Liang Dazhuang quietly glanced back, then hurriedly squeezed his tiny eyes shut, sighing inwardly. Young master, oh, young master-your idiocy has flared up again!
After Hu Xiaotian's handling, the girl in red spat out several mouthfuls of clear water-pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Having swallowed too much water, she had excessive pressure in her abdomen, so the water shot out with considerable force, striking Hu Xiaotian every time. Heated to thirty-seven degrees by her body, it brought a faint warmth to his cold, soaking-wet skin.
After draining the water, the next step in the standard rescue procedure was artificial respiration-mouth-to-mouth. Hu Xiaotian had already prepared himself for that, but just as he was about to act, he discovered that the girl in red had resumed breathing on her own. Although her breathing was weak, her current vital signs suggested she was out of danger. There was therefore no need for him to keep challenging conventional morality and shocking the onlookers. He was just about to lower her gently to the ground.
A flurry of urgent hoofbeats came from outside the crowd. The spectators scattered to reveal a burly, dark-faced man in a green brocade robe riding toward them with more than twenty warriors. He had a square face, thick, downward-slanting eyebrows, eyes like bull's balls, a flat nose, and thick lips. Though powerfully built, he was hideously ugly. Mounted on a black horse, he roared, "Waaah! Fuck his ancestors back eight generations! Whoever dares snatch my sister, I'll hack him into ten thousand pieces!"
The twenty-odd men rode fine, spirited horses and wore splendid clothes. Their menacing approach sent visitors scattering wherever they went, terrified they might not get out of the way in time.
Liang Dazhuang was fairly well informed about affairs in the capital. Upon seeing the dark-faced man, he immediately recognized Tang Tiehan, the eldest son of Tang Wenzheng, vice minister of the Bureau of Carriages. Tang Tiehan was one of the capital's local tyrants. Relying on his father's influence, he secretly controlled transactions in the capital's horse market and reaped enormous profits. He kept a band of idle thugs, bullied merchants, dominated the market, and had committed plenty of wicked deeds. The horse market was not far from Emerald Cloud Lake, and he had just heard that a gang of scoundrels had thrown his sister into the lake, then dragged her out to molest her. As far as scoundrels went, who around the horse market dared be a bigger one than he was? Anyone who dared bully his sister must have a death wish. It was a slap in the Tang family's face in full public view. Tang Tiehan had immediately gathered more than twenty fully armed men and ridden over to rescue her.
The moment Liang Dazhuang saw Tang Tiehan approaching with his men, his expression changed. He hastily warned Hu Xiaotian, "Young master, we're in serious trouble... They've come looking for a fight."
There was really no need to tell him. With such a commotion, Hu Xiaotian had spotted them long ago.
Hu Fo also said, "Young master, get on your horse and leave first. We servants will cover your retreat..." His words sounded utterly loyal, but his legs shook like chaff in a sieve, and his voice had clearly changed pitch. Although these household servants were sturdy, they had little actual fighting experience. They merely swaggered around on the strength of their master's official rank. In a fight, they could handle outnumbering an opponent, but the sight of more than twenty men suddenly charging toward them nearly scared their wits out.
Hu Xiaotian glanced at the chestnut horse tethered to a tree. Even if he had been an accomplished rider-which he was not-he could never have escaped pursuit by those twenty men. Yet he was not afraid in the least. Looking at the murderous warriors, he merely remarked casually, "Why run? Great Kang has laws, too."
Gripping the hilt of the saber at his waist, Liang Dazhuang summoned his courage and stepped forward to block Tang Tiehan and his men. He suddenly bellowed, not to frighten them, but to bolster his own nerve: "Halt! Who goes there?"
Tang Tiehan and his black-clad warriors swept forward like dark clouds bearing down upon them. In an instant, they were less than fifty feet from Liang Dazhuang. Holding a wrought-copper staff, Tang Tiehan rolled his grotesque eyes and roared like a thunderclap out of a clear sky, making Liang Dazhuang shudder. "I'm Tang Tiehan, unbeaten throughout the horse market! Fuck your uncle, you blind bastard! You dare abduct my sister?"
Liang Dazhuang inwardly groaned. This really was a thorny situation. The young master never gave him a moment's peace. He edged closer and said quietly, "The flood has washed into the Dragon King's own temple-family failing to recognize family! Brother Tang, our master is Lord Hu, minister of revenue! Show us a little consideration!" At this critical moment, he had no choice but to invoke his master's name.
Tang Tiehan saw his sister lying motionless on the grass, with a half-naked Hu Xiaotian beside her and her sash discarded nearby. Who knew what unspeakable thing this bastard had just done to her? Rage surged through him. Who cares if you're a minister's son? Your father's an official, but so is mine. Fuck it! Then he heard this fat man dressed as a servant actually daring to call him brother, and his anger boiled over all the more. Isn't that just insulting me?
At that thought, Tang Tiehan threw caution to the winds and jerked the reins. His black horse raised its hooves and charged straight at Liang Dazhuang's chest, frightening him into hastily dodging aside. Tang Tiehan raised his wrought-copper staff and roared as he charged at Hu Xiaotian, looking ready to smash him into a pulp with a single blow.
