Night had fallen.
With nothing to amuse themselves, the town's residents had gone to bed early. Every household had extinguished its lamps and candles, ready for tonight's dreams.
But Chen Xia had not. Carrying a large lantern, he was wandering the streets.
Bandits and mounted raiders liked to move at night, and the town had no defenses after dark. Someone needed to keep watch.
So Chen Xia had simply taken a lantern out for a stroll. If he spotted any bandits, he could naturally stop their crimes before they began.
After wandering for a while, he grew bored, climbed onto someone's courtyard wall, took out the sunflower seeds he carried with him, and began cracking them listlessly.
He had barely eaten two when Chen Xia's gaze suddenly sharpened.
He saw lights flickering in the distance, rapidly approaching Weixi Town.
Lantern in hand, Chen Xia jumped down from the courtyard wall and hurried toward the lights.
At the town entrance.
The blacksmith waiting to receive the bandits hurried out and called with a fawning smile.
"Chief, over here, over here!"
The burly man at their head glanced at him and asked fiercely, "Which house first?"
Naturally, bandits plundered one household at a time. They first tied everyone up and brought them under control, then slowly tortured them and seized their money.
Smiling obsequiously, the blacksmith pointed farther inside and hastily said, "That house just inside this end of town first. There's only a young girl there. Her father used to be the constable captain, but he was conscripted. He must have left plenty of silver."
"Heh." The burly man grinned. "This girl must be the one you want, right?"
"Exactly, exactly! You're wise indeed, Chief!" the blacksmith hurriedly agreed with a fawning smile.
Resting a hand on the long saber at his waist, the burly man laughed. "Let's see what this little lady looks like, to have you dreaming of her day and night. If she's a real beauty, you won't mind your big brother having the first taste, will you?"
The blacksmith shuddered, his pupils contracting, and gave no answer.
"What?" The burly man narrowed his eyes, a trace of coldness entering them. "You don't want me having a taste too? Want to keep the whole meal to yourself?"
"I wouldn't dare, wouldn't dare. Help yourself, Chief." The blacksmith hurriedly nodded.
"That's more like it." The burly man nodded and led the bandits behind him swiftly toward Xu Zhen's house, softening their footsteps to approach without a soul knowing.
Tap, tap.
An unhurried knock sounded at the door.
The bandits had not chosen to climb over the wall-not because they did not want to, but because someone had covered the damned courtyard wall with spikes.
That was naturally Chen Xia's handiwork, to protect Xu Zhen from thieves with designs on her.
The bandits dared not break straight through the door either, afraid of beating the grass and startling the snake, so they had the blacksmith knock.
Light footsteps came from inside, then quickly stopped, leaving silence.
Tap, tap.
The blacksmith knocked twice more.
"Who is it?" Xu Zhen's clear voice finally came from inside.
A lewd smile curled the blacksmith's lips. Forcing down the agitation in his heart, he made his voice as calm as possible and answered.
"Xiao Xu, it's me, the blacksmith from this end of town. Constable Chen sent me to check on you. He said bandits might have entered town. Open the door!"
Xu Zhen's lovely brows knitted. Wrapped in a thin nightgown, she did not go to open the door.
Chen Xia had told her not to open the door for anyone who knocked at night. If she heard someone battering the door, she was to shout for help, then flee through the back-door tunnel.
That tunnel connected directly to Chen Xia's house.
And when Chen Xia came to see her, he would not use the door. He went straight through the tunnel.
So Xu Zhen instantly grew wary. Without speaking, she decided to escape through the tunnel first.
"Xiao Xu, Xiao Xu, what's wrong? Hurry and open the door!" the blacksmith called urgently.
But there was no sound inside.
The bandits lost patience. One sliced through the lock with his saber, kicked the door open, and walked in.
Xu Zhen had just retreated into her room, making a sound as she shut the door.
"Heh, trying to hide?!" The burly man laughed disdainfully and headed toward Xu Zhen's room with his great saber.
"Come out, Xiao Xu. We won't hurt you." His gaze greedy, the blacksmith was still urging her to surrender, afraid the bandits would show no mercy and injure Xu Zhen, spoiling her beauty.
