Chapter Thirty-Four: The Gap Between Life and Dreams
Chapter Thirty-Four: The Gap Between Life and Dreams
Wang Rouhua stared foolishly at the gold, silver, and jewels before her, while Tie Xinyuan picked up a piece of gold, feeling so frustrated he wanted to curse aloud.
It was one thing to be rewarded with gold, but why did they have to stamp the mark of a fox on it?
That brand was officially registered; in other words, the Tie family couldn’t spend a single piece of gold without first bringing the fox to the authorities to explain each transaction. Only with the fox’s consent could the gold be exchanged for copper or silver coins.
As for those jewels, they could be hung on the fox for all to see, but if anyone in the family used them, it would be overstepping their bounds.
Now, the fox held the highest status in the Tie household.
The title "General of Martial Valor" had swiftly elevated the Tie family to the ranks of Tokyo’s elite. If the emperor had his way, the Tie family should even hire servants to attend to the fox.
Fortunately, Bao Zheng had persuaded the emperor in court, arguing that if beasts were valued above men, future generations would surely follow suit.
As soon as Wang Jian left the Tie household, Tie Xinyuan grabbed the fox and stripped off all its adornments. What sort of creature would a fox be with a pearl crown and a garment studded with pearls?
Even the emperor’s gift of a beef leg was not spared for the fox; Wang Rouhua specially braised the meat and sold it at Seventh Brother’s noodle shop for a handsome sum.
Xiao Qiaoer nodded approvingly as she ate the beef, quite satisfied that Tie Xinyuan had exchanged the plans for the divine crossbow for such things as beef.
For that invention, her parents had lost their lives on the road to Tokyo; for that invention, her own leg had nearly been ruined by Niu Er.
Now, the thing that had caused so much harm was finally converted into beef—how could she not devour it with reckless abandon?
“If only we could buy this deserted garden,” Xiao Qiaoer mused, picking her teeth after the meal, speaking to Tie Xinyuan who was just as stuffed and immobile. She felt rich now.
“Dream on! That money isn’t enough to buy even a single flower garden here, let alone this vast abandoned estate, and the authorities would never sell it anyway.”
“So you’re saying your family’s fox became an official since yesterday?”
“Exactly. General of Martial Valor, eleventh rank in the military hierarchy. Although it’s an honorary title, it’s equivalent in status to Yang Huaiyu’s father.”
“Sounds like a high-ranking official.”
“Just know that, from now on, the fox can strut through Tokyo as it pleases.”
Shuizhu’er was cradling the fox, which was gnawing on a bone, rubbing its oily mouth against the fox’s fur without minding its musky scent.
Tie Xinyuan looked contentedly at the children who had eaten their fill, smiling as he said to Xiao Qiaoer, “Now we have enough silver to buy a courtyard. At least a three-sectioned house shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Not within the inner city!” Xiao Qiaoer warned gravely.
Tie Xinyuan nodded, “I think so too. Everything you do tends to cost lives; if we lived in the inner city, we’d be under constant scrutiny.”
---
Xiao Qiaoer chuckled, “In this world, good people can’t survive. I’m going to be a villain from now on—what do you think?”
Tie Xinyuan didn’t respond, instead rolling over to look at Xiao Qiaoer. “Do you intend to study?”
Xiao Qiaoer shook her head, “I’m not cut out for it, but a few of them could go with you to the academy. We don’t seek wealth and glory, just to learn a few words.”
Tie Xinyuan stood up, “Let’s go, Mother should be back soon.”
Xiao Qiaoer nodded, “Let’s go. I bet your mother will be surprised when she hears you plan to learn blacksmithing.”
Tie Xinyuan merely smiled, calling to the fox. The fox lazily stood up, having just enjoyed a satisfying scratch from the younger children.
Returning home under the setting sun was Tie Xinyuan’s daily ritual. He didn’t know how long such days would last, but however much time remained, he was determined to live them earnestly.
Thus, on Tokyo’s streets, there appeared a young boy with hands behind his head, whistling, and accompanied by a snow-white fox, swaggering through the city.
Perhaps because he was in such good spirits, he failed to notice the two burly men closely following behind. The fox, having abandoned all wild instincts, didn’t believe any of the two-legged creatures in Tokyo could do it harm.
The two men watched Tie Xinyuan enter his home before turning away, surprised that this former beggar now lived at the foot of the imperial city.
It was unexpected, at least for Tang Jinshui.
Since killing Niu Er, Tang Jinshui felt that nothing ever went as planned. So when the two rogues reported their findings, he fell silent.
