Chen Jinan suddenly jolted awake from his dream, his heart filled with an inexplicable unease.
“Nightmare?” asked Guard Zhou, who was usually close with him.
Chen Jinan was silent for a moment, then said, “I dreamt something happened to Her Highness.”
“She’s still in Yingguan—her own territory. What could happen?” Guard Zhou lay back down. “You should worry more about yourself.”
Chen Jinan looked up at the dilapidated woodshed around them—and said nothing more.
They had been escorting Qi Jingqing to Yunming for over a month now. Just five days ago, they unexpectedly ran into General Yang Cheng of Guangfu.
Chen Jinan knew a bit about this Yang Cheng—he was the one who had recently put down the peasant uprising in Lingnan.
Their encounter this time was due to a sudden twist of fate: Yang Cheng, now over fifty, had recently learned that a woman he had once had an illicit affair with over twenty years ago had borne him a son. So he made a long journey to her home to retrieve the boy, intending to bring him back to Guangfu to acknowledge him as his son. On the way back, their group happened to cross paths with his.
Although Qi Jingqing’s identity was sensitive and couldn’t be revealed lightly, Yang Cheng’s power was something her highness urgently needed to secure. After much consideration, they agreed when Yang Cheng proposed traveling together. And that decision led to endless trouble in the following days—
Some of the villagers who had once lost everything at Yang Cheng’s hands somehow learned about his trip to retrieve his illegitimate son. They organized a militia and came to kill him. Since the matter of a secret son was a scandal, Yang Cheng had only brought a small escort with him. While the Qi family’s guards were more numerous, they were reluctant to harm civilians, and in the back-and-forth they were quickly overpowered.
In the end, Yang Cheng’s men were all killed, and he and his son were bound by the villagers. Chen Jinan and Guard Zhou, who had stayed behind to cover Qi Jingqing’s escape, were captured as well.
Without realizing it, they had been locked in this woodshed with Yang Cheng and his son for three days now. Chen Jinan looked down at the chain fastening his wrist to a pillar. He no longer tried to break it but was instead weighing whether he’d have enough strength to escape if he cut off one of his hands.
“…Don’t do anything stupid,” said Guard Zhou from his bed of straw, not even opening his eyes. “If you cut it off, you’ll pass out from the pain before you even make it to the door.”
Chen Jinan pressed his lips together. “I was just thinking.”
“Don’t even think it,” Zhou said, shooting him a glance. “Lose a hand and even if you escape, you’ll be crippled. How are you going to find a wife then?”
“I’m not looking for a wife,” Chen Jinan replied firmly.
Guard Zhou snorted. “So you’re not going to be a guard either? A cripple can’t serve at the princess’ side.”
At that, Chen Jinan instantly gave up the idea of severing his hand to escape.
While they were talking, Yang Cheng stirred awake. Seeing their gaze on him, he walked over apologetically. “Did you two rest well last night?”
“Well enough. What about you, General Yang?” Zhou replied with polite warmth.
Yang Cheng looked troubled. “The road ahead is uncertain. How could I sleep?”
“General, no need to worry. Since they haven’t killed us yet, there’s room to negotiate. As long as we can meet their demands, we’ll be fine,” Zhou reassured him.
Yang Cheng sighed. “Let’s hope so.”
Then his expression turned apologetic again. “It’s all my fault. If it weren’t for me, the two of you wouldn’t be in this situation.”
“This isn’t something you could’ve predicted, General. Please don’t blame yourself,” Guard Zhou said courteously.
Yang Cheng gave a bitter smile and was about to say more when someone muttered from the corner, still half-asleep, “Can you not? Trying to sleep here…”
Yang Cheng frowned.
Just then, the door opened, and two corn buns were tossed in. The man who had been sleeping immediately scrambled up and grabbed them, stuffing them into his mouth one in each hand.
Yang Cheng’s face darkened. He snatched the more intact bun from the man and handed it to Chen Jinan. “Here, child. You eat this.”
