Chapter 68

Chapter 68

By the time they got back to the inn from the mountain, Xie Zhiwei was famished.

Sure enough, his stamina still couldn't hold a candle to someone like Pei Dinglan, who was built like a tank.

Good thing he'd ordered a great dinner before they left.

That evening, a table was laid out in the inn's main hall. Everyone took their seats, except for Si Guang, who was still out keeping watch in the shadows.

Xiao Yang sat next to Xie Zhiwei, clutching his bowl, raring to go, eyeing the braised rooster with real craving.

"Bro, what's with the sudden craving for braised chicken today?"

Xie Zhiwei snorted coldly. "That's what happens when a chicken crosses me."

Xiao Yang: "?"

He didn't get it, but he respected his big bro's call.

The rooster was braised in a rich, dark sauce—glossy, red, and with meat that was firm but tender. One bite and the salty-sweet sauce and savory chicken flavor exploded on your tongue—so good you'd want to chew the bones.

Xie Zhiwei showed off his one-of-a-kind eating talent—he looked all graceful and unhurried, but his chopsticks were working nonstop. Plus Pei Dinglan kept piling food onto his plate, so it was a ton—and he still polished it off in record time.

Xiao Yang poked at his own bowl, zoning out. He thought Xie Zhiwei was eating like a high school senior cramming for finals.

"Serves it right." The big basin of braised chicken was scraped clean, and Xie Zhiwei set down his chopsticks, wiping his mouth with satisfaction.

After dinner, it was fully dark outside.

Xie Zhiwei and Pei Dinglan talked the kid into staying put at the inn—it wasn't a good night to bring Xiao Yang along.

Xiao Yang's little head was full of big questions: "Why isn't it convenient to bring me?"

Pei Dinglan: "We've got grown-up stuff to handle."

Xie Zhiwei flat-out stomped on Pei Dinglan's foot. "Don't say crap like that in front of a kid."

Xiao Yang: "."

It sounded like they were heading out on a date, except...

Nobody dresses like a thief on a date, even ditching all their accessories.

Xiao Yang shoved both adults, one hand on each. "Go ahead, don't worry about me. I'll go to bed like a good kid when I'm sleepy."

Xie Zhiwei and Pei Dinglan got "shooed" out the door by Xiao Yang, and the two adults just stared at each other.

Pei Dinglan stretched out his arms and legs. "Ready to roll?"

Xie Zhiwei was all in. "Let's go."

A dark, windy night—perfect for some sneaky eavesdropping.

Pei Dinglan led Xie Zhiwei straight to the Chen place, silently scaling the wall and slipping over to the outside of the estate.

Xie Zhiwei looked up at the wall, then at Pei Dinglan. "Can you get me over without a sound?"

"Of course. I'm damn good." Pei Dinglan wrapped an arm around Xie Zhiwei's waist, pushed off the ground, and the two of them cleared the wall without a sound.

Xie Zhiwei landed steady, carried so smoothly that even his clothes barely rustled.

Pei Dinglan's kung fu was seriously impressive—he could scale a wall carrying someone and still be as light as a ghost.

"This way." Pei Dinglan took Xie Zhiwei's hand and led him along the base of the wall, weaving past a few bushes until they stopped outside a room with the lights on.

The Chen estate wasn't anything beyond what a regular merchant would have. Since he'd been there once before, Pei Dinglan already had the layout down and found his way to Chen Wanguan's study without any trouble.

A clump of bamboo grew under the study window, its shadows swaying—perfect cover for the two of them.

Pei Dinglan crouched down first, pressing his ear to the wall for a beat. Confirming there were voices inside, he nodded to Xie Zhiwei.

Xie Zhiwei shuffled over like a bunny, crouching down next to Pei Dinglan. The two of them hunkered down side by side like a pair of rabbits, holding their breath and listening.

Maybe Chen Wanguan had told the servants not to bother him in the study at night, so the conversation inside wasn't guarded. Even Xie Zhiwei, whose ears weren't as sharp as Pei Dinglan's, could hear clearly.

