Chapter 45#

You really have to marry me#

Early the next morning, before the rooster crowed and while the sky was still dimly lit, Su Ruhui woke up. His neck hurt terribly; Sang Chiyu had been too heavy-handed. He had wanted to sleep in until noon, but tossing and turning in bed, he couldn’t fall back asleep. He lay in bed, staring at the tent ceiling for a long time, then got out of bed to tinker with his fire-breathing rat. He made a new model that would jump and call out “wife” to annoy Sang Chiyu.

Sang Chiyu said he would be back that night, but by the next day, there was still no sign of them. Su Ruhui spent most of his time holed up in his tent, avoiding people. When the aristocratic youths came to invite him to cricket fights, he felt inexplicably bored and declined. He only went out when he had to deal with Zhou Xiaosu’s affairs. Yan Jinyu was also supposed to join Sang Chiyu’s team to raid the Greedy Wolf Mine, but because he had received twenty military floggings, he didn’t go this time and stayed in the barracks to recover. Zhou Xiaosu stubbornly stayed in the barracks to take care of him, but Jiang Xueya had her locked up in prison.

“I advise you to stay put and not cause any trouble,” Su Ruhui said, sitting cross-legged outside the prison bars, playing with his crystal mirror. This was a new gadget he had made, actually a small star formation, where the spiritual energy flow was connected to corresponding mechanisms, allowing him to control them even from several miles away.

Zhou Xiaosu hugged her knees and sobbed, her eyes red from crying, like a little rabbit. Su Ruhui looked up at her, sighed, and said, “It’s not that I don’t want you to fall in love, it’s just that you’re too young and can’t judge people well. Yan Jinyu is six years older than you. As a girl, it’s easy to be deceived when dating an older man. Your elder brother will come to pick you up in a couple of days. You go home first, and your senior sister and I will investigate this person. If he’s really as good as you say, we promise not to interfere, and you can do whatever you want.”

Zhou Xiaosu continued to cry, sniffling, “Hmph, I won’t listen to you. You talk about me, but what about yourself? Senior sister told me that the man next to you yesterday was the little monster who came to our Zhuluo Mountain when we were children. Your life was almost lost in his hands, and now you still dare to hang out with him. You’re always so improper yourself, yet you lecture others.” With that, Zhou Xiaosu rolled her eyes at him.

Su Ruhui was so angry he almost spat blood, wishing he could kill this brat. She was rebellious now, full of defiance, and Su Ruhui knew that no matter what he said, she wouldn’t listen. The more he opposed, the more she insisted.

Anyway, sending her back to Yuzhou would solve everything. Su Ruhui stood up, intending to leave, when he suddenly glimpsed three figures lying in a corner cell. He walked over, craned his neck, and saw that they were the Black Street scouts Yan Jinyu had captured earlier. These three had revealed the location of the Greedy Wolf Mine, allowing the Frontier Guard to plan a surprise attack.

The three were sound asleep, not making a sound. Su Ruhui grew suspicious and turned to ask Zhou Xiaosu, “When did these three fall asleep?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen them wake up today,” Zhou Xiaosu grumbled.

Su Ruhui’s heart sank, and he immediately had an ominous premonition. He quickly found a soldier to open the door, went in, and indeed, the three had been dead for a long time, their bodies stiff. Su Ruhui’s face darkened as he walked out of the cell and asked Zhou Xiaosu, “Did anyone else come here last night?”

Zhou Xiaosu knew something had happened and stood up, saying, “I was sleeping soundly, I didn’t notice.”

A murder had occurred in the prison. Su Ruhui was worried about Zhou Xiaosu staying there, so he sent someone to open the door and pull her out. The Black Street scouts had mysteriously died suddenly. Could it be related to the confessions they had given? This behavior was very much like a cover-up. Would something happen at the Greedy Wolf Mine? Su Ruhui felt uneasy and pulled Zhou Xiaosu to find Xia Jing. As soon as they stepped out, they saw many wounded soldiers in the camp. All of them were missing limbs, writhing and wailing on the ground.

“I was just about to look for you,” Jiang Xueya appeared, hand on her sword, her face grim. “The surprise attack failed, and half of the Heavenly Character Team was lost at Greedy Wolf.”

“Where’s Sang Chiyu?” Su Ruhui asked.

