Chapter 046: Forced to Give
Page 1 of 3
"You have all worked hard. However, this time you accompanied our son-in-law and the young master to Kaiyang County, confirming the identity of our son-in-law. This is a matter of great importance. From now on, no one in the stronghold is permitted to discuss Xian's identity; he is the son-in-law of Qingyun Stronghold, and in the future, the child he has with Hongxiu will be the successor to Qingyun Stronghold.
This time, the army of Xia attacked our son-in-law and Hongxiu. Many of our old brothers were seriously injured. We must remember this grudge and let everyone in the stronghold know. Strengthen daily training, and in time, we will seek revenge against Xia.
Third Brother, I must trouble you here. Although our stronghold is flourishing, if we wish to unify the entire Daba Mountain range, it will take more than just Marshal Hong's support. We must become strong ourselves. So when it's time for rewards, don't be shy—ask for as much as possible." With these words, Ye Qingyun set the tone.
Although Huang Yuantao was not entirely willing, he had no choice but to take the heads of the five men down the mountain, while Huang Shuhua returned to his own courtyard, for he had important matters to attend to.
After nightfall, Huang Shuhua changed into black clothes, took a bundle, and quietly slipped out from the back yard. He observed his surroundings, then swiftly made his way toward the rear mountain.
Soon after his departure, Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu appeared, also dressed in black. They followed Huang Shuhua deep into the mountains. Hundreds of meters above them, King Falcon was closely watching Huang Shuhua's figure, occasionally transmitting information about his location to Fang Xian.
About half an hour later, Huang Shuhua stopped at the edge of a cliff and let out several cries imitating a night bird. A reply soon came, and a figure emerged from the nearby rocky rubble—a thin man in his thirties.
"Brother Huang, you finally came! Did you bring me anything delicious? And how long must I stay here? Alone in these deep mountains, I dare not remain any longer," the thin man said anxiously to Huang Shuhua.
"Our previous plan failed. Tomorrow, you can leave the mountain and go to General Wei. But be careful when you leave—take a detour away from Qingyun Stronghold so no one discovers you," Huang Shuhua replied, handing over food while giving instructions.
At this moment, Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu, half a mile away, were watching them closely. Ye Hongxiu could not see clearly, but Fang Xian, with his Star Eyes technique, observed their actions distinctly, though he could not hear what they were saying.
"This spot is upwind—perfect to spice things up," Fang Xian said, producing a colorless, odorless poison powder which he gently tossed into the wind, sending it drifting toward the two men.
The thin man, evidently famished, gobbled down the food and wine brought by Huang Shuhua, oblivious to anything strange in the wind. After a while, as he began to notice something amiss in his body, he was already poisoned.
"Brother Huang, did you poison the food?" he asked coldly, swallowing an antidote pill.
"Poison? What poison? Oh no, I'm feeling numb..." Huang Shuhua exclaimed in alarm, only then realizing something was wrong.
"It wasn't you? Could someone be plotting against us?" The thin man stood up in terror, finding his antidote pill ineffective.
A deafening roar suddenly erupted behind the two. A massive tiger appeared, startling the thin man so much that he stumbled and fell off the cliff.
Page 1 of 3
Page 2 of 3
A faint scream from the thin man echoed, followed by a dull thud below. It seemed unlikely he would survive. Huang Shuhua, terrified to his core, wet himself and fainted.
"Such a coward," Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu remarked as they approached, finding Huang Shuhua unconscious.
"We can't let him die yet, or Third Uncle might go mad," Ye Hongxiu whispered.
"Let him wake up on his own," Fang Xian said, feeding Huang Shuhua a pill before the two departed.
When Huang Shuhua awoke, it was already morning. He found himself lying atop a giant stone at the cliff's edge. Remembering the events of the night, he looked around in fear, but saw no sign of the tiger.
He slowly made his way down to the base of the cliff, where he found the thin man's body had been mangled beyond recognition. Realizing the tiger encounter had been real, he hastily buried the corpse and quietly returned to the stronghold.
...
While Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu were tracking Huang Shuhua into the mountains, Huang Yuantao hurried to Qingyang County, seeking out Wei Qi'an's residence, which was in a military camp southeast of Qingyang City.
"Brother Huang, you came in such haste—do you bring good news?" Wei Qi'an asked with a smile.
"Brother Wei, any word from the team you arranged to attack Fang Xian?" Huang Yuantao inquired.
"I instructed them to circle through Xia's territory before returning elsewhere, so there's been no news yet. But with five hundred elite cavalry and five top-level experts, surely there can be no mishap in killing Fang Xian and his companions," Wei Qi'an said confidently.
"Brother Wei, take a look at this," Huang Yuantao sighed, handing over a large wooden box.
Wei Qi'an felt a sudden unease. When he opened the box and saw the heads of the five top-level experts, his body trembled as if struck by lightning.
"They're all dead. What about Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu?" Wei Qi'an asked urgently. If those two were dead, he could still answer to Marshal Hong despite the losses.
"Unscathed," Huang Yuantao replied.
"Impossible! Ye Hongxiu only recently broke through to top-level expert, and Fang Xian isn't even at that level. How could they kill our men? Was Ye Qingyun secretly protecting them? Did Ye Qingyun intervene?" Wei Qi'an questioned.
Page 2 of 3
Page 3 of 3
"No. It turns out that in Fang Xian's group, three old soldiers broke through to become top-level experts after repeated battles. Fang Xian himself admits he barely has the strength of a top-level expert. Thus, they managed to withstand the five top-level experts.
Yet, during their battle, they unexpectedly encountered Feng Ling, the chief of Flying Phoenix Ridge, passing by. She noticed the cavalry wearing Xia's steel armor and joined the fight.
Feng Ling is a core disciple of Hundred Flowers Abyss, a peak-level expert herself, and wields a divine weapon bestowed by her sect. She slew two top-level experts single-handedly, while the remaining three were surrounded and killed by Fang Xian's group. The five hundred elite cavalry were wiped out as well." Huang Yuantao recounted the events as told by Fang Xian.
"Flying Phoenix Ridge? Ruined our plans! Damn it!" Wei Qi'an roared, his face twisted with rage.
"Brother Wei, Ye Qingyun sent me to bring their heads down the mountain, claiming they were sent by Xia to disrupt Wu. He told me to apply for military merit," Huang Yuantao continued, smiling bitterly.
"What? They killed so many of Marshal Hong's elite and want military rewards?" Wei Qi'an was furious.
"Brother Wei, whether they know this attack was arranged by us or not, we must grant them military merit—unless we turn against them immediately and send troops to attack Qingyun Stronghold. Otherwise, we have no choice but to reward them," Huang Yuantao advised.
Wei Qi'an realized that Marshal Hong was currently recruiting heroes from all over. Since they had chosen to cooperate with Qingyun Stronghold, they must be given a sweetener first.
Regardless of whether Qingyun Stronghold suspected anything about this operation, they had to treat these as Xia's agents and grant rewards; otherwise, they would make enemies of Qingyun Stronghold.
"How much military merit do they want? What rewards?" Wei Qi'an asked.
"They want five general titles and a large batch of medicinal herbs—at least double last time. Ye Qingyun told me to ask for as much as possible, but their bottom line is double," Huang Yuantao revealed Qingyun Stronghold's terms without hesitation.
"Then we'll grant them triple. If it's only double, they'll surely suspect you. With triple, you can also claim some credit.
Marshal Hong can bestow five roving general titles, but there won't be corresponding benefits, and two of them are for you and your son. The remaining three go to them," Wei Qi'an quickly calmed himself and began planning how to handle the situation.
Page 3 of 3