Luo Sanlang barely remembered how he got back to his men. He tried his best to avoid everyone, enduring the pain, the humiliation, and the urge to wail and curse. In the military camp, he tore off a corpse's clothes and haphazardly put them on. Because his right hand was useless, dressing was a difficult task.
Then he wrapped strips of cloth around his head and put on his leather helmet.
Fortunately, he still had a warhorse.
He didn't dare go directly to Luo Wen; he first found Luo Erlang.
Luo Erlang wasn't his biological brother. These bondservants didn't have their own names; they were given names by their master. He was called Luo Sanlang because he was the third oldest among the bondservants. Luo Erlang was startled to see Luo Sanlang without his helmet, and then a murderous rage flashed in his eyes.
"I'll take some men back to deal with the body first. That kid wasn't wrong about one thing: we can't cause trouble for the young master at this critical juncture. If it affects his future, we'll all be finished. The young master is currently in audience with the emperor, so we can't report to him. You rest first and find someone to bandage your wounds. I'll take some men and we'll talk when I get back."
Luo Sanlang had no other ideas, so he found a place to hide and had his wounds re-applied and bandaged.
Luo Erlang led the other servants back to deal with the body and the traces left in the military camp. He knew this matter absolutely could not be exposed. If others found out, especially Yu Xiao and Li Fubo, who had been at a disadvantage today, they would definitely do everything in their power to expose it.
If their young master Luo fell from grace, those two would benefit the most. Moreover, in terms of family power, neither the Yu family nor the Li family had any fear of the Luo family.
Furthermore, if General Luo Yao found out about this, Luo Erlang, knowing the general as he did, knew what fate awaited him and his servants. The general was strict and stern, even applying military law to his household servants. Whatever the young master did wrong, the general would at most scold or beat him; what else could he do? But these lowly servants were worth less than dogs.
Just as Luo Erlang, burdened with worries, led his men back to the military camp to clean up the mess, Fang Jie, who had killed over a dozen people yet remained calm as if he had merely picked a flower or caught a grasshopper, was contemplating his escape route. Killing no longer evoked fear or resistance in him. He described it as a trivial matter, insignificant. Yet, these two small things brought him a certain pleasure.
Killing those who wanted to kill him inevitably brought a sense of satisfaction.
Fang Jie, galloping on horseback, reached a point not far from the earthen city. He abandoned his horse in the woods and, using the terrain and tall grass for cover, crouched low and rushed to the city's outskirts. The battle was over; no one was paying attention to anyone trying to sneak in. The soldiers inside the city were regrouping; over two thousand Right Guard soldiers had completed their mission and were about to withdraw to their garrison in the capital.
Fang Jie peered through the city gate and saw the troops already gathering. He cautiously observed for a moment, and finding no one paying attention, he slipped into the city.
Just as he was about to sneak into the crowd, he suddenly heard someone shout, "Halt!"
Fang Jie instinctively stopped, his hand resting near the horizontal sword at his waist. Then he slowly turned around, looking in the direction of the voice.
A somewhat overweight captain emerged from behind an earthen wall, straightening his clothes as he glared at Fang Jie and demanded, "Which team are you from? Why are you running around like this? The troops are about to march back to camp, and if you're left here, you won't be able to get back!"
Fang Jie was about to make up a lie when the overweight captain asked again, "Couldn't hold it in, need to pee?"
"Yes, yes, yes."
Fang Jie nodded vigorously.
"Get back to your unit! You sneaked out like a ghost and startled me. I almost held it in halfway through! Damn it… I already peed my pants against the wind…"
The overweight captain waved his hand, his expression slightly angry.
Fang Jie quickly apologized, then, as if granted a pardon, ran towards the assembly point. He didn't have time to worry about anything else; he pulled his helmet down, lowered his head, and squeezed into the ranks, finding a spot to stand. The portly captain straightened his uniform, glanced around but didn't notice where the soldier had gone. He didn't think much of it, discussed the matter briefly with a few other captains, and then reported to the commander that the troops had assembled.
