I'm Already the Richest Man, Why Did My System Just Arrive?

Chapter 369: Chapter 205: Night Battle

Ri Di held a torch high, his expression full of anger.

The scrawny man was tied tightly to the burning stake, ceaselessly begging for mercy.

To the side, his wife and children knelt on the ground, held back by the tribesmen, their wails unceasing.

”Daddy!”

”Daddy! Don’t die, Daddy!”

”Daddy! *Sob...* Let my daddy go!”

The four children, boys and girls, were crying their hearts out.

He wasn’t familiar with the man tied to the burning stake.

He did, however, have a slight acquaintance with the man’s wife.

The man’s wife was named Xin. She was a skilled weaver, and ten years ago, she had helped weave Xie Luohe’s wedding dress.

Zheng Xiu asked around a bit from the sidelines and soon understood the whole story.

The man had settled here even before Zheng Xiu and his wife.

His original name was Xu Yun. He came from the southern Central Plains, but his family had fallen on hard times. Young and full of dreams, he heard that the lands west of the Great Desert were paved with gold, so he put together a caravan, hoping to trade specialties from the Central Plains back and forth between east and west.

Xu Yun inquired about old, forgotten legends and learned of a lost ”trade route.” He decided to try his luck.

In the end, his caravan was buried by sandstorms. He was the only one with any luck; just as he was about to die in the Great Desert, having exhausted all his food and water, he was saved by passing members of the Sun Tribe.

Xu Yun wanted to return to the Central Plains many times, but he lacked the courage and the ability to cross the Great Desert alone. Ultimately, he had no choice but to marry a local woman and settle down, becoming a member of the Sun Tribe in all but name.

From his wife, he learned of the ”Green River” route.

When Arturo tempted him with gold and other rewards, Xu Yun agonized for days before his conscience finally failed him, and he gave up the Green River route.

”According to tribal law,” Ri Di boomed, ”traitors must be executed by fire! They will be returned to the Scorching Sun to purify their Human Soul!”

Hearing the cries of Xu Yun’s wife and children, Ri Di’s heart went out to them.

But the law was the law. He had only just become Clan Leader. If he let Xu Yun break the rules without punishment, his own position as leader would be unstable.

Once Zheng Xiu understood the full story, he sighed softly. Deciding not to interfere, he closed his eyes.

The moment Clan Leader Ri Di’s voice fell, he tossed the torch toward the oil-drenched base of the burning stake.

”AHHHH—”

Xu Yun let out a terrified scream. ”It shouldn’t be like this! It shouldn’t be like this!”

WHOOSH!

A pebble shot out from beside Zheng Xiu like a flash of light, knocking the torch aside.

”That’s enough.”

Zheng Xiu turned in surprise to find that the one who had intervened to save Xu Yun was none other than Xie Luohe, who had been standing silently beside him all this time.

”Madam, you...”

Xie Luohe whispered, ”This is my fault.”

Zheng Xiu frowned. ”What does this have to do with you?”

Xie Luohe shook her head. ”If I’d been more decisive that day and just killed Arturo, all of this would have been over. We wouldn’t have all this trouble.”

Zheng Xiu said, resigned, ”The Shache Kingdom is behind him. You kill one Arturo, and for all we know there are countless Avalons, Ah Chelus, Amenlus, and Garurus. You can’t just go on a killing spree through the entire Western Regions.”

At this, Xie Luohe was momentarily at a loss for words.

’Actually, killing my way through isn’t out of the question,’ she thought. But her husband’s current tone clearly suggested he felt otherwise.

”You’re a bit odd today.”

Zheng Xiu gave Xie Luohe a curious glance.

Xie Luohe averted her gaze and didn’t answer.

”Forget it. What’s done is done. Can’t be helped that my wife is so kind-hearted.” Zheng Xiu put an arm around Xie Luohe’s shoulder, comforting her with a smile.

It was Xie Luohe who had intervened, and the Sun tribespeople all turned to stare at her in shock.

In that instant, the couple became the center of the entire tribe’s attention.

Although Xie Luohe and Gongsun Mo were not members of the Sun Tribe, Xie Luohe had passed on her skills in Archery, and Boss Mo had run his business in Richan Town for many years. In the hearts of the Great Desert’s people, the couple’s status was second only to that of Clan Leader Ri Di.

Otherwise, the late Grand Elder wouldn’t have considered making Gongsun Mo and Xie Luohe the new Clan Leaders of the Sun Tribe on his deathbed.

”Lord Xie, what is this...”

Ri Di was dumbfounded. He clearly hadn’t expected Xie Luohe, an outsider, to interfere in the Sun Tribe’s affairs.

Xie Luohe said calmly, ”Since the Green River Trade Route Map has already been leaked, killing him now will accomplish nothing.”

”But...”

Xie Luohe looked calmly at Xu Yun’s weeping wife and children. ”The children are innocent,” she said. ”And now, Brother Di, you are the Clan Leader.”

Ri Di’s gaze wavered. With a long sigh, he waved his hand. ”Let him go! Lock him up for now!”

Xu Yun, the man who had betrayed the Sun Tribe, was taken down from the burning stake. A few tribesmen took him into custody and led him away.

After that, Ri Di organized a secret meeting within the tribe.

Although the Gongsun couple were highly respected within the Sun Tribe, they were still outsiders and thus not qualified to attend.

「In broad daylight.」

Zheng Xiu calmly closed the doors of Mohe Pavilion and started for home.

Xie Luohe trailed closely behind him on the way, looking like a pouting newlywed.

Once they were home, Xie Luohe began tentatively, ”Husband, what if we...”

”I don’t know.”

Zheng Xiu cut Xie Luohe off with a long sigh.

Xie Luohe fell silent.

Zheng Xiu spoke again, repeating himself over and over. ”I don’t know. I don’t know. I really... I don’t know.”

Xie Luohe got up, embraced her husband, and pressed his head firmly into her soft bosom.

She could feel the turmoil in her husband’s heart.

He was agitated.

And Xie Luohe knew perfectly well why.

”I’m going out for a bit.”

After closing the shop, Zheng Xiu went out alone. He returned with an ordinary, cast-iron longsword in hand. By the time he pushed the door open, night had fallen. In the dim light of an oil lamp, he saw Xie Luohe. She had taken down the Longbow she hadn’t used in years and had her head bowed, carefully adjusting the tension of the string. The floor was covered with freshly polished arrowheads.

The moment the door opened, Xie Luohe looked up. Their eyes met, and they shared a smile.