When the Snow Ends, Old Friends Part - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

They retreated all the way to an old salt warehouse beneath the river embankment.

Once the warehouse doors were shut, the howling wind, snow, and the sounds of slaughter outside were muffled behind a heavy barrier.

Gu Tingyun leaned against the edge of a table, the blood on his shoulder flowing incessantly.

Wen Bieyu didn’t bother with useless chatter. She forced him to sit down and tore open his sleeve.

The arrow wound was deep.

The flesh around the edges had already begun to turn black.

“Poisoned,” she said.

Gu Tingyun gave a soft grunt of affirmation. “It’s not serious.”

“Do you have some sort of misunderstanding regarding the words ‘not serious’?”

“It’s fine. I won’t die just yet.”

Wen Bieyu looked up at him, her gaze piercingly cold. “Then when exactly do you plan on dying?”

The warehouse fell silent.

Liu Shisan leaned against the door, arms crossed, saying nothing.

Shen Yanqiu stood by the window watching the falling snow, acting as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

Ma Huichuan, however, let out a cold sneer. “Is there a single day where he isn’t calculating how to die?”

Gu Tingyun acted as if he didn’t notice the barb in those words, lowering his eyes. “Xiaochuan, you still hold a grudge over what happened back then.”

“Shouldn’t I?” Ma Huichuan took a step forward. “You were the one who pushed me out back then. You told me to run, so I ran. When I looked back, Zhao Ye Tang was already ablaze. I’ve lived until today, wearing this official uniform, and every single day I wonder-why was it me who got to live?”

Gu Tingyun remained silent for a moment.

“Because you were the youngest.”

“Bullshit!” Ma Huichuan’s eyes were rimmed with red. “Why does the youngest deserve to live? Why did you get to decide to push me away? Did you ever ask if I was willing?”

Gu Tingyun looked up at him.

This time, the smile finally vanished from his face.

“That night, no one had the luxury of being willing or unwilling,” he said. “I simply chose the method that would allow one person to survive.”

“You chose?” Ma Huichuan’s voice trembled. “What right did you have to choose for anyone else?”

Silence returned to the warehouse.

Wen Bieyu applied medicine to Gu Tingyun’s wound. Her hands were steady as she bandaged him, but her touch was anything but gentle.

Gu Tingyun furrowed his brows but did not flinch.

Liu Shisan suddenly spoke up. “Xiaochuan.”

Ma Huichuan didn’t respond.

Liu Shisan continued, “If you want to settle old scores with him, wait until we make it out of here alive. For now, listen to the business he has to say.”

Gu Tingyun glanced at him.

Liu Shisan didn’t look back, merely lowering his head to fiddle with his wine gourd.

Shen Yanqiu turned around. “Speak. Why is Han Su so intent on making his move in Yan Hui City?”

Gu Tingyun explained, “Because the Imperial Inspector arrives tomorrow. Xue Zhongshan can’t remove the items from the Armory, so his only option is to throw the city into chaos first. Once the chaos starts, the Garrison Camp will lock down the city, and the Investigation Bureau will focus on arresting people. When the Imperial Inspector arrives, all he will see is the remnants of Zhao Ye Tang causing trouble, a failure of the local defenses, and civilians dying from poison. At that point, who will bother to check if the ledgers are real or fake?”

“How do we get into that cellar?” Pei Zhaoshuang asked.

“You can’t get through the main gate of the Armory; Han Su’s men are on rotation there. We have to go down through the abandoned well at the back.”

“Will you lead the way?”

“I can’t go,” Gu Tingyun said. “I’m the person Han Su wants to find most right now. The moment I show my face, the Armory will be sealed tight.”

“And yet you expect us to trust you,” Shen Yanqiu remarked.

Gu Tingyun nodded. “That is why I am giving you this.”

He reached into his robes and produced a bronze medallion.

On it was Han Su’s private seal.

Ma Huichuan snatched it away, his expression shifting instantly. “Where did this come from?”

“I stole it.”

