Chapter 66: A Crane Among Chickens

Feng Ruonan had failed to find the white-bearded old man while they were still in the garden estate in the commandery capital. Even if she had found him there, she would not have acted immediately.

She knew perfectly well that although she had been humiliated, the world regarded relations between husband and wife as entirely normal. If she refused to cooperate, most people would say she was the one in the wrong. No one would stand up for her, and her own parents would only stop her from making trouble.

Outside the city was different. Once she had military authority in her own hands, everything would be under her control. How the culprit was dealt with would be her decision.

When the white-bearded old man could not be found in the estate, she guessed he had gone into hiding. So she said nothing, afraid she might alert the snake by striking the grass. She could wait. Once the column left the commandery capital, the old bastard would have to show himself sooner or later, wouldn't he? Wenli and Wenxin were behaving strangely enough to be obvious. They moved back and forth along both sides of the column, sometimes riding faster, sometimes slower, carefully inspecting the people around them.

Niu Youdao noticed.

After looking back several times, he finally asked Yuan Gang riding beside him, "Where did Old Bear run off to?"

"Second row from the rear. The black-faced one."

Niu Youdao twisted around in the saddle. Sure enough, there was a black-faced personal guard mixed in among the others. Without Yuan Gang pointing him out, Niu Youdao genuinely would not have recognized the bear demon. He turned back again.

"What did he smear on his face?"

Yuan Gang replied, "He said he was bruised from my beating and mixed up some medicine to apply. It's actually pickling sauce from the kitchen. If you get close enough, he smells like sauce."

Niu Youdao broke into a grin.

"That old bastard has pretty good risk awareness. Just a little too timid. What's there to be afraid of admitting?"

Yuan Gang said nothing more aloud, but inwardly he understood the situation much better now. He had come to know this bear demon. Yuan Fang looked honest and simple, but in truth he was shrewd and slippery. He had recognized the danger long ago.

He shaved his beard and claimed he had made a great vow not to grow it again until Nanshan Temple flourished. He borrowed a personal guard's clothes and claimed Yuan Gang had beaten his own clothes to pieces. He smeared kitchen sauce all over his face and claimed it was medicine for his injuries. He was trying to avoid Feng Ruonan settling accounts with him while also maintaining an honest, harmless appearance before Niu Youdao's side.

If Master Dao had not warned Yuan Gang, prompting him to keep a close eye on the bear demon, Yuan Gang might actually have been fooled. As for why Yuan Fang wanted to look so honest and harmless before them, it was not hard to guess. He wanted them to lower their guard so he could seize an opportunity to escape. Yuan Gang was content to wait and watch.

He wanted to see what other tricks the bear demon could produce and how he planned to flee while bringing those twenty-odd monks with him. On that point, Yuan Gang no longer truly disliked Yuan Fang. If anything, he had begun to feel a faint measure of appreciation. He had tested Yuan Fang before and deliberately given him a chance to escape while keeping the monks of Nanshan Temple behind. Yuan Fang had not taken the opportunity to flee alone.

After going out to buy what he needed, he had obediently returned. Only then had Yuan Gang understood why those monks at Nanshan Temple, who could easily have abandoned Yuan Fang, had instead followed him all the way here and shared his danger. Yuan Fang was certainly no good man, but he did possess qualities worth respecting.

Those who truly lived in the jianghu understood that temptations were endless. When life and death were entrusted to one another and brothers stood back-to-back against open blades and hidden arrows, nothing was more priceless than the two words loyalty and brotherhood. Thus there was an old saying in the jianghu:

Loyalty endures through the ages!

That was why Yuan Gang had come to agree with Master Dao's judgment. Aside from some problems with his outlook on life and his values, the bear demon's foundation was decent. He could still be molded and brought onto the right road. Shang Chaozong and the others naturally noticed Feng Ruonan's unusual behavior too. They simply had no idea what she was searching for...

Boom!

