Green Mountain
Chapter 277 - 219, Familiar Feeling

Chapter 277: 219, Familiar Feeling

On the Luocheng Official Road, a long caravan headed north against the wind.

Gusts of wind rang the copper bell hanging from the neck of the old ox.

The escorts pressed the brims of their hats with one hand, bending over, striding against the wind and sand, each step proving particularly arduous.

Maids and servants huddled together on the drafty ox-cart, while the noble hid inside the carriage, clutching a warm copper stove.

Only Chen Ji, clad in a black large cloak, rode beside the caravan, lost in his thoughts.

Inside the carriage, Xiao Man secretly lifted the cotton curtain and whispered, "Do you think our young master resembles a knight from Jianghu?"

Receiving no reply for a long time, she turned to Su Zhou in the carriage, "Aren’t you going to say anything?"

Su Zhou, sitting on a wooden box and leaning against the box’s edge, turned his eyes weakly, "Your master’s lips tremble at the sight of blood, and you think he wants to be a Jianghu knight?"

Xiao Man recalled last night. Indeed, her master had been extremely anxious, far from the image of a Jianghu knight.

But she stubbornly said, "Not everyone starts out being very impressive, we are Executive Officers and of course, we don’t need to be afraid. If master became an Executive Officer, maybe he wouldn’t be scared either... Wu Yun, right?"

Xiao Man looked at Wu Yun lying in the carriage, but Wu Yun didn’t even lift an eyelid, just silently listening to their conversation.

Its duty in the carriage was to eavesdrop, the reason Chen Ji left Su Zhou behind; otherwise, it would have long been resting on Zaozao’s head, which would be much more impressive.

Su Zhou calmly corrected, "I have to correct you there. Jianghu is just Jianghu, nowadays there are only Jianghu people in it, no knights."

Xiao Man looked puzzled, her little head spinning but not understanding what the distinction was.

Eventually, she simply let it go, "Do you have any way to find a Cultivation Path?"

"Do you want to find a Cultivation Path for him?" Su Zhou glanced at her, "Give me your hand warmer, and I will tell you."

Xiao Man hesitated.

Su Zhou scoffed, "Always saying you want the best for your master, can’t even part with a hand warmer?"

Xiao Man bit her teeth, "Fine! But you first talk!"

Su Zhou leaned against the wooden box, lazily said, "Cultivation Paths are not hard to come by, they are everywhere on the streets?"

Xiao Man was inexplicably shocked, "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Su Zhou sneered, "You are simply ignorant. Haven’t you seen people practicing Tai Chi and Ba Duan Jin for health in the morning?"

Xiao Man fondled the small warmer in her hands, baffled, "Are you kidding? That counts as a Cultivation Path?"

Su Zhou calmly stated, "It does. Initially, the founder of Tai Chi was a Divine Realm grandmaster in the Ning Dynasty, without a rival. But somehow, his personal disciple betrayed the sect and made the Cultivation Path public, leading everyone in Jianghu to practice it, and no one could reach the Innate Realm afterward. Later, common folk also started practicing Tai Chi for health; forget the Innate Realm, there wasn’t even anyone reaching the Peak of Postnatal, just a bunch of Jianghu swindlers left."

Xiao Man thought seriously for a moment, "So if we kill all the Tai Chi practitioners, leaving only one, that person could potentially reach the Divine Realm?"

Su Zhou opened his mouth, hesitating a long while before responding, "I guess so."

Xiao Man sighed, "That sounds tough."

Su Zhou said grumpily, "What are you thinking, have you gone mad? There are many similar Cultivation Paths in Jianghu and the military. If your master is willing to spend money, reaching the Peak of Postnatal is still easy."

Xiao Man clutched her wallet tightly, "How much does it cost to buy a Cultivation Path? Where can I buy it?"

Su Zhou thought for a moment, "The Midnight Ghost Market in Panjia Garden at the Imperial Capital occasionally sells them. As for the price of a Cultivation Path, it depends on which realm the most powerful practitioner of this path has reached. If the path has only a Postnatal Master, then it is worth 500 taels of silver. If it has an Innate Master, then it is worth 3,000 taels of silver."

Xiao Man asked, "What about the Seeking Dao Realm?"

Su Zhou scoffed, "Who would sell it if they could reach the Seeking Dao Realm? Before the age of thirty-six, reaching the Seeking Dao Realm would allow them to live over a hundred years. Such a thing cannot even be bought with money. I advise you to drop the idea of chasing a Cultivation Path. With your master’s timid nature, he would only get devoured in Jianghu, leaving nothing behind. Now, give me the hand warmer."

Xiao Man pushed the copper hand warmer deeper into her bosom, her neck stiffened as she spoke, "You’ve just talked about common knowledge in Jianghu and haven’t found me a Cultivation Path; it doesn’t count."

Su Zhou laughed in exasperation, "You’d make a great swindler indeed."

Xiao Man’s eyes brightened, "You think so too?"

Su Zhou, "...Did you think I was complimenting you?"

"I’ll take it as a compliment."

Su Zhou fell silent for a moment, "As an Executive Officer, why would you willingly serve him as a maid?"

