Chapter 348 The Third Possibility
The attendants behind him exchanged glances and remained silent. Although they had been silent the whole way, now that they were back here and about to enter Wanggang Village, they couldn't help but feel nervous.
On the contrary, Xiao Yuansui showed no tension whatsoever. Instead, a smile appeared on his handsome face as he said, "In that case, let's not keep them waiting."
After saying that, he spurred his horse to continue onward.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves rang out not far ahead, rumbling like drums. The group looked up and saw a group of people coming down the mountain road and slowly approaching. The leader was none other than Wang Quren, the third leader of Wanggang Village and the brother of Wang Quyi.
This man was nearly forty, but because of his naturally sorrowful face and the wrinkles between his brows that had never faded over the years, he looked older than his actual age. He was dressed in a tight-fitting blue cloth outfit and was fairly tall, but because of his sorrowful expression, he did not look intimidating. Even though he was followed by a group of people, he did not look like a local tyrant, but rather like a tourist who had accidentally stumbled upon this place.
Upon seeing Xiao Yuansui, he immediately waved and smiled as he rode up to greet him.
"Second Brother Xiao".
Upon seeing him, Xiao Yuansui's face lit up with a smile, and he rode up to greet him: "Third brother, what brings you here?"
Wang Quren rode up to him and stopped, then politely cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "I heard you were back, so my elder brother specially sent me here to welcome you."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuansui burst into laughter and said, "Brother, you're too kind."
"..."
“I’ve walked this mountain road countless times, how could I not remember it?”
Wang Quren just smiled.
Although he was kind and timid by nature, and didn't concern himself with the fighting in the stronghold, nor did he participate in any power struggles, Wang Quyi was, after all, his brother. He understood to some extent what his brother was worried about day and night. Therefore, he knew some of the reason why Xiao Yuansui was urgently summoned back to the stronghold. Wang Quyi specifically sent him to welcome Xiao Yuansui, firstly to find out how many men the other party had brought back, and secondly to prevent Xiao Yuansui from discovering something and deserting in the face of battle.
Seeing that there were only a few followers and not even any large weapons, Wang Quren breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he said, "That being said, you are, after all, the second-in-command of the village, so your return is naturally a big deal. Your elder brother is already waiting for you at the village gate—"
After saying that, he turned to a follower who was following closely behind him and said, "Go back and report that the second-in-command has arrived at the foot of the mountain. Go up the mountain immediately."
The attendant obeyed the order, turned his horse around, and galloped up the mountain.
Wang Quren smiled at Xiao Yuansui again: "Second brother, let's go."
Xiao Yuansui looked at him, then at the attendant who had disappeared in a cloud of dust, and smiled. He reached out and dusted off his sleeves, though the cuffs were tightly bound for riding, making the gesture seem somewhat superfluous. After doing so, he raised his hand and said, "Let's go. I've missed you, brother, very much."
So the group joined forces and headed up the mountain.
Although the people following Xiao Yuansui looked troubled, they had no chance to say anything at this point and could only cautiously follow him up the mountain.
However, as he was leaving the pavilion, Xiao Yuansui glanced back, intentionally or unintentionally. The two characters "Wanggang," as red as blood, on the stone tablet outside the pavilion were deeply imprinted in his eyes.
Xiao Yuansui pursed his lips slightly and turned to head up the mountain.
Although Wanggang Village is surrounded by mountains, the mountain road is not particularly dangerous. In fact, it is wide and spacious, and in some places, it can even accommodate several carriages at the same time. So they traveled smoothly. After a while, after turning around a huge rock, Xiao Yuansui looked up and saw a flat road ahead, with two arrow towers in sight.
This was built after he reminded Wang Quyi to build it after he entered Wanggang Village. It was to keep an eye on the mountain roads near the village to prevent enemy attacks, and also to monitor the patrol teams on the mountain roads. On both sides of the arrow tower, there were high walls made of tall wooden fences. The tops of the walls were sharpened so that not only could thieves not sneak in, but even birds would have a hard time landing on the tops of the walls. This was also supervised and built by him.
With these, Wanggangzhai transformed from an ordinary mountain village into the formidable fortress it is today.
Between the two arrow towers lies the gate of Wanggang Village!
At this moment, the gate was already crowded with people. Standing in the very center was a burly man with a full beard, who was none other than Wang Quyi, the leader of Wanggang Village!
Compared to Wang Quren, the brothers, though similar in appearance, were indistinguishable to everyone. Wang Quren's face was filled with sorrow, while Wang Quyi appeared shrewd. His demeanor always reminded one of a person walking in the desert who suddenly sees a spring. Although his face was covered with a thick beard, making it almost impossible to see his features, his eyes, though small and set deep in his beard, were bright and piercing. Especially when he saw Xiao Yuansui and the others walk onto the mountain path, his eyes were fixed on Xiao Yuansui like nails.
