EWRN - Chapter 15
Chapter 15: Rescuing the West City Blacksmith (I)
For the next few days, the guard captain, disguised as a wealthy young master in fine black robes, went to bribe Zhai Yao, the owner of Zhai's Blacksmith Shop.
Day one.
Wealthy Young Master: "Master Zhai, this young master sees that your craftsmanship is excellent. I would like to hire you as a master craftsman at my estate. What do you think?"
Zhai Yao: "Where is your home?"
Wealthy Young Master: "My home is near the imperial city. Would Master Zhai be willing to come with me?"
Zhai Yao: "The imperial city? Too far. Not going, not going."
Wealthy Young Master (forcing a smile): "This young master is willing to offer ten thousand taels of silver to hire you! Are you willing?"
Zhai Yao (rolling his eyes): "I am not."
Wealthy Young Master: "What about fifty thousand taels of silver?"
Zhai Yao: "Go, go, go! Don't interfere with my business!"
Wealthy Young Master: "…"
Day two.
Wealthy Young Master: "This young master offers one hundred thousand taels of silver! Are you willing?"
Zhai Yao: "Scram!"
Wealthy Young Master: "…"
Day three.
Wealthy Young Master: "Are you willing?"
Zhai Yao: "Scram!"
Day four.
The wealthy young master had yet to speak, having just shown his face.
Zhai Yao: "Scram!"
Wealthy Young Master: "What if this young master offers himself to you? I'm begging you!"
Zhai Yao charged out with a blade: "Scram, scram, scram!"
The guard captain, disguised as a wealthy young master, couldn't just attack him rashly, so he had no choice but to tuck his tail between his legs and scurry off.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, that is what happened!" The guard captain seemed dejected for having failed the task Huo Jinyu had given him. In a private room on the third floor of the Emerald Fragrance House, the guard captain recounted the events to Huo Jinyu without omitting a single word.
Tap, tap, tap. Huo Jinyu's fingers tapped on the tabletop. She was thinking. Since this blacksmith Zhai Yao refused a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit, he couldn't blame her for being impolite.
"Guard Captain Lu, transmit my order. Select ten guards and begin pursuing the blacksmith Zhai Yao tonight. Force him toward the imperial city. In two days, I want to see Zhai Yao fighting someone outside the imperial city. Be careful not to cripple him," Huo Jinyu decided.
Over the past few days, she and Yan Xi had explored every major street and alley of Yuan'an City, visiting all the famous scenic spots and restaurants. They had even gone back to that wide river once more, seeing practically all the sights the city had to offer. There was nothing much left to see; it was time to set off on their return journey.
After dealing with "state affairs" with the guard captain, Huo Jinyu returned to the heaven-grade room on the fourth floor. As soon as she entered, she saw Yan Xi standing rigidly by the window, motionless. "Xi'er?" Huo Jinyu called out, finding it a bit strange.
The figure by the window finally turned around. Well, she still had the same cold expression as always; nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Huo Jinyu didn't overthink it and said casually, "We've toured all of Yuan'an City these past few days. Let's set off for the imperial city tomorrow."
Yan Xi simply assumed Huo Jinyu was worried about court affairs and the mounting pile of official duties, which was why she was in a hurry to return. She didn't think much of it, only giving a faint sound of assent before calmly beginning to pack their bags.
In truth, unbeknownst to Huo Jinyu, Yan Xi had already used a special method over the past two days to contact the informants she had placed in major cities before her marriage. Fortunately, she had placed one in Yuan'an City. Back in the imperial city, she was unfamiliar with the palace and had no opportunity to leave alone, so she naturally couldn't contact her people. This trip to Yuan'an City had finally given her the chance. She still preferred the feeling of having everything under her control. Although she had married far away into the Great Yuan Kingdom, and although the government of her home, the Northern Kingdom, had been usurped, she at least still had her own forces biding their time. This would give her the time and opportunity to plan her grand scheme.
