Fleeing before the entire city was locked down for a thorough search, Xie Lian and company traveled through the night and arrived at another city. Xie Lian once again settled the king and queen in a safe hideout, then he and Feng Xin went out to earn money. However, those who couldn't earn much in one city wouldn't magically be luckier in a new one.
Like always, they worked a full day's labor for meager pay, but the once-inseparable trio were now suddenly missing one member, and the remaining two were having a hard time getting used to it. Mu Qing had always been responsible for looking after the money purse, and he had constantly kept track of their finances. Now that Mu Qing had left, Xie Lian had no choice but to keep the money on himself, as Feng Xin had admitted upfront that he might lose it by accident. Every time he counted that sad bit of money, he really couldn't believe it was all he'd earned after a hard day's labor. In his old life, he'd given alms to beggars that were more than this.
With Mu Qing gone, they had also lost the one who brought food to the king and queen, so Xie Lian had to personally deliver all sorts of daily necessities to their hiding place with the help of Feng Xin. The queen was very happy that she got to see her son so frequently, and when she was happy, she cooked. That day, she once again dragged Xie Lian and Feng Xin to the table to try her soup.
"You both need to fatten up! Look how thin you've become."
Feng Xin was streaming cold sweat, and he bounced back to his feet the moment his butt touched the bench. He waved both hands and assured her, "No, no, no, Your Majesty, your humble servant Feng Xin doesn't dare —I absolutely mustn't!"
"What's there to be afraid of, child?" the queen chided pleasantly.
"Come, sit down."
How could Feng Xin tell her? He simply didn't dare, and the queen delivered the fruits of her labor after he forced himself to sit down. Xie Lian sat at the head of the table, and Feng Xin took a sharp breath before removing the pot cover. When the two of them saw what was in the pot, their expressions turned ghastly.
"This chicken…died a tragic death," Xie Lian said under his breath.
Feng Xin's lips trembled. "Your Highness, you didn't see right.
There's no chicken in this."
Xie Lian was flummoxed. "…Then what's that thing floating in there that looks like a dead chicken?"
"I think it's thick soup…but the shape is a little off," Feng Xin replied.
The two spent a long time studying the pot's contents but still couldn't figure it out. The queen ladled a full bowl for Xie Lian, and Feng Xin hurried to serve himself. When the queen went to the back of the cottage to find the king, they instantly dumped the soup from their bowls and pretended to wipe their mouths, looking as if they had slurped it down in one gulp and enjoyed it so much that they couldn't get enough.
"I'm full, I'm full."
The queen was delighted at the sight. "Was it good?"
"It was, it was!" Xie Lian praised hollowly.
"If it's good, then have some more!" the queen said happily.
Xie Lian almost sputtered a mouthful of the soup he hadn't eaten and raised his handkerchief to pretend he was wiping at his lips.
The queen seemed to hesitate before she said, "My son, I want to ask you a question. Please don't blame your mom for being nosy."
Xie Lian stiffened and placed the handkerchief down. "What is it?
Please ask."
The queen sat down next to him. "Where is that child, Mu Qing?
Why hasn't he stopped by in the past few days?"
He knew it.
Xie Lian's heart squeezed tighter at the mention of Mu Qing. "Oh, I gave him some tasks to do, so he's set off elsewhere."
The queen seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and gave him a nod.
"When will he be back?"
"He may need to be gone for a long time… He won't be back anytime soon," Xie Lian replied.
The queen seemed troubled by this news, and Xie Lian noticed.
"Is something the matter?"
"Oh, it's nothing," the queen instantly replied.
Feng Xin had the sharper eye, and he spoke up. "Your Majesty, what's wrong with your hands?"
Hands?
Xie Lian looked and was shocked at the sight.
His mother's delicate, exquisitely maintained, upper-class hands looked awful. They were scraped and peeling at the knuckles, with faint traces of blood. Xie Lian stood up abruptly and grabbed her hands.
"What's going on?"
"It's nothing! I just washed some clothes and blankets, but I'm not very good at it," the queen quickly explained.
"Why are you doing the washing yourself?" Xie Lian blurted. "You could've…" But he didn't know how to finish that sentence. Could've what?
