Chapter 856 A Fortuitous Encounter [Requesting Monthly Tickets!]
Ouyang Rong threw back the covers, propped himself up, adjusted his eyes to the darkness, and turned to look out the window.
At dawn, it was quiet outside.
A misty fog drifted in.
He woke up around dawn and was lost in thought for a while.
He returned to the Bell Tower from the Red Dust Inn yesterday evening and went to bed early after washing up.
I have an important trip this morning.
The blood-written letter was taken out again and placed under the pillow. Ouyang Rong lay on the bed, propping his head up with one hand, and rubbing the blood-written letter with the pads of two fingers of the other hand.
"The Lu family of Fanyang... I see..."
Ouyang Rong looked up at the ceiling and murmured something.
The scholar named Lu in the blood letter hadn't really thought much of the Five Surnames and Seven Clans before. Who knew that the Lu family of Fanyang, a prominent clan in the northern state, had ancestors who had fled to the south, and even to this remote and impoverished Taoyuan County.
Moreover, according to what Ouyang Rong knew in the past, the Lu family of Fanyang should have always been based in Hebei. Such famous clans had been operating in the local area for generations, with a strong foundation and deep-rooted power. This was their base of influence, and their status in the hearts of the locals was even more prominent than that of the imperial power of Liwei.
However, upon closer reflection, a large clan like the Lu family of Fanyang has more than one branch; there are many main branches and collateral branches. It cannot be ruled out that one of these branches had migrated south three hundred years ago.
Just like the Xie family of Chenjun, to which my junior sister and mentor belong, who have been operating in Jiangzuo for generations, the Jinling branch to which my junior sister belongs is the direct line of Jiangzuo. However, there are also one or two branches of the Xie family of Chenjun that are not in Jiangnan Road, but have migrated to the two capitals.
Therefore, Lu Changgeng should belong to a rather special branch of the Lu clan of Fanyang. He briefly migrated to the south and then quietly migrated back... while the other branches of the clan remained in the north.
Such internal divisions and apparent opposing sides within powerful clans are not uncommon. In times of chaos, it is always wise to diversify one's bets and not put all one's eggs in one basket.
This is also a necessary course for the scions of wealthy and powerful families in chaotic times; it's better than everyone blindly following the same path.
"This explains why Cui Hao had correspondence with this person. One is a member of the Cui family of Qinghe, and the other is a member of the Lu family of Fanyang. The two families are of similar social standing and often interact. This person may have a close personal relationship with Cui Hao."
"Ha, thinking even deeper, Lu Changgeng's lineage might actually be one of Cui Hao's spies in the Southern Dynasty, who was almost the National Preceptor of the Northern Wei. This Cui Hao, he's certainly hiding quite a lot..."
Ouyang Rong stopped stroking, put away the blood-written letter, and rolled over in the darkness.
On his pillow, he shook his head slightly, his tone tinged with emotion:
"This blessing was not mistaken. It turns out that it was fulfilled here. It was triggered by Song Zhian. What a wonderful cause and effect."
While Ouyang Rong was quietly pondering, he was not paying attention and a small inkstick slipped out of his arms, sliding out of the bedding like it had long legs.
Ouyang Rong grabbed at her, but she jumped onto the back of his hand and bit him.
"Hiss, let go."
The brilliant idea is vague and unclear:
"Ugh... Don't grab this fairy with your stinky hands."
"Then why are you biting it with your mouth?"
"Pah, pah, pah."
Ouyang Rong was speechless: "Don't go outside, there's something strange about this town at night."
"I don't need you to teach me. This fairy is loyal and never abandons her followers. But you are another matter now."
Miao Si snorted, looked around, and said with dissatisfaction:
"Where is this place? Where have you put this fairy here? It's pitch black, and the outside world is so devoid of culture, full of illiterate barbarians. What are you doing here all of a sudden?"
