Chapter 13 : Chapter 13
Chapter 13: Grandfather’s Final Words
Su Yue reacted quickly and pulled Luo Li back into her seat in one motion. Her face hardened as she scolded her in a low voice.
“Li’er, do not be childish!”
“I...” Luo Li settled back down gracefully, yet could not help glancing outside again.
She did not know why, but the moment she heard that poison-tipped tone of his, she could not stop herself from answering back.
He was supposed to accompany her all the way to Great Zhou. At this rate, she might very well be angered to death before they even reached the halfway point!
“Little Aunt, but I—”
Su Yue knew what she was about to say. She immediately raised a hand and patted the back of hers, cutting her off.
“Li’er, whether you were truly dragged into the rule of Do Not Look Back or not, the fact remains that his conduct on the road, and the fact that he was able to bring you safely into Wangyue City in the dead of night, are both more than enough to prove his ability.”
“It was only a black horse. Let the matter go. The road ahead is long, and you truly do need someone like him to protect you.”
“Even if you do not trust others, you should at least trust your grandfather’s judgment.”
At the mention of her grandfather, the roiling emotions inside Luo Li gradually calmed again.
Because she suddenly remembered something he had said on the road two days ago, when they were returning from Xiaohe Village.
“On this journey, if the one you meet is greedy, then that person will not fail you. If the one you meet is cold, only then can you follow him into Great Zhou... remember this well. If these two points are not both met, then under no circumstances must you enter Great Zhou.”
Even now, she could not understand those words.
And yet both of those traits were present in Chen Guan!
“Why is it that only someone who satisfies those two conditions can escort me into Great Zhou?”
Luo Li was filled with doubt. She remained silent for a while, and in the end, she still chose to place her faith in her grandfather’s warning and nodded.
“All right.”
Su Yue nodded in satisfaction.
She had watched this girl grow up from childhood. Yet because of her background, her nature had always been proud and aloof, and it was rare to see her behave willfully.
For someone to anger her to this extent, it seemed she had truly met her match.
Su Yue smiled and said, “All right, all right, enough about him.”
Then she changed the subject and asked, “What about your grandfather? Has his health improved at all?”
“My grandfather...”
Luo Li had just been about to say that her grandfather had already passed away, but the words reached her lips and stopped there. In her ears rang the solemn warning he had given her before his death.
“Li’er, remember this. News of my passing must never be told to anyone other than that Escort Master Chen.”
“That includes your little aunt, your uncle, and anyone else you believe you can trust.”
“Remember well—right now, the only person you can trust is Escort Master Chen. Take this as my... only final instruction. Remember... remember well...”
That had been her grandfather’s charge, and also his final words.
Though she did not know why he had warned her so sternly, the escort he had arranged for her had proven sound, and his hints had also come true.
That meant there must be deep meaning in those last words.
Luo Li looked at Su Yue, suppressed the distracting thoughts in her heart, and then, forcing down her grief, said in a subdued voice,
“Grandfather’s health has been poor lately. I had wanted him to come with me to Great Zhou.”
“But he said the journey would be too tiring, and that he wanted to remain in his old home a while longer, and wait until his health improved a little before going.”
At those words, Su Yue’s brows lifted almost imperceptibly, as though she were thinking over something.
But right then—
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A hurried knocking sounded from the doorway, cutting off her thoughts.
Su Yue raised her eyes and looked over.
A young man no more than twenty stood in the doorway, both hands holding that enormous horse-cleaving saber. His face was full of impatience as he urged them on.
“Are you two finished yet? If you have something to say, say it clearly and quickly! Don’t you know an escort’s time is money?”
“You’re taking forever. Is there anything you can’t talk about on the road?”
Luo Li secretly studied Chen Guan, as though trying to see through him.
Her grandfather had never praised anyone so highly before, and she, too, wanted to know what exactly was so special about this fellow.
But after looking for a long while, all she saw was that same arrogant, utterly inhuman bearing.
“What are you looking at?” Chen Guan noticed the way Luo Li was staring at him as though she no longer recognized him, and immediately glared back.
“What you paid for was the mission, not an hourly booking. Do you know how much silver I lose if you delay me for a whole day?”