Could've had the palace attendants do the washing? Could've had Mu Qing do the washing? None of that was possible now.
Mu Qing had acted as their personal attendant on their never-ending road to escape, and his duties had included taking care of all personal necessities—including caring for the needs of Xie Lian, the king, and the queen. With him gone, there was no one to attend to all the mundane daily tasks.
No one to cook, no one to wash, no one to fold the blankets. The simple days of the past suddenly became difficult. Xie Lian could endure it, as there were far too many other things to worry about. But his mother had always lived a comfortable, luxurious life—when had she ever performed such crude labor? But how would it get done if the queen didn't handle that work herself?
After some silence, Xie Lian said, "Don't let this trouble you. I'll take care of the washing."
The queen smiled. "No need. You just take care of yourself. I've never done laundry nor cooked before, but I have nothing but free time every day, and doing the chores myself is quite fun. Especially since you both enjoyed the meal—that makes me quite happy."
The pot of soup had been stirred by his mother's battered hands, but they hadn't drunk a drop and poured it away on the sly. Xie Lian and Feng Xin exchanged a look, and both felt rather horrid.
Just then, the queen added, "Oh yes, there was another thing. Is there any way you can bring some medicine back tomorrow?"
Xie Lian's eyes widened slightly. "Medicine? What kind of medicine?"
The queen's face was troubled, and she sighed. "I'm not quite sure.
Why don't you go to the pharmacy and inquire about what kind of medicine should be taken when someone is coughing up blood?"
"Coughing up blood?!" Xie Lian was shocked. "Who's coughing up blood? You? Father? Why didn't you say something sooner?"
He had raised his voice, and the queen immediately hushed him.
"Speak quietly!"
However, it was too late—an outraged voice came from the back of the cottage. "I told you not to run your mouth!"
It was the king. Now that he had already overheard them, the queen didn't worry about hushing anymore and called out toward the back room, "It won't do if this keeps up!"
Xie Lian walked straight into the back room and saw the king huddled on a bed of ragged blankets. He hadn't seen his father closely in a while, and observing now, he looked quite ill; his cheeks were sunken, and the ghastly gloom of the room made him appear even more sickly. He had no royal aura at all—he was nothing more than a defeated, scruffy old man.
Xie Lian didn't even need to check his pulse to know that he must have been ill for some time now and that it was serious. The suffocating, musty air of sickness permeated the entire room. Recalling that the queen had said one of his symptoms was "coughing up blood," he raised his voice in distress.
"What's going on here?!"
The king steeled his expression. "What's with that tone?"
The queen and Feng Xin entered the room as well.
"Who cares what tone I'm using?! Why didn't you say something sooner if you're sick?" Xie Lian admonished.
"Are you lecturing your king?" he angrily replied. "What your king does and does not say at any given time is not for you to dictate!"
He was still carrying on with that tough posturing, even now. Xie Lian was in disbelief.
"You're unbelievable! Are you still throwing your title's weight around at a time like this?"
The king was outraged. "Get the hell out! Now!"
The queen and Feng Xin immediately dragged Xie Lian out of the room, and the queen begged, "My son! Don't be like this. He's your father, and he's ill. Take a step back."
First on the run, and now there was an illness to manage—it was like adding ice to snow. Xie Lian buried his face in his hands.
"Mother! Why didn't either of you say anything sooner? If you had, the illness wouldn't have progressed to coughing up blood! Do you know how hard that is to cure?"
In their current situation, it was impossible!
The queen's reply was both dismayed and aggrieved. "We…we didn't know that it'd worsen like this."
"Yeah. Besides, we've been dodging Yong'an pursuit this entire way.
There was no time to stop," Feng Xin added.
Xie Lian pulled his face from his hands. "I'll take him to a doctor in the city right now."
"No need!" the king shouted from within the room.
Xie Lian looked back and was just about to rebuke him with, "I'm the one who makes the decisions right now," but Feng Xin responded first.
"Your Highness, you'll be noticed for sure if you take His Majesty to a doctor in the city."
Xie Lian instantly froze.
