Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 16 A Thief Comes at Midnight
"What a beautiful story! The merchant girl knows nothing of the sorrow of losing her country, yet she still sings the song of "Hou Ting Hua" across the river..."

Xiao Shan looked at the poems brought by County Magistrate Li himself, and couldn't help feeling infinite emotion in his heart. For a moment, he looked dazed and thought of many things.

After a long while, Xiao Shan finally came back to his senses. He looked at the poem and muttered, "Du Mu? Who is this scholar who could write such a poem? Why have I never heard of him?"

Li Yuan, who was standing next to him, smiled and said, "I asked Lu Zheng, and he said it was an ancient poem he came across by chance. As for who this Du Mu was, he wasn't familiar with it either."

Xiao Shan stroked his beard and said, "I think it was left by a hermit..."

Neither of them thought that the poem was written by Lu Zheng.

After all, writing a poem like this can at least add three feet of literary flavor, but Lu Zheng's situation is obviously not suitable.

"A true man is born in troubled times..." Xiao Shan sighed, "He has great ambitions. No wonder he has such a righteous spirit."

Li Yuan was drinking tea. Hearing this, he was stunned. "Huh? Dean Xiao, what did you just say?"

Xiao Shan looked at Li Yuan, "Don't you realize that Lu Zheng's aura of literature is full of righteousness?"

"Ah? This!" Li Yuan was stunned and speechless for a moment.

Lu Zheng really gave him surprises time and time again.

He understood very well what it meant to be upright and righteous. Not to mention becoming a juren or jinshi, he had the hope of becoming a bachelor or a university scholar in the future.

"Is he at your house now?" Xiao Shan asked.

Li Yuan shook his head slightly. "He packed up his things and went back, saying he was going to study abroad in a few days. I couldn't persuade him to stop... No, I have to stop him."

Kaiyang County finally produced a brilliant person. If something unexpected happened to him outside, Li Yuan would really cry to death.

Xiao Shan said, "He has a way of sacrificing his life for justice. If you stop him, won't you destroy his way?"

Li Yuan paused and said, "Isn't the dean worried at all?"

He knew that Xiao Shan had even given away his personal jade pendant.

Li Yuan wouldn't believe it if Xiao Shan didn't care about Lu Zheng at all.

Xiao Shan said calmly, "With what you and I have given him, what could possibly happen to him if he were to study in Kaiyang County?"

"Well..." Li Yuan's expression was conflicted as he pondered, "It's hard to say. If he goes to those towns and villages, there won't be any danger. I'm worried if he goes to those deep mountains where demons gather. Who knows if there are any powerful demons in those places."

Even though he was the magistrate of Kaiyang County, he had no idea what kind of monsters were hiding in the wilderness and mountains.

Xiao Shan said, "A gentleman doesn't stand under a precarious wall. He's not a reckless person and should know how to act within his capabilities... If he can successfully return from his studies, it might not be long before Kaiyang County even produces a scholar of the highest rank."

Li Yuan was shocked when he heard this. He didn't expect that Dean Xiao had such a high opinion of Lu Zheng and even thought that Lu Zheng could become a successful candidate.

He murmured, "No, I think I have to send someone to protect him secretly..."

Don’t be afraid of ten thousand, just be afraid of what happens.

Li Yuan felt that with Lu Zheng's temperament, he would not be cowardly if he really encountered some powerful monster.

Xiao Shan smiled and asked, "Can you find anyone suitable now?"

Li Yuan was stunned for a moment, then thought carefully. Lu Zheng was a righteous scholar with a strong sense of righteousness. He was carrying a protective item on him, so his strength was not bad.

If he sends a second-level martial artist, he might not be as powerful as Lu Zheng.

When the time comes, no one can guarantee who will protect whom if any danger arises.

Li Yuan found that he couldn't find any suitable candidate at all. He couldn't go alone, right?

Suddenly, Li Yuan subconsciously turned his gaze towards Xiao Shan, but quickly put that thought away.

Xiao Shan raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "You really care about him, but you even put your mind on me." Li Yuan chuckled, "I am just anxious, don't blame me, Dean!"

Xiao Shan said calmly, "You don't have to worry too much about this. If he can't even walk safely in Kaiyang County, how can he go to the state capital, to Tai'an, and to other countries in the future..."

……

When Lu Zheng returned home, he began to pack the things he needed for his study tour.

Li Yuan treated him very well. He not only gave him a sword, but also several cultural treasures.

Those treasures were all created by Li Yuan and were stamped with official seals. They had the function of suppressing demons and protecting oneself.

Plus the jade pendant given by Dean Xiao, and his own righteous spirit.

Lu Zheng felt that there would be no danger on this trip. It would not be a problem for him to break through to the third level of Confucianism and Taoism and become a successful candidate in heaven and earth!
Lu Zheng packed up his things and made a list, preparing to go out and buy some necessities tomorrow.

It was getting late, and after a simple dinner, Lu Zheng was thinking about writing a few more pieces of calligraphy just in case.

Time passes quietly, and a crescent moon hangs high in the sky.

The houses around had turned off the lights early, and only Lu Zheng's room was still lit by a flickering candlelight.

At this time, a figure quietly came to Lu Zheng's residence.

Who else could it be if not Su Mei from Mingyue Tower?

She did not listen to Zhu Sha's words, but instead had some ulterior motives and came to Lu Zheng late at night to find out some information.

Su Mei walked lightly into the house and saw the lights in the room. She thought to herself that Mr. Lu was really hardworking. He was still studying so late at night. No wonder he could become a scholar.

She wanted to go closer and take a peek, but just took a step forward.

Suddenly, lights flashed in several places in the house, and a righteous energy instantly hit Su Mei.

"Ouch!"

Su Mei felt a sharp pain on her forehead and couldn't help but cry out in pain.

She quickly stepped back and took a closer look in panic.

On the main door of the house, there was a copybook with ten large characters shining brightly, and a righteous spirit flowed.

"Heaven and earth have righteous energy, which flows in all forms."

On other doors and windows, there were also large "正" characters pasted on them, which also exuded a sharp sense of righteousness, blocking her, the uninvited guest.

Wenbao! Su Mei was shocked.

She didn't expect that Lu Zheng would stick so many cultural treasures on the walls of the house. It was obvious that he had been prepared for this.

"Who is it!" Lu Zheng heard the noise outside, picked up the sword beside him, and walked to the door with a vigilant look on his face.

Su Mei saw Lu Zheng's figure moving, and he was actually standing guard in the room with a sword in his hand.

I wanted to secretly investigate, but I didn't expect to alarm the real owner.

Su Mei gritted her teeth, flew out of the house unwillingly, and quickly disappeared into the night.

Lu Zheng stood at the gate and waited for a long time. Seeing that Wen Bao, who was standing outside, had restrained his breath, he carefully opened the door a crack and looked outside, but did not see any figure.

Just now he vaguely heard a woman's voice, and the voice did not sound like the female ghost Zhusha, but other demons, or someone else.

(End of this chapter)