Just before Huo Jinyu had entered, she had released a carrier pigeon. The sound of the door opening had startled her, causing her to appear slightly stiff. Thankfully, judging by Huo Jinyu's reaction, he hadn't seen anything. That was good. She had never considered telling Huo Jinyu about her plan for revenge. Not only was he the emperor of the Great Yuan Kingdom—who knew if he'd be willing to interfere in another country's internal politics—but her status as a consort of Great Yuan alone meant she was no longer qualified to meddle in the affairs of the Northern Kingdom.
That night, the two went to sleep, each with their own thoughts. Because of the waist-holding incident a few mornings ago, their sleeping postures had been excellent these past few days, and they hadn't gotten entangled again. Huo Jinyu fell asleep with ease, while Yan Xi wondered, was the emperor of the Great Yuan Kingdom always so composed in the presence of a beauty?
Early the next morning.
As usual, Huo Jinyu rose first to dress and wash up before Yan Xi got out of bed.
The carriage remained empty; the two of them rode horses at the head of the procession. Two guards were still miserably sharing a horse, but this time, the guard in front found a comfortable position to lean back into the arms of the one behind him, whose face had turned completely black.
The clatter of hooves from the mounted retinue echoed as they exited the city gates and began to gallop along the wide official road.
Meanwhile, at the blacksmith shop in the west of the city.
The night before, Zhai Yao, the owner of the blacksmith shop, had extinguished the lights and lay on his bed, but he found it difficult to fall asleep. He kept feeling like someone was watching him. He got up, took the sword he had just forged from new, hardened iron, and placed it by his bedside. Only then did he fall asleep peacefully.
In the dead of night, a figure cloaked entirely in black snuck along the rafters and into the blacksmith's bedroom. When he landed, the sole of his shoe made a soft "slap." The black-clad man immediately held his breath and stood perfectly still. The figure on the bed grumbled irritably in his sleep, rolled over, and fell back into a deep slumber, even starting to snore.
The black-clad man tiptoed closer to the bed. Finally, he stood about a step away. Unseen by the man in black, the man on the bed, who was snoring loudly, had already opened his eyes, tense.
Suddenly! A powerful gust of wind swept forward, a testament to the black-clad man's profound martial prowess. Before the sword arrived, its aura did!
The man on the bed shot up abruptly! Zhai Yao, who had been lying there, performed a carp-like leap, snagging the sword from the bedside as he did. He flipped off the bed, and the sharp sword, carrying that gust of wind, plunged deep into the bedding, slicing the fine silk quilt in two.
Seeing his first strike miss, the black-clad man immediately retracted his sword and lunged at Zhai Yao again.
Zhai Yao had already retreated to the wall. With nowhere else to go, he raised his sword to meet the attack. To his relief, this black-clad assassin, though seemingly possessed of deep inner strength, was not skilled in martial arts. His sword techniques were full of holes, and he rarely aimed for vital points. The two fought back and forth in the small bedroom, and Zhai Yao actually managed to fight his way to the doorway. Zhai Yao's heart leaped with joy. He cheered inwardly, then threw his back against the door, bursting it open. He was ecstatic. Once through this door, he was sure the black-clad assassin's skills wouldn't be enough to catch him! Zhai Yao executed a beautiful roll and landed in a handsome half-kneel on the ground. He looked up, and his face immediately darkened. The small flame of joy in his heart was extinguished as if doused by a basin of cold water.
Before Zhai Yao stood nine assassins dressed in identical black clothes. At this moment, they were staring at him with ice-cold gazes, as if looking at a dead man. Waves of killing intent emanated from them. The assassins immediately raised their swords and assumed an offensive stance.
Zhai Yao: "…" Were these really assassins? Why were they giving the person they were hunting time to prepare?
