PCA Chapter 78

The carriage jolted westward, with Su Cen’s hands bound behind his back and a black cloth covering his eyes. He knew they were heading west because someone had lifted the carriage curtain, allowing the evening sunlight to briefly strike his face.

 

Night was falling. After the curtain was lowered, darkness enveloped him again. Based on the pace of an ordinary carriage, they should have traveled about 50-60 kilometers from Yangzhou city by now.

 

Su Cen tried to move his aching hands, silently cursing Feng Yiming for deliberately tying the ropes so tightly, leaving no room for escape. It was clearly revenge for when Su Cen had previously tied him up and taken him to an inn.

 

He sensed someone approaching and blocking what little light remained. The person stared at Su Cen’s face intently without moving. After a while, something lightly brushed against Su Cen’s cheek.

 

Su Cen turned his head away in disgust, saying, “Feng Yiming, what’s the point of this?”

 

The person in front chuckled, moved back, and sat down nearby, saying cheerfully, “It’s fun. Didn’t Master Su enjoy playing these games before?”

 

Su Cen remained silent, reflecting on how the tables had turned.

 

Another person entered the carriage and sat opposite Feng Yiming, asking sternly, “What are you doing here?”

 

It was He Xiao.

 

Feng Yiming laughed at He Xiao’s questioning tone, “I was worried Master Su might be bored, so I came to keep him company.”

 

Su Cen thought to himself that he wasn’t bored at all.

 

He Xiao spoke harshly, warning Feng Yiming not to be fooled by Su Cen’s clever words, mentioning Su Cen’s past opposition to the Secret Door in Chang’an and his involvement in the Death Gate incident. He emphasized that the “Old Master Lu” had specifically requested Su Cen.

 

“I’m the one who captured him,” Feng Yiming said flippantly. “Don’t forget, if it had been Xue Zhi and the others instead of me, you’d be in jail by now.”

 

He Xiao snorted coldly and said no more.

 

Ignoring He Xiao, Feng Yiming continued addressing Su Cen, thanking him for trusting him enough to think of him first when trouble arose.

 

Su Cen reflected that he had indeed acted rashly in trusting Feng Yiming, realizing that in that situation, Xue Zhi and his group would have been the ones most eager for He Xiao’s demise.

 

The conversation continued, with Su Cen questioning Feng Yiming about his allegiance to the Secret Door and when he joined. Feng Yiming’s responses were evasive but suggested he had been involved longer than Su Cen might have thought.

 

Su Cen then deduced that Feng Yiming had deliberately directed his attention towards He Xiao upon arriving in Yangzhou, providing detailed information about He Xiao’s background to divert suspicion from himself.

 

He Xiao’s face suddenly turned ashen.

 

Feng Yiming laughed at He Xiao, saying, “What you said is indeed true, this man is most skilled at glib talk and stirring up trouble. Brother Lanfu, don’t listen to his nonsense, haha…”

 

Su Cen, unafraid like a dead pig of boiling water, continued: “So the Secret Door knows about you and the Prince mmph…”

 

Feng Yiming quickly found a cloth to gag him, then forcibly dragged He Xiao away from this troublesome place.

 

If they had stayed any longer, Su Cen might have been fine, but he and He Xiao would likely have come to blows.

 

The carriage only stopped when it was completely dark outside. Voices gradually rose outside, and soon the aroma of food wafted in.

 

Though unwilling to submit in his heart, Su Cen’s stomach betrayed him by surrendering shamelessly. He had only drunk a bowl of thin porridge in the morning, which had long since been depleted. Just as he was wondering if these people would be heartless enough to mistreat a prisoner, the carriage curtain was timely lifted.

 

Someone removed the cloth gagging his mouth, but their hand lingered on his lips.

 

Su Cen said irritably: “Feng Yiming, are you done yet…”

 

The hand gently pressed on his lips, stopping his unfinished words. In the next moment, something clattered to the ground, instantly shattering into pieces.

 

Before Su Cen could react, he felt something placed in his hand – sharp-edged, likely a piece of the just-broken porcelain bowl.

 

Immediately after, someone rushed over from outside the curtain, gruffly asking what happened.

 

Feng Yiming laughed it off: “It’s nothing, Master Su is of noble status and looks down on our simple fare.” He gestured for the person to look at the debris on the ground. “Clean it up.”

 

The person spat and cursed while cleaning: “The young master was born noble, he doesn’t even know if there’ll be another meal after this one, yet he’s still picky.”

