Dragon Raja: History Simulator

On the other side, the Dragon Girl waved her hand, and a glint of light flashed in Yin Lihua's eyes. Then she opened her eyes. Although she was still in the same place, Yin Lihua knew that she had left that blessed land.

She turned to look at the courtyard, where the reflection of a straight bamboo swayed in the water. Yin Lihua could almost see the dragon girl making faces at her.

She hasn't left yet.

Yin Lihua knew that at the same time, a creaking sound came from behind.

The door was pushed open.

Wang Anzhi walked in; he was quite exhausted from playing the role of "Liu Xiu".

Looking at the girl standing quietly by the window, who was practically identical to Nuwa except for her legs, he suddenly said:

"Miss Yin, what are you thinking about?"

"No, it's nothing." Yin Lihua didn't mention anything about the Dragon Girl. She knew that it was a pipe dream for the two of them alone, or even with the help of the bandits, to capture the Dragon Girl or put her to sleep.

Seeing the worried expression on her beloved's face, she sensed something and asked, "My lord, it seems you have more worries than I do, doesn't it?"

Women are natural-born actresses, regardless of age.

Wang Anzhi naturally did not notice Yin Lihua's deliberate concealment. Feeling somewhat guilty, he revealed that during the military council, Duke Wang Feng of Cheng State had requested that he leave his fiancée in the city in exchange for permission to lead a group of men to Yanling and Dingling to fetch reinforcements.

Yin Lihua listened quietly to her beloved's story, but suddenly said:

"Why should my lord worry about a woman like me? My lord, just go ahead. I don't think someone like the Duke of Cheng can stop you from going your way."

"But Miss Yin, you?" Although Wang Anzhi was well aware of Yin Lihua's strength, he still had some concerns.

Yin Lihua suddenly smiled, "My lord, you may continue on your journey. There is no need to worry about me."

Nevertheless, Wang Anzhi still harbored some worries.

Yin Lihua suddenly said, "Why should a real man imitate a woman's mannerisms?"

She then asked, "When does my husband plan to leave?"

“Let’s leave tonight, otherwise when Situ Wang Yi’s army arrives tomorrow, we may not be able to leave the city with a single soldier,” Wang Anzhi replied. This was an agreement he had made with Zong Tiao and twelve other powerful clansmen from Nanyang.

"In that case, my lord, why don't you hurry up and prepare?" Yin Lihua said sternly.

After a moment of silence, Wang Anzhi finally nodded heavily. Looking at the solemn girl before him, he was at a loss for words. After a long pause, he finally spoke:

"Then, Miss Yin, please take good care of yourself."

"I also wish my beloved well." Yin Lihua bowed in farewell as well.

After saying goodbye, Wang Anzhi turned and left. Yin Lihua watched her beloved's departing figure with a dazed look in her eyes.

"Is he your gentleman?" At this moment, the Dragon Girl suddenly appeared again, standing next to Yin Lihua, but her gaze was also fixed on the departing Wang Anzhi, her face filled with doubt.

After a moment of silence, Yin Lihua suddenly said, "Isn't the honored guest very interested in my husband?"

The Dragon Girl, without blushing, said shamelessly, "Yes! I'm going to steal your husband."

Yin Lihua showed no anger. She said, "In that case, I would like to trouble you to look after my husband for a while."

The dragon girl also fell silent.

Yin Lihua then asked, "May I ask how this humble lady should address you, esteemed guest?"

The dragon girl's figure gradually faded, her form following Wang Anzhi, leaving only five words:

"Now, my surname is Guo."

Chapter 154 Let me see who you really are

As the sun sets, the Da Ge River meanders through the landscape.

Zong Tiao looked at the ferry in front of him and said excitedly, "Uncle Wen, once we cross this river and go downstream, we will reach Yanling. Once we get there, it will be the domain of our Nanyang powerful clan."

Looking at the twelve people behind him and the tall figure in front of him, he couldn't help but sigh.

Zong Tiao was covered in wounds and his armor was incomplete. Ever since they followed Liu Xiu out of Kunyang the night before last, they had been constantly pursued by assassins.

Fortunately, they were all highly skilled and adept, which allowed them to escape safely.

As for those who lost their armor and weapons, there's no need to say more now; they've essentially entered the sea like dragons that had been hidden.

