Chapter 37

Chapter 37

The yamen runner glanced around nervously at that, "They should all be in the garden up ahead. Since they're all young men and women, and they're all gorgeous, the prefect's looking to sell them off for cash."

Xie Licheng gave a slight tilt of his chin, motioning for him to get up and lead the way.

The runner was terrified and said, "I wouldn't dare. If the prefect finds out, he'll kill me."

Xie Licheng looked down at him at that, "I could kill you too."

Xie Licheng said this very softly, and he didn't even look angry.

But the runner knew full well this man was no ordinary guy.

When he said he'd kill someone, he meant it.

He could only scramble to his feet, looking pitiful, and hurry ahead to lead the way for Xie Licheng.

Xie Licheng knew where the inner garden was, but he was worried the guy might try to trick him. To avoid being tricked and wasting time, he had to bring the guy along.

Luckily, the guy was sensible enough. He'd probably been scared out of his mind earlier, because this time he didn't dare try to fool Xie Licheng.

Xie Licheng found them in the inner garden. Since all the servants were gathered together, he couldn't tell if the ones he was looking for were in the crowd.

Xie Licheng signaled for the runner to leave, then strode off toward the garden.

He didn't try to hide, walking straight toward them.

Soon, someone spotted him. A runner pointed at him and shouted, "Who are you? Don't come any closer!"

Xie Licheng acted like he hadn't heard, carefully scanning the servants.

Then, before he could spot Xuan Cui and the others, he heard a familiar voice shout, "My lord, I'm over here! My lord, save me!"

It was Yuan Qiao calling out. Xie Licheng followed the voice to find him in the crowd while deftly snatching a sword from a runner who'd gotten close.

Xie Licheng glanced at that runner and said, "Can't even hold onto your own sword?"

The runner turned red with anger and said, "I work for the government! You dare touch me?"

His answer was a slash from Xie Licheng's blade. As that runner fell, several other runners rushed over, and one of them recognized him.

One of them said, "It's him! The one who took those prisoners before."

The runners who'd been about to attack Xie Licheng froze on the spot. Several of their brothers had died by his hand. They knew that just the few of them were no match for Xie Licheng alone.

Xie Licheng didn't want to fight, either. His stamina was running low—only a pathetic thirty-something points left.

If he could settle things without fighting, he'd naturally prefer that right now.

Xie Licheng: "Are you gonna leave on your own, or stay and spar with me?"

The remaining runners exchanged looks and decided to retreat for now. They would report the matter to the secretary and the prefect, then see what their plans would be.

Watching them hightail it out of there, Xie Licheng untied the ropes on the two people on the ground.

The second they were free, they instinctively wanted to bolt, but then they heard Xie Licheng tell them, "Grab the swords, free everyone, and then you can run."

The two servants quickly nodded and then nervously started freeing the others.

They were scared of the runners, but they were even more scared of Xie Licheng.

The runners were scary, sure, but at least they hadn't tried to kill them.

Compared to the runners, they were actually more afraid of Xie Licheng standing before them.

Because Xie Licheng killed people without a second thought, which made him way more terrifying than the runners.

By then, Xie Licheng had finally found Yuan Qiao. He walked over and pulled Yuan Qiao from the crowd.

He asked, "Where are Xuan Cui and the nanny?"

Yuan Qiao's eyes welled up at that. He stuttered, "Xuan Cui, Xuan Cui is injured. I was carrying her, along with a female martial guard, trying to get her out to see a doctor, and then the government people caught me. The female martial guard ran off with her in the chaos—whether they got out of the Gu estate, I don't know. The nanny... I didn't see her. I don't know where she is."

Xie Licheng nodded and motioned for him to follow quickly.

He planned to take him somewhere private and send him straight into his portable world.

Gu Zhangyuan was really worried about them right now. If he could see that Yuan Qiao was safe and sound, it'd put his mind at ease a bit.

Yuan Qiao quickly wiped his tears and hurried after him.

They hadn't gone far when Xie Licheng noticed two people trailing behind them.

Xie Licheng turned to look—it was two women in a sorry state.

They were both young, with messy hair, looking pitiful and miserable.

