Chapter 83

The silver wolves, who were a source of concern for Chang'an, had wandered quite far this time and encountered a severely injured person.

The silver wolf approached to inspect and found it was a two-legged creature like Old Gu Six, so it thought about bringing it back. Its mate came forward and gave it a fierce beating, followed by a scolding.

The silver wolf whimpered twice, looking towards its brother-in-law, who was gazing lovingly at his mate and had no time to deal with it.

Under its mate's forceful suppression, it had no choice but to bring back the hunt from the mountain.

The injured man was thus abandoned by the two wolf couples, lying in the snow with his face frozen to a bluish-purple hue.

Just as Old Gu Six was preparing to go out and look for them, the silver wolf and its family returned carrying their hunt.

Upon seeing Old Gu Six, it howled twice. This time, Old Gu Six communicated back, thinking it wanted help with the prey.

Old Gu Six took the pheasants and rabbits off the silver wolf's back, went into the courtyard, and skillfully helped them slaughter the chicken and butcher the rabbits, then very adeptly pocketed one rabbit for himself.

While they were living peacefully, the small fishing village was thrown into turmoil as a group of refugees swarmed in, looting indiscriminately.

Although Wan Ke was skilled in combat, he couldn't protect the entire village. He told his family to take important belongings and hide in the mountains, while he ran towards the village.

The people in this village were very kind. When his family first came to settle here, they weren't ostracized but received a lot of help.

He would protect as many as he could. He first ran to Old Uncle Fang's house, arriving just in time to see refugees trying to break down his courtyard door.

Without a word, Wan Ke went forward and struck each of them with his knife. The wounds weren't severe, but could be fatal if left untreated.

Seeing that this household had a formidable defender, the intruders quickly gave up, supporting their injured comrades as they stumbled away.

He knocked on the courtyard door, "Uncle Fang, it's me, Wan Ke. Please open the door."

The three generations huddled trembling in the room heard Wan Ke's voice and immediately ran out.

"Young Wan, why are you here alone? Where's your mother and the others?" Old Uncle Fang opened the courtyard door, pulled Wan Ke inside, then hurriedly closed it, his face etched with deep worry.

Wan Ke reassured him, "Don't worry, Uncle Fang. My mother and the others have gone into the mountains. Quickly, take the two children. I'll escort you to my place, from there you can go up the mountain and reunite with my mother and brothers."

He told his family he was leaving, then set out with dry provisions and his broadsword on his back to find Old Gu Six.

Meanwhile, the father and daughter duo he was worried about were eating well, sleeping well, and enjoying themselves, often tricking the silver wolf family into going hunting while they relaxed at home.

Those refugees also thought that since there was a village by the sea, shouldn't there be others elsewhere?

However, after searching for two days, they found nothing, not even a passable road.

The traces of Old Gu Six's passage had long been erased by nature. If they had been just a bit more patient and continued searching, they might have found people.

Unfortunately, they all gave up halfway. With no villages to plunder for resources, the refugees turned their attention to the town.

However, the town wasn't as easy to conquer as the small fishing village. The town had more people, and when the town chief learned about refugees raiding villages, he arranged for tight security. The townspeople were also unprecedentedly united.

It was no longer the time when one family's good food could affect a neighbor's grandson's appetite and demand compensation.

As for Wan Ke, he had originally intended to find Old Gu Six and his daughter, but who would have thought he'd stumble upon a severely injured, nearly frozen person in the mountains?

This rescue delayed him for seven or eight days. He figured that if Old Gu Six and his daughter were in danger, they would have long since perished, so going to find them now would be pointless.

Then, remembering the fact that he probably couldn't beat Old Gu Six in a fight anyway, he felt slightly more at ease.

He first brought the rescued person back to the village. After ensuring they were okay, he set out again with dry provisions.

Old Gu Six's home was hard to find. He got lost in the mountains, and when he finally reached the seaside, he searched along the coastline for days but found nothing, as if it had vanished.

Three days after Wan Ke left, the man he had rescued was found by his subordinates.

"This subordinate arrived late. Please punish me, Master."

The man's face was pale, his breath weak. He waved his hand dismissively and said softly, "It's fine. You're forgiven. These mountains are all connected; it's impressive that you managed to find me at all."

After a pause, he continued, "Have you found out what happened?"

The subordinate, still kneeling on one knee, looked up at his unfortunate master.

On the subordinate's face, which rarely showed any emotion, the man saw an expression that was difficult to describe.