 

Su Cen wanted to cry but had no tears. In truth, this young master wasn’t that noble, and could have managed to eat it…

 

Fortunately, the person didn’t notice a missing piece before leaving. Su Cen gripped the porcelain shard in his palm, only carefully revealing a corner when he was sure no one was around.

 

The moon reached its zenith, frighteningly bright and clear. Hu Si emerged from the small grove by the roadside, adjusting his trousers, and reluctantly shuffled to sit by the carriage.

 

Winter had already set in, and the midnight frost made him shiver with cold. Not far away, several people gathered around a bonfire keeping watch, yet he had to guard this master in the carriage without even a small flame for warmth.

 

Hu Si was about to doze off leaning against the wheel when he faintly heard several light taps coming from inside the carriage. The sound wasn’t loud, only audible when leaning against the carriage, but he had no other refuge besides this carriage.

 

Hu Si cursed lightly, and the sound immediately stopped. But as soon as he turned over, the tapping resumed at an opportune moment.

 

This sound, sometimes slow and sometimes quick, was extremely like intentional enticement, stirring up some amorous feelings in Hu Si. Thinking further, the one tied up in the carriage was a young master from a wealthy family, with skin more delicate than his own wife’s. Now this person was tied up in the carriage, unable to move or speak, and with the dark night no one would see. Since he was idle anyway, some activity could warm him up.

 

Hu Si, with a lewd smile, rubbed his hands and rolled up his sleeves as he climbed into the carriage. He had just lifted the curtain and hadn’t yet clearly seen the situation inside when he felt something cold press against his neck. In the darkness, he saw a pair of eyes looking at him with a smiling expression, saying: “Take off your clothes.”

 

Soon after, a person came down from the carriage, hunched over and walking towards the small grove.

 

The people around the bonfire joked, “Where’s Hu Si off to now?”

 

Hu Si replied glumly, “To piss.”

 

Everyone burst into laughter, saying, “Hu Si, you’re not up to it, eh? Didn’t you just go? No wonder your wife’s always running to the blacksmith next door…”

 

Hu Si ignored them and entered the grove, leaving the others doubled over with laughter.

 

After a while, someone said, “Don’t you think Hu Si looks thinner?”

 

The smiles on their faces slowly froze. Another person whispered, “He seems shorter too.”

 

They exchanged glances, then scrambled to check the carriage.

 

Lifting the curtain, they were faced with a stark-naked, tightly bound, and tear-streaked Hu Si.

 

Su Cen despised the harsh moonlight.

 

All that talk of “raising a cup to invite the moon” and “moonlight before the bed” – surely those poets had never been chased under the moonlight. Before one could move, their shadow would betray them, leaving nowhere to hide from the slightest movement.

 

Su Cen hid behind a bush, panting. Watching the distant firelight illuminating moving figures, he calculated. After a day’s journey, they should be in Chuzhou territory. These people wouldn’t dare take the main road and would likely skirt Chuzhou city. With Mount Langya to the southwest of Chuzhou, they were probably taking the northern path. If he headed south, he should reach Chuzhou city.

 

Of course, first he needed to shake off these pursuers.

 

If only he had Qu Ling’er’s skills to leap into the trees. But then again, Qu Ling’er had likely fallen for the Secret Door’s diversionary tactic. Now, he wasn’t even sure if he could escape himself.

 

He could only rely on himself.

 

Su Cen carefully crouched and retreated, but suddenly tripped over a stone. His ankle twisted, and he fell flat on his back.

 

The distant figures heard the commotion and immediately surrounded the area.

 

Su Cen didn’t even have time to check his injury. He got up and ran, dragging a leg that wouldn’t bend. The path was full of thorns, and soon his clothes were in tatters, some cuts even reaching his flesh.

 

As his pursuers closed in, Su Cen’s heart sank. Suddenly, he heard horses approaching. Gritting his teeth, he ran a few more steps and saw flickering lights on the road.

 

Without time to think, Su Cen tumbled out of the grove, nearly knocked over by a galloping horse.

 

A long neigh pierced the night.

 

He Xiao and his men emerged from the grove, ordering, “Seize him!”

 

Cold steel glinted in the moonlight.

 

Su Cen couldn’t even see who was on the horse. He stumbled backward, only to collide solidly with something.

 

Before he could turn around, a cool sandalwood scent reached him.

 

In the next moment, he felt something burst forth from his eyes.

 

In the moonlight, the figure gently enfolded him in an embrace. The cloak fluttered in the wind as the right hand was slightly raised. A rich, mellow voice, like aged wine, spread through the night air.

 

“Except for the main culprit, show no mercy to the rest.”

 

 

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