Aoyama

Chapter 455 Couple
The atmosphere inside the dimly lit Vermilion Bird tent was subtle.

Unexpectedly, the caravan that Ah Sheng mentioned, which had considerable connections in Jingchao, turned out to be the Deng Huo caravan. Not only was Master Hu there, but Xiao Jiu, the border resident who had previously gone to Meihua Ferry to sell salt permits, was also present.

However, Chen Ji did not rush to acknowledge Hu Sanye, and Hu Sanye tacitly remained silent, as if the two were meeting for the first time.

In the silence, Third Master Hu turned to look at Ah Sheng, his expression indifferent: "Why did you bring a stranger?"

Ah Sheng clasped his hands and explained, "Third Master, this is Chen Ji, a new night scout from Chongli Pass. He is not an outsider."

Is the night watchman not in charge?
Old Master Hu became interested, took a bite of his pancake, and teased, "How come I didn't know that you Chongli Pass had a new guy like this? Everyone says that you have to have offspring to be a night scout. He looks so young, like a child himself. How can he be a night scout?"

Ah Sheng lied without batting an eye: "He's a night scout who just arrived a few days ago, so it's normal that Third Master doesn't know."

Master Hu smiled and looked Chen Ji up and down: "Hey kid, are you married yet and you're here to be arrested tonight?"

Chen Ji raised an eyebrow: "They're married, and they have eight children."

Master Hu laughed heartily: "Well, you're quite capable. Who is the bride? Is her surname Zhang? I might recognize her."

Chen Ji was puzzled. Why was Third Master Hu suddenly making jokes?
Before he could answer, Ah Sheng quickly said, "Third Master, please don't joke. Master Hong can trust this man."

Old Master Hu swallowed the flatbread in his hand in one gulp and said indistinctly, "Since Master Hong trusts me, then I trust Master Hong. So, what do you want with me?"

Ah Sheng hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Third Master, I have a request, but it is of great importance. Could you please dismiss everyone else and allow me to speak to you in private?"

Master Hu glanced at him: "So important?"

Ah Sheng said firmly, "Important."

Master Hu gave a wink to those around him, and the men by the fire got up and left the Vermilion Bird tent.

When the Vermilion Bird tent was empty, Ah Sheng was about to speak when she realized that three people were still there.

The three men hadn't been by the fire earlier; they'd been behind Master Hu, their backs to everyone, packing their belongings. Even now, after chatting for so long, they were still packing.

Ah Sheng looked closely and was shocked to find one of the people taking out a packet of biscuits from his bundle, putting it back, then taking it out again, and putting it back again.

He clasped his hands in a fist and emphasized again, "Third Master, please dismiss everyone else."

Old Master Hu turned around and glanced at the three people's backs, then chuckled: "Aren't you three going out?"

The three lingered, pretending they hadn't heard anything.

Chen Ji squinted slightly as he looked at the figure, finding it increasingly familiar.

He took a deep breath and said slowly, "Third Master, are these three hard of hearing? Can't they hear me?"

The young monk replied, "Yes."

Xiaoman turned her head to the side, glared fiercely at the little monk, and stepped on his instep.

The young monk clutched his foot, gasping for breath, but dared not cry out in pain. He was dressed in a gray cloth robe, and his hair, which hadn't been shaved in a long time, was covered in stubble.

Xiaoman turned around, smiling somewhat guiltily, and said, "I was packing my things just now and didn't notice what you were saying."

Chen Ji frowned slightly. He could understand meeting Master Hu here, but Xiao Man and the little monk had clearly been placed in the City God Temple in Chongnanfang. Why were they together in Master Hu's caravan?
Xiaoman didn't dare to meet Chen Ji's gaze, looking down at her toes. She secretly tugged at the little monk, whispering through clenched teeth, "Just say it was your idea later."

Chen Ji stopped looking at Xiao Man and looked at the last person.

The curtain of the Vermilion Bird tent was blown open by the wind, and a narrow beam of light shone in from outside, illuminating the back of a third person. The person was dressed in a white archery uniform, and their hair was neatly tied up on top of their head with a silver hairpin.

The curtains of the Vermilion Bird tent were blown by the wind and then fell down again, darkening the interior once more.

Zhang Xia was silent for a few seconds, then turned to look at Chen Ji and said with a smile, "We'll go out now and won't disturb your conversation."