“Him?” A blood-stained man next to them sneered, “He disappeared after entering the mine. All of us were besieged and fought desperately. If their warehouse hadn’t exploded, we wouldn’t have made it out at all.”

Su Ruhui also sneered, “What a muddled head. The warehouse was blown up by Sang Chiyu. If he hadn’t blown up the warehouse to attract attention, how would you have escaped?”

The man was stunned for a moment, then retorted, “You weren’t there, how do you know he blew up the warehouse? Besides, where would he get explosives?”

“Are you stupid? The mine needs to blast mountains, how could there be no explosives?”

Now was not the time to argue. Su Ruhui stopped wasting words with that person and went through the wounded soldiers, one by one, looking for Sang Chiyu. He looked everywhere, but he wasn’t among them. He told Jiang Xueya about the prison incident, and Jiang Xueya’s face darkened even more. The scouts had died suddenly after revealing the location of the Greedy Wolf Mine, clearly at someone’s instigation, and then silenced. This surprise attack was clearly a trap, designed to lure the Frontier Guard into a snare.

Xia Jing was holding a meeting in the main tent. Su Ruhui’s rank was too low to enter. He waited anxiously for a long time, finally seeing Jiang Xueya emerge.

“How is it?” Su Ruhui followed behind Jiang Xueya.

Jiang Xueya walked, taking off her helmet, “Just got news, Sang Chiyu isn’t dead, he was captured alive by Greedy Wolf. Greedy Wolf’s leader, Shi Gandang, wants to use him to negotiate with the Beichen Palace. This fellow has a huge appetite, demanding three spirit stone mines right off the bat.”

“Don’t you think Yan Jinyu is very suspicious? The scouts were captured by him, and he was originally on the list of soldiers for the surprise attack, but he just happened to escape because he received twenty military floggings.” Su Ruhui felt more and more that something was wrong. “This is too much of a coincidence.”

“Of course,” Jiang Xueya stopped, helplessly, “But we only have speculation, no evidence. Ah Hui, don’t be impulsive. If you go beat him up now, we’ll be in the wrong.”

“Did he and Sang Chiyu have a grudge?” Su Ruhui asked again.

“Not that I know of. There’s no family feud, no conflict of interest. Before the night before last, they hadn’t even spoken. Let’s wait. The Beichen Palace will certainly not sit idly by. Sang Chiyu is, after all, the Grand Sect Master’s only disciple.”

Su Ruhui was about to speak when he suddenly saw Yan Jinyu standing under the eaves not far opposite. Yan Jinyu turned his face and met his gaze. That fellow’s lips curved into a faint smile, and he bowed to him from afar. He limped away, and Zhou Xiaosu appeared behind him, supporting him, looking utterly concerned. The two gradually walked away under Su Ruhui’s gaze, disappearing behind the curtain.

Little bastard, I’ll deal with you later. Su Ruhui sneered inwardly.

“Senior sister, don’t you know what kind of person my uncle is? His heart is colder than ice and snow. He would never abandon three spirit stone mines to save Sang Chiyu’s life,” Su Ruhui said, word by word. “This time, Sang Chiyu is as good as dead.”

“What a pity, he was a good man,” Jiang Xueya sighed. “I’ll go sweep his grave later.”

Su Ruhui stared at her intently.

“Uh,” Jiang Xueya scratched her head, “And bring two pots of aged Daughter Red? That’s enough, I’m not that close to him.”

“Senior sister, I’ve always treated you like a good brother,” Su Ruhui said.

“What a coincidence, I’ve always treated you like a good sister.”

Su Ruhui put his hands in his sleeves, “To be honest, Sang Chiyu and I have already secretly pledged ourselves to each other. From now on, he’s my wife, your sister-in-law. You wouldn’t just stand by and watch your own sister-in-law die, would you?”

Jiang Xueya was shocked, “You’re something, you. How could Sang Chiyu agree to be with you? Has his brain been kicked by a donkey? He seems sullen all the time, but not like an idiot.”

“He doesn’t know about this,” Su Ruhui said.

“Doesn’t know?” Jiang Xueya didn’t understand. “He doesn’t know he’s secretly pledged himself to you?”

“Not yet,” Su Ruhui raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously, “Once we rescue him, he’ll know.”

