After Tang Boxi left, Li Chenzhou cupped his hands toward Hu Xiaotian. "Lord Hu, I'm sorry you had to see that. My elder brother cannot hold his liquor and behaves improperly when drunk. Please don't take it to heart."
Hu Xiaotian said, "I owe both generals my life, and I will remember that debt until my dying day. But I have always kept public duty separate from private affairs. I will never forget your kindness as long as I live, but I am a subject of Great Kang. We came to Great Yong to escort the princess here for her marriage. Great Yong and Great Kang are both great nations, lands of courtesy and propriety. Surely neither would do anything to disgrace the other!"
Li Chenzhou said, "Those are grave words, Lord Hu. Today's incident came without warning, and our preparations were inadequate. We may have fallen short in many respects, but none of us intended to slight your delegation." In truth, he understood perfectly well that everyone from Tang Boxi down to the soldiers had been unfriendly toward Great Kang's delegation. As for himself, after recognizing his younger half brother and seeing Wen Boyuan's gruesome death, he had been overwhelmed by grief, lost control, and killed a Great Kang soldier. Had Princess Anping not been rescued unharmed, he might have used that as an excuse to kill several more.
By now, Li Chenzhou had regained his composure completely. Killing would accomplish nothing. Even if he slaughtered the entire Great Kang delegation, his brother would not return from the dead. Moreover, Princess Anping was safe, so the marriage alliance could still proceed, leaving him no reason to continue killing. But this matter could not simply end here. He had to uncover the true culprit and avenge the brother he had