Chapter 82

In the Water Margin world, on a road located in a lush, dense forest, two people were traveling.

One of them was dressed in crisp, neat short clothes and was a sturdy, extremely powerful man,

while the other was dressed in a green shirt, dressed like a traveling scholar, with a dashing demeanor.

These two were Zhang Jie, who was out traveling for study, and Wu Song, who was protecting him.

As for Pan Jinlian and the others, they had been left by Zhang Jie in Yanggu County.

This journey was not as convenient as the last time he went to Jinan for the imperial examinations,

but required traveling thousands of miles, making it difficult to bring the delicate Pan Jinlian and the others.

Pan Jinlian was even angry with Zhang Jie for this, and on the day she received the news, her little mouth could have hung several soy sauce bottles.

Zhang Jie expressed that he could not tolerate this, and that very night, he gave her a proper "stick education."

Zhang Jie: I am the Happy Superman; once happy, I become a superman.

As for Yan Poxi, Zhang Jie, who was full of vigor, did not treat her differently and also gave her a proper "stick education."

Zhang Jie: I lied to you; I also want to be a superman when I'm not happy~

Pan Jinlian and the other, having been properly educated, hid from Zhang Jie for those few days,

for fear of being grabbed by him for another stick education,

and Zhang Jie, having achieved his goal, hummed a happy little tune, "We commoners,

are truly happy today," and began his study tour with Wu Song.

Today was already half a month after they had set off,

and as they walked and looked, they had arrived at Yingtaoyuan Town, Shen County, Shandong Province,

at the border with Fan County, Puyang City, Henan Province, and were just about to pass through Mengzhou Road to enter Henan.

"Young Master, this weather is not very good; I'm afraid we need to hurry."

Wu Song looked up at the sky and discovered that the sky was covered with dark clouds;

even though it was only evening, the sky was already dim, and he said in a muffled voice.

"Brother Wu Er is right; let's speed up."

Zhang Jie nodded; with profound internal energy and keen perception,

he had already felt the large amount of moisture gathering in the air,

and in less than an hour, there would definitely be a torrential rain falling from the sky.

He had internal energy to protect his body, so it didn't matter,

but Wu Song couldn't; even with an umbrella, it would be difficult to cover his whole body.

It was already approaching winter, and the weather was gradually getting colder; once drenched by the cold rain,

even a sturdy man would inevitably come down with a fever.

And in this ancient world without modern medical conditions,

a cold or flu could potentially bring down a man as strong as an ox.

Of course, with Wu Song's true human-taishui constitution capable of wrestling lions and tigers,

he wouldn't be brought down by a cold rain, but a bit of a mess would be inevitable.

"Giddyap!"

Wu Song squeezed the belly of the mule between his legs, and the mule, feeling the pain, immediately sped up.

"Little Gray, run faster."

Zhang Jie also patted his mount's butt, letting it speed up.

"Hee-haw, hee-haw~"

It raised its head and neighed reluctantly a few times before slowly speeding up its pace.

But its speed just wouldn't pick up, and it fell further and further behind Wu Song, who was riding a tall, big mule.

"Little Gray, I'm afraid you want to become donkey-meat fire-burned buns, right?"

Zhang Jie's eyes turned dangerous, and he threatened in a low voice.

Yes, just like Wu Song's mount was a mule,

Zhang Jie's mount was also not a proper horse, but a gray donkey!

Compared to delicate horses, donkeys were much easier to take care of;

fodder and leaves could satisfy its daily needs.

At the same time, it was not prone to illness, making it very suitable for long-distance travel like Zhang Jie's.

Well, actually, Zhang Jie chose a donkey as a mount because he was lazy.

And having seen the benefits of a donkey, one had to endure its shortcomings.

For example, this gray donkey of Zhang Jie's was a lazy donkey in the true sense of the word;

if he didn't give it an order, it would always secretly slack off.

Zhang Jie's lazy donkey: It always finds opportunities to rest~

"Hee-haw, hee-haw!"

Feeling Zhang Jie's threat, the donkey between his legs sped up and caught up with Wu Song, who had slowed down.

Rumble, rumble!

Lightning like dragons and snakes began to appear in the dark clouds of the sky.

Drip, drop.

Bean-sized raindrops began to fall.

"Giddyap, giddyap!"

