A Single Tie Of Long Hair Seals A Lifelong Commitment - Chapter 54.1

“Hey, hey!”

Jiang Bojin was being escorted, but his ears were busy. Chen Liangyu and Gu Xie were conversing ahead, and he strained his ears to listen, but the distance and the bustling market meant he couldn’t catch a single word. Reluctantly, he gave up.

Chen Liangyu stopped, clasped her hands behind her back, and turned to glance at him.

There was a teahouse here, with a simple lean-to tea stall set up across the road. The leftover tea dregs and scraps from the teahouse were sent to the stall to brew and sell to casual customers. The customers coming and going at the tea stall were mostly in a hurry, stopping only for a bowl of tea to quench their thirst. They didn’t have time to sit, so they drained the tea in one gulp from the large bowl, handed their water pouches to the young waiter to refill with plain water, tossed down two copper coins, and left. Although there were many customers, most of the tables and chairs at the tea stall were empty.

Chen Liangyu and Gu Xie casually found a spot at the tea stall and sat down after pulling up their robes. The young waiter at the stall tried to usher them into the teahouse across the street, but when they indicated they didn’t need to go, he quickly served a pot of tea.

This was a breezy spot; the stall was supported by a few wooden posts and open on all four sides.

Chen Liangyu and Gu Xie looked towards a certain spot almost simultaneously, occasionally glancing back.

“Who are you waiting for?”

Jiang Bojin shook off the arresting officer and swiftly ran into the tea stall, using his severed arm to tear apart the broken fishing net that had bound him. The officers came forward to apologize and recapture him, but he dodged and weaved like an old eel, impossible to catch, startling many guests at the tea stall.

Among these people, two officers were ordered to escort Pu Ping’er, and the others, dressed as soldiers, were likely sent by Zhao Mingqin for protection. Chen Liangyu said, “Don’t bother. You can return and report back.”

Her “Martial Uncle,” who was unwelcome everywhere, might not have many other skills, but if he wanted to run, ordinary people couldn’t stop him. Even though Pu Ping’er was skilled and had managed to trap him with the fishing net, he would have escaped on the journey here if he hadn’t willingly allowed himself to be caught.

With the officers gone, Jiang Bojin felt much more relaxed. He had been thirsty for a long time. Chen Liangyu and Gu Xie hadn’t touched the tea the waiter had poured. Since his hand was inconvenient, he bent over the bowls and noisily drank both bowls of tea until they were empty.

No one responded to his earlier question, and he didn’t press for an answer. Since they were waiting for someone, they would see that person sooner or later.

Lifting his shoulder, he wiped the circle of water stains from his mouth onto his shoulder fabric. Jiang Bojin’s mouth wasn’t idle and he started rambling incessantly.

“Throughout history, only men have joined the army. It’s not because they are physically stronger or better at defending the nation than women. It’s because they are useless—useless to the Emperor and useless to the state. Great strength leads to recklessness, and recklessness breeds chaos, so they are sent to fight. It’s no pity if a few people die! Women stay comfortably in the courtyards, multiplying descendants, and only then can the state continue. The battlefield involves bloodshed and death, it’s extremely dangerous. Forcing women to fight—isn’t that absurd?”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

Chen Liangyu didn’t want to argue with him. A person outside a cage only sees the tranquility within the cage.

Jiang Bojin said, “I don’t understand? Your maternal grandfather, my teacher, personally said I was his student with the highest comprehension. What is there for me not to understand?”

Chen Liangyu: “No matter how high your comprehension, didn’t you still lose?”

“The three of them!”

Jiang Bojin stretched his half-length right arm forward. If his hand were still there, he would surely be using his fingers to make a “three” sign in front of Chen Liangyu.

“Your father, your Uncle Yan, and the Ghost Lin—it was three against me, one! If I hadn’t lost, those three should have just gone to the teacher’s grave and committed suicide to apologize!”

Chen Liangyu: “You still believe that today’s defeat was merely due to bad luck. During the Rebellion of the Five Princes, you persuaded Senior Martial Brother Lin to jointly serve Prince Fengde. If you were right, why did Senior Martial Brother Lin later betray Prince Fengde and serve a new master?”

Jiang Bojin sneered: “And who was that person he served later? Was he any good?”

The person Lin Jianshu later served was the current Emperor.

In Jiang Bojin’s eyes, Lin Jianshu had always been an unrealistic person, stubborn and convinced that there must be a benevolent monarch who loved the people. When Prince Fengde was pursuing Xie Lin to a village, he killed the entire family for a ladle of water. Xie Lin knelt in humiliation to save the child, but the child still perished under the sword. Lin Jianshu immediately rebelled, held Prince Fengde hostage to let Xie Lin go, and later traveled a thousand li to pledge allegiance, believing he had found an enlightened ruler.

After his defeat, he narrowly survived and spent a long time recovering from his injuries, so he was unclear about what happened afterward. On the eve of Xie Lin’s enthronement, when Lin Jianshu was one step away from being enfeoffed as a marquis and becoming a prime minister, he led his elite cavalry and personal guards away and never returned for the rest of his life.

