The people from the Life-and-Death Knot were somewhat worried that Instructor Hong Da might look upon him with special favor out of the need to slay Guizu.
Were they terribly afraid of Hong Yan? Not really. Strong as she was, she was merely a grand knight.
If the guards in charge of the hostages needed to, mobilizing a Divine Might Knight was an easy matter.
The problem was that many of their coercive tactics were strictly underhanded and prone to provoking backlash.
Right now, the burly man wanted to coerce Wu Youren, and if the boy refused to submit, he wouldn't hesitate to resort to framing him.
Yet if Hong Yan caught wind of it, she might assume they were merely eyeing the spoils of war.
So was the Life-and-Death Knot driven solely by greed? Not entirely, but then again, who would ever complain about having too much money?
They could always offer an explanation: only by driving him into prolonged hardship and forcing him to a dead end could they make him serve Liang!
Yet in the eyes of Instructor Hong Da, that reason might be nothing more than an excuse!
Above all, the ability demonstrated by this youth was genuinely advantageous to the human race's war against the Guizu!
Hearing him say this, Wu Youren could only sigh.
"Hong Da extended my pass because she wants me to devote all my focus to the proper business of battling the Guizu."
The insinuation was thick, yet from the standpoint of mankind, it was entirely unimpeachable.
To top it off, the youth from Jin spoke with utmost sincerity. "Milord, I am merely the grandson of a petty lord. A nobody."
Among the hostages, there were so many descendants of dukes, marquises, counts, viscounts, and barons. Why must you keep fixating on me?
"Heh, since when is it your place to tell me how to do my job?" The burly man chuckled in anger. "We'll see about that!"
Without another word, he rose and left. What the youth said was indeed true—why fixate on such a nobody?
Yet he had been in this line of work for too long, accustomed to stopping at nothing to achieve his goals. How could he tolerate the fish on the chopping board defying the cleaver?
Besides... it was true that they had missed out on a considerable fortune, hadn't they?
Wu Youren sat there in silence, shaking his head faintly after a long while. This was the reality of his living conditions!
Cynthia had intended to offer him some advice, but under these circumstances, could he possibly accept it?
If he gave up standing his ground and took a single step forward, it would truly be a bottomless abyss, and no amount of regret would ever save him!
"Forget it. No point overthinking. Better to digest my current experience points first."
The next day, the sun shone bright, and the vegetables regained some vitality. On the third day, the sun beat down again, and the leeks... the vegetables grew even more lush.
By the seventh day, Wu Youren was in good spirits. He bought a new set of earthenware pots and jars and began pickling vegetables again.
Two days later, as he was busy in his small courtyard, an unexpected visitor arrived: Liu Jingming, the grandson of a baron.
Wu Youren was beyond surprised to see him. "How did you end up at Red Pine?"
"He Wenhao died fighting valiantly against the Guizu," Liu Jingming answered offhandedly.
Squatting down, he plucked a wolf peach and took large bites. "I came to fill the vacancy... You're living quite the comfortable life here."
"Narrowly escaped death, more like," Wu Youren replied flatly. His attitude wasn't particularly warm, but for him, it was civil enough.
Back in Hostage Manor, this was one of the rare people he had been willing to exchange a few words with.
Even then, their relationship had only improved when he was on the verge of leaving the manor.
Liu Jingming had deliberately shown him goodwill, and later, when the rankings were posted at Hostage Manor, he hadn't challenged him.
It was truly nothing more than the favor of not challenging him in battle, but that was enough to make him willing to speak to the boy.
This alone showed what a suffocating position he had once occupied back in Hostage Manor.
"Cut the crap," Liu Jingming replied boisterously. "Everyone's saying you hit the jackpot fighting the Guizu, and you even got yourself a girlfriend!"
"'Everyone'?" Wu Youren paused his work, glanced at him, and then went back to what he was doing. "How long have you been here?"
"Sixteen days," Liu Jingming answered. "Took asking a ton of people before I finally got word on you."
Wu Youren didn't find that strange. Red Pine Martial Academy was vast, and with the war underway and so much going on, gathering information was no easy task.
"This 'everyone' of yours... who told you?"
"Feng Qianjun," Liu Jingming answered casually. "Heard it from others later, too... Oh, right, he went back to Hostage Manor!"
"He was allowed back?" Wu Youren was thoroughly astonished this time. "And he actually wanted to go back?"
What kind of miraculous maneuver was this?
"The battle against the Guizu here isn't going to end anytime soon," Liu Jingming said as if it were obvious. "Why wouldn't he want to go back?"
"Oh, I forgot. He is the son of a count," Wu Youren said, nodding.
Hostage life was utterly wretched, but that didn't prevent privileges from existing. That was a truth he had understood back when he was at Hostage Manor.
He was merely a little curious. "Didn't anyone take his place?"
"There was," Liu Jingming nodded, his expression turning odd. "Guess who? Ha... Shi Linyuan!"
"Oh." Wu Youren nodded expressionlessly. That person had been the very first hostage from Jin he encountered after transmigrating.
He was a hundred percent certain that his fall into Jasper Lake had everything to do with that man!
Even back then, the fellow's words toward him had been dripping with hostility.
