Chapter Five: The Sudden Change

  Two people were hurrying along, laughing and chatting, when suddenly a commotion broke out at the nearby street corner. The two of them were bewildered, when an old aunt shouted in a loud voice: "It's terrible! The horse has been startled!"

  "What a big deal?" Zhang Jiamu suddenly became spirited and said: "Let's go take a look!"

  Although this is not Zhang Jiamu and Ren Yuan's jurisdiction, since something happened on the streets, the Brocade Guards naturally cannot shirk their responsibility.

  Two men hastened their pace, and just as they turned the corner at the entrance of the alley, a horse carriage was speeding towards them. The coachman was frightened out of his wits, standing still on the carriage, while the two horses were clearly startled, neighing loudly and galloping wildly with all four hooves off the ground. Because they were restrained by their harnesses, the two terrified horses pulled the carriage at a far faster speed than normal, and if this continued, the people inside the carriage would either be killed or injured. Moreover, many pedestrians on the street would also be knocked down and injured.

  "Jiuge, get out of the way!"

  As the two horses approached, they were both fine horses, tall and majestic. It would be a waste to use them as draft horses to pull carts. However, Zhang Jiamu had no time to think about this. He knew that the two galloping horses weighed at least over 600 pounds each, plus the weight of the carriage and its occupants, and with such speed, an ordinary person who collided with them would either be killed or injured.

  He didn't dodge, instead he pushed Ren Yu aside with one hand and stood up straight!

  Ren Yuan and Zhang Jiamu grew up together since childhood, practiced martial arts together, and stood guard together at the watchtower. But what Zhang Jiamu was about to do now really shocked him.

  "Jia Mu!" Ren Yuan roared: "Are you looking for death?"

  But in the blink of an eye, a horse-drawn carriage had already arrived right before the two men. Ren Yuan unconsciously took a few steps back, such was the intimidating force of the galloping horses, no wonder he was scared.

  However, Zhang Jiamu did not dodge. He stood calmly on one side, the horse carriage was speeding fast, but his reaction was even faster.

  "Halt!" He dodged the carriage and chased after it from behind, shouting loudly. His hands grabbed the reins hanging down from the carriage shaft, pulling hard with both hands, his feet stomping on the ground like iron stakes!

  With a sudden pull and a loud shout, the two horses let out a long whinny and stood still, the pair of frightened horses that had just been galloping like thunder being abruptly halted in their tracks by him!

  "Great job! Well done!"

  On the side, Ren Yuan's words were no longer fluent. The incident happened suddenly, from the outbreak to Zhang Jiamu rushing forward to pull the reins of the horse, it was only a matter of a few breaths. In this short period of time, Zhang Jiamu handled it beautifully. He dodged and weaved, then chased and pulled, making it sound simple. However, without more than a decade of hard practice, how could he have honed his skills to the extreme? His legs were as strong as iron, combined with his eyesight, waist strength, and coordination with both hands to exert force. Every detail was done to perfection; otherwise, how could he have succeeded?!

  He was absolutely incapable of doing it. In terms of strength, he might not be much different from Zhang Jiamu, and everyone had a rough idea when playing with the stone lock together. However, in terms of quickness, stability, accuracy, and timing, all sorts of details had to work together to achieve such a decisive success. Otherwise, even if he managed to pull over the horse, the carriage would still have to overturn.

  As soon as Ren Yuan shouted, the two horses that had just been pulled to a stop were slightly startled again. One of them, a sorrel horse with a fat and sturdy body, kicked its hind legs towards Zhang Jiamu.

  "Be careful!"

  Before the words had fallen, a shout was heard from inside the car, but the voice was as crisp as a canary, and it turned out to be a young woman.

  "Hey!" Zhang Jiamu had just been pleased with his own beautiful move, and seeing that the horse still dared to be disobedient, he raised his hand and threw a punch. His body was tall and robust, and this punch was powerful and fierce. The horse felt pain from the punch and retreated several steps before stopping again.

  This time, showing one's face is really showing off in a big way.

