Chapter 139: Probing

There is nothing more exasperating than traveling with a drunkard; if there is anything worse, it is traveling with two. From the moment Qin Qiong and Chai Shao opened their eyes every day, they were drinking, and after three cups, they would start boasting and rambling wildly. They would babble about three suns appearing in the sky or the prefect discovering a Qilin.

Upon hearing this, Yun Hao could only sneer. Have you ever laid eyes on such a mythical creature as a Qilin? If it is anything other than a pig plastered with gold leaf, I will gladly let you chop my head off. Just as the words reached his lips, Yun Hao managed to hold them back. Goodness knows if someone might go to Africa and drag a giraffe back by this era; apart from having a slightly elongated neck, that creature seemed remarkably similar to a Qilin. Could it be that the Qilin also originated from the African continent?

The two fellows showed great potential to become best friends, leaving Yun Hao to yawn and keep them company on the side. From time to time, he was even forced to swallow a couple of cups of wine, according to the grand logic of these two gentlemen: What kind of man does not drink? This must be cultivated from a young age.

After being forced to swallow yet another cup of wine, Yun Hao's heart filled with bitter resentment. It was not as though he had never seen anyone being trained to drink from childhood; Old Wu's second son next door was a vivid example of that. Back when he first time-traveled into this era, that fellow would shake his head at the sight of everyone.

"So you mean, Brother Qin suffered distress in Luzhou back then and this kid extended a helping hand?" Yun Hao half-closed his eyes, feigning unconsciousness, while his ears caught Chai Shao's inquiry. Damn it, they had been beating around the bush for days. Today, they finally showed their fox tails; wasn't it simply because they wanted to probe his background? You bastard, you are putting way too much effort into this.

There was simply no help for it, as he had already recounted his origins and background eight times over. A native of Yanmen Mountain, he had fled from disaster to Luzhou and finally arrived in Jinyang. Yet no matter how he told it, they simply refused to believe him. They kept making indirect inquiries, which ultimately boiled down to a lack of trust. However, this was also a good thing; since they were willing to spend time and energy probing him, it proved that he still held a fair amount of value to the Li family.

Du Yuesheng once uttered a famous saying: Do not be afraid of being utilized by others; at the very least, it proves you still possess utilization value.

The Li family was destined to be a family of dragons and phoenixes. Being utilized by them would yield numerous benefits! Yun Hao had pondered for a long time and concluded that in this turbulent era, attaching oneself to the wings of the Li family was the most prudent course of action. After all, they would be the ultimate victors.

"Alas...! A single coin can defeat a hero, there was simply no help for it. Back then, my purse was empty, and I was insulted by that innkeeper, Wang Xiaoer. I truly wanted to smash every tooth in his mouth with a single punch, but since I owed the man money, I was in the wrong. If not for Brother Hao's assistance, who knows what kind of unbearable humiliation I would have suffered." A hero fallen upon hard times, Qin Qiong recalled the predicament of those days and could not help but sigh with emotion. Raising his wine cup, he drained it in a single gulp.

"Heh! This kid is indeed righteous and generous with his wealth. Where would a wandering child get so much silver?" Chai Shao immediately refilled Qin Qiong's cup and continued to press.

"Where the mother and son got their silver, I do not know, but judging from appearances, that was practically their entire family fortune. I imagine they must have been a relatively affluent family in the northern territories. I only wonder why they had to flee to Luzhou as refugees." Qin Qiong, rather intoxicated, answered casually.

"My Lord Duke received a military report! A few months ago, the vicinity of Yanmen Mountain was subjected to a raid by the Tujue. Over twenty thousand Tujue cavalry crossed the border, and the number of people and livestock plundered around Yanmen Mountain is immeasurable." Chai Shao also drank a cup of wine and said.

