Offering tribute

A month later, Prince Duan hosted a banquet to bid farewell to Tang Feng and his entourage. Zhou Ziliang hadn't seen Tang Feng for over half a month and didn't know what had happened. He had gone to the Tang residence several times, but Qin Jiujiu had always dismissed him, claiming Tang Feng was unwell. This time, Prince Duan hadn't invited him to the grand banquet, but Zhou Ziliang figured it was about the pawnshop matter, so why should he be included? However, what Zhou Ziliang couldn't understand was why Tang Feng had suddenly stopped seeing him.

Tang Feng was escorted to the outskirts of Xiling City by Prince Duan and his entourage. Li Yunrui stood at the city gate, dressed in auspicious robes, while Tang Feng led a dozen or so men on horseback. "Master Tang, this journey is long and arduous. I entrust the trading ports of Yan and Yun to you." Tang Feng forced a helpless smile. "I really thank you. If you truly care about me, then come with me if you dare."

Then Li Yunrui took out a ceremonial staff. Seeing Tang Feng standing there motionless, Shen Qinghang whispered, "Idiot, what are you thinking about! Kneel down now!" Tang Feng rolled his eyes and reluctantly knelt down, raising his hands to receive the staff. The staff was made of walnut wood, tied with red ribbons, each ending in a bell—six bells in total. A gentle breeze caused them to jingle. Then Li Yunrui took a black and gold cloak and draped it over Tang Feng, saying, "May you return soon, Master."

"Yes," Tang Feng fastened his cloak, mounted his horse, and then said, "Let's go!" Qin Liuliu rode beside Tang Feng. Originally, Tang Feng didn't want Qin Liuliu to go, but he couldn't resist her persistent pleading.

"Brother...you left without even saying goodbye to your wife! I saw her come looking for you several times, and my sister chased her away."

It wasn't that Tang Feng didn't want to see Zhou Ziliang; he was afraid he'd mess things up and risk his life again, and he also didn't want Zhou Ziliang to worry, so he had to endure not seeing him. "What do you know?" Tang Feng flicked Qin Liuliu's forehead. "How could our friendship grow distant just because we haven't seen each other for a day or two!" Tang Feng said this, but inwardly he was lamenting. He decided to wait until he returned safely before explaining things to Zhou Ziliang.

Meanwhile, Zhang Mobai went to the Zhou residence and found Zhou Ziliang. "Brother Ziliang, what are you still standing there for? Little Brother is probably already out of the city gate. If we don't go after him now, when will he ever come back?" He then pushed Zhou Ziliang to the stable, untied Hongdou's reins, and handed them to him. Zhou Ziliang looked at the reins and said, "I... I've looked for him several times, but..."

"Oh, why are you so stubborn! I just..." Zhang Mobai then looked around and muttered to himself, "He's not as good as Yang Fei; a little thicker skin doesn't hurt."

Zhou Ziliang mounted his horse, bowed to Zhang Mobai, and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Brother Mobai," before riding off in a cloud of dust.

Tang Feng looked back as he rode his horse. Xiling was getting further and further away, and they were about to enter the forest. Once inside, they probably wouldn't even be able to see Xiling City anymore. Tang Feng looked at the path behind him, desperately hoping that Zhou Ziliang would come looking for him on horseback. Tang Feng sneered. Wasn't this all his own doing? He had turned Zhou Ziliang away when he came looking for him, and now he was acting like a madman because Zhou Ziliang didn't come.

"Sir, the terrain in the woods ahead is complicated. I'll go scout it out first." The speaker was Tang Feng's deputy, someone Li Yunrui had specifically assigned to him. It was obvious to anyone with their toes that he was being sent as a spy. Tang Feng nodded. "Go ahead then! Be careful on the road." After the man left, Tang Feng fell into deep thought.

This guy is probably someone who's always been by Li Yunrui's side. Getting rid of him is definitely impossible, and besides... he doesn't know any of the twenty-odd people in the entire delegation except for Qin Liuliu. Who would listen to him? If only he had someone he knew by his side. Damn it, he should have gone to work at the pawnshop earlier. Tang Feng sighed. Oh well, he can only wait until the time is right and see if he can shake him off!

Upon seeing the man return, he knelt before Tang Feng and bowed, saying, "My lord, I have scouted the forest; there are no problems. Please rest assured."

"Relaxed? I was relaxed going there, but I might not be so relaxed coming back," Tang Feng rolled his eyes, muttering to himself, but a smile remained on his face. "Thank you for your trouble, but... I might need you to go in again. It's getting late, so I assume we'll be spending the night in the woods. Would it be convenient for you to go in again and find a safe place to rest?" Tang Feng chuckled inwardly. Since he couldn't mess with him, he might as well give him a piece of his mind! After all, a higher rank always trumps lower ranks.

The man obeyed and went into the woods again. Tang Feng turned his horse around and looked back, frowning. "Zhou Ziliang, I told you not to come find me, and you really didn't come! You blockhead! I'm suffering terribly all by myself, and you didn't even come today! You bastard, even worse than Liu Yiwan!" Tang Feng gripped the reins, about to turn and enter the woods, when he heard the sound of hooves.

"Brother, it's my sister-in-law!" Hearing Qin Liuliu's words, Tang Feng turned around abruptly and saw Zhou Ziliang riding towards him on horseback. Tang Feng was stunned; he hadn't expected... Zhou Ziliang had really come.

