Chapter 189 Meeting an Old Friend
How could there be sounds of reading like in a college in this bandit’s lair?
Zhu Lan felt something was strange and went around the earth wall to check. Unexpectedly, he saw a dozen bandits squatting or sitting on the ground, surrounding the city in a circle, with a man sitting in the middle.
Zhu Lan walked over and looked at the back of the man in the middle, which seemed a little strange.
She called out tentatively: "Ding... Ding Xiaoqiu?"
The man in the middle paused for a moment, shaking his head. Then he turned around and met Zhu Lan's gaze.
It turned out to be Ding Xiaoqiu! However, he was no longer the skinny guy he used to be. He was even fatter, with fuller cheeks.
"Zhu Lan?" The moment Ding Xiaoqiu recognized Zhu Lan, he was a little bit unbelieving. He quickly stood up and walked towards her, walking past the bandits beside him.
The two stood face to face, and Zhu Lan found that Ding Xiaoqiu was much taller than him.
"Why did you come here... to teach bandits?" Zhu Lan's heart was filled with joy at the reunion of an old friend, but at the same time he felt that the situation was a little weird.
Ding Xiaoqiu scratched his head embarrassedly.
"Not really... Actually, I was kidnapped and they wanted to exchange me for ransom, but my father wasn't here, and I had nothing to do in the village all day, so I just taught them how to read and write."
A bandit who looked younger came up and said with a smile: "Yes, Mr. Wuyou said that even if you are a bandit, you have to be a cultured bandit and not let other hostages laugh at you!"
Zhu Lan hissed in his heart and looked at Ding Xiaoqiu again. He found that his personality had changed a lot after not seeing him for a few years. He was no longer the dull and introverted person he used to be.
"By the way, there is another person, you will never guess who it is!" Ding Xiaoqiu smiled mysteriously at Zhu Lan, turned and went into the house, and when he came out again, he was followed by someone.
The man walked slowly, as if he was old, and his bald head made Zhu Lan even more surprised.
"Thank you, Master!?"
Xie Ding was also very happy to see Zhu Lan, and said with a smile: "Oh my, I didn't expect that when I went on a long journey, I would actually run into two students I taught before!"
Zhu Lan curiously asked them why they appeared here, you have to know that this is the northern border, 18,000 miles away from Jiangzhou!
Ding Xiaoqiu smiled foolishly and said, "My father's term in the county in Lingnan has expired. The Ministry of Personnel of the imperial court just issued a transfer order a few days ago, promoting him to the prefect of Yunzhou. However, he still has some things to deal with in Lingnan, so I came here before him.
I met Master Xie on the road and wanted to invite him to go to Yunzhou with me, but he was robbed by bandits on the way."
Zhu Lan nodded, and then asked Master Xie why he came so far away. As far as he remembered, Master Xie's hometown was in Jiangzhou.
Master Xie twisted his beard and said with a smile: "Why, this kid is allowed to read ten thousand books and travel ten thousand miles. The world is so big, can't I come out and see it?"
It turned out that he had successfully passed the examination for a scholar in the academy examination a few years ago. After wasting half his life, he finally found the trick to the imperial examination.
If he were an ordinary person, after passing the examination for the title of scholar, he would definitely continue to work hard and prepare for the autumn and spring examinations. However, he suddenly realized that he had been trapped by the word "imperial examination" for too long. Even at an old age, he had hardly ever been to any place other than Jiangzhou.
"There is no certainty in the examination hall. I am already so old, and I don't want to die of old age in this imperial examination hall. It is better to come out and take a look, otherwise my life will be lived in vain!"
Master Xie smiled very generously.
“I see.” Zhu Lan was moved to see his former teacher finally resolve his emotional knot.
Cheng Hu already had a headache about the two hostages he had kidnapped. Their homes were far away in Jiangzhou, and some were even further away in Lingnan. Without official passes, this group of bandits could not go to such far places at all, let alone get a ransom!
But if I let it go, it would be too embarrassing, and if I don't let it go, I have to keep it, which is really a losing deal.
Upon learning that these two useless hostages were actually acquainted with Murong Jing and her group, Cheng Hu immediately offered to host a banquet tonight and that everyone must have a good meal, and then he would happily send them off.
The banquet was held in the Juyi Hall, and soon several jars of liquor were brought up.
Cheng Hu raised his wine bowl and said, "Princess, I, Cheng Hu, toast you a bowl!"
Murong Jing drank a bowl just for the sake of politeness.
"Hahaha, the princess has a good alcohol tolerance. Cheng Hu admires her!"
Murong Jing listened to Cheng Hu and Dong Dalong flattering her again, with a faint smile on her face.
Cheng Hu and Dong Dalong flattered even more vigorously, one after another, and suddenly Murong Jing spoke out of the blue.
"Li Maocai and Long Xiu, do you know each other?"
"What...?" Cheng Hu and the other man paused, as if they were stunned by the question, and then looked at each other.
The two were about to shake their heads when they heard Murong Jing's calm voice: "These two people were also purified by you, right?"
Her voice was not loud, but her words exploded like thunder in the ears of Cheng Hu and Dong Dalong, and their faces changed suddenly!
Dong Dalong was so startled that he stood up suddenly and even knocked over the wine bowl on the table.
"You...how do you know..."
Deep fear appeared in the eyes of Cheng Hu and Dong Dalong at the same time.
Zhu Lan looked at Zhu Qingyan with an inquiring look, and Zhu Qingyan shook his head in confusion.
Neither of them knew what the "great purification" that Murong Jing mentioned was.
However, the two names mentioned by Murong Jing - Li Maocai and Long Xiu - were the names of A Jiang's parents that they had inquired about in Long'an County.
From what Murong Jing said, could it be that A Jiang’s Han Chinese adoptive parents actually knew the bandits here?
Murong Jing picked up the wine bowl and took a sip, "Sit down, if I wanted to kill you, do you think you can survive until now?"
Dong Dalong's pale lips moved, and he finally sat down obediently.
"When you showed up on the road and hijacked a car, I knew you were from Dafu. Do you know Li Maocai and Long Xiu? You'd better think carefully before answering me." Murong Jing said.
Dong Dalong and Cheng Hu looked at each other again. Cheng Hu hesitated for a few times before finally nodding.
"I know them... Originally, during the Great Purification, Li Maocai was my sworn brother, and Long Xiu was his lover. But they ran away later, and I don't know if they are dead or alive now."
"Are they the only two who ran away?"
Cheng Hu thought for a moment, "It seems... he also brought a doll he picked up."
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