From a refugee to a martial artist

Chapter 86 Look how many bowls I ate

The weather is a little bit stuffy.

Since arriving in Hedong County, Meng Yuan asked Tie Niu to follow Chen Shouzhuo all the time, while he himself went out for a wander.

Meng Yuan's habit is that whenever he arrives in an unfamiliar place, he must first figure out the terrain and routes.

Hedong County is a medium-sized county, not very big. Meng Yuan has learned about the layout of the county in the past few days, where the gentry live, where the peasants live, where the scholars gather, and where the filth is hidden.

Of course, Meng Yuan was mainly waiting for Jie Shen to take action.

But after hanging around for a few days, giving him chances all the time and creating opportunities everywhere, he still didn't make a move.

Meng Yuan did notice that several people were following him, but when he went to check, he found that they were all members of the county's wealthy gentry faction, so he didn't find anything unusual.

He even visited the homes of wealthy people at night and listened to their collusion plans for a long time, but did not hear anything directed at him.

"Jie Shen knows I'm here. Given his protest behavior, he will never let me go."

"Although I am from Prince Xin's Mansion, people will at most keep their distance from me, but they won't be afraid of me, as I am an idle prince without real power. As long as I do things cleanly, it won't matter."

"It can be seen that he is still concerned about the Ying family. That's why he hides in the dark, hoping to kill someone with a borrowed knife. But there are not many eighth-rank warriors in this county, so what tricks can he come up with?"

"Of course, it could be that something happened and the person got tripped up."

Meng Yuan thought for a while but still had no idea, but he didn't panic.

Now that I have no power and influence, it is normal to be surrounded by fog. But with a knife in my hand, I can eventually cut through the thorns and not be afraid of the floating clouds blocking my view.

Regardless, Meng Yuan was strategically contemptuous and tactically cautious. As long as Xie Shen showed his head, he would dare to strike.

After calming his mind for a while, Meng Yuan closed his eyes and sat cross-legged to stimulate the acupoints.

After just one hour, Meng Yuan exhaled deeply and felt relaxed all over, as it turned out that a new acupoint had been opened.

We have been traveling all the way from Songhe Prefecture, and today is already the seventh day.

Except for two and a half days of walking and two days after arriving in Hedong County, Meng Yuan had to be vigilant at all times and was not in a hurry to open the acupoints. During these three days, he would impact the acupoints whenever he had time.

Up to this point, twenty-eight of the thirty-three heavens have been opened. In less than five days, all the acupoints will be opened. At that time, you only need to reflect and depict to achieve the eighth level of perfection.

It was almost evening, and Tie Niu knocked on the door. "Brother, there was a fight among students in the county school, and Mr. Chen wants to go there. Do you want to go?"

"Just follow me. Remember, listen to Mr. Chen in everything." Meng Yuan said through the door.

"Okay! Are we having meat tonight?" Tie Niu asked again.

"Open!" Since he didn't have to pay for it himself, Meng Yuan was happy to spend more money.

"Okay!" Tie Niu responded happily and ran out in a hurry.

Meng Yuan was worried about Tie Niu, but he was confident in Chen Shouzhe.

When he first came to the county government, Meng Yuan wanted to help, but Chen Shouzhe was very experienced. He first took the past files to look at them and ignored others.

The assistant officials of the county government were the county magistrate and the chief clerk, followed by the school official and the registrar, as well as the clerks of the six departments, all of whom were waiting quietly.

It was not until midnight that Chen Shouzhuo called everyone over one by one. After talking to them alone, they started to expose each other.

Originally, these people had agreed to form a united front, but Chen Shouzhe was very experienced and used both soft and hard tactics and formed alliances to make everyone guilty.

Chen Shouzhuo tried to extort money from his subordinates by teaming up with the chief clerk and the registrar to sideline the second-in-command, the county magistrate.

As for the clerks in the six departments below, they were not of the same rank at all. Three of them were simply dismissed and replaced by new people.