The villager who had delivered the food gave a derisive snort and locked the door again.
Chen Jinan frowned but said nothing, silently accepting the bun. He broke it in half and gave a piece to Guard Zhou.
He remained silent, and Yang Cheng didn’t seem to mind. He sighed. “You and Little Shan are about the same age. Why are you so mature, while he’s such a disappointment?”
Chen Jinan ignored him.
“Please don’t say that, General,” Guard Zhou said with a smile. “My brat’s life isn’t worth much—he’s not fit to be compared to your son.”
Since they couldn’t reveal their true identities, they claimed to be from an escort agency, on a job to deliver a frail young master home to recuperate.
That frail young master was, of course, Qi Jingqing.
For a shizi to leave his post was a major taboo. Before departure, they had carefully crafted a flawless cover story—which now served them well.
Yang Cheng never suspected a thing. He merely sighed again and sat in a corner, looking more worried than ever.
Guard Zhou glanced over at him, then leaned closer to Chen Jinan and whispered so only the two of them could hear: “This General Yang is a strange one. If he didn’t care about this son, why go fetch him from unstable Lingnan? But if he does care, why hasn’t he said more than a few words to him in the three days we’ve been locked up? Every time that young master Yang tries to approach, he snaps at him. They’re acting like complete strangers.”
Chen Jinan looked over and, sure enough, saw the father and son sitting far apart—one facing east, the other west.
“I think Yang Cheng’s attitude is odd,” he said quietly.
Guard Zhou immediately nodded. “Right? I thought so too.”
“I don’t mean just with his son—I mean the way he’s acting toward me. It’s… overly friendly.” Chen Jinan frowned deeply.
Guard Zhou blinked, then joked, “Maybe compared to the idiot he just picked up, he’s hoping you’ll be the son.”
“…Just stay away from him. Don’t talk too much,” Chen Jinan warned.
But Guard Zhou didn’t take it seriously. “How could we not talk? The Yang family holds absolute power in Lingnan. If we can win his favor, it’ll make things much easier for the princess.”
He went on, a bit wistfully, “If the Yangs pledged loyalty like the Zhenbian Marquis’s household, then Her Highness would be unstoppable in Great Qian.”
It was a tempting vision, and Chen Jinan felt a flicker of interest—but his instincts still told him: something about Yang Cheng’s behavior was dangerously off.
“First, stay alive—everything else can wait until we’re out of here.” He reminded again.
Seeing how serious he was, Guard Zhou also sobered up. “No idea how long they plan to keep us locked up.”
“It’s already been three days. If they were going to negotiate anything, they should’ve come to a conclusion by now,” Chen Jinan said slowly.
Sure enough, early the next morning, the door of the woodshed was violently kicked open. A group of people rushed in, surrounding the four of them. Someone dragged over a shabby bench, and an old man with a handlebar mustache sat on it under the respectful gaze of the others.
“General Yang, do you still remember me?” he asked slowly.
Yang Cheng recognized him as the father of two men he had killed some time ago. He steadied himself and moved to shield Chen Jinan and the others.
“I was ordered by the emperor to suppress a peasant uprising. Everything I did was under compulsion… let’s not rehash it. If any of you bear a grudge, take it out on me—don’t involve these young men.” His tone was righteous and resolute.
Guard Zhou was somewhat moved and whispered to Chen Jinan, “They say he’s a dishonorable man, but I think he’s alright.”
Chen Jinan frowned as he saw Yang Cheng standing protectively in front of him.
After Yang Cheng finished speaking, the old man rasped, “Don’t worry, General. We’re not planning to kill you.”
“Then what do you want?” Yang Cheng asked immediately. “Whatever it is, I can provide it.”
“Silver—five hundred taels,” said the old man, stating what he clearly believed was an enormous sum.
Yang Cheng froze for a moment, but quickly recovered. A flicker of contempt passed through his eyes, and he agreed without hesitation, “Alright. But the amount is large. I’ll need a few days to prepare it. Can you give me some time?”
