Green Mountain
Chapter 301 - 241, Black eats black

Chapter 301: 241, Black eats black

"Guest, are you asking to open the ritual?"

Upon hearing the words "open the ritual," Shopkeeper, dressed in a black cloth shirt with a straight collar, eyed Chen Ji up and down from behind the counter. Xiao Liu’s eyes darted around, and even Xiao Wu, who was lying on the roof beam, poked half his head out.

Moments later, the Shopkeeper said slowly and methodically, "Guest, it has been a while since someone last performed a ritual at the Dragon Gate Inn. Do you know the rules of the ritual?"

Chen Ji, while dusting off his clothes, smiled and responded, "A worker here told me that once the ritual starts, the fragrance spreads for ten miles, and only significant news allows for it. What other rules are there?"

The Shopkeeper pondered for a moment and said, "Guest, opening the ritual is the highest protocol of our Dragon Gate Inn. As soon as it starts, people will rush to spread the word and guests from all directions will swarm here. When the time comes, if you can provide significant news, it would be good; if not, both our inn’s reputation and yours will be damaged."

Chen Ji curiously asked, "What happens if I can’t provide it?"

Shopkeeper looked at Chen Ji for a long time, "Skinning and deboning, hanging on the Qiu Ci Street archway as a warning to others... But our inn conducts business with a principle of harmony and prosperity, so I need to ask the guest a few questions beforehand."

"Go ahead."

"The critical figures in the news, are there any from either Ning Dynasty or Jing Dynasty of Second Grade or above? Below Second Grade doesn’t count."

"Yes."

"Does it concern the safety of a city?"

"Yes."

"Did you witness it yourself?"

Chen Ji paused for a moment, hesitated for two breaths before responding, "Yes."

The Shopkeeper’s eyes showed a strange light, "Since you are so certain, tomorrow our Dragon Gate Inn will indeed be bustling. Right, there is one more rule I need to inform the guest beforehand."

Chen Ji asked, "What rule?"

The Shopkeeper absentmindedly fiddled with the beads on the abacus, "Anyone who has opened a ritual in our inn can use a secret passage provided by our inn to leave Guyuan with their companions, to avoid their several thousand taels of silver being coveted by powerful figures."

Chen Ji’s expression grew intense, "Where is this secret passage?"

The Shopkeeper pointed downward with his hand, "Right here in our Dragon Gate Inn."

Chen Ji casually asked, "Where does it lead?"

The Shopkeeper chuckled, "Our secret passage has two exits; one leads to Ning Dynasty’s Heartland Taiyuan Prefecture, the other to Jing Dynasty’s Western Capital Road Fengsheng State. Which one would the guest prefer?"

Chen Ji calmly said, "I haven’t decided yet; I’ll tell you once I’ve made up my mind."

The Shopkeeper clasped his hands and said, "Alright, tomorrow I’ll prepare fine wines and dishes for the guest, wishing you wealth and thriving business in advance!"

"Thank you, Shopkeeper," Chen Ji turned and went upstairs.

Xiao Liu, sneaky and sly, listened to the footsteps moving upwards to the third floor before rushing to the Shopkeeper, "What kind of news is he selling?"

Shopkeeper murmured thoughtfully, "It’s said that tonight both the border army and the Yulin Army are making big moves; it may be related. In Guyuan City, the only people above Second Grade are General Hu and the Crown Prince."

Xiao Liu gasped, "What kind of person is this guest, really? I heard that the entire Shache Street has been sealed off by the border army tonight; how did he get this news?"

The Shopkeeper’s eyes blazed with intensity, "I told you he’s an over-river dragon... He must have recently arrived in Guyuan, taking the official road. Go now and ask the familiar faces in the border army, someone must have seen his travel permit. Remember, you must find out his background. If you can’t, don’t bother coming back."

Xiao Liu’s eyes lit up, "Is that so?"

"Get lost!"

"Alright then," Xiao Liu tossed the white cloth off his shoulder, removed a straw coat and a bamboo hat from a cabinet behind the counter, pulled down the hat brim, faced the wind and frost, and left the inn.

...

...

On the third floor of the inn, Chen Ji stood in front of the door of the Superior A Room rubbing his cheeks, relaxing his nervous expression before quietly pushing the door.

The wooden door wasn’t bolted from inside, and with a gentle push, it opened slightly.

He tiptoed inside, trying not to disturb the good dreams of Zhang Zheng and others.

But when he closed the door behind him and turned back, he saw Zhang Zheng and Zhang Xia unexpectedly sitting up from the floor mattresses, staring straight at him.

Xiao Man, who had been sitting on a small stool by the charcoal basin, also stood up.

Chen Ji apologetically said, "Did I wake you up?"

Zhang Xia, holding Wu Yun in his arms, said, "We haven’t slept yet."

"How could we sleep without you back?" Zhang Zheng crawled out of the bedding, picked up a red-lacquered food container from beside the charcoal basin, "You haven’t had dinner yet, right? I saved some food for you, it’s still warm by the charcoal basin. Xiao Man, bring it to your young master."

Xiao Man got up, wiped the square table and chairs in the room with his sleeve, opened the food container, swiftly set out the dishes: onion braised lamb, tofu braised in a pot, and a large bowl of white rice.

Chen Ji looked at the food on the table and paused slightly, "Did Brother Zhang save this for me?"

Zhang Zheng grinned proudly, "Of course, I guessed you’d be busy all night without time to eat, so I specifically asked the inn to prepare it for you."

