Chapter 55
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As he took large strides beyond the boundaries of the Distant Moon Sect, Fu Nian turned around for one last look.
The blazing flames still flickered in the wind, and the house that had once confined him had now completely collapsed due to the fire.
Amidst the flames, he could see Fu Bie shuttling back and forth, carrying buckets of water, attempting to extinguish the fire and save whatever was left inside.
Fu Nian turned his gaze away.
In the past, when he had devoted himself wholeheartedly to Fu Zhen, it was just like this—loyal as a dog, and as tired as one too. Even in death, he would be removed from the cycle of reincarnation and brought back to Fu Zhen’s side.
Arriving at the city of Shuzhou, he heard the deafening sound of suona horns resonating in the distance, intermixed with mournful wails.
It was evident that more than one family was conducting funeral ceremonies.
Fu Nian took a casual glance but didn’t think much of it as he continued walking towards the city.
Upon entering the city, he noticed that the houses along the streets had varying degrees of damage. Nearly every doorstep was adorned with white cloth and white flowers, and some coffins were parked by the roadside.
Fu Nian realized that something serious had happened and quickly found a house with an open door, taking out a handful of silver coins to use as payment for information.
“Sir, pardon the intrusion. May I ask what has happened here?” He placed the silver on the small table in front of the seated old man.
Before receiving an answer, he heard loud sobbing from inside the room.
“My child! My child!”
“Brother, wake up…”
For a moment, Fu Nian stood awkwardly in place.
After waiting for a while, the elderly man sitting at the table with him finally spoke in a hoarse, aged voice, “His Majesty was attacked while returning to the capital. There was a skirmish between the assassin and the Imperial Guards here… At that time, the situation was critical, and many young lads spontaneously came forward to assist the Imperial Guards, including my son…”
“And His Majesty now?” Fu Nian asked anxiously.
“They say he safely reached the capital. But my son…” The old man’s voice trailed off.
Fu Nian didn’t know what to say. “Please accept my condolences,” he managed to offer, adding, “His Majesty will surely remember your son’s sacrifice and will not treat you unfairly.”
“The government has already provided compensation and funeral expenses. Our son hasn’t been buried yet, and we still can’t believe… our kind-hearted child. How could heaven…?”
Fu Nian still wanted to say something comforting but found himself at a loss for words.
However, he seemed to understand a bit more why Chu Zhaoyi was so concerned about the common people’s affairs.
After a long while, Fu Nian took out another silver from his person and placed it on the table.
Just as he was about to take his leave, he caught a glimpse, in his peripheral vision, of a young girl emerging from the room.
It seemed that she hadn’t been married yet. Fu Nian quickly shifted his gaze to the wall, avoiding looking at her.
“Dad, who is this person?”
“He came to ask a few questions… Didn’t I ask you to accompany your mother? Why did you come out?”
“Why did he give our family money? Is he an official?” The little girl, seeing her father not responding, turned her gaze to Fu Nian. “Are you an official?”
“I am—” Fu Nian hadn’t answered yet when something suddenly hit his head, causing him to furrow his brows.
Turning around, he found that the broken silver he had placed on the table had fallen to the ground. Looking up, he saw the little girl in front of him still in a throwing posture, glaring at him fiercely.
“If you are, get out of here with your money! My brother is dead, what use is this dirty money?” She yelled at Fu Nian and then turned to the elderly figure sitting at the table, crying again, “If my brother had been a bit cowardly, he would still be alive. Why did he sacrifice himself for that emperor? The emperor would have survived even if my brother hadn’t gone out…”
“Don’t say such things, my girl!” The old man reprimanded, then turned to Fu Nian with panic in his eyes. “I haven’t disciplined my daughter properly. If you are indeed an official, I implore you to forgive her!”
Fu Nian replied, “I am just a traveling merchant passing through this area. I had a sudden bout of tinnitus and didn’t hear anything. This silver is a token of my appreciation for your answers, and it is not meant for any other purpose. Please accept it.” With that, Fu Nian nodded politely, exited the room, and rubbed his head, which had been struck by the money earlier.