“Write a letter. I’ll have someone deliver it to your command post,” the old man said. “As for you, General… how about you remain here as our guest?”
Yang Cheng looked troubled. “But doing so will alert the authorities. Whether you plan to keep your word or not, once they catch wind of this, they won’t let it go. If soldiers are sent again to wipe you out, could you hold your ground?”
Everyone present had once been honest laborers or farmers. At his words, their confidence wavered, and they began murmuring anxiously. Amid the rising commotion, the old man slowly raised his hand, and the room fell silent again.
“How do we know you won’t go back on your word once you leave? How do we know you won’t come after us later?” the old man asked.
Yang Cheng replied without missing a beat, “I’ll leave my son here. When the silver arrives, you release him. I have my personal seal on me—I can write a signed statement declaring that the silver is voluntarily given to help you rebuild your homes. Even if I renege later, you’ll have evidence to prove your innocence.”
At that, the gathered villagers began to waver.
“This Yang Cheng really knows how to smooth-talk,” Guard Zhou muttered. “Looks like they’re convinced… Poor folks, actually believing a document stamped with a personal seal is worth anything. They don’t know that the officials cover for each other. Even if they carried that document all the way to the capital, someone could still stop them. And they’ve no idea there’s a simpler solution to all of this… silencing witnesses.”
“What do you say?” Yang Cheng looked directly at the old man.
The old man was silent for a long time, but finally nodded. “You have seven days.”
“Good!” Yang Cheng agreed immediately. “But I have one condition. It takes two days to get back to Guangfu. Lingnan is in chaos right now—there may be bandits along the way. I need to bring one guard with me.”
“Our people can accompany you,” the old man countered.
Yang Cheng: “Are you sure your people can protect me?”
At that, the villagers looked at each other uneasily.
Most of them were former farmers. Though many were strong, they had no real combat experience. They only captured Yang Cheng and the others because of their sheer numbers. If they ran into real bandits, they’d be helpless.
Unless they sent a large escort, which would be too conspicuous.
Seeing the old man hesitate, Yang Cheng pressed, “I’m already leaving my son with you. What more reassurance do you need?”
He kept mentioning his son, and Chen Jinan had a growing sense of foreboding. He glanced at Yang Cheng’s son, Yang Yueshan—a timid, cowardly youth—who, upon hearing his father say he would leave him behind, didn’t protest at all. Clearly, he knew something.
“Fine,” the old man finally agreed.
Yang Cheng nodded, then turned to Chen Jinan. “You’ll come with me.”
The moment Chen Jinan was named, his sense of foreboding came true. Guard Zhou, still smiling, said, “This General Yang is pretty loyal—knows to save who he can first…”
But his smile froze as soon as he met Chen Jinan’s gaze.
Sure enough, just as Yang Cheng pointed to Chen Jinan, someone shouted, “He’s Yang Cheng’s son! We can’t let him go!”
“You’re spouting nonsense!” Guard Zhou barked angrily.
“I saw it myself! These past few days, Yang Cheng gave him all his food, and he’s always talking to him. He’s definitely his son! If we let him take the boy away, what do we have left to threaten them with?” shouted the man who’d been bringing them food.
Hearing this, Guard Zhou finally understood why Yang Cheng had been so unusually kind to Chen Jinan, and he became furious.
“He’s just my guard. That one over there is my son,” Yang Cheng said, pointing at Yang Yueshan.
Yang Yueshan flinched. “Y-Yes, I’m General Yang’s son.”
“Who are you fooling?! If he’s your father, why does he keep scolding you and treating you like a servant?” the food-bringer sneered.
Yang Yueshan bit his lip and said nothing. Guard Zhou couldn’t help but kick him. “Weren’t you full of words before? Why so quiet now?”
Then he turned to the others and declared, “Listen—he really is Yang Cheng’s son, Yang Yueshan. I and this one next to me are just two traveling guards who happened to share the road for a few days. We didn’t even know each other before this.”
