When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

It was the first time that someone told him that he couldn't drink much. Lin Lezhi felt very dissatisfied. He could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk. It was just that his body couldn't do it.

"If you don't know, please don't spread rumors. It's obviously... uh—!"

Lin Lezhi turned around and said unconvincedly, as if he was going to have a good argument.

But just as he was about to meet Xiao Yihuo's eyes, Xiao Yihuo picked up the coat beside him and threw it towards Lin Lezhi, covering Lin Lezhi with it.

The already pitch-black night suddenly became even darker. There was still some residual warmth on the clothes, and then the sound of Xiao Yihuo's footsteps could be heard.

Judging from the sound, it seems like he has walked a little further away.

The injured left shoulder was difficult to lift, so Lin Lezhi hurriedly pulled it several times with his right hand before finally getting his head out of his clothes.

As a result, he saw Xiao Yihuo walking towards him with a long and thick branch, which could not be called a stick.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to cover my head and beat me up?"

Lin Lezhi didn't have much confidence. He had said a lot of words to provoke Xiao Yihuo during the day. He wouldn't want to settle the score with him now, right?

After saying this, when meeting Xiao Yihuo's gaze, Lin Lezhi stepped back a bit, but after realizing that this was embarrassing, he straightened his back and said, "Hey...! Even if it's a dark night with strong winds and no one around, we still have to be reasonable and follow the law, okay?"

Seeing the panicked expression, Xiao Yihuo narrowed his eyes slightly, took a thick branch and knocked it between the palms of his other hand, approached Lin Lezhi, raised the corner of his mouth and said: "You want to talk to me about the law?"

"..."

This... this is really like smelling the smell of gunpowder to find explosives and rushing towards the muzzle of the gun.

Lin Lezhi stared at the thick branch in Xiao Yihuo's hand that was bouncing up and down, his heart beating along with it. In his mind, he had already begun to simulate his own fate and was thinking about his own way out.

Run, but can't escape.

Fight, you can’t win.

Or should I just let Xiao Yihuo beat me up to vent my anger?

But the other self in my mind quickly dismissed the thought.

After a profound and clear analysis of his situation and the fact that he had no chance of winning, Lin Lezhi immediately smiled and said, "I... I am doing this for your sake. If this gets out, it will damage your reputation."

As if he had guessed the flaw, Xiao Yihuo's face immediately darkened.

As if to vent his anger, he used his internal force to pull out the Chenwei Sword that was placed beside him, and split the thick branch into several pieces at a speed that was invisible to the naked eye.

As the sword was sheathed, the thick branch that had been split into countless pieces fell into the gradually dying fire. Xiao Yihuo squatted down beside the fire, picked up a small branch nearby and fiddled with the firewood inside.

"I am just an ordinary person. What does reputation have to do with me?"

Xiao Yihuo fiddled with the fire, the flickering flames reflected in his eyes, and spoke in a deep voice.

After stirring the air a few times, the fire became more intense, and the remaining fire burned the newly thrown branches, making crackling sounds.

The crackling sound also made Lin Lezhi's heart skip a beat.

It’s over.

I didn't think about it for a moment and just blurted it out.

Xiao Yihuo was regarded as ominous since he was born and was treated coldly by his father. His mother died on his birthday. Xiao Yihuo had no reputation or fame at all.

Maybe you even hate these two words.

Three months ago, regarding the two cases in Linnan Prefecture and the resettlement of refugees, everyone in the martial arts world was saying that Xiao Yihuo was the most unpopular and ominous prince. Even though he handled the cases properly and was praised by the people, he was not valued by his own father, the emperor. All the credit was snatched away by Yang Hancai, and he got nothing.

Now that he realized what was happening, Lin Lezhi wanted to slap himself a few times.

“Um…” Lin Lezhi scratched his cheek, then pulled up a small corner of his clothes, with an awkward smile on his face, and said in a negotiating tone: “How about… I put my clothes back on, and you beat me up to vent your anger…?”