Upon hearing the news of Chu Zhaoyi’s possible safe return to the capital, he suddenly felt less anxious and let out a long sigh of relief.
Having resolved his concerns about Chu Zhaoyi, Fu Nian fell into deep thought.
Since it was now confirmed that the person he had long believed to be his Senior Brother was actually his master in disguise, and his Senior Brother had already ceased to exist, then the person who had truly borne the Gu curse… might still be in the palace?
However, he had escaped from the palace under the guise of a mission from the Shuzhou palace and had been imprisoned by Fu Zhen for so long. The palace had surely noticed his disappearance by now.
Suddenly returning would essentially be like handing the Ministry of Punishments a task, and if he was lucky, he might even provide work for the executioner as well.
Arriving at the medical clinic where he had previously arranged for Pei Zhou to stay, Fu Nian contemplated for a moment before entering.
“Doctor, about what happened before…”
His distinctive injuries, with both his legs and arms missing, were quite apparent. The doctor quickly left his counter and interrupted, “This is the medicine fee you paid in advance, and I am returning it to you.”
Fu Nian’s breath caught for a moment.
“Don’t worry. That young man is still alive, and his condition improved later on. Afterward, I met people in a tavern who were inquiring about his whereabouts. They claimed to be his relatives conducting business on this side of Shuzhou. I led them to him, and they settled the medical expenses for him. They also hired a carriage to take him back home.”
Hearing this, Fu Nian finally felt relieved. Judging from Pei Zhou’s behavior, he seemed to be a well-bred young man from a wealthy family.
“Very well. Thank you for your help during these days,” Fu Nian said and then rolled up his sleeves. “I would also appreciate it if you could take a look at my injuries.” He mumbled the last part.
The doctor stared intently and his face turned pale.
“These are burn injuries. I changed the bandages myself about an hour ago, but it seems to have worsened. Could you please prescribe something for infection prevention, ointment, and pain relief?” Fu Nian continued.
“Your injuries are almost cooked…” The doctor muttered in a low voice, sounding surprised.
Fu Nian:…
“Please sit inside first. We may need to shave off some of the necrotic skin.”
“No need, I’m in a hurry. Just prescribe some ointment,” Fu Nian replied.
If he wasn’t mistaken, Fu Zhen was probably still near Shuzhou City. After his hard-fought escape, encountering him again would be disastrous.
As Fu Nian walked through Shuzhou City for a short while, he found a secluded spot to stop. He sat on the ground, rolled up his pants, and looked at the bloodstains on his new prosthetic limb. He took out some gauze and began wiping the injured skin that had been abraded and was bleeding.
New prosthetic limbs required a break-in period, especially since he was also using a semi-finished one. The burning pain from the earlier part of the journey had masked the pain from the severed limb, but now that the burn was easing, Fu Nian realized the severed area had been rubbed raw and was bleeding.
While tending to his wound, he suddenly spotted a figure outside the alley.
Fu Nian quickly became alert. Without securing the prosthetic limb properly, he saw another person appear in the alley.
“Fu Bie?” From a distance, Fu Nian recognized the person by their gait. Instantly, he stopped tending to his wound and tightly gripped his dagger.
“…”
It was evident that the person had exhausted their energy, struggling to breathe even.
“Are you here to capture me again?” Fu Nian asked.
Fu Bie shook his head.
After a long pause, he covered his shoulder and said, “I can’t stop Senior Brother, but I can follow him. Master said I must watch over you, and I will definitely watch over you. Once the fire was extinguished, I rushed down the mountain and finally caught up…”
Fu Nian:…
This stubborn temperament was no less than his own back in the day.
Fu Bie, seeing that he wasn’t speaking, added, “I won’t stop Senior Brother’s path, and Senior Brother won’t stab me again, right?”
“Mmm,” Fu Nian grunted.
Back when Fu Nineteen had thrust a sword into his heart, he had shown no surprise either, and with blood in his mouth, he had asked his Senior Brother if he had resolved his grudge in his heart.
Seeing this old scene reenacted, he couldn’t help but feel a bit uncomfortable.
Fu Nian didn’t say another word to this person. After securing the prosthetic limb, he didn’t care if he was bleeding or not and quickly resumed his journey.