Shi Linyuan had never been well-liked among the hostages. Fancying himself a man of superior intellect, he looked down on his peers.
He had offered many ideas to the Seventeenth Prince. Although he couldn't get close to the prince, he carried an air of someone who had caught the sovereign's eye.
Yet what incensed everyone was that many of his ideas came at the expense of the other hostages' interests.
Yet compared to Shi Linyuan's poor popularity, Wu Youren had no popularity whatsoever... In any case, it defied elaboration; to say more was only to bring tears.
What Wu Youren wanted to know was: "Did he volunteer to come?"
"As if he had a choice," Liu Jingming scoffed disdainfully. "He's only the grandson of a viscount, barely a step above me."
Liu Jingming was the grandson of a baron. Even though his father was a matrilocal husband, his surname was genuinely Liu!
Still, from his attitude, it was plain to see that Shi Linyuan's reputation was indeed abysmal.
"Mm." Wu Youren nodded, hesitating briefly before asking, "Feng Qianjun going back... does that seem right to you?"
"How would I know?" Liu Jingming shook his head; he knew what Wu Youren was really asking.
Though Liu Jingming seemed outspoken and was still young, after eight years as a hostage, who lacked shrewdness?
After spending time at the Martial Academy, actively returning to Hostage Manor—was that something a normal person would do?
Take Wu Youren, for instance. Even though life at Red Pine had its bumps and hurdles, it was still far better than that giant cage.
At the academy, as long as one was willing to work hard, one could always find a sliver of opportunity.
At Hostage Manor, however, there was only endless gloom and boundless despair.
So for Feng Qianjun to choose to go back, there was a fair chance he had been compromised!
Yet Liu Jingming could never voice such words aloud. "Those matters are for the prince and the others to worry about. I'm not worthy!"
Isn't that... my catchphrase? Wu Youren plucked a wolf peach of his own and chewed on it. "Did he speak ill of me?"
"Of course he did," Liu Jingming laughed at the question, sounding somewhat gloating. "Too bad Hostage Manor can't keep a leash on you anymore."
"What kind of talk is that?" Wu Youren said solemnly. "In life, I am a man of Great Jin; in death, I am a ghost of Great Jin!"
"Don't give me that nonsense," Liu Jingming waved his hand repeatedly, speaking in dead earnest. "Who are you trying to fool between the two of us?"
He took a deep breath, followed by a wistful sigh. "Bonds of blood that can't be severed, a homeland we can never return to... Heh, I understand that better than you."
"Indeed," Wu Youren nodded in deep agreement. "The sons of House Liu ought to gallop across the battlefield... To have no place to display your martial prowess is truly lamentable."
"Sigh." Liu Jingming let out another deep sigh, then his expression turned serious. "Feng Qianjun badmouthed you quite a bit, but... it's suspect."
That man's own loyalties might be compromised.
More importantly, the current Wu Youren had already grown too big to control!
Unless he applied to return to Hostage Manor on his own, with his current achievements and reputation, the manor's hold over him was virtually nonexistent!
The hostage group had analyzed his situation specifically and concluded that the only leverage they had over him was his family back in Jin!
"Badmouthing me... I've literally resorted to growing vegetables!" Wu Youren was speechless. "Look around you, isn't that proof enough?"
"Anyway, Shi Linyuan won't dare come looking for you," Liu Jingming chuckled. "He's scared you'll teach him a lesson."
"The grandson of a viscount? Where would I get that kind of courage?" Wu Youren shook his head faintly. "I have to worry about him making trouble for my family."
As he said this, his eyes were cold and indifferent.
He was an outsider to begin with. He had no affection for Great Liang, and just how much belonging could he feel toward Great Jin?
Aside from the original owner's lingering obsession, what swayed his decisions were basic principles—a traitor to one's country was despised by both sides, shunned everywhere.
Before transmigrating, he had taken no side; after transmigrating, he didn't even have the right to choose one!
Yet if someone deliberately went after the original host's family, then he truly wouldn't care anymore—he would have zero ties left to this world!
Whether to be a man or a devil was only a single thought away!
"He wouldn't dare," Liu Jingming interrupted his wandering thoughts. "If you focus on slaying Guizu, Great Jin might even send your family over."
"Now you're talking nonsense," Wu Youren chuckled. "There's only me returning to Jin. How could they ever send my family here?"
At the end of the day, Liu Jingming wasn't truly a close friend of his; some things were best left unsaid or touched upon lightly.
He intended to see his guest out. "If you don't have anything else, don't linger too long. There's too much trouble surrounding me."
"I... I... of course I have business!" Liu Jingming grew a bit flustered, patting his waist.
There hung a short sword—decent craftsmanship, but merely a short sword.
"You know I came here to kill Guizu, but I'm dead broke... Damned Hidden Dragon Plan!"
"The first time I killed a Guizu, I used a wooden sword," Wu Youren said calmly. "Are you trying to show off that your starting point is higher than mine?"
"What kind of twisted logic is that?!" Liu Jingming blurted in exasperation. "I'm saying I want to borrow money, get it? Borrow money! Everyone's saying you're rich now!"
Chapter 81