The explanation was given, but the disbelief was written all over the villagers’ faces.
The old man’s expression darkened. “General Yang, we came to negotiate in good faith, but you’re trying to fool us. Seems there’s no point continuing this discussion.”
Guard Zhou laughed in disbelief. “Are you deaf? I said he’s the one—”
“Don’t make things worse!” Yang Cheng barked, as if making a huge internal decision. He cast a pained look at Chen Jinan, then turned to the old man. “Apologies. I truly did have the thought of taking my son away just now, so I said Little Shan was a guard. But as a father… I just couldn’t bear to leave my son here.”
“I deserve to die for failing to protect the young master’s identity,” Yang Yueshan said quickly.
Yang Cheng sighed. “It’s not your fault…”
“Cut the act, Yang Cheng,” Guard Zhou sneered. “So this is why you’ve been so nice to Jinan these past few days? Planning to use him as a scapegoat for your son? And next you’ll say your son’s just a guard, take him away, and leave the rest of us to rot?”
“Enough. They’ve already seen through it, there’s no need to say more,” Yang Cheng said, looking stricken.
“You b*stard—” Guard Zhou growled, grabbing Yang Cheng by the collar. Before he could do anything, people rushed in. Chen Jinan reacted swiftly, kicking one away, but the next moment he too was surrounded.
Just as the situation was about to spiral out of control, the old man on the bench slammed his cane on the ground, and the crowd reluctantly backed down.
“Who did this?” Chen Jinan’s gaze instantly darkened when he saw the bruises on Guard Zhou’s neck.
Guard Zhou glared hatefully at Yang Cheng, but when he opened his mouth, no sound came out. He looked to Chen Jinan in alarm, and only then realized Yang Cheng had provoked him on purpose—to prove in front of everyone that he wasn’t a submissive subordinate. Now that everyone believed Chen Jinan was Yang Cheng’s son, the only person Yang Cheng could “credibly” take away was either Jinan or the real Yang Yueshan. Having shown Zhou wasn’t suitable, the only one left… was Yueshan.
Once father and son were gone, regardless of what they did, those left behind were doomed—either abandoned and killed by the angry villagers or executed as accomplices when the army returned.
In other words, if those two walked away, the rest of them were dead either way.
Yang Cheng smiled calmly and turned to the old man. “My man was being foolish—please don’t take it to heart. It’s getting late. Bring paper and ink, I’ll write your letter now.”
“If you try any more tricks, we won’t let you off again,” one villager warned bitterly—trust completely lost after the earlier stunt.
Yang Cheng smiled. “Don’t worry, I was just confused for a moment earlier. If I ever try anything again, may I die a miserable death…”
Before he could finish, Chen Jinan suddenly stepped behind Yang Yueshan. The iron chain clinked loudly, and in a flash, it was looped tightly around Yueshan’s neck.
Yang Cheng’s face changed. “What are you doing?!”
“If General Yang insists I’m Yang Yueshan,” Chen Jinan said coolly, “then why don’t we just kill this imposter?”
Yang Cheng’s eyes turned fierce, but he forced himself to speak gently. “Little Shan, don’t be impulsive. I know you don’t want to be left behind, but now is not the time to be willful. I—I swear, I’ll come back for you. If you endure this, I’ll treat you well and raise you up in the world.”
Chen Jinan looked at him coldly, unmoved. Guard Zhou tugged at Jinan’s sleeve, trying to tell him with his eyes: scare them, don’t actually kill. If they made an enemy of Yang Cheng, who controlled all of Lingnan, the princess would have big trouble later.
Yang Cheng took a deep breath and softened his tone. “I know life’s been hard for you, but if you can just get through this—just this once—I promise you a future full of wealth and glory!”
His insinuation was barely veiled now. He was clearly trying to tempt him: concerned for his son’s safety, but also confident that a low-born bodyguard like Chen Jinan wouldn’t resist such an offer.