Thunder rolled across the sky. The weather refused to cooperate. When they left the commandery capital, the sun had been shining brightly. They had not traveled even half a day before dark clouds swallowed the sky. After the thunder came raindrops as large as beans, sparse at first, then rapidly thickening until a sudden downpour crashed over them. The mounted column immediately accelerated, racing through the rain toward the next relay station.

Because their baggage had not accompanied them, they carried no tents or similar equipment. Fortunately, relay stations along the route had been alerted in advance. At first, Yuan Fang could still use spiritual power to keep the rain from touching him.

But he could not sustain it against the endless assault. His spiritual power could not bear that kind of continuous expenditure, and in the end he had no choice but to accept Heaven's washing like everyone else. The relay station had already appeared ahead when the downpour ended as suddenly as it had begun. The dark clouds rolled away toward somewhere else, and the sky cleared almost at once. Yuan Fang looked up from horseback at the blue, freshly washed sky.

"Buddha above..."

Within Guangyi Commandery, the relay stations had long since ceased functioning for the imperial court. They served Feng Lingbo alone. The station ahead had received a fast report from the previous relay and knew Feng Ruonan's party would soon arrive. The moment the rain began, everyone stationed there came out to erect tents. Under normal conditions, Feng Ruonan's group probably would not have stopped here. With heavy rain falling, however, things were different. Unfortunately, they had barely erected a few tents before the sky cleared.

The reason tents were needed was simple: the station itself had limited lodging space and could never hold more than a thousand men and horses. Feng Ruonan and the other principal figures could be housed indoors, but there was no way every ordinary soldier could be given a room. With Feng Ruonan arriving, even the laziest people at the relay station did not dare be careless. A mistake severe enough could cost them their heads. The moment the rain stopped, the station master ordered his subordinates to boil ginger decoction.

Spring had grown warm, but a spring rain could still chill a man badly, especially after riding into the wind on horseback. The station master's order had only just gone out when the thunder of hooves sounded. A great body of riders rapidly approached from the distance. Horses began neighing outside one after another as the column slowed and stopped. More than ten riders entered first to inspect the station.

Feng Ruonan was not wearing armor. She was dressed as a woman, and her rain-soaked clothing clung tightly to her body. Though her frame was powerful, she still possessed a woman's curves. They were simply on a larger scale, and the effect was rather striking. Wenxin had already shaken out a cloak and wrapped it around her. Feng Ruonan did not hurry inside the station. As an experienced commander, her first instinct was to inspect how the sudden storm had affected the men under her.

She had only just turned her mount around to look back when her nose twitched. A powerful smell, somewhat like heavy body odor, drifted through the crowd. Her gaze began searching. While the horses had been galloping, the wind had dispersed the scent and no one had noticed much. Now that everyone had stopped, more and more people smelled it. Gradually, one gaze after another converged on Yuan Fang. Yuan Fang wanted to cry.

When the sauce smeared over his skin was dry, it had not caused much trouble. But once the rain washed over him, the smell burst out at once. The black coloring on his face had run all the way down his neck and into his clothes. His appearance was so distinctive that he stood out like a crane among chickens. It was impossible not to notice him. Even Yuan Fang himself felt that clever people are often undone by their own cleverness.

If he had not smeared the sauce over his face in the first place, they might never have noticed him. He knew the truth could only be hidden for a while, not forever. Sooner or later he would be dragged out. He had only wanted to delay the consequences as long as possible. Perhaps he could find an opportunity to escape with the monks first. Or perhaps, if enough time passed, the victim's anger would fade and she would stop pursuing the matter.

His only regret now was that he had not thought matters through carefully when he acted. It was only after witnessing Shang Chaozong being beaten in the bridal chamber that Yuan Fang realized he had gotten himself into serious trouble. The Princess Consort was terrifyingly fierce. Even His Highness could not control her. The thought of a Princess Consort who dared beat the prince in his own bridal chamber was frightening enough all by itself. In truth, Yuan Fang could hardly be blamed for failing to judge the situation accurately.

