Peerless ( Meng Xi Shi )

All his life, Feng Xiao had rarely encountered a situation where he was in a difficult position.

Ever since he was young, he stood out from his peers due to his talents. He excelled in both martial arts and academics with little efforts. He obtained easily what normal people begged yet failed to obtain. Even in the Jiejian Bureau, he was incredibly favoured by the Emperor, who granted him the sort of power to do whatever he wished no matter where he went. No one could make him bend the knee. Even during difficult situations, with someone of his intelligence and wit, it would not have proved challenging for him to solve.

Only at this time and this time alone, he was overestimated himself; because of a moment of carelessness, he fell into a pit someone laid for him. Although this was not as dangerous as to cause him to lose his life, it was enough to stomp on his pride, allowing the Second Commander Feng to realize he was not all-powerful.

Luckily, the most unfortunate victim from this was not him.

When someone was in a foul mood, and then they think about someone more unfortunate, their own mood would take a turn for the better.

So as Feng Xiao looked at an unconscious Cui Buqu, he could not help but begin to hum a small melody.

"If you still refuse to wake up, I am going to leave you here and go back to the city myself."

"Indeed, when I look closely at your face, even though you aren't one of a million of me, your looks would have stood out in a crowd."

"Cui Buqu, Cui Buqu, no matter how people urge you, you refuse to go1. This shouldn't be your real name."

Feng Xiao leaned against a rocky cliff, squinting his eyes as he watched the sunrise in the east, layers of clouds tainted by its radiant gold. At this height, the scenery was truly marvellous, like a gathering of golden cotton balls, soundlessly illustrating thousands and hundreds of meadows and valleys.

He used the tip of his foot to nudge Cui Buqu who lay sprawled by his side.

"Isn't it a pity for you to miss a beautiful scenery like this?"

Cui Buqu, of course, did not respond to him.

If there was still some consciousness left in him, he would have picked up a rock and shoved it into Feng Xiao's mouth to prevent him rambling further.

But, presently, he could only sleep peacefully next to Feng Xiao. If it was not for the sunlight that shone upon his face, drawing the wrinkled lines on his forehead, he looked like someone who was in a deep sleep that refused to wake up.

Even though Feng Xiao had practically deducted all Pei Jingzhe's salary for the next five years, Pei Jingzhe had not appeared. He let out a sigh and began to consider relocating Pei Jingzhe to one of the strongholds the Jiejian Bureau had in Qiemo.

"You do not look so well, let me help you." Feng Xiao said. There was no clue to what he was thinking, but a look of excitement passed on his face, "In the past, they used to enjoy drawing eyebrows2, and now we exercise the art of face painting, these two are quite similar."

Cui Buqu felt something on his face and wanted to open his eyes, but he did not have the strength.

But he was never someone who gave up so readily. Many times, when the Heavens wanted to take his life from him, they somehow still gave him a sliver of hope. He would then climb back up from the gap, even if he was on the banks of the Yellow Spring, even Heibai Wuchang's chains would not be able to pull him back into Hell's gate.

Not once had he lost before.

This time, it would be the same.

What greeted his eyes were the tall, azure-blue, lofty sky, stretching on ten thousand li without a single cloud. The yellow-coloured sand and the white snow blending into a magnanimous world.

And also, an incredibly handsome and beautiful face.

"You are awake." Feng Xiao said, he sounded happy, "How are you feeling now?"

Cui Buqu tried to move his fingers, but felt it was like the usual — weak and lacking strength — so he could only remain laid on his back like a corpse.

Perhaps it had something to do with the sunrise as he did not feel cold now. With the clear breeze sweeping on the surface of his skin, his face felt refreshed, and his heart was at peace; this was something he had not felt before.

If a certain person was not by his side, it would have been perfect.

"Are you thirsty?" asked Feng Xiao.

Of course, he was. After one day and one night without water, Cui Buqu could feel his throat burning.

But he knew that Feng Xiao would not grant his wish so easily.

As he expected, the other laughed slyly, "Call me three times 'Dad', and then I will melt some snow for you."

Cui Buqu would definitely avenge himself for this, but he'll wait until that opportunity comes for now. He opened his mouth and called 'Dad' three times quickly, finishing it before the other could blink.

His voice was hoarse and it was not melodious to the ear, but he still did it.

