Chapter 493: Farmstead

"Speaking of which."

On the muddy official road where the early spring ice had just melted, Wu Mingxiao sat on his horse, turned his head, and asked Li Miao.

"Brother Li, if we are returning to Dengzhou, shouldn't we go all the way north, through Nanjing into Qi and Lu? Why does it seem like we are walking all the way toward the northeast and Zhejiang?"

Li Miao sat loosely on his horse and said lazily.

"What, are you in a hurry?"

Wu Mingxiao waved his hands repeatedly.

"No, no, I'm just asking."

Only then did Li Miao say with a smile.

"Did you forget that you haven't wiped your own ass clean yet?"

Wu Mingxiao was stunned and suddenly raised his hand to knock on his head.

The events in Fukan County were too extreme for him, so much so that his mind was still immersed in the filth of the Huang Manor, and he had almost forgotten about his own affairs.

The matter of his family's Assistant Commissioner being wiped out hadn't been settled yet.

Li Miao had helped him solve a group of pursuers, but that was far from everything. Right now, there might still be people chasing behind his ass, or setting an ambush on the only path they had to take, waiting for them to bump into it.

Heading straight for Dengzhou, wouldn't that be walking right into a trap?

Taking a detour could instead avoid a lot of trouble.

Wu Mingxiao nodded, feeling he understood.

Beside him, Zhao Ying smiled silently.

She knew Wu Mingxiao thought Li Miao was avoiding trouble, but not to mention the huge commotion Li Miao made in Fukan County, just the fact that the three of them had been walking on the official road the whole way without concealing their tracks—where did it look like they were avoiding disaster?

It would be more accurate to say that the Japanese pirates were active at sea, and the closer they got to the coast, the more serious the Japanese pirate problem became... Li Miao taking a detour toward the northeast was not avoiding disaster, but rather planning to wipe out the thieves in one fell swoop, right?

But Zhao Ying was no longer the ignorant girl she was when Li Miao first met her; she understood the principle that saying more leads to more mistakes, so she didn't open her mouth at all, just rocking the infant in her arms by herself.

"Waa—"

As she rocked, the child suddenly opened its eyes and started crying.

A child of this age needed to be fed every hour or two, and it was clearly hungry now.

Before Zhao Ying could speak, Li Miao waved his hand.

"We've been on the road for half a day, and I'm tired too."

"There seems to be a farmstead ahead; let's rest our feet there."

So the three rode forward, and about two quarters of an hour later, they arrived outside the farmstead, flipped off their horses, and led them toward the entrance.

This was a farmstead, which was the field property of a landlord in the nearby city, usually managed by a trusted steward, with tenant farmers working and paying rent there. Because of the existence of the Great Ming Jianghu, farmsteads usually had guards prepared to prevent passing Jianghu people from robbing money and property.

The three of them didn't look like ordinary commoners, and Wu Mingxiao had a saber at his waist; before they even reached the entrance of the farmstead, someone shouted from afar.

"The three of you, stop, stop."

"Could you please report your names and your purpose?"

The voice came from far to near, and a short, sturdy man carrying a sentry staff ran over, smiling kindly at the three.

"The three of you, this is the property of the Great Goose Hall. If you are Jianghu peers passing by, our Great Goose Hall naturally opens its doors wide. It's just that I need the three of you to report your names so I can report to the sect, which will also save me from being scolded by the sect elders for neglecting distinguished guests."

*Heh*—this set of words stunned Wu Mingxiao.

What it means to be a person, look at this.

Wu Mingxiao was a greenhorn, and Zhao Ying was a woman, so naturally, it was up to Li Miao to answer.

He stepped forward and said with a smile.

"Jianghu wanderers, Li Sen, Wu Mingxiao, Zhao Ying."

"Passing through, there's no place to stay ahead or behind, so we're here to ask for a bowl of tea and borrow a place to stay for the night, and we'll leave at dawn."

As he spoke, he raised his hand and handed over a silver ingot.

The short, sturdy man's expression had been slightly loose when he heard the words "Jianghu wanderers," but when he saw the silver, he immediately became much more enthusiastic.

"Easy, easy."

"Please follow me; there are no delicacies here, but coarse tea and light wine are enough, as long as the three of you don't mind!"

Li Miao also waved his hand with a smile. ===== CHAPTER 494 =====