The queen spoke up. "That's what we were afraid of, which is why we didn't say anything over the past few days. My son, why don't you just…think of a way to bring back some medicine?"
The king started coughing violently again, and the queen went into the back to look after him. Xie Lian was dazed for a good moment, then he turned and went into another room.
"Your Highness! What will you do?" Feng Xin called out.
Xie Lian didn't answer, just started rummaging through all the shelves and chests in the cottage.
"What are you looking for?" Feng Xin asked.
Xie Lian didn't respond. A moment later, he dug out something from the bottom of a chest—an ancient sword.
When he saw what Xie Lian had retrieved, Feng Xin asked, "What are you doing with Hongjing?"
Xie Lian was quiet for a long moment before he replied, "I'm going to pawn it."
"You can't!" Feng Xin cried in shock.
Xie Lian slammed the chest shut heavily. "I've already pawned so many swords. This is just one more."
By this point, he had pawned over half of his beloved sword collection to make enough money for the carriages and bribes at checkpoints they'd needed for their journey. And since they couldn't go inside the large, bustling pawn shops, they'd sometimes wind up blackmailed by shady merchants who had determined their identities, and they were forced to sell at a painful bargain.
"It's not the same!" Feng Xin exclaimed. "Don't you really like that sword? Otherwise, why wouldn't you have pawned it already instead of stuffing it in the bottom of a chest? And the Emperor gave it to you—it won't sound good if word gets out!"
"No matter how much I like it, it's still not as important as a life," Xie Lian said wearily. "Let's just go."
The two made their way to the city with the sword, both looking downtrodden. When they arrived at the pawn shop, Xie Lian stopped and glanced at Hongjing in his hand.
Feng Xin peered at him. "Why don't we forget about pawning it?
Let's try…let's try to think of another way…" Xie Lian shook his head. "It's too late. Besides, we don't know if there is any other way that will get us enough money."
No mortal would be a match for them if they stole, snatched, or employed other such trickery, and money would pour in much faster. But things were so difficult precisely because they had to uphold their moral compasses and adhere to the ethics of mortals, earning their money honestly.
Having made up his mind, Xie Lian said, "This has to be pawned.
Once it's done, we'll go buy medicine."
Despite his words, his feet still didn't move.
Feng Xin knew he was reluctant to let go—this was Xie Lian's last sword. So he said, "Let's look around some more."
Suddenly, a clamor erupted on one end of the street; there was shouting and yelling, and someone cried out.
"Who's causing trouble?!"
"The audacity!"
"Catch him! Catch him!"
The two were both startled, and Xie Lian instantly ducked to the side of the road in alarm. "Who?!"
Feng Xin cautiously went over to check, returning only after he was sure of their safety. "It's nothing! Don't worry! It has nothing to do with us.
It's not Yong'an soldiers or anyone else who's looking for us."
Only then did Xie Lian's tension ease. "What's going on?"
"I'm not sure," Feng Xin said. "It looks like a fight between some irate servants. Want to go see?"
"Let's go," Xie Lian said. "Hopefully it's not some local tyrant."
The two went over to watch. They saw two men brawling at the center of a crowd of onlookers, and the audience was cheering.
Feng Xin tapped the shoulder of a passerby who was enjoying the show. "Hey, buddy, what's going on here?"
The passerby chuckled. "You don't know? This is too exciting! The servant is beating the master!"
What an affair! Xie Lian was speechless. "How come? And why the cheering?"
"Of course we're going to cheer!" the passerby said. "That master is no good! His servant followed him since he was young and was very loyal, but the master only knew how to exploit him! He paid him badly and worked him to the bone, pushing him around all day. The servant couldn't take it anymore, and so you see, you see! Now they're fighting!"
Sure enough, the one throwing all the punches was cursing as he did, yelling accusations and declarations alike. "I've had it with you for ages!
Why don't you think about what you've really given me?! My family's so poor that we can barely eat, but you still lord over me, acting all high and mighty! From today onward, I ain't your dog no more!" The master was hugging his head and screaming as he was beaten, all while the crowd cheered.
