Chapter 103 The answer is truly a destined encounter.

The mournful cry of the owl startled the group of young people who had been running at night.

The injured boy suddenly struggled to sit up, a strange light flashing in his eyes. He pointed at Li Shimin defiantly and said, "You're not entirely ignorant, kid. Since you know about the 'Exploring the Marbles' and 'Borrowing Guests,' do you know that there are currently three groups of people in Luoyang?"

"Hahahaha!" Li Shimin and Zhang Liang mocked in unison, "What nonsense! Shameless!"

The young man coughed violently for a while, almost vomiting up his internal organs, but maintained his mocking expression and said, "No matter what, all of Luoyang knows that Hanjia Granary was robbed, and soon the whole world will know! Who cares about good or bad reputation? Anyway, the Red Pills and White Pills all know that I did something big this time. You all know too!"

"You at least know how to rob the rich to help the poor, so you're not exactly a heinous criminal," Li Shimin said with a smile.

The three boys all laughed loudly, looking up at the sky.

"You two aren't exactly saints either," the boy said, staring intently at Li and Zhang. "One of you stubbornly refuses to serve, and the other could have explained the situation clearly but chose to run away..."

"Hey! Before you expose someone's shortcomings, talk some sense," Zhang Liang sneered. "I just want to live past twenty, but the emperor wants me dead next month! Why would I go and die instead of escaping?"

"Very well, that's only human nature, so you're in the right. But what about you, Young Master Li? Why did you run away for no reason?"

“I can’t explain it clearly. I was also watching the lanterns at the dock in Tongyuan City on the Lantern Festival.” Li Shimin suddenly interrupted, rubbing the gold-inlaid belt hook at his waist with a self-deprecating smile. “I probably even ran into some of Yuwen Shu’s men.”

Moonlight swept across the boy's astonished face. He was silent for a moment, then nodded and said, "Oh! I thought of many ways to get into trouble and become famous, but I never thought of framing someone. This is really not my fault!"

The young man also found the unexpected and strange encounter between the two quite remarkable, so he pointed at Li Shimin and said, "Besides, when you were almost arrested by the clerks of the Ministry of Justice today, it was because I acted with integrity and helped those in need that you were able to escape. That can be considered as clearing your name."

"I am deeply grateful." Li Shimin sneered, clasped his hands in a gesture of respect, as exaggerated as Meng You's. "Thanks to you, I was here in the middle of the night with my friends and their families, practicing my scouting skills. I was being driven away and intimidated like a fugitive. I have never been so humiliated in my life."

While memorizing the locations of all the palaces and pavilions in Jinyang Palace, she asked the young man, "Where did you get this map of Jinyang Palace?"

Everyone was speechless in response to his praise.

"What do you need the map for?" Li Shimin pressed on relentlessly.

"What's it to you? Give it back to me!" The boy endured the pain and reached out to Changsun Qingjing for the map.

Changsun Qingjing smiled and folded the drawing back to the boy: "Don't get so excited. I just wanted to take a look to broaden my horizons and see how extravagant the emperor is. Here you go."

The young man sneered, “Telling you won’t hurt. My fiancée heard that the Jinyang Palace has a precious jade dragon and wanted to play with it. So I found a map first and then sneaked into the Jinyang Palace… What are you looking at me for! Stealing from the Yang family is not stealing. They stole the property of an orphan and widow who couldn’t keep it, and they drove the people to their deaths like cattle and horses… Stealing from them is simply following the will of Heaven.”

“Although I really hate it when you come to my wedding and ruin things, it’s not your fault that I almost had to serve in the military today,” Zhang Liang said, clapping his hands. “What you’re saying makes sense.”

Changsun Qingjing then asked, "Then why didn't you flee after you succeeded in everything a few days ago, but instead lingered near the Duke of Tang's estate for so long?"

"Looks like we're all in the same boat. You've been watching me for a while now? And who are you people?" The boy leaned back warily, but the movement aggravated his wounds, causing him to gasp for breath.

Instead of being angry, the young man laughed: "I was waiting for my companions to meet up in Mangshan. The government was pressing me hard, and I almost fell into the trap of the Henan County Magistrate several times. I was hiding here and there, barely having enough to eat. I figured I might as well go to a feast like the one at the Tang State Mansion. But then again, I was lucky that his family was righteous and even knew to care about the lives of farmers. I also valued my reputation, so I didn't go to their house to steal the Zhong and Wang calligraphy treasures."

"I'm truly impressed by you," Li Shimin said, both amused and exasperated. "You actually know that the Tang State Palace possesses genuine works by famous artists, grain, jade, and calligraphy. With your audacity, is there anything in this world you wouldn't dare to steal?"

"Who do you think you are, talking so arrogantly? I don't care about your sarcasm, and I don't care about your flattery." The boy struggled to sit up, attempting to punch Li Shimin in the face.

Li Shimin caught the fist that was swinging at him, raised an eyebrow and said, "I am Li Shimin, son of the Duke of Tang."

The boy was stunned for a moment, then withdrew his fist, clasped his hands in a solemn manner, and said, "Duan Zhixuan, son of the magistrate of Jinyang County."

