Chapter 85 Secret
Chapter 85 Secret
On the way to Liu Village, Wang Sumo rode in the carriage driven by Grandpa Weng, talking with him.
Zhao Tong and Liu Zhaoting and his son confirmed the final details of the knife together.
When they went to fetch the old man, Zhu Yu and Bai Cen squeezed into the carriage. The thick register had been snatched away without a word; but in the middle of the night, no one knew or saw that it was them.
The specific intentions cannot be guessed from these lost lists alone.
They are probably still checking to see if any other valuables have been stolen.
Zhu Yu and Bai Cen helped the old man search for the name Dong Fan in the roster.
The roster is divided into several parts.
Records of people who trace the lineage of Jin.
Records of each trip to the tomb and the items brought back.
There is also a set of records, including retirements, deaths, and special events.
Each category is a separate set of records, and only one set can be viewed at a time within the different materials. This is to ensure that most of the materials in the carriage can be reviewed as quickly as possible. Therefore, the carriage is now very crowded, with several high piles of materials stacked up, making it impossible for anyone else to even step inside.
Bai Cen and Zhu Yu were both extremely focused on helping the old man with his tasks.
The three of them squeezed into the carriage, so busy that they didn't even remember to drink water.
Wang Sumo lifted the curtain and gently reminded them, "Gentlemen, why don't you have some water and rest for a while? I'm afraid you might throw up on the carriage."
Wang Sumo's suggestion was truly kind.
Of these people, apart from the old man, none of them should have the habit or experience of spending a long time in a carriage.
Even the old man never spent a long time reading in the carriage.
She does it often!
So I know it's easy to feel uncomfortable at first, and then...
Zhu Yu had actually been thinking about this. He was fine at first and was very focused, so he didn't really notice it. But when Miss Wang lifted the curtain to ask them if they wanted some water, he really felt nauseous and uncomfortable.
It must be because I've been looking down at my book for too long...
"I feel nauseous and want to vomit." Zhu Yu said, feeling nauseous as soon as he finished speaking.
Wang Sumo quickly told Old Master Weng to stop the carriage.
Fortunately, Zhu Yu was fast enough.
Although the old man and Bai Cen were indeed feeling a bit unwell, they were just too pressed for time and their attention was focused on the booklet in their hands...
Wang Sumo sighed softly, "It doesn't matter if it's a little longer. I'll join you later."
The old man did feel a bit dizzy, but he could suppress the discomfort by circulating his internal energy; Bai Cen, who had lost all his internal strength, relied entirely on his willpower.
Wang Sumo looked at him with difficulty: "..."
He managed to force a smile.
Wang Sumo suppressed a laugh and instructed, "You are responsible for supervising the two of them, and make sure they don't look at the booklet in the carriage anymore."
“Okay, boss~” Bai Cen said sincerely.
After Zhu Yu got back into the carriage, Wang Sumo lowered the curtain and stared intently at Bai Cen, her eyes fixed on him: "Xiao Bai, something's not right..."
Bai Cen was surprised: (⊙o⊙)…
Something's not right there.
The old man squinted and said, "Aren't you listening to the girl too much?"
Bai Cen: "!!!"
Bai Cen: "She's the owner. What if she kicks me out if I don't listen to her? There's no spinach in winter, and if I leave Bazhenlou, I won't even be able to get a warm pancake."
The old man was speechless: "Look at the pathetic thing you've got!"
Bai Cen sighed again, "A wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall."
It made the old man both angry and amused.
The closer you get to Liu Village, the bumpier the road becomes, and the narrower the path becomes for horse-drawn carriages.
Bazhenlou stopped by the roadside.
Liu Zhaoting and his son were making knives for Zhao Tong, and Zhao Tong was bound to want to go and watch. Bai Cen had never seen knives being made before and was curious to go. Zhu Yu had promised Wang Sumo that he would take her to see Bai Xiaotong when she was in Liu Village, so Wang Sumo was also going.
This left only the old man and the old man Weng alone at the Eight Treasures Restaurant for at least half a day...
These two old men are clearly at odds; will they tear down the Bazhenlou restaurant?