Jiang Xueya: “…”

“Alright, I’ll tell you the truth,” Su Ruhui sighed, “These past few days, I’ve been bothering him constantly, not letting him sleep. If he had been well-rested, he might not have been unable to escape this danger. But he hasn’t closed his eyes for days. He’s trapped in the enemy camp, and Yan Jinyu has a part in it, and so do I.”

As Su Ruhui expected, that night Jiang Xueya received news from Xia Jing that the Beichen Palace had decided to abandon Sang Chiyu. Tantai Jing was a ruthless man, his heart filled with the common people and the Kunlun Secret Sect. Sang Chiyu, Su Ruhui, all of them were secondary. If Su Ruhui had been at the Greedy Wolf Mine today, Tantai Jing would have abandoned him just the same.

Su Ruhui estimated that Sang Chiyu wouldn’t complain. He didn’t know why, but even though Sang Chiyu always followed the Secret Sect’s rules and seemed very loyal, Su Ruhui felt that he didn’t really care about anything. When he was alone, he was always quiet, as if he didn’t exist. No worldly clamor could enter his quiet world; everything was irrelevant to him. Precisely because he didn’t care, he could fight desperately and face death calmly.

Unfortunately, Su Ruhui couldn’t be like Sang Chiyu. He didn’t care, but Su Ruhui did. Zhou Xiaosu was rebellious, and Su Ruhui was even more so. Su Ruhui just didn’t like this guy. He was aloof, and Su Ruhui insisted on dragging him into the dust.

At night, Su Ruhui organized a gathering in the tower, summoning all the aristocratic youths.

“Brothers, today, fifty men from the Heavenly Character Team raided Greedy Wolf, and only twenty returned. This is a great humiliation!” Su Ruhui raised his wine cup, walking among the crowd. “Sang Chiyu, the chief disciple of the Grand Sect Master of the Kunlun Secret Sect, in order to rescue the brothers of the Heavenly Character Team, did not hesitate to single-handedly blow up the Greedy Wolf warehouse to attract the attention of the Black Street dogs. Now Sang Chiyu is in enemy hands, and the Beichen Palace intends to abandon him. Can we just stand by and do nothing?”

People stirred, looking at each other.

“That’s right,” Jiang Xueya stepped forward and said loudly, “The Sang family is a century-old prominent family. In the past, when Black Street attacked Bukuan Pass, the entire Sang clan died in battle. Sang Chiyu is now the last descendant of the Sang family. If he dies, the Sang lineage will end, and Black Street will surely be greatly emboldened and mock our Secret Sect for being unable to protect even a seventeen-year-old youth!”

Someone sighed, “Commander Jiang is right. Our family happened to be at Bukuan Pass back then. If it weren’t for the Sang family in that battle, Black Street would have surely trampled the city, and I wouldn’t be standing here today.”

The Battle of Bukuan Pass was known throughout the world, and the tragic memories of that year were still vivid. Many people nodded with sighs. Su Ruhui saw that the time was right and shouted, “Aristocratic families should help each other, and we must not let Black Street mock us for being weak and easily bullied. The Heavenly Character Team was defeated, so Greedy Wolf will surely relax its vigilance. Brothers, why don’t we launch a surprise attack tonight and catch them off guard!”

Some in the crowd responded with enthusiasm, but more remained silent. Su Ruhui smashed his wine cup and sternly asked, “Are you all cowards without courage! We usually bear the name of pampered youths, looked down upon by others. Do you accept this, becoming timid turtles, letting others mock you?”

Jiang Xueya also smashed her wine cup, “If no one responds, then so be it. Su Ruhui, I’ll go with you!”

With that, the two buckled on their swords and left. Su Ruhui counted his steps to the door, secretly sighing that no one had stopped them yet. Just as they reached the doorway, the two exchanged glances. Su Ruhui gritted his teeth and stepped over the threshold. Then, finally, someone behind them smashed a wine cup, “I’ll go too! Brother Hui, Commander Jiang, I won’t be a coward!”

With that smash, the sound of breaking wine cups rose one after another. The tower was like a boiling pot of oil, everyone’s blood was boiling, and they all buckled on their swords. Su Ruhui breathed a sigh of relief, turned around with a smile, and warmly embraced his brothers.

