Guanshan Muyu

chapter 44

Qingzhou City was not large, and after leaving the city gates, one could see a vast expanse of farmland.

Xia Xun walked after the crow through the early autumn fields full of beautiful golden wheat. Every now and then the crow landed on a scarecrow’s shoulder, waiting for him to follow.

It flew over acre after acre of wheat fields, and finally stopped at a water tank at the edge of the field.

Xun Xia slowly walked over to it.

The water tank looked abandoned for a long time; the bricks around it collapsed in many places, and under the messy rubble, a human hand was revealed.

Xun Xia was startled and took half a step backwards.

The crow cried out, as if urging him.

Xun Xia understood; he knew whose hand it was.

He kicked away the bricks and the figure below was gradually revealed, first its thick curly brown hair, next a very familiar scimitar, and finally, the owner of the scimitar himself — Fumeng Tancha.

His face was bruised black and swollen and there was blood at the corner of his mouth.

Xia Xun squatted down and slapped him on the face heavily a few times.

“Wake up, wake up!”

Fumeng Tancha did not move.

Xia Xun saw his wine bag in the pile of rocks, picked it up and weighed it; there was still wine inside.

He opened the lid and poured the wine all over Fumeng Tancha’s face.

The wine was poured into his nasal cavity, and Fument Tancha choked and coughed hard, and finally opened his eyes.

He slowly lifted his eyelids, licked his dry lips, and his first words were to criticise Xia Xun.

“You are really… wasteful.”

Xia Xun said indifferently: “You can still talk, it seems you’re not dead yet.”

Fumeng Tancha gave a dry laugh, moved his eyes and looked at his abdomen:

“One foot… on Naihe Bridge… is not dead now, after a while will be dead…” (Naihe Bridge, a bridge every soul has to cross before being reincarnated)

Xia Xun followed his line of sight and saw a large bloody wound in the left part of his abdomen.

Fumeng Tancha was dying.

“Tell you first, I did not break my promise… it was the people of Duke Chen who captured me… this big hole in my stomach… also, thanks to them…”

Fumeng Tancha’s actions were detected by Duke Chen’s men; they caught him, tortured him until he told them that Qi Yan was going to Tongchang teahouse.

Before the operation, fearing that Fumeng Tancha would leak the information, they stabbed him and threw him into this water tank.

Fumeng Tancha did not die, surviving in the pile of bricks for several days.

Xia Xun looked at his wound and said: “…you might be hopeless.”

Fumeng Tancha grinned and said with difficulty. “Don’t need you… to say that!”

Xia Xun thought for a while and asked him, “Do you have any wish?”

Fumeng Tancha closed his eyes and said breathlessly: “I… betrayed you, and you still want to help me…?”

Xia Xun said, “Don’t talk nonsense. If you don’t get down to business, it may really be too late.”

Fumeng Tancha laughed dryly, overwhelmed with dizziness, and closed his eyes.