Chapter Fifty-Two: With One Hand, She Unfastens Her Silk Robe

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Before Pei Yunqu, Li Xizhi always appeared humble and cautious, deliberately seeking favor. Yet the gazes of these cavalry commanders held deep reverence. The eldest among them seemed at least ten years his senior. However, when he approached Li Xizhi, he dared not meet his eyes and bowed respectfully, saying, "Apologies." A rare chill swept across Li Xizhi’s face. Looking at these commanders, he spoke coldly, "You need not apologize to me; you should apologize to General Pei, to Duke Pei. I do not understand your purpose. So many replacements have been forced in the north, yet you have still been toyed with. Over thirty thousand Tibetans—more than thirty thousand—came to Heishawa, and you remained oblivious!" No one could offer a defense. Humiliation and anger shook the cavalry commanders to their cores.

At that moment, countless piercing alarm sounds rang out in the darkness. The firelight for illumination flared repeatedly, soon accompanied by shouts of delight. Warhorses! Many warhorses galloped across the wilderness, some even returning directly to Heishawa. Li Xizhi thought of those horses in the smoke-filled Heishawa—horses that the Tibetans could never fully control. He fell silent.

After several breaths, he spoke coldly to the elated commanders, "Duke Pei placed great trust in you and your superiors. He believed you had arranged everything flawlessly. But without that young man from Mingbai Slope, both Pei Yunqu and I would have died here. We owe him our lives—and you owe him even more."

...

The Tibetans were naturally skilled horsemen. Lacking sufficient provisions, they could not take all the horses with them; instead, they had to drive the horses to the location agreed upon with Xie Wan. Yet two hours earlier, the Tibetans had slipped into a state of confusion. The once well-controlled horses suddenly became uncontrollable. They seemed to respond to a call from the Everlasting Heaven, suddenly becoming restless, splitting into countless herds and galloping wildly in all directions.

When the horses had scattered, several Tibetan commanders knowledgeable in breeding and handling horses noticed something unusual: many stallions appeared to have something inserted in their anuses. Faced with this discovery, the exhausted Zanzhuo could only helplessly wave his hand. It was too late to fix anything. He had made up his mind not to deal with Xie Wan anymore. He felt these horses were merely another warning from the green-eyed youth.

Some people, no matter how strong, are merely powerful mortals; others are like deities descended from the Everlasting Heaven.

In Heishawa, the border army commanders from the Yangguan side who arrived later could not sleep all night. The oral accounts of all survivors gradually formed an incredible battle report: a green-eyed youth and a nearly rotting fat man had fought like gods in that battle!

Several military doctors accompanying the cavalry began examining the wounds of Pei Yunqu and Xu Tuibei. They brought the best medicines they could obtain and held great respect for those still alive defending Heishawa. Even if Pei Yunqu and Xu Tuibei were ordinary soldiers, they would devote their utmost skills to healing them.

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However, they soon found their efforts unnecessary. The wounds on Pei Yunqu and Xu Tuibei had been treated exceptionally well. Although the ointments used had a pungent odor, their efficacy far surpassed the medicines the doctors had brought. The bandaging and ointments were said to have been prepared by that green-eyed youth himself.

"Ah?" Pei Yunqu’s eyes widened upon hearing that Gu Liubai had helped treat his wounds. With only one good hand left, he had still managed such a feat?

...

Cui Huangya jingled the bag of coins in his hand. The clinking of silver pieces inside produced a sound everyone loved. Not far behind him stood a large beacon tower, known by the Tang border troops as the Eye of Yangguan. Seven or eight Tang border soldiers, clad in thick paper-pulp armor, gathered around him. This type of armor, thickened with paper pulp, was warmer than ordinary paper armor but prone to trapping sweat and restricting movement, causing stiffness when walking.

The coin bag was substantial, bulging, and the soldiers’ eyes gleamed with delight at the sight. Cui Huangya continued weighing the bag. One soldier looked at the wheel ruts on the ground, greed quickly replacing his joy. "Big brother, you’re so generous—letting such a fat target slip away just like that?"

“Smack!” Cui Huangya slapped the man’s forehead with the coin bag, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth as he laughed. "Do you need me to teach you? You have to peel the skin layer by layer. Don’t push them too hard all at once. Once they reach Longle Town, we can get some silver from them again."

"So you had a plan all along."

"You think my head’s as wooden as yours?"