Master He is a reliable man, but once Old Master Weng gets carried away, he'll probably tear things down together with Old Master Qu.
The thought of this possibility was truly a headache. Wang Sumo, Zhao Tong, and Bai Cen: "..."
"I'll go take a look too!" Old Master Qu didn't want Old Master Weng to go alone.
Last time it was Grandpa Weng who went, and we picked up the Bazhenlou restaurant that he had his eye on. This time it's time to change it.
Grandpa Weng stroked his beard gently and said with a warm smile, "If someone were chasing after Bazhenlou, I wouldn't be as skilled as Xiaobai, able to ride Bazhenlou and run away as fast as I can..."
It was obvious that Mr. Weng had accurately grasped the old man's sore spot.
Take the old man: !!!
Surroundings: (⊙o⊙)…
The old man lost again in this round of confrontation.
"They're getting more and more annoying as they get older," the old man muttered under his breath, then yelled, "You go! You go! You go with them! I'm not going with you!"
It's awkward to talk to the old man.
Grandpa Weng remained calm: "I'm not going~ I want to stay in the carriage."
The old man was set on fire: "Then you stay in the carriage!"
Grandpa Weng returned to his original point: "If anyone chases after Bazhenlou, I'll have no choice but to take Bazhenlou down with me..."
I'm so angry!
In the end, it was Old Master Weng who remained in the carriage, both happy and unhappy.
On the way to Liu Village, Wang Sumo was a little worried. She didn't know if the two old men could get along peacefully at Bazhenlou. She had a feeling that something strange might happen...
The road was narrow; a small carriage pulled by a single horse could pass, but it wouldn't go very fast.
A carriage pulled by one horse couldn't hold that many people, so in the end, four people rode in the carriage and two people rode horses. After about 15 minutes, Liu Village came into view.
Liu Zhaoting recalled feeling uneasy when he left Liucun yesterday.
Today I have a different state of mind.
The carriage and horses were all tied up in Old Liu's garden.
When the villagers saw them return, they all warmly went up to them.
Some people earnestly advised Liu Che not to go to places like casinos in the future, lest he worry his father.
Liu Che agreed.
Some neighbors brought their own chickens and fish, saying they would help Liu Che calm his nerves, ward off bad luck, and ensure smooth sailing in the future.
Liu Zhaoting accepted them all.
I've become too familiar with these neighbors over the years; if I don't accept their money, it will take a long time to persuade them, which would delay my business.
After the villagers left one by one, Liu Che went to light the blacksmith's furnace.
Liu Zhaoting laid out the blueprints for the knives one by one on the wall, making them very clear at a glance.
Liu Zhaoting's palm was broken, so he couldn't lift the hammer. He could only assist Liu Che, who was in charge.
This was also the first time the father and son had made a set of weapons together.
Bai Cen and Zhao Tong watched from afar in the garden.
Being too close might disturb the two of them, but once the iron-smelting furnace was lit, the garden felt hot.
Actually, not only Bai Cen, but Zhao Tong was also seeing it for the first time.
While Liu Zhaoting and his son were making great progress, Bai Cen whispered, "Last night I heard Liu Che say that the iron used to forge your knife is no ordinary piece of iron."
Zhao Tong looked at him, wanting to hear him continue.
Bai Cen was good at socializing and could chat with anyone he met. When he first arrived at Bazhenlou, he didn't like to talk much and wasn't willing to take the initiative to talk to people, but Bai Cen was always there to get in on his good side.
He will come to see you at any moment, whenever he has the chance.
He speaks very briefly each time, so you won't feel disturbed, but you'll gradually become familiar with him through these short conversations, sometimes even just a simple "hmm".
He'll also appear around you at just the right time, and when you want to complain, he'll start complaining for you first.
When you don't want to talk, he can read your expression and won't force himself to come up to you to talk.
Bai Cen is actually an extremely shrewd person.
Every day, without fail, when I saw the old man chasing after him with his Cloud-Piercing Mountain-Splitting Hand technique, I actually felt a strange warmth in the scene…
It was as if the old man suddenly had something to look forward to every day—whether he could hit Bai Cen today!
After Master He left, Bai Cen accompanied the old man to run all over the mountains and fields every day at the entire Bazhenlou, enjoying it immensely.
