Chapter 177

Chapter 177: You Can’t Die

Du Yi Zhi’s gaze darkened, but Du Yi Zhi had no time to deal with that.

These bandits had struck too hard. On Du Yi Zhi’s side, besides A’Jian, everyone was a hunter. They had strength and could fight, but this was their first time killing people, so their hands hesitated.

Now, more or less, they were all wounded.

Among them, the man who took the crossbow bolt for Du Yi Zhi was in the worst condition.

The bolt had sunk into his back. His mouth hung open, and blood choked up from his throat.

One man, who seemed to know him, could not help crying, “Hu Lai! Don’t die! You couldn’t die… Your child still couldn’t even call you Father! Your wife was still at home waiting for you!”

Du Yi Zhi barked, “Stop yelling! Hu Lai still breathed. Clear the cart. Send Hu Lai to the clinic, now!”

Hu Lai’s blood stained the snow red.

Du Yi Zhi had them support Hu Lai face-down onto the cart.

A’Jian pried the wound open for a look and shook his head. “It was too deep. Even if we sent Hu Lai to the clinic, Hu Lai might not make it…”

“Then we still saved Hu Lai!” Du Yi Zhi frowned.

Du Yi Zhi told A’Jian to tie those bandits up and watch them, while Du Yi Zhi followed the cart to the clinic.

As Du Yi Zhi walked, Du Yi Zhi said in a low voice, “Hu Lai, listen carefully. We were going to the clinic right now. If Hu Lai died, I would decide to marry Hu Lai’s wife off to someone else, and I would make Hu Lai’s child call another man Father. But if Hu Lai held on, I guaranteed Hu Lai would follow me and live proudly, and I would even send Hu Lai’s child to study. Did Hu Lai hear me?”

Hu Lai: “…”

The man who had been crying for Hu Lai stared with eyes wide.

Hu Lai couldn’t die!

Boss Du was such a good man. How could Boss Du say something so terrifying?

But the man quickly understood. Boss Du was trying to make Hu Lai hold onto his last breath.

Everyone else understood too.

Still, in the eyes of these hunters, a crossbow bolt buried that deep into the chest was not something that could be treated.

“Boss Du, we’re here! This was Ji Zhou’s biggest and best clinic!”

The hunters carried Hu Lai inside.

The physician took one look at Hu Lai’s injury. From the front, he could almost see the tip of the bolt.

“There was no saving-”

Du Yi Zhi cut him off. “I didn’t care how much it cost. If you could save Hu Lai, I’ll give you an extra one hundred taels as a reward!”

The physician’s words got stuck in his throat.

Try.

For one hundred taels.

Hu Lai drifted in and out, and Hu Lai heard “one hundred taels” in a haze.

One hundred taels… how much was that?

Hu Lai’s wife had just given birth. A few days ago, Hu Lai had spent three taels to buy cotton. Only after buying it did Hu Lai hear someone say there was cheap cotton.

To help his wife and child survive this winter, Hu Lai heard Sheng Shi Hall was hiring men, so Hu Lai came.

At first, Hu Lai only wanted those two taels of wages. But after coming, Hu Lai not only ate his fill and stayed warm, Boss Du even bought ointment and lard for them to treat frostbite sores.

Hu Lai could not bear to use it. Hu Lai buried it by the wall, planning to bring it back to his wife.

Hu Lai’s wife’s hands also had frostbite sores.

Or maybe the lard could be used to make soup…

Hu Lai was a rough man. What use did Hu Lai have for things like this?

Boss Du was a good man. Hu Lai did not regret taking that bolt.

It was just that Boss Du’s words were too infuriating.

[Why give a hundred taels to some physician? Why not give it to Hu Lai’s wife and child?] Hu Lai’s mind swirled.

[If Hu Lai could do that, Hu Lai could die with his eyes closed.]

But now Hu Lai couldn’t die.

[If Boss Du really made Hu Lai’s son call another man Father…]

If Hu Lai lived, Boss Du also said Hu Lai’s child would study.

Was that true?

Hu Lai’s thoughts turned into a mess, and Hu Lai fell unconscious.

Du Yi Zhi had the other injured men bandaged and get medicine.

Du Yi Zhi left Jiang Shun Yi, the man who had been crying earlier, to stay in the clinic and keep Hu Lai company. Then Du Yi Zhi rushed back to Sheng Shi Hall.

Du Yi Zhi still had to find out who ordered those men to attack him.

But by the time Du Yi Zhi got back, the prefecture yamen had already taken all the bandits away.

Du Yi Zhi’s eyes turned heavy. “The prefecture yamen?”

