Beggar Travels the World

Chapter 45

Qin Zheng He Kaikang

A day in the mountains is like a thousand years in the world. In the capital city's Cloud Pavilion, bustling with activity, the aroma of food and flowers fills the air, and the sounds of orioles and swallows fill the air. This day seems no different from the previous day or the next.

"Brother, do you know what big thing has happened in the martial arts world recently?" A group of martial arts figures sitting around a table were chatting away, so they grabbed the waiter who was serving the food, put their smelly, alcohol-filled mouths on his face, and asked with a grin.

The waiter was startled, but being a seasoned professional in a grand restaurant, he quickly put on a smiling face: "How could I not know? It was just the Seven Absolutes Cliff explosion that wiped out the young master in green and the leader of the Qiao Gang, right?"

"Hey, don't talk nonsense!" The drunken, rough-around-the-edges man was sobered up by his words. "How could the young master in blue have been blown up?"

"Wasn't he blown away?" The waiter blinked, feigning surprise. "I heard that ever since the explosion at Seven Absolutes Cliff, the young master in green has never shown his face in the martial world again. Everyone says that he's probably..." The waiter clenched his five fingers, blew on the tips, and made a motion as if he had vanished into thin air.

"You little rascal, are you tired of living?" The roughnecks from the martial arts world each smacked him on the head, while the leader, who was more composed, only glared at him.

"The young master in blue is recuperating from his injuries. Do you even understand what recuperation means?"

“But boss, if the young master in blue is really recuperating, then the Baili family should have spread the word. But it’s been months, and the Baili family hasn’t released a single word. Maybe the young master in blue really is…” A younger brother couldn’t help but voice his long-held doubts.

"Are you stupid? Who is the young master in blue? Would he tell you he was injured? This is called a feint, don't you understand? If he doesn't say anything, you won't be able to guess whether he's really injured or not, and you won't dare to cause trouble in Baili Prefecture."

"Boss, you're amazing! You even guessed what the young master in blue was thinking." The group of brothers were so impressed that their eyes were practically bubbling with admiration.

"Boss, you have unparalleled martial arts skills and exceptional wisdom. Why don't you take advantage of the young master in green being seriously injured and finish him off? Then who in the world will be your match? Wouldn't you then dominate the world?" One of them seized the opportunity to flatter him.

"Hmm, that makes sense, that makes sense!" The leader was getting more and more excited as he listened, and the group burst into laughter.

As they were laughing, they suddenly heard someone snort from the side. The voice wasn't loud, but it was full of sarcasm.

The eldest brother was annoyed and suddenly drew a large, gold-ringed dagger. "Who? Who the hell is laughing like that behind me?" He scanned the room; besides the old woman selling pancakes and her grandson, there was only a man in white sitting at a table in the corner, wearing a bamboo hat and a black veil to cover his face, looking rather guilty. Who else could it be but him?

Carrying a large sword, the eldest brother made a dramatic entrance.

"Kid, were you snickering just now?"

"Of course not." The voice of the person in white beneath the black veil still carried a hint of mocking laughter.

"Outrageous!" The henchman beside him couldn't hold back any longer. That voice was clearly the same one who had been grumbling earlier. "You dare laugh at our boss? Do you know who our boss is? You'll be terrified if I tell you. Our boss is none other than the invincible Blue-Faced Leopard, who has slaughtered his way through northern and western Shaanxi!"

"Leopard Lord? I think it's Cat Lord more like it," the man in white said, feigning fearlessness, and snorted at him again.

“Hey…you little rascal…” The henchmen started rolling up their sleeves, but were stopped by Leopard, who had a shrewd and calculating look on his face.

"Wait a minute... what did you guys say was the biggest event in the martial arts world recently?"

"Huh?" It took the henchmen a while to react. How did Boss Leopard suddenly come up with this?

"Hey, isn't it just that Miss Yin, the most talented woman, has issued a challenge, saying that whoever can capture the master thief Zhi Xiaoyao alive will be rewarded with a thousand taels of silver?"

"And another thing, even providing a clue will be rewarded with two hundred taels of silver!"

"Two hundred taels! That's enough for us brothers to eat for a year."

The man in white, who had been lazily leaning back in his chair making sarcastic remarks, suddenly froze.

"Hmph." Leopard approached with ill intent. "I heard that the master thief, Zhi Xiaoyao, is the one who likes to wear white clothes and a black veil hat, right? Come on, take out Miss Yin's invitation and read it."

"Oh." One of the henchmen pulled out a sheet of paper filled with writing from his pocket. Had he misread it? Why did he feel the white-clad man opposite him tremble slightly?

"The master thief is Xiaoyao, dressed in white and wearing a black veil and bamboo hat..."

"That's right!" Leopard smiled. If this job goes well, the guys won't have to worry about food, drink, or entertainment for years to come.

Seeing the situation was turning bad, the man in white quickly took off his bamboo hat and said with a forced smile, "Gentlemen, I never usually wear a bamboo hat, but I caught a cold today..."

"Removing the straw hat reveals a disheveled but handsome young man with a black mole on his lip..." the henchman read on.

A sharp glint appeared in Leopard's eyes.

"That..." This is really troublesome. The woman in white gritted her teeth, shyly turning her head away: "Actually, I am a woman..."

"She shyly calls herself a woman... Huh?" The henchman stopped mid-recitation, staring at the fake woman.

