Chapter 334: Narrow Paths in the World, Wide Wine Cups
After the great sun sank behind the western mountains, dusk deepened. Seizing the last lingering rays of light that still cherished the human world, the blue-clad traveler who had been chasing and playing with the little cripple stopped and looked toward the end of the southern road. The little cripple took the opportunity to punch him on the shoulder. The down-and-out scholar wavered but paid no attention. Curious, the little cripple followed the scholar's gaze into the distance but saw nothing. Thinking the scholar was deliberately distracting him, the little cripple was about to continue thrashing him so he would never dare flirt with the boss lady again.
The boy's heart suddenly jolted. He dropped to the ground, pressing his ear to the earth, his expression grave. It was a cavalry unit, and not a small one. At Fox Village, apart from the occasional courier passing through, no large cavalry force had ever appeared. The young people of Fox Village often traveled together to the distant Armor-Hanging Military Town just to catch a glimpse of the Yao family's iron cavalry from afar.
Iron armor, warhorses, light crossbows, battle blades—in the eyes of Fox Village's poor youth, these were the most masculine things under heaven.
The little cripple was no exception, but the other kids his age in Fox Village didn't like to play with him.
Now the little cripple left the blue-clad traveler aside, went into the main hall to report to the boss lady. The woman yawned and only said she understood. These military gentlemen surely wouldn't think much of their inn or Fox Village; they were probably marching through the night toward the Armor-Hanging Military Town to the north. No need to worry.
The little cripple said "Oh" and immediately ran out of the inn, climbed onto the roof, raised a hand to shield his eyes, and gazed into the distance. Using the last of the daylight, he could barely make out things. He wanted to get a close look at the frontier cavalry's gear, so next time the boss lady sent him to buy oil and rice in Fox Village, he could show off to the other kids.
In the distance, dust was vaguely visible rising from the road. The dull tremor in the ground grew clearer and clearer.
But the light was running out. The little cripple grew anxious, quickly climbed down, went into the main hall, and asked the boss lady if she could hang up the lanterns. The woman glared at him. Hang lanterns this early? Who's paying for the lamp oil? The little cripple puffed out his chest and said he would. If not, just put it on Old Hunchback's tab. The woman nodded. Delighted, the little cripple hung two big red lanterns outside the inn. Just as he was about to climb back onto the roof, he noticed a single rider veer off the main road and appear silently outside the inn. The rider wore armor that was unusually bright and ornate, unlike the simple style of the Yao family's frontier troops. The cavalryman removed his helmet, held it to his chest, and asked expressionlessly, "Is green plum wine sold here?"
The little cripple swallowed nervously and said in fear, "To answer the military sir, yes, green plum wine is sold."
The cavalryman said in a low voice, "Within the time it takes an incense stick to burn, have the innkeeper clear the entire inn, then prepare five tables of food and bring out the best green plum wine. All expenses will be paid to the last copper coin. If the wine is as good as they say, there will be a heavy reward. Remember: once we enter the inn, our men will inspect the rooms. If anyone is still lingering inside, they will be killed without mercy. After we leave, all guests may return to their rooms."
The cavalryman put his helmet back on, turned his horse, and galloped away.
The little cripple stood there dumbfounded. The blue-clad traveler was crouching alone by the inn door; the stray dog had already gone back to its kennel, but he still had no place to stay. Seeing the boy dazed, he reminded him, "Hurry up and tell Ninth Lady what's going on. If you anger these noblemen from the capital, this inn won't stay open."
The little cripple dashed into the main hall and found that the woman had already gathered with Old Hunchback, discussing matters. As soon as the little cripple arrived, he was volunteered to be the scapegoat—to go upstairs and explain the situation to the guests, asking them to leave the inn quickly to avoid bloodshed.
The little cripple looked troubled. The woman waved her hand and said the lamp oil costs were waived. The little cripple immediately charged up to the second floor. The first room was Chen Ping'an's. The little cripple explained the situation to the guest who opened the door. Chen Ping'an didn't mind and said with a smile that he would inform the other two rooms himself, telling the boy to go directly to the other rooms to call people. The little cripple thanked him and hurried away.
Pei Qian opened the door after he left. An oil lamp was lit on the table, a book spread open. She said with a smile, "I'm reading!"
Chen Ping'an didn't expose her little trick. Actually, Pei Qian had been eavesdropping on Zhu Lian and Wei Xian next door; when she heard the knock, she took out a book from her bundle to pretend.
Chen Ping'an told her to pack up; they needed to leave the inn temporarily.
In the next room, Zhu Lian had already opened his door and said to Chen Ping'an with a smile, "Wei Xian opened his door and then went back to sleep. Should I go wake him up for the young master?"
Just as Zhu Lian was about to turn, Wei Xian, reeking of alcohol, sat up, rubbed his brow, and said to them, "I'm awake."
Ma Ping and the other two Fox Village constables grumbled about the cavalry passing through but obediently left their rooms.