Du Yi Zhi had come to Ji Zhou and caused plenty of commotion, yet the prefecture yamen never showed up at all.

Even when the news spread that Du Yi Zhi was working for the Princess, Prefect Yan never made any statement.

But now, less than half a quarter hour after Du Yi Zhi was attacked, the yamen came and took the bandits away.

On top of that, someone just recognized the bandit leader as a horse bandit the yamen had arrested before.

So it was the yamen that wanted to deal with Du Yi Zhi?

Why?

Was it because Du Yi Zhi offended the cotton merchants? Or because of the Southern Du Branch?

The cotton merchants should not have the power to make a prefect do their bidding. That meant it was the Southern Du Branch.

Old Madam Du was as ruthless as ever.

Back then, Old Madam Du did not hesitate at all when Old Madam Du forced Du Yi Zhi’s father to his death. Now, just because Du Yi Zhi did not obey Old Madam Du, Old Madam Du wanted to get rid of Du Yi Zhi too.

Du Yi Zhi understood.

Those men had probably already been silenced.

Still, Du Yi Zhi had to go and see what excuse Prefect Yan planned to use to brush him off.

Prefect Yan did not expect Du Yi Zhi to be this hard to kill.

Today’s men were death-row convicts Prefect Yan had secretly taken for his own use. They did work for Prefect Yan, and Prefect Yan promised that afterward, Prefect Yan would fix their identities.

In the past, whoever Prefect Yan wanted dead always died.

This time, Prefect Yan failed.

In the end, it was because Du Yi Zhi had won the people’s hearts. There were actually that many commoner willing to face bandits for Du Yi Zhi’s sake.

That made things difficult.

After all, Du Yi Zhi was someone working for the Princess.

Prefect Yan personally received Du Yi Zhi. Prefect Yan apologized repeatedly and said it was the yamen runners’ mistake, that a batch of bandits escaped, and they nearly harmed Boss Du, and so on.

Du Yi Zhi sneered inwardly, but Du Yi Zhi did not expose him. Du Yi Zhi even spoke generously and said he understood.

“But,” Du Yi Zhi changed the subject, “quite a few of my men were injured today. Could Prefect Yan dispatch a group of yamen runners to stand guard around Sheng Shi Hall?”

Since the Southern Du Branch wanted to use Prefect Yan to deal with Du Yi Zhi, then fine.

Du Yi Zhi would borrow their strength.

Du Yi Zhi would use Prefect Yan’s presence to intimidate those restless big cotton merchants.

Prefect Yan’s eyelid twitched, and Prefect Yan wanted to refuse.

Du Yi Zhi spoke first. “Since this was for the Princess, if Prefect Yan was willing to help, I would definitely report it to the Princess.”

Prefect Yan’s expression stiffened.

That meant if Prefect Yan didn’t send anyone, Du Yi Zhi would also report today’s attack to the Princess.

Prefect Yan forced a smile that wasn’t a smile. Prefect Yan nodded and said, “Boss Du was truly diligent. Then I’ll assign thirty men to guard around Sheng Shi Hall.”

“Many thanks, Prefect Yan.” Du Yi Zhi left.

Prefect Yan frowned at Du Yi Zhi’s back and sent someone to the Du Residence with the news.

Old Madam Du learned Du Yi Zhi escaped again and ground Old Madam Du’s teeth, too furious to speak.

At the same time, another letter also left Ji Zhou and was sent toward the capital city.

Over the next few days, Lin Yi and the Ji Zhou cotton merchants all noticed the problem.

The cotton Du Yi Zhi held had to be more than what he showed on the surface. Otherwise, Du Yi Zhi wouldn’t need to pull in the Northern Du Branch, and make Sheng Shi Hall branch halls in the subordinate counties.

If Du Yi Zhi kept using cheap cotton to stabilize Ji Zhou’s market, the cotton merchants would not dare make a move because of Princess Qing Ning’s status, and their goal for this trip would fail.

Lin Yi did not dare act rashly. Lin Yi could only write out Ji Zhou’s situation clearly and send it back for Qi Shu Xian to decide.

At the Duke residence, when Qi Shu Xian heard the letter was from Lin Yi, Qi Shu Xian was delighted.

“The cold disaster has lasted for several days,” Meng Yang urged. “Over there, the cotton price should be extremely high by now. Heir Apparent, hurry and read it. Maybe Master Lin already earned three hundred thousand taels!”

Qi Shu Xian thought the same. Qi Shu Xian felt satisfied and triumphant as Qi Shu Xian tore the letter open-