Actually, Su Ruhui hadn’t really put his hopes on them. After all, most of these people, including himself, had never been on a battlefield. If they were to raid the Greedy Wolf Mine, the chances of success were extremely low. His only goal was to incite these aristocratic youths to go with him. If the entire aristocratic camp moved out, it would surely alarm the high-ranking officials of the Frontier Guard. He only needed to station the team in a hidden spot outside the Greedy Wolf Mine and wait for someone to come looking for them. The aristocratic youths were of noble status, and if they suffered any casualties, their families would surely hold the higher-ups accountable. At that point, the Frontier Guard would have no choice but to send troops to rescue them.

“Wait!” A male voice sounded from behind the crowd.

Su Ruhui’s gaze froze. The crowd in front of him parted, and Yan Jinyu limped forward, leaning on a crutch. Zhou Xiaosu followed behind him, her face full of unease. A servant quietly came over and whispered in Su Ruhui’s ear, “The person we sent to restrain Yan Jinyu was knocked out by Miss Zhou with a sleeping powder.”

Su Ruhui sighed inwardly. He had anticipated that Yan Jinyu would cause trouble, so he had sent someone to watch him early on, but he hadn’t expected Zhou Xiaosu to interfere and ruin everything.

“Young Master Su, I think this matter needs careful consideration.” Yan Jinyu looked around. “Please don’t act on impulse. What you don’t know is that Shi Gandang, the leader of the Greedy Wolf Mine, is a second-rank ‘Hundred Refined Steel’ secret art master, impervious to blades and difficult to destroy with explosives. Not to mention that the Greedy Wolf Mine has gathered nearly a hundred Black Street vagrants, all veterans of many battles. Many of you here haven’t even killed a chicken, how can you deal with these vicious thugs?”

The morale Su Ruhui had painstakingly stirred up was instantly doused with cold water. The youths in the field retreated a few steps, their faces showing fear and worry.

“No matter,” Su Ruhui interrupted him, “We just need to set up camp outside Greedy Wolf and send a message back to the Frontier Guard, making Xia Jing think we are trapped in enemy hands, waiting for the Frontier Guard to send troops to rescue us.”

Yan Jinyu shook his head and said, “Forgive my bluntness, but the Greedy Wolf Mine is extremely dangerous. What if something goes wrong, how do we deal with it? Besides… we treat Sang Chiyu as a brother, risking our lives to save him, but has he ever treated us as brothers?”

The crowd buzzed with discussion, and Su Ruhui heard someone nod in agreement, “That kid is so arrogant. Last time I tried to befriend him and offered him a drink, he actually said he couldn’t drink. What a joke, he clearly looks down on me.”

“Exactly, exactly. If you ask me, Su Ruhui is just being a busybody. Didn’t Sang Chiyu not get along with him? Why is he saving him?”

Su Ruhui laughed in anger, “I say, Captain Yan, have we had a grudge before?”

“What do you mean, Young Master?” Yan Jinyu said in surprise, “I have always been courteous to scholars. Although you have a commoner father, I have never looked down on you.”

Su Ruhui felt a bit of a toothache. Could this guy not speak without bringing up his background?

Yan Jinyu continued, “It’s just that today I really couldn’t stand by and not say something fair, lest these brothers lose their lives in vain.” He changed his tone, “Young Master Su, you’ve only known Sang Chiyu for a few days, why are you willing to risk your life to save him today? I see, although Sang Chiyu is arrogant, he is beautiful and graceful. I suppose Brother Su pities the beauty.”

As soon as these words came out, someone immediately started booing from behind: “Brother Su, Sang Chiyu always has a cold face like an ice block. Don’t let him freeze you in bed. I know many beauties, I’ll introduce them to you another day, I guarantee they’ll be a million times better than Sang Chiyu!”

The tower erupted in laughter.

The words were too frivolous. Su Ruhui tried his best to suppress his anger and asked, “Being in the Frontier Guard together means we are comrades. If any of you unfortunately encounter misfortune on the battlefield in the future, and no one comes to save you, how would you feel? From now on, who would dare to risk their lives to protect the Secret Sect?”

A young master said, “I would naturally save other brothers, but Sang Chiyu can be an exception. He usually looks down on us, so he probably wouldn’t bother being saved by us.”

Everyone agreed.