The man in white cursed the wicked woman's ancestors in his heart, but on the surface he could only keep up the act with a coquettish smile. He took out a small pink handkerchief and half-covered his face: "This servant, this servant is really a woman!"

The henchmen and the others had stopped looking at him and were only focused on the prophetic paper: "Holding a small pink handkerchief, on which the character '翠' (cui) is embroidered..."

Someone exclaimed, "There is a 'jade' character in it!"

The man in white quickly stuffed the handkerchief back into his pocket: "Um... everyone, let me explain."

The crowd refused to listen to his explanation and continued reciting, "When you go to a restaurant, you must order the whole-oil roast chicken..."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than the waiter's loud voice floated over: "Sir, here's your whole roasted chicken!"

"Wow!"

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the man in white burst into tears, covered his face, and jumped out of the window to escape.

※ ※ ※

Yin Wuxiao wasn't surprised at all that a handsome man was jumping up and down outside her door early in the morning.

"You surnamed Yin, get out here!" Bai Can shouted wildly from outside.

"Miss, is this really alright?" the new maid asked timidly, holding a basin of water.

"There's nothing wrong with it. He'll stop yelling when he gets tired of it." Yin Wuxiao's expression remained unchanged. She was joking; Bai Can was furious. Was she really going to go out and get herself killed right now?

Sure enough, a quarter of an hour later, Young Master Bai surrendered on his own.

"I...I can't call anymore, you...you come out quickly..." Bai Can gasped for breath, the weather was so hot.

With a creak, the door opened. Yin Wuxiao began to smile sweetly.

"Brother Bai, have you figured it out?"

"I've figured it out, I've figured it out. Miss Yin, it's not easy for me to support my family now, can't you be merciful and stop chasing me?" Lately, he keeps having dreams of being stuffed into a piglet for worship and carried to the Yin mansion, then waking up in a cold sweat.

"Of course, as long as you help me steal it..."

"Please, those are palace items, they can't just be stolen like that."

"Anyway, the emperor doesn't need it, and you come and go like the wind..."

"But……"

"You're not going to steal?" Yin Wuxiao's expression immediately changed. "Yun'er, tell the people outside to raise the reward to five thousand taels."

"No!" Bai Can cried out, "I'll steal it, I'll steal it, okay? You're so rich and powerful, your breath is thicker than my waist..."

“Brother Bai,” Yin Wuxiao smiled, “if you get your hands on that thing, I’ll offer you ten thousand taels of silver without hesitation.”

"Hmph, I, Bai Can, will never bow down for five pecks of rice."

"It's not five pecks of rice, it's ten thousand taels, ten thousand taels."

“…Fine.” Bai Can nodded reluctantly. “It’s just a one-of-a-kind, ten-thousand-year-old purple ginseng, isn’t it? Do you think I don’t know who you’re doing this for…”

"I'm giving you half an hour to get out of my sight."

"Why are you doing this to yourself? Everyone knows that person is beyond saving. Even Doctor Xuan was helpless. You went to Tianshan and knelt for three days and three nights, almost dying, just to get a single Ruyi Grass. And now..."

A comb was thrown at me.

"Okay, okay, I'll disappear right away."

Bai Can simply disappears without a trace.

Looking at the garden, which had become much quieter in an instant, and at the pond of blue lotuses, Yin Wuxiao sighed. The sorrow between his brows seemed to be something that could never be dispelled.

“Miss,” Yun’er came up, “Uncle Qi has found that person.”

"Found him? Bring him in." Yin Wuxiao snapped out of his reverie.

The man who entered the garden was of ordinary appearance, and even looked somewhat clumsy.

"You want to redeem my family's young cook?"

"Yes." The man looked directly into her eyes, his gaze not sharp, but unwavering.

Why would you redeem her?

"I want to marry her."

“You…can, but I’m afraid you can’t afford to redeem it.”

"Tell me how much you want, and I'll give you whatever you ask."

"I don't need money. I want you to use your martial arts skills to save someone."

"who?"

"Your enemy."

"Do you know who I am?"

“I know. In this world, I’m afraid only you can save him, Yu Zong Dao Mo.”

Yu Zongdao looked up in surprise and saw that this shrewd and capable girl suddenly looked weak and seemed about to cry.

Qise and Qierou

Upon receiving the news that his elder brother's condition had finally improved, Baili Hanyi rushed back to Baili Prefecture in Jiangnan overnight.

"How is my brother now?" As soon as he got off his horse, Baili Hanyi reached out and grabbed Uncle Jiao, the old steward who came out of the mansion to greet him.

"He hasn't woken up yet, but Doctor Xuan said his life is no longer in danger, and that if he takes good care of himself, his martial arts can be restored to normal."

"This... is wonderful." He looked delighted. "Have you informed the Yin family in the capital?" These past few days, it wasn't just the Baili family who had been living in fear. If that person knew this news, he would probably be even more overjoyed than the three brothers.

Uncle Jiao asked in surprise, "Second Young Master, you don't know? Miss Yin just left the manor."

Just left the manor? Could it be...?

"Didn't Physician Xuan say that with my brother's injuries, unless there is divine assistance and all three medicinal ingredients are gathered, there would be no hope of recovery?"

"I'm not too sure about that, but I do know that Miss Yin did bring a lot of precious medicinal herbs with her this time. Oh, and she also brought someone with her."

Who is it?

"He seems to be a farmer. But Miss Yin said that this person is the key to healing the wound."