Their shouts made Xie Lian's heart lurch in waves, and chills shook his body. He unconsciously stole a glance at Feng Xin.
Feng Xin didn't notice his strange behavior at all, and when he heard those terrible deeds, he commented offhandedly, "I see, then that master really is no good. No wonder the servant is rebelling."
He didn't mean anything by it, but Xie Lian's heart dropped, and he gripped Hongjing tighter.
After much headache, Hongjing was pawned and the two finally had money. They immediately went to find a doctor and purchased dozens of different medicinal herbs to take back.
Medicinal herbs used to treat illnesses that made one cough up blood were expensive and needed to be bought in large quantities. It wasn't a matter of one or two doses over a couple of days, and they would need to keep a close watch on how his father responded to the treatment.
That evening, Feng Xin unwrapped a few packets of herbs and started boiling down the medicine outside the cottage, fanning wildly at the flames with a torn cattail leaf fan. As for Xie Lian, he was once again rummaging through the shelves and chests all over the house. After a while, he finally fumbled out a soft, shimmering golden belt.
Xie Lian originally had several golden belts, but they had met the same end as the swords—all pawned off aside from this last one. Xie Lian had wanted to keep it as a souvenir, but today he decided to use it for something else.
Feng Xin happened to look up at him just then. "Your Highness, what are you doing with that belt? You're not thinking of pawning it too, are you?"
Xie Lian walked over and handed the golden belt to him.
Feng Xin's eyes bulged with bewilderment. "What are you doing, giving this to me? Your Highness, did you accidentally lock your brain inside when you shut that chest just now?!"
Xie Lian was briefly speechless until he remembered that a gift of a golden belt had a special meaning in the Upper Court, and his expression instantly darkened. "You're overthinking it—I don't mean it that way at all.
Just take it like it's ordinary gold!"
He shoved it on him, and Feng Xin glared back, shimmering golden belt draped around his shoulders.
"No. You still gotta tell me why you're stuffing me with gold out of nowhere."
"Just take it as long-overdue pay," Xie Lian said.
Feng Xin was confused. "No, but…what's with you all of a sudden?
Why are you talking about pay at a time like this? You'd be better off pawning this to buy more medicine for His Majesty. Or it's fine if you don't pawn it—keep it for yourself. That belt is something only a heavenly official can own."
At the mention of medicine, Xie Lian looked back toward the cottage, where the king and queen were resting.
"I can think of other ways to get the medicine," he replied, "so just take it."
Xie Lian was determined to give, and Feng Xin couldn't understand why. Although he was confused, he also found it kind of funny for some reason. He shrugged, then picked up the ragged fan and continued to fan the flames to boil down the medicine solution.
"Fine then. I'll keep it for you for now. Whenever you want it back, just let me know."
Xie Lian shook his head. "I won't ask for it back. You can do with it as you will."
Their pockets were a little fuller after pawning Hongjing, and they finally managed to have a few good meals. Since the queen's skills were so shocking, Xie Lian stated that he would take over the chore of cooking and politely asked his mother to look after his father and absolutely not enter the kitchen. Xie Lian didn't have much experience, but it was as the saying went—even if he'd never eaten pig trotters, he'd seen pigs walk. His creations were mostly edible, so the party was saved from further dietary issues.
After he fought with the king that day, Xie Lian regretted what he'd said, but he couldn't swallow his pride. Instead, he silently did his utmost to care for him. A patient who was coughing up blood couldn't be allowed to suffer any cold, so he got more blankets and small heaters for him.
The Yong'an soldiers were cracking down hard in their attempts to catch the escaped Xianle royalty, and soon this city also heightened its security. They had finally settled in, but now they had to leave again.
Xie Lian had already lost count of how many cities he had passed while on the run with his parents in tow—and, to be honest, everything that he'd seen on the road was much more peaceful than he'd initially imagined.
The only city that had met a tragic fate was the royal capital of Xianle;
nowhere else seemed to have been affected that severely.
After all, the king, the crown prince, the royal capital, the nobility— all were extremely remote concepts to regular civilians. The change in ruler didn't seem like it made much difference, especially since the new king wasn't a tyrant and hadn't passed any particularly strict decrees after he ascended the throne. There were no further laments, and the matter was simply a new topic for lively after-dinner conversations.
