Seeing his hesitation, Yun Huizhou reached out and took his hand, guiding him to grasp the hilt of his saber.
Yun Huizhou’s saber was very heavy; it was impossible for Lian Li to lift it with one hand, and Yun Huizhou had no intention of letting go to let him hold it alone.
When Lian Li’s hand rested on the hilt, Yun Huizhou’s hand shifted slightly, enveloping Lian Li’s hand along with the hilt within his grip.
Those who practiced martial arts naturally possessed a vigorous internal heat. As Lian Li’s somewhat cold hand was held this way, he instantly felt a warm glow.
Holding Lian Li’s hand and the saber, Yun Huizhou stared down at Feng Man on the ground, yet spoke to Lian Li: “If you are afraid, you can close your eyes.”
Lian Li pursed his lips and took a deep breath, then slowly shook his head. “No need.”
“Good,” Yun Huizhou said.
As soon as the word left his lips, he guided Lian Li’s hand forward. Under Feng Man’s venomous gaze, the saber plunged into his chest.
Lian Li’s entire body went rigid. Even though he had prepared himself for the fact that his hands would inevitably be stained with blood from the moment he began to resist after being kidnapped, when the moment actually arrived, he still felt a chill seep through his body, making him tremble.
Yun Huizhou did not let go. He continued to hold his hand and the saber hilt, waiting for him to compose himself.
Lian Li stared at Feng Man on the ground, watching him draw his last breath.
It was a long time before he felt sensation return to his body.
He opened his mouth, his voice dry and raspy. “It’s done. Let’s go back. I want to sleep.”
“Mm,” Yun Huizhou responded.
The night was deep, and they were in the desolate wilderness. The scent of blood would attract wild beasts; by tomorrow morning, there would be no traces left here.
Yun Huizhou sheathed his saber, put his arm around Lian Li’s waist, and returned the way they came.
Back at the inn, Lian Li quickly climbed into bed.
He had originally thought he wouldn’t be able to sleep, or that he would have nightmares all night.
But there was nothing. He slept soundly until the sun was high in the sky.
Yun Huizhou did not wake him, letting him sleep as long as he needed.
Seeing him wake up, Yun Huizhou asked, “Shall we stay here for a few days before leaving, or set out tomorrow?”
Lian Li pulled his legs in and said, “What if I say we set out today?”
Yun Huizhou gave him a surprised look and remarked, “Not bad. You’ve adapted quite quickly.”
Lian Li gave a bitter smile. “Society won’t adapt to me; I can only work hard to adapt to society.”
Although Yun Huizhou didn’t know what “society” meant, he could understand the sentiment from the context of their conversation.
After a moment of silence, Lian Li started a new topic.
“The hundred taels you spent earlier to buy information on Feng Man—was that the reward for taking first place in the martial arts competition?”
Yun Huizhou replied, “Yes. Without that money, finding Feng Man would have required more effort, like clearing out a few more bandit dens, or I would have had to send you back to Drunken Dream Island first before coming back to search for him slowly.”
Lian Li sat cross-legged and hesitated for a moment before making up his mind to ask, “How much was your… reward?”
Yun Huizhou: “Five hundred taels.”
Lian Li let out a sharp hiss. That meant Yun Huizhou had spent a fifth of it just to kill Feng Man as quickly as possible.
Then he remembered that he had also received a hundred taels for capturing Ma Tie, which essentially made up for the loss.
Not a loss, not a loss.
“Let’s go. We’re going to the restaurant next door for a meal,” Yun Huizhou said, stepping down from the windowsill.
“Eh?” Lian Li looked up at him.
Yun Huizhou remained calm. “Food ordered to the room is never as good as eating in the shop. Besides, we can listen for news.”
“Oh, okay. Wait for me to wash up.” Lian Li responded while pulling on his clothes.
The inn provided food as well, and it was cheaper than the restaurant, but the taste certainly couldn’t compare.
Now that they had money, Yun Huizhou was unwilling to keep eating the inn’s fare.
Once they arrived at the restaurant, they sat directly in the main hall.
The seat was a bit secluded but happened to be by the window. The window was open, making it look like a good spot for a quick escape.
Yun Huizhou ate while listening to the chatter of the other patrons, focusing particularly on those dressed as martial artists.
Lian Li wanted to listen too, but unfortunately, without internal energy, he couldn’t hear anything from even a short distance away.
He didn’t dare to look around aimlessly either. Finally, after Yun Huizhou placed a few helpings of his favorite dishes into his bowl, he focused solely on eating.
Throughout the duration of lunch, no one in the crowded restaurant mentioned Feng Man.
In the Jianghu, people died every day, and new people made their debuts every day.
Feng Man was neither a famous expert nor from a prestigious sect.
Even if someone cared about his life or death, the worst they would do is seek revenge.
Yun Huizhou had sought him out for revenge, so he naturally expected others to come seeking revenge against him in turn.
When roaming the Jianghu, who didn’t have a few enemies?
In the end, it was simply a matter of who killed whom.
The two rested in Yinbai Town for one more day before hitting the road again.
The carriage was layered with thick cushions, but it lacked tires. Although the official road outside the city was relatively flat, it hadn’t been repaired in a long time; where it was meant to be bumpy, it was bumpy.
Sometimes the jolting became truly unbearable. Lian Li could only stick his head out of the carriage and look at Yun Huizhou. “Yun Huizhou, can you let me ride the horse with you? Just for this bumpy stretch. Sitting inside is too uncomfortable; I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
Seeing that his lips had turned pale, Yun Huizhou had no choice but to lift him up and take him onto the horse.
Lian Li didn’t know how to ride, and since Yun Huizhou had to control the horse, Yun Huizhou was the one using the stirrups. Consequently, it was still bumpy.
But it was much better than being inside the carriage.
As the journey dragged on, Lian Li became like a wilted cabbage.
Every time they stopped at a town to rest, he looked at the bed as if he were seeing his own parents, throwing himself onto it with tears in his eyes.
Seeing him like this, Yun Huizhou couldn’t help but sigh. “It seems I’ll have to teach you how to ride a horse first.”
Lian Li nodded like a woodpecker. “I definitely need to learn. The carriage is too slow. If I knew how to ride, we’d probably be almost there by now.”
Yun Huizhou sat on the edge of the bed, reached out to squeeze Lian Li’s arm, then his leg, before finally offering a critique.
“Too thin. After we get back, we need to put some meat on your bones first.”
Hearing this, Lian Li undid his belt and flipped up his clothes, revealing his snowy-white belly.
His frame still possessed the slenderness of a youth, and because he rarely saw the sun, he was very pale.
Yun Huizhou stared at his waist for a moment, then pulled the clothes up even further, directly covering Lian Li’s face.
Lian Li was just about to see for himself if he was thin or not when his face was obscured by the fabric.
Before he could push the clothes aside, he felt someone nip at his waist.
“What are you doing!” Lian Li hurriedly pulled his clothes down to cover his waist and then moved to kick Yun Huizhou.
