When Qiu Qing struck down that burly man with a single blow, both he and Xie Huainan immediately understood — the ones who had made their move were people from the Xie Family.

Xie Huainan was an exceptionally sharp man, yet even he could not have imagined, before seeing these people, that his elder brother would devise such a foolish scheme.

Whether they had come to kill him or drag him back, it was foolish beyond all forgiveness.

“Stay inside the carriage. Do not come out.”

After saying this, Qiu Qing turned to the four Tingwei guards: “Fall back to the carriage. Leave the rest to me.”

Then he took a step forward.

A single step that crossed mountains and seas.

Those mountains and seas were the fear in the hearts of the assassins.

Most of them knew who Qiu Qing was. They knew how terrifying he could be, and they certainly understood that crossing blades with him meant certain death. And so, not one of them dared to be the first to advance — they all fell back instead.

As the assassins retreated, the pressure on the four Tingwei guards eased considerably, allowing them to pull free and return to the side of the carriage.

What a sight this was…

One man walking steadily forward, dozens of men gradually retreating.

They had known how formidable Qiu Qing was. They had known he might be at Xie Huainan’s side, and they had mentally prepared themselves before setting out — yet the moment they laid eyes on him, they crumbled.

And yet Xie Huaide was no fool. He knew perfectly well how much pressure Qiu Qing would place on his men.

The men he had sent were, as it happened, precisely the sort who feared Qiu Qing.

Why?

Because no one understood better than Xie Huaide that to seize Xie Huainan, Qiu Qing had to be dealt with first. And if he could not be dealt with, then Qiu Qing had to be drawn away from Xie Huainan’s side.

This first batch of assassins, numbering several dozen — they all knew Qiu Qing, they all knew his terror, and that was exactly the outcome Xie Huaide had wanted.

When he arranged for these men to lie in ambush here, he had told them that Qiu Qing had already been lured away, and that they need only capture Xie Huainan and bring him back. That was why those men had moved so boldly at the outset.

Among all of them, the only one who had been told the truth was the petite female assassin — she was Xie Huaide’s backup plan. He simply had not anticipated that Qiu Qing, under those circumstances, would manage to turn the tables and kill her.

And so when these men saw Qiu Qing appear, the fear and desire to flee were not performances. Every bit of it was real.

When one man can make dozens retreat, would he not feel proud? Would he not take a few extra steps forward?

This was a calculated read of the human heart. Xie Huaide’s prediction was twofold: first, that pride and confidence would drive Qiu Qing to advance further; second, that concern for Xie Huainan’s safety would compel him to do the same.

When one can rout an enemy without fighting, who would refuse a few extra steps?

From a distance, Xie Huaide watched through a far-seeing glass, muttering to himself as he counted.

One step, two steps, three steps…

How could Qiu Qing possibly know that someone was counting his steps? How could he know that each step was crucial? Why would he even give it a thought?

Qiu Qing only knew this: as he advanced, they retreated.

Xie Huaide was indeed a man of impetuous temperament, but as the second-born legitimate son of the Xie Family, holding a position of considerable importance, he could not be a fool.

When Qiu Qing had walked some ten paces out, something suddenly changed.

In the distance, Xie Huaide watching through his far-seeing glass let the ghost of a smile curl at the corner of his mouth.

That single-wheeled cart.

A peddler appeared pushing a single-wheeled cart. It looked problematic — battered and heavy, its axle creaking and groaning. A flaw as obvious as this would naturally draw the attention of the Tingwei guards, who moved to block the peddler from going further.

This, too, was something Xie Huaide had deliberately arranged — using this cart to arouse the guards’ suspicions.

But the point was the peddler, not the cart.

The single-wheeled cart was small, its bed piled with goods. No matter how one looked at it, there was no way a person could be hiding within it.

And yet a person was hidden there. A dwarf — a man only half the height of an ordinary person.

Just as Qiu Qing walked forward, more than a dozen paces away from the carriage and paying no attention whatsoever to that cart, the dwarf suddenly burst from it.