Chen Wanguan's voice came through: "Everything all set?"

"Yes, Father." It was Chen Jinan's voice. "As soon as Xie Zhiwei signs the contract with Hu Shoulian and takes over the mines we contracted, we can get out of Linxian County."

"Excellent!" Chen Wanguan's voice carried a hint of excitement. "Our family is finally getting out of this godforsaken Linxian."

Xie Zhiwei couldn't help but stretch up on his toes. Hearing intel this big, he wished he could crawl right under Chen Wanguan's desk to listen in.

Pei Dinglan reached out and hoisted Xie Zhiwei up a bit, lifting him higher to indulge his little whim.

"Then tomorrow I'll have sis pack her stuff too." Chen Jinan's tone revealed a hint of relief.

The room fell silent for a moment, then Chen Wanguan's voice rang out again: "That old bastard Hu Shoulian—he'll die a miserable death sooner or later."

Chen Jinan lowered his head, thinking the same thing as his father—Hu Shoulian definitely deserved to die a miserable death.

Xie Zhiwei used the faint light to signal Pei Dinglan. He felt the father and son had a deep hatred for Hu Shoulian, and it couldn't just be because Hu Shoulian had bled the Chen family dry.

Pei Dinglan watched Xie Zhiwei's hand waving around, grabbed it, and shot him a look—talk later, keep listening for now.

Xie Zhiwei stopped moving but didn't pull his hand away. Pei Dinglan just kept holding it.

"Good thing heaven's on our side, sending us that rich idiot Xie Zhiwei." Chen Jinan, seeing his father's grim expression, brought up Xie Zhiwei again. "Once he's in deep, there's no pulling out. And the people behind him might even get revenge and make Hu Shoulian die a horrible death."

Xie Zhiwei crouched outside the window, one eyebrow raised.

Did he look like that convenient a tool to them?

Pei Dinglan squeezed Xie Zhiwei's hand, mouthing: "Rich idiot?"

Xie Zhiwei mouthed back: "You're the idiot."

Pei Dinglan's lips curved up, and he gripped Xie Zhiwei's hand even tighter.

Inside the study, Chen Wanguan sighed. "Jin'an, speed it up. Get Xie Zhiwei to sign that contract with Hu Shoulian fast. Once it's signed, we leave right away. I've already got the route to Luoqi locked in. Remember—speed is everything."

"I understand." Chen Jinan, usually the picture of a refined gentleman, now had a vicious edge to him. "Xie Zhiwei will take the fall for our family. If he ends up dead later, I'll burn incense and paper money for him."

Xie Zhiwei: "."

Well, Chen Jinan, didn't expect you to have such a venomous streak.

Pei Dinglan heard that and didn't charge in to beat Chen Jinan to death—that alone was him being good-tempered. How dare they scheme against his Lord Xie.

The father and son talked for a good while longer, and only when Chen Jinan saw his father getting tired did he wrap things up and leave the study.

Footsteps moved toward the entrance, and Xie Zhiwei and Pei Dinglan pressed themselves deeper into the bamboo grove, pressed up against each other, Pei Dinglan's arm around Xie Zhiwei's waist, pulling him snug against him.

The door creaked open, and Chen Jinan stepped out, walking along the corridor toward the eastern courtyard, looked like he was heading back to turn in.

Pei Dinglan waited a beat, and once he was sure there was no more movement, did he keep his arm around Xie Zhiwei's waist and silently lift him over the wall and out of the Chen estate.

Once they were clear of the estate, Xie Zhiwei finally blurted out what he'd been dying to say: "Chen Wanguan's actually planning to skip town to Luoqi—he must've caught on to something."

Pei Dinglan and Xie Zhiwei strolled along: "Chen Wanguan is a shrewd merchant and naturally a clever man. Maybe he found out about the counterfeit coins floating around the southwest and got wind of the huge conspiracy behind it all. Staying in the Great Zhou isn't safe anymore, so he's hauling his whole family off to Luoqi."