Seeing them trailing after him so pathetically, Xie Licheng couldn't bring himself to shoo them away.

He'd already saved so many people; saving two more wouldn't hurt.

Besides, if he later found out they had bad character, he could always toss them out then.

With that in mind, Xie Licheng led the three of them to a secluded spot.

Xie Licheng stopped and told Yuan Qiao, "I'm sending you to see your young master now."

Yuan Qiao's eyes lit up, and he said happily, "You saved our young master?"

Xie Licheng: "If I hadn't saved him, I wouldn't have thought of saving you."

Hearing this, Yuan Qiao got a bit angry and silently cursed him as heartless.

He'd always been so good to him, often putting in a good word for him in front of the young master.

This horse slave really had no heart, saying something so cold.

Before Yuan Qiao could keep grumbling to himself, he and the two women were transported to Peach Blossom Village.

The second Yuan Qiao arrived, he exclaimed, "This—what is this place? Where's our young master?"

As he spoke, he picked up the hem of his robe and started searching all over Peach Blossom Village.

The two women following him were timid and quickly trailed after him, step by step.

They whispered nervously to each other.

"What is this place?"

"I don't know. We were just in the inner courtyard moments ago—how did we end up here all of a sudden?"

"Exactly, it's so strange. Could that... that person possibly know sorcery?"

"Shh, don't talk nonsense. He's a good man—he saved so many of us."

...

If he hadn't come to set them free, they would surely have been sold off by the authorities for money.

With the world outside in such chaos now, being sold again would mean no good end for them.

Since it was already dark, Yuan Qiao went to a lot of trouble before finding his young master in a house with a courtyard.

When Yuan Qiao found him, Gu Zhangyuan was tending to the young fellow from earlier.

The boy had been badly frightened and, after being rescued, had developed a slight fever.

Suddenly seeing Yuan Qiao arrive, Gu Zhangyuan quickly set down the bowl of soup in his hands and hurried over to him.

It was also at that moment that Gu Zhangyuan noticed two others following behind Yuan Qiao.

Seeing Gu Zhangyuan, the two women immediately bent their knees in a respectful salute.

Both maidservants called out in unison, "This humble servant greets the Eldest Young Master."

Gu Zhangyuan didn't recognize them—the Gu household had quite a few servants.

But thinking that they had been brought in by Xie Licheng, they must surely be servants of the Gu family.

Gu Zhangyuan said to them, "At a time like this, there's no need for so much formality."

The two maidservants shook their heads repeatedly when they heard this. "We wouldn't dare. A master is a master."

"Yes, the Eldest Young Master is our master for life."

They weren't foolish—they had heard what Xie Licheng said just now.

Xie Licheng had only gone to rescue Yuan Qiao for Gu Zhangyuan's sake.

They had only been saved because they boldly tagged along with Yuan Qiao, and Xie Licheng had picked them up along the way.

And all of this was because of their Eldest Young Master.

That man was so remarkably capable—as long as they served the Eldest Young Master well, their future wouldn't be too bad.

Gu Zhangyuan let them come in to rest and then didn't give them another thought.

Gu Zhangyuan took Yuan Qiao's hand and asked, "Where are Nanny and Xuan Cui?"

Yuan Qiao shook his head. "I don't know. I got separated from them. But don't worry, Young Master. The lord is out looking for them now. He's so capable, he's sure to find them."

Gu Zhangyuan nodded. He certainly hoped Xie Licheng would find them.

But if he truly couldn't, Gu Zhangyuan wouldn't blame him.

Xie Licheng had been nothing but good to him—he had no complaints.

Gu Zhangyuan asked, "Then he... didn't get hurt, did he?"

Even though Gu Zhangyuan didn't specify who he meant, Yuan Qiao had grown up with him and naturally understood who he was asking about.

Yuan Qiao smiled. "The lord is incredibly powerful. Those yamen runners were terrified at the sight of him—they fled without even putting up a fight. Don't worry, Young Master. The lord is so powerful that nothing can happen to him."

Throughout the night, Xie Licheng didn't return.

He didn't come back, but he did throw in quite a few people and items.