Like a heavy bolt fired from a bed-crossbow, he was at the carriage in an instant.

He kicked the single-wheeled cart flying, and then dove straight through the carriage window.

The dwarf seized Xie Huainan by the collar with one hand, and with the other delivered a sharp strike to the back of Xie Huainan’s neck.

Though Xie Huainan had some martial training, he was by no stretch a true expert. He had no chance to react — he was knocked unconscious with a single blow.

The dwarf grabbed Xie Huainan, burst out through the side of the carriage, and sprinted into the alley alongside.

As he cleared the wall, Qiu Qing had already spun around and plunged into the alley — where a group of blade-wielding fighters was waiting.

“Kill!”

The fighters charged at Qiu Qing. They did not know him. They were killers hired from the jianghu at great expense by Xie Huaide.

This was what made Xie Huaide so meticulous: he used men who knew Qiu Qing — men who would be frightened out of their wits by him — to lure the enemy out, then used men who did not know Qiu Qing, seasoned killers all, to block his path.

Not to kill Qiu Qing. Simply to block him.

These blade-fighters were men of exceptional ability, but Xie Huaide understood well how powerful Qiu Qing was. The killers he had hired at such great cost were there only to slow him down — ideally, to stop him.

It was a very simple trap. That such simplicity could be executed to such a degree of refinement was testament enough to Xie Huaide’s cunning.

From his vantage point in the distance, Xie Huaide handed the far-seeing glass to someone beside him, smiled, and turned away. “Let us go.”

The dwarf’s strength was astonishing, and his speed no less so. He carried Xie Huainan over walls and across rooftops, and before long arrived at a secluded location.

There, five identical carriages stood waiting.

Shortly thereafter, the five carriages set off in different directions, each making for a different city gate.

Not long after Qiu Qing had been intercepted and held back, the sound of hoofbeats thundered down the main street.

The Black Riders arrived.

The fireworks shot into the sky had been the signal calling them to the rescue, and the speed of their arrival exceeded even what Xie Huaide had imagined.

He had assumed his people would have enough time to withdraw while those blade-fighters held Qiu Qing. When those killers blocked Qiu Qing, his people should have had more than enough time to slip away.

But he did not know the Tingwei Army well enough. He did not know Youzhou City well enough.

The moment the Black Riders’ column appeared on the main street, hope flared in the eyes of those four bloodied guards.

The column swept through. A volley of crossbow bolts filled the air, and the scattered assassins were mowed down in an instant.

Covered in blood, Qiu Qing vaulted out from the alley in pursuit — but he had lost his target.

He could only turn back, placing his hopes in the Tingwei Army, placing them in Prince Ning.

Behind him, the alley was strewn with broken corpses and severed limbs.

Before long, the Black Riders of the Tingwei Army were dispatched to every gate of Youzhou City. Even before the riders were deployed, swift mounted messengers had already gone ahead to inform each gate that no one was to be allowed through — not for the time being.

A short while later, word came that someone had spotted several carriages gathering at a location within the city before dispersing in all directions.

Chief Tingwei Gao Xining immediately issued the order: the Tingwei Army was to intercept all carriages and horses.

Within half an hour, all five carriages had been found — but all five were empty. Apart from their drivers, there was no one else aboard.

The five drivers were taken to the Tingwei Office for questioning. Deputy Chief Tingwei Zhang Tang personally oversaw the interrogation. In less than half an hour, he had confirmed what was already apparent: these five drivers truly knew nothing.

They had merely been hired the day before by someone who told them to wait at a certain place within the city, and at the appointed time to set off in separate directions toward the various city gates to collect a passenger. They did not know who they were to collect — they had only been told that someone would stop them when they arrived.

They never could have imagined that the ones who stopped them would be soldiers of the Tingwei Army.

After the questioning of the five drivers concluded, the only useful piece of information was this: the man who had come to tell them they could set out was… unusual.

He was extremely short. But he was unmistakably not a child.