The commander grunted and waved his hand, ordering, "General's order: once the defense of Tucheng is complete, immediately march back to camp. Each regimental captain, check your numbers; make sure no one is missing."
Upon hearing this, Fang Jie was startled, fearing the captains would take attendance one by one. But to his surprise, the captains didn't even bother to count; they simply made a perfunctory round and then announced the march. Fang Jie breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, "Thank you, captains, for being lazy."
But then he realized it wasn't laziness on the part of the captains, but rather the exceptional skill of the Sui soldiers. Headcount checks were merely a routine procedure, nothing to be particularly concerned about. The captains and the commander wouldn't even consider whether their ranks were short; their habitual thinking meant they wouldn't notice an extra person in the group. This was confidence, and also trust in his soldiers.
It would take at least an hour to walk from the training ground to the capital. From the capital to the Right Valiant Guard's camp, it would take at least another hour. Therefore, the commanding general dared not delay, fearing that the city gates of Chang'an would close at nightfall. The troops set off quickly, almost running the entire way.
...
...
Following the troops with his head down, Fang Jie meticulously reviewed the events of the day. Those who led him to the training ground might genuinely be officials from the Ministry of War, not imposters. And the fact that they didn't use the Ministry of War's carriages was precisely to avoid revealing their identities.
Therefore, the person who wanted to kill him must be from the Ministry of War.
But he hadn't offended anyone from the Ministry of War since arriving in Chang'an.
When he went to the Ministry of War's office to complete the formalities, he had been extremely careful and humble. Although he hadn't slipped in a single copper coin, he hadn't encountered any difficulties. After the letter of recommendation from the border troops was verified and stamped with the Ministry of War's seal, it was easily approved by the Ministry. Fang Jie knew that Mr. Zhuo must have helped.
That's why he couldn't understand why anyone in the Ministry of War would want to kill him. He had only been to the Ministry of War's office once, and had no further contact with anyone there afterward. Moreover, with Mr. Zhuo's help, those officials shouldn't have made things difficult for him.
He ran along, thinking.
Fang Jie still couldn't figure things out. Two things were certain: first, he hadn't offended anyone since arriving in the capital; second, if he had to be involved with the Ministry of War, it must be related to the Fan Gu incident. Thinking of this, a thought struck Fang Jie: could it be related to those Ministry of War officials who died in Fan Gu? Had the Ministry of War discovered his murder?
A chill ran down his spine.
Fang Jie knew his days in the capital wouldn't be peaceful.
Following this line of thought, Fang Jie's mind became increasingly clear. The Ministry of War wanted to kill him, but because of Mr. Zhuo, or some other reason, they dared not openly attack him, or even revoke his qualification to participate in the Martial Arts Academy examination. They could only resort to underhanded tactics.
They lured him into the martial arts arena, using him as a pawn.
Without a doubt, Luo Wen was an extremely sharp knife borrowed by the Ministry of War. If Fang Jie hadn't never intended to trust Luo Wen from the beginning, he might have died here unknowingly. Based on his understanding of those aristocratic scions, he knew that Luo Wen, after winning first place, would not tolerate him.
The plan to break through the earthen city required the alliance of two other people, a plan Fang Jie had devised. Luo Wen had risen to power through this, and he would never allow this to spread, so he would definitely kill Fang Jie. Fang Jie had considered this when he gave Luo Wen the idea. Aristocratic families never cared about the life or death of an unknown nobody.
Especially that nameless soldier of unknown origin.
After Luo Wen led his troops away, Fang Jie began to make arrangements. The military camp was not short of weapons; killing people with those weapons would be no difficult task for Fang Jie.
Thinking this through, he couldn't deduce anything more detailed. He stopped considering this direction and began to calculate how to escape.