Although the armies of Yanling and Dingling were listed under the banner of bandits, they were actually organized by powerful clans in Nanyang. These clans had intermarried for generations, making them the best allies in this era of war and chaos. Their daily struggles and concerns seemed insignificant in the face of this greater cause.

Wang Anzhi was also filled with excitement. Although he was somewhat uneasy, unsure how he could replicate the Grand Magus's meteor shower technique, the moment of his fame arrived, and he couldn't help but feel thrilled.

Looking at Zong Tiao, Li Yi, and the other twelve, he felt as if he were in the same situation as Zhu Hongwu when he arrived in Huaixi.

He looked at the ferry crossing. Although it was a time of war and chaos, the greatest advantage of the powerful families of Nanyang compared to the "bandits" was their ability to quickly restore order, which is why the ferry crossing was still bustling with people.

He said to Zong Tiao, "General Zong, we must not be careless. Once we arrive in Yanling, the most important thing is to persuade them to rescue Kunyang."

Zong Tiao calmed down. He also came from a powerful family in Nanyang and knew that although these people had some insight, they were just local tycoons. Although he knew that if they did not save the bandits, they would be wiped out by the imperial army, if they did save the bandits, they would also suffer a terrible fate.

That's why Zong Tiao realized that this group might drag things out, and there was no guarantee that they had already made contact with the imperial court.

Is this not impossible?

This was acceptable to the Nanyang noble families who were still "country bumpkins," but it was unacceptable to Zong Tiao, who had already become a "general."

He sighed and said, "Uncle Wen is absolutely right. I was too optimistic."

Wang Anzhi nodded without saying anything, only remarking that "offering official titles and making promises" was indeed a major tool for rebellion in ancient times.

Upon becoming a "general," even Zong Tiao himself couldn't help but get carried away.

At this moment, Li Yi said, "My lord, there is no need to worry. My elder brother is in charge of logistics and provisions in Yanling. Moreover, your cousin Lai Xi is a general in Yanling. Now that Liu Bosheng has been appointed as the Grand Minister of the Gengshi Dynasty, we must be careful to prevent him from being implicated."

Wang Anzhi nodded, pointed to the fishermen whose faces were full of fear, and said with a self-deprecating laugh, "Let's go first! Otherwise they'll think we're some kind of defeated soldiers."

Zong Tiao raised his head and said arrogantly, "It's not surprising that country bumpkins are short-sighted."

Wang Anzhi grinned, his brow furrowed. He said, "Li Zicheng, the rebel leader, was a hero all his life, but he was killed by a group of peasants or landlords' armed forces on Jiugong Mountain. The lesson of history may be distant, but we must not ignore it!"

Although Zong Tiao greatly admired him now, being from a prominent family in Nanyang, he couldn't easily refute him and simply nodded haphazardly.

He gently stroked the black horse behind him, leading the thirteen men toward the ferry. This was the only horse they had left after leaving Kunyang; most of the others had been shot dead by their pursuers.

Armored cavalry aren't popular these days!

When he arrived at the ferry crossing, he saw that there were fewer than ten boats there. None of them were large boats; they were mostly small boats, and each boat could only carry about three or four people.

But this is not surprising, after all, this is just a "rural place".

Upon seeing the group approaching, the fishermen exchanged bewildered glances. Judging from the fact that each of them carried swords at their waists, wore armor, and had bloodstains on their clothes, they clearly did not look like respectable men.

Coincidentally, they also knew that there was some kind of "uprising" going on in the west, with widespread war and even the few gentlemen who usually provided them with food (the powerful families of Nanyang) had rebelled. These soldiers were absolutely not to be offended.

Finally, someone reluctantly spoke up:

"What are your orders, Your Excellencies?"

Zong Tiao said confidently, "Take us downstream to Yanling, and you'll all get your share of the benefits then!"

The boatmen dared not refuse and nodded repeatedly, and the group boarded the boat one after another.

When it was Wang Anzhi's turn, the lead boatman looked at the tall, magnificent horse behind him and hesitated.

“My lord, your horse is too large. If it gets on the boat, I’m afraid you will be the only one who can board.”

Wang Anzhi glanced at the followers boarding the boats in twos and threes ahead, waved his hand casually, and said:

"It's alright, I'll just board the ship alone."

