Chapter 51: Drifting Away
The weather in the south is always very strange, just now it was sunny and clear, but in a short while it has become overcast with dark clouds, several thunderclaps have struck, and the heavy rain has poured down. The rain is extremely heavy, hitting the ground and creating a misty fog, white and hazy, looking like the malaria-carrying air of the southern jungle, a vast and mysterious expanse.
The vast land, five horse-drawn carriages were moving slowly on the rugged road, with eight guards wearing raincoats and conical hats riding horses in the rain at both front and back. The big raindrops hit them but seemed like a gentle cow hair rain, without any reaction. A burly coachman sat in the middle of one of the horse-drawn carriages, vigorously whipping the reins, occasionally wiping his face with his hand and flicking the rainwater to the side.
The rain came quickly and went away quickly. In the time it took to burn a stick of incense, the sky had cleared up after the rain, the sun was high in the sky, and a beautiful rainbow appeared at the horizon.
No heavy rain, people's mood seems to have improved, after about half a catty of tea time, far away, I saw a tea shed, the light green sign in the fresh air after the rain, with a touch of elegant green. In this southern Xinjiang region, it is considered good luck to come across a tea shed or wine shop.
The team stopped at a distance of more than 20 steps from the teahouse. An old man with a slightly hunched back got out of the second horse-drawn carriage and walked towards the third one, lifting up a corner of the carriage curtain as if to ask something. Then he turned his head and beckoned to the guards, before walking in the direction of the teahouse.
The crowd let out a soft cheer, leaving eight people to guard the convoy, while the others, along with the coachman, walked into the teahouse and occupied two tables in the corner. They ordered tea and some local snacks, sending some over to those who had stayed behind, and then sat down around the teahouse, although everyone was silent, their faces were all smiling, seemingly very relaxed.
After all, coming out of the southern jungle full of poisonous insects and miasma, sitting in this dry and clean tea pavilion, everyone let out a sigh of relief.
"If we're talking about the young heroes of this world, then we should look at our own Great Chu and Da Huang. The Qi State's Ha Manzi is treacherous and deceitful, so what can be expected from their prince?" A loud and robust voice suddenly rang out, a stooping old man in a green robe slightly turned his head, only to see a middle-aged man with a face full of scars, extremely tall, wearing a short jacket and carrying a large and heavy knife by his side, looking like a bandit who robs and plunders.
"Yu Dage, you just returned from escorting the treasure to Shengdu. Tell us about the coronation ceremony of the Great Emperor of Nan Chu?" In the teahouse, besides the people from the convoy, there were also three or four tables of guests, among whom two tables seemed familiar and sat close together, chatting.
This road is the only way to go from southern Xinjiang to Chucheng, and after passing through Chucheng, it is the official road to northern Qin and western Sichuan. In the past, merchants came and went in great numbers, but now that it's winter in southern Chu, if it were summer, it would be a hundred times more bustling. The big Han with the surname Yu heard this and laughed loudly, pretending to be worldly-wise, saying: "Speaking of which, I've traveled south and north for so many years, and I don't think my experiences are few. But this time when I came back from Shengdu, I finally understood what it means to be a frog at the bottom of a well. The days before were truly wasted."
"Brother Yu, you've got all the brothers curious, hurry up and tell us, what's this Southern Chu Sheng like? What kind of person is our new emperor?" A thin, small man with a sly voice chimed in, hastily speaking up.
The surname Yu's big Han burst out laughing and said mysteriously: "I don't know what kind of old man Sheng is, but I rode my horse for three days and didn't even finish half of Shengdu. The streets were packed with people, and it was impossible to see far away. Especially this time when our great emperor ascended the throne, people from all countries on the continent came to pay their respects. Xichuan, Dongqi, Bei Qin, Nanjiang Huoyan country, Fengweiguo, Wuyiguo, and Donghai's Liuqiu, Bai Bing, Qingqiu, Xichi... all the countries that could be named were present. When waiting for the new emperor to go to the ancestral temple on Zhuque Street, the queue stretched out seven or eight miles long. That scene still excites me so much that I wake up from my dreams."
