My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 265 Estrangement
Xihe County.

Outside a valley, two groups of people were slowly approaching each other.

Shan Xiongxin rode a tall horse, holding a lance, at the forefront. Beside him followed many knights, their faces solemn and their eyes sharp as they stared at the approaching crowd in the distance.

More than ten riders came from the opposite side.

They were all masked, their faces obscured, and many carried curved knives at their waists, watching Shan Xiongxin and his group warily.

The two sides stopped at a distance that was safe for both. Shan Xiongxin rode out, and the opposing leader also came out. The two broke away from their respective formations and met between the two sides.

Shan Xiongxin carried a package in his hand, his face arrogant and fierce as he stared at the knight opposite him without saying a word.

The knight took off his mask, revealing his face; he was a Turk.

"General, I need to see what I want."

The man didn't speak fluently. Shan Xiongxin picked up the package in his hand and said, "Here is the head you wanted."

"However, I can't give it to you for free."

"Let me consider."

Without wasting any words, Shan Xiongxin threw the package to the other person. The person took the package, opened it, and saw a rotting human head inside. Fortunately, they had treated the head, so the rotting wasn't too severe. However, the head was almost smashed to pieces, and the death was extremely gruesome.

The other party examined it for a long time, then smiled, wrapped up the head, nodded, and looked at Shan Xiongxin.

"You want too many horses, I can only give you ten."

Shan Xiongxin grinned and said, "I knew you barbarians wouldn't keep your word. If you won't give it to me, then I'll take it myself."

He slowly raised the lance in his hand, and the knights behind him seemed to understand something, and they all drew their swords.

The leader sized up the burly Shan Xiongxin before him, then looked at the many knights behind him. He paused, then said, “General, there’s no need for that. Twenty horses, not one less.”

He turned around and shouted something.

Soon, someone led a group of horses toward Shan Xiongxin. Shan Xiongxin looked them over one by one, then had his men take them. The transaction was thus completed. The leader smiled and said, "The transaction is successful?"

"Yes, it's done."

“I see that you are a tall and imposing general. Why are you here as a thief? Why not come with me to the borderlands? My prince admires a warrior like you and is willing to reward you with a high-ranking official position and generous salary.”

"No need. I'm doing quite well here. If there are any good business opportunities in the future, you can contact me again. However, don't easily break your promises again, otherwise, I will never do any business with you."

The leader nodded again, "Alright."

Both sides left without ever engaging in combat. The leader returned to his own camp with the severed heads, finally letting out a sigh of relief. His eyes were filled with exhaustion as he excitedly said, "We can finally go home."

This Turk was sent by the second prince of the Turkic Khaganate. They had intercepted information that the eldest prince was going to trade horses with a nobleman from the Sui Dynasty in Xihe County to gain his support. So, this man was sent to intercept the eldest prince's men and sabotage the transaction.

They've been in Xihe for almost a year now and have accomplished nothing. The Second Prince has given a death order: they're not allowed to come back until they've caught the thief. So the leader has no choice but to lead everyone here to become thieves. And this leader is a nobleman, so life here is worse than death for him.

After enduring so much hardship, I finally got what I wanted. Now, I can go back and claim my reward.

The knights here were all moved to tears.

The leader did not linger and immediately led everyone away to return and report back!

Meanwhile, Shan Xiongxin led his group back quickly. They left the valley and came to a main road, where seven or eight people were waiting for them. When Shan Xiongxin led his group back, a scholar stepped forward, examined the horses Shan Xiongxin had brought, and narrowed his eyes.

Shan Xiongxin dismounted and walked to the man's side.

This scholar was a minor official in Xihe named Fang Xuanling. Shan Xiongxin was able to trade so smoothly with the Turkic bandits in Xihe thanks to him. He acted as an intermediary and helped contact the bandits, which made the deal possible.

