IDWBE -Chapter 194 Those Who Miss Home

Among the sounds of combat, the loudest were indeed those two fools. He seemed to even hear the whistling of the hammers, followed by one agonized scream after another.

The shouts from below were growing louder and louder.

Boom! Boom! Two strikes hit the window with a torch. The window burst open, and the torch ignited inside the room.

Ye Qiu stood up, grabbed a flower branch from the vase, and with a flick of his hand, the torch went out, still smoking.

Looking up, he saw another incoming torch. He lifted the branch again, and the torch fell back outside into the crowd below.

Standing at the window, he watched the dark mass of people below, wielding torches and broadswords, attacking the two fools—and still managed to throw the torches back down, knocking them all over.

Seeing Ye Qiu at the window, five or six men leapt up with their blades raised.

Ye Qiu used the branch like a sword, sweeping across them. The men didn’t even have time to scream before falling to the ground.

Liu Ruyan watched, heart pounding.

Those men had been Third-Rank and Fourth-Rank Secret Guards, skilled operatives. Yet none of them managed even a single move against this man! And he was wielding a soft, fragile flower branch!

His skill was unfathomable.

“One-two-one…”

“Official investigation in progress! Bystanders stand aside!”

Not far off, a long line of torches approached from a distance.

The Sanhe constables had arrived.

With overwhelming numbers, they quickly suppressed the assassination attempt.

“Fifty-plus men… not a single survivor?”

Chen Xinluo’s face went pale.

“Boss,” Wang Xu said helplessly, “these people are brutal even to themselves. When a mission fails, they either slit their own throats or crush the poison hidden in their teeth, dying instantly. There’s no chance to stop them.”

“This is the Secret Guards,” Liu Ruyan said matter-of-factly. “No survivors when missions fail.”

“Truly ruthless,” Wang Xu said, shrinking his neck. “I don’t have the courage to slash myself… it must hurt terribly.”

Chen Xinluo asked, “Anyone escape?”

“Boss, don’t worry,” Wang Xu replied. “Everyone coming and going here—even a mosquito is checked carefully for sex. Not a single one got away.”

“We can’t relax. Continue the investigation. The Secret Guards’ influence in Sanhe must be completely uprooted,” Chen Xinluo gritted his teeth. “They shouldn’t have come here in the first place.”

After the Sanhe constables finished collecting the bodies, it fell to the sanitation workers of Baiyun City to clean up.

In the dead of night, they hauled water and scrubbed the streets, cleaning up blood and debris. Twenty-some people worked until dawn.

Sun Yi’s mother was among the sanitation workers. With a family of five, living in Sanhe meant she couldn’t rely entirely on her son.

Though tiring, sanitation work paid a few dozen coins a month, enough to help support the household.

At home, her husband Sun Du had already prepared breakfast: a full pot of porridge. She covered her mouth and waved him off. “I can’t eat.”

The smell of blood while cleaning had already made her nauseous; now she couldn’t stomach anything.

“Not feeling well?” Sun Du asked. “If it’s too much, we don’t have to do it. Cleaning in the dead of night—it’s not fair to us.”

He was an experienced cart driver and could earn a living anywhere. Now he helped Baiyun merchants transport goods, earning a silver or two per month.

“Yeah, if it’s too much, don’t do it,” Sun Yi said, yawning as he came from the inner room. “We don’t need your few coins anyway.”

He regretted taking on the job of head instructor. Being the official head instructor sounded prestigious, but there was no extra profit. A month’s pay wasn’t even as much as a palace guard received. Compared to when he had been a gatekeeper, it was much less.

“Easy for you to say,” Old Madam Sun said. “Household expenses don’t stop. Can your little monthly pay cover all social obligations?”

Sun Yi smiled wryly. He knew he didn’t have enough. The more people you know, the wider your social circle. Weddings, funerals, births, birthdays—all require contributions.

If everyone else went and you didn’t? What kind of example would that be? He was the head instructor! He couldn’t afford to lose face.

This was the trouble of the well-off. He finally understood why officials were so eager to grab money—without it, how could you survive?

Sun Du waved his hand. “Enough. This place is better than Ankang City. Big, spacious house, a backyard for vegetables and livestock—no need to buy extras. Fewer relatives to deal with—less expense. Here, everything has rules, less suffering. Life is for comfort, after all.”