He said to Zong Tiao, Li Yi and the others, "Gentlemen, we should arrive in Yanling around dusk. We'll meet up then."

After saying this, he casually led his horse into a small boat, and the boatmen dared not stop him, each nodding and agreeing.

When they arrived on the boat, Wang Anzhi saw that the boatman was wearing a hood and a raincoat. He was somewhat frail and had gloves on both hands, so his skin was not visible. He was rowing the boat with his back to Wang Anzhi, so his face was not visible. Only his long hair was hanging down, which made him stand out.

Seeing that the man's hair was not tied up, Wang Anzhi knew that he had not yet been crowned. He also noticed that the man was not very tall, so he guessed that the boatman was probably not very old. He couldn't help but sigh silently.

He asked, "What is the boatman's name? What is his place of origin?"

"My surname is Guo, and I am from Zhen Ding in Jizhou." The boatman's voice was hoarse, sounding somewhat frightening, as if he was deliberately trying to scare people.

However, Wang Anzhi did not think so. After all, who would deliberately frighten a person who is holding a knife and wearing armor?

Upon hearing this, he inquired further, "I wonder why the boatman left his hometown and came to Nanyang?"

At this time, xenophobia was still quite serious in various places. It was not an isolated case that different prefectures and kingdoms were hostile to each other, but rather a common phenomenon. Not to mention ordinary people, even powerful families would consider it a loss to leave their hometown. Unless absolutely necessary, it was extremely difficult for ordinary people to leave their parents' home.

The boatman sighed, his voice tinged with sorrow, "The land of Hebei is shattered. There are the Bronze Horse Army, the Prefect of Shanggu, and Gao Hu and others who have carved out their own territories. Under the ravages of war, who can find peace? It was at that time that I went south to Henan, hoping to make a living, but I did not expect that Henan would be in the same situation."

Wang Anzhi was somewhat surprised. A mere boatman, after all, was just a refugee; it was truly hard to imagine that he could possess such knowledge. He couldn't help but suspect that this man had another identity, so he tentatively inquired:

"It's a pity that the Central Plains are in such turmoil. The boatman speaks eloquently; I wonder which family's outstanding talents or noble lineage he comes from, that he has fallen to such a state?"

The boatman remained silent, offering no reply, but simply rowed the boat downstream.

Wang Anzhi wanted to ask more questions, but suddenly stopped. He guessed that the boatman might have some unspeakable secret, so he didn't want to ask any more questions. He just silently became a little wary.

However, he noticed that the boatman was wearing a mask, concealing his face, so he asked, "Why are you so stingy, boatman, and unwilling to show your true face?"

The boatman remained silent for a while before saying, "I am ugly and dare not show myself to people, for fear of disturbing you, sir."

Wang Anzhi was even more suspicious, and he wanted to launch another surprise attack from the side.

However, just as he was looking at the casual decorations inside the boat awning and an incense burner in the corner, he suddenly smelled a fresh fragrance, which was extremely faint and barely perceptible.

If he were to first imitate a Chinese emperor instead of a Roman emperor, he would certainly be able to recognize that this fragrance is called "ambergris".

Its legend can be traced back to classics such as the Records of the Grand Historian. Zhou Taishi Boyang once quoted the records of the Xia Dynasty, saying that the Xia emperor hid dragon saliva to seek good omens, which later turned into a disaster for the Zhou Dynasty.

Regardless, its appearance, just like its name, is always associated with "dragon".

Wang Anzhi gradually drifted off to sleep, and his right hand, which had been gripping the sword, relaxed. His fairly complete armor, at this moment, became the last straw that broke the camel's back, causing him to feel utterly exhausted.

He hadn't paid attention for three days, and basically every time he woke up, there were pursuers behind him.

He had been living like this for half a year. At his lowest point, he couldn't even ride a horse and had to flee in all directions on a donkey.

Although we see Emperor Guangwu's decline in history books, we never imagined that he would actually fall into such a state of destitution when he became Emperor Guangwu.

The boatwoman turned her head and rowed the boat, the water reflecting her light and making it shimmer. She let go of the oars and threw them away with a hint of disgust.

As the boatman pressed closer, the black horse retreated step by step, almost falling into the river.

The boatman then coldly patted the horse's head, saying, "Behave yourself and don't cause trouble."