After one night, the county government was split into two factions. Chen Shouzhuo opened up old cases again and only focused on punishing the three old tycoons in Hedong County, leaving the others alone. He was really an expert in the trick of "using one faction to attack another".

People who are honest officials, and have been honest officials for half their lives, are not really pedantic. On the contrary, they are well-versed in the world and have many tricks up their sleeves.

Moreover, Meng Yuan felt that Chen Shouzhe was a Confucian scholar of high rank, but he had never seen him use any tricks, so he didn't know how high his rank was.

Meng Yuan sat cross-legged for a while, and only stood up after his breathing became stable and his internal energy was full.

It was already evening, and it would be dark in half an hour. Meng Yuan slung his knife over his shoulder and went out.

Meng Yuan now lives in the back hall of the county government office. After walking out of the back door and within a few hundred steps, he saw stalls.

"Give me a bowl of shredded pork noodles." Meng Yuan sat down.

The vendor was called Lao Zhangtou, and Meng Yuan was familiar with him since he had been eating here for the past two days.

Old Zhang responded immediately and brought the noodles quickly.

Meng Yuan took a bite and felt that it didn't taste as good as usual, but he still managed to finish it. Then he threw the copper coin down and left.

"Sir, you usually drink two or three bowls. Do you have no appetite today?" asked Old Zhang curiously.

"I really have no appetite today." Meng Yuan smiled.

Holding the knife, he went to buy a cooked dog leg for Tieniu to eat.

Back in the backyard of the county government office, Meng Yuan was just about to write down his experiences in exorcising demons when someone came to find him.

"Young Master Meng!" The man who came was wearing a yamen servant's uniform. He was Captain Yang from the county government.

This person is very experienced and has some capable people under him. However, he is of low birth and has no family background, so he has no power.

Moreover, this person was good at flattery, which displeased Chen Shouzhe. Although he was not dismissed, he was directly benched.

Meng Yuan and Tie Niu did not hold any positions in the county government, but they had always been around Chen Shouzhuo. Chen Shouzhuo also called Meng Yuan "Brother Meng", so others thought Meng Yuan was a distant relative of Chen Shouzhuo and had a nickname, so outsiders called him "Little Master Meng".

Of course, Meng Yuan knew that he was just a passer-by, and he did not deliberately make friends with these people. He just watched from the sidelines and experienced all kinds of human life.

"Is there anything Captain Yang needs?" Meng Yuan asked.

"Someone has come to appeal for justice, please ask Little Meng to go and take a look!" Captain Yang said anxiously.

"Cry out for justice? Then go and ask the county magistrate for help." Meng Yuan refused to go.

Captain Yang came closer and whispered, "It has something to do with you, Little Master Meng."

"Then I can't go." Meng Yuan spread his hands, "Wait until the county magistrate comes and summons me, then I'll go."

Captain Yang was stunned for a moment. He was not very familiar with this young Master Meng, but he knew that he was a kind person. Although he carried a knife every day, he had never seen him use it. But Zhao Tieniu used it several times every day.

As for what rank of martial artist he was, Captain Yang had no idea. He only knew that Zhao Tieniu had been promoted to the rank not long ago, and he guessed that Meng Yuan was not much higher.

Moreover, this young Master Meng is more like a scholar. The day before yesterday, he was competing in poetry with others in a restaurant, but it seemed that he had no knowledge and was kicked out.

But no matter what, this young Master Meng is a reasonable man.

Captain Yang said bitterly, "Little Master Meng, if you don't go over, they will come in to look for you."

As he spoke, he actually started pulling.

Seeing this, Meng Yuan looked at Captain Yang and said with a smile, "Let's go and take a look. Captain Yang, you have to help me when the time comes."

"Of course!" Captain Yang agreed happily.

Hanging the knife on his waist, Meng Yuan followed Captain Yang to the lobby of the county government office.

It was quite lively here. There were a few octogenarians sitting on the left, who looked very respectable.

