Chapter 54
Chapter 54
The moment they settled into the posthouse, Xiao Che gathered everyone in a single room.
Xiao Jinghao guarded the door while Li Si watched the window.
Xiao Che, Zhu Laosan, and Xiao Jingmo discussed how to respond.
At this point, Zhu Laosan had every reason to abandon the Xiao Family and leave.
But he still owed Xiao Che his life. He could not go.
Besides, Cui Jin no longer intended to let him live. If Zhu Laosan returned to the Capital, he would certainly expose Cui Jin’s crimes. Cui Jin would never allow either him or Li Si to escape alive.
From the moment Zhu Laosan refused to join Cui Jin, the two men had become enemies.
“Sir, Cui Jin and those men came to kill the Xiao Family. There is no need for you to involve yourselves in our affairs and risk losing your lives because of us.”
Before they began their discussion, Xiao Che urged Zhu Laosan once more to leave.
Zhu Laosan gave a bitter smile. “I can’t leave. Cui Jin is ruthless. He would never let me return to the Capital alive. We’re bound together now. Only by eliminating every last one of them can we travel the rest of the road in peace.”
Xiao Che already understood this. Still, it had to be said clearly so Zhu Laosan would not feel too embarrassed to ask to leave.
Now that the man understood they were all in the same position, there was no need for further courtesies.
“In that case, let’s decide how to eliminate them tonight.”
The tactic they had used to divide their enemies back in the small town would not work this time. They would have to face them head-on, but proper preparation could still improve their odds.
“Brother Xiao, what if they attack during the day?” Zhu Laosan asked.
It was not yet noon, and more than three hours remained before dark. Their enemies could not possibly sit idle all that time.
“They won’t. If they were willing to strike during the day, they would have done so just now. This is Jinzhou, and the city is heavily guarded. They wouldn’t dare carry out an assassination in broad daylight. Soldiers would arrive and arrest them almost immediately, which would only work against them.”
Xiao Che had already analyzed all the advantages they could use. They had to finish their preparations before nightfall.
Zhu Laosan nodded and said nothing more. He knew nothing of military strategy and was only an average fighter. All he could do was follow Xiao Che’s command and support him.
“We have many women with us and very few people who know how to fight. They’ll only restrict us once battle begins, so we need to hide the women first…”
Before Xiao Che could finish, someone knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
Everyone in the room immediately fell silent and turned toward the entrance.
“Guests, I’m a waiter. I’ve brought hot water for you.”
Xiao Jingmo remembered what had happened at the posthouse in Suizhong. Cui Jin might have people planted here too, so they had to be even more cautious.
He rose and signaled Xiao Jinghao with a glance. Xiao Jinghao moved to the side.
“Leave it on the floor. We’ll collect it ourselves.”
The waiter set everything down outside.
Only after Xiao Jingmo heard his footsteps descending the stairs did he open the door.
A pot of hot water sat outside.
Xiao Jingmo bent to pick it up. As he was about to return to the room, he noticed a letter pinned beneath the pot.
He quickly picked it up, slipped it into his pocket, and closed the door behind him.
Without betraying anything, Xiao Jingmo placed the pot on the table. He did not immediately take the letter from his sleeve.
The person sending them a letter now had to be one of his eldest brother’s men.
Xiao Jingxing was alive but had refused to show himself. His intention was obvious: he meant to help their family reach the Northern Frontier safely from the shadows while investigating Jin Bao’s true identity.
If he returned to the group now, many things would become harder to accomplish.
That meant they could not let the bailiffs learn that Eldest Brother was still alive.
Zhu Laosan and Li Si appeared to be on their side for now, but only because they currently shared a common enemy.
Xiao Jingxing’s faked death was a crime of deceiving the Emperor. Zhu Laosan could never cover for them.
From the moment they received Xiao Jingxing’s first letter, father and son had agreed to keep the matter hidden.
“Father, I have a few ideas for dealing with them, but I’ll need to go out and buy some things.”
Xiao Jingmo looked at Xiao Che. With both hands tucked into his sleeves, he gave his father a subtle signal.
Understanding at once, Xiao Che turned to Zhu Laosan.
“Sir, please watch over everyone here at the posthouse. My second son and I will go buy a few things and make some preparations.”
Zhu Laosan suspected nothing and readily agreed.
“Daddy, Baby’s going too.”
Jin Bao loved excitement. For the past few days, everyone had been struggling merely to stay alive. Now that they were in bustling Jinzhou, she wanted to go outside and look around too.
Xiao Jingmo agreed without hesitation.
He would not feel safe leaving Jin Bao at the posthouse. Their enemies were most likely coming for her, so he needed to keep her where he could see her.
Xiao Jingmo carried Jin Bao into the carriage. Only after Xiao Che drove them away from the posthouse did he take the letter from his sleeve.
“Father, I received a letter just now. It may be from Eldest Brother.”
Excitement surged through Xiao Che, though his expression remained calm.
“Read it yourself, Mo’er. I think someone is watching us from the shadows. Destroy it as soon as you’re done.”
Xiao Jingmo quickly unfolded the letter.
The handwriting was indeed Xiao Jingxing’s.
After reading it carefully, Xiao Jingmo stuffed the paper directly into his mouth.
Jin Bao stared at him, dumbfounded.
After a moment, she hurriedly reached out with both little hands and tried to pry open his mouth.
“Second Brother, you can’t eat that! Dirty, dirty! Spit it out!”
That was exactly what Pei Wanqing said whenever Jin Bao put something strange in her mouth.
Jin Bao copied her perfectly, right down to the little expression on her face.
Xiao Jingmo gently pulled her hands away and smiled.
“It’s all right, Little Sister. No one else can be allowed to read this letter. Eldest Brother wrote it to us, and you can’t tell anyone either. Do you understand?”
Jin Bao nodded, only half understanding. Mommy had already warned her that she could not tell anyone Eldest Brother was still alive.
She quickly covered her little mouth and nodded hard.
“Mm-hmm. Baby won’t tell.”
Xiao Jingmo affectionately tapped the tip of her nose.
“Second Brother, what did Eldest Brother say in the letter? Is he coming to find us?”
Jin Bao gazed expectantly at him.
Xiao Jingmo shook his head. “No. Eldest Brother can’t come yet, but he said he sent people to protect us.”
He did not tell Jin Bao that Xiao Jingxing was injured and still recuperating. The letter had only mentioned briefly that he was unwell and could not catch up to them in time.
From what Xiao Jingmo knew of him, the injury had to be serious.
The most important news in the letter was that they had found clues to Jin Bao’s origins. Once those clues were verified, they would know the truth.
Xiao Jingxing had mentioned it in only a few cryptic lines, afraid the letter might fall into someone else’s hands and reveal too much.
“Father, Eldest Brother said our people have been in Jinzhou for half a month. If we run into trouble, we’re to go to the Laifu Fur Shop in the east of the city.”
Xiao Jingmo lifted the carriage curtain a crack and relayed the message quietly to Xiao Che.
Xiao Che did not turn around, but the carriage immediately changed direction and headed east.
The instant they turned, Xiao Che clearly sensed that more people were following them.
“Mo’er, sit tight and protect your sister.”
With a low shout, Xiao Che cracked the whip. The carriage surged forward.
Watching it race away, Cui Jin curled his lips into a cold smile. “Trying to run?”
He waved a hand, and several figures sped after them.
Cui Jin’s target was Jin Bao. The black-clad men’s target was Xiao Che.