Though somewhat speechless, Zhai Yao thought to himself that these assassins must have come from a prestigious school, needing to strike a proper opening stance before battle. Without overthinking it, Zhai Yao adopted a defensive posture and stood his ground.
The assassins: "…" Why isn't this guy playing by the rules?
The two groups stood stiffly, each waiting for the other to attack. After a long moment of stalemate, the black-clad assassin from the bedroom jumped out. "What are you all standing around for? Capture him alive! Make him hand over the secret formula!"
Hearing the black-clad assassin's words, the other assassins snapped back to their senses and charged forward in unison, swords raised to strike.
Upon hearing the assassins' conversation, Zhai Yao finally understood why the one in the bedroom hadn't dealt a fatal blow. They wanted to capture him alive! They wanted his secret forging formula! It was true that possessing a treasure invites disaster! He had only just successfully forged with it, how had he been targeted already?
There was no time for him to think. As the sole heir to a family of blacksmiths and weapon forgers, Zhai Yao had a few clumsy tricks up his sleeve. Coupled with his newly forged sharp sword, he managed to fight several assassins to a standstill.
Seizing an opportunity, Zhai Yao tripped a few assassins and immediately made for the stables. He sprinted to the stable, cut the horse's tether with a single slash, and leaped onto its back. Forgetting all his belongings, he galloped straight out of the city. The black-clad assassins he had tripped immediately jumped up, ran to horses that were already prepared outside the blacksmith shop, and mounted in a single leap, chasing after the fleeing Zhai Yao.
Zhai Yao galloped along small paths all night. By the time the sky began to lighten, he saw no one pursuing him and finally stopped to rest for a while, letting his horse graze. He had woken the poor horse in the middle of the night and galloped all this way; it was nearly dead from exhaustion. Luckily, this horse wasn't grumpy when woken up.
Meanwhile, Huo Jinyu and Yan Xi had been out of the city for some time. They slowed their pace, reciting poetry and composing verses as they rode. After all, Huo Jinyu was from the imperial family of the Great Yuan Kingdom, which boasted a foundation of several hundred years—not something the nomadic steppe clans, busy with their daily survival, could compare to. Before long, Yan Xi was defeated. Her strengths lay in calligraphy, painting, and chess. Feeling a bit competitive, she challenged Huo Jinyu to several decisive matches on the chessboard once they returned to the palace.
After several hours of travel, Huo Jinyu saw that the horses and carriage were getting tired, so she found a spot near a small river to prepare lunch and eat wild fish.
Having grown up in the imperial palace, Huo Jinyu had never caught a fish in her life. Naturally, aside from churning the river water with her sword, she failed to catch a single one. Huo Jinyu's face darkened. She then watched as several guards, using sharpened branches, quickly speared a few fish. Seeing the fish, not yet dead, flopping on the ground, Huo Jinyu's face grew even darker. "Pfft." A soft laugh came from the side. Huo Jinyu turned her head and was instantly stunned. The midday sun was bright but not glaring. Beneath it, a lovely figure was covering her mouth, stifling a laugh. Having grown accustomed to that face like a jade iceberg, seeing the ice and snow melt now revealed a beautiful and charmingly cute visage that made it impossible to look away. In that instant, Huo Jinyu felt as if the world had lost its color, the wind had stopped blowing, and all things fell silent. It was as if only she and Yan Xi existed in the universe. Huo Jinyu had never imagined that Yan Xi's smile could be so captivatingly beautiful. Her heart began to pound faster.
Yan Xi had been laughing at the man's foolishness when she suddenly saw him turn his head and stare at her, completely dumbfounded. Huo Jinyu's gaze made Yan Xi extremely uncomfortable. She immediately suppressed her smile and reverted to her icy demeanor.
The noisy sounds of the guards starting a fire and cooking returned, and the world began to move again. Yan Xi's smile was like a night-blooming cereus, gone in a flash. Huo Jinyu even had the thought that it would be wonderful if time could freeze forever in that moment of her flower-like smile.
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