Couldn't Do the Math

The one-eyed man leaned on his saber, still standing on the steps like a guardian god.

But blood had already soaked his robes...

Fang Ke waited a long while before giving a slight wave. An enforcer immediately stepped forward and carefully checked the one-eyed man's breathing and pulse.

"Banner Commander, he's dead!"

The enforcer reported back.

Fang Ke glanced at Yang Ge and waved his hand. "Keep searching. Don't let a single villain slip through. You two, go inside and look. Don't frighten whoever's in there..."

"Yes!"

The enforcers accepted their orders and continued searching the rear courtyard.

Two enforcers carrying torches stepped past the one-eyed man and gently pushed open the door behind him.

"Phew..."

Yang Ge let out a heavy breath and forced a smile. "Are these people always this ruthless?"

He had seen more dead people today.

More than he had seen in his entire life.

Fang Ke replied, "That's how people like these are. Ruthless to others, ruthless to themselves. They don't blink when they turn a blade on someone else, and they don't blink when they turn it on themselves!"

Yang Ge couldn't describe what he felt, nor did he know what to say.

Just then, an enforcer who had gone inside hurried back and cupped his fist. "Banner Commander, there's only a young girl inside. She just woke up..."

Yang Ge strode toward the room. As he passed the one-eyed man's corpse, he turned to glance at it and said, "When you collect the bodies later, keep this man's separate from the other villains!"

Fang Ke acknowledged the order.

Yang Ge stepped into the low, shabby room.

A thick smell of mildew immediately struck him in the face.

Yang Ge instinctively frowned, then looked around the room in some surprise.

He knew the smell came from damp, moldy wooden beams and furniture, trapped inside by poor ventilation.

The rooms in his little rundown courtyard had smelled like this too, but the mildew here was even more pungent.

Looking more closely, he saw that the furnishings were extremely sparse: a communal sleeping platform on one side, several old washbasin stands on the other, and a few chamber pots tossed in a corner.

Yang Ge immediately understood. This must have been the sleeping quarters for the servants in the county magistrate's residence.

More precisely, for the lowest-ranking servants in the residence.

Luting County wasn't large, and he had lived here for nearly a year. Naturally, he had seen the magistrate's servants before... those people never paid when they ate at the Welcome Inn!

The enforcer waiting inside stood at the far end of the communal sleeping platform, holding a torch in one hand and his saber in the other. The flickering light illuminated a thin blanket huddled in the corner, shaking like chaff in a sieve.

Seeing this, Yang Ge handed his saber to Fang Ke behind him and slowed his steps as he approached.

The enforcer bowed as he came closer and reported, "Banner Commander, this girl says the man outside knocked her unconscious. Whatever we ask, she says she doesn't know."

Yang Ge looked at the trembling bundle of blankets and softened his voice. "Miss, we're government officers, not villains. Something terrible happened at the magistrate's residence, and we're here to investigate. Don't be afraid. Come out so I can ask you a few questions!"

Perhaps their status as government officers had reassured her, for the little blanket stopped shaking quite so violently.

A little head with yellowish hair timidly poked halfway out of the blanket, revealing a pair of bright eyes that darted fearfully around at everyone in the room.

She had awakened to find two burly men standing beside her with gleaming blades in their hands. It had terrified her!

Yang Ge turned sideways and pointed to his embroidered uniform in the torchlight. "See? A government uniform."

But those little eyes didn't look at his clothes. Instead, she stared into his eyes for several breaths before hurriedly scrambling up and kneeling on the bedding to kowtow to him. "This servant pays her respects, my lord!"

She wasn't a particularly pretty girl. She was thin and dark-skinned, and seemed to have a slight limp.

Yang Ge stepped forward and helped her up. After a moment's thought, he asked, "There's an old man in your household who's blind in one eye. Do you know him?"

The little girl nodded timidly. "Yes, my lord. This servant knows him. He's the new stableman. We call him Uncle Wang."

A spark of delight rose in Yang Ge's heart, and he quickly asked, "New? How long has he been here?"

The little girl replied, "My lord, I think he came two days before the Mid-Autumn Festival. The day they entered the household, the master even rewarded us with lots of food."

"They?"

Yang Ge seized on the crucial point. "How many were there? Did they all come together?"

The girl struggled to remember for a moment, her little face flushing with distress. "My lord, this servant doesn't know. I've only seen them two or three times."

"Don't worry. If you don't know, that's all right!"

Yang Ge gently soothed the little girl, who was so distraught she was almost crying. "Something terrible has happened to your household. You may not be able to stay here anymore. Wait here for now. Later, our people will take you somewhere else. We'll still need your help with a few things afterward."

The little girl looked frightened, but didn't dare ask anything.

Yang Ge turned to leave. After two steps, something else suddenly occurred to him, and he looked back. "Girl, were you close to that stableman, Uncle Wang?"

The little girl shook her head like a rattle drum, almost reflexively. "No, no..."

Only then did Yang Ge realize that the way he had phrased his question might have frightened her. He quickly tried a different approach. "Don't be afraid. He wasn't a bad man. He was protecting you just now... Think carefully. Were you close?"

The little girl settled down a little and answered cautiously, "M-my lord, Uncle Wang was new here and didn't know his way around. The stables were far from the kitchen, and h-he missed his meals several times. This servant is close to the auntie who serves the food, so I saved two steamed buns for him..."

Yang Ge froze for a moment and repeated, "Just two steamed buns?"

Not understanding, the little girl also nodded blankly. "Yes. Just two steamed buns."

Yang Ge felt an urge to laugh, yet couldn't see what was funny.

He waved a hand. "Rest easy here. Our people will come later to take you somewhere else!"

With that, he strode outside.

When he stepped through the door, the one-eyed man's corpse was still standing on the steps like a guardian god, blocking the doorway-and shielding it from the bloody rain and murderous winds outside.

As Yang Ge passed him, he couldn't help glancing at him again, murmuring inwardly, Was it worth it?

Two steamed buns.

Two lives.

He couldn't do the math on that account...

"Fang Ke."

He called softly.

Fang Ke stepped forward at his call. "At your service."

Yang Ge said, "Assign a banner of capable men to protect the girl inside. She's our only witness. Nothing must happen to her!"

At that, something else occurred to him, and he added, "Send someone to the neighboring households to verify her identity too."

Fang Ke cupped his fist and accepted the orders, then asked quietly, "My lord, should we still investigate the three who escaped?"

Yang Ge said, "Keep order in the city first. Everything else can wait until dawn!"

The second chapter is on its way~