Seeing the carriage charging straight at them, though this was the first time in his life Xiong Bao had ever encountered such a situation, he stayed remarkably calm. He immediately slowed down and shouted across, “Stop! Stop!”
Afraid the other side hadn’t noticed, he even waved his arms. But whether the person opposite genuinely hadn’t seen him or simply chose to ignore him, they kept charging forward regardless!
By all reasonable logic, since their side had two carriages that had already crossed more than half the bridge, and reversing on a single-lane bridge was extremely difficult, the oncoming carriage should have been the one to yield — not come charging through.
Jun Beiyue and Shadow, both seasoned veterans, recognized instantly that this was a deliberate attempt to force the right of way.
With this kind of road-hogging, there was no reasoning to be had — even if there was logic on your side, it wouldn’t get through to them. Show the slightest weakness, and the other party would only push further.
But little Xiong Bao didn’t understand any of this!
This was, after all, his very first time traveling outside — he knew little of how this world worked.
Seeing the other side wouldn’t stop, he abruptly pulled the reins, halted, and stood up, gesturing for the person ahead to back off.
The one driving the opposing carriage was a boy of about thirteen or fourteen. Even as he drew close enough to see the little child, Shadow, and the rest, he showed no intention of yielding at all — instead pressing further forward, forcing Xiong Bao to shout, “Stop! You’re about to crash!”
But the boy showed not the slightest intention of stopping. He glanced at Xiong Bao, then flicked his eyes over Jun Beiyue and Shadow, a disdainful sneer curling at the corner of his mouth, and continued pressing forward, bearing down directly on Xiong Bao’s group. If Xiong Bao didn’t retreat, the two carriages really would collide.
Given the situation — the other side being so aggressively insistent — Xiong Bao genuinely had no choice but to yield.
Shadow watched anxiously, while Jun Beiyue remained impassive, ignoring the other party entirely, his gaze fixed only on Xiong Bao.
How would he handle this?
“How outrageous!”
Xiong Bao wasn’t stupid. Seeing the other party advance without a word, even someone as inexperienced as him could tell this was deliberate bullying — a shameless attempt to force him into retreating. His father’s carriage couldn’t just be made to back down on command — he couldn’t afford to lose face like that!
Too irritated to bother arguing further, Xiong Bao simply put away his whip and stayed put.
Let them crash if they wanted — who was afraid of whom! Looking impressive on the outside didn’t mean much — his family’s carriage wasn’t something just anyone could crash through!
Xiong Bao’s instincts proved sound — by staying put, if the other side advanced any further, a collision was inevitable.
The other party hadn’t actually intended to crash. Sure enough, seeing Xiong Bao’s firm resolve, they stopped in time. But then, just like Xiong Bao, they neither advanced nor retreated, whip lowered, arms crossed, eyebrow raised in a cold, mocking smile. Not a word was spoken, yet the provocation in that look rivaled any insult.
This boy — he looked so refined, so how could he be this shameless and unreasonable?
Xiong Bao was furious. But his father had said — this trip called for discretion.
Holding to that principle, he took a deep breath and said in his most childish, placating voice, “Young sir, there’s another carriage behind me too. We’ve already crossed most of the bridge — would you be so kind as to give way?”
The boy gave a careless smile, shrugged as if there was nothing he could do about it, and still didn’t move.
Xiong Bao took another deep breath, held his patience, and tried again, “Young sir, we’re in a hurry. Please, do us this courtesy.”
“Young sir, if you make us back up, it won’t be easy with two carriages, and it’ll waste time — it wouldn’t be convenient for you to move forward either, would it?”
“Young sir, you only need to back up a few steps — please, just this once.”
…
No matter how Xiong Bao pleaded, the boy said nothing at all, arms crossed, leaning back at ease, utterly unmoved, wearing the air of someone determined to stay put no matter what.
It had to be admitted — this boy had real skill. Without saying a single word the whole time, he’d managed to make both Xiong Bao and Shadow beside him nearly furious.
If Jun Beiyue hadn’t been holding him back, Shadow would have already gone in for the kill.
Xiong Bao took another deep breath, telling himself again — stay discreet, stay discreet!
His father had said this trip was for secret business, and especially within Nanzhao’s territory, they absolutely could not stir up trouble. He needed to think of something.