"This town is named Taoyuan, which is located deep in Yunmeng. There are many locals and martial arts practitioners here."
Miao Si touched her chin, her little face becoming serious, and asked him earnestly:
"Little Rongzi, you're not planning to drag this fairy maiden down with you, are you? Like that old bastard surnamed Tao?"
Ouyang Rong shook his head:
"Bear with it. Once we find the embroiderer, get the sword manual, and Cui Hao's belongings, we'll take you back. As the saying goes, after hardship comes happiness..."
Miao Si immediately jumped up and interrupted:
"As the saying goes, 'You're asking for trouble,' and 'If you suffer a loss now, you'll suffer an even greater loss later!'"
"Fine, you're just repeating the same thing that old bastard said back then! You're trying to make this fairy suffer! And you still dare to argue!"
The little ink spirit's face flushed with anger, and she bit his finger hard.
Just then, a familiar sound of footsteps came from outside the clock tower.
Ouyang Rong was even faster, slapping the little ink spirit back into ink stick form and stuffing it into his sleeve.
"Is Brother Liu awake?"
It's Sha Er Gou.
Ouyang Rong was not surprised at all. He got out of bed, took out his dark blue monk's robe and put it on, picked up the Peach Blossom Spring painting from under his pillow, put it in his bosom, and went to open the door.
As autumn arrives and the weather turns cooler, a thin mist hangs in the air in the morning, adding a layer of frost to everything.
Sha Ergou also crossed his arms over his shoulders, occasionally lifting his feet to move in the wind in front of the door, and rubbing his arms together.
His clothes were rather thin; he wore a summer shirt underneath and an oversized straw raincoat that he had somehow found, seemingly for warmth, which looked rather incongruous.
But Ouyang Rong didn't laugh. He tossed the clock tower key into Sha Ergou's arms, then went back inside and took out a felt hat and a stack of thick robes.
Ouyang Rong placed the felt hat on Sha Ergou's short, chubby head, then stuffed the robe into his arms and began to instruct him:
"Here's the key. You can drink the water in the tank if you're thirsty; it was just changed last night. I might be back tonight. You'll have to ring the clock today; you'll get paid."
Sha Ergou looked down at the robe in his arms and asked:
"Brother Liu, aren't you cold?"
Ouyang Rong remained silent, walked to the water vat, filled a ladle with water, washed his face, splashed some cold water on his face, and took a deep breath.
Yesterday evening, he and Mrs. Li agreed to set off this morning and meet up later.
Although the bronze mask provided the illusion that it couldn't get wet, the task of leading the way and rowing the boat was not difficult.
The reason why it is difficult to find a boatwoman is because the Yunmeng Marsh behind the white fog is too mysterious. Few fishermen in the town dare to take on the job; at most, they rent a boat.
However, Ouyang Rong had no such concerns, and since Song Zhian had helped him find the job, he guessed that Song Zhian herself was unaware of the seriousness of the situation. Ouyang Rong simply pretended to be just like her, a newcomer with no experience. Even if some people in the town saw him, it wouldn't arouse any suspicion.
Unlike Ouyang Rong, Sha Ergou didn't have as many thoughts. He glanced at the silent monk's retreating figure as he washed up and whispered:
"Thank you, Brother Liu."
He paused, then asked with concern:
"Brother Liu, maybe we shouldn't go. Although the pay is good, I've heard from the elders that the Great Swamp is very dangerous..."
Ouyang Rong shook his head, feigning ignorance:
"I've already accepted the money, how can I go back on my word?"
Sha Ergou hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped:
"Alright, Brother Liu, just remember not to go too far into the fog..."
He suddenly remembered something and leaned closer to whisper:
"By the way, Brother Liu, do you know how much silver the landlady spent to buy the Song maid from the slave trader?"
Ouyang Rong frowned slightly, glanced back at him, and said nothing.