  It was originally a very beautiful outfit, although not as luxurious as the flying fish costume, it was also full of masculine energy on Zhang Jiamu's body. Plus the sharp air on the young man's face, plus his tall and strong figure, but unlike Ren Yuan's fierce and overbearing appearance, he looked quite handsome and elegant. And then he showed off this move, the people who had just fled in all directions didn't know how they gathered back again. When pulling the horse, there were fewer onlookers, but now with such a mighty punch, everyone on the street cheered and applauded loudly!

  Zhang Jiamu was also very pleased, and he bowed all around, which made the applause even louder.

  After a while, the car owner also came to his senses, jumped down from the car, looked at the horse first, and then knelt in front of Zhang Jiamu, kowtowing and thanking him loudly, thumping sounds could be heard, and after just a few knocks, blood was knocked out on his forehead.

  Zhang Jiamu was greatly surprised, and hastily helped the carman to his feet. Only then did he notice that this carman also had a robust appearance, with thick muscles on his arms, which felt very solid when grasped.

  Looking at his expression, it's also a clear long-term superior look. His face is not angry but majestic, and the clothes on him are not something that an ordinary coachman can wear. Suddenly, Zhang Jiamu was a bit confused - how could someone like this be a coachman?

  "Thank you," the coachman had recovered, he furrowed his brow, looked at Zhang Jiamu again, and nodded: "It turns out that it's a leftover soldier from the Brocade Guard."

  Not just people, voices also sound official.

  Zhang Jiamu became vigilant. In the capital, there are hidden dragons and crouching tigers, sometimes saving people may not necessarily be a good thing, as human hearts are unpredictable. However, today's storm has passed, and regret is too late.

  Looking at him, the cart driver smiled and didn't ask for his name. He just smiled and said: "Young man, you really don't just have good martial arts skills, not bad, not bad. Today's matter, I'll remember it, and there will be a big thank you in the future."

  "No need," Zhang Jiamu knew this person was not a good master, so he simply said: "Saving people's lives is a merit, what do you want to thank for?"

  He had actually seen that there was a bundle of incense sticks from Fahua Temple on the carriage, and looking at the direction the carriage came from, it was clear that they were returning after worshiping at the temple. Since they were incense guests, his words were also suitable for them.

  The carman, although not an ordinary person, really didn't think that Zhang Jiamu's vision and judgment were so remarkable. This made him even more delighted, and with a smile, he looked at Zhang Jiamu twice again before sitting back on the carriage shaft, shouting loudly as he drove the carriage away.

  "What kind of person is this? They saved their lives and just walked away so lightly. At the very least, they should have thanked them with some silver."

  In the capital, those who can afford a luxurious sedan are certainly not ordinary people. Having been saved from death, it's only right to take out some money as compensation.

  Zhang Jiamu didn't want to talk to him in detail, just smiled vaguely and urged: "Let's go, our own business is urgent. If we're late, our little flag isn't someone who can be easily talked to."

  "Alright, let's go!"

  The two of them set off again, but neither of them noticed that not far away, the sedan's curtain was lifted, and a pair of bright big eyes stared at Zhang Jiamu, looking at him again and again, with a fleeting glance, yet also with autumn waves like water, extremely moving.

  ……

  Before noon, although slightly delayed, Zhang Ren arrived at Zhengnan Fang on time.

  At that time, each ward had a gate and soldiers guarding it. The Five Cities Military Command patrolled at night every year, and during the day there were inspectors who patrolled the city walls. At intervals, there were sheds, which were small houses where the firemen sat, who were selected from among the common people to follow the patrol and maintain law and order, a very bitter task.

  People are divided into groups of two, with a total of thirteen people. Lu Yu brings two trusted followers and the remaining ten people are divided into five groups. The area is not too big or too small, and this density is just about right. If anything happens, it can be discovered immediately, and other groups can also rush to assist nearby.

  Zhang Jiamu looked at him coldly and felt that Yu Gang was still quite sharp and capable, although his character was very poor.

  He and Ren Yuan formed a group, responsible for several streets in the northeast direction of Zhengnanfang, which is close to Nangong and Donghuamen, and further inside is the Imperial City.

  From the beginning of their first year, the two began their patrol duties with diligence and care.

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