Bai Cen not only had to accompany the old man all over the mountains and fields, but also had to wash the most dishes...
But he seemed to be the happiest person at Bazhenlou every day.
It's not exactly the happiest time; I guess it's because my thought process is the same as my employer's...
For example, they even inquired in advance about the iron used by Liu Zhaoting and his son.
He didn't really care what kind of iron was used, but he didn't want to spoil Bai Cen's fun, so he looked at Bai Cen with a questioning gaze.
Bai Cen accepted the message, then leaned closer and rattled off, "This piece of iron is amazing—"
Zhao Tong blinked. He had thought it would be just a sentence, but it looked like it would take a long time to talk.
"Brother Zhao, let me tell you, the Xuan Tie Sect used to have a Xuan Tie sword..."
Zhao Tong looked at him: "..."
*
Two flowers bloom, each telling a different story.
On the other side, Wang Sumo followed Zhu Yu down into the secret passage.
Previously, Lao Liu, disguised as Zhu Weng, led them through this secret passage; after becoming familiar with it, even when he was alone following behind Zhu Yu, he was not afraid of going down such a deep passage.
She had previously said she wanted to meet the all-knowing expert in the martial arts world, and Old Liu, disguised as Zhu Weng, agreed without hesitation.
This shows that Bai Xiaotong did not shy away from seeing her.
Later, I learned from Elder Weng that the "All-Knowing Martial Arts Expert" was not a single person, but a group of people.
Out of trust, Zhu Yu also told her that Bai Xiaotong, who was helping them devise strategies behind the scenes and leading them to seek help from Bazhenlou, was another orphan adopted by Zhu Weng.
She also promised Zhu Yu that she would come to see Bai Xiaotong alone today. As for the details of the meeting with Bai Xiaotong, she would not reveal them to anyone else later.
As Wang Sumo descended the stone steps of the secret passage, she recalled the last time she was with Bai Cen. Throughout the descent, Bai Cen had one hand protecting her.
Even if Zhu Weng seems to pose no danger, it is still best to be cautious.
But for Zhu Yu, this was his own secret passage, and he could walk around it freely in his own home.
Moreover, Zhu Yu wasn't as attentive as Bai Cen, and sometimes he even walked too fast, making it difficult for Wang Sumo to keep up. When he turned around, he suddenly remembered that Wang Sumo was still behind him, and then apologized, "I'm sorry, Miss Wang, I got used to it and was scared away, I didn't react in time."
Wang Sumo smiled and defused the situation, saying, "You could find your way through this secret passage with your eyes closed, right? Do you know how many steps there are and where it leads?"
As soon as he started speaking, Zhu Yu slowed down, and his previous apology and embarrassment disappeared. Zhu Yu smiled and said, "Yes, I know all the secret passages beneath Liu Village. Even with my eyes closed, I can know where I am and where I am. These maps are all in my head!"
Zhu Yu possesses an exceptional talent for both spatial awareness and depth perception when excavating secret passages.
"Oh, right, Miss Wang, there's something else I forgot to tell you before." Zhu Yu said, turning back to look at him as he walked.
Although the tinder in his hand was weak, Wang Sumo could see the apology on his face.
"Go ahead," Wang Sumo said, feigning ignorance.
Zhu Yu breathed a sigh of relief and said softly, "My sister, sometimes... she just has a bit of a temper, she likes to be fierce... really fierce..."
That's being put so mildly, but it doesn't just sound a bit fierce, it sounds quite fierce.
Wang Sumo understood: "I understand."
Seeing Wang Sumo's composure, Zhu Yu was somewhat surprised: "Miss Wang, if you meet my sister later and she doesn't speak so kindly, please bear with her."
Wang Sumo said gently, "Okay."
Zhu Yu looked at Wang Sumo with some surprise, but then he thought about it and realized that Miss Wang always seemed to give people a gentle and steady feeling, yet she was not boring.
Actually, apart from Miss Wang and Brother Bai, the rest of the people in the Eight Treasures Restaurant, including Old Master Weng, Old Master Qu, and Leader Zhao, all seem to have rather bad tempers...