Every servant, Liang Dazhuang included, fled to the side in terror. Only at a critical moment did these servants reveal their true nature: each was as timid as a mouse, and not one would take a blow for his master. Servants had principles, too-they sold their service, not their lives!
Hu Xiaotian was still smiling. Somehow, a dagger had appeared in his hand. He rested its sharp edge lightly against the girl's tender, snow-white neck, then smiled at Tang Tiehan. "Believe me when I say I'll slit your sister's throat with one stroke!"
Terrified, Tang Tiehan hauled sharply on the reins. The black horse let out a long neigh and reared high, nearly throwing his burly body from the saddle. He was so furious that the corners of his eyes seemed ready to split, but he could not throw a stone at the rat without breaking the precious vessel beside it. He dared not gamble with his sister's life. He threatened, "Touch a single hair on my sister, and I'll hack you into ten thousand pieces!"
Hu Xiaotian sighed. "Threatening me? I'm not even afraid of death. Why the fuck would I be afraid of your threats?" His dagger moved, slicing off a lock of the girl's long hair. A single hair? I'll cut off a whole lock.
"You..."
Hu Xiaotian stared coldly at Tang Tiehan. "You may not be particularly bright, but you ought to learn how to behave yourself. If your sister dies, you'll be the one who forced her to her death. I doubt your conscience would ever let you rest! Now back off!"
By then, the twenty-odd warriors had caught up and surrounded Hu Xiaotian's party.
Hu Xiaotian stood up with his arm around the dazed girl in red, pressing the dagger against her back over her heart. His smile concealed a blade. "All of you, get off your horses, or I'll finish your sister right in front of you!" He knew he was only bluffing. If this dark-faced brute led his men in a mass charge, he could never actually take a life. But he had calculated that Tang Tiehan would not dare try it. He had never imagined that a law-abiding man like himself would take a hostage, yet under the circumstances, this was the only way to keep the situation under control.
Seeing that Tang Tiehan still showed no intention of dismounting, Hu Xiaotian shouted sharply, "Get off! Do you really want to watch this young master perform a live dissection?"
Tang Tiehan had no idea what a live dissection was, but Hu Xiaotian's shout frightened him nonetheless. He hurriedly waved his hand, ordering everyone to dismount. At his command, the warriors climbed off their horses.
Hu Xiaotian had his servants bring over three horses, then handed the girl in red to Liang Dazhuang, telling him to keep holding her hostage with a blade to her neck. He himself swung onto the chestnut horse.
Tang Tiehan said, "Let my sister go!"
"Let her go?" Hu Xiaotian laughed. "Heh, let me get home and give it some thought." He raised his whip and rode toward the minister's residence. His four servants mounted the seized horses and fled close behind him, taking the girl in red with them.
Seeing them actually ride off with his sister, Tang Tiehan hurriedly swung into the saddle and led his men in hot pursuit. The onlookers joined in the uproar, and some even raced after them on foot to watch the fun. For a moment, voices boiled through the air. Someone shouted, "Bride snatching... Bride snatching! The revenue minister's son is abducting a respectable girl..."
Hearing their cries, Hu Xiaotian could not help feeling delighted. Abducting a respectable girl? Ha! Being a wicked official's son who snatches women isn't bad at all!
Emerald Cloud Lake was not far from the minister's residence, and Hu Xiaotian's party knew the route well. Although Tang Tiehan and his men continued pursuing them, they dared not get too close, afraid of angering Hu Xiaotian and making him actually kill his sister with a stroke of his blade. They could only keep shouting from behind, trying threats, intimidation, coaxing, and pleading-every trick they could think of. Hu Xiaotian remained unmoved, however, and Tang Tiehan could only watch as the group carried his sister into the minister's residence.
Tang Tiehan led his men charging up to the rear gate, but it was already firmly shut, with several servants sliding the bar into place inside. Tang Tiehan shouted, "Hu Xiaotian, listen up! My father is the court's vice minister of the Bureau of Carriages! You dare abduct my sister? All he has to do is submit an accusation against you before His Majesty, and your entire household will be executed, every head rolling!" As he spoke, it never occurred to him that, given his father's rank, obtaining an audience with the emperor would be anything but easy.
Once back at the minister's residence, the servants immediately recovered their spirits. Hu Xiaotian ordered them to tie up the still-dazed girl in red. He had just witnessed her fiery ferocity for himself. That little bitch-the lash she gave me still burns like hell.
Hearing Tang Tiehan's ceaseless abuse outside, Hu Xiaotian laughed. "Vice minister of the Bureau of Carriages? Isn't that just a glorified Keeper of the Heavenly Horses?" He asked Liang Dazhuang, "What rank is that?"
"Principal Sixth Rank!" Liang Dazhuang answered quietly. Then, in an ingratiating whisper brimming with pride, he added, "Our master is Principal Third Rank!"
Hu Xiaotian counted on his fingers. His father was Principal Third Rank-the gap between the two families was no trifling matter. One step higher in official rank was enough to crush a man to death. With his rank, my father could grind yours into dust in minutes.
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