Shan Xiongxin did not recognize this person. He bowed to Fang Xuanling and said, "Lord Fang, I have taken care of the matter."

He waved to the back, and immediately a knight led three horses over. Shan Xiongxin said, "Keep these three horses for yourself. They're Turkic horses, good for riding, but they're also good gifts." Fang Xuanling was taken aback. He knew the value of this gift. Although these horses weren't as precious as the ones given to Yuwen Shu, they were still quite good, high-quality horses, priceless. And now he was being given three of them?

Fang Xuanling returned the greeting, "Thank you, Brother Shan. I did these things to protect myself and drive these thieves away as soon as possible. I really dare not accept such a valuable gift."

Shan Xiongxin laughed, "I can't give away these three horses on my own. My lord sent someone to tell me to choose a few good horses as a gift. You should accept them. If you don't, I won't be able to explain myself."

Fang Xuanling bowed again, "Alright, then thank you very much, Brother Shan."

He had someone take over the horses. Fang Xuanling originally had no dealings with Shan Xiongxin and his ilk, but he had met with Li Yuan before and pleaded for his life. Later, someone sent him a letter, and the one who wrote the letter was the second son of the Duke of Tang.

Fang Xuanling was very surprised and contacted the other party many times, and their relationship became closer.

Not long ago, Li Shimin wrote to him again, saying that he needed his help and that he wanted to ask him to find those Turkic bandits, saying that his men had what he needed.

Fang Xuanling was exceptionally intelligent; he understood the key point and then stepped in to arrange the transaction.

On one hand, he was helping his friend, and on the other hand, he was also helping himself. If these people continued to stay here, something big would definitely happen. Letting them get out of here sooner would be a good thing for the whole county.

After giving the horses, Shan Xiongxin bid farewell to Fang Xuanling and led his knights away in haste.

After they left, a minor official beside Fang Xuanling stepped forward and said, "Lord Fang, these people don't seem like good people. Keeping these Turkic horses around is too conspicuous."

"Well, these horses can't be kept with us. Let's send them all to the magistrate's residence."

Fang Xuanling spoke, and the minor official agreed.

Fang Xuanling stood at a distance, watching Shan Xiongxin depart, his heart filled with complex emotions.

When Li Shimin wrote to him to inquire about the Xihe region, he was quite surprised and didn't understand what this nobleman's son was up to. But now, he vaguely understood something; the Duke of Tang seemed to have some frightening ideas.

In the past few months, the public security in Hedong has become extremely good.

Thieves vanished from all directions, and even the dead disappeared, much to the delight of the officials.

Whether on official roads or in the countryside, there are few thieves to be found.

The problem is that bandit dens have sprung up in the vicinity, and many large mountain strongholds have appeared. Thieves and the dead have flocked to these strongholds. These people no longer plunder the surrounding areas or cut off roads. They simply disappear into the mountains, and no one knows what they are doing.

Fang Xuanling recalled the nursery rhymes that had been circulating before, which made him even more uneasy.

It seems I should try to stay away from Hedong as much as possible, preferably to a more distant place, and reduce contact with this Mr. Li to avoid getting involved in any serious matters.

Fang Xuanling led his men back to the city, and his men delivered the horses to the magistrate, claiming they were obtained from thieves.

The magistrate had no qualms and left the horses behind, also noting Fang Xuanling's merit in suppressing the bandits.

The next day, he summoned Fang Xuanling to his presence.

"Xuanling, you're quite skilled!"

The magistrate praised it.

Fang Xuanling shook his head, "Your Excellency flatters me. We just happened to catch some thieves and obtained a few horses."

"I wasn't talking about the horses!"

"You have close associates in court, why didn't you tell me? You're always so secretive, even to me."

"Ok?"

"I've received a transfer letter from the Ministry of Personnel. They're transferring you to the Imperial Guard. This time, you're going to soar to great heights!"

"From now on, you'll have to take good care of me!"

(End of this chapter)