Chapter 6: The Old Master of the Liu Family?

  Yangzhou, due to its unique location, has always occupied an important position in history. Yangzhou's prosperity and wealth are renowned throughout the world, with beautiful scenery, delicious food, and stunning women complementing each other perfectly. It has been a favorite haunt of scholars and poets throughout the ages. Countless literary figures have left their mark on Yangzhou's history, while numerous talented men and women have created timeless legends here.

  The beautiful scenery of Slender West Lake, the slender horses of Yangzhou and the tempting delicious food had been lingering in Lu Haoshan's mind. Lu Haoshan decided that before the world entered a real era of chaos, he would thoroughly experience the prosperity of Yangzhou; no matter what, this way he wouldn't have come to this world in vain.

  When luring Li Xiangcai out, he deliberately hinted that he would give him some money to collect his travel expenses. Fortunately, this Li Xiangcai did not disappoint himself and hurriedly sent a large sum of money to himself. Liu Jinzhu carefully searched Li Xiangcai and the two men again and found a emerald ring, two high-quality jade pendants and more than ten taels of loose silver.

  As the richest man in the hundred-mile radius, everything on Li Xiangcai's body was extraordinary. The ring and jade pendant together were worth at least 500 taels, another windfall that made Liu Jinyu hum with joy.

  The two of them discussed it briefly, cleaned up the bloodstains at the scene, and under the cover of night, threw the corpse and the carriage off a cliff. This way, even if the authorities were to file a case, it would take some time, and Lu Haoshan and Liu Jinzhu would have enough time to leave this place of trouble calmly.

  Of course, the horses were left behind. In those days, without trains or airplanes, horses were an important means of transportation. Lu Hao didn't want to walk all the way to Yangzhou on foot, as it was a thousand miles away from Yongzhou Prefecture.

  Lu Haoshan got a horse from Qi Yang County, and Li Xiangcai's carriage also had one, so the two of them each had one.

  "Shan Ge, Li Xiangcai is a big shot, his son is a county official, and even in the capital city he has connections. I'm afraid that if we do this, they'll soon find out it was us. We're going to Yangzhou, but we don't have any connections there, I'm afraid...I'm afraid we won't be able to escape." Liu Jinzhu wiped away a bead of sweat and said with some concern.

  According to the Da Ming Lu, anyone who leaves their hometown for more than 100 li must report to the authorities and obtain a travel permit. Only then can they proceed on their journey. The two men had committed a capital offense, and even if they obtained a travel permit, Liu Jinzhu was worried that as soon as a wanted notice was issued, the two would have nowhere to hide.

  Lu Haoshan said calmly: "Follow me, what's there to worry about? Don't worry, I've got everything under control, it's all been prepared."

  "Look at my wooden brain" Liu Jinzhu patted his head, saying somewhat embarrassed: "With Shan Ge around, what's the worry about finding a way?" After finishing, he excitedly muttered to himself: "Great, I've never left Yongzhou Prefecture all my life, let alone go to such a prosperous place like Yangzhou. Shan Ge, from now on I'll follow you, if there's any disloyalty, heaven will strike with five thunders."

  In his excitement, Liu Jinzhu immediately pledged his loyalty to Lu Haoshan.

  In just a few days, Lu Haoshan completely subdued Liu Jinzhu. He imitated the county magistrate's handwriting, privately engraved his seal, and then obtained a complete set of attire and horse for a catcher. Finally, he cleverly lured Li Xiangcai out of his heavily guarded mansion, making him bring a large sum of money, and easily killed him to avenge his hatred. The entire process was tightly linked, without any leaks. At first, Liu Jinzhu thought the two were going to rush to Zhushan Village to set fires and kill people.

  It's just Wu Hou reborn, and it's probably at this level. Lu Haoshan's incredible mimicry skills and his meticulous calculations made Liu Jinzhu amazed as a heavenly being. Originally, he wanted to ask Lu Haoshan why he knew so much, but before that, Lu Haoshan had said: Don't ask anything, don't say anything, which made him suppress his doubts in the bottom of his heart.

  Some things, the less you know, the safer you are.

  Lu Haoshan patted him on the shoulder, then took down a bundle of cloth he had prepared beforehand from his horse and threw a set of clothes to Liu Jinzhu, saying: "Come on, put it on, and throw away that bloody garment you're wearing."

  After the murder, the two were covered in blood. It was estimated that if they walked on the official road and were seen by someone, even ordinary civilians would be sent to the government office, so they couldn't be careless. Liu Jinzhu took over the clothes and saw that it was a set of coarse linen clothes for servants, brand new. After wearing them, he felt that his whole demeanor had changed. This was the first time Liu Jinzhu had worn new clothes since he was young, and he was extremely happy in his heart. After finishing dressing, he turned his head to look and was taken aback by what he saw. Under the firelight, Lu Haoshan had already changed into a scholar's attire: wearing a square scarf on his head, wearing square-headed shoes on his feet, wearing a blue linen shirt, holding a paper fan in his hand, and with a faint smile on his face, looking like a handsome young man.

  "Shan Ge, you look just like a Confucian scholar with this outfit." Liu Jinzhu said with some envy.

  "Now, don't just say I'm like him, you must be convinced in your heart that I am a Confucian scholar, a wandering Confucian scholar, and you are my book boy." Lu Haoshan said as he flipped onto his horse, with a serious face saying: "Come, Jinzhu, I want to tell you some things to pay attention to."

  "Yes, Brother Shan."

  .......

