Chapter 44: Playing Dumb and Acting Crazy

The remaining Mengla warriors felt a sudden surge of alarm. The ones near the main gate raised their sabers, pressed against the wooden pillars of the entrance, and peered warily outside.

A few Mengla men near the walls on either side were just about to retreat from the courtyard.

Unwittingly, several arrows came flying swiftly through the darkness. The three Mengla men by the right earthen wall were struck by multiple arrows and tumbled off their warhorses to the ground.

"Quickly retreat! Retreat!"

The Mengla man at the gate leaped onto his warhorse and galloped wildly toward the depths of the village. Now that they were in the light and the enemy was in the shadows, they hoped to use their speed and the cover of darkness to evade the enemy's arrows.

Lin Shize descended unhurriedly from the roof, taking cover beneath another section of the earthen wall.

Three Mengla horsemen came thundering wildly in this direction.

Lin Shize lay in ambush along their inevitable route, holding three arrows in his hand. He held his breath, concentrated, and listened intently to the sound of the hooves to gauge the distance.

The three Mengla cavalrymen were extremely cautious, forming a simple arrowhead formation with one in front and two in the back.

The foremost Mengla man gripped a long saber, while the two behind him drew their bows with arrows notched, scanning their surroundings constantly for any suspicious spots. The moment they spotted an enemy, they would all pounce together.

Three!

Two!

One!

Lin Shize suddenly sprang to his feet, loosing all three arrows at once. The projectiles flew forward with a piercing, whistling sound.

Hearing the noise, the Mengla men instinctively looked toward Lin Shize's direction, but the night was pitch black, and they could not see the arrows that blended seamlessly into the darkness.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The three arrows struck home one after another, burying themselves straight into the chests of the three men. Without even a cry, they plunged headlong to the ground.

The remaining three Mengla men also fell into Zhao Dahu's encirclement and were shot into hedgehogs.

Zhao Dahu came over to Lin Shize carrying three severed heads along with looted warhorses and other spoils.

"Boss, what should we do next?"

Lin Shize stretched lazily, gave a yawn, and said, "Go back to sleep, of course."

Returning to the house, he stowed their gear, rekindled the bonfire, and lay down on the hay to drift off into dreamland.

Over here, Zhao Shantong, her heart still pounding with lingering fear, finally recovered her wits after a long while.

Glancing at the corpse nearby, she hurried over to check Chu Luolong's wounds. Discovering that he had only suffered minor flesh wounds, she finally let out a sigh of relief.

However, the Thirteen Taibaos were not nearly as fortunate. Only four of them remained alive, and every single one was injured.

Supporting one another, the four wailed, "Eldest Miss, let's leave quickly. If those Mengla men come back, we'll all be dead for sure."

Zhao Shantong did not reply. In their current condition, leaving was simply out of the question. Turning her gaze back to the corpse, she noticed that the arrows protruding from it looked somewhat familiar.

She walked over and, with a sharp tug, pulled an arrow free, drawing a spurt of fresh blood that made the eyelids of the others twitch violently.

Yet Zhao Shantong focused entirely on the arrow itself.

It was a unique three-sided triangular arrow—she had never seen one like it before. Why did it feel so familiar?

Suddenly, she recalled that the border garrison troops she had seen this evening carried arrows just like this. Because they were rather unusual, she had taken a second look, which was why she remembered them.

Could it be that they had saved her? But why hadn't they come over? She turned it over in her mind, but could find no answer.

She simply stood up, holding the arrow, and walked out toward the courtyard.

"Boss, Boss, wake up."

Lin Shize was dreaming that he was soaring through mountains of gold and silver, so blissfully happy that mucus bubbles were forming at his nose, when he suddenly heard someone calling him.

Opening his sleep-heavy eyes, he saw Zhao Dahu standing nearby, while Zhao Shantong's beautiful eyes stared fixedly at him with intense curiosity.

"What's up?"

Seeing Lin Shize looking like this, Zhao Shantong felt a flicker of doubt regarding her own judgment. Could this sleepy border soldier possibly have led a group of troops to silently wipe out ten Mengla warriors?