Hearing this, Xiao Yihuo looked straight at Lin Lezhi with a cold gaze. It seemed that he had no intention of rejecting Lin Lezhi's proposal and even looked very interested.

Lin Lezhi noticed from the corner of his eye that Xiao Yihuo's hand that was poking at the fire had stopped. He quickly glanced at him and raised his hand and said, "Let me talk about me first. I'm not a person who goes back on my word, but...but your clothes are quite valuable. It would be a pity to damage them. Don't you think so?"

"..."

Well, judging from Xiao Yihuo's expression, he doesn't seem to think so.

Seeing Xiao Yihuo's eyes gloomy and silent, Lin Lezhi simply closed his eyes and said, "You can hit me, but be gentle. After all, I am also injured now, and you said you don't want me to hold everyone back tomorrow."

After Lin Lezhi closed his eyes for a while, no sticks or fists were swung towards him. In the quiet night, the only sound he could hear was the burning fire.

Lin Lezhi opened his eyes slightly and looked at Xiao Yihuo beside him. Xiao Yihuo was fiddling with a piece of wood and didn't even look at him.

Lin Lezhi opened his eyes and asked tentatively: "You... don't want to hit me?"

After a moment of silence, Xiao Yihuo stopped what he was doing, broke off the branch in his hand and threw it into the fire. He looked at Lin Lezhi and said, "If you want to be beaten, I can help you."

“No, no, no.” Lin Lezhi hurried down the slope and shook his head, “I don’t want to. I don’t have that kind of hobby. So what are you doing…?”

Lin Lezhi looked at the clothes on his body, his eyes full of confusion.

"You just said it yourself. I don't want anyone to hold us back tomorrow." Xiao Yihuo looked around and said with a vigilant look, "This place is very close to where snakes are. We can't stay here for long. Put on my clothes and we'll leave."

"Ah?" Lin Lezhi was a little confused by this sudden reversal and development.

He lowered his gaze to see Xiao Yihuo's torn middle shirt and the thin lingerie underneath. It was not enough to keep him warm in the increasingly cold forest.

"If you give it to me, what will you do?" Lin Lezhi couldn't help feeling a little worried and blurted out.

"I have internal strength to protect me. If you want to worry about others, you might as well..." Xiao Yihuo looked at Lin Lezhi's left arm and smiled slightly, "Worry about yourself first."

After saying that, Xiao Yihuo stood up and paid close attention to the situation around him.

There was something else behind Xiao Yihuo's words, and his eyes also had a deeper meaning.

Lin Lezhi followed Xiao Yihuo's gaze and saw that his sleeves were burned while he was putting out the fire. The sleeves could hardly cover his arms. Thanks to the ointment given by Qingchuan, the smoke-cloud scar was covered.

The situation was very urgent just now, and Lin Lezhi had no energy to pay attention to the scar on the inside of his arm.

I don't know when, the ointment on the inside of my arm has faded, and the smoke-cloud scar has reappeared.

Lin Lezhi felt his body and found that only the peace knot he had stuffed into his clothes and the things he had taken from the bottom of the coffin were still there.

The medicine sachets that Jiang Lian'an had given him just now had all run away, not to mention the scar-covering ointment that he had put in the inner pocket of his coat. It must have rolled into the grass when his clothes were burned while he was running.

If someone came looking for me now, or if I met someone later and found the scar on my arm, I wouldn’t be able to explain it.

It's impossible to go back and look for it under the current circumstances.

Xiao Yihuo's clothes were not damaged, so they could cover up the problem well. He just had to be careful not to be discovered and hold on until he saw Qingchuan.

I am worrying about Xiao Yihuo, a martial arts master, but I am really worrying too much about myself.

I think it would be a good deal if I could experience the texture of good clothes again.

Lin Lezhi stood up holding the clothes and said with a smile: "In this case, I would like to thank you for your kindness, Master Xiao. I will definitely repay you one day."