Chapter 40: Sons Are Not Born with Chrysanthemums

Chapter 040: Swearing a Son Born Without a Rose

“So what do we do now?” Zhu Xishi asked. The doors and windows were broken; this place could no longer serve as a trap to lure the enemy in.

Fang Rulai pondered for a moment and said, “Come on, let’s retreat to the storeroom in the backyard.”

Since one group had already discovered the fake Zhu Xishi, the other group would soon realize the impersonation of Mu Zhijin as well.

The three quickly retreated to the storeroom. As soon as the door was closed, they heard the voices of some constables.

“Old Stone, what’s going on here? How did our brothers just vanish for no reason?”

“Shut up, stop yapping, let me think.”

“What’s there to think about? They must’ve teamed up, swapped out the ones we were supposed to take, and are now hiding somewhere having a good time.”

“Would that require smashing all the doors and windows?” Old Stone’s instincts told him something was off. “In this wilderness, who could have found a boy similar to that Mu fellow in advance and made the switch without anyone noticing? If Daliuzi hadn’t whimsically decided to light a candle, we’d probably have spent the night with him and never known the difference.”

“Fake or not, you got your fun anyway…” someone said indifferently, but was cut off sharply by Old Stone.

“If the trick was only to fool us for pleasure, it wouldn’t matter. But what if it’s our lives they’re after?” Old Stone felt an inexplicable heaviness. “Think about this journey: poisonings, ambushes—there’s been no peace. Did you really think this was just a regular errand?”

The other two shivered. “Old Stone, you mean someone above…”

“Hmph, idiots! You’re only getting it now? The connection between our lord and that Daoist temple has long ceased to be a secret. To keep it quiet, even the adviser who’d served him for over ten years was drowned. Do you think we’ll outlive the adviser?”

“But… but, they just need to take out the monks. We’re on the same side—why would they…”

“Because every extra survivor is another risk of leaking the secret. Only if everyone dies out here will there be no trace and a perfect cover-up.”

“So what do we do?” someone began to panic. “Maybe… we should just run?”

“Run? With the prince’s methods, where could you possibly escape?” Old Stone spat. “Better that we kill that monk first, and maybe earn our lives in exchange.”

The other two exchanged glances. “You sure?”

“I am! If I fail, may my son be born without a rose!”

Old Stone’s concubine was six months pregnant; this was a curse as venomous as could be.

“Alright, we’ll follow your lead. What’s the plan?”

“We do it hot!” Old Stone’s laugh was sinister. “You all saw that bald head flash behind the storeroom door, didn’t you?”

Inside, Fang Rulai slapped her bald head. In focusing on hiding, she’d forgotten to cover her head—which shone even brighter at night.

“Heh, getting in was easy; getting out won’t be,” Old Stone said, flipping his wrist to reveal a fire striker. With a flick, he tossed it at the foot of the door, and flames burst up with a whoosh.

Inside, Zhu Xishi leaped to her feet. “You want to burn me? I’ll break out and fight them myself!”

Fang Rulai stopped her with a single sentence. “Even if you get through the fire, can you kill all three without letting a single one escape?”

“Then what? Are we just supposed to wait here and die?”

Mu Zhijin flexed his fists. “I’ll go!”

Fang Rulai stopped him as well. “No need.” This was just the beginning; conserving strength was crucial. Besides, Mu Zhijin hadn’t fully recovered from his internal injuries; forcing himself now would do more harm than good.

Fang Rulai pointed at the ceiling. “We’ll use the ventilator up there.”

This was a small room usually for storing firewood and sundries. Though it had only one door, there was a ventilation window high in the center of the pointed roof. It didn’t look big, but it was more than enough for a slim person to get through.

Fang Rulai quickly found the hemp rope used for bundling firewood in a corner, tied one end around Zhu Xishi’s waist, and handed the other end to Mu Zhijin. “You go up first, then use the beam to pull Zhu Xishi up.”

Zhu Xishi grabbed Fang Rulai’s hand just as she finished tying the rope, refusing to let go. “What about you?”

