Three Five, Encounter with a Strong Enemy on a Desolate Road

  The cavalry continued to advance along the official road, and finally a few people could be seen in the desolate fields. Zhu Yuanzhang saw that on one side of the road, there was a soldier farming in a field, which was a military colony, so it was the responsibility of the soldiers to cultivate it.

  The soldier wore a worn-out red jacket, which was originally bright red but had faded to light red with white lining exposed. The red military cap on his head had two holes, and he kicked off a pair of worn-out red boots, the toe of which also had a hole that exposed his big toe. He should be wearing the standard uniform of the Ming Dynasty soldier "Mandarin duck battle jacket", or simply "a worn-out Mandarin duck battle jacket".

  According to the old system of the Great Ming, the soldier's uniform should have been replaced every three years. However, the military salary issue was very serious in the Great Ming Dynasty, and even the border troops on the nine borders often lacked salaries, let alone a small place like Chengcheng County. The system of replacing uniforms every three years had long since collapsed. The uniform this soldier is wearing is the one he received when he first enlisted eighteen years ago, and he has not received another set since then.

  Zhu Yuanzhang caught a glimpse of the soldier from afar, and their eyes met. The soldier surprisingly lowered his head and continued to work in the fields, his reaction more like that of an honest farmer than a military man.

  This... can such a person be a soldier? Where has the military soul of my great Ming dynasty that swept across Mongolia gone? Zhu Yuanzhang was furious, no... it's not this soldier's fault, it's the officer's fault for not training and educating these soldiers properly, which is why he turned out to be such a coward.

  Zhu Yuanzhang looked up and saw that behind the military farm, a small earthen fort had been built. That should be a hundred households office. In various places of the Ming Dynasty, similar earthen forts were built, and a county city usually had several hundred households offices. Each hundred households office was managed by one hundred households, with two general flags, ten small flags, and one hundred soldiers, totaling 113 people including soldiers and generals. If an emergency battle occurred, the earthen forts of several hundred households offices could either be connected for defense or gathered together to enter the county city for defense. With the earthen fort of the hundred households office as the center, a large area of military farm was scattered around... The soldiers usually relied on farming these lands to make a living.

  "I hope the soldiers in this hundred households are not all like that coward just now." Zhu Yuanzhang muttered to himself.

  The procession continued on, passing two or three official residences, the sky gradually darkening, but still far from the county seat of Cheng City. The group had not planned to cover seventy miles in one day anyway, and it was inevitable that they would have to spend the night outdoors. The wedding was scheduled for March 22nd, but the Ma family's procession set out on March 19th, originally planning to take their time along the way.

  The knife hands under Fang Youwei's command searched around and soon found a temple called "Qingliangyuan" that could serve as a temporary lodging place. The convoy left the official road and headed towards Qingliangyuan.

  The temple was not large, with only two or three courtyards, and two old monks and four young monks inside reciting scriptures. The main hall enshrined the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, although the incense was not strong, there were still a few pieces of fruit offered on the altar. Fang Huwei presented one or two silver coins as incense money, indicating that he wanted to stay overnight, and the monks agreed with pleasure.

  The temple is too small and there are no rooms for everyone to stay in. Fortunately, Third Miss and the little maid Zi Xin Cai can live in the carriage. Fang Hu Wei and the 15 knife-wielding guards are used to traveling on rivers and lakes, they can sleep by leaning against a wall or something similar. As for Wang Er, Zhu Ba, and Jiao Fu, they don't care about such things and can even sleep in the wilderness. On the other hand, the ten Ma family servants who came along are having a hard time, sometimes complaining that this place is dirty, sometimes complaining that that place is not clean, causing a lot of trouble.

  The porters carried the Third Miss's dowry into the wing room and placed it inside to prevent it from getting wet in the rain. The Third Young Lady's carriage drove into the backyard, stopping on the empty ground in the courtyard, where she and Zixincai spent the night. Fang Huwei and the 15 knife-wielding men dispersed, keeping watch at each entrance of the backyard. To avoid disturbing the Third Young Lady's peace, Wang Er, Zhu Ba, and the porters were all chased to the front yard's main hall, sharing a room with Manjusri Bodhisattva.

  That night's dinner was arranged by everyone themselves, because this small temple couldn't possibly provide food for dozens of people. San'er, Zhu Ba, and the porters all had flatbread on them, which was a special privilege they could enjoy only when escorting Third Miss, something they wouldn't get to eat at home...

  Zhu Yuanzhang finished eating his pancake, lay down in the corner of the great hall, and closed his eyes to rest. Wang Er also lay down beside him, neither of them having anything to say, each lost in their own thoughts.

  Just as the sky had just turned dark and the moon was peeking out, Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly raised his head, feeling that someone had arrived. The temple in front of him echoed with urgent footsteps, coming from a single person, whose footsteps were very heavy, seemingly sturdy, each step landing with a sense of heaviness as if something heavy was pressing down.

  Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at Bai Shui Wang Er beside him, if it wasn't for Wang Er sleeping next to him, he would have thought the footsteps were made by Wang Er.