Sha Ergou couldn't help but say:
"Fifty strings of cash, wow, that's a lot! How long would we have to work odd jobs to earn that? Brother Liu, are all the girls in Jiannan Road this beautiful, like goddesses?"
Ouyang Rong, who was about to leave, couldn't help but stop and ask:
"You wouldn't be thinking of buying her freedom, would you?"
Sha Ergou seemed startled, his felt hat almost falling off, and he immediately waved his hands vigorously in denial:
"How could that be? I wouldn't have that much money. Even if I sold myself and my house back home, I still couldn't afford it. Fifty strings of cash..."
However, under Ouyang Rong's clear gaze, the young man lowered his head somewhat embarrassedly and said:
"But if I work hard for a few years, I should be able to save up seven or eight strings of cash. I wonder if there are any cheap options at the slave trader's. I'll use that money to redeem a young woman, preferably from Jiannan Road. The women there are so fair-skinned; I've never seen such fair-skinned women back home... I won't mistreat her. If she doesn't want to stay, or really can't stand it, I... I won't touch her. I can let her go home and give her some travel expenses..."
"Er Gou".
Ouyang Rong suddenly held up two fingers, then lowered one as he spoke:
"First, we must not encourage this unhealthy trend. The human trafficking business is inherently wrong; it's all about dirty people and dirty money."
Sha Ergou subconsciously said, "But I..."
Ouyang Rong lowered another finger, interrupting him:
"Second, don't try to be anyone's savior, especially if you secretly think that your actions are particularly noble and might move the other person. But you just won't say it out loud and wait for the young lady to be moved on her own, so that she will not only stay but also completely fall in love with you."
No, never think that way.
“I don’t recommend you do this, but you can do it, but only for one purpose, which is that you simply want to do it—like passing by a flowerbed and not being able to bear seeing a flower bent by a stone, so you move the stone—and this time is similar, except that it costs a few dollars and you put in a lot of effort, but it is no different from saving a small wildflower.”
"Even if this wildflower immediately reciprocates afterward, your first reaction is to regard it as a great insult to your personality. You would almost beat and scold her to drive her away. As for whether you can drive her away or not, that is her own business. What happens afterward depends on fate. If it happens, so be it; if it doesn't, so be it."
Sha Ergou listened in a daze, looking at Brother Liu, who was usually "wooden" but now had a rare serious expression on his face:
"Ergou, do you understand?"
Sha Ergou was a little confused, but he could sense that these were very sincere words, so he wrote them down.
"Oh, oh!" He nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
Ouyang Rong seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
Sha Ergou, however, subconsciously asked:
"Brother Liu, you're not not coming back, are you?"
Ouyang Rong paused for a moment, then punched him on the shoulder:
"You think you can monopolize my bell-ringing job? Don't even think about it."
"How could that be? I'm nowhere near as strong as Brother Liu..."
Sha Ergou chuckled and scratched his head.
Ouyang Rong also walked out the door with a smile, leaving Sha Ergou to strike the morning bell.
Soon, to the melodious tolling of the morning bell, Ouyang Rong arrived at the Red Dust Inn.
The inn's main gate is open from morning till night because guests arrive from time to time, but the stables are closed at night to prevent people from stealing horse feed.
Upon arriving at the lobby, Ouyang Rong saw a burly woman by the counter, but no other young women in sight.
"Hey, why are you here so early? Aren't we supposed to be ringing the bell?"
It's Mrs. Yu, the boss's wife.
She was leaning against the counter, cracking sunflower seeds, and looking people up and down. At this moment, her eyes were fixed on the strong and tall Ouyang Rong.
Ouyang Rong said in a muffled voice:
"I've taken on a job and I'm heading out in a bit."
As if remembering something, Mrs. Yu asked, "It was a client who commissioned you, right?"
"Um."
Ouyang Rong looked around and asked;
"Is Maid Song here?"
Mrs. Yu cracked open a sunflower seed and said leisurely:
"She's not feeling well and probably won't be able to come for the next few days."