Feng Xiao used a hand to scoop up the snow from the ground, holding it before using his inner strength to melt it into water and dripped it into Cui Buqu's mouth.

Cui Buqu was not as picky as Feng Xiao, who would not have consumed this water that contained sand. As he took a few mouthfuls, he felt his throat a lot better.

"My dad is dead." Cui Buqu said.

Feng Xiao, "…"

Seeing how deathly the other looked, Feng Xiao decided that he would not argue with him.

After all, if Cui Buqu indeed died, he would not find another person as intriguing as him.

"Give me more." Before, Cui Buqu found that he could sustain the thirst, but as the water was fed to him, he craved for more.

"It's so dirty. How can still stand to drink it?" Feng Xiao twitched his lips; nevertheless, he scooped a handful of snow and gave it to him.

"I've consumed water dirtier than this." Cui Buqu said passively, "After a heavy rain, the water at the side of the road, have you seen those? People walking here and there, their shoes bringing sand, all sinking into that water, even that kind of water, I have swallowed before."

Compared to that, snow water really was a hundred more times cleaner.

When a person reached their limit, never mind muddy water, even if it was someone's leftover food, they could still bare to swallow it.

But Cui Buqu never thought that was something to brag about, so when he spoke of such thing, it was as if merely entertaining a normal conversation, as if he was talking about what he ate today.

Feng Xiao suddenly said, "Commander Cui."

Cui Buqu blinked, but his face yielded no emotions.

However, because of that blink, it was enough for Feng Xiao to confirm his theory.

"The great Commander of the Zuoyue Bureau is spying at my side for so long. In order lead us around in circles, he even willingly lets us use the Naihexiang on him; this truly made me see you in a whole new light!"

Cui Buqu, "Would the Commander of the Zuoyue Bureau put himself in danger and allow you to drag him here, that could have even cost him his life?"

Feng Xiao smiled knowingly, "Had it been others, perhaps not, but you definitely would. Someone like you would never bow your head under any circumstances, nor would you bend to the knee to anyone. With someone like you, no one in the Zuoyue Bureau would rule over your head. Master Daoist Cui, how long did you have me fooled. You truly are capable!"

Since there was no room for him to look for an excuse, Cui Buqu did not forcefully look for one.

"Even the patriarch of the Jiejian Bureau came to the outskirts of the city himself; with the ailing invalid I am, is this anything special?"

Feng Xiao smiled, "If I killed you here, no one would even find out or know. By that time, when your corpse is dumped and allows itself to be blown by the sand and wind, even if someone found you, they would not be able to find any evidence. From then on, the Zuoyue Bureau would no longer fight the Jiejian Bureau for the absolute power. What do you think of that?"

Cui Buqu, "It is not a bad idea. But I am not the only one with talent in the world. If the Zuoyue Bureau loses me, a new Commander will show up. If you killed me, it would be pointless."

Feng Xiao, "But not quite everyone is nearly as intelligent as you are. Even with your body's condition, you still could dig such a pit for me to fall. If you are gone, I am a lot better off."

As he spoke, he reached out to hold Cui Buqu's neck.

Cui Buqu looked indifferent, watching the other's face; he looked like he was even calmer than the sky itself as if the other's actions were unrelated to him.

...

After Qiao Xian and Zhangsun found out that Cui Buqu was taken by Feng Xiao, they stopped at nothing to rush to the Huyang forest. Naturally, Pei Jingzhe followed behind them, but once they arrived at the Huyang forest, the place was practically barren. They could only find traces of a fight taking place.

As present events progressed, they were on the same boat and could no longer care about their disagreements. Everyone went their separate paths searching.

At this moment, the storms and snow still blew. Although Qiao Xian and the others knew martial arts, they were not immortals. The longer the snow blew in the night, the more anxious they were. Qiao Xian was even worried that Feng Xiao would use Cui Buqu as a meat shield, and that a misfortunate had already befell upon him.

The forest was overgrown and wild, and stretched as far as the eye could see as if there was no end to it. They searched from dusk to dawn as the snow storm gradually quietened down. At long last, Qiao Xian managed to find traces of people behind a boulder that was covered in white snow.

Feng Xiao looked fine, sitting upright, although tired, yet he looked awake. He looked at them lazily, utterly unsurprised that Qiao Xian and Zhangsun showed up.

"It's about time you people show up. Another step late, I fear your Master Daoist Cui was going to freeze into a corpse."