Chen Jinan didn’t miss the contempt in his eyes. After staring at him for a long moment, he suddenly smiled. “Do you think people from humble origins have never seen the world? That we’re so easy to fool?”
Yang Cheng’s smile froze. He was about to speak when—crack—Chen Jinan snapped Yang Yueshan’s neck with the chain.
“Little Shan!” Yang Cheng’s eyes turned blood-red. He lunged at them.
Chen Jinan recoiled quickly, putting the chain away. Guard Zhou was horrified. “Why would you—?!”
Realizing he could speak again, he asked, pained, “Why did you really kill him?! If he learns our identities later, the princess—”
“Someone who treats the people like dirt and uses the innocent to save himself,” Chen Jinan said quietly, “is not the kind of person who walks the same path as Her Highness.”
Guard Zhou paused—then was completely convinced.
Chen Jinan glanced at Yang Cheng, who was now crouched over the corpse, then looked calmly at the stunned villagers. “Do you still think I’m Yang Yueshan?”
The villagers were speechless with shock, frozen in place. Just as no one knew what to do next, Yang Cheng suddenly turned around, eyes red, and rasped, “Little Shan… I never thought you’d be so cold-blooded. He was my most loyal man! He stayed behind as a hostage for you—what have you done? Just because he pretended to be you, you killed him?!”
Guard Zhou was dumbstruck by the brazenness. After a long pause, he sighed in awe, “You really are something else.”
The dead couldn’t be revived. Right now, the top priority was surviving and escaping—but to recover so quickly, spin the whole narrative, and even cover his own missteps… That truly was exceptional.
“Little Shan, I’m truly disappointed in you,” Yang Cheng took a deep breath. “But you’re my son after all… don’t worry, I’ll come back to save you—”
Chen Jinan didn’t give him the chance to finish. He swung his iron chain directly at him. Yang Cheng dodged to the side, a flash of ruthlessness flickering in his eyes. Chen Jinan continued to press forward until Yang Cheng, unable to hold back any longer, struck back.
They were both chained to wooden pillars, but while Chen Jinan’s chain was only two feet long, Yang Cheng’s was four. Though both restricted, Yang Cheng had a larger range of motion and could use broader, more powerful moves.
Very quickly, Chen Jinan fell behind. He cast a glance toward Guard Zhou, who immediately joined the fight.
The villagers watched in stunned silence—before they’d even dealt with Yang Cheng, these people had already started fighting among themselves. But soon, Chen Jinan and Guard Zhou teamed up and managed to loop their chains around Yang Cheng’s neck.
“No! We haven’t gotten the silver yet! Stop them!” the old man shouted.
The dazed villagers snapped back to their senses and rushed forward. Chen Jinan exchanged a glance with Guard Zhou—then both exerted their full strength. By the time the crowd separated them by force, Yang Cheng was already dead.
“He’s dead.” A young man, after checking Yang Cheng’s breath, cried out in shock.
Chen Jinan was pinned to the ground by seven or eight people, half of his face scratched and bleeding. Upon hearing the news, he struggled to raise his eyes and looked at the old man. “Do you still think I’m Yang Yueshan now?”
“You must be Yang Yueshan! Yang Cheng wouldn’t even eat a steamed bun himself just to save it for you. And he kept calling you ‘child’—I saw it with my own eyes,” the man who had brought them meals insisted stubbornly. “Yang Cheng had no humanity, and his son’s no better—he killed his own father just to escape!”
“Screw your ‘own father’…” Guard Zhou couldn’t hold back and cursed, but was quickly forced down again.
There were too many people pressing on him, and all young men at that. He was being crushed so hard he could hardly breathe. Chen Jinan saw the purple tinge creeping into his face and realized if this kept up, Guard Zhou might suffocate next.
Losing all rationality, Chen Jinan threw off the men restraining him and lunged to help. The villagers, seeing he dared fight back, attacked as well. In the chaos, a command token fell from his robe. Someone sharp-eyed picked it up, glanced at it, and shouted, “Stop! Stop!”