On the right sat a few scholars in Confucian robes, who were obviously well-versed in the books of sages.

There were several layers of common people gathered inside and outside the gate, but not a single yamen runner was there.

"Young Master Meng!" A middle-aged scholar sat still, waving a folding fan in his hand, his eyes serious and upright.

Meng Yuan remembered this man, a famous scholar in the county, known as Mr. Qi. He always made friends with the sons of wealthy families and had a say in the county government.

Of course, now that Chen Shouzhuo was in charge, he naturally had no say. "Mr. Qi, is there something wrong?" Meng Yuan looked around at everyone and his eyes fell on Mr. Qi's face again.

"You ate two bowls of noodles and paid for one bowl!" Mr. Qi waved a folding fan in one hand and pointed at Old Zhang who was shrinking his head with the other.

Meng Yuan looked at Mr. Qi and felt that he was a righteous man; he looked at Old Zhang again and felt that he was really listless; then he looked at the people watching, some were laughing, some were confused, and most were numb.

Meng Yuan had encountered quite a few such false accusations.

Meng Yuan had been used to being slandered for saying one thing and thinking another, and for being a gigolo.

But looking at the situation today, it is clear that he has set up a trap for himself and Chen Shouzhe who is behind him.

But, a group of scholars came to slander a warrior, complaining that my sword was not sharpened properly?

Meng Yuan held the knife in his hand and said, "Old Zhang, I ate a bowl of noodles just now and gave you the money for one bowl!"

Old Zhang shrank his head and did not dare to answer. Instead, he looked at Mr. Qi.

"How many bowls did he eat?" Mr. Qi looked at Old Zhang and asked with a frown.

Old Zhang lowered his head and managed to say, "Two bowls."

"Impossible!" Captain Yang kicked Old Zhang on the butt. "Little Master Meng is the county magistrate's younger brother. How could he owe you money for noodles?"

Meng Yuan looked at Captain Yang and nodded at him.

"I ate two bowls, but I only paid for one!" Old Zhang complained.

"The county magistrate came to Hedong County to rectify old cases and refresh the administration of officials. He came to give us ordinary people justice!"

Mr. Qi stood up and bowed to the empty seat in the lobby. "I am here today to seek justice! Who should I ask? Ask my parents' younger brother, Little Meng Ye! Why? He ate two bowls of noodles, but I only paid for one bowl! Is this fair?"

He looked at everyone and continued, "Since the county parents' younger brother is taking the lead in not being fair, are the county parents still the county parents? Are the county parents really here to give us justice?"

Upon hearing this, people inside and outside the hall nodded in agreement.

"Qi!" Captain Yang came out, "Young Master Meng is the most fair-minded person. How could he owe you money for a bowl of noodles? Did you see it with your own eyes?"

"Haha!" Mr. Qi stepped forward and sneered, "Captain Yang, you're trying to curry favor with him now? What? The county magistrate wants to promote you?"

"I, Old Yang, only speak for justice!" Captain Yang pushed Mr. Qi away, looked at Meng Yuan, and said loudly: "Young Master Meng, one bowl is one bowl, two bowls are two bowls, everyone believes you!"

"You paid for one bowl of noodles, but ate two! You don't have money, right?" Mr. Qi tapped Meng Yuan's nose, "I'll pay for you! The elders are all here, I want to show them how the people of County Master Chen bully the honest people!"

Meng Yuan held the knife on his waist, looked at Old Zhang, and asked, "Are you an honest man?"

Old Zhang shrank back and dared not say a word.

"What? You hit a soft spot. Are you going to use a knife?" Mr. Qi sneered.

"You are a villain, and I am a warrior." Meng Yuan loosened the handle of the knife, took out a dagger from his sleeve, and put it against his stomach. "It seems that I have no choice but to cut open my belly to prove my innocence!"

"Young Master Meng! You're brave!" Captain Yang said immediately.

Mr. Qi's eyes lit up. "Okay, as long as it's a bowl of noodles, I'll kneel down and serve Little Master Meng like a cow or a horse! From now on, I'll do whatever the county lord asks me to do!"