The border soldiers erupted in noise. The carts had vanished from sight, but at the end of the road, a figure slowly approached, braving the wind. The clamor abruptly ceased. Cui Huangya quickly concealed the coin bag. Upon seeing the man’s graying hair, his heart tightened. As he recognized the man’s face from afar, a broad smile spread across his face. "What wind blew Captain Chu here?"

The newcomer’s hair was gray, but he appeared just over forty, with an average build and unremarkable features—except for a noticeable scar on his left forehead, likely an arrow wound. He returned Cui Huangya’s greeting with a faint, gentle smile.

However, just as Cui Huangya relaxed and prepared a casual reply, a sudden, spine-chilling whistling sound pierced the air without warning. A dense volley of crossbow bolts struck before they could react, turning them into human porcupines.

Cui Huangya had about ten bolts embedded in his chest but clung to life for a moment longer. Glaring fiercely at Chu Li, he spat blood, his voice incredulous: "How dare you do this?"

"You should be asking me that," Chu Li walked up to him, staring into his lifeless eyes with a sarcastic whisper. "Did you ever wonder why so many people insisted on having you guard this road tonight?"

"You..." Cui Huangya gasped for breath, realization dawning. They had been sent there to die.

"A great battle just erupted near Heishawa, yet at such a time, you casually let people pass the checkpoint for silver? How many times have you done this before? How many times have you deserved death?"

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Cui Huangya was dying, his lifeless eyes fixed on the direction those people had fled.

"You didn’t even know who he was and dared to take his silver?"

Chu Li sneered before Cui Huangya passed: "We didn’t kill any Tang border troops, only executed Tibetan spies."

Dozens emerged from the darkness in single file. One searched Cui Huangya and found the coin bag, softly asking Chu Li, "Shall we return this to Fifteen?"

Chu Li shook his head, a strange emotion flickering in his eyes. "No need. This is the debt Instructor Liang owes us for drinks."

...

Chen Tu suspected Gu Liubai was deliberately giving him a hard time. Among so many carts, only Zhou Luer insisted on sitting with him, shamelessly clinging to his carriage. It wasn’t that Chen Tu disliked Zhou Luer, but the man’s strong corpse-like smell was overwhelming, and he constantly had a runny nose inside the carriage.

"Brother Chen, why so glum?" Zhou Luer was surprisingly friendly, noticing his frown along the way.

Chen Tu sighed. "Zhou Luer, you all had it pretty good at Mingbai Slope. Why are you covered in mud? You never wash?"

Zhou Luer grinned. "You just don’t understand—it’s medicinal mud. It helps wounds heal faster and can even save lives in critical moments."

"Medicinal mud?"

Chen Tu was taken aback. He had heard of a special herbalist sect beyond the pass that used such medicinal mud techniques, usually only mastered by ascetic monks.

Zhou Luer continued cheerfully, "We at Mingbai Slope don’t bathe in winter. When we do, sweating too much makes us weak. Running all day causes illness. If pores open and clothes trap sweat, almost nine out of ten people get sick in this weather."

"Our place has little fresh fruit in winter. If someone falls seriously ill, medicine alone might not save them."

Looking at this cheerful, skinny fellow, Chen Tu felt a surge of sympathy but couldn’t help probing, "Isn’t Gu Fifteen’s mother a skilled healer? How could she fall ill and die?"

Zhou Luer shrugged, "Maybe she bathed too much and was too clean?"

"??"

Chen Tu was baffled.

"Hahaha! Just kidding," Zhou Luer laughed, clutching his belly. "I don’t know. Fifteen doesn’t want us to talk about it."

"You scoundrel!" Chen Tu snapped. "We’re one family, and you’re speaking like strangers!"

Hearing "one family" made Zhou Luer somewhat ashamed.

"I really don’t know. Not even Gu Fifteen might know."

After hesitating, seeing Chen Tu’s gloomy face, Zhou Luer finally decided to speak, "We’re almost at Longle Town. I promised Fifteen I wouldn’t say a word about what he told me after we arrive. Now that we’re one family, I might as well tell you—she either misjudged some medicine and caused her own misfortune, or something went wrong with her cultivation. But that’s just Fifteen’s guess."

Chen Tu realized it was futile to inquire further. Yet he sensed something strange. "Zhou Luer, what’s so special about Longle Town? Why can’t you say so much once you get there?"