  All that could be heard was the heavy footsteps arriving at the temple gate, then with a "bang" the door was pushed open and someone rushed in quickly. Zhu Yuanzhang propped himself up from the corner of the temple, using the oil lamp lit in front of the deity to take stock of the newcomer. As soon as he caught sight of him, he couldn't help but think to himself: What a robust fellow, not inferior to Wang Er.

  This man is about five feet three inches tall, with a dark complexion, and his build is very similar to that of Wang Er. The difference lies in the fact that his face has an extra layer of ferocity and killing intent, which is slightly different from Wang Er's heroic spirit. At his waist hangs a knife, a butcher's knife, polished to a shine, cold and menacing, exuding a chilling aura.

  Zhuang Han apparently didn't expect a large group of people to be sleeping in the hall, and was slightly startled. However, after scanning the room with his eyes, he found that the people inside were all just ordinary laborers, so he didn't pay them any mind. He walked up to the front of the Manjusri Bodhisattva on his own, knelt down with a thud, and then placed his hands together in front of his chest, seemingly saying something to the Bodhisattva.

  Bai Shui Wang whispered to Zhu Yuanzhang, "Brother, you're smarter than me, why don't you guess what he's praying for in the middle of the night?"

  Zhu Yuanzhang sighed softly and whispered to Wang Er, "He has made up his mind to go kill someone, so he ran to the Bodhisattva's place to explain why he wants to kill someone and ask for forgiveness."

  "Can't be, you can see it too?" Wang Er was shocked.

  "He has a heavy gait, indicating that his heart is also very heavy. His body exudes a cold and murderous aura, his eyes are crazy and determined. This person, once he starts killing, will absolutely go mad with his knife, chopping his opponent into pieces before stopping."

  "Brother, where did you learn this skill? You're muttering to yourself like a Taoist priest and can even read people's faces?"

  Just as the two were talking, a figure suddenly flashed at the side door, and Fang Huwei appeared at the door, staring at the muscular man who was worshiping Bodhisattva with a pair of bright eyes. Obviously, he also felt the killing intent, so he came out to see what this muscular man wanted to do.

  Zhuang Han muttered to himself in a low voice in front of the Bodhisattva, then stood up and walked out, his footsteps heavier than before, his eyes even more fierce and menacing. This time, the killing intent emanating from him was even felt by Wang Er.

  Until the sound of his footsteps faded away, Zhu Yuanzhang slowly said: "He confessed to the Buddha and made up his mind. His determination is stronger than before, so the killing intent is even thicker! Within three days, someone will die under his sword. Hmm... not just one person, this man has not only a strong killing intent but also a determination to fight to the death, indicating that his opponent is very powerful and has made preparations for a desperate battle. It's not just one enemy that can make such a fierce warrior decide to fight to the death."

  "Hmm!" Wang Er nodded and said: "This time even I felt it, this big fool."

  At this time, the strong man was no longer in the hall, so Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was not small, and Fang Huwei also heard it. He sneered coldly at the door and said: "Does a rustic fellow like you understand the feeling of killing aura? You speak as if you know what you're talking about, are you pretending to be confused?"

  Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and shook his head, stood up and said: "I'll go take a look."

  "What are you doing with the past?" Fang Huwei shook his head and said, "His killing intent is not directed at us, if he wants to kill someone, let him go ahead, what does it have to do with us? Don't get us into trouble."

  Zhu Yuanzhang said in a low voice, "When meeting a strong person on the road, if we don't get a clear understanding, it's a bit too careless. Even if he doesn't want to kill us, his killing might still affect us. I'll go take a look."

  "Suit yourself!" Fang Huwei sneered, "Country bumpkins love to watch the excitement, and take on trivial matters as their own. You can follow him if you want, I don't care, but we're leaving at dawn and won't wait for you, so you'd better be back before then."

  Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and was about to leave when Wang Er pulled him back, saying "Brother, I'm going too!"

  "Wang Erge, you're tall and your footsteps are heavy, it's easy to make noise when following someone." Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and said: "Besides, the porters need someone to take care of them, so why don't you stay behind? I'll be back before dawn."

  "Alright!" Wang Er also knew he wasn't cut out for tailing someone, so he gave up.

  Zhu Yuanzhang chased out of the palace gate, and from the north came the sound of a robust man's footsteps, which was particularly jarring in the quiet night. He lifted his feet and followed after him towards the north.

  The bright moon was hanging high, and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, so the moonlight was very bright, illuminating the ground with a silver white hue. Zhu Yuanzhang could faintly see the back of Han's figure not far ahead, he feared his tailing would be exposed, and kept using the roadside grass and trees to cover himself.

  After following for a long time, the strong man finally arrived at a small village. The villagers were surprisingly not asleep and stood at the entrance of the village, obviously waiting for his arrival. Under the moonlight, a group of shabbily dressed farmers with pale faces were all looking forward to something.

  When they saw the strong man coming, a villager shouted and exclaimed excitedly: "Big brother Zheng Yanfu has arrived!"

  "Zheng Yanfu?" Zhu Yuanzhang furrowed his brow: "This name... I seem to have heard it somewhere before?"