Especially Old Master Weng, who even scalded him with boiling water.
Well, although I didn't really want to burn him, he's just the kind of person who acts on impulse.
Therefore, eccentric people really make up more than half of the staff at Bazhenlou, but Miss Wang seems to be able to handle it all calmly. Moreover, Bazhenlou seems to be cheerful wherever it goes, even though it is noisy.
Thinking back to last night's Eight Treasures Feast, the fruitwood-roasted duck sliced by Alliance Leader Zhao, the pork rib and lotus root soup made by Miss Wang, and the various sizes and shapes of the glass lanterns hanging in the Eight Treasures Pavilion, behind each one is a story of the martial arts world and a series of faces...
That's truly a place that people yearn for.
But he and A-Che also need to have their own world.
"Miss Wang, may I tell you the truth?" Zhu Yu asked softly, stopping in his tracks.
Wang Sumo also stopped: "Of course."
Zhu Yu took a deep breath, leaned forward slightly, and whispered something in Wang Sumo's ear, as if risking having his head twisted off.
Originally, it was expected that Wang Sumo would be surprised, but Wang Sumo still didn't seem to be very surprised.
"Miss Wang, aren't you surprised?" But he was even more surprised.
Wang Sumo smiled and said, "I don't think so."
Zhu Yu's mouth dropped open in surprise.
Wang Sumo continued, "A true expert in the martial world, she has to keep track of countless people and events in the martial world every day. Even gathering information takes time. How could it be such a coincidence that she knows exactly who has come to the Eight Treasures Pavilion recently, who has left, and what has happened to them?"
Zhu Yu: "..."
Wang Sumo laughed and said, "She has probably been following Bazhenlou for some time now. She has never shown her face, but she knows all the people who come and go in Bazhenlou. Because she is far away, she only sees the general outline and does not know the details of Bazhenlou. It is easy for a knowledgeable person in the martial arts world to find out about Bazhenlou, but it is not easy to follow Bazhenlou for a long time."
"Thinking about it, it boils down to these few points..." Wang Sumo gestured, "First, I want to eat at Bazhenlou, but I can just come when they're open for business; there's no need to be so sneaky."
"Second, revenge. But if a martial arts expert wants revenge, there are many things he can do, including but not limited to spreading rumors. 'Possessing a treasure is a crime.' The Eight Treasures Pavilion is already surrounded, so there's no need to go through the trouble of following him."
At this point, Wang Sumo took the initiative to lean closer and whispered, "Third, to find someone, or to put it another way, I want to stay at the Eight Treasures Pavilion with the person I'm looking for for a while, but I don't know how to bring it up, so I can only follow along for now and make further plans later."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Yu was so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth.
After a long while, Zhu Yu sighed, "It's difficult. No wonder Uncle Liu said that Miss Wang is intelligent. Miss Wang can guess most of what he said."
Wang Sumo: "That's not hard to guess~"
Zhu Yu: -_-||
Wang Sumo continued, and Zhu Yu caught up: "Miss Wang, please don't tell my sister, or she'll strangle me."
Wang Sumo understood and stopped, then looked at him inquisitively: "Alright, but you have to promise me one thing."
Zhu Yu: (⊙o⊙)…
Wang Sumo put her hands behind her back and said with a smile, "You have to tell me, who is Bai Xiaotong looking for at Bazhenlou?"
Zhu Yu: "..."
Zhu Yu hesitated visibly, and soon a look of panic appeared on his face. It must be because Bai Xiaotong had suppressed his bloodline too much when he was young, so he had to back down.
Wang Sumo coughed lightly, clenching his fist: "Then I'll tell her that you were the one who told her you wanted to come to Bazhenlou."
Zhu Yu was genuinely terrified: No, no, no!
Wang Sumo found teasing Zhu Yu quite amusing; Zhu Yu was like a larger version of He Qingque.
Zhu Yu said reluctantly, "Master Qu, Miss Wang, please don't tell Master Qu!"
Old man?
Wang Sumo was surprised.
Zhu Yu said in a deep voice, "She just wants to stay by the old man's side for a while, just a short time..."
[Author's Note]
There will be more in the afternoon or evening!
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