"Alas...! These mother-fucking Tujue, whenever they have the chance, they raise troops and march south to pillage. The military report you mentioned was dispatched right from the Prince's Mansion. The villages near Yanmen Mountain were completely eradicated, and many of them were virtually massacred. According to the scouts who reported back, the scene was too gruesome to bear." Qin Qiong's heart was filled with indignation, and the cup in his hand clenched so tightly it creaked.

Yun Hao was so startled he almost sat straight up. He wouldn't care if everyone in the Yun family village died, but the Chu father and son had saved the lives of both his mother and himself. He had originally planned to send someone to bring their entire family to Jinyang after the New Year. Never had he expected that, actually...!

"His Majesty the current Emperor is indisposed, and all state affairs are decided by the Crown Prince. But this Crown Prince of ours... enough, let us not discuss state affairs. Hahaha! We military men eat meat in large chunks and drink wine from large bowls. It is rare for this kid to produce such fine wine, Qin Qiong, let me tell you: even the wine within the imperial palace is not necessarily as mellow as this." Chai Shao glanced sideways at Yun Hao and winked at Qin Qiong.

"Right, right, right, let us not discuss state affairs." As a bailiff of the three shifts, Qin Qiong knew a thing or two about official matters. Sensibly unwilling to touch upon politics, he immediately raised his cup and clinked it with Chai Shao.

"Official Chai, you said my hometown suffered from a Tujue military disaster?" Yun Hao could no longer restrain himself and sprang up into a sitting position, demanding an explanation.

"Indeed! It happened last autumn, and the military report did not arrive until winter had already set in. Since it was not within the garrison zone of our Jinyang Office of the Protectorate, we merely received a notification. If you want to know about your hometown, Brother Qin knows much more than I do." Chai Shao had long since noticed the changes on Yun Hao's face; when it came to reading people and observing physiognomy, ten Yun Haos would be no match for Chai Shao. Descendants of noble houses like him were elite talents cultivated from childhood. Their zodiac sign was essentially the fox; there was no need to parade them around to know whether they were mules or horses.

"I am not entirely clear on the details either, as I had just been assigned to the Beiping Prefecture shortly before. If you are in Beiping, you can ask the two brothers Yuchi Nan and Yuchi Bei. They were the ones leading the scouts at the time, but you need not worry too much. Tujue border crossings happen practically every year, and no doubt many people fled into the mountains to take shelter. When spring comes around next year, they will emerge from the mountains once more. Perhaps your relatives are also hiding in the hills." Seeing Yun Hao's anxious expression, Qin Qiong hurriedly offered words of comfort.

What he said was not without reason; Yanmen Mountain was a mountainous region. The Tujue generally took advantage of the post-harvest season to raid and plunder so they could get through the winter. At that time, their warhorses were also at their sturdiest. Consequently, conducting raids along the Sui Dynasty borders every year had practically become a routine. Since Yanmen Mountain was situated at the border between the Tujue and the Sui Dynasty, the border residents naturally had their own ways of coping, and many villagers even built houses in the mountains and stored provisions precisely to guard against Tujue incursions.

Hearing Qin Qiong say this, Yun Hao's heart eased slightly, as he recalled that his family seemed to have a house deep within the mountains as well. He could still remember that it was a stone-built structure, supposedly constructed as far back as his grandfather's generation. Hopefully, the Chu father and son managed to escape this calamity. Yun Hao resolved that come the coming spring, he would definitely dispatch men back to search for the Chu father and son. If they were still around, he would surely bring them to Jinyang to enjoy a life of ease. In this day and age, few people were willing to offer timely help in times of need. Since he had encountered them, he had to live up to that bond of gratitude.

Throughout that entire night, Yun Hao could not sleep well, his mind consumed entirely by the Chu father and son. One moment, Chu Yuan was being pursued by Tujue warriors while his father fought to the death; the next moment, they had been captured by the Tujue and were suffering endless torments; and then again, they were shivering inside the small stone hut in the mountains.