He had been dragged away from Nanshan Temple by force and knew almost nothing about what was going on. Without the information, he could not make a sound judgment. Otherwise, he would never have exposed his true appearance while carrying out the task.

Feng Ruonan stared at him for a long moment, then looked back and asked, "Is that him?"

Wenxin and Wenli studied Yuan Fang carefully but did not dare confirm it. The problem was not merely the missing beard. The white-bearded old man they had seen back then had also been bruised and swollen.

What they did not know was that after the incident, Yuan Fang had immediately shaved his beard, hidden himself in a room, and circulated his spiritual power to promote blood flow and disperse the bruising as quickly as he could. His old face had effectively been exchanged for a new one.

"The eyes look a little similar..."

Wenxin and Wenli quietly explained what they remembered, both saying they could not be certain. Shang Chaozong and the others found the situation strange as well. Why was Feng Ruonan staring at Yuan Fang like that? Then again, Yuan Fang's deliberately shaved beard and his ridiculous rain-soaked appearance were suspicious in their own right. What exactly was the bear demon up to? Yuan Gang, who knew the truth, remained expressionless.

Niu Youdao, on the other hand, broke into a broad grin and deliberately shouted loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.

"Old Bear! What happened to that long white beard of yours? And why are you dyed black all over?"

The instant those words rang out, Feng Ruonan's pupils contracted. A cold smile slowly appeared at the corner of her mouth. Yuan Fang almost fainted. He nearly pitched headfirst from his horse. A mournful cry echoed in his heart. Master Dao, you can't betray a man like this! The corner of Yuan Gang's mouth twitched. He could understand Yuan Fang's feelings. Feng Ruonan showed no immediate reaction. As usual, she inspected the people traveling with her, then finally entered the relay station and dismounted.

Several tents had been erected around the station, with others still unfinished. The smell of ginger decoction drifted through the air and softened Feng Ruonan's mood somewhat. She knew perfectly well that a relay station this far from any city was small and had very little manpower. Faced with an unexpected storm, being able to prepare this much on such short notice was already difficult. Everything before her showed that the people here had made a genuine effort.

As a commander, she understood better than most how important smooth military communications were. A well-run relay station was an important link in that chain. The station master came forward to pay his respects.

Feng Ruonan looked at him and said calmly, "Notify the local County Magistrate. This man is fit to serve as County Relay Administrator."

The County Relay Administrator was the official responsible for overseeing all relay stations within a county. With a single sentence, Feng Ruonan had changed the station master's fate. A station master did not truly count as an official. County Relay Administrator, by contrast, was a formal step into officialdom. The station master was overjoyed. Feng Ruonan had no interest in exchanging courtesies with him and strode inside. People entered the relay station one after another to change their soaked clothes.

The women naturally received priority. The ordinary soldiers below them took turns changing inside the tents. Niu Youdao noticed something. Although they had all passed through the same torrential rain, Bai Yao and several others beside him remained completely dry. There was not a trace of water on their clothes. Niu Youdao himself, by contrast, was soaked through.

"Master Dao!"

Outside the station, Yuan Fang called out and stopped Niu Youdao just as he was about to enter. He pulled him aside to talk. Niu Youdao waved a hand before his nose and frowned, deliberately pretending not to understand.

"Why do you smell so strong?"

Yuan Fang repeatedly cupped his hands and pleaded.

"Master Dao, please just let us go. If we don't leave now, I'm afraid I won't live much longer!"

Niu Youdao looked astonished.

"Everything's been fine. Why say something like that?"

Yuan Fang glanced toward Yuan Gang, who stood not far away watching them. Then he lowered his voice and told Niu Youdao what Yuan Gang had ordered him to do.

At the end, his face was full of misery.

"If I don't leave now, I'm afraid the Princess Consort is going to kill me!"

Niu Youdao gave an acknowledging sound.

"So that's what this is about. That matter? I was the one who told Yuan Gang to have you do it."

[End of Chapter 66]