Green Mountain
Chapter 355 - 293, Uncle_2

Chapter 355: 293, Uncle_2

Liang Gou’er looked at Old Yao and whispered, "Old man, you know a lot. What’s going on here?"

Old Yao said expressionlessly, "These are the Jing Dynasty’s Hu Ben Army. Some big shot has come to Erdao Baihe Town. At the very least, it’s a second-grade official from one of the three major families of the Jing Dynasty."

The three major families of the Jing Dynasty are Yuan, Lu, and Jiang.

Liang Gou’er asked, "What should we do then?"

Old Yao whispered, "Don’t cause any trouble. Just pass through the town quietly and head straight up the mountain."

While passing through the town, they saw over a hundred armored soldiers guarding the vicinity of a tavern, vigilant and menacing.

Inside the tavern, a middle-aged man in a gray robe sat alone at a square table, with just a simple ceramic bowl in front of him, containing only half a bowl of white rice.

No dishes.

The gray-robed middle-aged man, surrounded by solemn guards, took a bite of white rice and then closed his eyes, slowly chewing.

When he opened his eyes again, he smiled at the shopkeeper and said, "Bring me a handful of raw rice to see."

The shopkeeper hurriedly agreed, fetched a handful of white rice from the kitchen, but was stopped by a young man.

The young man took the white rice from the shopkeeper, turned around and showed it to the gray-robed middle-aged man, "My lord."

The middle-aged man looked at it for a long time, "Rice from Tokyo Road, every grain is full. I hope this year’s planting leads to a year of peace and good harvest in the fall, so that fewer people starve on Western Capital Road... Also fetch some corn and beans to see."

The shopkeeper went back to the kitchen and brought out some corn and beans, and the middle-aged man looked at them with great affection.

The sound of ox cart wheels rolling could be heard from outside the door. He turned his head to look outside and saw Liang Mao’er driving the cart past.

The middle-aged man didn’t pay much attention at first, but the young man beside him, upon seeing the person on the cart, immediately bent down and whispered a few words.

The middle-aged man was slightly startled, then smiled and said, "Quickly invite them in. Tell them I want to treat them to a meal."

The young man quickly left the tavern and courteously clasped his fists in front of the ox cart, "Old man, my lord would like to invite you in for a rest. The ginseng chicken and hazel mushroom stew of this tavern is a specialty. The plaque at the door was personally inscribed by the late emperor before he went up into the mountains. Please have a taste before you continue on your way."

Liang Gou’er rasped, "No need, we plan to..."

But Old Yao smiled and interrupted him, saying to the young man, "Meeting by chance is fate. Since the host is so hospitable, let’s have a meal before heading up the mountain."

With that, he jumped off the ox cart frankly and walked directly into the tavern, sitting across from the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man waved his hand to the shopkeeper, "Go, make a table of your specialty dishes."

The shopkeeper hurriedly withdrew.

At this time, Liang Gou’er and the others did not sit down but stood behind Old Yao. They were pretending to be Old Yao’s sons and grandsons, and it wasn’t proper for them to sit.

The middle-aged man glanced at them and gestured to the young man behind him to pour tea.

He looked at Old Yao and asked with a smile, "Old man, where are you from?"

Old Yao casually replied, "Ning Dynasty."

Liang Gou’er and Zhu Yunxi’s eyes widened instantly, looking at the old man in disbelief. They thought the old man was an old hand at Jianghu and could bluff his way through. But did he reveal their background just by opening his mouth?

Admitting their Ning Dynasty affiliation in front of a Jing Dynasty official—it was a death wish, wasn’t it?

Liang Gou’er instinctively wanted to grip his knife, but then he remembered that he had lost his right arm long ago, and his Du Meridian was severed, rendering him unable to wield it.

The middle-aged man, however, hearing that they came from the Ning Dynasty, did not change his smile, "It’s quite a distance from the Ning Dynasty. How did you get here?"

Old Yao replied, "We boarded a ship at Qidong, drifted on the sea for a while, and disembarked at Lushun."

The middle-aged man admired, "I presume you took the Xu Family’s merchant ship, carrying spices?"

Old Yao said, "There were spices and silk."

The middle-aged man calculated the days and said apologetically, "When you disembarked at Lushun, there must have been a military conflict there. I hope it didn’t disturb you."

Old Yao casually pulled a pair of chopsticks from the holder, "No matter, I’ve seen quite a few storms in my years. But you, running off to this remote place right in the midst of turmoil."