"It’s not by choice," Xiao Man turned, her gaze calmly resting on Chen Ji on horseback, "I promised someone to wait until the young master marries and starts a family before I can leave the Chen family. Then, I will take a big sum of money, change my name, and live a new life."

...

In the cold wind, a tripster from Liang’s Escort Agency loudly announced, "We have arrived at Mengjin County; we shall stay here for the night."

Chen Ji patted Zaozao’s neck, and Zaozao, understanding immediately, turned its head and moved through the biting cold to join the team of Liang’s Escort Agency.

However, he saw the escort leader standing by the roadside, unfolding a sheepskin map and saying to Zhang Zhuo, "Lord Zhang, we will stay in Mengjin tonight. Moving forward, we will pass through Ji Yuan, Changzhi, Licheng, Handan, Xingtai, Shimen, and Baoding. If we want to reach the Imperial Capital before New Year’s Day, I’m afraid we’ll have to walk an extra four hours each day and can’t afford to be as leisurely as today."

Zhang Zhuo, with his finger on the map, squinted his eyes and silently calculated the time, "Can your men withstand it?"

Liang, the escort leader, laughed heartily, "This is a minor matter for us. On this trip, there are inns along the way where we can stay; being able to drink some hot soup each day is a luxury. When we used to escort goods to Ganzhou, we had to sleep in the snow."

Zhang Zhuo pondered for a moment, "What about the Taihang Mountain bandits? Could this alert them?"

Liang bowed and reassured, "Do not worry, Lord Zhang. Liang’s Escort Agency has earned its reputation; the bandits of Taihang Mountain dare not descend when they hear our tripsters shouting for the escort."

Zhang Zhuo hummed in acknowledgment, "Alright, then proceed according to your plan."

Liang tucked the map into his bosom and waved to the escorts in the back, "Let’s enter the city!"

After speaking, he took a hemp sack from the ox-cart. From the front to the back of the caravan, as he passed each escort master, he would pull a string of Copper Coins from the sack and hand it to them.

This was the rule of the escort agency, to distribute payment at each stopover.

The purpose of distributing separately was that if it were given out all at once, the escorts might spend it all in one go at brothels or gambling houses. If delayed, there was also the concern of desertion.

At this moment, Chen Ji dismounted and walking with the reins, approached Zhang Zhuo, "Lord Zhang, relying solely on these escorts might not be sufficient. From what I’ve observed, aside from that Liang, none of them are executive officers."

Zhang Zhuo nodded, "There are also over twenty Zhang family Death Soldiers hidden amongst the servants. Should a crisis arise, you just need to shout ’Snowy Thousand Mountains,’ and they will be at your command."

He continued, "I have another matter to entrust to you."

"Please speak, Lord Zhang."

Zhang Zhuo looked into the distance, "If real danger occurs, I mean hypothetically, if even you cannot handle it, I hope you can immediately protect Zhang Xia and Zhang Zheng and escape without worrying about the cargo."

Chen Ji glanced back at the long caravan, "Would you be willing to do that, Lord Zhang?"

Zhang Zhuo scoffed with a smile, "Money can be regained, but once people are gone, they are truly gone."

"I understand," Chen Ji said, preparing to leave with Zaozao.

But he heard Zhang Zhuo calling him back, "Chen Ji."

Chen Ji turned around, "What is it, Lord Zhang?"

Zhang Zhuo stroked his beard, "Don’t take to heart what your aunt said to you this morning."

Chen Ji smiled, "You worry too much, Lord Zhang, I understand."

Zhang Zhuo suddenly changed the subject, "The reason she spoke those words to you is also because I’ve mentioned it multiple times, hoping to facilitate your union with Zhang Xia. But now that I understand your feelings towards the Commandery Princess, let’s not bring up the past. If you are devoted to the Zhang family, we will support you with all our might."

Chen Ji grinned and bowed, "Thank you, Lord Zhang."

After speaking, he led the horse away.

Chen Ji walked slowly as carts and oxen passed by him, hearing one of the escort masters speak with a sonorous voice, "Brother, we just got back from Ru Nan to Luocheng, and everything was fine. Why do we have to take this escort trip? The escort leader said we don’t have to go."

Another escort holding the ox’s nose ring replied calmly, "This escort is heading to the Imperial Capital. Once we get there, we will part ways with the escort agency and stay. They say the Imperial Capital is thriving; wouldn’t it be a pity not to make a name for ourselves there?"

As this escort passed by Chen Ji, he politely smiled at him and then, bracing against the wind, continued leading the ox-cart while tossing the newly received Copper Coins to his own younger brother, "Keep these coins safe; this is the money for your brother to make a comeback."

The sonorous escort asked, "Brother, why am I holding onto it?"

The escort sighed, "It’s been over two months since I’ve been with a woman, and I’m afraid I might stray towards the brothel if we pass by one. This weak spot is my only vice..."

The sonorous escort asked, "Alright, where should I keep the Copper Coins?"

The escort scratched his brow, "Put it in the pouch on your shoulder."

"In the front or the back of the pouch?"

"In the front."

"Oh."

At that moment, Chen Ji, watching the backs of the two escorts, abruptly stopped in his tracks.

Such a familiar feeling...