Martial Arts Crossover: My master tricked Huang Rong into becoming my wife!

Zhao laughed and asked, "Boss, where are you headed with your family?"

Chen Yanzhou took a big bite of rice, didn't even look up, and replied, "Dengfeng."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Da was startled and waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "You can't go! You can't go, Chief!"

"Why can't we go?"

"It's too chaotic over there!" Zhao Da came over, his face full of anxiety. "The Jin dogs and the Mongol Tartars are fighting fiercely, killing each other like crazy. I fled from Xinye a few years ago, and the scene was terrible... tsk, there were corpses everywhere, and even wild dogs were eating them until their eyes were red. If you encounter defeated soldiers, even if you are a master of martial arts, you can't withstand the sheer number of them."

Huang Rong was feeding Wangcai when she heard this, and her hand trembled, causing the meat bone to hit Wangcai directly on the forehead.

Wangcai whimpered, gave her a pitiful look, picked up a bone, and crawled under the table.

Chen Yanzhou remained calm, took a sip of tea, and smiled, "It's alright. I'm not going to join the army or fight. I'm just going to Shaolin Temple to borrow a few books to read. Just tell me how to get there."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, Zhao Da sighed, dipped his finger in tea, and began to draw on the table.

"If you insist on going, then follow the official road all the way north."

Zhao Da's rough fingers left a watermark on the table: "First we pass Fancheng, then the Han River leads to Xinye, and further north are Wancheng and Yexian. This section isn't exactly peaceful either, but at least it's still a main road."

He paused, then continued tracing upwards with his finger: "After passing Ye County, through Xiangcheng, Xuchang, and Xinzheng, and finally past Mi County, you'll see Mount Taishi, which is the territory of Dengfeng."

Huang Rong leaned closer for a look; the watermarks were winding and meandering, making her head spin: "So far?"

"The distance is secondary," Zhao Da said with a bitter face. "The real difficulty lies in the second half of the journey. After passing Xuchang and heading west, we have to cross the foothills of the Funiu Mountains and then climb over the Waifang Mountains. That area is all mountain roads, rugged and difficult to travel. Even a mule would be exhausted, let alone a horse-drawn carriage."

Chen Yanzhou tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "Approximately how long will it take?"

Zhao Da counted on his fingers: "At a normal pace, it would take at least a month. With your high level of martial arts, even if you travel day and night, it would still take at least half a month if you travel fast. To be on the safe side, it would take about twenty days."

"Twenty days..." Chen Yanzhou nodded thoughtfully, "That's not too long."

He glanced back at the darkening sky outside the window, stood up, and dusted off his clothes. "Okay, I understand. Thanks."

"Don't mention it, Boss." Zhao Da quickly stood up. "Then you should get some rest. I'll prepare some dry rations for you first thing tomorrow morning."

Chen Yanzhou called out to Huang Rong, who was still in a daze, "Let's go back to our room."

Upon hearing that they were leaving, Wangcai immediately crawled out from under the table, wagging its tail and following behind.

……

The storage room in the west corner of the post station.

As soon as the door was pushed open, a musty smell mixed with the aroma of dried hay hit the door.

By the dim light of the oil lamp in her hand, Huang Rong could see the furnishings in the room—if this could even be called furnishings.

In the corner of the room were several tables and chairs with broken legs, and against the wall were several rusty shovels and brooms. There were even a few burlap sacks with holes on the ground.

The only piece of furniture was a "bed" made of two door panels pieced together by the window, with a few blue bricks underneath, looking precarious.

"You call this 'a bit rudimentary'?" Huang Rong pointed at the bed, her lips twitching.

Chen Yanzhou leaned the Xuan Tie Heavy Sword against the corner of the wall and casually kicked a few dry grass aside: "Miss, this is not bad. At least there is a roof over your head and walls on all sides. It's a hundred times better than sleeping in the wilderness."

Huang Rong covered her nose in disgust, carefully avoiding the dust on the ground.

"There's nothing we can do about it, the good ones have all been taken by the soldiers." Chen Yanzhou walked to the bedside and reached out to press the door panel.

"Squeak—"

The door panel emitted a tooth-grinding groan.

Chen Yanzhou nodded in satisfaction: "It's quite sturdy, it won't collapse."

He turned to Huang Rong, who was still lingering at the door, and laughed, "What? Are you waiting for me to carry you in with an eight-person sedan chair? Hurry up, pack your things and go to sleep. We have to travel tomorrow."

Huang Rong pouted and reluctantly moved into the house.

Wangcai adapted well to the environment. After wandering around the corner a couple of times, it found a pile of dry grass and lay down comfortably.

Just then, there was a knocking sound at the door.

"Boss? Are you asleep?" It was Zhao Da's voice.

Chen Yanzhou walked over and opened the door.

Zhao Da held two thick cotton quilts in his arms, a simple smile on his face: "Boss, it's getting chilly late at night, and the storeroom is drafty. I brought you some bedding."

Zhao Da was a rough man, but he also knew a thing or two.