Xiao Man muttered disdainfully, "Always seeking praise, acting like he did something grand. Even if you hadn’t prepared, I would have..."

Zhang Zheng chuckled, "No need to feel upset, this time I managed to impress you, little girl!"

"Brother Zhang is rough yet meticulous, thank you," Chen Ji sat in front of the square table, picked up a slice of tofu and stuffed it into his mouth, silently pointing with his chopsticks towards the next room.

Zhang Xia responded, "The guest next door left last night and hasn’t returned, I don’t know where they went."

Chen Ji was relieved.

Zhang Zheng pulled up a chair and sat next to him, eager to know, "Where were you tonight? The other buyers in the inn, seeing you leave in such a hurry, all went to buy information from Feet Tilting, who was delighted. Initially, he sold the information for a few hundred Wen, but then started asking for five taels of silver. The buyers, desperate, had no choice but to agree. But even after purchasing his information, they were still clueless about its use."

Chen Ji swallowed the tofu in his mouth and explained, "The collection of golden juice must be by Jing Dynasty spies, intending to contaminate the city’s wells with it, planning for a siege."

Zhang Zheng looked shocked, "So malicious? Then this Guyuan City..."

Chen Ji hmmmed, "Don’t worry, the border army has already killed all those spies."

Zhang Xia, astute in her thinking, stood behind Zhang Zheng and wondered, "All killed... no survivors? Is there a problem with the border army?"

Chen Ji looked at her, "I caught a border soldier who was signaling the Jing Dynasty spies. It seems that a faction within the border army is stirring up rebellion under the guise of avenging Prince Jing."

Zhang Xia frowned, "Is it Zhou You, he had precedent for instigating rebellion before."

Chen Ji shook his head, "Not sure yet..."

At that moment, Wu Yun meowed from the window ledge.

Someone was coming to the backyard.

Chen Ji’s expression shifted, but he did not rush to get up: if Wu Yun called and he reacted every time, people might suspect over time.

After thinking for a moment, he said to Zhang Zheng, "Brother Zhang, do you know anyone in the Eight Great Hutongs?"

Zhang Zheng perked up, "Yes, of course! Li Xingshou from Guihua Square, Zhou Dajia from Chunzhi House..."

Xiao Man sneered, "And you say you don’t have a scheming belly?"

Zhang Zheng retorted, "I said I know them, didn’t say I’ve been their guest of honor or a lover. Just invited for drinks, and it happened to be there, got acquainted over time..."

Zhang Xia helplessly said, "You two have been bickering all night, can you stop now?"

Amidst the bickering, Chen Ji, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, silently carried his bowl to the window, eating while peering through a gap into the backyard.

In the bright moonlight, Xiao Wu, limping, led two people quietly towards the stable. Before entering, he looked around, ensuring no one was there, then dived into the stable.

Chen Ji made a gesture to Wu Yun with his head; Wu Yun squeezed through the window gap, stealthily heading towards the stable. The secret passage was Dragon Gate Inn’s biggest secret; he had to investigate it.

With the situation in Guyuan City being unstable, if the Jing Dynasty succeeded in breaching the city, he would have to use this secret passage to escape with Zhang Zheng, Zhang Xia, and Xiao Man.

As for the Crown Prince, Chen family, and Yulin Army, they were not in his plan.

Chen Ji did indeed have a plan to get close to the Crown Prince, a plan unrelated to Bai Long or his future, yet crucial... but that didn’t mean he was prepared to die with the Crown Prince in Guyuan.

If this Crown Prince died, Emperor Ning would appoint another; Chen Ji could approach the next one just the same.

But before that, he needed to confirm whether this secret passage truly existed.

Two hours later, while Zhang Xia and the others had fallen into a deep sleep, only Chen Ji still guarded the window gap. Xiao Wu hadn’t returned, perhaps he was leading ’smugglers’ through the secret passage, or maybe...

In the next moment, the sound of stepping on straw came from the stable, and Xiao Wu returned to the inn wearing a black cotton coat, rubbing his frozen hands, shivering, and limping.

Wu Yun silently squeezed back through the window gap and meowed softly, "It’s freezing. The inn staff took two people into the secret passage beneath the stable, hidden under the straw and covered with a wooden plank. After the staff entered, a faint wailing sound came from the passage, which continued for a long time and only just stopped, carrying a scent of blood."

Chen Ji was shocked; beneath that stable was not an escape route, but a slaughterhouse for this sinister inn!

The innkeeper had said that one of the rules of opening a jar was that the inn had to provide a secret passage for guests to leave Guyuan, in case they were targeted by powerful figures for their riches.

Extremely considerate.

Unaware guests followed the staff into the secret passage, not knowing that Dragon Gate Inn was the most powerful and darkest inn in Guyuan City.

For many years, rumors had circulated that Dragon Gate Inn could secretly transport people to the Jing Dynasty. Those smugglers drawn by the rumors, most likely, had already fallen victim, becoming the pile of white bones beneath the inn.

Wait, could the news "can send people to Jing Dynasty" have been bait released by the inn itself? Smugglers leaving would surely carry all their belongings...

Dragon Gate Inn had played the dark game to the extreme!

Wu Yun looked up at Chen Ji, "Are you worried?"

Chen Ji hmmmed, he was worried, now without an escape route, if the Jing Dynasty really breached the city, how would he manage to get Zhang Zheng and others out safely?