(5)
After all the soldiers left the inn, Bai Feng finally felt relieved. Then he turned and walked towards the wooden stairs leading to the pavilion, looking for the companion who was planning the conspiracy together.
Unexpectedly, halfway through, I heard the sound of fighting still coming. So, the young swordsman quickly quickened his pace and rushed to Zhao Kuo's side.
I saw Zhao Kuo struggling with a soldier on the wooden corridor while shouting loudly: "How can I let you go! How dare you attack me sneakily and scratch my favorite clothes!"
At first, Zhao Kuo pinned the soldier down and took advantage of the situation to continuously attack the soldier's head with his fists. The soldier raised his arms to cover his head to resist the momentum. Suddenly, as if he could not bear the humiliation, the soldier pushed up his left leg, instantly knocking Zhao Kuo upside down.
After a moment, the soldier wanted to reverse the suppressed situation and took the opportunity to roar at the rich young man. However, because the difference in strength was too great, Zhao Kuo, who stood up quickly, easily counterattacked, knocking the weak soldier down again and holding it against his throat, completely subduing the opponent.
"Say quickly, surrender or not!"
"I...ahem...I...vote..."
This ridiculous scene was all seen before Bai Feng's eyes.
Zhao Kuo let go of the weak soldier who was restrained by him. After he stood up quickly, he did not forget to kick the dying soldier a few times to confirm again that he had lost the ability to resist. Finally, he walked towards Bai Feng, with a proud smile on his face, and said, "I thought they were so strong, but they all look like they haven't eaten."
Bai Feng looked at the broken sword in his hand and replied: "Maybe they really haven't eaten..."
"Brother Bai, you are really capable. You actually drove away dozens of soldiers!" Zhao Kuo said with admiration: "By the way, how did Brother Bai come up with this strategy? At such a critical moment, you actually You are still calm and composed, I really admire you!"
"As the saying goes, to capture the thief first, capture the king." Bai Feng looked at the broken blade with a gap in his hand and sighed, and then replied: "What's more, a group of thieves who are at the end of their rope?"
Zhao Kuo couldn't bear his temper and wanted to get a glimpse of the mystery quickly, so he interrupted and asked, "How do you say this?"
Bai Feng glanced at Zhao Kuo and said: "We will talk about these words later. Brother Zhao should first find a rope to tie up the captured prisoners. I will find a good one from the weapons left by the soldiers. "Then Bai Feng left Zhao Kuo on the spot without looking back, and the latter sighed helplessly and obeyed Bai Feng's instructions.
Bai Feng randomly walked down the pavilion, and Zhao Kuo clasped the hands of the captured soldiers behind his back and followed closely. The two of them came back victorious, with a very happy look on their faces. The mood of everyone downstairs seemed to have not yet recovered from the dangerous situation just now: A Bian was gently stroking the shopkeeper's back to let him breathe; the pair of Xianbei warriors were searching for the remains of the soldiers they killed while mouthing Complaining that these deserters have nothing more than themselves.
Everyone followed the footsteps and looked toward the stairs. The commoner boy only glanced at them and walked towards the pile of discarded weapons. The rich man who followed them staggered away with a Han soldier in front of him. Go down the stairs. Zhao Kuo found the shopkeeper on the side and asked if there was any strong rope. When the shopkeeper saw the dying soldier in front of him, he was almost 70 to 80% relieved of his anger, which he had not recovered from just now. He said with great anger: "A-Bian, go get it quickly!"
After a while, the soldiers tied with thick ropes were left hanging aside, still unconscious. The shopkeeper, A Bian, and Zhao Kuo were waiting beside the soldier. Bai Feng picked up the weapons on the ground under the eyes of these three people. At one moment he said that the blade of the sword was very rusty; at another moment he said that the sword was too heavy and he could do as he pleased with the weapons left by the Han soldiers. Walking among the "relics".
After a while, the taller warrior among the Xianbei brothers walked towards Bai Feng, with admiration in his eyes. He stopped the commoner boy who was looking for a suitable weapon and said: "Little brother! If you hadn't helped us just now, we two brothers would never have escaped unscathed. We Xianbei people have always repaid kindness and revenge! If little brother! If our benefactor needs us to do anything, we two brothers will definitely do it!"
Bai Feng picked up the long sword he had just picked up from the ground and replied with a smile: "I have no intention of helping you two brothers escape from trouble. On the contrary, I just use you as "bait" to lure away most of the people with fighting ability. soldiers. So that I can hold the bearded man hostage and drive away these bandits. Therefore, I am not your benefactor."
The Xianbei warrior was puzzled and said, "May I ask if my benefactor is looking down on us?"
In fact, Bai Feng said this in order to put aside the unequal relationship between "the benefactor" and "the benefactor" with the Xianbei brothers - what he wanted was a capable partner. He is well aware of the complexity of people's hearts, and the Xianbei people will never be willing to be with him just because of this matter. The safest way is to make the interests of both parties related.
For this reason, Bai Feng replied: "Of course not, I'm just saying what's in my heart. However, I advise you two brothers to leave here quickly. According to what the soldiers just said, the pursuers will soon be looking for you. to here."