Zhao Shantong asked, "You lot slept the entire night like this? Didn't you hear any noises?"

Lin Shize wore a completely natural expression of bewildered ignorance as he shook his head and said, "We went to sleep very early yesterday. We didn't hear a thing."

Zhao Shantong stepped closer to Lin Shize, until they were almost face to face—so close that they could feel each other's breath. She stared intently into Lin Shize's eyes, trying to judge whether he was lying.

Lin Shize instinctively stepped back at first, then put on a leering expression and looked her up and down.

Just as he was about to speak, Chu Luolong urged anxiously from the side, "Shantong, forget about him. Look at this coward; how could he possibly be the one who killed the Mengla men? Let's hurry up and leave."

Hearing that they intended to leave, Lin Shize quickly said, "Why don't you travel back with us? That way we can look out for one another."

If this pack of unlucky fools ran into the Mengla men again on the road back, they would simply be delivering their heads on a platter.

The only reason Lin Shize refused to admit that he had saved them last night was because this idiot Chu Luolong might very well end up complaining that Lin Shize hadn't rescued him quickly enough.

Chu Luolong frowned and said, "You bunch of useless trash, who only know how to run away when you meet Mengla men. Taking you along will only make it easier for us to be discovered—you're nothing but a burden."

"Shantong, don't pay any attention to them. Let's hurry back to the military stockade."

Zhao Shantong looked back at Lin Shize and continued to ask, "Since you brothers are border soldiers, you must be very familiar with the roads around here, right?"

Lin Shize nodded. "I know the shortest route. If we take any other path, there are too many Mengla men; it's not safe."

Hearing that there were many Mengla men all around, Chu Luolong quietly retracted the foot he had already stepped forward.

This time, he had learned his lesson; he was firmly resolved not to risk his precious life.

Zhao Shantong sat down beside Lin Shize and took out a pouch of silver, placing it in Lin Shize's hand.

"Brother, meeting is a matter of fate. To be honest with you, this here is the son of the Censor-in-Chief Chu Boxuan, and the Deputy Surveillance Commissioner, Chu Luolong."

"If you lead us back to the military stockade, not only will this pouch of silver be yours, but if you encounter any difficulties in the border army in the future, you can always come to me. How about it?"

Lin Shize weighed the silver in his hand and thought to himself: *I didn't ask for this, you offered it to me yourself. Only a fool refuses free money.*

While thinking this, he feigned an expression of astonishment and said, "Ah! So you are Master Chu! This humble one will certainly bring you back safely, but along the way, you must all follow my arrangements."

"Otherwise, if we run into the Mengla men, we'll be in deep trouble."

Lin Shize fervently hoped that this simpleton wouldn't stir up any more trouble on the road.

The group had already been frightened out of their wits by the Mengla men yesterday; right now, as long as they could return safely to the main camp, they would thank their lucky stars.

Zhao Shantong decisively nodded and agreed.

Chu Luolong asked impatiently, "When are we setting off? Hurry up!"

Lin Shize replied, "I've already said, if you want to get back to the military stockade, you have to listen to me."

Chu Luolong's face darkened. "What do you mean by that? You're just a squad leader, a sesame-sized military officer—how dare you speak to me like this?"

Lin Shize forcefully suppressed the urge to smash his fist right into this idiot's face.

"Take it or leave it. You're free to leave whenever you want, but I'm done catering to you."

Zhao Shantong had been observing Lin Shize the entire time. Judging by their iron armor and weapons, she could conclude that Lin Shize was certainly no mere squad leader; this group was definitely an elite unit.

"No matter what, I still want to thank you brothers for stepping in to save us yesterday."

Lin Shize looked completely baffled and blurted out, "Third Uncle? Whose Third Uncle?"

No matter what Zhao Shantong said, Lin Shize stubbornly insisted that he knew nothing about anything.

Looking at Chu Luolong's odious state, if that fellow knew Lin Shize had been sent to escort him back to the main camp, he'd probably climb right onto Lin Shize's neck and shit on it!

Damn these corrupt aristocratic scions!