TRWSB – Chapter 192 Heading to Jin State

Qi Heng stepped out the door and bumped right into Zuo Yunfei.

“What are you doing here?” Qi Heng asked irritably.

“Came to check on you, of course! So, did you get the answers you wanted? Now do you believe that Qi Shaorong sold you to me?” Zuo Yunfei asked mockingly.

Qi Heng took a deep breath and snapped, “Don’t get it twisted—Young Master never asked you for money. How could that be selling me? He just didn’t know your true nature, so he asked you to look after me.”

“Qi Shaorong didn’t ask for money because he thinks you’re cheap. He gave you to me for free. Honestly, someone like you—if I hadn’t been kind enough to take you, even if Qi Shaorong paid someone else to take you, they wouldn’t have accepted,” Zuo Yunfei said viciously.

“If you don’t want to be involved with me, that’s perfect. I don’t want to be tangled up with you either. You can just ignore what Young Master said,” Qi Heng shot back fiercely.

“How could I do that? I was entrusted with a task, and I intend to fulfill it. No matter what, I promised Qi Shaorong I’d take good care of you. Going back on my word isn’t my style,” Zuo Yunfei said indifferently.

Qi Heng glared at him furiously, then turned to walk back inside.

Zuo Yunfei grabbed him and leaned in close to whisper, “Get yourself ready. We could be leaving at any moment. When the time comes, I hope you’re not late. If you oversleep, I won’t hesitate to drag you out of bed. Let’s just hope your sleeping position isn’t too indecent.”

Qi Heng ground his teeth and muttered, “Pervert.”

Watching Qi Heng walk away, Zuo Yunfei couldn’t help but smile.

Jiang He walked up beside him and asked, “Young Master Zuo, is Young Master Heng coming back to Jin Country with us?”

Zuo Yunfei nodded. “Yes.”

“Why isn’t he going with Qi Shaorong? Why’s he coming with us instead? Don’t tell me… you and he are finally getting somewhere?” Jiang He asked, testing the waters.

Zuo Yunfei’s expression shifted as he snarled, “Getting somewhere? What could possibly be going on between me and Qi Heng?”

Jiang He watched Zuo Yunfei’s retreating figure, a little puzzled. Zuo Yunfei had seemed angry just now—but not genuinely angry.

…

The next day, the caravan for Jin Country was waiting outside the courtyard early in the morning.

Jiang Qinxin walked up to Zuo Yunfei. “Young Master Zuo, His Highness the Prince doesn’t appear to be coming with us. Everyone else is here—we can go.”

Zuo Yunfei leaned against a carriage, one foot tapping lazily. “The prince isn’t coming, but someone else is. Wait a little longer.”

Jiang Qinxin forced a smile. “Alright.”

Qi Heng walked out of the house. Seeing the fully-prepared caravan, his expression flickered with a trace of awkwardness.

Zuo Yunfei came over to him. “When you’re traveling with others, try to be on time. Making everyone wait for you—have you no shame?”

Qi Heng took a deep breath and replied, “Sorry. But if you’d told me earlier, I wouldn’t have been late.”

Zuo Yunfei curled his lip. “Passing the blame isn’t a good look. I did tell you. If anyone’s to blame, it’s your own slowpoke self.”

Qi Heng turned, wanting to retort, but Zuo Yunfei cut him off with, “Just get in the carriage, Manager Qi.”

Qi Heng glanced at the largest carriage. “This whole thing’s for me? That’s very generous.”

“You’ve got it wrong. I’m riding in this one too. On the road, you think you get your own carriage? Dream on. I don’t know what kind of treatment you had before, but for now, you’ll have to make do. Manager Qi—you don’t mind, do you?” Zuo Yunfei asked.

Qi Heng frowned. “I don’t want to ride with you. Put me with someone else.”

“With your terrible personality, who else could stand you besides me? Either get in or—” Zuo Yunfei leaned in close and whispered, “I’ll tie you to the roof. Unless, of course, you’re not afraid of being humiliated.”

Qi Heng: “…”

…

Qi Heng glared at Zuo Yunfei for a long time, then sighed and resignedly got into the carriage.

Zuo Yunfei chuckled and climbed in after him.

Jiang He walked up to Jiang Qinxin. “Alright, Qinxin. Let’s go.”

Jiang Qinxin took a deep breath to calm herself and replied, “Okay.”

She kept glancing back at Zuo Yunfei’s carriage, her emotions swirling.

That particular carriage was Zuo Yunfei’s private one, brought from the Zuo estate. Zuo Yunfei was known for his cleanliness and strong territorial instincts—he didn’t let others near it. In the capital, many people believed that being invited to share that carriage meant Zuo Yunfei had accepted you.

Jiang Qinxin hadn’t expected that Zuo Yunfei would actually let someone ride in it with him this time. But that someone—Qi Heng—didn’t look too pleased about it.

Qi Heng leaned on his hand, gazing out the window, ignoring Zuo Yunfei completely.

“This is your first time away from Qi Shaorong, isn’t it?” Zuo Yunfei asked.