The girl with a ponytail stood outside the railing on the second floor; her room was at the very end of the hallway. She glared at the woman in the main hall on the first floor. "This is how you run an inn, hosting guests? Truly eye-opening. On the border, under the very nose of the Yao family's iron cavalry, someone dares to be so unreasonable? I'd like to see exactly what kind of divine beings can order people out of an inn with just a word!"
She propped one hand on the railing and jumped directly from the second floor, making Ma Ping and the other two's eyelids twitch. Where did this tough little girl come from?
The woman smiled bitterly, hesitant to speak.
Old Hunchback held his pipe, thought for a moment, then said, "Let me go talk to them. We open our doors to all guests; what distinction between noble and humble does this make?"
The old man walked straight out of the inn, his figure disappearing into the vast night.
The woman called up to the two groups of guests on the second floor, "You all just stay in your rooms for now. Tonight's affair is our inn's failing. Afterwards, I'll give each of you a jar of five-year-aged green plum wine."
The girl leaped back up to the second floor and slammed her door shut with a bang.
Ma Ping and the other two shuffled back into their rooms.
Chen Ping'an told Wei Xian and Zhu Lian to come to his room for a while. Pei Qian, of course, had to come too.
The woman sent the little cripple outside and told the scholar surnamed Zhong to pick a room on the second floor rather than loiter outside.
The blue-clad traveler picked a room on the second floor but then leaned on the railing. The woman pointed a finger at him and said, "Get inside."
The scholar worried, "Ninth Lady, you're so strikingly beautiful. What if those military men and ruffians take a fancy to you? After a few drinks, who knows what trouble might happen..."
The woman laughed. "Then you can be the hero saving the beauty, right? And if I lose my eyesight, I might just give myself to you in gratitude."
He waved his hand. "Taking advantage of someone's plight is not the act of a gentleman. Rest assured, Ninth Lady, we scholars are filled with noble righteousness and a belly full of sage's teachings. As long as I'm standing here, even if they drink a whole lot, they won't dare have any vile thoughts..."
Before he could finish, the Yao girl from the far room opened her door, drew her blade halfway, producing a pleasant clang, and glared at the scholar. "Pervert, shut up!"
Clearly, the girl's blade was far more effective than the little cripple's fists. The scholar immediately retreated into his room without another word.
The more he behaved like this, the more disappointed the girl was in the woman downstairs. Spending all year messing around with these men, smiling and drinking—what difference was there from those brothel girls?
Inside her room, the girl slumped over the table, overcome with sorrow, and began sobbing.
The woman stood behind the counter, sighed, and poured herself a bowl of green plum wine.
Thud.
The woman looked up to see the scholar had jumped down from the second floor, landing on the ground. He got up, walked over to the counter, and said with a smile, "Just think of me as your bookkeeper, Ninth Lady. I don't feel at ease so far from you."
His smile was gentle.
The woman was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "But you're so ugly. Being too close makes me sick."
The scholar looked as if he'd been struck by lightning. He crouched down, holding his head.
So those tales of lovers whispering sweet nothings in scholar-beauty romances, those well-worn lovers' dialogues—they were all lies, huh. Not a single word useful.
Old Hunchback was the first to walk into the inn.
Behind him came a group. Apparently the other party was being reasonable, neither evicting the second-floor guests nor flooding in five full tables of people.
At the head was a middle-aged man in a bright red python robe, his face fair and beardless, with an imposing manner.
Behind the python-robed man were two others. One wore silver armor engraved with cloud patterns, his iron armor clanking as he walked. The other was a man of about seventy, dressed in a brocade robe and a high crown, with the aura of an immortal.
Behind them were seven or eight people, presumably trusted retainers.
The python-robed man and his two companions sat at one table, the retainers at two others. Among the retainers was an unremarkable-looking young man with a jade pendant hanging from his waist. He glanced at the woman and smiled.
Outside the inn were seven to eight hundred elite cavalry, along with a dozen or so carriages. In each carriage was a prisoner, with two people guarding them. Without exception, the guards were all Middle Five Realm qi refiners from the Great Springs Dynasty.
Old Hunchback's face wrinkled.
He really hadn't expected such people.
This group of guests hadn't come out of respect for an old man like him, but out of respect for the Yao family. And the face of the 80,000 Yao iron cavalry and the Southern Expedition General—it only reduced them from five tables to three tables, just that much. As for why they didn't evict the second-floor guests, one young retainer casually remarked that more people meant more lively atmosphere for drinking. Then that arrogant eunuch in the python robe smilingly agreed.
The silver-armored general looked toward the woman and ordered, "Serve the green plum wine first. Food to follow quickly."
Old Hunchback lifted the curtain and went to the kitchen to work.
The little cripple began delivering wine to the three tables.
The atmosphere on the first floor of the inn was oppressive.
Almost the only sound was the pouring of wine.
Suddenly someone raised a hand and called out to the woman, smiling. "Boss lady, how about you personally pour a bowl for us brothers? I hear the green plum wine is made from your family's secret recipe, brewed by your own hands. Surely you should pour it yourself."
With the young man taking the lead at the retainers' table, the others lost all restraint and burst into laughter.