Dream after dream unfolded, turning into an endless serial nightmare. Worst of all, even if he woke up to use the chamber pot and returned to bed, the dream would pick up right where the previous one left off, without changing the plot by even a fraction. Damn it, could dreams actually come in sequels?

By morning, Yun Hao could no longer bear it and wanted to send people to look for the Chu father and son. Yet if they had been plundered by the Tujue, where on earth could he find them? If they had fled into the mountains, where was he supposed to look in the boundless expanse of Yanmen Mountain? He only remembered the general appearance of the stone house, but its exact location had entirely slipped his mind.

The ox cart rattled along the official highway leading to Luoyang, and Yun Hao's heart swayed back and forth along with it. The weather outside today was fairly pleasant, and Chai Shao opened the carriage window for some ventilation. From the corner of his eye, he occasionally swept a glance toward Yun Hao, looking completely unruffled while plotting goodness knows what.

Qin Qiong mounted his yellow-breathed steed, riding back and forth to inspect the procession. Although the road before them was an official Sui Dynasty highway, it was impossible to tell how many years it had been since it was last repaired. The surface was riddled with potholes, and in many places, stones had to be stuffed inside just to ensure that the heavily loaded ox carts would not plunge into the cavities.

The Yun family's ox carts demonstrated peerless superiority at this point, as their shock-absorbing design spared Yun Hao from suffering a great deal of hardship. Those fellows from the Beiping Prefecture were not nearly so fortunate; their ox carts either kept tumbling into potholes or suffered broken shafts that required constant repair. Once the wind and snow ceased, the road became as slick as a mirror, leaving Qin Qiong with no choice but to lead the Beiping soldiers back and forth in a flurry of activity.

When the Yun family's caravan rolled past them, whether they were the fierce retainers of the Li family or the servants of the Yun family, their faces bore a hint of pride. Their own possessions were simply superior—this was an indisputable fact! Unawares, the distance between the two processions began to stretch, and the Duke of Tang's caravan pulled five or six miles ahead of the Prince of Beiping's caravan.

"All rivers run into the sea, for the ocean is vast; standing firm like a wall for thousands of fathoms requires no desires!" Chai Shao had overheard this very saying when Yun Hao was conversing with Li Yuan. At the time, Chai Shao had been utterly captivated by those words. Last night's probing had confirmed that this boy was indeed most likely a native of Yanmen Mountain; that genuine concern and worry could never have been faked. Chai Shao affirmed that if his judgment proved wrong, he would gladly pluck out his eyeballs and step on them like firecrackers.

Yet in a place like Yanmen Mountain, what kind of profound scholar could possibly cultivate such a child? It was a pity that village had already been trampled into a complete mess by the Tujue, otherwise he wouldn't even need to drag this kid all the way to Luoyang.

A sharp, ringing whistle jolted both Yun Hao and Chai Shao out of their reveries. They saw a massive crowd surging out from a nearby hillock ahead, armed with sabers, spears, and heavy wooden clubs. Several burly men riding horses came roaring down the mountain slope, their long sabers flashing brilliantly in the cold winter sunlight.

"Bandits?" Yun Hao blurted out in shock, exchanging a glance with Chai Shao. Bandits bold enough to waylay a military convoy? Could these people not see the gods-of-war-like soldiers belonging to the Li family?

The bandits closed in at incredible speed, led by a burly man seated squarely atop a leading horse. Bare-chested despite the bitter cold, he revealed a patch of chest hair a palm-width wide, wearing a ferocious ghost mask on his face, brandishing a weapon that defied belief. Good heavens, what a massive hammer! Compared to it, Wukui's hammer was nothing more than a child's lollipop. Estimating its weight, if it didn't reach a thousand catties, it had to be at least eight hundred.

Looking at that gigantic hammer, and then looking at the warhorse beneath the man's crotch, Yun Hao burst out laughing.

Surely it couldn't be that fellow?!