Yes, that night he not only saved many people but also snatched up a lot of good stuff along the way.

Since everything belonged to the Gu family, and both the head of the Gu household and the Eldest Young Master were in his pocket dimension, Xie Licheng felt completely justified in grabbing things from others.

He fought with the authorities for them, with bandits, with runaway slaves of the Gu family, and even with the protagonist's people...

Hand it over!

Is it yours? Then why are you grabbing it?!

He'd toss anyone willing to follow Gu Zhangyuan straight into Peach Blossom Village.

And so, as the night passed, people kept showing up in Peach Blossom Village—one at a time, then two at a time...

Things like porcelain vases, rare flowers, precious furniture, exquisite jewelry—even pots, bowls, and ladles—Xie Licheng collected them all into his pocket dimension.

These items piled up on the ground in the village, and no one dared touch any of them.

It wasn't that no one was greedy; mostly, everyone assumed these things now belonged to Xie Licheng.

They feared that if they touched anything, Xie Licheng would be angry when he came in.

This weird place was Xie Licheng's turf.

On someone else's turf, it was better to behave and stay in line.

But while they didn't dare touch anything, Gu Zhangyuan sure did.

When Gu Zhangyuan got up in the morning, he saw many servants of the Gu family in the village, along with a lot of stuff that was clearly from the Gu household.

Walking over, Gu Zhangyuan naturally started telling the servants to tidy things up.

"Pick these things up and move them to the biggest house in the middle of the village."

A group of servants quickly answered, "Yes."

And just then, Xie Licheng returned from outside, covered in blood, bringing with him both Xuan Cui and Nanny—the very people Gu Zhangyuan had been longing for.

Overjoyed at the sight, Gu Zhangyuan rushed over toward Nanny and Xuan Cui.

He had wanted to embrace them, but remembering Xuan Cui's injuries, he didn't dare reach out to her.

Gu Zhangyuan asked worriedly, "Xuan Cui, how are you? Your wounds..."

Xuan Cui's face was deathly pale, and she looked really bad overall.

She had been lucky—yesterday, the female martial guard had gotten her out of the Gu household.

The two of them then discovered that things were even crazier outside. The female martial guard hid her and went out alone to find a doctor.

But whether she never found one or was killed after going out, nobody knows—either way, she went out and never came back.

Xuan Cui thought she was done for, but just as dawn was about to break, she encountered Xie Licheng, who had been searching everywhere for her.

She had hidden herself away deeply, and if she hadn't made a sound, Xie Licheng would never have found her.

Xie Licheng managed to find her because he called out her name and the wet nurse's name while searching.

Not only did he manage to get her to come out, but he also got the wet nurse, who had escaped on her own, to come out as well.

It was almost funny—only Xie Licheng would dare to be so leisurely in such chaos.

He strolled along, shouting people's names at the top of his lungs.

If anyone else had been looking for them, they wouldn't have found them so easily, and might have even passed right by them.

By now, Xie Licheng was exhausted, his energy nearly gone, and he had to stop and rest.

Since he'd found the people he was looking for, he decided to head back and rest for now.

As for what came next, he'd deal with it once he was rested and had his strength back.

Xie Licheng glanced at Gu Zhangyuan. "Once I've rested, I'll sort things out here."

Gu Zhangyuan quickly stepped forward to support him. "Have you been up all night? You look awful."

"It's nothing. I'll be fine after a bit of sleep."

Hearing this, Gu Zhangyuan quickly signaled Yuan Qiao to come over, and together they helped Xie Licheng into a room to sleep.

At this point, Xie Licheng wasn't so weak that he needed two people to support him.

He wasn't injured, just low on energy.

Still, seeing how much Gu Zhangyuan cared for him, he rather enjoyed the moment.

He reached out and pushed Yuan Qiao away, letting only Gu Zhangyuan support him.

Yuan Qiao, pushed aside, said with a helpless look, "My young master is so delicate, and you're such a big guy—don't crush him."

Xie Licheng shot him a glance, and whatever Yuan Qiao was about to say died in his throat.