After saying that, he sighed to himself and muttered to himself:
"What a money-loser! If she's still like this in a few days, I'll see if I can resell her. After all, I'm not running a charity..."
"By the way, what do you want with her, kid? You want to redeem her?"
Mrs. Yu asked with a half-smile.
Ouyang Rong shook his head:
"I would like to express my gratitude. She helped me find this job today. Please let me know if her condition is serious."
Mrs. Yu casually remarked:
"Hmm. But if you want to buy it, I can give you a discount. Hmm, how about ninety-five strings of cash? I won't make any profit off you..."
After saying that, she covered her mouth and laughed.
Ouyang Rong lowered his head as if he were muttering to himself, then turned and left.
Mrs. Yu glanced behind him and suddenly called out to him:
"Wait, where's Sha Ergou? Didn't he come with you?"
The young man in monk's robes replied sullenly:
"Ring the bell in the clock tower, then come back to work later."
Mrs. Yu grabbed another handful of sunflower seeds and began to eat them with relish.
"Oh. You took the day off today, right? Well then, go ahead and get busy."
Ouyang Rong did not linger and went to the backyard.
About an incense stick later, Lu Jinghong and Madam Li came downstairs and met in the courtyard.
The two met, exchanged no pleasantries, and left one after the other.
Lu Jinghong and Madam Li did not bring a carriage. Apart from a small handbag carried by the plump woman, all the other luggage was handed over to Ouyang Rong's shoulders.
Madam Li seemed quite familiar with the town and knew the approximate location of the ancestral graves, though she probably hadn't actually been there. She frequently consulted Ouyang Rong about the surrounding terrain, as if she were slowly searching for and confirming the route.
After wandering around for a while, the group first arrived at the ferry crossing in the south of the city, rented a small fishing boat, boarded it, and sailed away into the mist.
In addition to carrying luggage, Ouyang Rong also had to act as a boatman, rowing the boat with all his might.
Following Madam Li's directions, they arrived at a small island shrouded in mist just fifteen minutes later.
Ouyang Rong found a dilapidated ferry landing and moored at the tip of the ferry. He glanced at the isolated island and realized that they had arrived so quickly. The island was indeed not far from the mainland.
Lu Jinghong seemed somewhat excited, standing at the bow of the boat, craning his neck to look at the island:
"Mother, is this Zhuo Island? Why is it so desolate? How long has it been since any of our people came here?"
The woman remained silent, her eyes scanning the island's forests.
The fishing boat docked smoothly, and the three of them went ashore. Following the directions given by Madam Li, they trekked for half an hour and arrived at a valley.
Under a locust tree in the valley, three small mounds stood, with a faint inscription on them.
It is a solitary grave.
Madam Li stopped before the valley and turned to the young monk in robes who had been following her with a taciturn expression:
"You've worked hard, Liu... Liu Aliang. Jinghong and I are paying respects to our ancestors, so it's a bit inconvenient. Please wait by the boat. We'll come find you after we're done."
After saying that, she smiled and handed over a silver coin.
Ouyang Rong took the money, took a bite, smiled, put it away, turned and left without hesitation.
After the hired man left, Lu Jinghong and Madam Li stood in front of the tomb for a while longer.
Madam Li squatted down, opened the bundle, and took out yellow paper and incense.
Lu Jinghong looked around, muttering to himself:
"Mother, this island is so desolate, is there really any extraordinary encounter we could have? Was what that knife-selling man said true or false?"
Madam Li suddenly looked up at him, and Lu Jinghong immediately shut up.
The two turned around in unison and looked around.
The surroundings were desolate, with a thin mist shrouding the forest, creating a somewhat tranquil and eerie atmosphere.
Madam Li and Lu Jinghong seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, turned back, and began to whisper.
Little did they know that behind a tree not far away, a taciturn man was standing silently.
(End of this chapter)
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