Zhao Xian puffed out his chest: "Don't you know I'm the boss? This is my new little brother. I brought him to the city to broaden his horizons."
The handsome man was thinking about something else at the moment. He whispered a few words to the genius, then pulled Zhao Xian aside and said in a low voice, "Zhao Xian, tell me where you got your wildfire hair, crescent eyebrows, and windproof coat, and I'll let you into the city right away. Otherwise, you can forget about getting through today."
Suppressing his laughter, Zhao Xian racked his brains and told the two sentries what to do. Sure enough, the sentries let the three of them into the city.
The next day, the two handsome sentinels and this genius indeed stepped forward with their full outfits: wildfire hair, crescent eyebrows, and windbreakers. They also loudly proclaimed how popular this style of dress was in the capital. Coincidentally, a merchant from overseas happened to pass by and took the whole outfit to another world. From then on, a group of people called "hippies" appeared in that world. But that's a side note, so let's leave it at that.
When the three of them arrived at a small alley, Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei burst into laughter. It took them a while to catch their breath. Zhao Xian patted Li Jun on the shoulder and said, "See? I told you there would be no problem, so there's no problem."
Li Jun gave a cold snort. Although he was younger than the two of them, and although he had been a funny character in his childhood, seven years of mercenary life had made him forget the emotions of ordinary people. Zhao Xian saw his gloomy face, and fear crept into his heart again. For some reason, he felt a very terrifying feeling from the boy in front of him.
Li Jun slowly said, "You started by saying I was your newly recruited underling?"
Zhao Xian's heart skipped a beat, but he forced a smile and said, "This is the only way to fool the sentry. Actually, you're the boss, you arrogant king, don't you think?"
Wang Erlei glanced at the two men, then quickly knelt down and said, "Yes, yes, Brother Li, you are our leader."
Seeing that this arrogant king had gotten there first again, Zhao Xian hurriedly knelt down as well: "Big brother, from now on we will listen to you. We will go through fire and water for you, as long as you say the word."
Li Jun began to feel that having these two lead the way was the greatest misfortune of his life. He spat angrily, turned and left, and Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei immediately got up and followed closely behind him.
“If you follow me again, I’ll kill you all,” Li Jun threatened as he turned around after being followed for a while.
Zhao Xian, however, pointed behind him with a worried expression: "If we don't follow you, they will kill us soon."
Li Jun had already noticed a group of people following behind Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei. He said, "I don't care. I said you're not allowed to follow, and I mean you're not allowed to follow!"
Seeing the group of people closing in, Zhao Xian started using his loud voice again: "Yuan Shihai, you've got some nerve! Our boss is right here, and you still dare to come!"
More than ten people surrounded the three of them. A chubby young man, who was hiding at a distance, said, "What kind of lousy boss is this? You're so arrogant, Zhao. Is that kid who looks like a rabbit (Note 1) your new boss?"
It turned out that when the three entered the city, some thugs saw them and notified Yuan Shihai. Hearing that there were only three people, he brought several thugs to cause trouble for Zhao Xian. He was used to being arrogant and didn't bother to find out if Li Jun was really with Zhao Xian. He gave the order: "Beat him, beat that rabbit."
Li Jun didn't want to explain anything to these thugs. Although he hadn't systematically studied combat, the skills he had gained in actual combat were difficult for ordinary people to resist. Moreover, he had learned a lot from his mercenary group members when they exchanged skills with each other. Therefore, he didn't take these ten or so people seriously.
The thugs, acting on Yuan Shihai's orders, swarmed forward, leaving Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei aside. The two quietly moved to a corner where they could escape, and began to shout in unison, "One, two, come on! One, two, come on! Boss, boss, we'll always support you!"
※ ※ ※ ※ ※
Note 1: In the world of Shenzhou, male prostitutes are called rabbits.
Section 3
Li Jun began to fight when the thugs swarmed around him.
He used unarmed combat techniques, a skill most proficient in by Buddhist monks. Not wanting to cause too much trouble, he silently recited the "Stone Shield Technique" (Note 1) he had learned from Ruger, which temporarily doubled his body's resistance to blows. The thugs' attacks didn't harm him much, but his counterattacks were something they couldn't tolerate.
None of his opponents had truly learned combat techniques or various schools of magic. Li Jun darted among them, and the occasional punches and kicks that landed on him were mostly neutralized by his Stone Shield spell. These auxiliary spells required almost no preparation time to cast, and although they didn't possess the same devastating power as other profound spells, they were still quite practical. Realizing his opponents were merely a ragtag bunch, Li Jun began to retaliate with punches and kicks.
The brief fight ended with Li Jun knocking down six opponents and the rest running away in fear. When they realized that Li Jun had an absolute advantage, Yuan Shihai had already slipped away. Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei were too far away to stop him. They only had time to kick a few thugs who were still groaning on the ground.
With a gaze of worship that sent chills down Li Jun's spine, Zhao Xian said to Li Jun in a sickeningly sweet voice, "Boss, you are truly brave and invincible. You are the number one hero in the world. I really admire you so much, Boss. I swear that I will follow you closely for the rest of my life and be your loyal subject."