"I worked this plot of land when the king was named Xie; I still work the same plot of land now that the king is named Lang!" Xie Lian heard someone say, and they weren't wrong. But strangely, everyone's feelings were oddly unified when it came to the storied crown prince who went from invincible to losing every battle—it was as though they'd suddenly become hardcore Xianle patriots whenever his name was mentioned. This puzzled him and also made him resentful.
However, he really didn't have much energy to worry about these things anymore. The money they had made from pawning Hongjing only lasted a few short months.
An illness that made one cough blood was already difficult to cure, and on top of that, the king was depressed. He needed a large amount of medication just to maintain passable health, and his condition would no doubt worsen considerably if the supply were cut off. Xie Lian had nothing left to pawn, and today, he thought and thought as they loitered on the streets before finally turning to Feng Xin.
"Why don't we…give it a try?"
Feng Xin peered at him. "I guess we could give it a try?"
It wasn't the first time the two had hesitantly suggested they "give it a try," but they hadn't ever actually done it before now. Besides, the king had once over heard them while they were discussing the topic and had flown into a rage and thrown a huge fit. He was adamant that Xie Lian was not to do anything so shameful for money, otherwise he would refuse to drink his medicine. In the end, they'd had to abandon the idea. But now that they were in dire straits, there was no need to spell it out; they understood each other. Xie Lian nodded and wrapped his white silk band tighter around his face.
"Your Highness, you don't have to do it. I can do it alone," Feng Xin said. "That way, it'll be fine even if the king asks!"
Then he inhaled deeply, held his breath for a moment, and bellowed at the pedestrians, "Dear folks on the street, don't miss out on this—" The pedestrians jumped in surprise, and they all gathered around, chattering.
"What's with the yelling?!"
"What're you guys up to?"
"What've you got to show us?"
"I wanna see you shatter boulders on your chest!"
Feng Xin removed the bow from his back and began bald-faced bluffing. "My…my nickname is 'Wonder Archer'! I can shoot a bullseye from a hundred paces away. I will show off my embarrassing skill for everyone to see. If you enjoy the show, p-please grant me some coins!"
"Wonder Archer," "embarrassing skill"—those were phrases he had picked up from watching street performers. While they had kept saying they would never busk, they had long been observing how others did it without realizing.
"Stop wasting your breath! Just get on with it!" hollered the crowd.
"We've been waiting! Hurry up!"
Feng Xin nocked an arrow against his bow and pointed at an idle man in the crowd who was munching on fruit. "Will this uncle please step out!
Place that apple on your head, and I will shoot it perfectly from three hundred paces away!"
The idler shrank his neck back and withdrew into the crowd. "I'm not doin' it!"
"I won't hit you, don't worry!" Feng Xin exclaimed. "If I shoot you by accident, I'll compensate you!"
"I'm no fool! If you shoot me by accident, it won't matter how much you pay me!" the idler yelled back. "Since you're out here to perform, don't you got your own equipment or somethin'? Shouldn't you be shooting at the one next to you?!"
The crowd all chimed in. "Yeah!"
"Let me," Xie Lian also said.
Someone from the crowd tossed over a fruit, and Xie Lian caught it, ready to balance it on his head. However, Feng Xin never planned to let Xie Lian get involved, so why would he allow this? In a moment of panic, he snatched the fruit and ate it in the blink of an eye, then changed the direction of his arrow to target a banner hanging high from a tall building.
"I'll shoot that!" he cried.
And he did. He was an extremely skilled archer, so of course he hit the target, and the audience cheered and laughed.
"Well, dang! You do got it!"
They laughed and chattered amongst themselves, and some really did toss a few coins. The small, round coins tumbled and rolled across the ground, and Feng Xin went over to gather them. Xie Lian silently crouched down to help. He felt a little depressed, like he'd lost something.
Feng Xin had once been the servant of the crown prince; even ministers had been compelled to be courteous and polite when they saw him, never mind the common folk. Some had even tried to curry his favor.
