Lin Zhiji returned to the tent with Xie Yi.
Just as he was about to speak, he was suddenly pulled into an embrace.
Normally, Xie Yi would also occasionally pull him into his arms when completing tasks.
Lin Zhiji had gotten used to it after a while.
But this time was different.
Xie Yi’s arms wrapped tightly around his waist and back, the force so strong it felt as though he might be crushed.
Their chests and abdomens were pressed tightly together, as if he were being embedded into Xie Yi’s body.
He could clearly feel Xie Yi’s hot breath, the rise and fall of his chest, and the tightening of his arms.
Xie Yi’s presence enveloped him completely.
A strange unease rose in Lin Zhiji’s heart. He instinctively struggled, but Xie Yi caught his wrist and pinned both arms behind his back.
Forced to tilt his head up, his flushed face and hurried breathing met Xie Yi’s gaze.
Dark eyes.
A predatory, consuming gaze.
Lin Zhiji tried to retreat in panic, but Xie Yi’s arm at his waist held him firmly in place.
In his confusion, he accidentally brushed against the inner side of Xie Yi’s thigh.
A sudden, heavy breath came from above.
The hand holding his wrist tightened.
“Mm… it hurts!”
At the sound of his pain, Xie Yi released his grip slightly, but still kept him trapped in his arms.
Lin Zhiji finally realized something was wrong and stopped moving, obediently resting against Xie Yi’s chest, waiting for his breathing to steady.
He didn’t know how long passed before Xie Yi spoke in a low, hoarse voice.
“When was I ever ‘blunt’ in personality?”
Lin Zhiji stiffened.
That had been what he said to Xie Zhongze—he hadn’t expected Xie Yi to hear it.
He didn’t even know how much else he had overheard…
Xie Yi pinched the soft flesh inside his wrist. “Hmm?”
Lin Zhiji’s scalp tingled. “That… that was just a rhetorical strategy. To keep Deputy General Xie from resisting you. After all, he’s your subordinate—if he has a poor relationship with you, it would make your work harder.”
As he spoke, he began to feel justified again.
Xie Yi fell silent for a moment, then asked, “Why are you helping me?”
“Huh?” Lin Zhiji blinked. “Because you’re my host. If I don’t help you, who would I help?”
“…I see.”
Xie Yi seemed to let out a faint laugh, then slowly released him.
Freed at last, Lin Zhiji immediately darted to the side and quickly changed the subject. “Seriously though, how did you recognize those people were death soldiers?”
According to Xie Zhongze, their disguises had been flawless.
In dim light, they should have been indistinguishable.
Xie Yi replied calmly, “There were no children among them.”
“Ah?” Lin Zhiji froze.
Then Xie Yi continued, patiently explaining, because it was him.
“In civilian flight, the elderly and infants are the first to be abandoned, then children and women. Yet among them, there were elderly women holding infants, but no children at all. Don’t you find that strange?”
“Also, farmers cannot keep straight posture from years of labor, and their hands are stained with soil that seeps into the skin—it cannot be washed away…”
His tone was so calm it sounded like common sense.
Lin Zhiji listened in shock.
No wonder Xie Zhongze couldn’t see it.
But then another question arose in his mind.
How did Xie Yi know all this so clearly?
Lin Zhiji frowned. “If those bandits sent death soldiers to intercept you, isn’t that too bold?”
“It wasn’t bandits,” Xie Yi said. “Death soldiers like that are not formed overnight. Only a noble household could raise them.”
A noble household?!
When did Xie Yi offend a noble house?
Lin Zhiji thought for a moment. “Could it be the Marquis of Zhaode’s residence?”
After all, ever since that young marquis died, they had been relentlessly targeting Xie Yi like a mad dog.
But Xie Yi rejected it immediately.
“The Marquis of Zhaode rose only after the Empress. Their foundation is too shallow. They cannot raise this many death soldiers.”
If they truly could, Du Tianrui would not have died so easily in that brothel.
Still, he was not worried.
Before coming to Qingzhou, he had already sent men ahead to investigate.
He had long known Qingzhou was not simple. But to send death soldiers for an ambush like this…
A cold light flashed in his eyes.
Yet when he saw Lin Zhiji’s tightly furrowed brows, that coldness faded.
“The order has been given. You don’t need to worry about these matters anymore.”
His gaze landed on the bed, clearly implying something. “It’s late. Time to sleep.”
Lin Zhiji: !!!
All the schemes, conspiracies, and noble-house infighting in his head instantly turned to ash.
Under normal circumstances, he probably wouldn’t have thought much of it.
But tonight was different.
That strange, tightly held embrace from Xie Yi… and the burning heat he had accidentally brushed against on the inner thigh—both made it impossible not to think too much.
