Xiao Ning twirled his sword, sheathed it, and leisurely returned to the carriage.
But then he saw Hu Qingniu staring at him in shock. Xiao Ning reached up and touched his face, asking in surprise, "What's wrong? Is there blood on my face?"
Hu Qingniu exclaimed "Ah!" and came back to his senses, saying in surprise, "I didn't expect Young Master Xiao's martial arts to be so powerful. He must be the chief disciple of the younger generation of Wudang Sect, right?"
Xiao Ning chuckled and said, "Not at all, it's just a humble skill of mine. I'm afraid I'll make a fool of myself in front of you, Doctor Hu!"
As they spoke, the two boarded the carriage and continued their journey. After traveling about ten miles, they arrived at a small town. Xiao Ning jumped off the carriage, intending to buy some supplies, but to his surprise, every household in the town was deserted, without a single person in sight.
Left with no other choice, they continued on their journey, only to find that all the rice paddies along the way were cracked and overgrown with thorns and withered grass, a desolate scene.
Sitting on the carriage shaft, Hu Qingniu saw this scene and couldn't help but sigh, "The Mongol Yuan Dynasty is tyrannical, and our Han people are suffering terribly. I don't know when this will end!"
Xiao Ning looked dejected and said in a deep voice, "These days won't last much longer, I promise!"
After walking for a while, we saw several corpses lying by the roadside, their bellies shriveled and their cheeks sunken, clearly indicating that they had starved to death. The further we went, the more of these corpses we saw.
Xiao Ning sighed: "No foreign dynasty has ever had a hundred years of good fortune. In the near future, a hero will rise up and lead hundreds of millions of my Han compatriots to drive out the Mongol invaders and restore our Han homeland!"
Hu Qingniu nodded noncommittally: "I hope so!"
After leaving northern Anhui, passing through Yuzhou and Junzhou, and reaching Junzhou, the two finally arrived at the foot of Wudang Mountain after nearly a month of traveling and stopping.
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Chapter 32 Going to Wudang Mountain
After traveling for nearly a month, Xiao Ning, driving the carriage with Hu Qingniu, finally arrived in Junzhou, just a step away from Wudang Mountain.
When they arrived at a small town at the foot of Wudang Mountain, the sun was already setting. Xiao Ning found a nearby inn to stay in, booked two superior rooms, and asked the waiter to bring hot water so he could take a bath and change clothes, washing away the dust of his journey.
After washing up, the waiter brought over some fine wine and food. Xiao Ning went to the next room and invited Hu Qingniu to join them for a meal.
After dinner, the two sat facing each other. Hu Qingniu took a sip of hot tea and groaned comfortably, "Ah, this is so refreshing! All this running around these past few months has almost worn my old bones out!"
"To be honest, it was because I, Xiao, couldn't stand the Mongols' reckless behavior that I couldn't help but take action, which implicated Physician Hu!"
Xiao Ning said with a forced smile, "Here, I, Xiao, apologize to Physician Hu!"
The past month has been a harrowing experience, filled with constant chases and counterattacks.
Hu Qingniu waved his hand: "Young hero, you flatter me. My martial arts skills are too low, and I am of no help. Instead, I would be a burden to you!"
Thinking about Xiao Ning's methods over the past month, Hu Qingniu couldn't help but reveal a look of shock in his eyes.
Xiao Ning smiled and then said, "I have heard about Doctor Hu's experiences. He came from the Ming Cult, yet he remained untainted by its corruption. His medical ethics are superb, and he is truly a role model for us all!"
This wasn't Xiao Ning being obsequious to Hu Qingniu; rather, he genuinely admired him.
In the world of Jin Yong's martial arts novels, almost every world has a person with superb medical skills.
Examples include Xue Muhua, the enemy of the King of Hell, and Ping Yizhi, the murderous doctor.
These people all have one thing in common: they all come from heretical cults.
Xue Mu Hua always charges a martial arts manual as payment for each medical treatment he receives.
Ping Yizhi means saving one person and killing another.
In Xiao Ning's view, they could at most be considered to have superb medical skills, but not to have high medical ethics, and could not be called famous doctors of the time.
Only Hu Qingniu, though known for refusing to help those in distress.
However, in the original novel, when Zhang Wuji and Chang Yuchun went to Hu Qingniu's door, they found that righteous disciples such as Ding Minjun and Ji Xiaofu were injured and came to him for medical treatment. Although Hu Qingniu said he would not help them, he still offered his help.
Therefore, it can be seen that this person is merely foul-mouthed, but possesses medical ethics.
Xiao Ning admired this man's character and therefore treated him with courtesy.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be so good-natured; he would have just kidnapped him.
Upon hearing Xiao Ning's praise, Hu Qingniu looked flattered and his goatee twitched. He humbly replied, "Young hero, you flatter me. I am unworthy of such praise!"
The journey from Butterfly Valley to the foot of Wudang Mountain was fraught with peril and bloodshed.
In the Fengyang area, the Mongol soldiers lost a hundred-man squad, and they were not about to give up. They pursued and killed them relentlessly.
Hu Qingniu was on tenterhooks the whole way, fearing he wouldn't see the sun rise the next day.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Ning, this unremarkable Wudang disciple, displayed extraordinary brilliance, as if he were a god of war reborn.
Whether it was a hundred-man Mongol army, a thousand-man Mongol army, or a two-thousand-man Mongol army, they all charged ahead recklessly, slaughtering indiscriminately.
It was precisely because of this that Hu Qingniu's attitude involuntarily underwent a subtle change.
In his mind, Xiao Ning, with such terrifying martial arts skills, must have an extremely prestigious position in the Wudang Sect, perhaps even being the chief disciple and the future successor to the sect leader.
Moreover, Hu Qingniu vaguely remembered that Xiao Ning once said that a hero would rise up, lead the Han compatriots, drive out the Tartars, and restore the Han homeland.
Could it be that the Wudang Sect intends to conquer the world and vie for supremacy in the Central Plains?
And this Xiao Ning is the hidden dragon cultivated by the Wudang Sect?
This thought flashed through Hu Qingniu's mind, but he didn't say it aloud. Otherwise, if Xiao Ning knew, he would probably laugh his head off.
After chatting for a while, Xiao Ning said goodbye: "It's late, Physician Hu, you should get some rest. We'll go up the mountain early tomorrow morning!"
After he finished speaking, he stood up.
Hu Qingniu quickly stood up to see him off: "Young Master Xiao, please take care!"