Heeding the hollering ringleaders when they hauled rocks and earth had been depressing enough, and now they had to endure being watched like performing monkeys. Feng Xin's sharpshooting skill wasn't being used to kill enemies in battle but rather to entertain the masses. Just thinking of it made Xie Lian's stomach turn.
Suddenly, a woman's voice rang out sharply. "Who's shooting arrows in the streets?!"
Xie Lian's heart jumped to his throat. Everyone in the crowd pointed at Feng Xin.
"It's him!"
Feng Xin was confused, and the crowd parted as several women came stomping over, holding an arrow—the one he had shot earlier. The women surrounded him.
"You damned brat! Did you shoot this? What guts—randomly shooting off weapons in broad daylight! You destroyed the screen in our yard! Tell me, how are you gonna pay for it?!"
"Yeah, you've scared away so many of our patrons!"
As it turned out, Feng Xin's shot was so powerful that the arrow had flown all the way into someone's yard. Feng Xin didn't like interacting with women to begin with, and these ladies were caked with heavy makeup; the perfume of powder assaulted his nose and suffocated him. They probably came from a place of ill repute, and their accusations had him waving his hands and backing away.
Xie Lian hurried over to stand in front of him. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
He didn't mean to. As for compensation, we'll think of something…" The women's tempers flared, and they began to shove him. "And who are you?! You—" The white bandage covering Xie Lian's face had slipped from all the pushing and pulling. When the women saw his face, their eyes lit up and their tones took a kittenish turn.
"Oh gosh, what a handsome little gege!"
Xie Lian was confused.
One of the women clapped once, her face blooming into a wide smile. "Very well, then! It's decided! You're together, right? We'll take you as payment!"
Xie Lian was even more confused.
Before he realized what had happened, the women had already dragged Xie Lian away to a rather lavish little establishment. When he looked up, he could see women on the upper balconies dressed like blossoming flowers and chirping like birds. Only then did Xie Lian realize he had been taken away by a bunch of brothel madams!
Goosebumps instantly raised on his skin. "Wait, I don't have money!
I really don't have any money!"
The brothel madams cackled. "Of course you've got no money.That's why we're bringing you in to earn some!"
Xie Lian was flummoxed. "Sorry, but I'm a man!" he exclaimed.
"We know you're a man. We're not blind!" the brothel madams replied, annoyed.
Feng Xin finally broke through the sea of people surrounding him and rushed over, shouting, "Let go of His— Let go of him this instant!"
The two were in a horrid predicament and promptly bolted—they knew they were in the wrong, so they didn't dare fight back. The enraged brothel madams called over thirty hired goons, and the duo had to scurry all over the city to escape their pursuit. They had never been involved in a situation like this before and would never dare visit that area again.
All the same, the experience confirmed for them that busking was a viable way of earning money, so they found a new location and set up shop.
They were fresh faces, so the locals were very interested, and Feng Xin was a strapping, honest-looking, rather handsome man. They managed to earn a small fortune in those first few days that paid for their food and medication for at least half a month—but good things don't last, and it took less than half a month for someone to come knocking.
That day, several beefy men came looking for them while Xie Lian and Feng Xin were packing up. Suspecting that they were Yong'an soldiers, Xie Lian was alarmed. Inside his sleeves, his fists were ready to strike.
"Who are you?" he demanded in a low voice.
The leader humphed. "You guys have been hanging around on our turf for days, but you don't know who we are?"
Xie Lian and Feng Xin were both puzzled.
Another man spoke up. "You've stolen so much of our business.
Don't you think it's rude not to explain yourselves?"
The two of them finally understood what was going on—these were other local street performers. The street artists all belonged to a guild or gang, and those groups laid claim to turf. This new duo had shown up, taken all their customers, and stopped them from making any money, so of course the group came looking for trouble. But Xie Lian and Feng Xin weren't from the streets, so how could they possibly know this particular etiquette?
Who'd even want to steal your business if they weren't at the end of their rope? Xie Lian thought bitterly, but he still spoke courteously. "It's not really stealing, right? People watch what they want to watch. We weren't forcing anyone to gather for our…shooting performance."