"Ah!" The voices of surprise and admiration rose and fell, as if these people could also see the scenery of Shengdu with their own eyes. The thin man spoke again: "Yu Dage, what kind of person is our great emperor? Have you seen him?"
"How come I haven't seen it?" The big man with the surname Yu raised his eyebrows and said: "If you say that the great emperor is a god descending to the world, we ordinary people don't have the opportunity to see the heavenly face at all. However, this time the great emperor publicly ascended to the throne on Tianqu Platform, so I also saw it."
"Wow! Really, that's great luck!" The crowd burst into loud applause, and the big man said proudly: "Speaking of our Da Huang, he's really young, only in his early twenties. But you can't underestimate him, he just stands there, doesn't do anything, just scans with his eyes, and I couldn't help but want to kneel on the ground. That demeanor and momentum are truly unmatched."
"Hey, Big Brother Da Yu, have you seen what the eldest prince looks like?"
This big man with the surname Yu looked fierce, but unexpectedly he was a honest person. When someone asked him like this, he scratched his head, smiled and said: "I didn't see it, at that time I was busy kowtowing, where did I have time to look up?"
"Alas!" The crowd let out a sigh of regret. The thin man continued, "It's said that our trusted Da Huang may be young in years, but he's a capable and courageous person. From now on, we won't have to fear those Eastern Qi barbarians again."
"That's right," said the big man with the surname Yu, nodding in agreement: "The Crown Prince of Qi is shameless to the extreme. This time he came to Shengdu for the imperial ceremony, and before the grand ceremony even began, he set his sights on one of our palace's discarded concubines. Taking advantage of the Emperor being busy with the coronation ceremony, he actually abducted our Great Chu's Imperial Concubine, it's simply outrageous."
"What? Is there such a thing?" The crowd was instantly enraged, and for a moment, the words of Dong Qi Hai's mother-in-law were on everyone's lips. The old man in green clothes relaxed his eyebrows, smiled faintly, and said to the guards with a kind smile: "Hurry up and eat, we still have a long way to go later."
"Damn it, get out of here! If you don't leave now, I'll beat you to death with a stick!" A loud shout suddenly rang out, and the crowd heard the commotion and hastily stretched their necks to take a look.
All that could be seen was the owner of the teahouse and several apprentices standing in a simple horse shed to the left of the teahouse, loudly scolding a vagrant wearing tattered black clothes. The owner's words were extremely vicious, but after scolding for half a day, he didn't see any reaction from that person. The owner was getting angrier and angrier, and his eyes were about to strike the man with a stick.
This burly man with the surname Yu, who looked fierce and rough, unexpectedly had a kind heart. Seeing that person huddled up and shrunk into a small ball, looking very pitiful, he hastily spoke up: "Shopkeeper, I think he's ill. This place is in the middle of nowhere, if you drive him out, isn't it like taking his life? How about this, I'll pay for it, you carry him inside to have a cup of hot tea and warm himself up."
"This fellow, you don't know the situation." The boss turned around, with a different expression, and said with a smile: "This man is from the south, and recently there have been some unknown incidents in the southern border, some tribes have risen up in revolt, fighting fiercely. Plus, the heavy rain for many days has caused corpses to rot and stink in the swamp, triggering a plague. I was afraid that this person might be infected with a disease, so I didn't let him stay here. If you're not afraid, I'll let him come in."
"What? He's sick, that won't do!" Before the surname Yu big man could even speak, the others hastily retreated a step back, as if afraid that some kind of plague virus would jump out from that person's body. They loudly clamored and shouted for the boss to quickly throw that person far away. The surname Yu big man saw the crowd react so greatly, and didn't dare say anything else. He awkwardly looked at the shop owner and his partner as they carried the person towards the outside ditch filled with dirty water.
Although the south has a warm climate, it is now in the midst of winter. It just rained heavily and if you are thrown into the ditch to soak in the rainwater, you will surely die within two hours.
"Halt!" Just as the man was about to be thrown out, a hoarse voice suddenly rang out. An old man in a green robe coughed slightly and slowly walked out of the teahouse, coming to stand beside the boss. He looked at the black-clad man covered in bruises and said in a deep voice, "Let him go, I'll take a look."
