Chapter 154

The three hurriedly left, and on the road Chen Wuji couldn't help asking Little Fish, "Where did you learn all these skills?"

At first, he thought Little Fish was just naturally gifted, merely a bit more agile.

Now it seems it's not like that at all; he must have undergone proper training.

Little Fish also didn't hide anything, speaking very candidly: "It's all what my master taught me. My master used to be a wandering doctor of the Rivers and Lakes. He said that in these times, if you don't have some skill on you, you can't even be a wandering doctor, so I learned a little bit, and what he passed on to me is just that little bit he learned."

Yang Tiejiang's mouth corner twitched slightly.

Little Fish's mouth corner turned up, then he said: "I wasn't picked up by my master, you know. At first he didn't know I was so stupid, couldn't even remember the names of herbs, and still wanted me to inherit his mantle, teaching me so much—reading and writing, memorizing mountain and river geography, observing celestial phenomena, and so on."

"Result... I only managed to practice the exercises okay, but I couldn't learn anything else at all, which made my master curse all day. Later, seeing me become more and more displeasing to him, he even stopped my medicinal baths, saying I was just wasting his Silver."

"I didn't expect Zhang Lao to know so much." Chen Wuji was shocked.

This, truly is a hidden expert.

Yang Tiejiang said gloomily: "There's so much you don't know; we've only just begun."

His words clearly have hidden meaning.

But he didn't say it outright; Chen Wuji couldn't guess it, so he could only think of Zhang Lao as a high person.

Little Fish advised: "Senior brother, I sincerely think you should follow the master and learn; you're smarter than me, and you'll definitely be able to learn all of the master's skills."

"You're not stupid, let's see about this later; I still have many miscellaneous matters." Chen Wuji said.

Actually, in his heart, he had already firmly decided on this idea.

Whether he can inherit the Charitable Hall is secondary; he now really wants to learn Zhang Lao's martial arts.

This is something essential for establishing oneself and making a living; it must be learned.

When Chen Wuji and the others returned to Qin Zhanhong's stronghold, the sky was already somewhat dimly bright.

"I heard the commotion outside; did you overturn the Zhang family?" Qin Zhanhong brought a pot of tea to Chen Wuji and the others, asking casually.

"Just gave him a little surprise." Chen Wuji said.

He didn't ask Qin Zhanhong about the interrogation results.

He didn't want to get involved in Imperial City Department affairs at all.

Today, it can only be considered a special case.

Considering how many times he's slept, he wanted to help Qin Zhanhong, and also vent his own frustration.

……

Daybreak came, and the brothel ahead finally quieted down.

After hearing strange noises all night, Chen Wuji almost broke down.

Those living near Flower Street also suffered enough.

I don't know if those who frequent the brothel have some collective fetish, but they all seem to have agreed: not only do they not close the windows, they also love to linger by the windows.

After returning, Chen Wuji originally wanted to sleep a bit, but due to the disturbance he ended up not sleeping at all.

At this time, upstairs was quiet, but the sky had also brightened.

Chen Wuji left the room, found Qin Zhanhong loitering outside, and said, "The city gate should open soon; let's go first."

"Don't rush to leave; I have something to show you." Qin Zhanhong said.

Chen Wuji immediately waved his hand: "I don't want to look; as a country bumpkin, I have no interest in your affairs. With so many people and eyes around, I think you're not intending to show me something hidden in your clothing."

Qin Zhanhong's eyes held a hint of allure as he glanced at Chen Wuji sideways: "You aren't feuding with the Zhang family, are you?"

"I will repay this grudge in my own way." Chen Wuji said.

Qin Zhanhong took out two letters sealed with countless stamps and handed them to Chen Wuji: "I don't know how you'll repay this grudge, but I still suggest you look at these first."

Chen Wuji took them half-believing, half-doubting, tore them open, and began to read.

After reading the whole thing, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

This is a letter written by the Prefect of Hezhou to Zhang Mingyuan, presumably brought along by this merchant convoy.

In the letter, the Prefect of Hezhou mentioned recent changes in Hezhou and the Court's latest arrangements in officialdom. He asked Zhang Mingyuan whether, for officials unwilling to cooperate with them, they should play a long game or eradicate them early.

Furthermore, he suggested Zhang Mingyuan should increase the conflict between him and Assistant Magistrate Han and Yunan County Magistrate Zhu Wei, so they could cooperate to create a big disturbance, thereby taking advantage of the Court's crackdown on him to promote those two, while also presenting a better image to the Imperial City Department.

In the letter, the Prefect of Hezhou emphasized to Zhang Mingyuan that the Court is determined to take Yunan this time, having dispatched many Imperial City Department agents into the region, and suspects that the Imperial City Department's Red Phoenix may personally come south, urging Zhang Mingyuan to act with extra caution.

This letter shattered all of Chen Wuji's previous plans and imaginations.

Yunan's water……

It's so deep it could practically raise dragons.

There's not a single good person among them.

He went through great trouble to obtain the news that the Assistant Magistrate and the County Magistrate bear a grudge against Zhang Mingyuan.

As a result, just a few days later this letter arrived.

This extreme reversal was practically a series of loud slaps on his face.

What a bunch of wicked beasts!

"Are you the Red Phoenix?" Chen Wuji looked at Qin Zhanhong.

"I'm not." Qin Zhanhong shook his head. "I think you shouldn't concern yourself with this either; now I'm curious whether your plan to deal with Zhang Mingyuan is still usable."

Chen Wuji's face darkened: "You guessed it?"

"Is it that hard to guess? You currently show no intention of a lone man's fury, and without relying on my strength, the remaining options are just those few." Qin Zhanhong said with a hint of teasing, laughing lightly: "Although I can't imagine how you'd approach those officials, the principle that an enemy's enemy is a friend is never wrong."

Chen Wuji heaved a heavy sigh: "These people really put on a good show—black face, white face, red face all present—clearly arranging things for the Court and the common folk."

"A den of snakes and rats, a den of snakes and rats—Zhang Mingyuan seems to hold the higher position among them; the Assistant Magistrate and County Magistrate are arranged by them, and it sounds like these two don't even know the Prefect is in their gang, just to make the act more genuine?"

Chen Wuji had a bit of a headache.

Fortunately he hadn't yet sent the white sugar to Zhu Wei to let him gain merit; otherwise it would definitely be like throwing a steamed bun at a dog— the dog gets a bite to the mouth, and you might even have to turn around and bite it to death.

Let's rebel.

This broken situation, I'm afraid only rebellion can resolve it.

Suppress evil with killing!