Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 310 I am the gangster!

"Let's do it," Gao Jingming drank a bowl of wine in large quantities, and did not care where Chen Xuan got those information from. Just like himself, he had achieved two major achievements in the imperial examination in just a few months, and he had long been unable to understand or see through Chen Xuan's abilities.

Putting down the wine bowl, he burped and said with a deep look in his eyes, "If that's all, it's a bit disappointing. Ah Xuan, do you think there's another trap waiting for me?"

Wei Song didn't understand what they were saying, but Chen Xuan and Gao Jingming knew it very well.

Gao Jingming went north to Beijing to take the exam this time. It is very likely that someone would target him and ruin his future. In serious cases, he might even lose his life or even implicate the Gao family itself. After all, he is "unsociable" and some people cannot tolerate a troublemaker like him. The danger can only be understood by being in the situation.

But there is no evidence for this and it is only at the 'hypothesis' stage.

Under this 'hypothesis', Chen Xuan said nonchalantly: "Although it's a bit crude, Master, tell me if this is the easiest way for someone to achieve their goal."

"That's right," Gao Jingming nodded in agreement.

Although this method is dishonorable and is an underhanded move that breaks the rules of the circle, it is the easiest way to achieve the goal. In the absence of evidence, there is no handle to be caught, and the person who did this cannot be implicated. Since it is done without anyone knowing, it does not count as breaking the rules.

That's why Gao Jingming expressed disappointment, because although this simple and crude method is dangerous, it is the easiest to deal with. If some people play tricks within the scope of the unspoken rules, it would be a headache.

After pouring the wine again, Chen Xuan said carelessly: "No matter whether there is another game or not, leave this kind of brainless work to me, and you can do the rest yourself. Master, you know I am quite stupid and can only do rough work."

"A Xuan, you are not stupid, you are just lazy. I don't even want to say anything to you," Gao Jingming curled his lips.

Chen Xuan said proudly: "I am stupid, I have to admit this. Otherwise, do you think I don't want to get the title of scholar or even Jinshi for fun? Do I have that ability?"

"Then why don't you, Xuan, take part in the martial arts examination? It will also have a title," Gao Jingming asked curiously, changing the subject very smoothly and naturally.

Scratching his chin, Chen Xuan shook his head and said, "Forget it. If I take the martial arts exam, no one else will have a chance. Besides, no matter how high my martial arts achievements are, I'll still be seen as a damned reckless man in the eyes of the world. I won't do it. After all, I have the title of Tongsheng. Asking me to be a reckless man is insulting. In fact, it's just that I'm lazy. I don't want to work hard for the emperor. I've been serving you for so many years, and it's enough. Now that I finally have some free time, working for others again, wouldn't that be the wrong path?"

"A Xuan, have you ever thought about making great achievements and becoming famous all over the world?" Gao Jingming asked again. He also sincerely hoped that Chen Xuan could make a name for himself.

Chen Xuan quickly crossed his arms and said, "Stop. What's the ultimate goal of achieving great things and becoming famous? Isn't it to become a superior person who can do whatever he wants? I'm already that person now. I've avoided so many detours. Why bother with all that effort?"

Gao Jingming laughed and said, "Ah Xuan, you always say you are stupid, but you always come up with some twisted logic that I can't refute. Forget it, I can't argue with you, so just do it your way."

"Young master, you don't understand this. For lazy people, there are always countless reasons to make themselves lazy and feel at ease," Chen Xuan said proudly.

"Yes, come on, keep drinking..."

They toasted each other and drank until the cups were empty. Late at night, Gao Jingming collapsed on the table, drunk and unconscious. This was the first time he got drunk since returning from the north, and also the most relaxing time.

Wei Song was the most qualified person to speak on this point, because he had never seen his young master so relaxed and happy, letting go of all his vigilance and worries, and not staying awake as usual.

Seeing Gao Jingming drunk and falling asleep, Chen Xuan curled his lips and said disdainfully: "Weak chicken, you said you wanted to drink with me all night, but you're just getting started. It's ridiculous for a little scholar to say such outrageous things."

After a moment of contempt, he smiled at Wei Song, already a little tipsy, and said, "Help him to have some rest. We have to travel early tomorrow morning."

"Well, I'll leave you for now, Mr. Chen," Wei Song nodded and helped Gao Jingming leave.

After they left, Chen Xuan continued to drink alone, but his eyes were not intoxicated, but rather more thoughtful.

When he goes to Beijing, apart from the very likely means of attacking Gao Jingming in public, what other conspiracies and tricks are waiting for him?

After thinking about it over and over again, Chen Xuan still had no clue, so he simply stopped thinking about it. Who cares? I will convince people with reason. No matter what your calculations are, I will just kill people indiscriminately. Xiao Gao will take care of it.

Logically speaking, violence cannot solve all problems, but when your fists are strong enough, the truth will be in your own hands.

That's all right... Soon Wei Song came back and said hesitantly, "Mr. Chen, it's late, you should go to bed too."

"Well, where do I sleep?" When he got here, of course he had to eat and live at Xiao Gao's place. Anyway, Chen Xuan felt at ease and it was natural. This kind of thing would naturally be arranged by Wei Song, Gao Jingming's personal secretary. In the past, similar matters were arranged and handled by Chen Xuan, but now he became the one being served.

Wei Song pointed to a room outside the window and said, "Mr. Chen, please live there. It's next door to the young master. The young master doesn't know when you will come, so he has kept it for you all this time."

