Hou Dong heaved a sigh of relief and then shook his head, going inside to change his clothes. He went over the rest of his plan again, wondering if there was something else he hadn’t taken note of yet. He couldn’t come up with anything but he still had a bad feeling about it. What if something went wrong? What if the merchants noticed somehow? What should he do then?
Well, regardless of how much he thought about it, he wouldn’t be able to find a solution now anyway. He could only wait and hope that things would go too much awry. That wasn’t a great plan but it was the only one he had.
Finally, Hou Dong went down to join the others. He unconsciously sought out Kanuen and sat down next to him only to freeze afterward. Yes, this might be a problem. He was much too close to Kanuen. If he continued to be like this when they were on the road with the merchants, then he would be the one to give them away.
He sighed and reached over, patting Kanuen’s hand out of sight. "After we leave the town, we’ll have to keep some distance. Otherwise, they’ll figure things out."
Kanuen nodded. "I thought as much. Then … will I get my own tent?"
Hou Dong tensed. Right, there was something else he hadn’t thought of. If they couldn’t be together, then where would Kanuen sleep? Even though he trusted his men, he didn’t really want Kanuen to be alone with any of them. Especially not after he had seen how Kanuen reacted even to his touch yesterday. "Uh, well … Naturally." He couldn’t bring himself to say any more than that.
Kanuen chuckled when he saw his uncomfortable expression. "Really? Will there be no opportunity for me to sneak into our Master’s tent?"
The men around them laughed.
"Master, you should really think about it. We don’t mind putting up one more tent but wouldn’t you be very lonely if you couldn’t take your beauty with you?"
Hou Dong smiled wryly. "Sun Jin, did yesterday go above your head or something?"
Sun Jin raised his hands and shook his head. "How could it? I’m just looking out for you, Master! I only have your best interest in mind."
Hou Dong shook his head but still took Kanuen’s hand. "If you don’t mind, you can sleep with me. We just have to sneak around a bit."
Next to them, Sun Jin whistled. "Is that what they call a clandestine love affair?"
Duan Bao reached over and slapped the back of his head. "Do you ever think before you talk?"
Sun Jin cursed but shut up. Alright, alright, he already understood. No need to get violent.
Hou Dong smiled and rubbed the back of Kanuen’s hand. He leaned over and lowered his voice so the others wouldn’t hear too much. "Only if you really don’t mind. I would understand if this was difficult for you right now."
Kanuen smiled and squeezed his hand in return. "What are you even saying? Didn’t we already go over that yesterday? I’m alright with it. I trust you. You’re not like those men. Absolutely not."
Hou Dong nodded and stop pursuing the subject. Right, they had already talked about this. As long as Kanuen didn’t say that he had a problem with it or didn’t show that he was uncomfortable, he’d just take it as him not having a problem with it. There was nothing wrong with spending time together. It wasn’t like he was trying to coerce him into doing something he didn’t want to. It was really just sleeping in the same tent, hugging each other to sleep. There shouldn’t be anything too bad about it.
The men finally finished their breakfast in a good mood and left the inn, returning to the main street where the merchants were slowly getting up as if they had all the time in the world.
Even though they weren’t out in the desert yet, Hou Dong’s men had put on the clothes that they had agreed on and pulled up the cloth to cover their faces as much as possible. Kanuen was standing in the middle, his figure not too obvious between the other men.
Hou Dong only glanced over and heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that Kanuen really couldn’t be made out with his height being close to that of the other men. The merchants would need to take a closer look to notice that something was off with him. He really doubted that they to do that though. After all, they didn’t care about his men.
He motioned for the others to wait and then went up to the door of the inn, motioning at the servant standing in front of the door to get the merchants out. They had agreed to leave today and leaving early was in their interest since it would help to ensure that people wouldn’t be able to catch up to them even if they noticed what had happened to that rich man. The longer they waited the higher the risk was.
The merchant grumbled when the warriors they had hired actually dared to demand they set off before they were ready. Hou Dong didn’t care at all. When Mister Zai came out to tell him that they definitely wouldn’t set off right now, he only scoffed at him.
"You don’t want to leave? Then I’d suggest you hand over our remuneration. And I’m not talking about the amount you wanted to give us after lying to us. I’m talking about the amount of money I asked for in the oasis. If you don’t do so … Well, I don’t mind going around and telling every fucking mercenary group here in the town that you are a group of merchants that will hire somebody and then not pay them at the end. I’d really like to see how you’ll get back to Hua country if I do that. Don’t think just because we’re not mercenaries, they wouldn’t believe us. My reputation is good, even in Kai. Much better than yours I bet."
