The officer picked the badge up. He at once clasped his hands and replied, “Aye sir, go on!”
The carriage was put in motion.
And soon, their horses disappeared into the night.
The officer watched their distancing figures as he murmured, “Wang Hong of Lang’ya? Could there be another battle? What else can make someone like him leave the city in the middle of the night?”
Two hundred riders rode at a uniform pace. They rode the finest horses and carried weapons with them. At their appearance, the refugees crouching on either side of the road receded back, whether because they heard the clopping or beheld their silhouettes. They hid in the corners and watched them ride away.
They soon arrived at the lake.
Wang Hong took a look at the fifty-acre lake and lightly ordered, “Fifty of you split up and go around the lake. See whether there are any unusual footprints, hoof prints, or wheel tracks. Also, stop and ask anyone you see.”
“Aye.”
Fifty riders rode off with their order.
After a quarter of an hour, five riders rode back to him. A young guard clasped his hands as soon as he dismounted his horse, saying: “Master, wheel traces of a carriage and nine people’s footprints were found two hundred paces from here, as well as human blood and a dead body on the ground.”
He paused at this juncture to look at Wang Hong.
In the flickering fire, Wang Hong’s handsome face seemed as though it was hidden behind a layer of mist. What could the guard possibly see?
“The carriage had been stuck in the mud,” the young guard continued. “It later went to the west. Following the traces, we saw footprints of eight people followed by the hooves of six horses. These hoof prints came from the hillside.”
He stopped and looked toward Wang Hong.
In the swaying flames, Wang Hong nodded and said, “It’s unmistakably her. Relay my order to track down the traces.”
“Aye.”
Horseshoes kicking, wheels clopping.
The young guard was clearly a tracking expert. He rode at the forefront and jumped down every ten paces to take a look.
By and by, he neared the carriage and said to Wang Hong, “Master, the six horses did not have enough stamina to continue chasing. Only the carriage went on in that direction.”
He pointed ahead.
Wang Hong lowered the curtain and lightly said, “I got it, let’s go.”
“Aye.”
The horses again sprinted forward.
The young guard still led the way. He went for about a hundred paces, jumped down to take a look, and then mounted his horse again.
They went that way for an hour before the guard pointed to a wheel track and said, “They had stopped here for some time but had since gone toward that mountain.”
“Let’s continue.”
“Aye.”
Some time later, the guard stopped and turned to Wang Hong with his hands clasped in ceremony. “Master, the carriage is nearby.”
He paused, then asked, “Should we call their names?” Since they were surrounded by mountains, one call would send echoes ringing and they’d very soon find her.
In the flickering glow of the fire, Wang Hong smiled.
His smile was a little mysterious, a little shrewd, and at the same time a little weary.
He lifted the curtain and hopped down. Walking toward the guard, he lightly chuckled: “What are you calling her name for? I think she’s had enough fright for today.”
The guard did not fully understand what he meant.
Wang Hong jumped onto a horse belonging to another guard and said to the young one: “Let us go and find her.”
“Aye,” replied the young guard while looking quizzically at his master. Some time later, he confirmed his answer and rode off.
This time, he would look around every ten paces or so, Wang Hong following closely behind.
Soon, he got to a place and pointed inside. “Master, she’s probably in here.”
Wang Hong hummed in reply. As he listened, his lips gradually upturned to show a soft smile.
“Go and make some noises,” he said. “But don’t come up to greet when you see someone come out. Just go and find a place to pass your time.”
This time, the young man was quick to understand. He laughed out loud, winked and whispered to Wang Hong: “Do you want her to commit to you out of gratefulness?”
Ethereal and pure, Wang Hong stood with his hands clasped behind his back as he faintly smiled. “Commit herself to me? Adoration, perhaps, but commitment will be difficult given her personality.”
The bodyguard stifled his laugh, stomped on the ground, and headed for the cleft.