She led Xiaoman and the little monk outside. Chen Ji watched as the three pretended not to recognize him and walked out of the tent. Asheng looked at Zhang Xia's back, then at Chen Ji: "You guys..."

But then Third Master Hu interrupted, "Alright, the outsiders have all left, please speak."

Ah Sheng regained his composure, bowed solemnly, and clasped his hands in greeting, saying, "Third Master, five people from the Night Scouts need to travel to Baidadan City in Jingchao. Please help us cover their journey with your caravan."

Master Hu frowned: "Jingchao has been quite turbulent lately. What are you doing there?"

Ah Sheng said sincerely, "Third Master knows the rules of my Night Scouts, that we can't say what we do. Of course, I, the Night Scouts, also know Third Master's rules. You are a businessman, so we will exchange you for something important."

Hu Sanye glanced at Chen Ji almost imperceptibly. He saw Chen Ji standing slightly behind Asheng, shaking his head slightly, and immediately understood.

He stuffed the flatbread in his mouth, patted the crumbs off his hands, and said casually, "What can a night watchman offer in exchange?"

Ah Sheng thought for a moment: "A message."

Old Master Hu picked up a hot flatbread from beside the fire and sneered, "What news could possibly be worth risking my life to take five scouts to Baidadan City?"

Ah Sheng said sincerely, "I'm sure Third Master knows that I, Ye Bu Shou, never betray my own people."

Uncle Hu remained noncommittal: "Tell me the news first."

Ah Sheng lowered his voice: "Last year, Hong Ye and I went to a mountain east of Baidadan City to investigate the Jing Dynasty's grain supply route. During the trip, Hong Ye and I were looking for a water source to water our horses when we discovered gold dust at the bottom of a small river in the mountains. Not only was there gold dust, but there were also gold grains the size of a thumb."

Chen Ji's heart stirred.

Over time, gold is washed downstream by rainwater and rivers, slowly settling in riverbeds. If gold dust is found in the riverbed, searching upstream may lead to the discovery of a gold mine.

This is the most common method of finding gold.

The value of a gold mine is self-evident, but Master Hu remained unmoved and sneered, "Since you know there's a gold mine, why don't you go and dig for it?"

Ah Sheng shook her head: "Third Master is joking, how dare we go dig?" Third Master Hu sneered again: "Yes, you don't dare to go, but I do? To the east of Baidadan City is the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry Vanguard Camp. What's the difference between panning for gold there and courting death? Gold mines that can't be mined are worthless."

Ah Sheng said earnestly, "But Third Master can use this information to gain a huge favor in Jingchao, and I think some nobles will be interested. Third Master wants to send a caravan to Jingchao, so building connections is the most important thing."

Uncle Hu waved his hand impatiently: "What does a little brat know about business and connections? Go wherever you want, I'm not doing this business."

Ah Sheng asked in a deep voice, "What does Third Master want?"

Uncle Hu took a bite of the pancake and said, "I don't want anything, get out of here."

Chen Ji breathed a sigh of relief.

As he wished, stopping the night watchman was the best outcome.

Originally, stopping the night watchmen would have been quite a hassle, but now that the caravan is under the command of Master Hu, they've done him a favor, and he'll find a chance to repay it later.

At least they stopped the night thieves from collecting the goods.

However, at that moment, the curtain of the Vermilion Bird tent was lifted, and a strong ray of sunlight shone in.

Chen Ji turned around and saw Hong Zuer limping into the Vermilion Bird tent.

Hong Zu'er sat down by the fire: "Third Master is always calm, reserved, low-key and humble. Why did he lose his temper with a child today? Ah Sheng, apologize to Third Master."

Ah Sheng quickly clasped her hands in a fist and said, "Third Master, please forgive me. I was just being tactless."

Hu Sanye put away his joking mood and stared at Hong Zuer with his gray eyes: "For Master Hong to personally take action despite his injuries, it must be no small matter. But Master Hong, if you use my caravan to infiltrate Baidadan City and fail, I will lose an entire trade route, and it will be difficult to reopen it. You know, I am just a manager and cannot make such a big decision."

Master Hong was silent for a moment: "The gold mine we had before was located at Shizuizi Mountain, east of Baidadan City. I'm sending this information to Third Master."

Master Hu said calmly, "Master Hong, there's no need for that. I'll just pretend I didn't hear anything."

