Chapter 448 (1/2)

“What? You failed to find him? What are you guys doing?” Huang Chen asked with a malevolent expression. They were all within the Huang residence.

Huang Chen was definitely furious. They had spent so much money, to the extent that his brother fell from power to protect him. They spent four thousand seven hundred gold to buy six women but before they could take these women home, they were attacked. The Huang Family had six men protecting the carriage at that time but four of them were killed. “What useless soldiers!”

The six women were all gone from the carriage. Fortunately, the killer was not interested in the Huang brothers or they would be dead. The Huang brothers furiously dispatched his private army to find that barbarian and the women. He had not yet seen any results.

“Young Master. Leader Deng has returned with a carriage!” One person delivered the news while Huang Chen was fuming.

“Deng Tian is back?” Huang Chen asked in delight. Deng Tian was once a n.o.ble of the Deng Family but he was now the servant of the Huang Family. He had talent but he was only the leader of the Huang Family’s private army. Obtaining him had been extremely easy. It was because he had talent that the Huang Family wanted him.

“He even brought back the carriage?” Huang Chen was happy. When they were attacked, one carriage had been stolen. If they managed to get back the carriage, it would mean that they got back the women as well.

“Quick! Follow me out!” Huang Chen wanted to go out and greet Deng Tian. However, Deng Tian was faster. He was already in the courtyard by the time Huang Chen arrived there.

“Young Master!” Deng Tian cupped his fist the moment he saw Huang Chen. Although the two Huang brothers were disgraceful, they knew how to take in useful people such as Deng Tian. All of Deng Tian’s peace and comfort here had been arranged by the Huang brothers. That was why Deng Tian was grateful to them.

“Haha! I knew it! How could those useless people be compared to our Leader Deng!” Huang Chen stepped forward and complimented Deng Tian. “And they still call themselves soldiers! It is more likely they got expelled from Jiangxia’s troops!” Huang Chen added. His six bodyguards were from Jiangxia and had survived fighting on a real battlefield before. However, they were now treated as useless people by Huang Chen.

“Young Master!” Deng Tian felt awkward as the six bodyguards Huang Chen was talking about had been elites. In order to protect Huang Chen, four of them lost their lives, one was severely injured, and the remaining one was half crippled.

Huang Chen should not have sneered at them. On top of that, these men were the ones that injured the barbarian enough to leave behind a trail.

“Young Master’s words is too heavy! This one cannot accept those words!” Deng Tian objected.

“Why not? Deng Tian. I must definitely reward you heftily!” Huang Chen laughed and patted Deng Tian’s back. He then rushed to the carriage impatiently and saw several women looking back at Huang Chen in horror.

These women had already been frightened by the barbarian. The barbarian did not kill people with a sword and instead skewer them with the pitchfork. That was a scene that would make too gruesome and frightening for them.

Their fear made them look more lovable. This caused Huang Chen’s wicked thoughts to soar. He immediately took one of those women into his embrace.

Huang Chen then counted the number of women and frowned. There were only five women there. Wasn’t there supposed to be six? He then realized the most valuable one, the barbarian woman, was missing.

“Young Master. We only found this carriage! We could not find the barbarian or the barbarian princess!” Deng Tian cupped his fist in reply.

“Tras.h.!.+ You are all useless tras.h.!.+” Huang Chen roared angrily. Two thousand seven hundred gold had just disappeared like this. They had not even touched her once. The two brothers had spent so much to obtain her. His brother was even going to be disowned. Now he was being told that they could not find her. Previously he was just praising Deng Tian. Now, he was calling Deng Tian useless as well.

“Yes. Yes.” Deng Tian could only receive the verbal abuse as he was the Huang Family’s servant. Whatever their master says, goes. It was also true that this was due to his neglect. He never expected the barbarian to use schemes. The barbarian had threatened the coachman to keep riding while he escaped in a different direction.

Deng Tian initially followed the trail of blood but gave up when he heard about the carriage.