The shopkeeper put down the person with a nonchalant attitude and said, "This person is probably sick, don't worry about getting infected if you want to take a look."
"The shopkeeper can carry him without fear, and I, an old man, am also not afraid." The old man in green clothes smiled faintly and said slowly. He pulled out the thin and delicate arm of the person and carefully took his pulse.
The surroundings were quiet, with everyone watching from a distance as the old man took the pulse of that person. The desolate wilderness was usually devoid of human shadows for days on end, but now it was bustling with activity, and naturally, everyone gathered around to watch.
"He's all right," the old man said suddenly, lifting his head and smiling faintly. "He just hasn't eaten for too long and fainted from weakness."
Even if they didn't know the person, everyone else let out a sigh of relief. The man with the surname Yu said in a loud and clear voice: "Shopkeeper, this old fellow has already said it's nothing serious, so go get something easy to swallow and give it to that young brother to eat. Saving someone's life is your good fortune."
The owner of the tea shed wasn't a bad person, he was just afraid that the man had an illness, seeing him lying there motionless for two days, thought he was already half dead, so wanted to throw him out. Now hearing that it's actually nothing serious, he and his partner brought him back together. Several men roughly fed some warm water into the man's mouth, but unexpectedly the man was unconscious, lips dry and cracked, couldn't swallow at all. The old man came over, thin fingers touched his neck, the man's mouth automatically opened, seeing him swallow the water, everyone suddenly cheered loudly, as if they had accomplished something incredible, even shouted out in joy.
"Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda, thank you for your trouble." The old man in green clothes smiled faintly and took out a brocade bag from his bosom, placing it in the shopkeeper's hands. He then left with his entourage. The old man walked to the middle of the five carriages, a heavy, dark-green curtained carriage, and spoke a few words in a low, respectful tone before boarding the second carriage at the front. After a while, the procession of five carriages slowly began to move forward, heading northward, gradually disappearing into the distance.
The shopkeeper was taken aback for a moment, then opened the bag in his hand, revealing a full bag of silver ingots. The surrounding crowd gasped in shock, as this amount of silver could buy several tea houses like this one during these tumultuous times. As people admired the old man's generosity, they involuntarily looked towards the north, only to see that the caravan had already traveled far away, leaving behind a faint shadow. Still, Nest County was just a small town, but it was the last pass for South Chu to go to North Qin and West Chuan, and with the Northern Army's large camp and Lianyuanbao 50 miles away, they formed a triangle to protect the internal territory of South Chu. This was the throat of South Chu going to North Qin and West Chuan, with developed commerce, convenient transportation, and numerous shops, pawnshops, wine houses, and tea houses, making it seem very prosperous.
In the distance, the majestic city towers and bright lights had already appeared, and the coachman shouted out a loud "hurray" as he slowly drove the carriage towards the small town.
From the previous tea shed to Huainan County, it's only a half-day journey on foot. This team of carriages was driving horses and didn't know what delayed their pace, but they finally arrived in the evening.
At this time, a black shadow suddenly rushed up from behind, and the eighteen guards were shocked, looking back vigilantly. However, the black shadow quickly moved to the front of the convoy, one guard's knife flashed, and the war horse under the shadow was startled, and it actually stood up on its hind legs, and the person on the horseback fell down like a sack, the horse kicked up dust, not caring whether the owner had been thrown off or not, and galloped towards the dark ancient road.
The procession was stopped in its tracks by this sudden turn of events, and the old man in blue clothes from the second carriage hastily got down, followed by a guard carrying a torch. The old man's eyebrows furrowed as he realized it was the same person who had fainted from hunger at the tea shed that morning. His face was deathly pale, his clothes still dripping wet, and his eyes were tightly closed, clearly having been thrown over the horse's back and left to fend for himself.
A thread of anger slowly rose from the old man's face, and a silent majesty slowly spread out in all directions. This old man had a peculiar temperament, when he didn't want to be noticed, he would hide among the crowd, ordinary and unremarkable. But if he had a particularly strong emotion, a majestic aura would reveal itself before people.
In a chaotic world, human life is as cheap as grass, but I never thought that store owner would be so ruthless.