Su Ruhui wanted to say that Sang Chiyu had no intention of despising others; the guy simply didn’t know how to speak. However, at this point, no one would believe his explanation. Prejudice had already formed, how could it be clarified with a few words? Su Ruhui’s heart sank. He suddenly understood why Sang Chiyu was a loner. Sang Chiyu didn’t have friends not because he couldn’t make friends, but because he didn’t need these inferior and shameless people as his friends.

Su Ruhui really wanted to know what his image was in Sang Chiyu’s eyes. Would it be the same as these people?

Yan Jinyu had people bring in fine wine and delicacies. The gathering in the tower gradually turned into a carnival for the aristocratic youths. No one remembered Sang Chiyu, whose fate was unknown. Amidst the brightly lit lamps, the firelight reflected on Su Ruhui’s face, half bright and half dark. He rarely had such silent moments. The smile that usually danced in his eyes and brows had subsided, and his whole person suddenly became much colder.

Zhou Xiaosu sidled up to him, stammering, “Senior brother, I didn’t mean to knock out your subordinates. I thought you were going to cause trouble for Young Master Yan. But I think Young Master Yan is right, you and that little monster are enemies, why bother with him?”

Su Ruhui glanced at her and said, “Listen, if you keep hanging out with Yan Jinyu, you’ll be ruined sooner or later.”

Zhou Xiaosu didn’t like to hear that, rolled her eyes, and went to drink by herself.

Jiang Xueya sat down next to him, “Alright, we’ve done our best. Don’t blame yourself here.”

Su Ruhui turned to look at Jiang Xueya. He and his senior sister were best friends. If he wanted to beat someone up, she would roll up her sleeves and go without a second thought. Whatever he wanted to do, no matter how outrageous, Jiang Xueya never refused. Anyway, if the sky fell, she would hold it up. Yan Jinyu was right about one thing: the Greedy Wolf Mine was very dangerous. Senior sister and Sang Chiyu were not related, so she really shouldn’t be dragged into this. Among their three disciples, only Jiang Xueya had a proper official position and held weight in external matters. Since childhood, she had helped him and Zhou Xiaosu clean up countless messes.

Jiang Xueya saw his silence, finished her last sip of wine, and said, “If you really want to go, I’ll go with you.”

Su Ruhui sighed, “Senior sister.”

“I’m not helping you for free. From now on, all the blueprints for your mechanical puppets are mine. You can only sell them to my family, and you have to give me a discount.” Jiang Xueya rolled up her sleeves and patted his shoulder, “What are you hesitating for? What kind of trouble haven’t we gotten into? My kinship is weak. When I was born, my father said I stole milk from my other siblings and was inherently cruel, destined to become a great disaster. I hadn’t even recognized all my family members before my father sent me far away. He said he entrusted me with a great responsibility, but in reality, he just left me to fend for myself. So, Ah Hui, you and Xiaosu are my family. If you have something to do, just do it, I’ll cover for you. Let’s go!”

Su Ruhui stopped her, “Senior sister, no more saving. Do what you can with what you have. We can’t do anything. Let’s see what fate Sang Chiyu has.”

He stood up, picked up the wine pot, and left alone. Jiang Xueya thought he had really given up and continued drinking. She didn’t know that he actually planned to go to the Greedy Wolf Mine by himself. It was his own decision; he didn’t need to implicate others. He went to Jiang Xueya’s tent and stole a map, which marked the location of Greedy Wolf. Then he went to the stables, stole a horse, bribed the guards, and left the camp.

Perhaps some people would think he was crazy, but he just couldn’t stand to see others abandoned. He understood that feeling, like being forgotten in a sealed coffin, unknown and unrescued. He often remembered Zhuluo Mountain after his father’s long journey and his master’s death. The mountain forest was silent, as if it had swallowed its voice, and the tightly closed doors of the monastery separated him from the noisy world. He carved many three-headed puppies, stubbornly waiting for the traveler to return. That door was never opened in the end, and his coffin remained buried in a corner of the world, still unopened. He packed his bags, burned all his wood carvings, and went to Bian Du, becoming a notorious profligate.

If no one was going to open Sang Chiyu’s coffin, then he would go, even though Sang Chiyu detested him.

Before leaving, he looked back at the tower where music and singing drifted, and he couldn’t help but smile faintly.

Sang Chiyu, it’s really unreasonable if you don’t marry me.