Chapter Five Encounter on the Road

  Although Chen Lao San repeatedly opposed Chen Ying Liang going to Liaodong to join the army, and even knelt down to beg Chen Ying Liang to reconsider, not to go to the front line and risk his life, cutting off the incense of the Chen family, but Chen Ying Liang did not listen at all, and had no way to accept Chen Lao San's kind advice.

  Chen Yingliang doesn't have much time left. Following the normal course of history, four years later Li Yuan will rise up in arms from Taiyuan, sounding the horn for the downfall of the Sui Dynasty. Five years later, Emperor Yang of Sui will be killed in Jiangdu, officially declaring the demise of the Sui Dynasty. Wang Shichong and Li Mi, a group of fierce warriors, are about to emerge, or have already begun to rise quietly. If Chen Yingliang still wants to join this game of vying for the world, the time left for preparation is pitifully short, not a single minute or second can be wasted.

  The opportunity given by Fang Xuanling to Chen Yingliang is not great, but Chen Yingliang must grasp it tightly. Daxing is the later Chang'an City and also the western capital of the Sui Dynasty. There are many officials and nobles in the city, and even if there are opportunities for development, they will not be available to Chen Yingliang, a member of a declining family. Moreover, Chen Yingliang has also made an enemy of the powerful Chai family, and it is impossible for the Chai family to tolerate Chen Yingliang's rise under their noses. Leaving Daxing to develop elsewhere is Chen Yingliang's wisest choice.

  Chen Yingliang doesn't care about the high or low position, Zhao Dazhuo has to make a living, Ming Taizu also has to make a living and was a monk for several years, Ye Zigui was a slave to Li Chengliang, Erye was a killer and was a doctor, great men have also been librarians, compared to them, Chen Yingliang can take on the position of secretary to a high-ranking general in the Sui army as soon as he enters officialdom, the starting line is much stronger than theirs! So, Chen Yingliang absolutely cannot miss this opportunity! Because this may be Chen Yingliang's only chance to rise rapidly!

  Attach to high-ranking officials, show off abilities, establish prestige, stand out from the crowd, accumulate strength, and then take action when the opportunity arises. Advance to compete for dominance, retreat to be a party of preservation, exchange for honor and wealth, this is Chen Yingliang's new life plan!

  In the East Market buy a fine horse, in the West Market buy a saddle, in the South Market buy a bridle, and in the North Market buy a long whip.

  After resting for a while, he had fully recovered his body and thoroughly merged the memories left by Chen Yingliang. He was familiar with the basic situation of this era, so Chen Yingliang immediately started preparing to go to Liaodong to join the army. First, with the help of Fang Xuanling, he sold the betrothal jade pendant that the Chai family had never sent anyone to exchange back for a good price, and got the travel expenses and living expenses. Then Chen Yingliang bought a horse for himself, two sets of sturdy clothes to change on the road, and then went alone to Tiejiang Street in Daxing City to buy weapons for self-defense when going out.

  In ancient times, all scholars liked to wield swords and travel the world. Chen Yingliang, who was still registered as a scholar in the household register, did not like this kind of flashy but useless thing, so he directly bought himself a horizontal knife made of high-carbon steel. This thing is extremely powerful when chopping and slashing, far more practical than the treasured swords that the blacksmith masters boasted about. At the same time, what secretly delighted Chen Yingliang was that, as a descendant of a military family, he still remembered a set of military knife techniques from his childhood. Although they were not extraordinary or exquisite, they were enough to ensure that Chen Yingliang could at least wield a knife properly.

  Having bought the knife and hung it on his body, Chen Yingliang thought that he would be leaving Daxing City in a day or two. With some time to spare, he strolled through the streets of Daxing City, admiring the scenery and customs of this era, and also bidding farewell to Daxing City - for how long, Chen Yingliang had no idea when he would return.

  Seven years after the Daye era, the world gradually became chaotic, but the Guanzhong area was relatively peaceful. As the western capital of the Sui Dynasty, Daxing was still prosperous, with people coming and going on the streets, and carriages and horses galloping by. Some streets were particularly crowded, with people packed in like sardines, making it difficult to move. Chen Yingliang was squeezed among the crowds on one such street, drenched in sweat, and it took him half a day to walk down the less-than-two-mile-long street.

  After finally finishing walking through this busy commercial street, Chen Yingliang took a lesson and didn't dare to wander around the overly prosperous streets again. He chose a relatively quiet street to stroll around, preparing to buy some wine and meat to take back home to repay Fang Xuanling. Since getting to know Fang Xuanling these days, Fang Xuanling had already invited Chen Yingliang to drink several times. Chen Yingliang was deeply grateful, and now that he had a bit more financial flexibility, he naturally thought of repaying Fang Xuanling's kindness.