Wang Erlei chimed in, "Me too, me too, I'll follow my husband wherever he goes, whether he's a chicken or a dog..."
Li Jun was furious and kicked Wang Erlei, sending him sprawling. But no matter how he tried to drive them away, they just followed him. He couldn't really kill them, so as time went on, he had no choice but to let them be.
"Where is an inn to stay?" As darkness fell and lights began to appear in the houses along the alley, Li Jun finally realized that the most important thing now was not to shake off these two scoundrels.
“It’s right ahead, it’s right ahead!” Zhao Xian and Wang Erlei answered eagerly. Led by them, Li Jun turned out of the alley and entered the designated commercial area, the “Market Street” (Note 2). Although Linzhou City was not large, the Market Street was very bustling. On both sides of the long street, signs of varying heights were crowded together, and there were many buildings with more than three stories; small vendors’ stalls were also everywhere, and although the sun had already set, many vendors were still calling out their wares.
Li Jun was completely unfamiliar with this scene. Since becoming a mercenary, he had forgotten the peaceful life. Although the places his mercenary group had passed through included cities larger than Linzhou, most were ruined by war. The peace and prosperity of Linzhou at this moment made the residents almost forget the wars in the outside world. For some reason, Li Jun felt somewhat uncomfortable in this environment devoid of danger.
“Our kid is a born warrior. I don’t think he’s suited for peace at all.” Xiao Lin’s assessment of him came to mind. He couldn’t help but smile bitterly and then dismiss the thought, but he couldn’t help but worry about the whereabouts of his mercenary companions.
"This is the place, boss." Zhao Xian repeated it several times before Li Jun realized that he was asking him. A self-deprecating smile rose in his heart. It turned out that he was really not used to peaceful life. He had only walked a few steps in the market and his reaction had become sluggish.
They strode into the inn, which was advertised as "Linzhou's No. 1 Building" but was actually just a two-story wooden structure. The receptionist immediately noticed their disheveled appearance and stopped them.
"Get out of the way!" Zhao Xian's street thug nature began to show. "Don't you recognize me? Tell your boss's wife to come out!"
The burly waiter reached out and "linked" Zhao Xian's arm, but quickly recognized who this strange-looking fellow was. They figured they'd suffered at Zhao Xian's hands before, so they quickly let go. "You rascal Zhao, what brings you back?"
Zhao Xian wasn't embarrassed or annoyed by the other person calling him by his nickname. On the contrary, he smiled at Li Jun, clearly quite pleased with his "fame." The waiter quickly turned to Wang Erlei, his expression immediately changing: "Stinky Wang, get out of here right now. If you dare to fart here, we'll throw you out immediately."
Zhao Xian reached out to stop them: "Don't rush, don't rush. We're here to stay. Give us three of the best rooms and cook a few more dishes."
The waiter had a strange look on his face, obviously afraid that Zhao Xian would stay and not pay. Li Jun snorted coldly, reached into his pocket and took out a gold coin (Note 3) and threw it to him: "This is the advance payment for the meal."
The waiter's face immediately lit up with a smile, and he asked warmly, "Would you like to dine upstairs or in your room?"
"Upstairs, of course!" Seeing Li Jun pull out gold coins, Zhao Xian almost immediately regretted not taking him to the most luxurious inn in Linzhou. Now that he had a "rich man" backing him up, how could he not show off in public?
Li Jun did not object to this, as eating in crowded places meant hearing more news.
Upon reaching the second floor, Li Jun casually ordered a few dishes, while Zhao Xian also requested a jar of wine. The food was quickly served, and the three, starving, wolfed down their food, barely drinking any wine. Regardless of their disheveled appearance, their ravenous state immediately attracted the attention of those who were watching.
The noisy restaurant was quite crowded, and in the flickering candlelight, the diners' faces appeared somewhat shadowy and uncertain. Li Jun, feeling slightly full, regained his vigilance and immediately noticed that the people at the table by the window were watching him.
While pretending to eat, Li Jun quietly asked Zhao Xian, "Do you know anyone over there?"
Zhao Xian glanced to the side following his gesture and nodded: "I know them. They are the city's patrol inspectors (Note 4). They are in cahoots with Yuan Shihai."
Li Jun gradually became interested in Linzhou City. The fact that this city could still maintain its prosperity during the war must have deeper reasons. As he pondered, he asked, "You said Yuan Shihai is the son of a wealthy merchant. Why would he want to fight with you petty thugs for territory?"
Zhao Xian was a little embarrassed, and Wang Erlei answered for him in a muffled voice: "It's because the boss bragged that he was the King of Linzhou and knew everything about Linzhou. Yuan Shihai was not convinced, so he drove us away."
Zhao Xian coughed twice and said, "I'm not bragging. We have brothers all over Linzhou City. Nothing can be hidden from me. By the way, I'm the second oldest now. Brother Li is the oldest, haha."