As if these people would listen. "Not stealing?! No one's made any money the past few days—you've taken all the grub!" they exclaimed rudely.
Bang! The gang members jumped in surprise and saw that Feng Xin had slammed his fist into a nearby wall. There was a giant fist mark there, cracks crawling out from its center.
"Are you looking for trouble?" he asked coldly.
The gang of beefy men certainly had come there to start trouble and talk with their fists. But after witnessing Feng Xin's punch, they had no doubt that his fist was stronger than theirs, and instantly their fire was smothered by half. Still, they refused to let this go so easily. The leader was briefly stumped, but he quickly changed his tune.
"How about this: we'll do this by the book. Let's compete with our skills. The winner gets to stay, and the losers will pack up and leave, never to set up shop in this area again!"
Hearing that it'd be settled with a competition, Feng Xin laughed. Of course he did—how could mortals possibly compete with them? It was a sure win!
Xie Lian also breathed a sigh of relief. "That's exactly what I wanted.
How do you want to do this?"
"We'll use our best busking trick!" the man proclaimed loudly. While he spoke, two other men brought over a few long, rectangular stone slabs of slate, which the man patted. "Shattering boulders on your chest! How about it? Do you dare?"
Seeing how smug he looked, it seemed this was indeed his specialty.
Xie Lian crouched to touch the slate, then looked up.
"It won't be a problem for me, but will it really not be a problem for you?"
These stone slabs were the real deal.
The man laughed. "Judging by the shape you're in, you'd better just worry about yourself!"
Feng Xin crouched next to him. "Your Highness, let me?"
Xie Lian shook his head. "No. You've worked hard the past few days.
Let me do it this time."
He wanted to make an effort too.
And so, both Xie Lian and the man lay down on the ground with slate slabs pressing down on their chests. Feng Xin was given a large hammer.
He weighed it in his grip and was just about to smash it down when Xie Lian swiftly spoke up.
"Wait."
The others were delighted. "What, do you admit defeat? It's not too late to forfeit now—we'll let you go!"
"No. I want to add another slab," Xie Lian said.
The mob was shocked by this. "Are you crazy?!"
"Didn't you say it yourselves? This is a competition," Xie Lian explained lazily. "There's no difference in skill if we use one slate apiece, so how can we compare our abilities?"
The street performers looked doubtful; some thought he'd gone mad and others assumed he was bluffing. After much discussion, they stacked another stone slate on his chest.
After that, Xie Lian asked them to add another!
Now everyone was sure he'd lost his mind, and they added a third slate without further question. Thus, three heavy stone slates were stacked on Xie Lian's chest, a rather terrifying sight.
Under the scrutinizing gazes of the crowd, Feng Xin raised the large hammer and smashed it down without blinking. The three stone slates cracked into multiple clean pieces. Xie Lian crawled up from the ground amidst cheers, uninjured and fine. He calmly dusted off his robes while everyone watched with slackened jaws. The leader's face was pale, and his expression was dark.
Now he should know to back off, right? Xie Lian thought.
He had assumed the other party would concede and never come seeking trouble again. But that man's expression kept changing and changing, and suddenly, he gritted his teeth.
"Add two more to me too! No, add three more!"
"Bro, you can't!" the mob exclaimed. "This guy must be using some sort of evil spell, you don't have to go along with him!"
"Yeah, he must've faked it!"
"What the fuck?" Feng Xin exclaimed angrily. "You're the ones who lack skill, but you turn around and accuse us of cheating with evil spells?"
The leader said in a booming voice, "The stone slabs and the hammer belong to us! How could we not know about it if there was some evil spell in play? This brat does have some skill, but three slates is nothing! I can do four! As long as we win, they'll have to leave!"
"That's impossible! Give up!" Feng Xin said. "Don't throw your life away over this."
But the man was bullheaded and forced the others to stack four staggeringly heavy stone slates on his chest. "You just watch!"
Xie Lian could tell things were going awry. "Feng Xin, should we stop this? There's no way a mortal can manage four slates," he whispered.
"Let's watch, I guess? I'm sure he's not looking to die. After a couple smashes, he should know to back off," Feng Xin whispered back.