  "What are you doing? Get out of the way! Do you know who this sister is? Don't look for death yourself! Help! Come quickly! Come quickly!"

  A voice that was neither male nor female came from a small alley by the road. Chen Yingliang curiously walked to the entrance of the alley and saw several men with a rough appearance standing shoulder to shoulder, blocking an old man without a beard and a green-clad girl with a clear face. They were saying dirty words, making the beardless old man sweat profusely as he protected the green-clad girl with his body. With a delicate finger, he scolded those men in a feminine tone, "You little beasts, get out of here quickly! If you dare to touch a single hair on my family's young lady, I'll make your whole family pay with their dog lives!"

  "Get lost, you old geezer!" A ruffian pushed the white-haired old man to the ground and reached out to grab the green-clad girl. The girl retreated in fear, but the ruffian sneered, "No need to be afraid, little lady. We just want to invite you for a drink because we think you look lonely walking around. No other intentions."

  It was the first time he had encountered such a thing in this era. Chen Yingliang, who was used to eating this kind of rice in modern society, didn't think much about it and subconsciously shouted loudly, "What are you doing? Let her go!" He also subconsciously touched his waist for his gun and handcuffs, but he couldn't find them. Instead, he found the horizontal knife he had just bought today. Chen Yingliang didn't hesitate and immediately drew the knife out of its scabbard.

  But the loud shout was enough, and upon hearing Chen Yingliang's voice, the several thugs who were laughing stopped immediately. They turned their heads to see Chen Yingliang standing in the alley with a horizontal knife in hand. The thugs who didn't have any weapons couldn't help but change color. The green-clothed girl let out a sigh of relief, and the white-haired old man quickly got up, using his body to shield the green-clothed girl again while shouting: "Young brother, quickly kill these scoundrels! I'll take responsibility if anyone gets killed!"

  "Little brat, if you're smart, get out of here quickly and don't look for death!" A rough-looking rascal leader threatened fiercely: "The Wang Banhou from the Daxing County government office is my brother-in-law!"

  "Hah!" The old man with white hair burst out laughing, pulling the goose's neck and laughing: "A bailiff in a county government, what kind of thing is that? One little finger of my master can crush his whole family to death!"

  "I don't care who your brother-in-law is." Chen Yingliang ignored the white-haired old man's words and shouted at those rascals: "In broad daylight, you dare to flirt with a decent woman? If you're smart, kneel down and apologize, and get out of here! Otherwise, I'll kill you in self-defense!"

  "Damn your mother!" The ruffian was furious, picking up stones from the ground while shouting, "Brothers, let's go and beat this meddling little bastard to death!"

  "Beat him to death!"

  Several ruffians, apparently used to bullying in this area, charged over without saying a word. Chen Yingliang hastily raised his knife to prepare for battle, but just then, he suddenly heard the sound of wind in both ears, and two men, one on each side, rushed up and started fighting with the ruffians. In just three or two moves, they knocked the ruffians to the ground, completely ruining Chen Yingliang's rare opportunity to heroically rescue a beauty. However, the two men still refused to give up, continuing to punch and kick the ruffians who were already on the ground. Their blows were particularly vicious, targeting vital areas, with each move aimed at causing injury. One of the ruffians was even kicked in a vital spot, letting out a blood-curdling scream like a slaughtered pig before fainting.

  The several rascals were all beaten into serious injuries, and the two men immediately knelt down on both knees to the green-clothed girl, knocking their heads and saying: "We are late in rescuing you, please forgive us, miss."

  "You two bastards, why are you only coming now?" The white-haired old man became arrogant and angry again, pointing at the two men and scolding them loudly. "Do you know that Miss almost got into danger? If she had lost a single hair, when you go back, your master will chop you into pieces!"

  "We deserve to die ten thousand times!" A man knocked his head and explained: "After we got separated from the young lady, it took us a lot of effort to find this place. We didn't protect the young lady well enough, please punish us."

  That old man with white hair and a goose-like voice was about to scold again, but the green-clothed girl stopped him. She said in a gentle voice: "Uncle Xie, forget it, as long as they can arrive on time, I'm fine, don't scold them anymore. You all get up, don't worry, I won't tell Mother when we get back."

  After that, the green-clothed girl lifted her head again and bowed to Chen Yingliang, saying in a soft voice: "Thank you, sir, for saving me with your sword. My name is Yang Yuer, thank you for your great kindness."

  Yang Yuer gave Chen Yingliang a very good impression, not only was she born with a delicate and lovely appearance, but her words and actions were also exceptionally gentle and polite. This was exactly the type of woman that Chen Yingliang liked - marrying such a wife would be like finding a mistress, even if exposed, there wouldn't be too much danger. So Chen Yingliang quickly put away his knife and bowed to Yang Yuer, humbly saying: "Miss Yang doesn't need to be polite, I just happened to see the injustice on the road and drew my sword to help."

