Chapter Eleven: Longmen Town

  Qingshi County is named after the Qingshi Mountains behind it.

  The horse carriage left Qing Shi County and headed north along the edge of the Qing Shi mountain range, traveling over a hundred miles before arriving at Long Men Town in the late afternoon.

  Longmen Town is the nearest town to the Qingshi Mountain Range, and the Longmen Escort Agency is located on the mountain. The families of the people in the Longmen Escort Agency, as well as their mansions, are mostly located in Longmen Town. Most of the servants and attendants within the agency also come from Longmen Town.

  It's called a town, but it's actually an understatement!

  Longmen Town has a population of one million, which is comparable to some cities.

  A population of 100,000 in ancient times without high-rise buildings, simply measured by land area, shows the grandeur of Longmen Town.

  The horse carriage stopped in front of a four-story tavern, made entirely of wood with exquisite carvings on the walls, showcasing its grandeur. Compared to Zhang Yang's Qing Shi Inn and the Tai Yue Lou in Qing Shi County, it was at least one level higher.

  The gilded signboard above the main entrance of the wine house is inscribed with the three large characters "Wang Yue Lou" in a style of flying dragons and dancing phoenixes.

  "Arrival at Longmen Town."

  Liu Zhongma quickly got off the horse-drawn carriage and shouted loudly towards the inside of the carriage.

  With this loud shout, Zhang Yang and a group of young men and women got off the horse-drawn carriage.

  Looking at the four-story building with a strong ancient atmosphere, Zhang Yang was also staring intently. Although he had already gotten used to life in ancient times, there was still an unreal feeling as if he were in a different world.

  Liu Chong led Zhang Yang and a group of young men and women who were participating in the Dragon Gate Escort Agency assessment into the wine house.

  Longmen Inn recruits disciples every five years, and if Zhang Yang hadn't arrived, these young men would have been casually arranged by Liu Chong to wait in a small tavern or inn for the assessment on June 1st. Similarly, they wouldn't set out several days in advance with great solemnity, fearing that they might delay matters.

  Liu Chong naturally wouldn't neglect Zhang Yang, and specially came to one of the best wine houses in Longmen Town, Wang Yue Lou. Especially after seeing Zhang Yang deal with people from Qin Wang Fu.

  As for one of the two upstairs rooms, it was not specifically opened for Little Li Qingyu, but specifically for Zhang Yang.

  "Liu, how did you arrive so early?" The wine shop owner was a middle-aged man who looked very astute. As the owner of Wang Yue Tower, he was obviously very familiar with the assessment of Longmen Escort Agency. Seeing Liu lead a group of young men and women in, he knew what they were here for.

  However, those who participate in the assessment usually arrive one or two days before the assessment.

  "Under the orders of Madam, I'm going to pick up a young master." Liu chuckled and glanced at Zhang Yang with intention.

  "Oh? Please come quickly." The shopkeeper's eyes lit up, and he secretly sized up Zhang Yang a few times before arranging a table of fine wine and dishes on the third floor of the Wishing Moon Building.

  As for the fourth floor, only people with status can go up, and it's clear that this group of boys and girls who came to take the assessment aren't qualified yet. Not even if Zhang Yang was there would they be allowed.

  Compared to Zhang Yang's easygoing nature, Zhang Tie had a poker face. Li Qingyu followed closely behind Zhang Yang, while the other young men were somewhat stiff and awkward, having never seen such a luxurious tavern before - the best tavern in Qing Shi County was only two stories high, the Yi Yue Tower.

  Liu Chong didn't stay for dinner, but hastily left. After a group of young men and women had finished their evening meal, he returned again, bringing news to Zhang Yang that Zhang Ruo'er was inviting him over.

  Zhang Yang and Liu Chong walked to a grand mansion.

  Looking at this grand mansion, Zhang Yang was somewhat astonished, the outer wall stretched as far as the eye could see!

  It was like Longmen Town in Henan Province, and another inner city was built.

  This enormous mansion that stretches as far as the eye can see is the residence of the leader of the Dragon Gate Escort Agency, my brother-in-law, and Upper Guardian's estate!

  Two men waited outside the government office, after a round of reporting, they were allowed to enter the government office.