“All crows under heaven are black; it makes little difference who sits on the dragon throne. The only true thing in this one life is to secure a hundred years of fame and glory. After a hundred years, who cares whose grand legacy this world becomes?” Jiang Bojin mused, “You call Ghost Lin ‘Senior Martial Brother’? He used to chase your father and try to chop him down a lot.”

Gu Xie had listened to their bickering for a while. Only when Jiang Bojin mentioned Duke Zhenguo He Niangong and his four famous students did she seriously examine the disabled old man in front of her.

“Who is this?”

Chen Liangyu said, “Flying Gadfly Arrow (Feimengshi).”

Who could run so fast without an arm! His epithet didn’t have a deep meaning when examined closely; it was due to his excellent qinggong (light-body skill), rumored to rival a released arrow. If one were to delve deeper, it was probably because he practiced the Hundred Ghosts Path and specialized in sneak attacks.

Gu Xie suddenly stood up, bowed to Jiang Bojin, called him “Mr. Jiang,” and then said, “You are still alive?”

“Still am, still am.”

Jiang Bojin finally seized the opportunity to lecture Chen Liangyu, scolding her, “Look at her, and then look at you…”

“One more word, and I’ll send you to see Uncle Yan.”

“I won’t go. I can’t stand him.”

They hadn’t been sitting long when Gao Guan rode around the corner of the street. Seeing the tea stall from afar, he lashed his whip, and his horse sped up.

Gao Guan dismounted in front of the tea stall and tied the reins to a hitching post.

“It’s done, but not completely done. I wish I had brought that kid Xing Rui with me. If I’d let him stand near and fan the flames, it would have surely been twice as effective.”

Gu Xie placed the tea money on the table.

Gao Guan hadn’t seen Gu Xie before and was very wary of the two strangers who had suddenly appeared next to Chen Liangyu.

Jiang Bojin was utterly confused. “What’s done but not completely done? You’re a grown man, can’t you speak clearly!”

Gu Xie leaned halfway out of the tea stall and looked around. “Too many eyes and ears. Let’s go back to the Prince’s Manor to discuss. The Princess is waiting at the Manor.”

The group mounted their horses and returned to the Zhen Prince’s Manor.

No horse was prepared for Jiang Bojin. He looked around for a long time. “What about me?”

“Run yourself.”

“You little brat! Don’t you see how old I am?”

However, Gu Xie respectfully gave up her own mount to him.

Chen Liangyu interjected a reminder, “Miss Gu, this person is not a good sort. He is not to be trusted. I advise you to stay away from him.”

Gu Xie thanked her and said, “Sir is the esteemed student of Duke of He, only for this layer of connection, I should show respect.”

“Gu? Gu what now?” Jiang Bojin rolled his eyes upward, thought for a moment, and seemed to finally recall a name. “Are you Gu Changxue’s?”

Gu Xie said, “He is my grandfather. Did you know my grandfather, Sir?”

“We met once.”

Upon returning to the Zhen Prince’s Manor, Jiang Bojin was left in the courtyard with several guards watching him. Chen Liangyu and Gu Xie followed Chen Luan, who was waiting there, toward the flower hall.

Chen Luan said, “Qiu Renshan has arrived.”

Entering the flower hall, the brazier was burning brightly, keeping the hall warm.

Xie Wenjun was seated behind the main desk, holding a letter. Her lips were slightly curved upward, suggesting something that had just happened brought her joy.

Chen Liangyu entered, her eyes lowered, trying to keep her gaze away from the desk, from that person…

She pursed her lips. The spot bitten by her teeth was now unmarked, but it had branded a mark in a certain part of her heart. A flame seemed to leap up from that not-so-small mark, bringing warmth to the chilly weather.

Yet, after entering, she still couldn’t help but peek in that direction.

Qiu Renshan also looked like he had just arrived. He was presenting some things across the desk and then stepped back two paces, reporting: “This Marquis Lu Ping still has some tricks up his sleeve. Such vast wealth, comparable to the Yao family of Cangnan and the Chen family back then, could actually be concealed, avoiding the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Zhang’s migration order. They only sent one Heng Zhao to Yongdu, and then when His Highness was selecting companions for study, they sent one more, Heng Yang. Heng Zhao and Heng Yang are both children of Marquis Lu Ping and his primary wife. Sending this son and daughter to the capital under the Emperor’s feet allowed their family to maintain their comfortable life in the Southern Territories. Now, besides a few old generals, Heng Jinan’s most capable subordinate is his eldest illegitimate son, Heng Miao. General Chen should have met him. This person is very capable, quite adept at dealing with water bandits, but he is narrow-minded, intolerant, and often bears deep grudges.”

It wasn’t that the Heng family evaded the migration order; Xie Yu had intentionally given them a pass. At that time, there were civil difficulties in Cangnan, coupled with a large-scale demobilization in the Northern Territories. The Southern Territories could not afford chaos, so he turned a blind eye and only requested one Heng Zhao to enter Yongdu.