"Zhang Bo, what's going on?" A low, gentle voice suddenly sounded in the darkness, and a heavily curtained carriage slowly moved forward, stopping beside the old man. The old man called Zhang Bo immediately became respectful and hurried to the side of the carriage, saying in a low voice: "It was a traveler I met at the tea house this morning, who seemed to be injured and hadn't eaten for a long time, and fainted from hunger. I paid the shop owner some silver to take care of him, but didn't expect to run into him again here."
"We have urgent matters and can't afford to get into trouble, you take him to the side of the road and hurry along." The light voice sounded hoarse and mellow, very pleasant to listen to, but the words spoken were cold and icy, without a hint of warmth.
Zhang Bo's face hesitated for a moment, but he still didn't hesitate to respond in a low voice. He turned around and ordered the guards to lift up that person and drag him to the side of the road, finding a dry and withered grassy area to put him down. Just as he was about to turn back, it seemed like he remembered something, Zhang Bo hesitated for a moment, then turned his head again, taking off the cyan cloth wind hat on his body and covering that person's body with it. That person was extremely thin and small, the wind hat covered his entire body, hiding him in the grass, and for a while, it was hard to tell where the person was and where the grass was.
He put a package of silver in his pocket, Zhong Bo returned to the horse team, climbed onto the second horse cart, gave an order, and the team slowly moved towards Huaning County again.
Rushing to hurry, when they arrived at the Still Nest County, the sky was still completely dark. The Still Nest County is a border town with a special northern army guarding it, and as soon as night falls, the city gate will be closed. Without a pass, the gate will not be opened. The old man's eyebrows furrowed tightly as he came to the third horse carriage and said in a low voice by the window: "Young master, the city gate is already closed, do you want me to go call the door?"
His voice was calm and his words were very natural. It seemed as if this wasn't the gate of a major city in the south, but rather the gate to his own home.
"No need, just camp outside the city for a night and enter the city again tomorrow." The distant voice slowly faded away, and then there was no sound.
Zhang Bo nodded and replied, "Yes." Then he went to summon the other guards and drivers, preparing to camp for the night.
These people apparently often camped in the wild, and without waiting for Zhong Bo's orders, they each busied themselves with their tasks. They burned firewood to start a fire, found a lush big tree, and surrounded the horse carriage in one place. The other four horse carriages were also arranged around that horse carriage wrapped in a green canvas awning. After everything was done, it was already very late.
The guards sat quietly on the ground, eating dry rations they had brought with them.
The air was quiet, but suddenly a loud noise of horseshoes came from afar. The crowd sat still, but their eyebrows and eyes showed a hint of tension. Zhong Bo lifted the curtain of the carriage, half-closing his eyes to look in the direction of the newcomers. There were more than 20 people, riding tall horses, wearing tight-fitting clothes, looking like they were escorts from the Jianghu gang, very fierce.
"Damn it! Still one step too late!" The newcomer suddenly burst out in a loud voice, and one of them spat heavily on the ground, cursing and shouting to others: "Let's stay here tonight and enter the city tomorrow."
More than twenty men shouted in unison, jumped off their horses and came to the big tree, tied up their horses. Someone took a look at Zhong Bo's group of people, saw that they were numerous, everyone was silent, all carrying weapons, didn't seem like good people to mess with, so they didn't go forward to provoke them, just surrounded them in a circle, after a while, took out wine and meat from their bundles, started eating and drinking heavily.
"Brothers, this trip is a good omen! When we get back to the village, I'll treat you all to a good meal!" A middle-aged man with a thick beard suddenly burst out laughing and said in a loud voice.
"It's all thanks to Big Brother!" The crowd buzzed with excitement, and a sharp-looking man chimed in: "Big Brother has great fortune, even walking down the street he can pick up a beauty like an immortal goddess. We brothers following Big Brother is the luck of eight lifetimes."
"Haha!" The crowd burst into laughter without restraint. After three rounds of wine, everyone's face was red and their ears were burning. Seeing that the fire on this side was not enough, and the fire was not strong, relying on a bit of alcohol, they also forgot about their previous caution towards Zhong Bo and others. A man wearing a brown robe staggered towards Zhong Bo and his horse carriage team.
