"I must say, the words of the leading retainer made Gan Quan tremble with fear. He couldn't explain why he had to make a move, so he turned his back to Xing Daorong, a smile on his face, saying, "I don't know where this wild horse came from, wandering here. I thought you brothers were hungry, so I decided to act!"
Despite his words, Gan Quan's panicked expression betrayed him. The leading retainer didn't believe his nonsense and stepped forward with a slight smile, "Come, let me see what kind of wild horse it is!"
"You'd better not meddle in my affairs!" Gan Quan reprimanded sternly, his face darkened. With the people he brought present, Xing Daorong was doomed. Moreover, the more people knew, the greater the danger. "I'm doing this for the general's own good. Please don't interfere!"
"An envoy can also act like this? Fine!" The leading retainer retorted sarcastically. "I didn't realize that you, sir, are now in charge. You think you can cover the sky with one hand just because you brought your own men? Daydreaming!"
"Get out of the way!" The leading retainer pushed Gan Quan aside without hesitation. When he saw Xing Daorong behind him, his smile instantly froze. He had seen clearly what happened that day!
"You want to kill him? You dare to kill him? Are you trying to drag us all down with him!" The leading retainer grabbed Gan Quan by the collar and roared, "I absolutely won't agree, absolutely not!"
"Get lost!" Gan Quan was furious. His plan was ruined by this man! "If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be in this mess. Now, I can't guarantee anything!"
The leading retainer was momentarily unsure of what was happening, but he knew one thing: there was strength in numbers. He hurriedly shouted, "Guards! Come quickly and see! He's trying to kill all of us!"
The soldiers, having just escaped death's door, couldn't stand idly by. They got up, weapons in hand, and surrounded Gan Quan tightly. Murmurs spread among them.
"Isn't that the gentleman who went down the mountain to handle affairs? What's going on?"
"Who knows? But it doesn't look like a small matter."
"Who cares? If someone wants my life, I'll take two of his teeth even if I die!"
Gan Quan stood with a stern face, remaining silent. The leading retainer, however, seemed to have found his backbone and spoke hurriedly, "Brothers, brothers, you all know who that person is. I just saw him trying to make a move. If he dies, we can live!"
"This is trying to take all your lives!" The leading retainer spread his hands sincerely, "I'm doing this for your own good, brothers. Please speak your minds!"
"Sir, why are you doing this? Please give us a reason!"
"Yes, we won't just listen to one side. As long as you give us a reason, we'll believe you!"
"That's right, we believe you're not that kind of person!"
Facing everyone's expectant gazes, Gan Quan tried to speak, but then he thought that if he revealed the identity of that person, none of them would survive. He lowered his head and mumbled, "I have no reason. I just want to ask you brothers one thing: do you trust me? If you do, we'll be safe if we kill him!"
Gan Quan had sent the document, which had ostensibly saved them all. He believed there shouldn't be any problem. However, his life was now at stake. In an instant, everyone lowered their heads, unwilling to speak.
"Sir, we brothers believe you have your difficulties. Tell us, and we'll solve them together. Otherwise, how can we believe you!"
"Yes, tell us what's wrong, and we'll find a way together!"
Tears welled up in Gan Quan's eyes. The leading retainer gently patted his shoulder, "I believe you too, but this is about the lives of our brothers. We can't gamble with this."
"Brothers, can you keep this a secret? If even one person speaks out today, we'll all perish without a burial place!" Gan Quan looked up at the leading retainer and instinctively asked.
"What's there to worry about? We've been through worse. Keeping secrets is no problem. Besides, if sir says so, it concerns all of us. No one will go out and talk nonsense!"
"That's right, sir, just tell us!"
"Just tell us, we won't talk nonsense!"
Gan Quan stared at their sincere eyes and nodded heavily. Without hesitation, he laid out his entire conjecture. In an instant, everyone was stunned.
"Is it true?" The leading retainer took a deep breath and asked solemnly.
"I'm not sure, but it's highly probable," Gan Quan replied, his head lowered. "If we hadn't killed Hua Xiong and Pan Feng, we might have had a way back. But now, no one can do anything!"
"Brothers, listen!" The leading retainer said with a serious expression. "This concerns all your lives. Even if you die, you must not speak of it, understand?"
"Yes!" everyone replied in unison. "Sir, what do we do now? This person?"
"We've come this far, we can't turn back!" Gan Quan's eyes darkened as he looked at the bottom of the cliff. Pushing him down would be a clean solution!