He could be recognized as not being a soldier of the Right Valiant Guard at any moment on the way, let alone back at the main camp? Once inside, the soldiers would likely return to their tents, and Fang Jie would be immediately exposed. Therefore, his only chance of escape was to find a way on the way back to Chang'an.
Fang Jie deliberately slowed down, not drastically, but gradually, allowing those behind him to overtake him. This process was slow; it took him a full half hour to successfully reach the back of the column. It must be said that the soldiers of the Right Valiant Guard were extremely well-trained; running like this for nearly ten miles, not a single person fell behind due to exhaustion.
Of course, Fang Jie was bound to fall behind.
After the column marched another five li, no one paid any attention to Fang Jie, who was deliberately lagging behind. He began to veer off course, and when he reached the side of the official road, he quickly plunged into the grass of a deep ditch beside the road. To drain the water, ditches had been dug on both sides of the road. It was the height of the grass season, and after rolling down, Fang Jie quickly found the thickest spot and disappeared.
Through the grass, seeing that the column was moving further and further away and no one had noticed he had fallen behind, Fang Jie finally let out a slow sigh of relief, then stretched his body on the soft grass.
He touched the wound on his right arm; it hurt terribly.
Looking at his injury, he couldn't help but recall what Mu Xiaoyao had told him before entering the city: "I can't tell the old cripple's strength, but I know he must be skilled with his left hand. His left hand's energy flow is far stronger than his right. If you ever have to deal with him, be careful of his left hand."
Fang Jie liked to use a knife, so he could also see the calluses on the old cripple's left palm.
But Fang Jie wouldn't tell anyone that losing his right arm wasn't just for practicing the old cripple's left-hand sword technique.
...
...
Fang Jie remained hidden in the bushes until the Right Valiant Guard's entourage disappeared from sight before daring to stand up. He frowned as he looked at his Right Valiant Guard uniform.
Just as he was worrying about how to get into Chang'an, he suddenly saw another large troop of people approaching on the official road. He quickly hid in the shadows, fearing it might be a high-ranking official returning to the city from the martial arts training grounds. He only felt slightly relieved when the troop drew closer; the group of six or seven carriages and about a hundred people didn't seem to be government officials.
Leading the group were a dozen or so men on tall horses. They weren't wearing official robes, but their bright clothes and spirited horses exuded an imposing aura. Because the Sui Dynasty was short of horses, those who could ride such tall horses, even if not soldiers or government officials, must have had a powerful background. Ordinary wealthy merchants would never dare to be so ostentatious.
Hiding in the bushes, Fang Jie didn't dare move. When the carriages arrived, he noticed a sky-blue flag planted on one of them. Every carriage had one, embroidered with a line of large red characters:
"Goods Sell Throughout the World."
Fang Jie's heart skipped a beat, then he couldn't help but smile. Which merchant guild dare to display such a flag, with such audacity!
"Goods Sell Throughout the World"—those four words were incredibly arrogant.
Just as his somewhat mocking gaze fell on the flag, he suddenly sensed something strange beside him. Almost instantly, he gripped the hilt of his sword, turning his head to look, only to find a middle-aged man, almost round with obesity, squatting beside him.
This fat man, dressed in a moon-white robe, his front and back soaked with sweat, was staring at him with a surprised expression.
Too sudden! This fat man had appeared silently less than a meter away from Fang Jie! Fang Jie had no doubt that if this fat ball wanted to kill him, he would have been a corpse without even feeling a thing.
Then, Fang Jie's eyes widened in shock at what he saw.
The fat ball was crouching beside him, perched on a blade of grass.
The grass swayed gently in the breeze, and the fat ball swayed gently with it!
Big Dog was a master of lightness skill, but compared to this fat ball, his skill was utterly insignificant! Such a heavy body crouching on a blade of grass, and yet swaying in the wind without any sense of incongruity!
Fang Jie couldn't help but crawl back, staring at the fat man and asking, "A ghost?"
In anyone's common sense, no human could do that. Only a ghost could be lighter than a falling leaf.