Before Fang Rulai could answer, Mu Zhijin interjected, “My internal injuries aren’t fully healed, but I can still jump down and pull you up quickly.”

“No, as I said, except for necessary counterattacks, you must save your strength until it’s absolutely needed.” Fang Rulai beckoned him closer, “Once you’re out the window, do this and that…”

Mu Zhijin nodded repeatedly, then, without another word, leapt up, passed the beam, and jumped down on the other side, swiftly hoisting Zhu Xishi into the air.

Smoke began to fill the room, and Zhu Xishi’s coughing echoed from above. “What about you? What will you do? Zhijin, put me down—mmm!”

Zhu Xishi’s pressure point was struck, silencing her.

Fang Rulai looked up and made a reassuring gesture.

Once Zhu Xishi was safely on the beam, Mu Zhijin pushed off and leaped through the ventilator. The rope was jerked again, and Zhu Xishi disappeared through the window as well.

At the same time, the only door collapsed in a shower of sparks, a beam following it to the floor.

Through the thick smoke, Fang Rulai caught a glimpse of the three silhouettes standing at the entrance.

Sealing the doors and setting a fire—truly the tactic with minimal risk and maximal lethality. She should thank them. If not for this plan, she’d still be struggling with how to quickly and efficiently dispatch this last group.

Fang Rulai backed away but raised her voice to the front, shouting, “Old Stone, you started the fire too soon! I haven’t escaped safely yet! Put out the fire and get me out! Otherwise, you won’t get the remaining thousand gold taels Lady Guan promised you!”

All three were stunned. Old Stone was the first to respond. “What thousand gold taels? There’s no such thing! Don’t listen to him, he’s trying to sow discord.”

Fang Rulai’s voice came again, perfectly timed. “Old Stone, am I sowing discord, or are you breaking your promise? When you took Lady Guan’s thousand-tael deposit in Shengjing, your pregnant concubine was there! Didn’t you say, ‘If I can’t protect you all the way, may my son be born without a rose’? Wasn’t that your oath?”

“Yes!” Daliuzi’s temper flared as fiercely as the fire before him. The very vow Old Stone had made just moments ago. If Old Stone hadn’t made a private deal with the monk, how would the monk know about his pregnant concubine?

“Old Stone! You dare deceive us! Did you take out our missing brothers yourself?”

Already unnerved by the mysterious disappearances, Daliuzi and his companion immediately believed Fang Rulai’s plausible story. If there wasn’t a traitor, how could their brothers have been so thoroughly dealt with?

“Old Stone, you backstabber!” The two, blood surging, attacked Old Stone from either side.

Old Stone hastily defended. “It wasn’t me, truly! If it was, may my son be born without a ros—”

He couldn’t finish. For the same words proved Fang Rulai’s credibility.

“I’ll drag that monk out and confront him face-to-face!” Realizing he couldn’t clear his name, Old Stone feinted and lunged into the doorway.

Daliuzi and his companion hesitated. Had they been mistaken?

Just then, a fierce wind blew behind them. Before they could react, they were swept into the doorway, crashing straight into Old Stone ahead. Caught off guard, Old Stone stumbled and fell. He opened his mouth to curse, but before he could, more beams and charred wood crashed down.

Through the blurring smoke, a bald head darted past them and out the back door, while they lay pinned and unable to move beneath the burning timbers.

Not until the following night did the Crown Prince hear the news. He kicked Kong Kongzi, who was serving him in bed, to the floor. “Useless!”

At the same time, Guan Shiyin received the news while in bed as well. But he didn’t dare kick the little favorite by his side. “Little Meatball, isn’t the blood pudding delicious? Now, tell me a little secret about your abbot, and I’ll stuff the rest of the pudding right into your mouth.”

“Su, alright, alright, there was this one time…”

Thanks to dear c Banxia / Ruyan for the bouquet! Last day of 2013, a 2600-word warm-up, daily 3000 words starting next year!

This book is first published here.