“I knew it! I knew you would not be able to complete the Young Master’s task!” The housekeeper entered and spoke up while Deng Tian was being scolded by Huang Chen.

“Housekeeper?” Huang Chen’s mood became even worse once the housekeeper showed up. “You as well! Didn’t you follow Deng Tian as well? Why did Deng Tian return first but you only appeared now?”

“Young Master! It is not that I, Huang Jie, do not want to work for your sake. However, Deng Tian had already been bribed by others!” The housekeeper knelt down and lied. Instead of telling Huang Chen that he got shamed by Deng Tian, he instead said that Deng Tian had betrayed Huang Chen.

“Hm?”

“Huang Jie! This is venomous slander!” Deng Tian stepped forward to retort. He was already the mortal enemy of the Cai Family. n.o.body else except the Huang Family would take him in. “Since when have I received bribes? Last time, your family wanted to enter my troops and become a captain but I refused him. You can hold a grudge but I, Deng Tian, have only been working for the sake of the Huang Family! You are just trying to frame me!”

“Huang Jie! What did you say?” Huang Chen also knew that the housekeeper and Deng Tian were at odds. Normally, the housekeeper would be in charge of the private soldiers as well but Deng Tian was too capable. As a result, the troops did not listen to the Huang Jie. There definitely was a possibility for Huang Jie to want to frame Deng Tian.

“I am framing you? Do I even need to do that?” Huang Jie stood back up and replied to Deng Tian.

“Hmph! Only you would know!”

“Fine! Let me expose your hypocrisy! We will let Young Master see what kind of outsider you are!” Huang Jie then sneered. “Let me ask you! Do you know of the Kuai Family’s Kuai Ran?”

“I do.” Deng Tian nodded in reply.

“Kuai Ran?” Huang Chen became angrier after hearing that name. He and his brother was in this predicament because of Kuai Ran and w.a.n.g Shu. His brother had to sacrifice himself to protect him. Huang Chen ignored the fact that they only ended up like this because they were the ones that tried to plot against others and their schemes backfired.

“You know Kuai Ran?” Huang Chen narrowed his eyes. If Deng Tian does not give a proper explanation, he would definitely arrest Deng Tian.

“Yes, Young Master. How many people in Jingzhou do not know of Kuai Ran?” Deng Tian was not an idiot. He would definitely not let Huang Jie get him so easily.

As the only heir to the Kuai Family, Kuai Ran had reputation in Jingzhou. In fact, he had higher reputation compared to the Huang brothers as the Huang brothers need to compete amongst themselves for the inheritance.

“Huang Jie. What do you say to that?”

“Of course I am not talking about just knowing Kuai Ran. I meant that Deng Tian and Kuai Ran have a past!”

“Have a past?”Huang Chen questioned and looked at Deng Tian with suspicion. Having a past meant that they were friends. Kuai Ran and Deng Tian had different statuses. How could they be friends? Even Huang Chen himself treat Deng Tian like a dog.

“Yes.” Contrary to Huan Chen’s expectations, Deng Tian admitted to this. “Me and Kuai Ran do have a past together but just like what you said, it is the past! I know of Kuai Ran during the time the Deng Family was still around!” Deng Tian replied honestly.

Huang Jie did not expect Deng Tian to reply this way. The Deng Family was ruined almost ten years ago. During that time, Deng Tian was also the heir to his family and his status was not any lower compared to Huang Chen. It was normal for Deng Tian to have personal enemies and friends of his own during that time.

“Housekeeper Huang accuse me of accepting bribes. Then let me ask you, where did the provisions in fourth warehouse outside Xiangyang disappeared to?”

The guards at the fourth warehouse were relatively lax compared to the ones guarding the first three warehouses. This is because the fourth warehouse did not have much inside it unlike the first three warehouses which were completely full. Watching over all of these was Deng Tian.

“What happened to the provisions at the fourth warehouse?”