“Gu Tingyun,” Liu Shisan finally looked up at him. “Just what kind of thing have you turned yourself into while lurking by Xue Zhongshan’s side?”

Gu Tingyun let out a small laugh. “You little brat.”

No one else laughed.

After finishing the bandages, Wen Bieyu suddenly asked, “Do you still remember the last words Hall Master Xie said before he died?”

Gu Tingyun froze.

Everyone in the warehouse turned to look at him.

After a long silence, he whispered, “I remember.”

Even Liu Shisan couldn’t force a smile anymore.

Xie Qingya had only said one thing before he died.

“Don’t seek revenge for me. Protect our people first.”

Ten years had passed, and none of them had forgotten.

“So, all these years,” Shen Yanqiu said, looking at Gu Tingyun, “what exactly have you been protecting?”

Gu Tingyun answered slowly.

“Protecting that defense map so it doesn’t leave the Northern Lands.”

“Protecting the survivors of Zhao Ye Tang so they aren’t hunted to extinction.”

“And protecting an opportunity.”

“An opportunity to drag both Xue Zhongshan and Han Su down together.”

Having said this, he seemed to have run out of patience. He reached out and spread a rough map of Yan Hui City on the table.

“The guard rotation changes tonight at the Hour of the Ox.”

“Pei Zhaoshuang, return to the Garrison Office and keep your father’s inner circle stable. Don’t let Han Su use military orders to mobilize troops.”

“Shen Yanqiu, Xiaochuan, and Liu Shisan-you three go to the Armory.”

“Bieyu stays here to prepare the antidote.”

“What about you?” Wen Bieyu asked.

Gu Tingyun’s finger landed on a small courtyard in the west of the city.

“I’m going to see someone.”

Liu Shisan immediately cursed when he heard that. “You’re doing this again?”

Gu Tingyun looked up at him.

Liu Shisan’s expression was incredibly grim. “Have you had this planned all along? You do all the dirty work, everyone else gets a clear path out, and in the end, you pick the cleanest way to die for yourself?”

Gu Tingyun didn’t even try to argue.

Liu Shisan laughed, a cold, bitter sound. “You’re a real calculating bastard, aren’t you?”

Gu Tingyun remained silent for a moment before saying, “Shisan, if I don’t pin Han Su down first, none of you will be able to get into the Armory.”

“Then we go together.”

“No.”

“‘No’ again.” Liu Shisan stared at him. “Gu Tingyun, do you think you’re the only one who can shoulder a burden?”

Gu Tingyun said softly, “I just know which task belongs to whom.”

Liu Shisan nearly laughed from pure anger. “Then do you know that what you’re best at is making decisions for everyone else?”

Gu Tingyun didn’t speak.

Shen Yanqiu suddenly spoke up. “Enough.”

He looked at Gu Tingyun. “You can go pin Han Su down. But if you disappear again, I won’t be the one to clean up your mess this time.”

Gu Tingyun seemed to daze for a moment, then nodded. “Fine.”

Liu Shisan turned and walked away.

When he reached the door, he stopped.

“Gu Tingyun.”

“Yeah?”

“You’d better come back.”

“I know.”

“You don’t know shit.”

After saying that, Liu Shisan pushed the door open and walked out.

Wen Bieyu watched his retreating back and said softly, “He’s reaching his breaking point.”

Gu Tingyun gave a quiet hum of affirmation.

“You are, too.”

Gu Tingyun didn’t answer.

Wen Bieyu stuffed a packet of medicine into his hand.

“One pill every two hours.”

“Alright.”

“If you die before my medicine can save you, I’m never treating you again.”

Gu Tingyun looked up at her and finally managed a small smile after a long pause.

“Bieyu.”

“What?”

“Thank you for your hard work these past ten years.”

Wen Bieyu’s fingers faltered.

She didn’t respond to his words, simply turning back to organize her medical chest.

“Get lost.”

Gu Tingyun didn’t linger. He threw on his cloak, pushed open the door, and stepped out into the wind and snow.