Chapter Ninety-Eight: Fated Foes Cross Paths Again (3)

After directing Zhong Wuniang and Zhong Mo to finish that pot of good food and add the seasonings, Kong Sheng left the kitchen and returned to the guest room on the second floor, intending to rest a while. When more than half an hour had passed and the chicken and rabbit had stewed to perfect tenderness, he would go down, eat the meat with flatbread, and drink the soup to his heart's content.

Kong Sheng sat cross-legged on the bed, eyes closed, gathering his spirits.

Just then, Mu Changfeng hurried out of the guest room, went downstairs, and left the inn. Standing there and staring at the road they had come by, his face gradually turned grave. Then, without caring about the filthy snow-tracks on the ground, he even laid his ear to the road and listened intently.

A moment later, Mu Changfeng sprang up, leaped to the inn's roof eaves, and peered back along the way they had come. There, across the boundless white snow, a long caravan was winding forward, and at its head was a luxurious carriage escorted by more than a dozen riders.

It was Li Xuan's caravan! How had they taken this same road as well?

Mu Changfeng came down with a dark expression and rushed into the inn, calling upstairs, "Young Master, this is bad!"

Kong Sheng leaned out of the guest room. "Brother Mu, what is it?"

Mu Changfeng sighed. "It is not good. Li Xuan's caravan has also taken this road. They have already reached the town entrance, and it looks as though they mean to stay here for the night."

Kong Sheng's expression changed at once. "How can that be? Weren't they supposed to detour around Shouchow?"

Mu Changfeng spread his hands helplessly, at a loss for words.

"Let's go!" Kong Sheng decided at once. He knew that if they missed this inn and this little town, they might have to travel the entire night without finding shelter. And he was also somewhat reluctant to leave behind that pot of delicacy, which was nearly cooked to perfection. But if the four of them met Li Xuan again, then knowing that man's ruthlessness, he would surely never let the matter rest.

The other side outnumbered them; retreat was the best course.

Mu Changfeng let out a heavy breath. "Young Master, the road at the town entrance is already blocked. Their caravan has arrived outside the town. We do not have time to withdraw."

Kong Sheng's gaze sharpened. "What about the other end of the town?"

At once Mu Changfeng called out, "Boy, get out here! I have something to ask you!"

Zhong Mo hurried out of the kitchen with a fawning smile. Looking at Kong Sheng, he said, "Young Master, it will be ready any moment now. Please wait a little longer, and it will be brought up at once!"

Kong Sheng shook his head, his expression solemn. "Zhong the Second, where does the far end of the town lead?"

Zhong Mo blinked. "The far end? Beyond the town lies the Changshui River, and across the river is the southern camp where the Yangzhou military prefecture stations its winter troops. There are more than a thousand Yangzhou prefectural soldiers there now. These past two days it has been snowing, but when the weather is clear, one can distinctly hear the thunder of drills and the shouting of battle cries from the camp even here in town."

Mu Changfeng's unruffled face finally changed. The town entrance in front of them was blocked by Li Xuan's men, and behind them was the Changshui River. In this ice and snow, where could they possibly find a boat to cross in such haste? It had become a dead end.

In this situation, the four of them were trapped in the town by more than a hundred of Li Xuan's disguised men, with not even a chance to fly away.

Mu Changfeng seized Kong Sheng's arm and said urgently, "Young Master, there is no other way. We can only fight to the death. Why not seize the chance while Li Xuan's men are arriving in haste and strike them before they are prepared? Perhaps we can still break out of the town."

Kong Sheng shook his head, his face growing colder by the moment.

Wu Xian and Wu Jie had also dressed and hurried downstairs, their faces slightly panicked.

"Let's go. If we do not leave now, it will be too late," Mu Changfeng urged.

Kong Sheng gave a bitter smile. "Brother Mu, it is already too late. It seems that human schemes can never match heaven's will. Enemies are fated to meet; we cannot avoid them."

"Even if we can break out of the town, this is open country in every direction. If Li Xuan orders a relentless pursuit, how far can we run? Besides, we are all exhausted and weary, and I am injured as well. We cannot hold out for long."

Then Kong Sheng suddenly smiled with calm indifference. "We have done nothing unlawful. Why should we flee like stray dogs? Come, Zhong the Second, bring up that pot of meat. We shall eat our fill!"

Mu Changfeng looked deeply at Kong Sheng, as though trying to read something from his calm and resolute expression. After a long while, he smiled as well and sat down quietly opposite him. "True enough. I shall listen to the Young Master. To hell with the rest of it. Let's get full first!"

Kong Sheng looked up at the two unsettled, flustered men, Wu Xian and Wu Jie, and his voice grew faintly cool. "You two deputy captains, if you are afraid, you may leave on your own. Or you can simply find some place in town to hide. With your skills, preserving your lives should not be a problem."

"Their target is Brother Mu and me. As for you two, you ought to be able to escape with your lives."

Wu Xian's mouth twitched; he was about to speak when Wu Jie clasped his fists and said in a dull voice, "My brother and I are not the kind to fear death. How could we abandon the Young Master halfway and leave him behind? Eldest Brother, sit down!"

Wu Jie was usually taciturn and spoke little. Yet at such a critical moment, his resolve was far firmer than Wu Xian's. He seized his elder brother's arm and forcibly pulled him onto a stool.

Wu Xian drooped disconsolately and muttered under his breath, his face dark and ugly.

Kong Sheng gave Wu Jie a long look.

The Wu brothers were plain enough in appearance, but their temperaments were worlds apart. Wu Xian, though the elder, was flighty, somewhat sly, and a little cowardly; in ordinary times he was all glib tongue, but at the crucial moment he would fall apart. Wu Jie, however, was steady, serious, loyal, and honest. Given time, if trust could be established between them, he could surely be entrusted with important tasks.

Zhong Wuniang knew none of this hidden significance. Smiling brightly, she directed Zhong Mo to bring up a large earthen basin filled with the simmered broth of pheasant and wild rabbit. In truth, before it was even lifted from the stove, a rich fragrance had already drifted from the kitchen and lingered through the hall.

Two pheasants and two wild rabbits stewed together made for a substantial pot indeed. A single basin could not hold it all, so Zhong Mo brought only half. The other half, at Kong Sheng's instruction, remained simmering gently on the fire.

The broth was clear, faintly yellow, with a thin sheen of oil floating on the surface. Mu Changfeng leaned in and inhaled deeply, then could not help slapping the table in praise. "Young Master, I never imagined pheasant and rabbit cooked together could taste so extraordinarily delicious!"

Zhong Wuniang smiled as she brought over a brazier, then used a ladle to help Kong Sheng and the others divide the soup into their individual small bowls. "Young Master, drink it while it's hot. This soup is truly excellent. It smells wonderful, and even I am getting hungry from the aroma."

Kong Sheng smiled faintly. "Wuniang, you should join us. We cannot possibly finish this whole pot of broth ourselves."

A blush rose in Zhong Wuniang's charming face. She glanced at Kong Sheng shyly, smiling as she did so, then knelt down beside him, served herself a bowl, and took a sip. Her eyes widened in surprise. "There is no trace of the pheasant's gamey taste, nor any earthy smell from the rabbit. How strange! The Young Master's method of cooking is truly marvelous!"

Wu Jie also lowered his head and cautiously tasted a mouthful. At once he looked up in astonishment at Kong Sheng, thinking that this rabbit stew was unimaginably delicious.