Chapter 30

Bu Nian’s body stiffened. His fingers loosened slightly.

He stared hard at Lian Ai, then suddenly flicked his sleeve and stood up. Lian Ai finally managed to breathe. He dropped forward against the bed, coughing and gasping for air.

When he looked up again, Bu Nian stood fully dressed at the bedside, gazing down at him with a dark expression.

“How did you know.”

Seeing his face now, Lian Ai was completely certain.

He gave a bitter smile.

“The mark on my neck isn’t a birthmark. When I was fourteen, I angered madam. She stabbed me with an embroidery needle and left that scar.”

Bu Nian had never imagined that the lie had held such a fatal flaw. From the very beginning, it had already planted doubt in Lian Ai’s mind.

Lian Ai straightened up, covering his neck with one hand. The corners of his eyes were still wet.

His voice was hoarse.

“Lady Helian has been in poor health ever since her youngest son disappeared. She can’t even remember much about the past. When I asked how I went missing, she couldn’t explain. When I pushed, it gave her headaches. It’s true that I look a little like her, but how many people in this world resemble each other? I had doubts, and I couldn’t live with myself pretending to be Helian Ai without answers. After the Helian family got caught up in court politics, I had even more reason to find out who I really am.”

Bu Nian had always known Lian Ai was observant and skilled at reading people, but he had not expected this level of sensitivity and precision.

“So that’s why you kept testing me earlier…”

Bu Nian was clever. A single thread led him to see everything clearly. All of Lian Ai’s unusual behaviors weren’t just to test whether he would kill him, but to probe the connection between him and the Helian family.

Lian Ai gave a slight nod.

“I tested Elder brother too.”

How he had slowly peeled back the truth and discovered he wasn’t the Helian family’s child didn’t rely only on the red birthmark. There were countless small details, and over the past year, he had carefully pieced them all together.

For instance, the tonic Madam Helian delivered to him every day. It contained golden jade bug wings. He once asked her where it came from. She told him Helian Qiufeng had purchased it from a medicinal shop in the city. If it had been ginseng or deer antler, he would not have questioned it. But the golden jade bug was different.

That insect only appeared in summer, on mountain slopes near the capital. It could not survive elsewhere. This made it a local rarity, only sold within the capital. Whenever it hit the market, the nobles and wealthy scrambled to fight over it. Even with money, it was almost impossible to buy.

Even the General’s estate had only two or three stored specimens of this rare treasure. There was no chance any surplus would be shipped all the way to a medicinal shop in Zhongzhou, let alone conveniently bought by Helian Qiufeng.

Bu Nian’s gaze dropped to Lian Ai’s neck, where a ring of bruises had already formed. His eyes moved downward to the swollen red skin across his chest.

“What about today, then?” he asked. “Another test?”

Lian Ai bit his lip and was just about to speak when a flaming arrow suddenly shot in through the window. Moments later, voices outside began to shout, one after another.

“Fire. Fire. There’s a fire.”

Bu Nian lifted his leg to head for the door, but after taking a single step, he seemed to think of something. He turned back, stripped off his outer robe, and tossed it onto the bed where Lian Ai lay.

“Put it on and come with me.”

Lian Ai was suddenly swallowed by the heavy robe, still warm from Bu Nian’s body. He scrambled to pull it down, his small face peeking out as he wrapped himself tightly.

The moment he stepped onto the ground, he felt something warm and wet sliding down from between his thighs, trickling along the inside of his leg. He frowned but had no time to deal with it. Bending down, he reached under the bed and pulled out the Yuanmo crossbow he had hidden earlier. He unfolded it quickly, gripping it in both hands. When he looked up again, Bu Nian was glaring at him.

“You put that under my bed?”

Lian Ai clutched the crossbow to his chest and muttered,

“It wasn’t meant for you.”

Bu Nian’s eyes widened. He looked ready to scold him, but when he saw Lian Ai standing there with his head lowered, looking obedient and well-behaved, the words caught in his throat. He let out a cold snort and turned sharply, striding out the door. As he passed the entrance, he reached for the precious sword hanging on the wall and took it down.

Lian Ai followed him out. From the next room, Bai Shu came out quickly, still fastening his clothes, holding a whip in one hand.

At that moment, two black-clad men appeared simultaneously at both ends of the corridor, long blades in hand, charging toward them. Downstairs, chaos was spreading. It was clear Bu Nian’s men were under attack as well.

Bu Nian’s movements were swift and efficient. His technique wasn’t graceful or showy, but every strike was clean and deadly. The sword in his hand looked like it had been forged purely for killing.

He swung the sword with sharp, brutal speed. It was obvious he hadn’t trained to defend himself. He had trained to kill.

He looked more like an assassin than any assassin alive. No assassin could match the way he handled a blade. Lian Ai wouldn’t have believed it if he hadn’t seen it himself.

Hot blood splattered across his face, amplifying the murderous edge in his expression. He drove the blade into one attacker’s chest, but as he tried to pull it free, the dying man gripped his arm tightly and refused to let go. At the far end of the corridor, another figure in black appeared.

Bai Shu’s whip curled around one man’s neck. He kicked another attacker aside, but he was already stretched thin and couldn’t break away to help.

“General!” His voice cracked with urgency.

Lian Ai raised his arms and gripped the crossbow tightly. He aimed directly at the forehead of the charging attacker and loosed the shot. His palms were slick with sweat, his nerves taut, but his aim didn’t falter. The bolt struck true, dropping the man dead just three steps from Bu Nian.