  In mid-August, it was the hottest period of the year. The scorching sun seemed to be burning everything, and the leaves on the trees appeared to have been scorched. The roadside ditches emitted a foul odor due to lack of water, making people feel like they were in a steamer basket, causing inexplicable irritation. In contrast, the famous city of Yangzhou presented a stark contrast between inside and outside the city walls: Outside the city gate, many refugees either leaned against the city wall or built shanties in nearby villages, their tattered clothes and hungry faces a testament to their desperation as they gazed blankly at the city gate. Meanwhile, inside the city gate, it was a world of luxury and extravagance, with people indulging in lavish spending.

  "What's going on?"

  "Where did you come from? What is your hometown?"

  "Bring out your driver's license, quickly."

  Outside Yangzhou City, a team of captors were interrogating the refugees one by one. The displaced people who were slow to respond were immediately beaten and kicked by the fierce captors. When Lu Haoshan arrived at the gate of Yangzhou City with Liu Jinzhu, it was already late and the city gate had been closed. Just as they were about to turn back to find a small inn to stay in, they happened to run into the captors who were conducting an inspection.

  In the sixth year of Tianqi, Wang Er led hundreds of peasants to kill County Magistrate Zhang Banyao, thus opening the wave of peasant uprisings at the end of the Ming Dynasty. With the addition of natural disasters and man-made disasters, land annexation was severe, and miscellaneous taxes were increasingly heavy, leading to a large number of farmers and military households fleeing, resulting in many vagrants all over the country. These vagrants had no specific purpose, hearing that wherever there was prosperity, wealth, or food, they would run there. Yangzhou was a famous big city, so many vagrants came here with its reputation. Considering factors such as sanitation, image, and security within the city, many local officials would refuse to allow vagrants into the city, and Yangzhou City was no exception.

  However, in order to be on the safe side, a team of catchers was dispatched to stay outside the city to prevent sudden incidents.

  "Official, sir, don't, don't! That's the money I saved for my daughter Niu Niu's medical treatment, it's her lifeline, don't, don't..." Suddenly, a middle-aged man burst into loud wails and begged for mercy from a policeman. Earlier, when he was searched, his wallet had been taken away by the policeman as evidence, to be confiscated.

  That's life-saving money.

  With a "bang", the catcher kicked up one foot, kicking the thin man to the ground and viciously saying: "You don't want to drink the toast but you want to drink the penalty wine? If you continue to pester, I'll send you to jail to taste the flavor of prison food."

  "Niang niang ta die, suan le, wo men re bu qi, wo men re bu qi." A dark and thin woman hastily hugged her husband, afraid that he would lose his temper.

  He tossed the money bag he had snatched into his bosom and sneered, "Consider yourselves lucky."

  For the official's tyrannical behavior, everyone was accustomed to it and no one was foolish enough to come out and speak for that thin man. In this era, human relationships were thinner than paper, and everyone swept the snow in front of their own door. Even Lu Haishan felt a bit numb, standing aside and watching with cold eyes.

  From Huatian Village to Yangzhou, walking and strolling along the way, setting out in late June and arriving in Yangzhou by mid-August. Along the way, I saw too many things that left me numb.

  When rich, benefit all under heaven; when poor, cultivate virtue in solitude. How much more so now that I have a case of murder on my hands? The fewer affairs the better.

  "Excuse me, young master, where are you from?" The catcher who had just snatched the money walked up to Lu Haoshan and Liu Jinzhu, perhaps seeing that the two men were extraordinary in appearance, dressed in bright clothes, especially Lu Haoshan was still wearing a scholar's attire, spoke with obvious politeness.

  Lu Haoshan didn't speak, and Liu Jinchu immediately picked up the conversation: "My young master has obtained his degree and is traveling from Guangzhou to Yangzhou."

  It's not hard to tell from Lu Haoshan's attire that he is a scholar, and scholars hold high status after passing the imperial examination. The catcher's tone softened again as he spoke respectfully: "Young master, may I have the honor of borrowing it for a look?"

  Guangzhou Prefecture is over a thousand li away from Yangzhou, and it's already exceeded the hundred-li distance, so asking for a road guide to check one's identity is also reasonable.

  Lu Haoshan nodded and gave Liu Jinchu a wink. Soon, the road guide was handed over to the catcher's hand. The catcher looked at it and his expression changed. Apart from proving that the two people in front of him were tourists, the name on the road guide was Liang Yuange, and his identity was surprisingly a student of the granary in Xinning County, Guangzhou Prefecture. Ah, a young and promising man, no wonder he still had the interest to travel and play in the mountains and waters at this age.

  After verifying that the road was clear, the catcher handed it back to Lu Haoshan and said: "It turned out to be Master Juren, I was rude."

  In ancient times, transportation was inconvenient and information exchange was extremely difficult, making it hard to investigate thoroughly. Even if one had materials in hand, ancient materials did not have photographs, which provided unlimited development space for the master of counterfeit craftsmanship, Lu Haoshan. Along the way, the two changed identities several times without being recognized, so Lu Haoshan's audacity grew and he directly created a Juren identity for himself, which also brought him many conveniences.

  After Liu Jinzhu put away the road guide, Lu Haoshan casually asked: "This big brother, why did you close the city gate so early?"

  "As for your question, sir, this year there are many bandits. On the eighth of April, they even openly attacked Sanshui and killed General Gao Wenlong. For safety reasons, the city gate will be closed half an hour earlier than usual. No non-urgent documents will be accepted. Now that it's getting late, there are also many refugees outside the city, and I'm afraid some lawless elements might be hiding among them. Sir, you should find a place to stay first."