Chapter 4

I’ve been completely duped!

The little money Xie Yun had hidden was already spent!

When the two of us were thrown out of the inn, I felt utterly humiliated.

“No money and still want the best room! Bah!”

The innkeeper’s assistant splashed a basin of dirty water at the door.

Xie Yun’s ears turned bright red. He pressed his lips together and said nothing.

I scratched my head in frustration, thinking, if I left him behind now, wouldn’t I be at a huge loss?

No choice! I could only take him along to call in a favor.

Fortunately, I have friends all over the world, and even in this remote county, I had an old friend I could rely on.

“Passing by my door and not coming to see me!

“Are you looking down on Old Qin?

“Don’t mind that I’ve lost an arm-just say the word, and I’ll still follow you through fire and water!”

That night, Old Qin hooked his arm around my neck and downed a bowl of Shao Daozi with me.

The fiery liquor burned down my throat. I patted his back and didn’t say much more.

At the dinner table, Old Qin’s wife glared at him and said angrily, “Yun is a grown woman now! What do you think you’re doing, hanging all over her like that!”

Old Qin was drunk and pointed at Xie Yun, shouting, “This is Yun’s fiancé? I’ve been watching him all night, and I really don’t think he’s worthy of our Yun. It pains me! If I didn’t owe such a huge favor back then, how could we have let Yun get engaged to such a pampered young master who can’t even truss a chicken.”

Old Qin’s wife’s expression changed. She grabbed a rolling pin and knocked Old Qin out.

She smiled apologetically at Xie Yun. “Young Master Xie, please don’t mind him. He starts spouting nonsense after just a couple sips of cat pee. It’s getting late. You and Yun should get some rest.”

She dragged Old Qin back to their room.

I held the remaining Shao Daozi and slowly drank it with some salted peanuts.

Since Old Qin lost his arm and retired with his wife, I hadn’t tasted these peanuts again.

Xie Yun sat on the bench, barely touching his food that night.

Old Qin’s wife was from the Northwest, and her cooking was heavy in flavor. Xie Yun, born of noble blood, wasn’t used to it.

“Get some sleep. Tomorrow I’ll buy two horses. In five more days, we’ll reach Qingzhou.” I finished the wine in one gulp.

Xie Yun looked up at me, his dark eyes reflecting my figure.

Tsk, this was the first time since we’d met that Xie Yun had looked at me so seriously.

He said, “I’m not going to Qingzhou.”

I crossed my arms and sized him up, smiling as I asked, “We’re almost at Qingzhou. Why not go now?”

Xie Yun said calmly, “The Qingzhou Commander is my uncle. I originally thought of seeking refuge with him, thinking it would be safer. But now it seems my uncle has long been one of your people. In recent years, banditry has been rampant. The court has repeatedly allocated funds to suppress the bandits, yet they never seem to be eradicated. Under Qingzhou’s jurisdiction, it’s especially severe. Now it seems it’s not that they can’t be wiped out, but that my uncle never intended to do so.

“The world has been in chaos for so many years. Officials kill and burn, while bandits rob the rich to help the poor. Can you really tell who is a bandit and who is an official?” I placed my blade across Xie Yun’s neck and said patiently, “Crown Prince, I advise you to put down the dagger in your sleeve. Because your blade will never be as fast as mine.”