  Under the guidance of a young servant carrying a lantern, who led them through twists and turns, Zhang Yang and Liu Chong finally arrived at another mansion after walking for half a day.

  The courtyard of this mansion is no smaller than the Qing Shi Inn, and it's the inner house of a wealthy family. The owner is Zhang Rang'er. Inside, the lights are shining brightly, and the gate is wide open.

  "The lady has instructed that only you may enter, Liu will wait outside."

  Three people stopped outside the house, Liu Chong smiled and said something, as for the little servant holding the lantern, he retreated to one side with respect, looking like he was waiting for orders.

  "Thanks, Uncle Liu."

  Zhang Yang smiled slightly and walked in under Liu Chong's kind smile.

  After walking through a not-so-small courtyard, Zhang Yang arrived at the grand hall. In his heart, he was secretly comparing the extravagance of Shangguan Hong's mansion to that of an imperial palace. This estate might be even larger than an ordinary king's palace; who knows how it compares to the legendary imperial palace?

  Sister's inner courtyard, but it is just a corner of this vast mansion, can be compared to the green stone inn at home, and see a glimpse.

  "Sister!" As soon as he entered the hall, Zhang Yang saw his sister Zhang Ranyu sitting on a wooden chair and couldn't help but shout out loud. Seven years had passed, and his sister had matured a lot!

  The woman standing beside her sister, Hao Ran was the little maid Xiaobao who had been to Qing Shi Town with her that year. The bright and white-toothed girl of that year had now become a lovely young lady.

  On either side of Zhang Rong'er sat a middle-aged man with the air of a scholar, elegant and refined.

  With a sudden realization, Zhang Yang knew the identity of this person, who was on equal terms with his sister, and it was probably his brother-in-law, Guan Hong.

  Inside the hall, there was also a girl with a small nose and red lips, with a bit of baby fat on her face. She should be her own niece whom she had never met before!

  Ha! The whole family is here now!

  "Little brother!"

  Zhang Rang'er also stood up with some excitement, smiled with tears in her eyes, and immediately introduced: "This is your brother-in-law, the master of Longmen Escort Agency, Shangguan Hong. This is your niece Yuer. Yuer, quickly greet your uncle!"

  The terms are quite close, and Zhang Rang also has the intention of letting his younger brother get closer to his husband, which is also beneficial for future development.

  Shangguan Yuer stood up and looked Zhang Yang up and down, then smiled coquettishly: "Little uncle!"

  At the title of "little girl", Zhang Yang smiled wryly, nodded and bowed slightly to Shangguan Hong who was sitting in the main seat: "Nice to meet you, sister's husband."

  Shangguan Hong also looked Zhang Yang up and down, with his keen eyesight, he had already seen the aura of a martial artist on Zhang Yang's body, nodded and smiled: "Not bad! Not bad!"

  Although Shangguan Hong dressed as a scholar and had an elegant demeanor, he looked more like a talented young man than someone from the jianghu, but his body still carried a sense of majesty.

  Is this the aura of a superior being?

  Zhang Yang muttered to himself and smiled awkwardly on his face.

  "Little brother, please sit down, how are father and mother doing?"

  Zhang Rang'er led Zhang Yang to sit down and then started chatting about family matters, asking about his younger brother's life and the situation at home over the years.

  Zhang Yang answered fluently, chatting about some things at home and his own little black dog. Actually, the peaceful Qing Shi Town didn't have anything new to talk about, but with Zhang Yang's experience as a two-world person and his not-bad eloquence, he still managed to make his sister and little niece smile.

  Even Shangguan Hong nodded slightly.

  After chatting for a long time, Zhang Rang'er wanted to keep Zhang Yang in the mansion overnight, but Zhang Yang said that he had already opened up his room at Wangyue Tower and declined. For the first time going out on his own, he didn't want to be separated from Zhang Tie, nor did he trust Li Qingshu, who had just met him at noon and was very clingy.

  After leaving his sister's inner mansion, Liu Chong and the little servant who led the way turned left and right, and the three of them left the huge mansion.

  In the night sky, a crescent moon hangs, with a few stars scattered around.

  Walking on the bluestone-paved, seven or eight meters wide Longmen Town street, Zhang Yang and Liu Chong went towards Wangyue Tower.