Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Held in Xiao Jingmo’s arms, Jin Bao had been in the middle of opening her little mouth for a yawn. They had set off too early that morning, and she was getting sleepy.

Halfway through the yawn, she saw the three men being escorted over by the bailiffs.

The man in the lead had a foxtail weed dangling from his mouth. His prison garb hung loosely on him, baring most of his chest, which was covered in crisscrossing scars.

The scar on his face was exactly the same as the man Jin Bao had seen in the vision.

Only this man looked a little thinner. He had a face full of beard, and though his eyes seemed to be smiling when he looked at people, it made one feel as if they had been targeted by a venomous snake, sending a chill down their spine.

Jin Bao’s yawning pose froze into a frightened little half-open mouth. The yawn never came out, and two pools of tears welled up in her eyes, making her look as if she had been scared.

At the same time, an image appeared above the man’s head.

[A man dressed in official robes led this man out of his cell, and the two entered a hidden chamber.

“Your chance to earn merit and atone for your crimes has come. His Lordship says your three brothers’ death sentences will be changed to exile. As long as you can wipe out everyone from the Marquis’s Mansion on the road, His Lordship will set you free and give you more money than you could spend in a lifetime.”

“Is that true?”

The man’s originally carefree face instantly broke into a delighted smile.

“Of course. When has His Lordship ever gone back on his word? However, if you fail to complete the task before they enter the Northern Frontier, then the ones being wiped out will be you.”

The man gave a cold laugh. “Rest assured. Anyone we brothers want dead has never escaped us.”

“This is what His Lordship asked me to give you. It may be of use. Keep it safe and don’t give yourselves away.”

The man took a bundle, weighed it in his hand, and found it was not light. Opening it, he saw gold, silver, valuables, as well as daggers and medicine jars inside.

The men were extremely satisfied.

“His Lordship is thoughtful. Tell him not to worry. Once we’re out of the capital territory, we’ll make our move.”

The man revealed a bloodthirsty smile, facing right in Jin Bao’s direction, like a face enlarged on a screen.]

Jin Bao was so frightened that she quickly shrank into Xiao Jingmo’s arms.

“Little Sister, what’s wrong?”

Xiao Jingmo felt the little one in his arms trembling.

Jin Bao was not afraid of dead people, but she was afraid of living people. Living people were far scarier than the dead, especially inhuman villains like this.

“Second Brother, Baby is scared.”

Xiao Jingmo followed Jin Bao’s gaze and looked across from them. He saw the three prisoners staring openly in their direction, even flashing them smiles with unclear meaning.

Xiao Jingmo frowned slightly, turned Jin Bao to face another direction, and gently patted her back, softly comforting her.

“Brother San, these three are also exiled convicts. The superior officer said for you to take them to the Northern Frontier with you.”

Zhu Laosan was the person in charge of escorting the prisoners this time.

The six bailiffs handed the three prisoners over to Zhu Laosan, then pulled him aside and whispered a few words to him.

Zhu Laosan looked troubled, but he did not argue. Instead, he frowned and glanced toward the Xiao Family Main Branch.

Immediately after, a stack of banknotes was stuffed into Zhu Laosan’s hand. Only then did Zhu Laosan nod.

Once the handover was complete, the six bailiffs left, and the procession continued forward.

Xiao Jingxing’s back was injured, so Xiao Jingmo was now pushing Xiao Che.

Xiao Jingxing held Jin Bao and walked at the side.

Pei Wanqing and Nanny Chen continued to support Old Madam Xiao as they walked.

Only, the family was standing even closer together than before, with hardly any room for anyone else to squeeze between them.

“Father, those three men look a little familiar to me,” Xiao Jingxing said in a low voice.

Xiao Che’s brows had not relaxed once.

“Do you still remember the Massacre of the Qin Family that shook the capital two years ago?”

Xiao Jingxing fell into thought. Xiao Jingmo answered, “I remember. I heard they were notorious bandits of the jianghu. They were three brothers. The eldest was called Ye Xiaotu and possessed immense strength. The second was called Li Duanjiang and was skilled with poison. The third was called Yousha Ke and specialized in theft. They also had an even more infamous collective name: Rampage for Ten Thousand Miles.”

Xiao Che nodded.

“That’s right. It’s them. The three of them were already sentenced to death and were to be executed after autumn. Why would their sentences be changed to exile?”

Xiao Jingxing said gravely, “Father, could they be coming for us? Their eyes never left us just now.”

“Big Brother, someone wants them to kill us. Baby saw it.”

Jin Bao, who had been quietly curled up in Xiao Jingxing’s arms, suddenly spoke.

Everyone’s gaze shifted to Jin Bao.

“Daughter, is what you said true? What did you see?”

When Xiao Che heard this, his vigilance rose to the extreme. Surviving this journey was already difficult enough, and now there were assassinations to worry about as well. They would have to be on guard at every moment. It seemed there was no chance this journey would be peaceful.

However, the person behind this matter was worth investigating. If it were the Emperor, he could simply issue an order to execute their entire clan. After all, treason was a serious crime. Since the Emperor had obtained the so-called evidence, he could act directly. There was no need to go in such a roundabout way and have their whole family assassinated on the road to exile.
But other than the Emperor, who else would want every member of the Xiao Family dead?

