Peerless Vol. 3 by Meng Xi Shi: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

Peerless vol 3 by Meng Xi Shi

The story really gets going in volume 3. It starts at the encampment of the Western Khaganate where Cui Buqu and Feng Xiao had been honoured guests until the second prince was suddenly murdered at the end of the previous volume. Now the men stand accused of the deed. The way out of the situation is to solve the crime themselves. But instead of Cui Buqu doing the investigation, he volunteers to stay as a hostage while Feng Xiao investigates. Only, the latter has no intention of doing so.

Cui Buqu has an ace on his sleeve though, and doesn’t need Feng Xiao—until he does. In the end, the mystery is solved rather fast, and not in any way I thought it would. The men are now free to travel back home where they are hailed as heroes.

Their adventures at end, they continue their separate lives as heads of their rivalling secret service organisations. But Cui Buqu has promised a rare musical instrument for Feng Xiao as a reward for saving his life. It turns out to be in the hands of Cui clan, and the men travel together to fetch it. But the instrument is all but forgotten when Feng Xiao has a chance to learn about Cui Buqu’s past and his connection to Cui clan. It’s an interesting and sad story, but Cui Buqu has a chance to air old grievances and eventually emerge on the top.

But the men haven’t forgotten the mysterious secret organisation that seems to be behind all their troubles. Going after it again leads to a sudden gut-wrenching twist and betrayal the kind that’s familiar from the author’s Thousand Autumns novel. The end is a huge cliffhanger that leaves Cui Buqu in mortal peril. It’ll be an agony to wait for the next volume.

This was maybe the best volume so far. A lot happened and the men really became their own characters. Cui Buqu especially had a chance to shine. There wasn’t much in the way of romance, only brief teasing moments, and after this volume, the road to a happy ending will be long. The secret organisation and its motives remain a bit over the top, but as an adversary, it’s interesting. Side characters from previous volumes didn’t really show up and new ones didn’t take their place. All in all, an entertaining read.