klisemfg Chapter 313 Escape from Death
Chapter 313 Escape from Death
"He can't be some notorious bandit or a wanted criminal by the imperial court, can he?"
Xu Yiyi suddenly spoke up, "The old man has such great skills, yet he's working in such a small restaurant."
Such behavior is truly baffling.
"No way!"
Ah Yue also remembered this, "Isn't it because he likes to eat your food that he insists on eating at your restaurant?"
As she spoke, A-Yue took the oar from Xu Yiyi's hand and began to row vigorously.
The lanterns at the bow and stern of the boat swayed violently.
"No, he was at Qushenglou at first, it has nothing to do with me."
Xu Yiyi vehemently denied that Qu Shenglou or even himself prepared the food.
It tastes so bad, yet it's still left there, which makes people even more suspicious.
A-Yue comforted her, "Just ask tomorrow and find out the details. Don't overthink it."
Xu Yi nodded.
The small boat slowly came to rest on the river. An uncle from the tribe who was patrolling saw the light and came over to look.
"Why are you so late today, Yi Yi? Where are your younger brother and the others?"
One of the uncles helped Xu Yiyi tie the small boat to the river, and asked with concern if he could see the children.
Xu Yiyi explained, "My brother and the others are probably asleep. They went back to the island earlier."
"Alright, go home and get some rest. You're so busy every day, you need to take care of yourself..."
Uncle patted Xu Yiyi on the shoulder, then turned a corner and went to the ancestral hall.
By the time Xu Yiyi and A Yue arrived home, Gao Haoming and his companion were already exhausted.
The small boat left a thin white trail on the dark sea, like a piece of black silk cut by scissors.
There were no lanterns in front or behind, it was pitch black.
Illuminated only by moonlight, it was terrifying to behold.
More than once, they were almost hit by merchant ships traveling at night.
Xu Wenli knelt on the deck, his hands gripping the wet oars tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.
Right now, my breathing is rapid and erratic.
Because they were unfamiliar with the boat, it took them a long time to row it out.
"They must have shaken them off..."
Gao Haoming spoke in a hoarse voice, as if the words were being squeezed out from between his teeth.
He lay half-reclined on the small boat, feeling intense pain in his chest even with the slightest breath.
"Don't be surprised that the old geezer is quite formidable! No wonder Xu Yiyi and that other woman dared to fight you; it turns out they had a backup plan."
Gao Haoming grinned, revealing his bloodstained teeth.
His right arm hung limply at his sides. Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the skin and flesh of his fingers were gone, revealing a dark white section.
Blood dripped from his fingertips, accumulating into small puddles on the ship's deck.
Only then did Xu Wenli recover from his tense state and smell the blood permeating the air.
"Are you bleeding?"
Xu Wenli sounded a little nervous. If he bled here and now, he might attract sharks.
"It's nothing, just a minor injury, it's already bandaged up."
Gao Haoming said casually, "You bled too, didn't you? Are you alright?"
Xu Wenli shook his head, "I feel like Xu Yi is treating me like a wild boar. He's not flustered at all when he starts fighting, and he's quite reckless."
That's why I hurt him twice.
Gao Haoming ruthlessly remarked, "She really doesn't seem like a normal person."
"Hurry up and let's find a place to dock and treat the wound."
They were in such a hurry that they didn't bring anything with them, not even their medicine.
Gao Haoming struggled to sit up, the strain on his chest causing him to momentarily lose his breath.
The night wind swept across the sea, stirring up fine, foamy waves.
A clear sound suddenly came from the bottom of the boat, a thud.
Xu Wenli trembled and abruptly lowered his head.
"Is something hitting the ship?"
Gao Haoming's face showed bitterness. A sliver of water had been seeping out from the gaps in the boat planks, and it was spreading silently.
He reached out to touch it, and his fingertips touched something wet and cold.
"It wasn't something that hit it, it's water that got in."
Gao Haoming struggled to crawl over, using his uninjured hand to pry open the fishing nets piled at the bottom of the boat.
Then you can see a thin crack slowly expanding as it is soaked in seawater.
"It must be that old bastard!" Gao Haoming said helplessly. "He had it all planned out long ago! No wonder he let us go so easily."
Xu Wenli hurriedly tore off his clothes and frantically used his hands to plug the holes.
Seawater kept seeping in through his fingers, quickly washing over his wrist.
At the same time, they both remembered Lao Lu's palm strike.
The boat's planks were probably already cracked by then, and the two men were too busy escaping to check the small boat.
With a "whoosh".
A wave crashed in, and the small boat began to rock violently.
Xu Wenli stumbled, his knees plunging into the seawater that was already above his ankles.
He frantically tried to grab the oar, only to find that it had drifted more than ten feet away.
Under the moonlight, it looked like the back of a dead fish, floating up and down.
Gao Haoming burst into wild laughter, his laughter mingled with blood and foam.
"That's quite a tactic! Second Master, we're probably going to be in deep trouble here tonight."
Gao Haoming struggled to untie the wine pouch at his waist, raised it, and took a big gulp.
He let the finest Jiannanchun liquor, mixed with blood, drip from his chin.
Xu Wenli kept tearing at his clothes, trying to plug the leak.
But the strips of cloth were washed away by the water as soon as they were stuffed in, and seawater quickly reached up to their calves.
"Save your energy, Second Master."
Gao Haoming was the first to accept it, lying on his back and gazing at the ever-approaching starry sky.
Xu Wenli froze.
When the first plank broke apart, Xu Wenli instinctively grabbed the largest piece of driftwood.
As the salty seawater filled his nostrils, he finally saw that one of Gao Haoming's hands was completely exposed.
"Second Master! I know you dislike me, but I really have to trouble you to come with me today."
Gao Haoming spoke with a smile, while Xu Wenli turned his head away, not daring to look at his expression.
“It’s my fault! I was only thinking of helping Master find the half-fish talisman in the sunken ship, and I was only thinking of helping Master achieve great things. I brought you back, and now you’ve been dragged into this mess.”
Xu Wenli knew that the relationship between Gao Haoming and his master was merely that of master and servant.
The bond between master and servant is as thin as a cicada's wing; it dissipates when the benefits are exhausted, and is merely a means to make a living.
It was because of him that people were dragged into this mess.
"Don't say such things. If it weren't for Second Master saving my life back then, I would have entered the cycle of reincarnation long ago. I've even lived seven more years. I've gained something!"
Gao Haoming shouted, his tone devoid of any complaint.
That's why Xu Wenli felt guilty.
With a crack, the overburdened driftwood split in two, unable to support the weight of the two people any longer.
The last thing Xu Wenli saw before the ship sank was Gao Haoming's smile illuminated by the moonlight.
"Second Master! Let's be brothers again in our next life."
After he finished speaking, the sea gradually returned to calm, and a moon-white strip of cloth slowly floated up before being gently crushed by the waves.
Further away, you can already see fishing lights twinkling quietly, as if nothing is happening.
The roar of the tide is like thunder, never ceasing.