"Zi...Ziliang," Tang Feng dismounted and saw Zhou Ziliang standing not far away on horseback. "Xiao Feng..." Zhou Ziliang dismounted and ran towards Tang Feng, pulling him into his arms. "Xiao Feng, I'm sorry I'm late. You must have suffered a lot!"

Tang Feng closed his eyes, rested his forehead against Zhou Ziliang's chest without saying a word, and hugged Zhou Ziliang's waist. After a long while, he finally hummed, "Why did you take so long to come? I thought you weren't coming."

Zhou Ziliang was both amused and exasperated. "It's not like you didn't want me to come!" he thought. But he had to appease her, otherwise he'd offend his little darling and face the consequences. "I'm sorry I'm late, I've made Xiaofeng suffer."

Tang Feng stood up and looked at Zhou Ziliang. "I've truly suffered... Li Yunrui planted a spy among me." He then turned to look at the woods behind him. "This delegation... I don't know a single person here. I'm afraid that if something happens, I'll be outnumbered. So... could you please call Liu Yiwan over? We'll be spending the night in this small woods. I believe he can get here within a day."

Zhou Ziliang frowned, surprised that Li Yunrui was becoming more cunning. "Alright, I'll tell your sister when I get back. Take this peace charm; my mother got it for me. It's been with me since I was little, protecting me on so many battlefields. I hope it will protect you this time too." After saying that, Zhou Ziliang gently kissed Tang Feng's forehead. "Return safely. I'll be waiting for you."

Tang Feng nodded, blushing. "You should leave quickly! Don't let that informant see us, or Liu Yiwan will come looking for me again."

As soon as Zhou Ziliang left, the informant returned, bowed to Tang Feng, and said, "Sir, we've found the place. Let's go!" He then checked the path behind Tang Feng to make sure no one was there before following him.

Tang Feng glanced at the hidden figure out of the corner of his eye while riding his horse, then asked casually, "As your deputy, I don't even know your name!"

"My name is Binghu, but you may call me A-Bing, sir. I'm just a lowly person, nothing to trouble you," Tang Feng said, looking at the spy. The spy was young, about his age, but incredibly shrewd. He was glad he'd sent Zhou Ziliang away early; the spy had even glanced at the alleyway upon returning. It seemed he would have to be more wary of him in the future. Tang Feng smiled at Binghu. "I don't have lowly people here. You call me 'sir' simply because I'm one rank higher than you. I call you A-Bing only out of respect for my deputy."

According to Tang Feng's plan, he was to rest in the woods tonight. Tang Feng rubbed his slightly sore back. "Is this the place?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, this is the place," Binghu replied with a fist and palm salute, then dismounted and took Tang Feng's reins. "My lord, dismount! I'll make a bed for you." The so-called "making a bed" simply meant deciding who would be in the carriage. Li Yunrui had prepared two carriages for Tang Feng on the way—one for the tribute and the other for Tang Feng to ride in. Tang Feng led Qin Liuliu into the carriage, carefully pulling open the curtain. He saw that most of the people were already asleep, fully clothed. He then asked Qin Liuliu, "Liuliu, did you bring the things?"

"Don't worry, brother, I definitely brought it. Don't worry! Brother, I promised my sister-in-law I'd take good care of you." Qin Liuliu then took a lunchbox from her bag. Inside were stir-fried beef, pickled vegetables, and white rice that Qin Jiujiu had made for Tang Feng. Tang Feng picked up his chopsticks, his mouth watering. "Finally, I can rest. I was so worried the whole way." After taking a bite of the stir-fried beef, he rubbed his cheek contentedly. "As expected of Sister Jiujiu, her stir-fried beef is still so delicious." He then added another piece to Qin Liuliu's plate. "Eat more, you won't have this treat again after today."

"Brother... when will we reach the Qiang and Hu tribes?"

"At this rate... about a month!" Tang Feng recalled that it had taken him half a month to travel from Lishan Academy to Daze. This time, being an overseas trip, it would surely take even longer! Now, he could only hope that Liu Yiwan could arrive tomorrow; otherwise, his safety along the way would be far too uncertain. After Tang Feng finished eating, he lay down in the carriage. Qin Liuliu hugged him, saying, "Brother... when we come back, Sister will make noodles for me to welcome me back, just like when you came back from Lishan Academy!"

Tang Feng looked down at Qin Liuliu and smiled. "Of course, your sister will cook you a big bowl of noodles and poach an egg in the gravy. Go to sleep now! We have to travel tomorrow!"

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Tang Feng could faintly hear the sound of horses' hooves. Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside. Tang Feng sat up abruptly, lifted the curtain to investigate, and saw Liu Yiwan riding a horse, with Binghu and a group of people blocking the carriage. Tang Feng quickly dismounted, shouting, "Have mercy! Have mercy!" He then pulled Liu Yiwan off the horse and kicked him, yelling, "Are you out of your mind?! I already said this is official business! What are you doing here? I have so many subordinates with me; are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?" He then winked at Liu Yiwan. Liu Yiwan, initially bewildered, saw Tang Feng's wink and immediately knelt on the ground, pleading, "Young Master... Miss Jiu insists I come with you! Please let me come! Otherwise, I won't be able to explain myself when I get back!"

"This..." Tang Feng tentatively glanced at Binghu's expression. "Ah Bing, my servant is so ignorant of etiquette. I told him a few days ago that he was going to do official business. Look at this..."

"It's alright, let them come along! It's understandable that the servants in the manor are eager to protect their master."