Within the narrow alley, Mo Beidou still stared blankly at Fang Shuwen.
His mind was a tangled mess; he had so much to say, yet could not manage a single word.
It was only when Fang Shuwen waved a hand in front of his face that he snapped out of it.
"Eldest Senior Brother, return, O soul~"
Mo Beidou pushed Fang Shuwen's hand away in annoyance. "Quit fooling around."
Fang Shuwen chuckled. "If you want to say or ask something, just come right out with it. Don't go driving yourself mad overthinking it."
Hearing this, Mo Beidou looked at Fang Shuwen with a deeply conflicted expression. After a long hesitation, he finally asked, "Are you truly my junior brother?"
"Genuine and guaranteed."
"That's good, then."
Mo Beidou breathed a massive sigh of relief. "As long as you're still my junior brother, I won't pry into the rest. Bizarre things happen all the time in the jianghu, and everyone has their own fortunes. Even if I've never run into such miracles myself, I've heard enough about them for this to come as no great surprise. But why are you here? What happened back at the Zhou estate? I thought you were dead—I cried my eyes out several times over you."
"That's a long story," Fang Shuwen said after a moment's thought. "It involves Zhujige Pavilion and an evil sect from thirty years ago. In any case, we can talk about it slowly once we have the time. Just now, from my room at the inn, I saw you hurrying along with those two men tailing you... Did you run into trouble?"
"Oh no, my medicine!"
Only then did Mo Beidou remember the herbs he had bought. He rushed over, hoping to salvage what he could.
Yet the thugs from the Fierce Tiger Gang had not only knocked the packages to the ground, but also trampled them to pieces. Now mixed thoroughly with dirt, the medicinal herbs were utterly ruined.
Mo Beidou let out a heavy sigh. "The Young Chief Escort was ambushed and gravely injured; she's relying on these herbs to save her life. But those bastards from the Fierce Tiger Gang bought up all the life-saving medicine in advance. It took everything I had to find a single shop and buy this batch. I didn't even know if it would work, and now it's gone too..."
Understanding dawned on Fang Shuwen.
He recognized the tactic: buy up all the critical medicine and secretly stake out the apothecary shops to catch whoever came looking for it.
That was precisely how the two men in black from the Fierce Tiger Gang had caught on to Mo Beidou.
Seeing his eldest senior brother's crestfallen expression, Fang Shuwen pondered for a moment and said, "Don't fret, Eldest Senior Brother. I might have a way."
Mo Beidou froze, instinctively wanting to ask what way he could possibly have.
Yet on second thought, he remembered that his sixteenth junior brother was no longer the person he used to be.
Just looking at how he had butchered those two Fierce Tiger Gang scum—swatting them dead as effortlessly as chopping vegetables—showed skill far beyond any ordinary martial artist.
Clutching at Fang Shuwen's wrist as if grasping a lifesaver, he said, "Little Sixteen, come with me."
Mo Beidou was straightforward and hot-tempered by nature. The moment an idea struck him, he acted, pulling Fang Shuwen along behind him without even sparing a thought for his own injuries.
Fang Shuwen tried to persuade him to slow down, but seeing that he was not listening, let it go.
Even so, they wandered through the maze of narrow lanes for a while longer, unable to find their way out.
Only after asking a local resident did they manage to find their way back onto the main street.
Not daring to attract attention, Mo Beidou kept Fang Shuwen ducking and weaving along the way until they arrived at a secluded courtyard in an out-of-the-way spot.
Standing before the door, Mo Beidou tapped the knocker three long times and two short.
The people inside paused briefly before opening the door just a crack. Only upon confirming it was Mo Beidou did they pull it wide open.
Yet when the gatekeeper noticed Fang Shuwen following Mo Beidou inside, his expression darkened instantly. "Old Mo, who is this?"
"My junior brother," Mo Beidou replied at once. "This is my sixteenth junior brother, Fang Shuwen. If I hadn't run into him today, I fear I wouldn't have made it back alive."
By this point, Fang Shuwen had already swept his gaze across the courtyard.
Almost everyone present was an escort master or escort attendant from Lu'an Escort Agency.
However, every single one of them was bandaged and bruised, looking like the remnants of a defeated army.
Standing out from the crowd were a master and servant.
The master was clad in white, wearing a bamboo hat and sitting quietly in the courtyard, with a maidservant standing dutifully behind.
The two of them raised their eyes upon Fang Shuwen's arrival, but quickly looked away, seemingly indifferent.
Mo Beidou explained Fang Shuwen's background to the gatekeeper, but a trace of hostility remained in the man's eyes, and he did not lower his guard.
That vigilance spiked to its absolute limit the moment he heard Fang Shuwen offer to examine the Young Chief Escort's injuries.
"Absolutely not!"
The man was named Sun Qian, an escort leader of Lu'an Escort Agency just like Mo Beidou.
With the Young Chief Escort gravely wounded, he and Mo Beidou were the ones in charge here.
Sun Qian's face looked grim. "Old Mo, you're out of your mind! Since this kid is your junior brother, he must hail from Four Seas Martial Hall just like you. But I've never heard of Four Seas Martial Hall teaching the medical arts! The Young Chief Escort is suffering from a poisoned wound—we can't just turn to anyone in desperation. If something happens to her, how are we supposed to answer to the Chief Escort?"
Mo Beidou wanted to explain, yet had no idea where to begin. He wanted to say that his sixteenth junior brother was far more capable than himself, but he worried about exposing Fang Shuwen's secrets.
In an instant, he broke out in a frantic sweat.
Seeing this, Fang Shuwen merely smiled. "No need to say more, Eldest Senior Brother."
"But..."
Mo Beidou still wanted to press the issue, unwilling to give up so easily.
Then he saw Fang Shuwen already striding toward the inner room.
Mo Beidou blinked in surprise. So that was what his sixteenth junior brother meant by 'no need to say more'? That he would simply do what needed to be done, without bothering to explain himself to anyone else?
Sun Qian's face sank, and he dashed forward to block Fang Shuwen's path. "Hold it right there—"
As the words left his mouth, he shoved out a hand. But the moment his palm touched Fang Shuwen's chest, a tremendous force surged forth.
Sun Qian only had time to let out a muffled grunt before being sent flying backward.
Without breaking stride, Fang Shuwen stepped straight into the room.
Sun Qian stared in stunned disbelief. Wasn't this guy supposed to be Mo Beidou's junior brother? How could he be this formidable?
Seeing Fang Shuwen enter the room, Sun Qian ignored his own condition and shouted urgently, "Someone stop him, quick!"
Several escort masters looked eager to step forward.
Mo Beidou bellowed in turn, "All of you, sit back down!"
The escort masters who had been about to move obediently sat down again...
They were caught in a terrible bind. Now that the Young Chief Escort was incapacitated, they had to obey both escort leaders. With the two leaders at odds, what were ordinary men taking orders supposed to do?
Sun Qian glared fiercely at Mo Beidou. "Old Mo, do you have any idea what you're doing?"
"I trust my junior brother!"
"...And if something happens to the Young Chief Escort?"
Mo Beidou finally lost his temper and roared, "'Something happens, something happens'—to hell with that! If we don't treat her, will she magically survive? Even if my junior brother fails to save her and she dies because of it, at worst, I'll pay with my own life!"
Chapter 49