"This guy still has some conscience." Nodding, Chen Xuan changed the subject and asked, "How many people are going to Beijing together this time? Who are they? We are leaving tomorrow. Are all matters ready? Damn, I'm used to it. I subconsciously put this identity into it. I didn't react for a while. Xiaosong, don't mind it."

"Mr. Chen, you're joking. There are seven of us going to Beijing this time. In addition to you and me, there are four guards including Master Geng. The others are ready. We can set off tomorrow morning. There are four carriages, one of which is for Mr. Chen. In addition, the young master also specifically instructed us to bring enough seasonings and cooking utensils, saying that Mr. Chen likes picnics," Wei Song replied.

Nodding, Chen Xuan stood up and said, "Okay, let's take a break. You should go to bed early too."

As they left, they felt a sense of regret. Geng Hong and his companions had spent seven years in the north. They had originally hoped to have a relaxed retirement arrangement upon returning, but in the end, they still had to travel. Gao Jingming must have gotten used to them. They must have been happy with it. After all, Gao Jingming's value was increasing day by day, and following him would also elevate their status and bring many benefits...

The next day the rain stopped and the sky was clear. As usual, Chen Xuan got up early to stretch his muscles. After breakfast, the group left the restaurant and headed for Beijing. They did not disturb anyone when they left. As Gao Jingming said, after waking up from a hangover and looking energetic, they wanted to leave quickly to avoid a lot of people seeing them off and endless politeness that would delay their trip.

After setting off, Chen Xuan dived into the carriage and took a nap. He had made up his mind that unless he needed to move around during this trip to Beijing, he would lie down all the way. Now he didn't have to worry about any trivial matters.

But it was boring to lie down for a long time, and he was too lazy to move, so he simply stayed in the carriage and did some handicrafts to pass the time.

Gao Jingming went to Beijing to take the imperial examination this time. Putting aside other factors, normally he had a great chance of getting three top marks. It was just a chance. After all, all the scholars of that era took the exam, and some took it many times, so there were many talented people.

However, it was a foregone conclusion that he would pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi. The reason was that the title of Jieyuan was of great importance. There were only a dozen states in Jingguo, and only a dozen Jieyuans. If he failed to pass the imperial examination with his normal performance, the imperial court would lose face.

So Chen Xuan had to prepare a gift for him in advance, and the wild boar tusks came in handy. This thing was no worse than ivory, and contained the blood of exotic beasts. The wild boar tusks in his hand were much more precious than ivory.

Chen Xuan did not change his original intention. He planned to make a fan as a gift for Gao Jingming. He would use wild boar tusks as the fan bones and leave two marks of master's skills on it. The material was too poor and it would be a disposable consumable. If Gao Jingming used the skills on the fan in the future, the fan would not be damaged, but it could only be used as a decoration.

"Just make it an ordinary folding fan. I don't have much artistic talent, so there's no need for anything fancy. However, I'll paint the fan myself. I can't do freehand paintings, but it's not hard to draw a realistic, three-dimensional picture of a beautiful woman. Hehe, it has to be revealing. Oh, and paint some stockings on it, something that would make people of this era blush and their hearts beat faster. I wonder what Xiao Gao's expression will be when he shows it to me. I wonder if I'll be embarrassed to show it to everyone."

Chen Xuan felt happy when he thought of this. It could be considered a little bit of bad fun between brothers, harmless.

With the idea, he had the motivation. Chen Xuan hid in the carriage and started working. He did not show up except to eat, rest and deal with urgent matters. Others did not bother him unless they had nothing to do.

Slow work makes fine work. Chen Xuan was not in a hurry about the fan. He took his time. Besides, this thing could not be rushed. It was necessary to seal the master's skills on it. If he was not careful, the materials would be ruined. There were only four fangs in total, which could not withstand his efforts.

After a few days of peaceful journeys, Geng Hong approached Chen Xuan's carriage at noon that day and reminded him, "Xuan'er, we'll be at the border of Jingzhou and Linzhou in about half an hour. I heard on the road earlier that there's a group of fierce bandits entrenched in Niu Shou Mountain there. They're extremely vicious and often rob passing merchants and travelers, and countless young and beautiful women have been raped and raped by them. Because they're located at the border, the officials of the two states have been blaming each other and have been unable to pacify them, allowing them to become more rampant."

He paused for a moment before continuing, "Also, I heard that the gang recently replaced their leader with an even more powerful and cruel one. With the Autumn Examination approaching, they're not even sparing the scholars taking the exams. They're targeting their travel expenses, and some have already been killed. Should we take a detour?"

Hearing this, Chen Xuan stretched his head out and glanced into the distance, saying nonchalantly, "Go straight ahead, no need to take a detour, otherwise we'll have to travel hundreds of miles."

After that, he went back to the carriage to continue his work.

Otherwise, why would they be called bandits? They really dared to do anything, especially during the critical moment of the Autumn Examination. They dared to harm scholars. They were simply too bold. You must know that any scholar might lead troops to wipe out this place in the future.

Chen Xuan sneered at this. What a bullshit bandit! It’s because they haven’t met Sang Biao, the fiercest of the fiercest bandits!

Then the talk of the two states blaming each other at the border is bullshit. They are probably just harboring the enemy to protect themselves. Just think about the main roads between the states and you can understand how much money can be made. Otherwise, if the government takes a group of bandits seriously, how could they be so rampant?

Geng Hong nodded and left to continue on his way. He felt relieved after hearing Chen Xuan's words. Before they set off, Mrs. Gao had specifically told him that he just needed to listen to Chen Xuan along the way and not worry about anything else.

Originally, he should have asked Wei Song about this matter, but over the years they had become accustomed to following Chen Xuan's arrangements...

(End of this chapter)