Qi Heng glanced at him. “Yeah. Since I started working for Young Master, I’ve always been by his side, handling his daily needs. This is my first time leaving him.”

“Well, now he has Zhuang Hao. He doesn’t need you anymore. He kicked you out,” Zuo Yunfei said with a sly smile.

Qi Heng rolled his eyes. “Young Master’s not like that. Besides, he said if the ruler doesn’t give him a new assignment, he might go to Jin Country to expand his cosmetics business. Maybe we’ll see each other again soon.”

“If Qi Shaorong goes to Jin Country, you’ll be happy, won’t you?” Zuo Yunfei asked.

Qi Heng nodded. “Of course. If he comes to Jin Country, I’d be happy.”

Zuo Yunfei: “…”

“So, what are you going to Jin Country for?” Zuo Yunfei changed the topic.

“Some old business I need to settle,” Qi Heng replied.

Zuo Yunfei folded his arms. “Let me guess—you stole something years ago, and your conscience finally caught up with you, so now you’re going back to pay your dues?”

“You really have an imagination. I’m a scoundrel, remember? I don’t care about what I owe others. But what others owe me—I remember that clearly. I’m not going back to repay a debt. I’m going to collect one. Got it?” Qi Heng said irritably.

Zuo Yunfei stared at him and grumbled, “You’re so vindictive—who’d want to stick around you?”

“Good question. If you’re scared, Young Master Zuo, then maybe stay far away from me,” Qi Heng replied.

Zuo Yunfei leaned lazily against the carriage wall. “Others might be afraid of you. But I’m not. You’re so devious, I have to keep an eye on you to make sure you don’t cause trouble.”

Qi Heng lowered his head, eyes shadowed. “When I make my move, you’d better stay out of the way. Otherwise, you’ll regret it.”

Zuo Yunfei: “…”

Qi Heng raised his head and looked at Zuo Yunfei. Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he sneered, “Don’t just talk about me. What about you? I heard you got dumped? How pitiful!”

Zuo Yunfei replied irritably, “Where did you hear that from?”

“My young master told me. He said you were dumped by a woman and got mentally traumatized. Your mindset twisted after that. So pitiful. He told me not to stoop to your level.”

Zuo Yunfei snapped, “Your young master talks nonsense.”

Qi Heng shrugged nonchalantly. “So what if you got dumped? Nothing shameful about it. I’ve seen you embarrass yourself plenty of times. Getting dumped by a woman is really nothing.”

Zuo Yunfei: “…”

In the villa.

Qi Shaorong stumbled out half-awake, glanced at Zhuang Hao, and asked, “Morning! You’re up so early?”

“It’s not early anymore. Zuo Yunfei’s convoy left first thing in the morning,” Zhuang Hao replied.

“What! What about Qi Heng?” Qi Shaorong asked anxiously.

“Of course, he went with them.”

Qi Shaorong rolled his eyes and said with displeasure, “That Zuo Yunfei really is impatient! He left so quickly I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to Qi Heng.”

Zhuang Hao looked at him and thought to himself: If you hadn’t slept in, you would’ve had time to say goodbye.

“Maybe he was afraid you’d change your mind,” Zhuang Hao said aloud.

Qi Shaorong rested his chin on his hand and said, “I wonder if leaving Qi Heng in Zuo Yunfei’s care was the right decision…”

“Trust me, giving Qi Heng to Zuo Yunfei was the best choice you could’ve made,” Zhuang Hao replied.

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao and said, “You seem to have a good impression of this young master from the Zuo family.”

Zhuang Hao smiled, “That’s because he’s actually pretty decent. Unlike that idiot Hailing.”

“Qi Heng doesn’t seem to like him much,” Qi Shaorong commented.

“He’s just throwing a tantrum. Talents like Zuo Yunfei are rare these days. If Qi Heng can end up with him, it’ll be good for both of them.” After all, a love rival’s suitor can sometimes be the best ally.

Qi Shaorong: “…”

“Since Princess Yueting already has a confirmed fiancé, we should head home soon. I wonder how badly the Fourth Prince will take this failed trip,” Qi Shaorong said with some concern.

Zhuang Hao chuckled. “Don’t worry about that. The Fourth Prince is just fine. After realizing it was hopeless, he went off to visit a brothel. This morning, he even told me that the pleasure houses of Yun Kingdom are famous across all nations. Full of beauties.”

Qi Shaorong: “…” The Fourth Prince is… surprisingly optimistic.

“Let’s head back first. I really don’t feel easy letting Qi Heng go to Jin on his own. If the Sovereign has no objections, I may need to make a trip to Jin as well,” Qi Shaorong said.

Zhuang Hao rolled his eyes and said, “What are you so worried about? Zuo Yunfei won’t let anything happen to Qi Heng. Besides, over in Jin, there are people from the Sea Clan and the Trade Alliance. Qi Heng can get support from both sides anytime.”

Qi Shaorong took a deep breath. “That’s true, but still…”

“No buts,” Zhuang Hao interrupted. “Qi Heng isn’t a child. He has his own life. Besides, you’re not his father. You shouldn’t be meddling so much.”

Qi Shaorong: “…”