"Yeah, right." Xie Zhiwei snorted. "He wants to run to Luoqi? I'll make sure he never sets one foot outside the Great Zhou."

Pei Dinglan raised his hand and applauded: "Lord Xie is so mighty and impressive."

Xie Zhiwei pinched Pei Dinglan's lips shut: "Don't ruin the mood."

He'd actually been feeling pretty badass just now, but with Pei Dinglan acting like that, it was like soothing a kid—all his badassery went out the window.

Pei Dinglan casually grabbed Xie Zhiwei's hand: "Zhiwei, what do you have in mind?"

"If the Chens want to run, let 'em run." Xie Zhiwei let out an evil cackle. "When Chen Wanguan thinks he's safe, I'll crush his little fantasy. How fun would that be?"

Just then, some dog somewhere started barking: "Woof woof woof!"

Xie Zhiwei: "..."

Pei Dinglan couldn't help but laugh: "Looks like your idea got some approval."

Xie Zhiwei yanked Pei Dinglan along to get moving—approval, his ass. The truth was his evil laugh had scared the dog.

Pei Dinglan let himself get dragged along but didn't seem in any hurry at all, deliberately slowing down so Xie Zhiwei had to tug him along.

Xie Zhiwei wasn't that strong, and after a few steps he realized the guy was just being a brat, so he let go and sped up on his own.

"Hey, what's the rush?" Pei Dinglan caught up in a couple of strides and grabbed his hand again.

Xie Zhiwei kept his face expressionless: "Back to the inn to get a message to Guo Sheng."

"That can wait a minute." Pei Dinglan squeezed Xie Zhiwei's fingers, his voice all coaxing. "Look how pretty the moonlight is—hurry too much, and you'll miss the view."

Only then did Xie Zhiwei notice the clouds had cleared and the moon was out, no longer pitch black.

The moon really was beautiful—round and bright, hanging over the eaves, its cool light spilling across the rooftops of Linyuan County.

No wonder people loved looking at the moon.

Some even used the moonlight to confess their love.

"Pei Sanlang." Xie Zhiwei withdrew his gaze and looked steadily at Pei Dinglan. "The moon is beautiful tonight."

Pei Dinglan didn't understand the meaning of those words, but Xie Zhiwei wanted him to, so he rose on his toes and pressed a kiss to the corner of Pei Dinglan's lips.

The touch was feather-light and quick, like a petal blown by the wind onto skin, gone before you could even feel its warmth.

Pei Dinglan's hand holding Xie Zhiwei's tightened unconsciously: "Zhiwei..."

The moonlight fell, casting Xie Zhiwei's profile in half light and half shadow, making him seem like an immortal descended from the jade terrace.

But Xie Zhiwei refused to give Pei Dinglan another glance, leaving him only a graceful silhouette.

"Zhiwei~" Pei Dinglan called again.

Xie Zhiwei: "."

Good grief—he could practically hear the tilde in Pei Dinglan's voice.

"Come on, back to the inn. I need to sleep." Xie Zhiwei ignored him.

"Zhiwei, Zhiwei, say it again—I didn't hear you clearly." Pei Dinglan's voice went all soft and wheedling.

Whether he hadn't heard or just wanted another kiss, Xie Zhiwei knew perfectly well.

A confession was something to be done once in a beautiful moment—any more would be greedy.

Just like this was perfect.

But at that very moment, footsteps approached, accompanied by the clang of a copper gong and a shout: "Who goes there? Roaming about at the dead of night—aren't you afraid of a beating?"

It was the night watchman.

Before Xie Zhiwei could react, Pei Dinglan had already seized his wrist and pulled him into a run.

Xie Zhiwei stumbled as he was dragged along, and Pei Dinglan's arm steadied him firmly around the waist, nearly lifting him off the ground.

"Hold on tight." Pei Dinglan's voice came down from above, laced with laughter—not like someone being chased, but like they were playing some amusing game.

Behind them, the night watchman's shouts grew fainter and fainter, scattered by the night wind.