Nanchu King sat quietly, observing the two men in deep discussion over the topographical map of Nanchu.
It seems that they had no intentions of inviting him to contribute to the discussion, a reality that made him doubt himself. Could it be the way he came across was so incompetent that throughout the journey, neither of them had ever bothered to seek his opinion, or even ask his ideas? Not to mention, they hadn’t asked what trump card he, as their king, might be holding.
He patiently waited for them for half an hour. After much deliberation, the duo’s faces perplexed, he finally found some satisfaction.
Young people, taught a lesson for not respecting their elder who has tasted twenty more years of life’s bitterness.
Specifically, he who has consumed twenty more years of salt, was now the king of this nation.
"Ah," Zhou Gu sighed, "I feel like we’re at a dead end."
Zhang Yun asked, "I wonder if the snow at Yuxue Mountain never melts, year-round, and if it is indeed frequently hit by avalanches. If we choose this path, we might not be discovered, but what if we get buried under an avalanche?"
He was deeply worried, "I may not care about my own safety, but you are destined to be a king. This path is not acceptable, right?"
Zhou Gu glared at him, "It certainly isn’t right. Even if we could withstand that ordeal, I doubt the royal father-in-law could."
Mentioning his father-in-law, Zhou Gu suddenly turned his head and asked, "Father-in-law, can you think of any good strategy? After all, this is your kingdom."
Nanchu King grunted, "So, you have finally remembered me."
It had been quite some time since he referred to himself as solitary. It seems the title was making its reappearance.
Zhou Gu looked at him thoughtfully and asked, "What do you think we should do?"
Honestly, Zhou Gu didn’t hold much hope for the Nanchu King. In the Crown Prince’s dossiers or rumors, his father-in-law was depicted as a lovesick fool, dazed for many years over a woman. He only regained his spirit after learning that he had a daughter. But at that point, it was already too late. What can you do in five years? But the Crown Prince had concealed agents in Nanchu for much longer.
His contemptuous gaze nearly sparked a heart attack in Nanchu King, he asked irritably, "So in your eyes, I, your king, am worthless."
Zhou Gu quickly defended himself, "That’s not justified. In my heart, you are my father-in-law, whom I respect immensely."
Nanchu King laughed scornfully, "You are just respecting the wedding letter written by my daughter that you carry in your bosom, aren’t you?"
Zhou Gu: "..."
That’s right, you guessed it.
But he couldn’t admit it.
He laughed awkwardly, "Father-in-law, the most pressing issue is to find a hiding place immediately or find a way to escape. If you have a better plan or destination in mind, please voice it without hesitation. We can’t afford to wait any longer. What if the Nangong Family’s forces are already aimed at this place, or they’ve started searching?"
Nanchu King claimed, "I privately cultivated a force of 50,000 troops in the valley of the dead in Xiling. If we can reach the valley before Nangong Zheng locates us, we’ll be saved."
"Ah!" Zhou Gu exclaimed, "Why didn’t you mention this earlier?"
"You never asked me either," Nanchu King regained his swagger, feeling relieved and delighted.
Zhou Gu turned to Zhang Yun, "Isn’t that wonderful?"
"Undeniably surprising." Zhang Yun smiled back.
Their tense expressions lifted completely. They both stood up, helped up the seated Nanchu King, extinguished the fire in the cave, announcing in unison, "Let’s go, to Xiling."
As Zhou Gu had conjectured, the Nangong family had received the message carried by the hawk messenger.
As the Nangong Family had been established for hundreds of years with its vast power and intelligence, they’d naturally established a hawk messenger system. Their hawks were well-trained and numerous.
Before the trio could even step out of the mountain, Zhou Gu noticed the circling hawk with his sharp eyes. His countenance changed. He turned to Nanchu King and asked, "Father-in-law, does the Nangong family train messenger hawks?"
"Uh, yes." Nanchu King nodded.
With a deep breath, Zhou Gu told Zhang Yun, "We have to bring the hawk down. Otherwise, we won’t be able to make it to Xiling through a 500-li journey safely."
Confronting the full strength of the Nangong’s forces wasn’t a joke. Now was not the time for Zhou Gu to engage directly. He feared it could lead to their demise.
Zhang Yun pursed his lips, "How could we shoot it down without arrows?"
Zhou Gu immediately asked, "Father-in-law, do any of our secret agents carry arrows?"
The Nanchu King was unsure, "Ask them!"
Nanchu King called the chief of the secret agents. His name was Ajiu.
Ajiu remained silent after Zhou Gu’s question, then nodded, "Reporting to Young Master, we have arrows. But the hawk flies too high and too far. I fear none of us secret agents, including myself, are capable enough to shoot it down."
The hawk that was circling high in the sky indeed posed a threat.
Zhou Gu responded, "As long as we have arrows, it’s good. Hand them over to me. I’ll give it a shot."
The hawk was circling at an altitude so high, Zhou Gu wasn’t confident about reaching it with an arrow. But it was better to give it a try than concede defeat. Since childhood, he’d practiced archery and mastered the skill of hitting a target a hundred steps away. He had then thought that even if his grandfather forced him to study literature, he might have to collaborate with Dawei in a war one day. From this point of view, there would be no harm in practicing the 18 types of weapons regularly.
Of course, the weapon he was most skillful with was the double-handed sword.
The secret agents quickly presented the finely crafted bow and arrow to him. Zhou Gu, satisfied, drew the bow to its full extent, aimed at the circling hawk in the sky, squinted and released the arrow with a whoosh towards the sky.
With a thud followed by a mournful cry, the hawk lost its balance in the air and came crashing down.
Ajiu cheered, "Hit the mark!"
Zhang Yun praised him, "Brother Zhou, you’re amazing!"
Nanchu King also admired, "I had no idea. How talented you are! You truly are the pride of the Duke’s Residence."
His good grandson was his son-in-law. Well done, so impressive. No offense taken anymore.
Zhou Gu smiled warmly, loosened his arm to restore circulation, handed the bow back to Ajiu, "Fetch the hawk and burn it to ashes. We must resume our journey."
Ajiu obeyed.
So, after disposing of the messenger hawk, Zhou Gu, Zhang Yun, and Nanchu King didn’t dare to tread slowly anymore. They spurred their horses on and continued their journey.
An hour after their departure, the force from the Nangong family arrived at the forest with their men. After a thorough search of the surrounding area, the leader pronounced, "No one’s here."
"But Little Shijiu is missing here." someone reported.
Little Shijiu was the name of the hawk.
"There are traces." Another person reported, "Under the rock on that mountain, there’s evidence of something being burnt."
The leader came to the foot of the mountain and sure enough, found a patch of charred ground. Due to the heavy winter wind, the ashes had long since blown away, leaving only the scorched earth.
The leader’s face darkened, "Immediately inform Young Master Zheng. Little Shijiu is missing, and there are traces of someone being here."
Someone complied.
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