On the way to the capital, Fu Nian constantly kept an eye on the Junior Brother he had picked up from behind him.
Even when they stopped, he would catch up quickly. Many times, he was already gasping for breath, as if he would collapse in the street at any moment, but he still persisted in following him.
Fu Nian originally thought of finding an opportunity to shake off Fu Bie. However, Fu Bie’s personality… he was like a mirror of his former self, and since he knew that the wound he had inflicted at the Distant Moon Sect was deep, in this desolate wilderness with no food, clean water, or medicines, an untrained Junior Brother would easily lose their life.
So, he decided to let him follow along as long as he didn’t hinder him.
They traveled throughout the night, and when they reached the outskirts of the capital, Fu Nian finally slowed down. He took out some dry rations he had bought in Shuzhou City and started eating while drinking water.
The sound of swallowing saliva behind him grew louder and louder.
Fu Nian suddenly stopped and turned around, asking with a cold expression, “Do you want to eat?”
Fu Bie was momentarily stunned, not expecting him to initiate a conversation.
After a moment of hesitation, Fu Bie quickly snatched the dry rations from Fu Nian’s hand and began devouring them.
While Fu Bie was eating, Fu Nian grabbed the remaining ointment and tossed it over. “Treat the wound on your shoulder yourself. If it gets infected and you die here, it would be unsettling.”
“Senior Brother, you really…”
“I’m not your senior brother,” Fu Nian coldly interrupted.
“Thank you then, you clearly had no intention of killing me, right?” Fu Bie wasn’t deterred by Fu Nian’s cold demeanor and continued speaking.
Fu Nian couldn’t be bothered to engage in conversation with him. “A thousand taels for funeral expenses. If you pay me in advance, I’ll kill you now,” he said before resuming eating.
After finishing their meal, Fu Nian spoke again. “Stop following me. You’re incapable of capturing me and it’s better to report to that old man and confess. If you think he might kill you, it’s not too late to head south now. Unlike me, you don’t have obvious physical characteristics. Change your name, and you can live the rest of your life without him finding you.”
Fu Bie remained silent and continued munching on his rations.
Fu Nian sighed, realizing it was a fruitless endeavor to persuade him further. He got up from the ground, ignoring the blood on his leg, and continued walking towards the city gates of the capital.
The shadow behind him still followed as expected.
When they entered the city, it was still early morning, and from a distance, Fu Nian could see a large crowd gathered at a street junction, blocking the road.
Fu Nian found himself stuck and decided to approach and see what was happening.
“Senior Brother! It’s a notice!”
Fu Nian hadn’t seen it yet, but he was loudly reminded by the voice behind him.
He turned around and gave a stern look.
The Junior Brother quickly corrected himself, “Sir, there’s a wanted notice up ahead.”
“…” Fu Nian didn’t respond but tried to tiptoe on one foot to get a better view.
Unfortunately, the crowd was too dense, and people frequently bumped into his bleeding severed limb or stepped on his left foot.
Suddenly, Fu Nian felt his body lighten.
“Put me down!”
“This way, you can see it better!”
With so many people around, if Fu Nian made a move, he might hurt innocent bystanders. So, he had no choice but to use his hands to slap the junior brother he had picked up.
“I can’t read all the characters, can you please read it aloud for me?”
Fu Nian had no other option but to read the content written on the notice aloud, word by word. “The authorities have issued a reward notice… wanted criminal is a palace guard, a young man with a slim and tall build… distinctive features, missing right leg and right arm, both replaced with prosthetics…” After reading it aloud, Fu Nian suddenly realized his mistake.
Most of the people in the crowd couldn’t read, and a chorus of “oh” sounded out as they understood the content.
Fu Nian quickly slapped the Fu Bie. “Put me down, and let’s run!”
“You haven’t finished reading it yet,” Fu Bie said, standing still.
“Run, put me down!” Fu Nian urgently shouted, feeling anxious. He was already taller than most people, and now they were starting to notice him.
But Fu Bie still didn’t move. “Why should we run?”
Before Fu Nian could explain, a clear voice came from the east. “There’s someone with a missing right arm! Catch him!”
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