Zhang Jie and Wu Song hurried to make time.

Whoosh, whoosh.

Before long, the raindrops became denser and denser.

At this time, Wu Song, who was scouting the path ahead, had his eyes light up, and he said loudly:

"Young Master, there is a tavern ahead; shall we go in and hide?"

Zhang Jie narrowed his eyes; a tavern standing a hundred meters ahead by the roadside, composed of several thatched huts,

with a large "Wine" character fluttering on a flagpole, came into his view.

Around the tavern, there were several large trees that would take several adults to embrace, standing motionless in the strong wind.

"By Mengzhou Road, big trees at Cross Slope, a tavern, interesting."

A smile appeared on Zhang Jie's face.

"Let's go in and hide from the rain."

Zhang Jie waved the reins, letting the lazy donkey take the lead and run toward the tavern.

Rumble, rumble!

Whoosh, whoosh!

Just as Zhang Jie and Wu Song arrived under the eaves of the tavern, the heavy rain poured down,

vast water vapor filled the air, fog rose, and visibility was limited to within a hundred meters.

"What I wanted was a light drizzle crossing the evening boat, smoke curling from chimneys looking at the broken bridge.

Not rain like arrows cutting across the face, cold wind biting like frost on one side."

Looking at the rain that was like the Heavenly River tilting, carrying a bone-chilling cold, Zhang Jie sighed in his heart.

I don't know if it was because the rain was too heavy, or because there were too few guests,

but there was actually no waiter on duty outside this tavern,

leaving Zhang Jie and Wu Song to fend for themselves.

"Let's go, let's go in."

Zhang Jie, who tied the donkey to the pillar at the entrance first to let it hide from the rain, greeted Wu Song to enter the tavern.

Wu Song, who tied the mule to another pillar, followed silently behind Zhang Jie.

Creak.

Zhang Jie pushed open the big door, and the wooden door hinge emitted a teeth-aching friction sound.

And the moment Zhang Jie opened the door, a sharp, cold wind took the opportunity to enter.

The torches already lit in the tavern's main hall were blown until they flickered unsteadily.

Only a bonfire burning fiercely in the center remained unmoved.

"Damn it, which brat is so reckless?"

In the hall, a big man with his back to the door,

who was roasting by the fire with his arms bare, was suddenly blown by the cold wind and shuddered; he turned his head and cursed.

"Let me see who it is; turns out to be a poor scholar."

The big man looked at Zhang Jie, who had pushed the door and entered, and couldn't help but sneer.

Although Zhang Jie was dressed in a scholar's green shirt, the big man still thought he was a poor scholar.

As for other Juren or the like, who didn't go out surrounded by people? How could they open the door themselves?

As for Jinshi masters, that was even more extraordinary.

Without an eight-bearer sedan chair in front and back, how could they be worthy of those literary stars?

"Yue Lao San, don't be rude!"

Among the five people roasting by the fire, the bearded man who was clearly the leader scolded.

"It's just a poor scholar, anyway."

Yue Lao San was still unrelenting.

Forgive them; Zhang Jie's martial arts had long reached the level of "divine brilliance hidden within,"

so even if a first-rate expert from the Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber or Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils world were to look,

he would still be a scholar without the strength to truss a chicken.

Creak.

At this time, Wu Song pushed the door and entered.

Well, the area of the door Zhang Jie opened was too small for Wu Song.

"I..."

The words that had rushed to Yue Lao San's throat were suddenly scared back into his stomach.

"What a sturdy big man!"

Among the five, a thin middle-aged man whose eyes flashed with a sharp glint from time to time exclaimed in admiration.

Even Yue Lao San didn't dare to speak anymore; compared to the sturdy man behind that fair-faced boy,

even their big brother, whose strength was the best in ten miles, couldn't count for much.

Facing the arrogant-then-submissive Yue Lao San, Zhang Jie only wanted to say one thing:

'I still like your unruly look; please restore it.'

"Greetings, little brother; my third brother was reckless, and I apologize to you here."

The bearded big man stood up and apologized to Zhang Jie.

"Not at all, not at all; one who doesn't know is not guilty!"

Zhang Jie expressed that he was broad-minded and didn't mind this small offense.

He was not some fierce person who would exterminate entire families at the drop of a hat.

Who didn't know that he, Zhang Jie, was an elegant and easygoing person?