Xie Lian frowned slightly and nodded, deciding to wait and see. Sure enough, the man's face changed the moment the lackey who wielded the hammer gave a single apprehensive knock. The lackey immediately stopped, not daring to move again.
But the man yelled, "Harder! Did you forget to eat? Why is your smash so pathetic?"
The lackey didn't dare to be sloppy on the second go, and he used all his strength. Bang! With that loud sound, the man's face turned bright red like he was holding back a large mouthful of blood.
This didn't look good, and Xie Lian and Feng Xin quickly called out.
"Wait! Don't force yourself!"
"Who's forcing himself?! This is my specialty!" the man yelled. "Just watch, I'll make you admit your defeat! Continue!"
With a distraught expression, the lackey smashed again. Now he'd done it—the man sputtered blood all over the ground, scaring the lackey into dropping the hammer.
The mob rushed up. "Let it go! Let it go, bro! If those two bastards want to cling to this place, then let them. Your life is more important!"
Veins popped on the man's forehead and blood foamed from his mouth. "I won't let this go! It's been days since we've had a bite to eat. It's our livelihoods gone if this keeps up! Continue! I refuse to believe I can't compete with that delicate-looking little brat! This is my specialty!"
Xie Lian couldn't watch anymore and spoke up. "That's enough. If that's how it is, then I concede defeat. Starting tomorrow, we won't come here anymore. Come on, Feng Xin!"
Then he turned to leave, and Feng Xin followed him. Behind them, the mob cheered.
"Your Highness, are we gonna give up this place just like that?"
They had finally found a way to earn money, but now they had to abandon it. Xie Lian sighed.
"There's no other way. He's already suffered massive internal injuries from just a few rounds—I fear he's nearly crippled. Someone was going to die if we kept the competition going, and we wouldn't have been able to stay if that happened either."
Feng Xin scratched his head and cursed. "Suicidal, honestly!"
"We're all trying to make a living," Xie Lian said simply.
Xie Lian felt rather guilty. Had he known that man would force himself to take on four slabs, he wouldn't have asked them to stack three— he would've just admitted defeat early. Although the man was boorish and reckless, he still had some respectable qualities.
"Besides, we don't have to busk here. That'd be putting all our eggs in one basket," Xie Lian said.
However, when they returned to their hiding place that night, the queen informed him with a face full of worry that the king's symptoms were worsening. He'd need a good, long rest and might not be able to endure any more moving. And that meant they couldn't leave the city for the time being.
Xie Lian rummaged through the shelves and chests again but couldn't find anything to pawn, so he sat next to the chest and spaced out. Feng Xin was boiling down medicine, humming as he did so. He hummed and hummed, sounding more and more off key, and while Xie Lian didn't care to pay attention at first, he eventually couldn't ignore it.
"What's with you? In a good mood?"
Feng Xin looked up. "Huh? No?"
Xie Lian didn't believe him. "Really?"
In the few days since they had started performing on the streets, Xie Lian had noticed Feng Xin acting a bit strange. Sometimes he'd grin like a fool for no reason, sometimes he'd suddenly seem troubled. Xie Lian and Feng Xin rarely left each other's sides when Mu Qing had been around, but after Mu Qing left, Feng Xin would sometimes have to deliver food for the king and the queen or run other errands. He'd be gone for a while on those days. Xie Lian assumed that Feng Xin must've stumbled upon something while he was out and about, but he didn't have the energy to concern himself with it any further.
Eyeing the medicine pot in front of Feng Xin, Xie Lian was quiet for a while before he asked, "Is that the last packet?"
Feng Xin flipped through the bundles on the ground. "It is. If we don't go tomorrow—" Upon remembering that the king was inside the cottage and they couldn't allow him to overhear, Feng Xin lowered his voice. "If we don't busk tomorrow, what'll we do?"
Xie Lian was silent for a long time. Then he abruptly stood up.
"Stay here and guard the cottage. I'll go out and think of something."
Feng Xin was doubtful. "Where are you going? What could you possibly come up with?"
Xie Lian left without looking back. "Don't worry about it. And don't follow me."