In an inconspicuous courtyard in the north of the county city, two people sat on the ground with a blazing stove in front of them, cooking a pot of snake soup. The steam mingled with the falling snow, blending into the sa color.
An emaciated old man, seeing that the soup was almost ready, cheerfully picked up a ladle and served a bowl of hot soup to the red-clad man beside him.
"Mr. Lu, last ti you said the soup wasn't flavorful enough. I've adjusted it this ti. Please try it."
Lu Chuan took the bowl of soup, sipped it lightly, and his slightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.
"This ti it's flavorful enough."
"Old Yang, your skills have improved."
Receiving Lu Chuan's praise, Old Yang seed particularly excited, rubbing his hands and smiling:
"If Mr. Lu likes it, next ti I'll..."
Before he could finish his sentence, his voice suddenly stopped, and he turned his head to look at the main entrance. Qian Lv, carrying a long black iron blade, appeared there, his face looking cold under the biting snow wind.
As he approached, Lu Chuan warmly waved at him and said with a smile:
"Qian Lv, you're just in ti. Old Yang just finished this soup. Co, have a taste."
Qian Lv didn't drink the snake soup offered by Old Yang but spoke to Lu Chuan:
"Mr. Lu, last night's operation at Wangchuan failed."
Lu Chuan, who was savoring the soup, paused, pursed his lips, swallowed the mouthful of snake soup, and handed the bowl back to Old Yang, clicking his tongue:
"That doesn't make sense."
"She was alone, injured, and yet she killed everyone at Wangchuan?"
"And that... that Wu Jiu, wasn't he quite capable, able to spar with you, and he's dead too?"
Qian Lv replied:
"Dead."
"When I arrived, the courtyard was filled with corpses, Wu Jiu among them, lying in the center of the yard, his face not yet completely covered by the night's snow."
Hearing this, Lu Chuan chuckled, his mouth twitching unnaturally, his tone peculiar:
"This crippled woman... so formidable?"
Old Yang, holding the soup, sighed from the side:
"One hundred thousand taels of gold, enough to establish a small country."
"How could such money be easy to earn?"
Lu Chuan scratched his chin, falling silent for a mont, not speaking for a while.
Sensing the cold atmosphere in the courtyard, Old Yang, holding Lu Chuan's bowl in one hand, added so firewood to the stove with the other, saying:
"Actually, Mr. Lu, there's no need to worry about this matter."
"After all, it has nothing to do with the task assigned by the master."
"Now that Liu Jinshi's case is basically settled, in a couple of days, once we receive news from Guanghan City, we can prepare to deal with Chun Qiong."
"Once Chun Qiong is dead, I'll imdiately arrange for the master to return to the Royal City."
When the topic of killing Chun Qiong ca up, Lu Chuan hesitated for a mont, recalling the letter he encountered with Wen Chaoshen, and imdiately waved his hand, saying:
"No rush."
"Chun Qiong still has his uses. First, we'll use him to deal with Wen Chaoshen, and then we'll make our move."
"That kid Wen Chaoshen seems to know things he shouldn't. Since he's here, we might as well eliminate all the trouble."
Old Yang's face showed a smile:
"Mr. Lu is thorough in his considerations."
...
On the morning after the snow, before the rooster crowed, many constables had already appeared outside the courtyard where Wen Chaoshen was staying, sealing off the area completely.
These constables were all loyal subordinates brought out from his own ho by Chun Qiong, very tight-lipped.
Wen Chaoshen returned from Chun Manor in the morning, and upon entering the courtyard, didn't see A Shui. He directly pushed the door open and, as expected, saw A Shui lying on the bed with her eyes closed, healing her wounds.
The crisp sound of the door startled her.
A Shui opened her eyes, and Wen Chaoshen, carrying buns and soy milk, handed her breakfast, glanced at her complexion to confirm she wasn't in imdiate danger, and then said:
"I've already paid off the money you owed at the bun shop."
A Shui took a bite of the still warm tofu bun, chewing slowly, and looked at him with a hint of curiosity.
"Where did you go last night?"
"I went to see Chun Qiong. When I returned this morning, I returned the letter I got from Aunt Mi to her and brought so pork for her and Hunter Zhang."
Wen Chaoshen sat on a wooden stool in front of the bed, tossing a couple of at buns into Lord Dog's bowl.
The latter, initially drowsy and listless, perked up at the sll of at, devoured the buns in a couple of bites, shook its fur, and trotted out of the room, leaving a trail of plum blossom prints in the snow in the courtyard, following a familiar path out of the county city.
After Fan Youwei's death, the black dog no longer entered his room; last night, Wen Chaoshen had forcibly carried it into its nest.
After the black dog left, Wen Chaoshen stared at A Shui, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, seemingly calculating sothing, and asked:
"A Shui, with your injuries so severe, when can you get out of bed and walk?"
A Shui was eating the bun, and when she swallowed, it seed to cause pain in her chest and abdon, her brows furrowed tightly, but she replied:
"What's the matter, sothing up?"
Wen Chaoshen nodded:
"Don't worry, it's not about fighting. It's just that when necessary, I need to give Chun Qiong so reassurance."
He recounted what he told Chun Qiong last night, and after a mont of silence, A Shui replied:
"A warrior's body isn't as fragile as you think. I'll rest a bit more, and I should be able to get out of bed by this evening."
She finished the soy milk, still feeling thirsty, and looked up at Wen Chaoshen, asking:
"Did you buy any wine?"
Wen Chaoshen gestured for her to wait a mont, then went outside, returning with a pot of hot water under A Shui's expectant gaze.
A Shui looked at the cup of hot water Wen Chaoshen handed over, took it in her hand but didn't drink.
"I don't drink this. I want wine."
Wen Chaoshen glanced at her.
"This is all there is."
A Shui frowned, about to speak, but then heard him say:
"When your wounds are better in a couple of days, I'll buy you so wine."
"If you want to drink, heal well."
She stared at Wen Chaoshen for a while, then lowered her head, slowly drinking the hot water from the cup.
"Rest well, I'll go next door to chop so wood. I won't be long."
Wen Chaoshen took off his outer garnt to avoid getting too hot while working. As he was leaving, A Shui's voice suddenly ca from behind:
"Wen Chaoshen..."
"Why didn't you go to Mr. Lü's place last night when I told you to?"
Wen Chaoshen thought for a mont and replied:
"If I rember correctly, you asked this question once last night."
"Mr. Lü and his wife have been incredibly kind to . I can't bring trouble to their doorstep."
A Shui asked again:
"Is that all?"
Wen Chaoshen turned to look at her:
"What else?"
The two of them looked at each other for a mont before A Shui averted her gaze and said softly:
"I understand... you can go."
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