Qiao Xian felt that it was better if she did not look at Cui Buqu, but once she did, her expression changed, and her heart skipped a beat.

Cui Buqu's forehead, temples, even his neck, was filled with words.

The brushstrokes used was quite powerful, with elegant and stylish curves as if a famous artist had written it, but that was not the point.

The point was the content.

"I, Cui Buqu, owe Feng Xiao a favour for saving my life. From today onwards, I will call him 'Dad', and as proof, if I refuse to abide by this promise, I will be struck by thunder and drink rancid water every day, and if I leave my house, I will break my legs running."

Before Qiao Xian could wipe off those words, behind her Pei Jingzhe had already read them out loud.

Zhangsun Bodhi's eyebrows and lips all twitched like they were in a cramp.

He bent down, wanting to rub the words off Cui Buqu's face, but he quickly discovered it was incredibly difficult to wipe them off.

Feng Xiao stood at the side and laughed coldly, "Don't waste your strength. The sort of soil that can be found everywhere here, if melted down and used to write, it makes it immensely challenging to come off. Just now, I even tried a few times to make sure it would stay for a while; only then did I write them on his face. If the fact that I saved his life is so easily rubbed off, how could I emphasize how privileged he is?"

To that, Cui Buqu rolled his eyes.

Qiao Xian did not say a word, drawing her sword; she aimed it at Feng Xiao before she was swiftly stopped by Pei Jingzhe. The two eagleriders with him rushed forward to defend Feng Xiao when they saw that a scene was about to erupt.

"Bring me back." Cui Buqu said, "Zhangsun, give me your bamboo hat."

Zhangsun removed the bamboo hat that he always carried with him, and quietly helped Cui Buqu put it on before carrying him onto his back.

Feng Xiao did not stop him; he even waved his hand. "Master Daoist Cui, take care. Two days later, I will visit you. Do not forget about me, the one who saved your life."

Cui Buqu snorted, "I won't ever forget it, even after eight lifecycles!"

Whatever happened between these two, it seemed that it would take some time to sort them out.

...

Qiao Xian could feel that, after herself and Zhangsun had found him, Cui Buqu looked a lot more relaxed. Perhaps it was difficult for outsiders to notice, but she had followed Cui Buqu for so long now, she knew what he liked and hated. For someone who held his guard at all times like Cui Buqu, it was incredibly difficult for him to lower down his guard. She and Zhangsun were both fortunate exceptions.

They did not bother about the Jiejian Bureau. Once Zhangsun and Qiao Xian found the man they wanted, they left. Feng Xiao did not stop them; he also needed some time to recover himself.

Presently, the case of the Khotan murder was still unsolved, and the Jade of Heaven's Lake was yet to be found. The Göktürk who went after Cui Buqu, after much of his manipulation, had turned his focus onto Feng Xiao but was chased out of the city by the same person. Yet on his way out of the city, he was surrounded on all three corners, he practically lost. Between the Zuoyue Bureau and the Jiejian Bureau, none of them won; at the moment, both sides retreated, engraving this mark into memory to avenge it on a later date.

On the way back, Cui Buqu fell asleep on Zhangsun's back.

Zhangsun Bodhi walked steadily on the way, carefully keeping his shoulders steady so Cui Buqu could sleep peacefully.

"The Commander seemed to have been poisoned." Qiao Xian said in a low voice.

Zhangsun replied with an 'En'; he had already smelt the strange smell in the air. "It is Naihexiang."

Qiao Xian displayed a look of surprise, and then it turned into anger, "The Jiejian Bureau is responsible. How dare they!"

Zhangsun did not utter a word.

Feng Xiao's actions were often inexplicable, whether he was virtuous or evil, it was difficult for one to say. Such hearsays of him were already prevalent and widespread. So the fact that he used such methods to deal with the Commander was not strange at all.

"Don't go around causing a scene. Wait for the Commander to wake up before discussion. He might have plotted something for this matter."

However, Cui Buqu slept for a whole two days.

When he woke up, he felt his body weak all over — there was not a single place he did not feel sore.

Only his brain was awake; perhaps it also meant that he had rested enough. Once he opened his eyes full of energy, he called for Qiao Xian and Zhangsun.

"Within these two days, did anything happen? Had Khan Apa's ambassador arrived?"