"I'll help you. If something happens, you won't have to bear it alone!" The leading retainer stepped forward, watching Gan Quan lead the horse. He hurriedly pushed the horse's hindquarters, intending to push both the man and the horse off the cliff.
The white horse followed obediently for a few steps, then suddenly neighed and reared its front hooves. Instantly, Xing Daorong fell heavily to the ground. Gan Quan and the other man exchanged glances, unsure of what to do.
"Given the situation, should we just throw him down?" the leading retainer asked timidly. "If you don't kill the snake, you'll invite disaster!"
"But what about the horse?" Gan Quan gently patted the horse's back. "If it falls with him, people can assume it was an accident. If not, any investigation by someone with a discerning eye might not be fooled!"
"What's so difficult about that? We'll just push them both down!" The leading retainer nodded heavily at Gan Quan. The next moment, as they were about to act, the horse's hoof accidentally landed heavily on Xing Daorong's body. Xing Daorong slowly woke up, touching his head.
"Where are my two brothers? I can't see them!" Xing Daorong asked hazily.
"To avoid any unforeseen complications, let's hurry!" Gan Quan instructed. The two men, one lifting the head and the other the feet, were about to act when they heard Xing Daorong shout, "Hua Xiong! Pan Feng! Come quickly and save me! Someone is trying to harm me!"
"If you want to find your two brothers, go look for them in the underworld. But make sure you see clearly who killed them, and don't accuse the wrong person!"
His shout didn't summon the two brothers, but another Xing Daorong appeared with a smile. "What are you two doing? Who is this person?"
The fake Xing Daorong's face remained calm. He looked at the leading retainer and Gan Quan. "This person bears some resemblance to me. What are your plans?"
"General, you've misunderstood. We don't know where this lunatic came from, impersonating the general's name. We were just about to throw him off the cliff to end it all!" The leading retainer, sweating profusely, hastily explained, "Please rest assured, General, this will never happen again!"
Xing Daorong felt a premonition and immediately shouted, "I am Xing Daorong, the vanguard general of Zhang Miao! You rebellious sons are attacking me! My two brothers will surely kill you all!"
"Foolish, foolish!" Xing Daorong was about to curse when he was slapped several times on the face. Gan Quan angrily yelled, "This general is the real General Xing! Who do you think you are, daring to spout nonsense here and court death!"
"You!" Xing Daorong wanted to speak again, but a piece of cloth was stuffed into his mouth, making him mumble incoherently.
Suddenly, Gan Quan noticed a flash of killing intent in the fake Xing Daorong's eyes. He then breathed a sigh of relief. He stepped forward and said without hesitation, "General, this person is impersonating you. How should he be dealt with? Please give us your instructions!"
This move was clearly an attempt to shift the blame, allowing him to extricate himself if something went wrong. The fake Xing Daorong saw this clearly and coughed lightly. "That's your business. It has nothing to do with this general. However, I will remind you that I am here to escort you down the mountain. If there are any mistakes in the process, this general cannot be held responsible!"
"You decide. If I see this person again, this general will know what to do!" The fake Xing Daorong left without looking back!
The leading retainer stared at Gan Quan, about to make a move, when Gan Quan raised his hand, stopping him. "Wait, this person cannot be killed!"
The leading retainer was stunned. Gan Quan had first said he could be killed, and now he said he couldn't. What would satisfy him? His expression turned grim.
"General, may I speak with you in private?" Gan Quan prompted. The two of them walked aside and secretly plotted. "We got rid of this person back then to reassure that person. Now that he knows, there's already a thorn in his side. Why make another enemy by acting against him?"
"Then what should we do?" the leading retainer asked instinctively. "After all, that person has already spoken. If there's an investigation, I'm afraid..."
Gan Quan whispered, "I suspect that person is likely someone from the King of Chu. Why don't we hide him and treat him well? If there's an opportunity to take him down the mountain, perhaps he'll be useful one day. As for the news, these are all brothers here. Would they possibly spread it?"
In a few sentences, Gan Quan clearly explained the pros and cons. The leading retainer made up his mind. With a heavy voice, a soldier stood outside the fake Xing Daorong's door and said with clasped fists, "My lord, that person has been thrown into the abyss and there is no trace of his body. Does my lord wish to inspect the scene?"
"No need. I trust you will make the best arrangements," Xing Daorong said after a moment's thought. "Please have your general tidy everything up. Once the snowstorm stops, we will descend the mountain, and you will be rewarded handsomely. As for your lord, why does he refuse to meet?"