Then, he looked behind Xiao Yuansui.
Wang Quren just sent someone back to report that Xiao Yuansui didn't bring many people with him when he returned to the village this time. Even Hua Ziying didn't come along. He only believed it after seeing it with his own eyes. The number of people Xiao Yuansui brought back was only a few more than the number of people Wang Quren brought when he went down the mountain to pick him up.
Wang Quyi was immediately overjoyed.
Then, he burst into laughter at the people around him. Between laughs, he exclaimed, "I'm finally back!"
Although there was still some distance to the gate, Xiao Yuansui had already dismounted. He straightened his clothes, especially dusted off his cuffs, and then walked quickly toward the gate with a smile on his face.
Seeing him like this, Wang Quren and the others could no longer ride their horses, so they all dismounted and followed him, leading their horses along the mountain path.
A moment later, Xiao Yuansui walked quickly to the gate alone.
When he was still a few dozen steps away from the gate, he cupped his hands to Wang Quyi and shouted, "Big Brother!"
After saying that, he knelt down on one knee.
Seeing him like this, Wang Quyi couldn't just stand there and not move. He hurriedly stepped forward, grabbed his arm to stop him from bowing, and forcibly pulled him up, scolding, "We're brothers, why do you need such empty formalities?"
Xiao Yuansui said, "Brother, how could we trouble you to come in person?"
Wang Quyi laughed loudly twice more, his laughter like thunder, so loud it made Xiao Yuansui's eardrums buzz. As he laughed, he patted Xiao Yuansui's shoulder forcefully and said, "Brother, you've fought hard and made great contributions outside. It's not easy for you to come back. If I don't come to pick you up personally, do you expect me to let you sneak into the village without a sound? What kind of talk is that!"
"Big brother..."
Xiao Yuansui looked at him, his face filled with emotion, and said in a deep voice, "Brother, you've been fighting on the frontier, shedding blood and sweat, but when you think about how you're fighting for your brother's empire, you don't feel any hardship at all. Now that we've taken Dongdu, as long as we work together, advance into Daxing, and take this city, won't the world eventually be yours, brother?!"
"Good! Good brother!"
Wang Quyi spoke excitedly, then reached out and hugged Xiao Yuansui, patting his back forcefully.
Xiao Yuansui also hugged him, patting his back while looking behind him at the line of people who had come to greet him.
He didn't care much about the others; the most important person was the tallest and most imposing man in the crowd, who looked like the third arrow tower at the entrance of the village. This man was only in his early thirties, and he also had a thick, bushy beard that looked like it was covered in needles, but it was well-trimmed, allowing people to clearly see his features, which were as deep as if they were carved from rough rock. His eyes were also deep-set, and his round, dark pupils always looked upward, exuding arrogance.
He was none other than Shen Tu Tai, whose fame shook the world.
Although he came to greet Xiao Yuansui with Wang Quyi, he was clearly not very enthusiastic about him. When he saw him return, he just stood at the gate, and even showed a little impatience on his face.
Wang Quyi remained incredibly enthusiastic, patting Xiao Yuansui on the back before saying, "Come on, second brother, let's go into the stronghold!"
Xiao Yuansui didn't move, but looked at the people at the door and then asked, "Big brother, where are fourth brother and the others?"
Seeing that he didn't move, Wang Quyi frowned slightly, but immediately put on a big smile and said, "Fourth Brother has something to do and hasn't come back yet."
"I see,"
Xiao Yuansui nodded, then asked, "Then, where are Sixth Brother and Eighth Brother? Why haven't I seen them?"
"this--"
A strange look appeared on Wang Quyi's face as he said, "Second brother, the reason I called you back this time is because of the two of them."
"Oh? What is it?"
"Don't talk from the doorway. Come on, come inside with me first, we'll talk once we're inside. I've even prepared some good wine for you."
As he spoke, Wang Quyi pulled him inside again.
But Xiao Yuansui still walked slowly, stopping a dozen steps away from the gate of the village and asking, "By the way, where is Ninth Brother?"
A hint of impatience and panic had already appeared in Wang Quyi's eyes.
But he immediately said, "He's probably off somewhere wild again."
"Didn't you send anyone to look for them?"
"We've looked for them, but haven't heard anything back yet."
As Wang Quyi spoke, he urged him, "Hurry up and go into the village. If you go in any later, the food and wine inside will get cold."
Xiao Yuansui nodded, but then said, "By the way, elder brother, there is something else I want to give you when I come back this time."
"oh?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Quyi, though eager to let him into the village, couldn't help but stop and turn back, saying, "What—"
Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Yuansui's tightly bound sleeves suddenly came undone for no apparent reason.
Wang Quyi was stunned at the sight, but before he could react, and even before the people standing at the door to greet him could see what was happening, Xiao Yuansui's hand had already reached into his sleeve, from which a cold light flashed. Just as Wang Quyi turned around, it lightly slashed along his neck—
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