He chuckled and shoved the blanket into Chen Yanzhou's arms: "They were just aired out, they're warm. Well, I won't disturb the leader's rest any longer, just call if you need anything."

After saying that, he turned around and ran away in a flash, closing the door behind him.

Chen Yanzhou hugged the bedsheets, looked at the closed door, and shook his head helplessly.

He turned and walked back to the bedside, tossing it to Huang Rong: "Catch."

Huang Rong instinctively caught the quilt. It was fluffy and soft, with a sun-dried smell, and was cleaner than she had imagined.

"This bed is so narrow, how can two people sleep in it?" Huang Rong spread out the quilt and gestured.

This bed, made of door panels, is at most three and a half feet wide. It's spacious enough for one person, but if two people sleep together, they'll have to sit shoulder to shoulder.

Chen Yanzhou took off his shoes and lay down, then rolled over into the bed.

"I'll sleep inside, you sleep outside. If you're worried about getting squeezed out, just hold me tight."

"Who wants to hug you!" Huang Rong blushed, angrily took off her shoes, and climbed onto the edge of the bed.

She covered herself with the blanket, turned her back to Chen Yanzhou, and left half of her body hanging off the edge of the bed, refusing to move even an inch in.

The room quieted down, with only the occasional snoring of Wangcai.

After a while, Huang Rong couldn't hold on any longer, her body swayed, and she almost fell.

She gasped and instinctively reached behind her.

A warm, large hand reached out at just the right moment, grabbed her wrist, and with a little force, turned her over.

The two were face to face, very close. She could feel Chen Yanzhou's hot breath spraying on her forehead.

"Be careful." Chen Yanzhou said lazily, his eyes closed.

Huang Rong was still in shock, her heart pounding.

Huang Rong bit her lower lip lightly and carefully moved inward.

Chen Yanzhou noticed the movement of the person in his arms, but without saying a word, he stretched out his long arm and pulled her into his embrace.

Huang Rong's body stiffened abruptly, her heart pounding wildly in her chest like a startled fawn.

"What...what are you doing?" Huang Rong's voice was barely audible.

"Don't move, it's warm." Chen Yanzhou's voice was a little sleepy, sounding muffled but unusually deep.

Huang Rong nestled in his arms, her cheeks burning. To hide her inexplicable panic, she coughed lightly and asked a question, trying to make conversation.

"Hey, let me ask you something. This post station is under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, so how come it's completely staffed by your Beggars' Sect?"

Chen Yanzhou closed his eyes, rested his chin on her forehead, and inhaled the faint fragrance. He casually uttered a few words: "That's easy, just spend money."

"Spend money?" Huang Rong was stunned and suddenly looked up.

As a result, when he looked up, the tip of his nose bumped right into Chen Yanzhou's chin.

"Hiss—" Huang Rong exclaimed softly.

Chen Yanzhou opened his eyes, looked down at the pair of bright eyes in his arms, chuckled, and at the same time raised his hand to touch the back of her head.

Ignoring the pain, Huang Rong continued to press, "The official post stations are part of the imperial court's system, and the postmen are all registered. Even if the Beggars' Sect has many members, how did you obtain those post station vouchers, official documents, and the station's seal?"

"The world is not what it used to be," Chen Yanzhou sighed, his tone tinged with melancholy. "The Jurchens are invading the south, and the Mongols are eyeing us covetously in the north. The Song government is too busy to even take care of itself. Working at the post station is a tough job—low pay, high risk, and you have to serve those arrogant officials all day long. These days, unless you're desperate, who would be willing to be a post station worker?"

"The government is short of money, and the postmen are short of food. The Beggars' Gang spends some silver and makes a little maneuvering to 'settle' the old, weak, sick, and disabled people and replace them with our own brothers. As far as the higher-ups are concerned, as long as the official documents can be delivered and there is no shortage of tax grain, they don't care who is sitting in the post station drinking tea."

After listening, Huang Rong seemed to be deep in thought.

"And... what about the income of this post station?"

"What revenue?" Chen Yanzhou scoffed. "The little silver the government gives us isn't even enough to buy horse feed. What we're after is this territory. With this post station, news and grain movements within a hundred miles won't escape our notice. Those officials, soldiers, and merchants traveling north and south will be completely transparent to us."

Huang Rong fell silent. This boy usually seemed so unserious and never thought he was so scheming.

"Alright, stop thinking about those things." Seeing her lost in thought, Chen Yanzhou hugged her tighter and sighed, "If you were this obedient every day, life would be so comfortable."

Huang Rong snapped out of her daze, and upon hearing this, gritted her teeth and suddenly slammed her head against the wall.

However, she managed to control her strength and only lightly bumped Chen Yanzhou's nose.

"Ouch!" Chen Yanzhou cried out in pain and released his grip.

"You talk too much!" Huang Rong said irritably.

As soon as she finished speaking, she stretched out her two slender arms and hugged Chen Yanzhou's waist, burying her head in his chest and remaining still.

Chen Yanzhou rubbed his nose, looked at the little fox in his arms that had suddenly become fierce yet clingy, and smiled helplessly.