"Hey, brother, lend me some fire." The man, drunk, slapped a carter's shoulder with great force. However, the carter, who looked thin and weak, didn't move, not even lifting his head.
"What the...! I'm talking to you! Are you deaf?!" This loud shout suddenly startled more than 20 men who had been drinking and were looking for trouble, and they came over, shouting and making a ruckus. It seemed like they were about to start a fight. On the other hand, everyone in the vehicle group was sitting on the ground, not one of them looked up, staring blankly at the bonfire as if those men didn't exist.
"Gentlemen, what seems to be the matter?" The curtain of the carriage was suddenly lifted, and Zhong Bo slowly got out, wearing a cyan long gown, looking very amiable. He walked forward slowly and said in a low voice, "My servants are all foolish, they have offended you gentlemen, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"
"It's nothing big, just borrowing some fire from you guys, but who knew they all acted like deaf people, clearly not putting us brothers in their eyes." The leader with the braided beard suddenly said loudly.
"Great heroes have keen eyesight, and you've actually seen right through it at a glance." Zhong Bo said with a faint smile.
"Ah? He's really deaf!"
"Yes." Zhong Bo smiled and nodded, saying in a low voice: "Gentlemen warriors want to take dry firewood, please help yourselves. I also have some good wine here, which I will offer to all of you friends at the same time."
The whiskered old man, seeing that Lao Tzu was so pleased, also felt a sense of pride and loudly laughed, saying: "Then thank you, old fellow."
Without so much as a please or thank you, he brought several of his men to the carriage where Zhong Bo was getting wine. Suddenly, he caught sight of the carriage with its green cotton curtains and his eyebrows furrowed slightly. He let out a loud belch and muttered in puzzlement: "What's the point of covering it up so tightly? Is someone sick?"
His voice wasn't particularly loud, at least much softer than the scolding tone from just now, yet the guards who were originally sitting on the ground staring blankly at the bonfire suddenly turned around in unison, their eyes gleaming like sharp swords as they stared at this drunken burly man.
A harmonious and gentle Zhong Bo's face also turned cold in an instant, he slowly turned his head, glanced at this group of rough men, and suddenly waved his hand lightly.
It seemed like only an instant, and all the people suddenly popped up from the ground. The group of big men were still in a daze and hadn't reacted at all, but they were all killed instantly. What was most frightening was that they didn't even have time to let out a scream.
In less than half a cup of tea's time, everything had returned to calmness. The eighteen guards threw the bodies of more than twenty big men into a distant icy river and cleaned up the empty ground before resting on the spot one after another. The whole process was quiet and soundless, as if they were performing a silent play.
"Zhang Bo," a guard suddenly stepped forward and said in a low voice to the old man: "A person was found on those people's horse."
"Oh?" Zhong Bo raised an eyebrow and gestured for someone to bring over the person he was referring to.
A blue windbreaker lay on the ground, with a black-clad person inside, their hair disheveled, their clothes thin and tattered, their breathing weak. But despite this, their clean face revealed that it was a delicate woman, with slender eyebrows, a beautiful complexion, and an elegant yet cold demeanor, wrapped in such tattered clothing, yet possessing such a lovely appearance. The old man's expression froze for a moment, before he smiled faintly.
"Kid, we really have a good fate, this is already our third encounter in one day."
Zhang Bo smiled faintly and tidied up the girl's disheveled hair, when suddenly a soft knocking sound came from the cotton curtain carriage beside him. The old man hastily leaned over, and after a while, he said with a smile to the guard: "Find some warm clothes for this young lady to wear, put her in the carriage, and once we enter the city, find someone suitable to take good care of her."
"Zhang Bo, are we going to take her with us?" The guard's face was hesitant, and he asked uncertainly.
"Ah," Zhong Bo said with a faint smile, "the young master has spoken. Let's throw her down again, perhaps this woman will chase us all the way to Qin."
A few bright and cheerful laughs echoed across the field, Zhong Bo smiled as he looked at the woman's pale face, shook his head and said: "Lucky little guy."
The night color, gradually thickening.