Mister Zai gaped. He certainly wouldn’t have thought that this guy would dare to talk to him like this. He wanted to scold him and tell him off but then he remembered the day before. Right, they had sold off that boy. Most likely, this guy was still angry about that. After all, he had had some fun with him for quite a while. Most likely, he hadn’t been happy to let him go.
Well, whatever. He didn’t care about that. It was only important that they needed somebody to escort them back. He didn’t doubt that Hou Dong might make true on his words this time. After all, what he said was true. They couldn’t risk offending all the mercenary teams in the town. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to safely get back home. That wasn’t worth it.
This guy … he really had been smart, waiting with bringing up this thread after they had reached the town. He wouldn’t be able to get out of this as easily as back in the oasis. Still, he refused to let this warrior gain the upper hand this easily!
Mister Zai gave a strained smile and waved. "Aiya, Mister Hou, what are you even talking about? We would never do something like that. It’s just that we’re not quite finished yet so you’ll still have to wait for a while."
Hou Dong clicked his tongue. "Well, then I suggest you hurry up. If you’re not out here in an hour, then we will be. So you should better tell your servants to hurry. I’m not joking. You can be sure about that." His gaze that hadn’t been happy from the very beginning darkened even further.
He had never liked these guys and he had no trouble whatsoever to show his dislike. Especially not after what had happened yesterday. Just thinking about Kanuen’s frightened face he was boiling with rage. Actually, he was quite amazed that he was able to hold back from punching the guy in the face. He would surely deserve it.
Mister Zai’s expression also darkened. "You shouldn’t go overboard, Mister Hou!"
"That’s what I thought when you lied to me and then dared to threaten me when I brought it up. So I’m already past that point. So either you do as I say and we’ll end this … so-called cooperation civilly or I’ll make sure things will turn out badly for you. My men and I can do without the payment. Can you do without your last bit of reputation? Because I don’t mind smearing it in the whole kingdom of Kai or back in Hua country. And you sure as hell shouldn’t doubt that I have the means to do so. I’ve gotten to know lots of people over the years."
The merchant had no idea what it was but he suddenly shuddered at Hou Dong’s words. It couldn’t be that this person really knew that many people, could it? Then again, there had to be a reason why he had been pointed to this person for help when he couldn’t find anybody to accompany them through the desert. Maybe … he needed to take this seriously. Well, it couldn’t hurt to at least tell the others.
Mister Zai gave another smile, trying to look a little bit more sincere this time and then motioned inside. "You see, I’m not the only merchant in this group. Let me at least go and tell the others. We’ll try to get ready as fast as possible. Will that be alright?"
Hou Dong narrowed his eyes. "You seem to have misheard what I just said. I told you to get ready in an hour. If you’re not here by then …" He turned to his men and looked at Sun Jin who waved to the side of the street. One of the beggars came over and was given a coin.
Sun Jin grinned. "You. You stay here for a while. It could be that we have something to do for you in about an hour. We’ll pay more if you can do what we’ll ask you to do by then. You understood that?"
The man tucked the coin into his clothes and nodded eagerly, planting his butt on the spot right next to the entrance of the inn.
Mister Zai paled. These beggars would do anything for money. He knew that fully well. If Hou Dong was crazy enough to pay them a high amount of money, then the message he wanted to have spread, would be spread through the city in only a few minutes. After all, word-of-mouth traveled far. And if his name got smeared in such a manner, then they really wouldn’t be able to get any of the local mercenary troops to work with them ever again. And they were mostly doing business with Kai. That really would be the end.
The merchant’s lips twitched in fury. "We’ll be here in half an hour."
Hou Dong smiled behind the cloth. "That’s what I wanted to hear." He turned away and motioned at his men. "You get ready to set off. I’m sick of this place." He turned to his horse and started to go through his bags as if he really wanted to leave right the next moment.
Mister Zai shook his head and ran inside, hissing at the servant to go and tell the others. Naturally, the merchants weren’t happy. Still, for the fear of their future profits, they hurried and indeed managed to stand in front of the inn in less than an hour. Hou Dong didn’t say anything and just motioned at his men who got onto their horses in a swift motion.
The merchants who were still worried that word might be spread about any mistake they had done, hurried to get on their own horses that the servants were bringing over and didn’t take the time to even glance at Hou Dong’s men. Kanuen remained undiscovered and thus, the group finally left the border town of the country of Kai and returned to the desert, making their way back to the oasis where fate had brought Hou Dong and Kanuen together for the first time.
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