Zhang Liang glanced at Duan Zhixuan on the ground, then at Li Shimin, who was half-squatting. Seeing their expectant expressions, he finally realized that something seemed to be missing from the ceremony. So he knelt down and solemnly bowed to Li and Duan: "Zhang Liang, son of a commoner from Mangshan."

The fates of three boys from different backgrounds are intertwined in a strange and precarious way.

Changsun Qingjing laughed, "Gao Xiaojing, son of Zhu Yuan, the registrar. The emperor will probably hear some strange noises in his dreams again tonight. What are you three going to do now?"

"I'll take them back to my villa." Li Shimin made no attempt to hide his anticipation for the adventure. "Zhang Liang will be my retainer from now on. Let's see who dares to investigate. Duan Zhixuan, where are the red and white pills? I have the black pill. Tell me the secret code, and I'll personally pick them up and have them stay at my villa. Once things have calmed down, I'll escort you back to Hedong."

"Alright, when shall we set off?" Changsun Qingjing asked. "Zhang Liang can serve as a retainer. Duan Zhixuan is seriously injured; how about hiding him at Jingyin Temple? My brother can take care of him at any time!"

“I won’t go. I can’t drag you down with me.” Zhang Liang refused resolutely.

"I'm not going either. It's too easy to be exposed, and it will implicate you." Duan Zhixuan also refused.

"I won't argue with you anymore. You all hide here while I go back to my villa to get reinforcements." Li Shimin stood up to leave. "Zhang Liang, lend me your bow and arrows!"

"Wait a minute, I have an idea." Duan Zhixuan struggled to his feet. "My pouch..."

In a flurry of activity, the group searched Duan Zhixuan's body and finally found a pouch amidst the bloodstains on his belt.

"Two 30-day transit documents." Changsun Qingjing unfolded the documents. "Fake!"

"Where is it fake? The documents were all signed by the Jinyang County government, the seals are real, and the guarantors are real too. I told the Jinyang Registrar of Household Affairs that my father had asked him to issue travel permits for relatives to go to Luoyang to see the lanterns. I didn't steal or rob, and the permit was stamped. It's that simple!" Duan Zhixuan laughed. "But the names are made up."

“My father would tell the Henan county magistrate, ‘Don’t you dare falsely accuse my son! He was clearly locked up in my mansion for the entire first month of the lunar year.’ Then he would vehemently deny it. Of course, in private, he would hang me up and scold me: ‘What a stupid pig! You’ve solved so many cases following your father, who is the magistrate of Jinyang County, and you haven’t learned a single skill. You’ve even been caught by the Henan county magistrate! Don’t you have any dignity? You have no skills whatsoever, yet you pretend to be a hero. I’ll beat you to death!’”

Everyone clapped and laughed.

Duan Zhixuan countered, "And what about your fathers?"

Zhang Liang answered directly: "My dad would say, 'Liang, don't be silly, you ran well!'"

After a while of laughter and joking, everyone looked at Li Shimin.

"Why are you looking at me like that? I haven't done anything particularly serious. What can my father say? At worst, he can find someone to take my place in jail..." Li Shimin said somewhat guiltily and timidly, "My father can't possibly disrespect the emperor!"

The crowd booed: "What you're saying is so meaningless. You're such a pampered young master."

"Gao Xiaojing, don't hide in the back. We're all brothers in arms. Say something and let us have a good laugh." Duan Zhixuan pointed at Changsun Qingjing and said, "I even showed you the map of Jinyang Palace. It wouldn't be right if you didn't say something!"

“The three of us committed a crime, which has nothing to do with him. Why are you trying to get him to become sworn brothers?” Li Shimin saw that Duan Zhixuan was trembling from blood loss, so he took off his cloak and draped it over him. “You talk too much.”

“Young Master Gao is a respectable scholar who got involved by accident. Don’t make things difficult for him,” Zhang Liang chimed in.

“My father is a little different from your fathers,” Changsun Qingjing said, mimicking the three boys’ slightly crude tone. “My father would say: ‘You stupid pig, you’ve seen Duan Zhixuan three times in a row and you didn’t bother to find out his background. You’re incredibly foolish. If it were your father, he would have knocked him unconscious with a stick and tied him up for a thorough interrogation the moment he saw him in the wedding procession. He wouldn’t have been allowed to cause trouble.’ I guess if my father were in my position, he would have arrested you the day you passed by Jingyin Temple and made you confess to forging documents, stealing from the granary, and spying on the treasures.”

Was your father a proper scholar?

"Enough with the nonsense, Zhixuan, what good idea have you come up with to escape?" Li Shimin asked.

Author's Note: Ah Jing has a feeling of accidentally stumbling into a boys' dormitory late-night chat [666]

Xiao Duan: Xiao Gao also wants to steal the Jade Dragon Stone. He has good taste; let's be friends. [rainbow praise]

Fish: I'm planning to include a scene where Ah Jing stitches up Duan Zhixuan's wound. It's perfectly reasonable for Duan to show his upper body for the sake of the plot, right? [Evil grin]

Xiao Duan: Very reasonable. Xiao Gao, remember to praise my well-defined muscles to the readers, the best in the room... [666]

Erfeng: This guy actually showed his wife his naked body before I did! This plot is outrageous! [Angry]

Dormitory supervisor (appears in next chapter): Still chatting? I'm taking you in...

Witness: You be the judge, how could I possibly tell these two street thugs apart?