Things like “serving with beauty,” “male favored companion,” and “without status” kept floating into his mind.
Lin Zhiji shook his head hard, trying to fling those strange words away.
Then, with lightning speed, he threw himself onto the bed, wrapped himself tightly in the blanket like a silkworm cocoon, and rolled all the way to the innermost edge, pressing himself against the wall while leaving most of the space open.
He even deliberately yawned.
“Sleepy…”
Xie Yi watched his performance, raising a brow, then walked over slowly.
Candlelight cast his shadow onto the bed, almost completely enclosing Lin Zhiji within it.
Yet Xie Yi’s sharp vision still caught the tightly clenched fingers gripping the blanket edge, and the faint tremble of his eyelashes.
If it were usual, he might have teased him a bit, watching him struggle while unable to speak.
But tonight, he had no such mood.
Lin Zhiji, pretending to sleep, felt the mattress sink beside him. Then the candlelight beyond his eyelids went out, and the room fell into silence.
Xie Yi did nothing.
As always, he slept with perfect stillness.
Only then did Lin Zhiji gradually relax, drowsiness rising until he drifted off.
After confirming the breathing beside him had evened out, Xie Yi opened his eyes in the dark.
He turned his head.
Lin Zhiji seemed to be too warm; the “silkworm cocoon” had loosened slightly.
His neat inner robe had shifted from rolling around, revealing a slender, pale neck, with a few damp strands of hair stuck to it.
Xie Yi’s gaze darkened slightly.
He lifted a hand and gently brushed those strands away.
The warm fingertips touched cool skin. Lin Zhiji shrank his neck slightly in response to the ticklish sensation—but he did not wake.
Even though he had been so alert before sleeping, once asleep, he seemed to trust him far more than expected.
A faint curve appeared on Xie Yi’s lips.
He raised his hand and sent a soft wave of internal force, pushing the tent curtain open.
A cool night breeze drifted in. Lin Zhiji’s furrowed brows relaxed.
He slept peacefully until morning.
The next day, Lin Zhiji was woken by voices outside.
It came from the adjacent command tent, used for military discussions.
Normally, it was for coordinating strategy between the commander and his subordinates. But because they had been constantly on the move, and because Deputy General Xie Zhongze held strong opinions about Xie Yi, the tent had barely been used.
Lin Zhiji hesitated and didn’t get up immediately, instead listening quietly.
It turned out that Xuelin, sent ahead to scout, had returned that morning.
He reported that an ambush had been discovered in a narrow gorge ahead.
That place was already close to Qingzhou. According to their original pace, they should have reached it two days ago.
Under normal circumstances, they would have been exhausted and less alert due to nearing their destination—making it the perfect place to suffer a heavy loss.
Fortunately, Xie Yi had remained extremely cautious the entire journey, slowing their progress.
And yesterday, he had even ordered them to camp in place.
The enemy likely assumed they had been exposed, which was why they sent death soldiers to intercept.
Xie Zhongze broke out in a cold sweat after hearing this.
After Lin Zhiji’s persuasion the night before, his prejudice against Xie Yi had softened, and now he felt genuine respect.
“General, what should we do next?”
Xie Yi replied calmly, “Change route.”
The intelligence confirmed his suspicion: their route had been leaked.
Qingzhou could not have reacted this quickly on its own. The leak had to come from the capital.
And in that case, Qingzhou itself was no longer safe.
They had to change course and find a secure base before investigating further.
Lin Zhiji listened, slightly absent-minded.
In the original story, Qingzhou suppression of bandits was mentioned briefly. It was said Xie Yi gained his rise in power through this campaign, laying the foundation for his future as a major antagonist.
But the details were never written.
He was lost in thought so deeply that he didn’t even notice when the discussion ended.
Only when Xie Yi lifted the curtain and entered did he come back to himself.
“Where are we going next?” he asked.
“Chixia Ridge,” Xie Yi replied. Then he paused. “But not we.”
Lin Zhiji: ?
An hour later, the army set out—but Xie Yi, the commander himself, drove Lin Zhiji’s carriage away from the main force, taking a different route.
Lin Zhiji sat inside the carriage, still processing.
Not the commander just abandoning the army like this… was that really okay?
He had no idea how Xie Yi had convinced Xie Zhongze. The deputy general’s resentful expression at parting gave him chills.
He lifted the curtain and asked, “What exactly is going on?”
Xie Yi answered without hiding anything. “I suspect there is a spy within the army.”
Lin Zhiji was startled.
But seeing Xie Yi’s confident expression, he assumed everything was already planned.
This was probably a deliberate move to lure the snake out of its hole.
Thinking that, he relaxed.
“So what are we doing now?” he asked curiously.
Xie Yi smiled slightly while holding the reins.
“Becoming bandits.”
Lin Zhiji: ???