Chapter 255 Heading to the Capital
Upon receiving the reply from the Prince's Palace, Lin Changning led more than 20 skilled soldiers to prepare to travel to the area surrounding the capital.
Although it wasn't difficult for them to disguise themselves as playboys traveling to the capital, these people all carried a bit of the air of soldiers.
Entering the city, they are easily recognized, so the people you choose are all somewhat reckless. Although they have a resolute air about them, they don't stand out in the crowd and could easily be mistaken for servants.
However, the murderous aura that Lin Changning had accumulated on the battlefield over a long period of time was not so easy to dispel.
Qi Rong dressed Lin Changning in several expensive outfits, making him look like a young master from a wealthy family, but for some reason, he still carried the air of a martial artist.
It wasn't easy to change things in a short time. Lin Changning had tried his best to suppress his murderous aura, but after struggling through mountains of corpses and seas of blood for so long, it was indeed not easy to hide it in a short period of time.
Moreover, the identity of being the son of an officer is too easy to expose, so Lin Changning simply decided to bring his men to disguise themselves as traveling merchants this time.
Firstly, He Sheng's family was in the liquor business and also owned a security escort agency. It was understandable that the young master of a traveling merchant family would travel around the country all day, and go to the capital to find some rare items to resell.
As for his martial arts skills, that's even easier to explain. People who travel all over the country every day will naturally bring some servants and guards with some skills. It would be unreasonable for a traveling merchant to be someone who is truly powerless.
After Lin Changning's identity was confirmed, Qi Rong quickly arranged her travel permit. The group accompanying her were disguised as Lin Changning's servants. Accompanying her was an elderly gentleman, who was a bookkeeper specially hired by the Prince's Mansion. This man was not only well-versed in the local specialties and customs, but also very knowledgeable about local prices and information.
With the addition of the skilled soldiers selected by Changning, this caravan was thus formed.
The horses were replaced with ordinary horses, not the warhorses used in the army. However, the horses pulling the carts were also good horses that Qi Rong had acquired at a high price, and their stamina was no less than that of warhorses.
Lin Changning didn't dare to delay. After obtaining his travel permit and identity, he set off from Yongning City that same day.
The gentleman accompanying him was surnamed Gao and named Huan. He was an accountant who had followed traveling merchants before the Prince's Mansion found him. He had been traveling all over the country selling goods for nearly 20 years.
It's a pity that a few years ago, he was trapped in a border city. All the traveling merchants died, leaving only him among the refugees. Later, he was discovered by the Crown Prince of Chu, who knew that he was quite skilled in business, so he was secretly recruited into Datong Shop.
This time, it just so happens that Changning needs to disguise himself as a traveling merchant, and this person is the best guide for him.
Lin Changning sat in the carriage, facing Mr. Gao Huan. He was dressed in a brocade robe, and his hair was tied up with a jade hairpin, which made his face look even more handsome.
Mr. Gao Huan looked Lin Changning up and down, seemingly hesitant. Lin Changning noticed that the old gentleman opposite him seemed to have something to say to him, so he said, "Sir, please speak plainly."
Gao Huan cupped his hands in greeting, stroked his small mustache, and shook his head secretly as he looked at Lin Changning's attire: "Sir, your attire is not quite appropriate."
Lin Changning asked with some doubt, "Sir, what do you think I should wear?"
Gao Huan pulled a cloth bag from his side: "Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, merchants are the lowest in status, so they usually dress up as Confucian merchants when they go out. Your attire doesn't look like that of a merchant, but rather like that of a noble young master from some clan. In my humble opinion, it would be better to change into a Confucian turban and change your clothes into narrow-sleeved ones that are more convenient for movement."
Lin Changning thought for a moment and found that what Mr. Gao Huan said made sense, so he nodded. However, he was still mindful of his status: "I will change into my new clothes when I stay at the inn tonight. Thank you for reminding me, sir. But speaking of which, since we are traveling merchants, what items will we be selling this time?"
Mr. Gao stroked his beard: "There are plenty of goods on the way to Beijing. We can just buy some unique items. It will take us at least half a month to get to Beijing from here, even if we don't stop much along the way. As for the goods, there's no rush, because we're not going there to make money."
Lin Changning cupped his hands in agreement: "Thank you for your guidance, sir. You don't need to call me 'sir' anymore; just call me by my name."
Gao Huan gently shook her head, her gaze towards Lin Changning exceptionally kind.
"Although I am a traveling merchant, etiquette cannot be neglected. I am the manager of the caravan, but in terms of status, I am just a servant bought by your family. People in some places pay more attention to this, so you can call me whatever you want, but I can only change my status to your young master."
Lin Changning nodded and looked at Gao Huan: "Then I will call you Uncle Gao."
Gao Huan nodded: "Either is fine."
The original plan was to wait until we arrived in the capital, then try to make contact with those important people. If we could meet the princess and the young lady, we could leave the city that same day.
However, it seems they will have to flee all the way back.
Lin Changning thought it over and over, but still felt it wasn't quite right, so he simply took out all the plans that had been agreed upon two days earlier from his bag and handed them to Mr. Gao Huan.
"Sir, could you please take a look at these plans? Are there any oversights?"
Gao Huan took the stack of densely packed papers and couldn't help but admire Lin Qianhu. Although he was a military officer, he was incredibly meticulous. This paper not only contained various action plans, but also outlined the escape route and any unexpected events that might occur along the way.
There were nearly a dozen different solutions, which shows that a lot of thought was put into this matter.
Gao Huan looked up at Lin Changning and met his somewhat nervous gaze. He couldn't help but admire him. No wonder the prince had sent a young commander with him this time.
At first, he thought this person was just strong in combat, but now it seems that he is a shrewd and calculating person. Cooperating with such a person will naturally make things much easier.
Gao Huan carefully looked at the plan written on the paper, pointed to a banquet and said, "Your idea is very good, but this time we are selling goods by traveling merchants from the frontier, such as multi-dimensional wool felt and various gemstones. Even if the quality is good, it will be difficult for us to get in touch with people of this banquet level, unless our goods are eye-catching enough to attract the attention of noble ladies and noblewomen throughout the capital."
Gao Huan continued, "However, each prefecture has fixed suppliers for wool felt and various gemstones. Small fry like us have no way of contacting such people. So the idea is very good, but it is not easy for us to implement."
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