, accompanied by four warriors. He was in his twenties, tall and straight, with a tiger's back and a wolf's waist. Long years of outdoor training had given his skin a healthy bronze hue. He had a high nose, swordlike brows, and bright