Before long, the Tingwei Army began making inquiries throughout the city: had anyone seen a dwarf dressed in such-and-such clothing?

At this very moment, Xie Huainan was somewhere roughly two or three li inward from the water gate, inside the warehouse of Caiyue Trading House.

This location was one Xie Huaide had identified when he first arrived.

Caiyue Trading House’s proprietor, Pan Guangmei, glared in fury at Xie Huaide. “I told you people — do not cause trouble, do not cause trouble. Now the whole city is crawling with soldiers. I’m done helping you. In a moment, I’m going to the Prince’s residence to confess everything.”

“Hmm…”

Xie Huaide smiled. “But when I arrived, I already told you — we only want to bring my third brother home. We said we wouldn’t cause any other trouble. Was that not the case?”

He looked at Pan Guangmei with a smile. “Old Pan, I won’t stop you if you want to go and turn yourself in. Everyone has their own path to walk.”

Pan Guangmei glared at him.

“You have a shipping fleet,” Xie Huaide continued. “The Xie Family will give you goods worth five hundred thousand taels of silver as a token of gratitude. Now arrange passage for us out of the city through the water gate — no one will ever know. Think it over: if you go and confess, do you really think you’ll be pardoned?”

Pan Guangmei said nothing.

“Think about it yourself,” Xie Huaide went on. “Every moment we delay, the more dangerous it becomes. The Prince’s soldiers haven’t begun checking the water gate yet — there’s still time if we move now. By water, we can cover two or three hundred li in a day, and then we’ll switch to our own vessel. After that, you’ll have nothing more to do with us.”

Pan Guangmei’s expression shifted repeatedly. After a long silence, he turned and gave a quiet order: “Go and prepare a boat for them.”

Xie Huaide smiled. “Now that’s what I like to hear. You and my elder brother are like brothers in spirit. We’re meant to stand on the same side.”

Pan Guangmei shook his head. “I thought you were here to persuade Xie Huainan to come home. I never imagined you would resort to something like this. Consider this my misfortune. I don’t want the five hundred thousand taels of goods from your Xie Family. When you return, tell Xie Huaiyuan that from this day forward, he and I have no further connection. There’s no need for us to have anything to do with each other.”

At these words, Xie Huaide’s expression darkened slightly.

But he also understood that right now he still needed Pan Guangmei. Pan Guangmei was cooperating simply because the situation was too difficult to explain — it was easier to just get them out of here as quickly as possible.

Why would he get into a quarrel with Pan Guangmei at a moment like this? He offered a word of thanks and settled himself to one side to wait for the boat.

Just then, Xie Huainan regained consciousness, his face pale as a sheet.

The moment he opened his eyes and saw his second elder brother Xie Huaide sitting beside him, he erupted with fury. “Second Brother, you have committed a grave error!”

“Third Brother, it is you who have committed the grave error.”

“I’ve already arranged things with Elder Brother,” Xie Huaide said. “When you return, he won’t be too hard on you — just a public reprimand, that’s all. Apologize to Elder Brother, and from then on the three of us brothers can live in harmony. Elder Brother isn’t as angry with you as you think. When you go back, don’t argue with him anymore.”

“Second Brother, please release me quickly!” Xie Huainan said. “There is still time if we turn back now. If we keep making the same mistake, the Xie Family will be completely and utterly destroyed!”

“Nonsense!”

Xie Huaide raised his hand and struck Xie Huainan across the face — a sharp, ringing crack.

“What are you babbling about?!”

“You’re far too willful,” Xie Huaide said sharply. “I am your second brother. This time I will not indulge you. When we get back, you will shut yourself in your room and reflect on your mistakes. But I will plead for leniency on your behalf…”

He looked at the swelling rising on Xie Huainan’s face and felt a pang of distress. “You’re young and don’t understand the world yet. Second Brother struck you, but it pains Second Brother’s heart too…”

Before he could finish, a sudden commotion erupted from the roof above. The next moment, great sections of the roofing came crashing down.

Countless silhouettes dropped through the gaps in the shattered ceiling.

—