Xiao Che truly could not think of anyone. And the person who had set up that baleful trap in the Marquis’s Mansion. Who on earth was it?

Jin Bao clumsily described the images she had seen.

“Bad men want to kill our whole family. Bundles. There are knives inside, and bottles. The really bad man is the one who killed Uncle.”

Everyone could still understand the first part of Jin Bao’s words, but the latter half left them baffled.

Seeing their confused faces, Jin Bao immediately grew anxious.

She reached out with her little hand and tugged at her Second Brother, Xiao Jingmo.

“Second Brother, he’s the one who killed Uncle. The uncle in the woods.”

Xiao Jingmo understood at once.

“Father, Little Sister means those three men were the ones who robbed the Qi Merchant Caravan. They also killed the Head of the Qi Family. And on our way to the Northern Frontier, we’ll be passing right through the Qi Family’s territory.”

Jin Bao quickly nodded. “That’s right! Second Brother is amazing.”

Xiao Jingmo pinched Jin Bao’s little cheek. “No, Little Sister is the amazing one.”

Pei Wanqing looked at Jin Bao, and the unease in her heart gradually faded.

“Someone’s coming.”

Xiao Che’s ears twitched as he heard footsteps drawing closer. He immediately gave the whole family a look.

Everyone fell silent in perfect understanding.

“Move it. You’re blocking the road. Dragging your feet like that, when are we supposed to reach the Northern Frontier? Don’t hold me up.”

Ye Xiaotu slammed viciously into Pei Wanqing and Old Madam Xiao, nearly knocking them headfirst to the ground.

Luckily, Nanny Chen caught them both.

“Well, well. This little lady is quite pretty. How about keeping me company tonight? After being locked up for so long, it’s been ages since I’ve had a taste of meat. The three of us brothers have taken a liking to you. Hahaha…”

Ye Xiaotu reached out, about to touch Pei Wanqing’s face.

“Bad man! Go away!”

Jin Bao screamed, and at the same time, Xiao Jingmo stepped in front of Pei Wanqing.

“You little brat, you’ve nearly deafened your grandpa’s ears. Tonight, you’ll be my drinking snack. I didn’t bring any food with me.”

When Jin Bao saw the long scar on his face, her fan-like lashes trembled a few times, and she shrank into Xiao Jingxing’s arms.

Xiao Che released his full presence. His gaze was sharp as he looked at Ye Xiaotu and spoke coldly.

“Take one more step forward, and I don’t mind letting you be the drinking snack first. What a coincidence, we didn’t bring any food either.”

Ye Xiaotu glanced at Xiao Che, then turned and left without continuing to cause trouble.

He had been testing them.

The rest of the journey was peaceful. When night fell completely, they finally arrived at the relay station.

“We’ll rest here tonight. If you want lodging, the communal sleeping platform is one hundred copper coins per person. A three-person room is five hundred copper coins per person. Anyone without money can stay in the stables.”

The bailiffs guarded the door, collecting money from each person.

Most people chose the communal sleeping platform. One large room could fit more than twenty people.

“Father, Mother, where should we stay?”

Only after Xiao Jingxing saw that there were almost no people left outside did he ask.

“No rush. Let’s first see where those three men stay. We’ll stay separately from them.”

The three death-row convicts sauntered over, handed over a small piece of silver, and took a three-person room.

Only then did Xiao Che speak. “We’ll take the communal sleeping platform. There are more people there. It’ll be safer.”

Xiao Jingmo immediately went forward and paid the lodging fee for the six of them.

Dinner that night was still steamed buns.

Pei Wanqing felt sorry for Jin Bao, worried that eating cold food would be hard for her to digest, so she wondered if she could spend a bit more silver to buy something hot from the relay station.

After asking around, the bailiff demanded one tael of silver, but there would be porridge and vegetables.

Pei Wanqing did not hesitate and immediately paid the bailiff one tael.

A quarter of an hour later, the bailiff came over with a bowl of plain congee and half a roast chicken.

“Our Brother San is kindhearted. He’s giving you half a roast chicken. Hurry up and eat.”

Pei Wanqing thanked him repeatedly. With meat to eat, Jin Bao could nourish her body a little.

The food had just been brought over and set down when a shadow suddenly rushed in, snatched the roast chicken away, and started gnawing at it.

Pei Wanqing cried out in alarm and reached out to grab the person, only to realize it was Xiao Yan’s youngest son, Xiao Jinghe.

“Madam Chen, is this how you teach your son?”

Madam Chen shielded her son behind her.

“What does how I teach my son have to do with you? As the child’s elder, what’s wrong with him having one bite of your roast chicken? Is there any need to make such a fuss?”

Madam Chen threw Old Madam Xiao’s words from noon right back at Pei Wanqing.

Jin Bao quietly tugged at Pei Wanqing.

“Mother, don’t be mad. Baby doesn’t like chicken. It’s bitter. Not tasty.”

Pei Wanqing thought Jin Bao was trying to comfort her.

She crouched down and tenderly picked Jin Bao up. Just then, something suddenly happened over on Xiao Jinghe’s side.

His mouth was still stuffed full of chicken, but he had already begun foaming at the mouth. His whole body convulsed, and blood started seeping from the corners of his eyes and his ears.