Master Hong said slowly, "Then I'll give Third Master some news that he can't refuse. Last year, I captured seven Jingchao spies. There were originally twelve of them. They had been infiltrating Ningchao for eight years. Their mission was to draw maps of the area around our capital and record the rotation times of the five city garrisons, and then secretly bring them back to Jingchao."

“Why is Master Hong bringing this up?” Master Hu relaxed and leaned back in his chair. “We’re just businessmen. What do Jingchao’s spies have to do with us?”

Master Hong waved his hand: "Everyone else, get out."

Chen Ji and A Sheng exchanged a glance and walked out of the Vermilion Bird Tent together, leaving only Master Hong and Master Hu behind.

"Twelve people came, seven left, and the whereabouts of five others are unknown," Master Hong smiled slightly and continued, "The seven Jingchao spies who were captured only knew that the five had other missions and parted ways with them a long time ago, but they did not know what the missions of the five were. However, one of them said that he had seen his missing colleague at Bianyifang in the capital, and that colleague was working as a waiter at Bianyifang."

Master Hu's expression changed: "Who is it?"

Grandpa Hong remained silent, picking up a hot flatbread from the fireside and slowly eating it.

Master Hu frowned and pondered for a long time, glancing at the traces at the entrance of the Vermilion Bird Tent out of the corner of his eye. Then he sighed and said, "I have a suitable travel permit to take you into Baidadan City, but you must lead your own caravan and follow us. Moreover, you must not have any conversation with us. If anything happens to you, it has nothing to do with us. If you are captured by the Jing Dynasty, and even one person reveals our deal, I will kill everyone who has a close relationship with you. Believe me, I mean what I say."

Master Hong put down the pancake: "Deal. This man will use the alias Zhang Xiang."

Master Hu suddenly stood up and walked out of the Vermilion Bird tent. He beckoned to a man and whispered a few words to him.

A moment later, the man led two more skilled men onto their horses and galloped off toward the capital.

Master Hu returned to the fireside and sat down again: "The Night Scout is indeed the Night Scout, and Master Hong is indeed Master Hong. What skill! Even in this remote and impoverished place like Chongli Pass, he can still know what's happening in the capital."

“Chongli Pass is not far from the capital, it can be reached in three days by fast horse, it’s just that it’s easy to be forgotten,” Master Hong smiled. “Don’t worry, I haven’t told anyone else. As for why Jingchao’s spies are infiltrating your Bianyifang, I don’t care.”

After saying that, he called out loudly, "Come in, all of you."

Several people filed in from outside the tent. Master Hong looked at Master Hu and said, "Tell me, how do we get into Baidadan City?"

Chen Ji's heart sank. What information did Master Hong have that made Master Hu unable to refuse?
What to do? Although he had some dealings with Master Hu, he was himself and Master Hu was Master Hu. They each had their own things to do, and he couldn't force Master Hu to go back on his word.

Trouble.

After thinking for a moment, Master Hu said to Chen Ji, "That kid, go and call the three people who just went out back in."

Chen Ji turned around and called Zhang Xia, Xiao Man, and the little monk to come in.

Master Hu San retrieved several travel permits from a wooden box at the edge of the tent: "Here are seven travel permits, from Shangjing Liaoyang Prefecture to Baidadan City, for a young couple, a young brother and sister, a father and son, and a 42-year-old widower. Master Hong, I don't need to say more, do I? You know you can't get into Baidadan City with just a travel permit."

Master Hong nodded: "I know, I'll teach them how to deceive everyone, but there are only five of us, so we won't need seven travel permits..."

“No,” Hu Sanye pointed at Zhang Xia and the other two, “I promised to take them with me a long time ago. They’ll travel with you and take three travel permits. You can divide the remaining four as you see fit.”

"Is this really necessary?"

"It must be so."

Hongye closed his eyes and pondered for a moment: "Xingxing, you stay at Chongli Pass."

Xingxing hurriedly said, "Uncle Hong, I have to..."

Master Hong frowned: "Stay!"

Xingxing shrank her neck: "Okay."

Master Hong closed his eyes and pondered again: "Husband and wife, siblings, father and son, widowers, how should their identities be arranged?"

He opened his eyes and looked at Zhang Xia, Xiao Man, and the little monk, hesitatingly saying, "You..."

Xiaoman's eyes darted around, and she suddenly pointed at Zhang Xia and Chen Ji, saying, "Let them play husband and wife!"

(End of this chapter)