The woman picked up a jar of green plum wine and walked over with a smile, ready to pour.
But for some reason, her body tensed. After running this inn for so many years, she had seen all kinds of people from the martial world—even mountain immortals and qi refiners—but when she locked eyes with that young retainer, she felt a hint of fear. Like a mortal struck by evil, meeting a ghost in the dark night, a wave of powerlessness welled up from the depths of her heart.
Suddenly the blue-clad scholar grabbed her arm and laughed loudly. "Ninth Lady isn't feeling well today. How about I, the bookkeeper, pour the wine for our honored guests? Would that do?"
The young retainer looked as if he'd heard the biggest joke under heaven. He looked around. "Brothers, what do you say? Does that work?"
They all said no.
The young retainer then looked at the blue-clad scholar. "So it doesn't work. What now? Unless the boss lady herself pours the wine? It's just pouring wine; it's not like your Ninth Lady has to come with us to Armor-Hanging Town, right?"
The eunuch in the red python robe ignored the scene completely.
The old immortal master in the high crown smiled faintly.
The girl Yao Lingzhi opened her door, her face ashen. "No!"
The young retainer stood up, towering slightly over others.
He looked up and asked with a smile, "Why?"
The girl met his gaze, but her heart trembled. Instinctively she grabbed her sword hilt and blurted out, "This is the Yao family's territory!"
Yao Lingzhi had no idea that the instant her hand touched the hilt, every retainer on the first floor had already conceived murderous intent.
The silver-armored general seated beside the python-robed eunuch and the high-crowned immortal master was positively radiating killing aura.
The young retainer kept his neck craned toward the second floor, yet seemed to take in every movement on the first floor. He raised one hand and pressed gently downward, signaling everyone not to act rashly, then said with a smile, "But the entire Great Springs Dynasty is my family's territory. What now? Is the Yao family planning to rebel?"
The woman carried the wine jar out from behind the counter. First she said sternly to the girl, "Lingzhi, go back to your room!"
Then she curtsied to the young retainer. "Ninth Lady will pour the wine for the young master."
The young retainer's lips curled. He stared fixedly at the woman's face, then pointed at the girl on the second floor. "How about you mother and daughter come together?"
The woman's face turned pale.
A door on the second floor opened, and a young man in white emerged. "I don't think that's a good idea."
The young retainer turned his head to look at the speaker, his eyes amused. "Oh? And who the hell are you?"
This time, someone on the first floor answered for Chen Ping'an. "And who the hell are you?"
It was the down-and-out scholar surnamed Zhong.
The young retainer sighed dramatically. "Great, just great. Tonight, one after another, everyone's picking a fight with me. An inn that doesn't want to kick out guests, a boss lady who doesn't want to pour wine, a Yao girl who spouts nonsense, an outsider in a white robe thinking he's a swordsman, a scholar in blue thinking he's a Confucian sage..."
He suddenly looked at the woman, then glanced at the girl upstairs, and laughed. "It's fine. You two can try tonight to save the Yao family. If I'm in a good mood, maybe I'll help pull the Yao family out of the fire."
The woman took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind. She turned to the down-and-out scholar and said, "Zhong Kui, this has nothing to do with you. I know you have some skills, so if you can leave, leave now. Don't worry about us."
Then she looked up at Chen Ping'an, about to speak.
Chen Ping'an smiled and asked, "Boss lady, what was that line you said earlier?"
The woman was confused, silent for a moment.
Chen Ping'an said to himself, "Narrow paths in the world, wide wine cups."
The path is narrow, so he met someone from the Yao family connected to that locust leaf.
The path is narrow, so he also met these people who wished everyone else on a dead end road.
But it didn't matter. The green plum wine here was good.
Chen Ping'an said softly, "I'll have to trouble the four of you today."
Under everyone's gaze, the door behind the young man in white on the second floor opened, and four people walked out.
The founding emperor of Nanyuan Kingdom stepped out first, his face stern. "No need for courtesy."
The martial madman Zhu Lian then stooped out and stood on the other side of Chen Ping'an, hands behind his back, chuckling. "Young master, that's superfluous."
A peerless beauty carrying the sword "Foolish Heart" stood beside Wei Xian—it was the female sword immortal from Lotus Flower Blessed Land, Sui Youbian, her face cold. "Thank you, young master, for lending me the sword."
Finally, the towering founder of the demonic sect, Lu Baixiang, stood at Zhu Lian's side, holding a saber in both hands, smiling. "Master, this blade is quite good. 'Stopping Snow'—fine name, too."
Last of all, a soft, weak voice sounded. "Father, what about me?"
Chen Ping'an sighed helplessly. "Go back to your room and read!"
The skinny little girl said "Oh," gently closed the door, and then began reading aloud in a thunderous voice, making the sage's teachings in the book shake the rafters.
Downstairs, the scholar listened to the reading from upstairs.
Besides the reading, there were also Chen Ping'an, Wei Xian, Zhu Lian, Sui Youbian, and Lu Baixiang on the second floor.