Meng Yuan took a few steps forward and said, "Then take a close look at how many bowls of noodles I have in my stomach."

Everyone in the hall widened their eyes and moved forward.

"I think..." Mr. Qi let out a scream before he could finish his words.

I saw a ball of blood bursting out from Mr. Qi's left eye, and then a red and white object flew into the sky.

Meng Yuan held the dagger in one hand and reached out with the other to catch the eyeball.

Mr. Qi covered his left eye and howled in pain, "My eye! My eye!"

Everyone inside and outside the hall was shocked.

"It's too painful to cut open my belly." Meng Yuan held his eyeball in one hand and said, "I can only ask you to look inside my belly with your eyes."

For a moment, everyone looked at Meng Yuan in confusion. They didn't expect that Meng Yuan dug out other people's eyes just to make them see more clearly.

"You are all virtuous elders. Would you like to take a look inside my belly?" Meng Yuan looked at the octogenarians.

These people immediately shook their heads and some even vomited.

"What about those who are well-versed in the books of sages?" Meng Yuan clenched his fists and looked at the scholars.

These people's faces were very pale and they dared not say a word.

This is what happens when a scholar meets a soldier.

Meng Yuan looked at Old Zhang and asked, "How many bowls of noodles did I eat?"

"..." Old Zhang trembled, "One bowl."

Meng Yuan looked at Captain Yang again and asked, "Captain Yang, you are the most fair. I have to ask you to take a closer look."

“I don’t want to look…” Captain Yang staggered back two steps, then knelt directly on the ground and kowtowed.

He didn't see clearly how Meng Yuan swung his sword, but there was no doubt that the other party was far superior to him.

"Who else wants to see it?" Meng Yuan held Mr. Qi's eyeballs and looked around at everyone.

No one dared to answer, everyone was at a loss.

Seeing this, Meng Yuan looked at Qi Xiuzai who was rolling on the ground.

Walking forward and half squatting, Meng Yuan said, "It is difficult to see black and white with one eye. Mr. Qi, you read the books of sages and do fair things. Please let me take my right eye again and give me justice."

After hearing this, Mr. Qi quickly covered his right eye again, "No need! I don't dare to do it again!"

"So how many bowls of noodles did I eat? And how many bowls did I pay for?" Meng Yuan asked.

"A bowl of noodles, one bowl of money!" Mr. Qi's head was covered in blood. He knelt on the ground, covering his head with his hands, his voice trembling.

"Mr. Qi is indeed a fair man." Meng Yuan said.

Mr. Qi didn't dare to say anything more and walked out while kneeling on the ground.

"Wait." Meng Yuan stepped on the corner of his clothes, "Father's sperm and mother's blood cannot be discarded."

As he spoke, his eyes fell to the ground.

Meng Yuan bent down and said, "Take up your left eye and let it look for you on behalf of your parents to see how much of the sage books you read have become splendid and how much have become dirty."

Mr. Qi was stunned when he heard the words and looked at the eyeballs on the ground. "Mad! You are a madman!"

He knelt and crawled out, shouting, "Uncle Li, save me! Save me quickly!"

After hearing the voice of "Uncle Li", Meng Yuan suddenly felt something was wrong.

Among the wealthy families in Hedong County, Li Tianyun's family was the only one with the surname Li.

These days, Meng Yuan was wandering around outside, and people from the Li family followed him. But Meng Yuan went to the Li family twice and didn't notice anything unusual.

Moreover, although Chen Shouzhuo arrested his housekeeper, he did not do anything else. Therefore, the Li family did not collude with other gentry, but was very honest.

He was so honest, but he suddenly showed up today and came after me. Meng Yuan felt something was not right.

Looking outside, I saw the faint evening glow and the sky becoming increasingly gloomy. It was clear that rain was about to come.

The last time I met Jie Shen was on a rainy day.

(End of this chapter)