Xu Zhen anxiously pushed aside the table covering the tunnel, preparing to unlock the hatch, only to find she could not locate the key.
The bandits drew closer step by step. Their heavy footfalls were like sharp knives pressing bit by bit against Xu Zhen's heart, almost leaving her unable to breathe.
The more she panicked, the more confused she became. Xu Zhen's mind grew muddled, and she could almost hear her own frantic heartbeat.
The bandits were close now, accompanied by the sound of a blade scraping the ground, like hungry wolves about to sink their teeth into a sheep.
Everything weighed down on her to the utmost.
Even Xu Zhen's breathing grew rapid, and her mind felt ready to collapse.
She felt as though she were drowning, desperately searching for a life-saving straw.
"What are you lot doing?!"
A loud voice rang out.
The taut string in Xu Zhen's heart instantly relaxed. She knew her life-saving straw had arrived, but worry soon rose again, and she hurried to the window to look outside.
The bandits stopped and all turned toward the voice.
It was a constable carrying a lantern.
"Ha!" The burly leader laughed, pointed at Chen Xia, and asked the blacksmith beside him.
"This is your town's only constable?"
The blacksmith hurriedly nodded. "That's him, Chen Xia. He's always been closest to Xu Zhen. He must be here to stand up for her and spoil our fun!"
There was also a hint of jealous resentment in the blacksmith's words.
The burly man shook his head and feigned regret. "Then after today, Weixi Town won't have a constable anymore. Haha!"
Chen Xia had also recognized these men as bandits, but he had not expected the blacksmith to be their inside man.
And judging by this, the blacksmith also harbored improper desires toward Xu Zhen.
Chen Xia set the lantern aside, then took off the saber at his waist and put it down too.
"Haha, what are you doing? Thinking of surrendering? We won't accept you even if you do." The burly man sneered, pointed at his crotch, and continued.
"How about you crawl between my legs, kowtow a few times with a good loud thump, and call me Grandpa a couple of times? Then I might consider sparing your life."
"Hahaha!"
The bandits all burst into mocking laughter.
Watching through the window, Xu Zhen's heart twisted into a knot. She pressed her small palms together and kept murmuring.
"Immortals and bodhisattvas, please keep Brother Chen safe. Please, you must protect him. I'm begging you."
Chen Xia rolled up his sleeves, stood straight, and pointed at the burly bandit leader.
An inexplicable light shone in his eyes in the darkness, like a savage beast ready to choose its prey and devour it. He beckoned and said calmly.
"You. Come meet your death."
"Huh?" The burly man froze for a moment, then drew the great saber at his waist, bared a cruel grin, and jeered.
"You little bastard, has some evil spirit addled your brain? Don't you know how much you weigh? You really dare challenge your grandpa? I'll chop you up in two strokes and toss you into a pigsty for feed!"
Chen Xia said nothing more. With his back to the night, he walked straight toward the burly man.
The burly man bared a cruel smile. Since this brat had no idea whether he lived or died, he would simply cut him in two.
"Die!"
With a furious roar, he raised the great saber in both hands, holding it overhead as it flashed with an icy gleam.
This was a military bone-cleaving saber, made specifically for killing cavalry. One stroke could sever all four of a warhorse's legs, slicing even the bones clean through.
Only a mighty warrior like him could wield a bone-cleaving saber like this!
A mere constable was nothing more than something to split in half with one slash.
The blade whistled through the air, flashing with a bloodthirsty chill.
The burly man's powerful body, the vicious great saber.
No matter how one looked at it, Chen Xia had absolutely no chance of survival.
The bandits beside them were already grinning, ready to savor the sight of the constable's split corpse.
Xu Zhen closed her eyes, not daring to look at the scene, and could only pray over and over in her heart.
Bodhisattvas, protect him. Immortals, protect him. Brother Chen will be all right. He will!
Silence lasted for roughly two seconds, without a sound.
Puzzled, Xu Zhen opened her eyes.
His expression calm, Chen Xia held the bone-cleaving saber in one hand. With a casual twist, he snapped the blade off and tossed it to the ground.
He gave the burly man a contemptuous smile and asked.
"That's it?"