He trailed behind them pitifully, afraid that if Xie Licheng fainted, he'd crush his young master into the ground.

Fortunately, Xie Licheng wasn't in too bad a shape—he was just out of energy, not about to pass out.

Gu Zhangyuan helped Xie Licheng find a place to rest, deliberately choosing one far from where the Gu family members were staying.

That house was crowded, and Gu Zhangyuan still had people to organize and clean up, so it wouldn't be quiet there.

He felt Xie Licheng really needed rest, and to rest well, he needed a peaceful environment.

The place he picked had few people nearby, making it ideal for Xie Licheng to rest.

After Xie Licheng lay down, Yuan Qiao brought over a basin of warm water.

Gu Zhangyuan and Yuan Qiao then wiped Xie Licheng's face and hands together.

Xie Licheng looked pretty rough at the moment, but knowing it was all for his sake, Gu Zhangyuan naturally couldn't hold it against him.

Gu Zhangyuan said to Xie Licheng, "Get some sleep first. Once you're rested, get up and take a bath."

Xie Licheng's smell was quite unpleasant, and as he spoke, Gu Zhangyuan started tugging at his clothes.

Xie Licheng's previous clothes had been ruined in the fire, so he'd grabbed whatever he could and thrown it on. Now those new clothes were dirty too, and Gu Zhangyuan didn't want him sleeping in them.

Xie Licheng was too tired, so he closed his eyes and cooperated as his top was removed.

Once the top was off, Gu Zhangyuan quickly said to Yuan Qiao, "You go out first."

Yuan Qiao wanted to say something, but then remembered that the two were now a married couple, and his presence did seem a bit intrusive.

He'd learned yesterday from Gu Yangxue that Gu Zhangyuan had agreed to become Xie Licheng's husband to save everyone.

Yuan Qiao found it a bit amusing—others might not know the relationship between his young master and Xie Licheng.

But he and Xuan Cui knew perfectly well that his young master had already planned to take Xie Licheng into the household.

Their relationship was just one step away from that, and if not for all that had happened, he'd have suspected his young master might already have a child.

So when he heard that his young master was to become Xie Licheng's husband to save everyone, he didn't think it was any great hardship.

In these chaotic times, no matter how noble his young master's status was, if he couldn't survive, that nobility was worthless.

If he couldn't survive, that nobility was worthless.

In Yuan Qiao's eyes, whether his young master took Xie Licheng into the household or Xie Licheng married his young master made little real difference.

He didn't have grand expectations—just hoped his young master would be happy and healthy. As for titles and such, they truly didn't matter.

Watching Yuan Qiao leave, Gu Zhangyuan touched his slightly flushed cheeks and reached for Xie Licheng's belt.

Xie Licheng caught his wrist with his eyes still closed. "Don't mess around."

Gu Zhangyuan: "I'm not messing around. You won't sleep well in your clothes."

And such dirty ones at that—couldn't he smell himself?

Xie Licheng: "But you can't be the one to take them off."

If he let Gu Zhangyuan undress him, he wouldn't get a wink of sleep today.

Xie Licheng sighed and got up to remove his pants himself.

He was quite casual about undressing, not treating Gu Zhangyuan as an outsider at all.

That was just how Xie Licheng was—when Gu Zhangyuan wasn't his, he'd be a bit more polite.

But now that Gu Zhangyuan had said he'd be his husband, his body was naturally something his husband could look at.

Once undressed, Xie Licheng flopped back down with a thud.

Gu Zhangyuan, flustered by his shamelessness, wiped his own burning cheeks with a clean damp cloth, then used it to wipe Xie Licheng's arm.

He was too embarrassed to continue, and didn't dare look at Xie Licheng's body any longer, so he hurried out of the room.

As he left the building, Gu Zhangyuan said to Yuan Qiao outside, "Keep a close watch on him. Don't let anyone in to disturb him. And—he's not dressed, so don't you go in either."

Yuan Qiao replied, "Understood. I'll keep watch and won't let anyone near your husband."

Hearing that, Gu Zhangyuan was both annoyed and embarrassed, but since he was worried about Xuan Cui, he didn't stay to argue and hurried off.