“Why are you hounding me? It’s not as though I’m refusing to go!” The moment Luo Li heard that, her pretty face turned cold again, though her voice was clearly much softer than before.
“Li’er, do not be rude!”
Su Yue hurriedly pulled her back, yet there was astonishment in her own eyes as she looked Chen Guan over once more.
His figure was straight and tall, his face resolute, and he looked to be no more than twenty or so.
She had assumed that such a strange and eccentric escort master would be some old hand of the jianghu who had wandered the world for many years. Never had she imagined that he would be a youth whose face still carried a trace of boyishness.
And yet it was precisely such a youth who had dragged Luo Li back from the grasp of Do Not Look Back?
One had to understand that to bargain with Do Not Look Back for a life, one had to possess the qualifications to negotiate terms with an uncanny fiend!
Let alone a young man barely in his twenties—even the Director of the Demon Suppression Bureau of Pingyang Commandery might not necessarily possess such qualifications!
At the same time, another enormous doubt arose in her heart.
A person with such ability ought long since to have made a great name for himself, so why would he humble himself to remain tucked away in a tiny place like Sanhua Town?
“Little Aunt?” Seeing that Su Yue kept staring at Chen Guan, Luo Li’s eyes shifted, and she immediately interrupted her.
Su Yue came back to herself, rose at once, and gave Chen Guan an elegant bow, performing the formal courtesy of a married woman.
“Su Yue greets Escort Master Chen. I must thank you for your hard work in escorting us this far. That my niece was able to arrive safely is something for which I am deeply grateful.”
“My niece has been spoiled by the family since childhood and has an arrogant temper. If she has offended you in any way, I hope Escort Master Chen will be magnanimous.”
Chen Guan’s gaze passed over the still-fuming Luo Li and landed directly on the beautiful woman before him, Su Yue. Yet unlike other men, his eyes did not go blank at the sight of her.
Just as he had when he first saw Xi’er, Chen Guan’s brows drew together ever so slightly.
“Madam Su is too courteous.”
He withdrew his gaze, cupped his hands, and returned a jianghu salute.
“When one takes another’s money, one dispels another’s calamity. Ferrying someone safely to the opposite shore is the duty of an escort.”
He paused, then added,
“As for children throwing tantrums, that is precisely the sort of thing we adults are meant to tolerate.”
The moment Luo Li heard that, those fine brows of hers shot upright at once.
This fellow’s mouth really was steeped in poison.
Every single sentence struck straight at her lungs!
Sure enough, there was no such thing in this world as having it both ways. If she wanted to arrive safely, she truly had better be prepared to be angered half to death along the way!
Su Yue continued, “I must ask Escort Master Chen to delay for another half day.”
“I have matters here that will occupy me for a time, so I cannot depart with you just yet. Because of that, I have hired another group of escort masters, and I wish for them to accompany you in escorting Li’er to Great Zhou.”
Chen Guan’s brow immediately lifted. Without another word, he reached into his robes and pulled out the thick Route Contract on which Luo Li had pressed her handprint two days earlier.
Flip, flip, flip. He turned through several pages with practiced ease, then pointed to one clause.
“《Chen Guan’s Escort Rules》, Route Contract Section, Clause Three, Article Seven: During the course of an escort, Party B, the Employer, may not without cause delay the escort time of Party A, Escort Chen Guan.”
“If this clause is violated, Party A has the right to terminate the employment directly, and no deposit or advance payment will be refunded.”
“Eh???”
The moment Su Yue heard those words, she froze completely.
This... such a Route Contract actually existed?
The expression on Luo Li’s face also stiffened instantly, and she stared at Chen Guan in disbelief.
Because she suddenly remembered that she really had pressed her handprint onto that thick cursed thing.
“You... you...” She pointed at Chen Guan, so angry that her features almost twisted out of shape.
Even so, Su Yue still caught hold of her at once, then bowed again toward Chen Guan.
“Might Escort Master Chen be willing to make an exception?”
The moment he heard that, the corner of Chen Guan’s mouth curved upward.
“I can.”
“But... it’ll cost extra!”