A female servant came with some chicken soup. Cui Buqu refused to be fed, so he sat up and ate on his own as he asked.

The two of them had long investigated everything they wanted, so they were only waiting for him to wake up to report to him.

Qiao Xian, "The ambassador sent by Khan Apa arrived in the city yesterday night. We have already settled them down. Once you wake up, a meeting can be arranged."

Cui Buqu nodded, "Is the Jiejian Bureau on the move?"

Qiao Xian, "Feng Xiao ordered County Magistrate Zhao to lock down the entire city to search for the Goguryeon woman that fought with us that night, Qin Miaoyu; on the other hand, something happened to the Lu manor, it was on the night you and Feng Xiao went to the outskirts of the city, Lu Ti's daughter drowned and passed away. Her body is now still in the city's bureau. Feng Xiao is looking for Qin Miaoyu, so he let people surround the Lu manor, forbidding them to take a step out. It is said that Lu Ti was incredibly furious and had written a letter to his distant relative in the Fanyang Lu Clan to ask for their help against the Jiejian Bureau."

Speaking up to this point, she stopped for a while, "There is something else, yesterday night I saw the number one fighter of Göktürk, Fo Er, in the city. He noticed me, so I did not follow him."

Even though the city was currently in a lock down state, but with top martial artists like Fo Er and Gao Ning, it was not difficult for them to sneak in.

Cui Buqu, "He must have been aware of the Khan's ambassador's arrival and discovered that he was tricked. You can bring Khan's ambassador to my place to Clive with me, to avoid Fo Er attacking."

Qiao Xian approved.

At first, she thought that Cui Buqu would immediately arrange a meeting with Khan Apa's ambassador, but who knew that he was more interested in the matter concerning the Lu manor.

"What happened to Little Maiden Lu? Tell me." Cui Buqu said.

Qiao Xian, "It is a long story."

Lu Ti had simply one daughter; naturally, she was well-loved and was seen as an invaluable pearl. He could not help but desire to give her all the good things in the world, so when the time came when she was of age to be wed, Lu Ti was slightly unwilling. He wanted her to be older before arranging a marriage for her, so he could give the Lu business to his son-in-law.

Little Maiden Lu had a cousin brother, who was the one that bickered with Feng Xiao a few days ago in the "Five Tastes" restaurant, Su Xing. Su Xing's parents were both dead, and he was a ward of the Lu family. His age was incredibly close to Little Maiden Lu, and he was quite handsome, so they both fell in love. Although Lu Ti thought Su Xing did not have a good life, since both his parents are dead, but his daughter loved him, and Su Xing did not have any family members to object, he was ideal to marry into the Lu family and become one of them. Formerly, he wanted to wait for another two more years to arrange a marriage for them.

A while ago, because of business issues, Lu Ti was reunited with his distant relative in Fanyang Lu Clan. As they exchanged letters, the other party had an elder that liked Little Maiden Lu and wanted to arrange a marriage for her with a young man from his family who was related to the Taiyuan royal family.

Lu Ti acknowledged that the young man was only one to two years older than Little Maiden Lu and he excelled in academics; his father was also a subject of the Imperial Court, so he would definitely have a bright future; in fact, his future had endless potential.

Towards such a good candidate, he was, no doubt, a hundred times better than Su Xing. It was difficult for Lu Ti to not be moved, so once Little Maiden Lu heard about it, although she had always been obedient and gentle, she fought with her father that night. After they fought, that unfortunate incident happened to her.

It also meant that it was the same night that the Jiejian Bureau was pursuing that mysterious person from the Qiushan manor and had seen him leap into the Lu manor. After that, something happened to Little Maiden Lu.

Author's Notes:

Alright, Little Cui's second layer is about to be shed.

Cui Buqu: That is fine. I still have many more layers. I'm not afraid that I will not be exposed, only that you are being too merciful.

Feng Xiao: …

=============

[1] (崔)不去, (催)不去: 崔(cui) doesn't mean much as a surname, but 催(cui) means 'urging/pestering [someone]'. 'Buqu' means 'refuse to go'. It is not really a common name anyone would have, and it definitely does not sound like a real Chinese name. That is why Feng Xiao suspected it was an alias.

[2] It is a saying that originated from a myth that ancient Chinese husbands enjoyed drawing the eyebrows for their wives. It is seen as a romantic activity between husband and wife.