"But... I really don't know where to escape to the end of the world." The Xianbei warrior looked at the still dark sky outside the door, followed the starlight, and looked further and further away.
"Go back to the north." Bai Feng walked to his side, and they were side by side. Then he said earnestly: "Aren't you and your brother tired of life in the Central Plains? It just so happens that my friends and I are also going north..."
The Xianbei warrior looked at the young swordsman with a smile, and seemed to understand what he meant, and said: "Then... may my brother and I go with you?"
Bai Feng remained silent, only responded with the same smile, saying nothing.
"My Han Chinese name is Tuoba Yan, and my younger brother's name is Tuoba Guang." The Xianbei warrior bowed his hands in greeting, then looked behind him, "Hey! Where are they?"
"I just saw him going back to his room with a tired look on his face," Bai Feng said.
"Oh! What time has it been and I still want to sleep!"
The commoner boy was made to smile by the alien warrior in front of him, who was a head taller than him, and then said: "Don't be so anxious, Brother Tuoba. We can wait for the first rooster crow before setting off." Then he returned the favor and said : "My dear, Bai Feng, please give me some advice."
The two reached an agreement in front of the half-broken corner table.
Zhao Kuo and the others next to him remembered what they heard in their hearts, and they were all impressed by this medium-sized commoner boy. Especially the shopkeeper: his previous impression of Bai Feng was still that of an ignorant young man who didn't know prices and was not deeply involved in the world. But in the next moment, all the old perceptions were wiped out.
When Zhao Kuo saw the two men chatting and laughing, he thought they had reached an agreement and wanted to go over to understand the situation.
"Brother Bai! Seeing that you two were having such a good time talking to each other, I almost couldn't bear to interrupt the conversation." Then he looked at Tuoba Yan meaningfully, and the two looked at each other for a long time. Then Zhao Kuo grabbed Bai Feng's arm, stayed away from the Xianbei Tuoba Yan, lowered his voice and said, "How can you ignore my wishes and directly reach an agreement with others? I hired you!"
Seeing Zhao Kuo almost grinning, Bai Feng looked contented and said, "This is the most reasonable strategy at the moment. If Brother Zhao has a better way, you don't have to act according to my wishes." .”
"If there is a better way, do I need your help?" Zhao Kuo muttered reluctantly.
"Brother Zhao, please try to let go of your prejudices and accept them slowly." Bai Feng faced the young man in front of him who was half a head taller than himself, put a hand on his shoulder, and said like coaxing a child: "Without them, neither of us would have survived tonight, so they can be regarded as half of our saviors!"
After careful consideration, Zhao Kuo had no choice but to listen to Bai Feng's advice, go to show his goodwill to Tuoba Yan, and promised to give generous rewards after the success. The matter has finally come to an end, and you can finally enjoy this moment of peace.
After everyone went back to their rooms to rest, only Bai Feng stayed where he was, waving the iron sword he had just found. After trying out the new weapon, he wanted to sit down and rest, but his attention was suddenly captured by the flickering fire on the candlestick.
It turned out that the wick was about to burn out, so the young swordsman naturally subconsciously wanted to replace it. When I got closer, I felt trapped by the small warmth, as if I was deep in thought, recalling some past events.
He stared at the fire for a moment, until it was completely extinguished. Walking to the door of the inn, he looked in the direction that the Xianbei native Tuoba Chen was looking just now - the direction he came from, and said silently: "I... will definitely come back..."
After the first rooster crow in the morning, the four people who had made an appointment got ready to go. Just as Bai Feng stepped out of the inn door, the shopkeeper's voice stopped the four of them.
"Dear ladies, please stay!"
Bai Feng hesitated for a moment and asked in confusion: "What's wrong? Is the rent money not enough?"
"We are talking about rent money! You are my saviors! Needless to say, my store will definitely not be able to continue. So I plan to leave here and go back to my hometown. That's my guy... Look at myself There is no guarantee. If we bring one more person with us, wouldn’t it make the journey even more dangerous? So..."
"So you want him to come with us?"
"Hey... that's right..." the shopkeeper responded quickly, "I picked up that child from a run-down village. I have been keeping him as a boy by my side since that day. He has not seen much of the world. However, he He is proficient in all chores such as laundry and cooking! He can also help you on the way. Besides, it is better for him to follow you few knights with strong martial arts skills than to follow an old man like me..."
Bai Feng looked at A Bian, the young man hiding behind the shopkeeper, with a little pity in his eyes, and said, "Yes, yes, but we don't take in people who don't work." Bai Feng said as he untied his clothes. Baifeng said, "In addition to the chores like washing and cooking, I have one more thing to ask Brother A-Bian." After that, Bai Feng handed the flute and gourd he was carrying to A-Bian, and said, "These two things , it is very important to me, brother A-Bian, please keep it safe."
"Can I?" A-Bian's tongue began to tremble again.
"From now on, you are our partner."
Suddenly, the shopkeeper gave a few instructions to A-Bian before leaving, which made A-Bian burst into tears like a girl. In the end, it was Bai Feng who repeatedly promised to protect A-Bian that the two "father and son" were separated.
In this way, Zhao Kuo, Bai Feng and the other five people started their journey on the mountain path washed by the morning light.