“Why not say the hot weather saves on fabric too?” Old Madam Sun rolled her eyes and went back to rest.

Sun Cheng dragged his head, listless, to the courtyard. Sun Yi glared at him. “Wash up, eat breakfast, and catch the boat. Late and you miss it. When you get to Bird-Release Island, work properly—don’t lose my people. I asked your elder brother Han Deqing personally to get you here. If you slack off, I won’t care later.”

Sun Cheng had long given up hope of continuing the imperial exams. With the current state of the court, being an official wasn’t promising either. So he relied on Han Deqing to secure him a clerk job at the Maritime Trade Bureau—at least he had a salary and wouldn’t starve.

“I know,” Sun Cheng sighed. “I had great ambitions… now I’ve fallen to a minor clerk. Sad and lamentable.”

Sun Yi gritted his teeth. “Stop whining. Work properly. Follow your brother’s instructions. If I hear you being stubborn, I’ll come over and beat you.”

“Yeah,” Sun Du added, “your elder brother is right. You’re young and inexperienced; don’t act impulsively. Listen to advice.”

“Oh, my forgetful brain… I forgot you were leaving today.”

Old Madam Sun came out again, helping pack Sun Cheng’s belongings, tears streaming. “You’re going to that godforsaken place alone… how can that be good?”

Sun Du scolded, “He’s grown up! If you can, tie him to your waist?”

“You’re so cruel! That’s still your son!” Old Madam Sun cried more.

The three men were helpless.

Sun Cheng used the excuse of washing to escape quickly.

After breakfast and dressing, his father and brother hitched the carriage and helped load his luggage.

Just as he stepped out, his mother grabbed him, looked outside, and secretly pressed a handkerchief-wrapped packet of coins into his hand.

“It’s not like home out there—everything costs money. Take more; it’s always safe to be prepared.”

“I have enough,” Sun Cheng said, seeing her on the verge of tears, reluctantly taking it.

Fang Pi had been watching all this from the wall. Feeling a pang in his chest, he climbed down, holding back the emotions.

The Sun family reached the west bank, where a passenger boat waited.

As trade with Bird-Release Island grew, clever people bought passenger boats for transport business. Only three trips a month, at fixed times.

The dock was already lined with dozens of people.

Bird-Release Island was now a free port with heavy shipping traffic. Loading and unloading required many hands; no shortage of work.

Here, Sun Yi’s role as head instructor mattered. After briefing the boatman, he and his father helped his brother with luggage, preventing anyone from sneaking aboard.

After instructing his father, Sun Yi disembarked.

Watching the boat drift away, the two returned home.

The sun rose high; Baiyun City entered its daily “grill mode.”

Fang Pi’s eyes were red and swollen, listless.

Hong An sat with him by the riverbank for a long moment before asking, “What’s wrong?”

“I miss my mother,” Fang Pi said, tears falling again.

Hong An remained silent. Unsure whether she should or shouldn’t think of her, she handed a handkerchief. “Did she beat you?”

“Yes,” Fang Pi sobbed, nodding.

“Then stop thinking about her,” Hong An said. “If she hit you, why think of her?”

Fang Pi shouted, “My mother is the best in the world!”

“I miss home too,” Hong An said, arms wrapped around her knees, head resting on them. “But I don’t want to go back. Father beat me, mother beat me—hard. She tried to kill me; I survived and she sold me to my master. My name is Hong An. I’m no longer a Sun.”

Fang Pi wiped his tears, eyes red. “Do you hate your mother?”

They had known each other for three years, but this was the first time Hong An spoke of her family.

“Yes.”

This time Hong An answered without hesitation, tears sliding down her delicate face.

As they spoke, they heard more crying.

Turning, they saw Yu Xiaoshi and A-Dai already in tears.

Fang Pi asked, “What about you?”

“I miss my mother too,” A-Dai said.

Yu Xiaoshi wiped his tears with his arm. “Mom’s oyster pancakes were the best.”

“Then let’s stop thinking about it,” Fang Pi forced a smile. “Let’s go chase monkeys.”

He was the first to stand.

Ever since the prince ordered the city to drive away the monkeys, Baiyun City erupted with unprecedented enthusiasm—any monkey seen was beaten!

The city had long suffered from monkeys. Now, idle time meant eating, sleeping, and beating monkeys.

In just a few days, the surrounding area had no monkeys left. Most had fled to deeper forests.