Chapter 48!!
The mountain guesthouse was hidden deep in the bamboo forest, its white walls and gray tiles glistening with morning dew. The landlady, seeing them covered in dust and bruises, only asked, "Did you fall in the mountains?" before handing them four south-facing rooms. Hei Xiazi had just placed his backpack on the table when Zhang Qiling grabbed his arm and pressed him against the edge of the bed. Zhang Qiling's fingertips touched the bruises on Hei Xiazi's wrists, the touch as light as if striking fragile porcelain.
"Sit still." Zhang Qiling's voice was flat, but it carried an undeniable certainty. He took out an ice pack from his backpack, wrapped it with a towel, and gently pressed his fingertips against the edge of the bruise. His gaze fell on the newly added bloodstain on Hei Xiazi's arm. "You should have dodged it just now."
Black Bear laughed and deliberately moved closer to him, his nose almost touching the top of his head: "Even a mute is about to be hit by a rock, I can't just stand by and watch, can I?" He raised his hand to touch the grass clippings on Zhang Qiling's neck, but saw the other man tilt his head slightly, and pressed the ice pack harder on his bruise. "Ouch~ Be gentle, if this swells up, how will you wield your knife tomorrow?"
Zhang Qiling didn't loosen his grip, but his fingertips subtly reduced the pressure: "No need next time." He knew Hei Xiazi understood the unspoken meaning in his words. With his skills, the boulder wouldn't have hurt him, but Hei Xiazi's lunge was almost an instinctive reaction. Just like in the passage earlier, when he shattered the falling rocks aimed at Wu Xie, Hei Xiazi had already deflected the poisoned arrow coming from behind. The two never needed any further instructions.
In the next room, Xiao Hua frowned at her phone screen. The messages from her subordinates were plentiful, the most glaring being Xie Chen's travel history. Since his supposed "death" ten years ago, he had multiple entries and exits from the country, the most recent being three months ago, with his stop at the Wu family's core stronghold in Southeast Asia. What chilled her to the bone was that all seven "deceased" Xie family men had secret accounts, with all funds flowing to the same anonymous account. And the account's address was none other than the old house where Xie Jiuye had once lived.
"He faked his death to escape, but he's still working for the Wu family." Xiao Hua's fingertips traced the screen, the wound beneath the bandages throbbing slightly. He remembered his childhood, when his uncles and elders were still around, they always protected him, but overnight they all became "old friends," leaving him alone to learn how to manage the Xie family mansion in its empty state. It turned out that from the very beginning, he was Xie Jiuye's "bargaining chip" offered to the Wu family, using the Xie family's wealth to bind Hei Xiazi, and then using Hei Xiazi to control Zhang Qiling.
Wu Xie sat by the window, clutching the old photograph in his hand. The smiles of his parents in the photo were terrifyingly unfamiliar. He suddenly remembered the warmth of his childhood fever, when his second uncle rushed him to the hospital that night, and his third uncle secretly slipping him candy. Was it all just a pretense to "test his constitution"? He took out the fragment of meteorite marrow from his pocket, the warmth from his fingertips unable to ward off the chill in his heart. Suddenly, he heard a slight noise outside the door.
"Who?" Wu Xie looked up abruptly and saw Zhang Qiling standing at the door, holding two bottles of iodine in his hand, with Hei Xiazi following behind, a cigarette dangling from his mouth.
"I'm bringing you medicine." Zhang Qiling placed the iodine on the table, his gaze sweeping over the bleeding wound on Wu Xie's arm. "It could get infected if not treated properly." He didn't mention the suppressed breathing he had just heard, just as he hadn't mentioned the past when Wu Xie almost died from a high fever in the rainforest while investigating the truth.
Hei Xiazi leaned against the door frame, exhaling smoke from his mouth: "Dumb guy is meticulous, he knows your delicate skin is fragile." His gaze fell on the photo in Wu Xie's hand, and his tone softened, "The homeless are the best at acting. My master almost fell into their hands back then."
Wu Xie clutched the photo tightly: "Am I really an only child without a family? They raised me just to be a medicinal ingredient?"
Zhang Qiling was about to speak when Hei Xiazi stopped him with a look. Some things couldn't be said. For example, he discovered that the Wu family actually had a branch, yet they chose Wu Xie specifically as the medicinal ingredient because Wu Xie's bloodline held the key to the ultimate secret; for example, Xie Jiuye's transaction record omitted a sentence: "Wu Xie's nature most easily swayes Zhang Qiling's heart." These truths were too sharp; revealing them now would only shatter Wu Xie's newly ignited resolve.
"Whether he's the only son or not, we'll find out by checking." Hei Xiazi walked in, rummaging through his backpack for the Wujia file. "It mentions that the Wujia ancestral hall is in western Hunan; they might have a family genealogy." He deliberately avoided the deeper conspiracy surrounding the medicinal ingredient, instead looking towards Xiaohua's room. "Any news from Xiaohua?"
Before the words were even finished, Xiao Hua's voice suddenly came through, unusually urgent: "Come here! There are frequent transactions between Master Xie's account and Old Master Wu's account, and..."
The three rushed into Xiaohua's room, where a screenshot popped up on the screen. It was a secret letter from Xie Jiuye to Wujia: "Wu Xie is not an only child. His sister died young, but her bloodline is fused with the meteorite jade marrow. Therefore, the jade nourishes his heart, but in reality, it nourishes the remaining blood in his marrow. Zhang Qiling is sentimental and will definitely protect him; Hei Xiazi is greedy for the Xie family's wealth and will definitely follow Jieyuhua. The four of them traveling together is just right for the final opening formation."