  "It's a pity that the rescue only saved half, and this knife was pulled out, but it wasn't me who saved the girl." Chen Yingliang added with a smile, which made Yang Yuer smile and have a good impression of him.

  At this time, the alley entrance was already surrounded by onlookers who had come to see the commotion after hearing the sounds of fighting and shouting. Among them were also figures wearing official uniforms. Seeing this scene, Yang Yuer gave a signal with her eyes to an old man with white hair standing beside her. The old man understood and immediately went forward to negotiate with the officials. Yang Yuer's other two attendants stood guard at the entrance of the alley, not allowing any outsiders to enter. Chen Yingliang also unexpectedly gained a brief opportunity to talk to Yang Yuer alone.

  "By the way, I haven't asked your surname and given name yet, where is your hometown?" Yang Yuer said very politely.

  "The surname is Gao and the name is Daming, I dare not take it." Chen Yingliang replied: "My name is Chen Yingliang, and I am a person from Daxing."

  "Chen Yingliang?" Yang Yuer's reaction was very strange, first revealing a hint of reminiscence, then suddenly asking Chen Yingliang: "Young Master Chen, do you know Chai Qiangjun from the Chai Manor in Cheshire?"

  "Yang Niang, how did you know her?" Chen Yingliang was shocked.

  Yang Yu'er smiled, her smile was so captivating and mysterious, "I am friends with Qian'er sister, we are very good friends, I also know that not long ago you broke off the engagement with Qian'er sister."

  "You even know about this?" Chen Yingliang was somewhat taken aback.

  Yang Yu'er nodded, pursing her red lips and smiling lightly: "If Sister Qian had heard about this matter, she would have looked for you to fight to the death. If it weren't for Duke Chai strictly forbidding anyone from spreading the news, with Sister Qian's temper, she would have definitely taken her treasured sword to your doorstep to kill someone by now. Later, when Sister Qian mentioned this matter to me, she even scolded you a few times."

  Chen Yingliang smiled wryly and didn't say a word, not wanting to continue the conversation with Yang Yuer about this matter. Unexpectedly, Yang Yuer was a kind-hearted person and asked with a smile: "Young Master Chen, actually Qian'er is also a good girl, how about it? Do you want me to put in a few good words for you, help you and Qian'er get together, and continue your relationship?"

  "Thank you, Miss Yang, but it's not necessary." Chen Yingliang shook his head firmly and replied: "Between me and her, there is absolutely no possibility. Besides, it was her family who initiated the divorce, if I were to go back to her now, wouldn't that make her look down on me even more?"

  Yang Yuer's expression was somewhat regretful, and she glanced at Chen Yingliang again before speaking softly: "Chen Gongzi, since we have the opportunity to meet, and you saved me, I will speak for you on Qian'er's side. Originally, Duke Chai wanted to wait until the storm passed before finding you... But don't worry, I'll stop them."

  It's a good thing Yang Yuer didn't say that, after hearing her words, Chen Yingliang's anger towards the Chai family suddenly rose again. He thought to himself, "Ah, so you father and son are indeed planning to settle accounts with me after the autumn harvest, waiting for the storm to pass before taking revenge on me, and even blocking the news to avoid damaging your reputation! Alright, let's see who will take revenge on whom, whether it's you finding me to settle accounts or me avenging that kick from Chai Shao!"

  At this time, the white-haired old man had already returned to Yang Yuer's side. It was unknown what means he used, but after several bailiffs and police officers entered the alley, they did not ask about the situation and silently dragged out the hooligans. Yang Yuer also bowed to Chen Yingliang and said: "Mr. Chen, it's getting late, I should go home now. We'll meet again if fate permits."

  "May we meet again." Chen Yingliang bowed and stepped aside, letting Yang Yuer lead the white-haired old man and two attendants out of the alley.

  Watching Yang Yuer's departing back, Chen Yingliang muttered to himself: "Miss Yang, it seems we can only be reunited by fate. With an androgynous old man following you, two highly skilled escorts, a background that makes even officials dare not speak out, and directly saying your surname is Yang, do you think I really couldn't guess your identity? However, we are too far apart, with a girl like you, the current me doesn't dare to have any intentions towards you. Whether or not we have fate, we'll talk about it later."

  At the same time, the white-haired old man also leaned in close to Yang Yuer's ear and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, I didn't dare reveal your identity, but only revealed my own identity, saying that you are my distant relative. Those several bailiffs from Daxing County will help us take care of those rascals."

  Yang Yuer nodded, very satisfied with the old man's handling of things. She turned her head to take another look at Chen Yingliang in the alley, and secretly smiled to herself: "Heh heh, he's quite handsome, refined and courteous, and has a strong sense of justice. Qian'er sister, you might just end up regretting this - isn't this kind of gentleman exactly what you've always been hoping for?"