Huang Jie jumped after being questioned. He was the one that embezzled those provisions. He sold those provisions when Zhang Xiu was still around and the money all went to his own pocket. This year, he had planned to buy provisions dirt cheap from the populace to fill up the difference in the fourth warehouse. He never expected Deng Tian to throw him out early.

Unable to give an explanation, Huang Chen became even more furious and was prepared to punish Huang Jie.

“Young Master! I beg your forgiveness! I will return the money to the Young Master! I beg your forgiveness!” Huang Jie panicked the moment Huang Chen was about to give the order to arrest him.

“Speak! How much did you sell?”

“One… one…” Huang Jie stammered as he raised a finger.

“One hundred gold?” One hundred gold worth of provisions was about one third of the warehouse. How daring.

“Haha. It is probably more like the entire warehouse!” Deng Tian laughed. He planned to get rid of Huang Jie once and for all.

“You!”

“An entire warehouse?” Huang Chen smiled angrily1. That was at least three hundred gold. Yet, Huang Chen had underestimated Huang Jie. Huang Jie actually sold it for five hundred gold. If he waited until a b.u.mper harvest, he could leave behind three hundred gold worth of provisions, he could still profit two hundred gold.

“Men! Arrest Huang Jie and put him in the torture chamber!” If a family servant committed a crime, they could be dealt with within the family. They did not need to send him to the government.

“Young Master! Spare me! Spare me!” Huang Jie panicked. If he were sent to the torture chamber, he would be finished. He would definitely die there. If he had been given to the authorities, he would be banished but he could keep his life.

“Young Master. There is no need to send him to the torture chamber. Housekeeper Huang has a lot of savings. The total should definitely be a few hundred gold! If you send him to the torture chamber, you will get nothing!” Deng Tian spoke with the intention of trampling over dying Huang Jie.

“Deng Tian! Young Master! Spare me!”

“Arrest him!” Huang Chen’s eyes shone. He had no interest in Huang Jie but he definitely had interest in the man’s wealth.

“Fine! Deng Tian! Since you are so unkind, I am taking you with me! Young Master. Since I have served the Huang Family for so long, allow me to speak my last words.” Huang Jie gritted his teeth and glared at Deng Tian.

“Speak!”

“Just like what I said earlier, this Deng Tian has accepted bribes and have long since betrayed Milord!”

“You are still trying to frame me?” Deng Tian shouted back as Huang Chen did not forbid Huang Jie from speaking.

“Then let me ask you. Did we find traces of the barbarian when we chased him?”

“Yes.” Deng Tian nodded. It was hard to hide the smell of blood. On top of that, the attacked happened near the Huang Family residence so the soldiers were able to dispatch quickly.

“Did the figure disappear around the time we met Kuai Ran’s group?” Huang Jie asked again.

“Yes.”

“Then why did you not search their carriage?” Huang Jie asked. Huang Chen turned his head to look at Deng Tian.

“Young Master. Kuai Ran is also a n.o.ble’s son while I am just a servant. How could I act against him? Huang Jie were you trying to provoke a war between the Huang Family and the Kuai Family?” With Kuai Ran there, Deng Tian did not dare to act. It would have been better if Huang Chen was also there. The both of them had similar status so Huang Chen could act. On the other hand, if he were to act, it would be humiliating the Kuai Family as he was only a servant.

“I don’t think that is the real reason! I think you got bribed by Kuai Ran!” Huang Jie sneered at Deng Tian before turning to Huang Chen. “Young Master! This Deng Tian is not only close to Kuai Ran. Kuai Ran even wanted to accept Deng Tian’s son as a disciple!”

“What?” Huang Chen was stunned. This was not a small matter. The Kuai Family was extremely influential. On top of that, the one accepting the disciple was Kuai Ran. Accepting the offer would be a shortcut to success. It would also allow the Deng Family to become n.o.bles again.

It was an extremely enticing offer. What kind of friends.h.i.+p could they have for this to happen?