His voice was hoarse with urgency. Everyone froze. That man shoved aside the villagers holding Guard Zhou, finally allowing him to gasp for breath, limp and numb on the ground.
“Look—look at this!” The man held the token aloft.
“It’s Her Highness the Princess’s command token!” someone shouted. “The man who came to deliver rice to my house had this exact token!”
The old man rushed forward, took the token, examined it carefully, and then looked hesitantly at Chen Jinan. “What is your relation to Her Highness?”
“A guard,” Chen Jinan said coolly, scanning the crowd, regaining composure. “We’re both Her Highness’s guards. We were on official business and happened to pass through here—then you captured us.”
Realizing there might be a way out, Guard Zhou quickly fished out his own token as well.
When the villagers saw both tokens, murmurs filled the room. Then, all at once, they dropped to their knees in a deep, collective bow.
Guard Zhou was completely dumbfounded. From their chattering explanations, he vaguely gathered the reason for this sudden change in status. For a moment, he was speechless. “If we’d taken out the tokens earlier, we wouldn’t have had to suffer all this.”
Chen Jinan didn’t reply either. After a while, he asked, “You went to all this trouble just to get 500 taels of silver from Yang Cheng?”
“He destroyed our families—doesn’t he owe us compensation?!” the old man’s eyes were red. “Our village was flattened. Old and young alike have become beggars. The 500 taels were just to rebuild our homes.”
The whole thing had turned into a bloody mess, with many lives lost, and in the end, it was all for a painfully simple reason. Even cheerful Guard Zhou felt a wave of sorrow.
“You want revenge and compensation—that’s fair. But fighting the government is like a mayfly challenging a tree,” Chen Jinan said with a clear head. “Let today’s events be forgotten. Leave here at once. We’ll handle the rest.”
He looked at Guard Zhou as he spoke.
Guard Zhou blinked innocently. “What?”
“Hand it over. I’ll return it later.”
Guard Zhou snorted. “Don’t make me sound like someone heartless…”
Muttering, he took off his shoe and pulled a ten-tael banknote from its sole.
The villagers, who had watched them this whole time, were stunned. They hadn’t expected he could hide money right under their noses.
Chen Jinan handed the banknote to the old man. “This has Her Highness’s seal. Take it to any Shen Trading House. They’ll give you 500 taels in exchange.”
“This—this we can’t take…” The old man tried to push it away. “Her Highness has already helped us so much—we really…”
“Enough. Take it and go. Leave the rest to us.” Guard Zhou shoved the banknote into his hand. “Don’t worry. We’ll make it look like a bandit raid. No one will suspect a ragtag group like you.”
The villagers were deeply moved and knelt again to express their thanks, giving Guard Zhou a massive headache.
Soon, the villagers left. The two men began cleaning up the traces they left behind. And it was a mess—the villagers truly were an unruly mob. In just a few days they’d left so many clues behind, it took Guard Zhou a while to tidy things up. Only then did he realize—
Chen Jinan was gone.
“Where’d he go? Hiding somewhere to slack off?” Guard Zhou muttered and began looking. Eventually, he found him in the firewood shed where they’d been imprisoned.
Seeing Chen Jinan kneeling on one knee in front of Yang Cheng’s body, unmoving, Guard Zhou couldn’t help but tease, “What, you really think you’re his adopted son now?”
“When this matter is settled,” Chen Jinan calmly looked up, “go after the shizi and the others. Make sure you escort him and Mister Shen safely to Yunming.”
“What about you? Aren’t you coming with me?” Guard Zhou asked half in jest.
But Chen Jinan just looked at him steadily.
The smile on Guard Zhou’s face faded. “Where are you going?”
“To Guangfu,” Chen Jinan picked up Yang Cheng’s private seal that had fallen during the fight, his gaze dark. “To return to my ancestral roots.”