So Xiong Bao climbed down from the carriage. But the instant he stepped down, the person ahead suddenly urged their horse forward, startling Xiong Bao’s own horses, both of which reared back in unison. Seeing this, the boy laughed with delight, pressing forward even further, finally speaking, “Heh heh, this kid is actually kind of fun!”
Xiong Bao hastily pulled the reins tight — if he didn’t hold them, the carriage really would tip off the bridge. Finally unable to bear it any longer, he shouted furiously, “Move aside! Don’t you understand first-come, first-served? Don’t make this young lord get physical!”
Fuming, Xiong Bao stomped his foot and shouted accusation after accusation, “How can you be like this! You’re infuriating! Move aside, or I really won’t be polite anymore!”
The boy remained utterly composed, wearing an expression of disdain, watching coldly. It had to be admitted — compared to the boy’s icy sneer, Xiong Bao’s uncontrolled fury made him look somewhat like a clown throwing a tantrum.
Jun Beiyue watched, brow furrowing. Indeed, precocious as this child was, there was still so much he had yet to learn.
When arguing with someone, if you’re the one stomping mad while the other stays calm — laughing, even — no matter how it ends, you’ve already lost the emotional battle.
Having steadied the carriage, Xiong Bao and the other party fell into a standoff once more. Gasping for breath, Xiong Bao snapped angrily, “This young lord isn’t leaving today — let’s see who outlasts whom!”
Discretion demanded he not resort to force, so this was the only option left to him. He sat back down in the carriage, hands on his hips, glaring venomously at the other party, waiting.
But as furious as he’d worked himself up to be, fully squared off for a standoff, the other party didn’t seem to mind at all — carrying on with that same careless air, even mimicking Xiong Bao’s posture by putting his hands on his hips, and then — then he actually smiled at Xiong Bao!
Xiong Bao was so furious his nostrils practically flared. So infuriating, so infuriating, SO INFURIATING!!!
Watching from inside the carriage, a flicker of displeasure crossed Ziqing’s eyes. At last she spoke up. “Son, yield.”
“Mom!” Xiong Bao cried out immediately. He’d already refused to back down this whole time — how could he possibly yield now?
“Your Highness, allow this servant to deal with him! This is infuriating!” Shadow, too, was quite worked up. If the other party had simply argued loudly back, Xiong Bao’s sharp tongue would surely have won any shouting match — but the fact that the other side said nothing at all left Xiong Bao performing an entirely one-sided show.
“That’s likely a carriage belonging to the Xiao family of the Beast Clan. No need to blow this up into a bigger matter — we still have a journey ahead of us,” Ziqing said calmly. Resorting to violence wasn’t wise — first, they had no idea who was inside that carriage or what they were capable of; second, if they got entangled with them, it would only cause trouble.
Before Shadow could even respond, Xiong Bao refused outright. “I don’t care, I’m just not backing down — let’s see who can hold out longer!”
Watching her furious son, Ziqing felt both sympathy and helplessness. She said softly, “Be good, listen to me. Mommy will teach you how to deal with him.”
Xiong Bao’s eyes lit up instantly. Did Mommy have a good plan?
Without resorting to violence, yet still teaching him a lesson — what could that possibly be?
Puzzled as he was, Xiong Bao still snorted coldly at the careless boy across the way and backed off. Jun Beiyue’s mouth curved into a cold smile as he personally took the reins.
Seeing Jun Beiyue’s group retreat, the boy grew even more arrogant, immediately advancing at great speed, showing off his driving skills with obvious deliberateness. But compared to Jun Beiyue, he was truly small potatoes.
Soon, Jun Beiyue’s two carriages had both retreated fully off the bridge — while the boy’s carriage remained stranded right in the middle.
At that moment, Ziqing drew Jun Beiyue’s long sword and handed it to Xiong Bao, smiling. “Son, remember — in life, you must always stay discreet, and above all, keep your composure. Now be a good boy and go cut down the bridge — quietly, mind you.”
“Oh…”
Realization dawned on Xiong Bao. He immediately took the sword, leapt down from the carriage — right beside him were the two thick rope cables anchoring the bridge!
He obeyed without question, his movements utterly discreet yet decisive. A single strike of the sword, and there came a sharp “snap”…