Caravan was attacked. Too many dead.
Strange things are happening.
I'm alive and getting to the bottom of this.
Please bring the dead home.
He recognized Qing Lai's handwriting in the brief, concise message. He looked around. Sure enough, not far from him, he saw another colorful scrap of cloth, and when he looked closely, he could make out a small trail they had marked.
Zhixin hadn't lied. He would probably find the cave full of corpses at the end of the trail. Knowing his brother, he had probably wanted to get the civilians to safety after they were surprised by the outnumbered barbarians.
But they had been found and killed, and now Qing Lai was conducting his own investigation to find out what had motivated the barbarians.
So far, so good, but his brother would never just slaughter people like that. He would paralyze them, immobilize them, and, if necessary, drag them one by one to the nearest police station. But he would never murder them so brazenly and without remorse.
Something wasn't right. Xiao Xiang yu was torn between continuing to search for Qing Lai and fulfilling his request to bring the dead home. He glanced at Zhixin, who was still grinning at him. He sighed. With this fool in tow, he couldn't go looking for his brother.
"It's shorter to go to Uidong from here. I'll hand you over to the guards there and then take care of recovering the bodies," he said loudly. Zhixin just shrugged.
"The guards won't be able to hold me," he said casually, shaking his tousled hair out of his face. 'Besides, what do you actually want to arrest me for? What have I done?' he asked bluntly.
"You attacked a member of the imperial army," replied Xiao Xiang yu. Zhixin laughed.
"You? A member of the imperial army? Are they letting children play with weapons now?" laughed the blue-eyed man loudly. Xiao Xiang yu untied him from the cart and dragged Zhixin behind him.
"You're younger than me, how dare you talk to me like that?" he asked angrily. 'You didn't just attack anyone. You attacked the supreme general of the imperial army!' he explained.
Zhixin's laughter died away and he looked at Xiao Xiang yu again. His eyes widened skeptically.
"Nahhh!" he dismissed. Laughing in disbelief, he was dragged away by Xiao Xiang yu.
Riding his horse, with Zhixin chattering incessantly in tow, he reached the gates of Uidong in the afternoon. When the guards hurriedly let him in and bowed before him, the blue-eyed man sighed.
"I can't believe someone like you is supposed to be a general!" he sighed dramatically.
Exasperated, Xiao Xiang yu handed the bound chatterbox over to the guards and hurriedly made his escape. He couldn't stand listening to the young, rebellious voice any longer; it was getting on his last nerve, and then he was acting as if he were decades older than him and knew everything better.
Xiao Xiang yu entered the governor's residence. It was a handsome estate in the middle of the city, protected by high walls and paved with picturesque gardens. As the servants led him to the master of the house, the women whispered behind their hands.
He was used to that too. What a good catch he was! It was a good thing that his adoptive father knew nothing about such things and left it up to his sons to decide who they wanted to get involved with. As a result, he was largely spared from various marriage arrangements.
Occasionally, he received inquiries and servants from determined, tireless mothers who wanted their daughters to be in good hands. But with Wang Cheng hui behind him, they were quickly dismissed. He nodded politely to the women before disappearing into the room with the governor.
The man was rather reserved. Although his mercenaries had mostly gotten away that day thanks to Qing Lai's intervention, he didn't want to let them walk into a trap later. He kept asking Xiao Xiang yu whether the rescue was really necessary.
The general clenched his fingers in the fabric of his robe. Of course, he would rather just leave the foot soldiers lying there. The wind, weather, and wild animals would take care of them.
People like him didn't care at all that there were bereaved families who wanted to mourn the dead. So he repeated his initial request with more emphasis.
"Governor, it won't take long. As soon as day breaks tomorrow, I will go to the cave with a few men and some carts. We will take them to a funeral hall in Chaisang. Most of their relatives live there. You will have your men back unharmed in two days at the latest," he said, his tone clearly annoyed.
The governor cleared his throat and finally nodded. What could he object to when Xiao Xiang yu was personally taking care of it?
Finally out of the estate, he just wanted to find an inn and kill time until morning, when a commotion drove him back to the detention center.
A crowd of onlookers had gathered around the square, all craning their necks to get a better view of the situation. Xiao Xiang yu pushed his way to the front.
"You miserable bastard, say that again!" one of the guards yelled.
"But I just meant, was your mother a pig? I can't think of any other explanation for your pink skin and thick nose..." Zhixin rolled on the ground to avoid a spear thrust and laughed.
"Not so impetuous, I know some great pigs!"
"Shut your damn mouth, you son of a bitch," shouted the guard, beside himself, and went after the rolling blue-eyed man.
"Judging by your temper, your father could have been a boar. But I have to say, you got your looks from your pig of a mother. A little pink piglet," Zhixin laughed, clearly enjoying driving the guard into a rage.
Xiao Xiang yu sighed and stepped forward.
"What's going on here?" he snapped at the guard. He couldn't stand it when statesmen made fools of themselves like this. He should have known better; he wasn't supposed to listen to the prisoners' provocations, even if Zhixin was particularly good at it.
"This bastard just won't shut up. He's talking nonsense," the rotund man defended himself. Xiao Xiang yu had stepped in front of Zhixin so that the guard could no longer stab him with his spear.
The young man with the piercing blue eyes had knelt behind his protector and was watching the situation.
"There's no death penalty for stupidity," Xiao Xiang yu interjected. Zhixin, who was still tied up, nodded and grinned as he rubbed himself against Xiao Xiang yu's leg and stuck his tongue out at the guard.
"I told you, no guard can hold me," he laughed. Xiao Xiang yu exhaled deeply.
"I didn't know you wanted to die so badly," he remarked. Zhixin laughed as he slowly felt his way up Xiao Xiang yu's leg.
What appeared to the eyewitnesses to be a lewd gesture was, to Xiao Xiang yu, a clear intention to get his whip back. He grabbed Zhixin by his bound wrists and pulled him to his feet.
"He can't stay here, General," gasped the guard. His face was covered with angry red spots.
"No problem, then I'll stay with the general for a while," Zhixin grinned, giving Xiao Xiang yu a broad smile. Xiao Xiang yu pushed him away but continued to hold him by the iron chain.
"You're just in my way," he replied.
"Oh, then let him go?" Zhixin asked, raising his eyebrows in feigned surprise. The giggles of the young women reached Xiao Xiang yu's ears. He looked at Zhixin.
He had no idea when a man was good-looking or not, or what qualities it took to be popular with women. He knew he was a good catch.
He was tall, a trained martial arts master and general in the imperial army, but what did Zhixin have? He was tall, slim, no, rather gaunt. Pale, without any of the pink tones of a normal living person.
His blue eyes glowed like will-o'-the-wisps in the fog, and his fine black hair shone like a raven's plumage. He looked rather delicate, almost fragile, with feminine features and narrow hips. So even someone like him was attractive? Zhixin's full lips twisted into a suggestive smile.