The middle-aged man smiled and avoided answering, lifting his head to look at the three people behind Old Yao, "Are these your apprentices?"

Old Yao sneered, "No, my apprentices are much better than them."

Liang Gou’er raised his eyebrows, glanced at the surrounding armored soldiers, and swallowed the rebuttal words that had reached his lips.

The middle-aged man, sitting opposite at the square table, slowly asked, "You seem to treasure your apprentice quite a lot?"

Old Yao looked directly at the middle-aged man opposite him, "He’s a wild kid, unloved by his mother and neglected by his uncle. An old man like me naturally has to treasure him a bit more."

The middle-aged man sighed, "Maybe his mother and uncle had their difficulties."

Old Yao said curiously, "What difficulties? Are they dead?"

The gray-robed middle-aged man was stunned, then waved his hand, signaling everyone to leave, leaving only his four closest confidants.

Once everyone had left the tavern, he burst into laughter, "I’ve long heard that you have a caustic nature, capable of infuriating people and bringing them back to life. Today, I finally got to experience it!"

Liang Gou’er’s expression changed. Although the middle-aged man hadn’t mentioned any names, the phrase "caustic nature" unmistakably pointed to Doctor Yao.

The other party had recognized Doctor Yao from the start. When did he recognize him, and how?

As he pondered this, the shopkeeper brought the dishes and placed them on the table one by one.

Old Yao picked up a piece of hazel mushroom and put it into his mouth, casually saying, "Lord Lu, you’ve recently been reinstated. You should be enjoying your time wielding power and beauty. Why take pleasure in watching snow on Changbai Mountain?"

Lu Jin.

Chen Ji’s uncle.

A few days ago, he had forcibly seized power through a coup, becoming the new Chief Executive Officer of the Privy Council in the Jing Dynasty. From now on, above him were only the Minister of the Secretariat and the Emperor.

And the young man behind Lu Jin was none other than Wu Hongbiao, whom Chen Ji had once saved and risked sending away.

Old Yao pointed at the food on the table with his chopsticks, "Why aren’t you eating? Afraid someone might poison it?"

Lu Jin looked at the dishes on the table but did not touch them. He calmly explained, "Sixteen days ago, our Heavenly Strategy Army was defeated in Guyuan, and the Great Commander Yuan Zhen is missing. And there’s been a locust plague on Western Capital Road, with famine victims everywhere. These are such difficult times; how can I bring myself to enjoy food? So lately, I eat just one meal a day, only wild vegetables, to share the hardship of the refugees on Western Capital Road."

Old Yao applauded, "Lord Lu, you should change into an actor’s costume and go sing opera."

In an instant, the three confidants behind Lu Jin, except for Wu Hongbiao, drew their swords, though they said nothing.

Old Yao chuckled and took another bite of hazel mushroom, "However, if you can keep up this act for a lifetime, making it hard for people to distinguish between stage and reality, that wouldn’t be too bad either."

Lu Jin raised his hand to signal the Hu Ben Army to sheathe their swords, "Don’t be disrespectful. The old man is venting his anger. Let him finish speaking, and his heart will be at peace."

He saw that Old Yao’s face remained unchanged and carefully asked again, "Why didn’t you bring your apprentice to the Jing Dynasty?"

Old Yao gave a cold snort, "He said his uncle didn’t allow him to come to the Jing Dynasty. He also said that by staying in the Ning Dynasty, he might be able to help his uncle in the future."

Lu Jin sighed lightly, "He’s a good lad."

One of his confidants glanced at the sky and whispered a few words in Lu Jin’s ear.

After speaking, Lu Jin stood up and respectfully saluted Old Yao, "Thank you, Doctor Yao, for taking care of him. I am grateful. You are his master, and now you are implicated by the Prince Jing Mansion’s matter, coming to the Jing Dynasty. How about following me to Liaoyang Prefecture tomorrow to avoid the hardship of traveling? After the situation stabilizes in a few days, I will send someone to bring him to Liaoyang Prefecture to live with you."

Old Yao replied coldly, "No, when you bring him to the Jing Dynasty, send someone to the Temple of Martial Arts to find me."

Lu Jin did not insist, "I still have to head up the mountain today, so I won’t stay here any longer. Whenever you wish to come to Liaoyang Prefecture, you are always welcome."

He turned and walked out, followed by the armored soldiers scattered throughout Erdao Baihe Town. The sound of their dense armor scraping was like a dragon’s roar.