"I have a younger sister?" Wu Xie stumbled and bumped into the corner of the table. He had never known he had a younger sister; his parents had never mentioned it, and his second and third uncles would never talk about it.
Xiao Hua's expression turned serious: "This letter was written three years ago, which means that Wu Jia's plan was all planned long ago. They used your sister's remaining blood to support you, then used you to lure Xiao Ge, and used me to lure Xia Zi." He looked at Hei Xia Zi, "You said before that Wu Jia took advantage of your greed, but that was a deliberate slip-up. What they wanted was for you to follow me, so as to keep Xiao Ge in check."
Hei Xiazi stroked his chin, the smile fading from his eyes. "Quite the shrewd one." He turned to look at Zhang Qiling, only to see the other staring intently at the words "Zhang Qiling cherishes the past" in the secret letter, his fingertips gently stroking the hilt of the black gold ancient sword—a habitual gesture he made when reminiscing about the past. Hei Xiazi's heart skipped a beat; he suddenly understood that Zhang Qiling's "different" attitude towards Wu Xie might not be just a matter of camaraderie.
"Let's pack our things first," Zhang Qiling suddenly said, glancing out the window. "Someone's coming."
Hei Xiazi immediately went to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and saw more than a dozen dark figures in the bamboo forest, dressed in the same black clothes as the steward in the stone chamber, with curved swords inlaid with dark Qilin patterns at their waists. When he turned around, he bumped into the dagger that Zhang Qiling handed him, the scabbard still stained with iodine that had been rubbed off when he treated his wound.
"The left side is yours." Zhang Qiling had barely finished speaking when the door was kicked open.
Hei Xiazi took the dagger and took a half step back behind Zhang Qiling to avoid the oncoming blade wind: "Don't worry, mute, I've got the one on the right." He twisted his wrist, and the dagger slashed the other's wrist, but before the other fell to the ground, Zhang Qiling knocked him unconscious with the back of the blade, leaving him alive. It was the tacit understanding that the two had just exchanged in their eyes.
Xiao Hua helped Wu Xie hide under the table, and the short knife in her hand accurately stabbed the knee of the approaching man in black: "Don't linger, go out the back door."
Zhang Qiling's black gold ancient sword cleaved through two beams of light. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hei Xiazi surrounded by three men, his back wide open. He lightly touched the ground with his toes, sweeping his sword horizontally to force back the enemies in front of him. At the same time, he threw a pebble, which struck one of the men in the wrist. Hei Xiazi seized the opportunity to turn around, his dagger piercing another man's shoulder. As he turned back, he smiled at Zhang Qiling: "Thanks, mute."
"Watch out behind you." Zhang Qiling's voice had barely fallen when he was already behind Hei Xiazi, his blade flashing as he deflected the attacking scimitar. His wrist felt slightly numb; he had acted hastily to save Hei Xiazi, and his old injury was throbbing.
Hei Xiazi immediately noticed his stiffness, grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the door: "Go!" He deliberately leaned towards the side where Zhang Qiling was injured, using his body to block any possible attacks. "Don't take it head-on, save your strength to run away."
The four rushed out the back door and ran wildly along the bamboo path. The footsteps of the men in black followed closely behind. Zhang Qiling suddenly stopped and pushed Wu Xie next to Hei Xiazi: "Take them away, I'll cover the rear."
"Are you crazy?" Hei Xiazi pressed down on his scabbard. "If we're going to leave, we'll leave together." He turned to Xiao Hua and shouted, "Take Wu Xie and run forward. Find a secluded place to wait!" Before Xiao Hua could respond, he and Zhang Qiling were already back to back, their daggers and black gold ancient swords drawn at the same time. "Dumb, the three on the left are mine, and you take care of the ones on the right."
Zhang Qiling didn't speak, but gently leaned closer to Hei Xiazi, relieving some of the pressure on his shoulders. Moonlight filtered through the bamboo leaves, illuminating their overlapping shadows. Where the blade flashed, the men in black fell like wheat. Hei Xiazi's wound on his arm was torn open, blood dripping onto the bamboo leaves, yet he laughed arrogantly: "Mute, let's see who can finish off the last one first?"
Just as Zhang Qiling's knife pierced the shoulder of the last man in black, he heard Hei Xiazi groan. He turned his head and saw a deep gash on Hei Xiazi's back, blood flowing down his clothes.
"It's nothing." Black Bear grinned, but stumbled as he turned around. Zhang Qiling immediately stepped forward to support him, his brows furrowing as his fingertips touched the warm blood on his back.
"Take care of the wound first." Zhang Qiling helped Hei Xiazi walk forward, his steps very slow.
Hei Xiazi leaned on his shoulder, deliberately putting all his weight on him: "I didn't expect the Wu family to catch up so quickly. It seems we've hit a nerve." He paused, his voice softening, "Thanks for that earlier."
Zhang Qiling didn't respond, but tightened his grip on his hand. He knew that Hei Xiazi had deliberately drawn away the attack; otherwise, he would have been the one injured. Just like in his previous life at the Ultimate Land, when Hei Xiazi shielded him from a fatal blow, he smiled and said, "It's alright."
Xiao Hua's shouts came from ahead. Zhang Qiling, supporting Hei Xiazi, quickened his pace. The moonlight stretched their shadows long, as if extending into the mist ahead. They both knew that this scheme orchestrated by Wu Jia had only just begun, and the bond between them had already deepened beyond repair through countless battles fought side by side.
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