The wanted notice from Kaifeng County was still posted at the city gates after two months, and the authorities hadn’t given up the search. The reward had risen from five strings of coins to ten.
That was a fortune—especially for rogues with nothing to eat at home. The butchers of the Butcher Gang were itching to catch him for the bounty.
“Big brother, what exactly are you looking for? Wandering aimlessly like this, when will it ever end? Today in the market, it seemed some people were watching us.”
Tang Jinshui painfully pounded his own head, “A diagram—I don’t even know what kind. All I know is if we don’t find it, all of us, our families, everyone will die.”
The rogue scratched his head, puzzled, “Who would kill us?”
Tang Jinshui glanced nervously out the window, whispering, “Brother, trust me just this once. I don’t want to stay in Tokyo either; I have a cousin in Cangzhou. We could start over there. If we survive this, we live—if not, survival will be impossible.”
“Where is the diagram? Let’s just steal it and leave Tokyo immediately. Big brother, it’s not a place for us—whether it’s the authorities or the Butcher Gang, they’ll find us sooner or later.”
The rogues swallowed hard, choosing to trust Tang Jinshui. After living in Tokyo for so long, they knew the taboos.
“It should be in the hands of those beggar children.”
When the rogues heard they only had to deal with a group of beggar children, they relaxed. One said, “Big brother, since we know where the diagram is, let’s act tonight. Kill the beggar kids, take it, and flee.”
Hearing this, Tang Jinshui closed his eyes in anguish. Then, suddenly opening them, he grabbed his cleaver and struck the pillar with a mighty blow.
A loud crack—the pillar split in half, and a pile of copper coins poured out of its hollow core.
---
Tang Jinshui pointed to the coins, his eyes glowing green like the rogues’, “Brother’s right. After this job, we need to flee far away. This money will be our travel funds. I’ve brought out all my savings.”
The rogues exchanged glances and nodded together.
“But this time, we must do it cleanly. Not a single beggar child can escape—especially that boy who always carries a fox. Only then can we settle accounts properly.”
“But his house is right by the imperial city. If we get close, the palace guards will shoot us dead. Big brother, you know that taboo.”
“Then we wait!” Tang Jinshui’s words were resolute.
As the rogues dispersed, Tang Jinshui slumped into a chair, gasping for breath like a catfish thrown onto the riverbank.
He bitterly regretted his decision two months ago. If he’d known Niu Er would cause so much trouble, even if the Lion Gang didn’t want him, he shouldn’t have gotten himself tangled in such a vortex.
Whenever he recalled Niu Er’s chest pierced by the spear, his own chest would ache.
Tang Jinshui left the room, opened a hidden door in the wall, and passed through a long corridor to another small courtyard.
A burly man, as massive as a mountain, sat boldly in the house, a thick iron spear thrust into the blue bricks beside him.
Tang Jinshui tried hard not to look at his concubine, stripped like a lamb, nor at the coarse hands roaming her body.
“Have you found what Grandfather wants?” the giant man asked, glancing sidelong at Tang Jinshui without stopping his movements.
Tang Jinshui quickly bowed, “Grandfather, I am doing everything I can. I’ve found those beggar children, and when they gather, I’ll act and bring every last one to you.”
The giant tossed the naked woman onto the brocade couch and stood with a laugh, “Too late—the diagram has already reached the Emperor of Song.”
Tang Jinshui was aghast, “It can’t be so fast. We haven’t seen any connection between those beggar children and the authorities.”
The giant replied, “The reputation of the white fox’s auspiciousness has spread throughout Tokyo. The divine crossbow diagram Grandfather wanted has already been leaked.”
“That’s not my fault. It’s because you found me too late.”
The giant laughed, “You ran too fast. It took Grandfather nearly two months to track you down. Otherwise, things wouldn’t have come to this.”
Tang Jinshui retreated until his back pressed against the wall. Only then did he remember the knife at his side, and with a roar, he lunged at the giant.
The giant laughed heartily, caught the blade with one hand, and with a slight twist, snatched it from Tang Jinshui’s grasp.
He tossed the knife aside and sneered, “You, a mere rogue, dare raise a blade to a veteran like Grandfather?”
Tang Jinshui bolted for the exit, the giant following at a leisurely pace. With a wave of his hand, a thin iron chain pulled the spear from the bricks.
Seeing Tang Jinshui dash into the corridor, the giant shook the chain, and the spear shot into the passage like a venomous dragon.