Bu Nian turned to look at him, the corner of his mouth lifting. “Not bad.” As he spoke, he kicked away the corpse still hanging off his blade.

Dragging his blood-soaked sword, he strode downstairs without waiting for Lian Ai or shielding him in any way. He knew the assassins were after him. Every deadly move would be aimed at him alone.

After finishing off two attackers, Bai Shu grabbed the second-floor railing and flipped over it, dropping straight into the melee below.

Among the black-clad attackers, one stood out. He wielded a massive hammer that came down with enough force to crush flesh and shatter bone. There was nothing flashy in his movements, only ruthless power and bloodthirsty intent.

Bu Nian knew this one had to be the lead assassin. Without backing off, he stepped straight into the fight.

The man narrowed his eyes. “Been waiting for you.” As he spoke, the hammer came crashing down.

Bu Nian knew better than to take it head-on. He dodged to the side, and the hammer smashed into the floor, breaking through and leaving a deep crater in the wooden boards.

“Master, watch out!” Bai Shu shouted, throwing out his whip and latching onto the attacker’s arm as he raised it again.

But the man’s strength was overwhelming. The restraint barely mattered. Even with the whip coiled around him, he swung the hammer as if it weighed nothing.

Just as the next blow was about to fall, an iron bolt nearly eight inches long flew through the air, forcing him to pause. He raised a free hand to catch it, and in that instant, Bu Nian seized the opening. Gripping his sword in both hands, he slashed down hard at the man’s wrist.

A scream tore from the assassin’s throat as blood sprayed in every direction. The giant hammer hit the ground with a heavy thud, along with a severed hand.

Overwhelmed by shock and pain, the man howled. Bai Shu took the chance to kick him straight in the head, sending him crashing to the floor.

Bu Nian didn’t give him a moment to recover. He raised his arm and drove the blade cleanly into the man’s chest, finishing him off.

Smoke had started to rise inside the inn. By the time Bu Nian had finished off the last of the assassins, the fire had already spread. He immediately ordered his men to put it out.

The innkeeper had initially tried to help, but after seeing black-clad killers drop from the rooftop, he had panicked and hidden behind the counter, trembling and unable to move. Only when he saw Bu Nian cut through every last one of them did he finally crawl out on shaking legs.

Everyone began working to extinguish the fire. Bu Nian stood at the center, covered in blood, his sword edge nicked and dulled from repeated strikes.

He wasn’t someone who killed for pleasure, but after this fight, even he felt the haze of bloodlust. The stench of blood clung to him, and his breathing had gone uneven.

He glanced around but didn’t see Lian Ai. His grip on the sword tightened as he began searching through every corner of the inn.

He found nothing on the first floor and headed back upstairs. He kicked open every door. The longer he searched, the more violent the expression on his face became.

“General, you should step outside. The smoke’s too much in here.” Bai Shu waved a hand in front of his nose, already finding it hard to breathe.

Bu Nian didn’t answer. He was about to kick down another door when Lian Ai appeared at the far end of the corridor.

In a quiet voice, he said, “General, I’m here.”

Bu Nian froze. He strode over and yanked him out from behind the wall. “What are you hiding here for?”

Lian Ai winced from the pull, his brow furrowing. “I only had two bolts left. I had to find a place to hide.”

He had been shooting from upstairs the whole time. Not every shot hit its mark, but he believed he had done his part.

Bu Nian couldn’t bring himself to scold him. He only said coldly, “Since Zuo Lingxue gave you poison for me, I suppose these assassins were her doing as well.”

Lian Ai nodded. “She told me they would act at the second watch. I didn’t think they’d move early. I guess she didn’t fully trust me.”

Bu Nian asked, “What do you plan to do now?”

It was possible that at least one assassin had escaped. If any of them made it back to report what they had seen tonight, Zuo Lingxue would start questioning everything.

But Lian Ai didn’t look panicked. He had already thought it through. “Zuo Lingxue… she’s a lot like you.”

Bu Nian gave him a strange look. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Lian Ai didn’t answer. Instead, he grabbed Bu Nian’s sword arm and guided the blade to his own forearm. “Cut me. Make it deep.”

Bu Nian swatted his hand away. “You’re going to confront her directly? Why not stay put and live quietly as the young master of the Helian family?”

“I’d like that,” Lian Ai said, locking eyes with him without flinching. “But if you win, the Helian family will survive. I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing this for my family.”

“You…” Bu Nian’s jaw clenched, his features sharpened into hard lines. Covered in blood as he was, he looked like a wrathful demon from hell.

Lian Ai was scared, but he knew if he showed weakness now, he’d lose everything he had fought to stand for.

“What my father and brother can do, I can do too. And if I don’t do it now, this burden may fall on them later.” The thought of Master Helian’s injured leg dimmed his eyes, and his voice turned even firmer. “It’s just a bit of a ruse. Without getting hurt, how else would I earn Zuo Lingxue’s trust?”

Bu Nian’s grip on the sword tightened. The joints of his fingers stood out sharply, as if he might cut the man in front of him in half at any moment.

“The Helian family raised quite the son,” he said. Then he lifted the sword and slashed it cleanly across Lian Ai’s arm.

Blood spilled instantly. Lian Ai bit down hard to endure the pain and dropped to one knee.

“Thank you, General, for granting me this,” he said, holding back the pain as he pressed his hand over the wound.