Chapter 29: Acquaintance

  The two of them quietly went downstairs, separated and trapped the man in the thatched hut. Just then, they saw Li Bao taking out copper coins from a wooden box one by one. Zhou Ping cleared his throat and said: "Brother Li Bao!"

  That man heard the sound and trembled, suddenly turning around, making a gesture to pounce, his face full of frightened expression, it was Li Bao. Zhou Ping had been prepared and retreated one step back, spreading out his hands and laughing: "Brother Li, we have no malicious intentions, the 'run quickly' shout in the crowd just now was my brother's, and the stone that injured the government soldiers was also thrown by him!"

  Li Bao looked at Zhou Ping and Xue Liangyu, who were four or five steps behind him, and his face gradually calmed down. He bowed to the two of them and said, "Thank you, gentlemen, for saving me! I, Li Bao, will definitely repay you in the future!"

  "There's no need to say that!" Zhou Ping waved his hand: "My brother wouldn't want a good man like him to fall into the hands of petty people and be humiliated. This isn't a place for talking, how about we change locations?"

  "Whatever!" Li Bao had gotten into big trouble, and felt that there were dangers everywhere. He wished he could fly out of Tokyo immediately. So the three of them took their things, walked through several streets, found a secluded place, and at a stall selling noodles, ordered three bowls of noodle soup and sat down.

  Li Bao devoured a bowl of food in one swift motion, clearly famished. Zhou Ping asked the vendor to bring over another bowl, and this time Li Bao ate more slowly. He looked up at Zhou Ping and Xue Liangyu, his face slightly red, and said in a low voice: "I'm afraid I've made a fool of myself in front of you two, being such a big eater."

  "Brother Li's physique is as strong as iron, so he naturally eats a bit more!" Zhou Ping smiled and asked: "But I don't know what Brother Li plans to do next?"

  Li Bao sighed, a cloud of gloom floating onto his face: "After this disaster, it's certain that we can't stay in the capital any longer. We'll have to return to our hometown and lay low for a few years."

  "Brother Li, in my opinion, it's better not to take this road back home!" Zhou Ping said with a smile.

  "Why did you say it like that, brother?"

  "Brother Li, do you know who it is that you killed tonight?"

  "It seems like some kind of golden person's envoy!" Li Bao replied in puzzlement.

  "Not bad, the imperial court is about to form an alliance with the Khitan people, and the envoy was killed, what a big deal! I heard that Brother Li used to work in the palace, the government must know your hometown? If you go back, it's likely that you'll be caught red-handed!"

  "This, how can this be good!" Li Bao was instantly stunned. In ancient society, except for a very small number of large cities, most places were very unfriendly to strangers. Moreover, Li Bao now had only a few hundred coins on him, and he might not even have enough money for food on the road.

  "If you're not disgusted, then temporarily take refuge in my master's house to avoid the storm. Once the storm has passed, if you're not disgusted, you can stay in my hometown for a while?" Zhou Ping said this and glanced at Xue Liangyu beside him. Xue Liangyu was taken aback, and quickly added: "That's right! A strong warrior like Li Bao would certainly be very much liked by Father!"

  Li Bao looked at Zhou Ping and Xue Liangyu, his eyes welled up with tears, and he bowed down to say: "I owe you a great debt of gratitude, I have no words to thank you. If there's an opportunity in the future, I will definitely repay it with my life!"

  Zhou Ping hastily helped Li Bao up: "When one sees someone in distress, they should lend a helping hand. Why must you be so stubborn, Brother Li? There are many people around here with prying eyes; it's better for us to leave quickly!" Zhou Ping then took out some money and went to a pawnshop to sell an old robe that was only 40-50% worn out. On the side of the road, he sold two packages of roasted chestnuts, a jug of wine, and a package of mutton. He had Li Bao change into the old robe and smear some mud on his face, disguising himself as a common laborer.

  Three people returned to the side door of Han's house, Zhou Ping went forward and knocked on the door a few times. After a while, a rough voice came from behind the door: "Which rogue is it again, running around outside so late? I'll definitely report to the steward later!"

  "Uncle Han, please forgive me!" As soon as the door opened a crack, Zhou Ping gave a slight bow to the old man who had opened it and handed over the wine and food in his hands: "This midnight snack is for you!"

  The old man took the package, smelled the wine, meat and chestnut fragrance, and his expression immediately became gentle. He opened half of the door and said: "Alright, you two are new to this world, it's hard to avoid going out to gain experience, but next time don't come so late, or even the housekeeper won't be able to help you!"

  "Thanks, Uncle Han. I met a fellow townsman on the road and chatted with him for a bit!" Zhou Ping said as he entered the door, using his body to block the old man's line of sight, making a "come in" gesture with his right hand behind his back. Li Bao, who was standing behind him, saw this clearly and slipped in quietly. The doorman's attention was focused on the food and drink, and he didn't notice how many people had entered. Zhou Ping then arranged for Li Bao to stay in the room with himself and Xue Liangyu, instructing him not to run around randomly without mentioning it.

  "Ah Ping, you're not thinking of letting him stay with us, are you?" Xue Liangyu pulled Zhou Ping out of the house and asked in a low voice.

  "Don't worry, I've thought of it long ago!" Zhou Ping looked around and saw that no one was paying attention: "In another four or five days, it will be New Year's Eve. This Tokyo city is different from our small place. The emperor wants to share the joy with all the people, and the city gate is not closed. At that time, there will be countless people entering and leaving the city gate, and we can sneak out of the city with Li Bao!"

  "What's the use? He's a wanted criminal, where can he run to?"

  "Just go back to Anyang with us!" Zhou Ping smiled: "You forgot that the Golden Envoy, the court wants to form an alliance with the Golden people to attack Liao, and this time Mr. Han is not going to Liao country, I think in a few days he will let us two return home!"

  "Really?" Xue Liangyu's eyes widened in surprise, staring at Zhou Ping in front of him. If Zhou Ping's reasoning just now could still be understood by him, then the words "Jin people's envoy" and "alliance against Liao" that came out of his mouth were completely beyond the understanding of this 17-year-old boy. He was a bit skeptical but didn't dare not to believe it. Zhou Ping looked at his expression and smiled, patting his shoulder: "In two days, there will be results. Even if I'm wrong, at most, you and I will write a letter to your father, asking him to take in Li Bao!"

  "Right, right!" Xue Liangyu nodded: "If only he could discipline those Zhuang Ding people a bit!"

  On the second day, at the hour of Si, Han Xiaocong, who was a secretary and in charge of the affairs of the Zhaowen Hall, received an urgent summons to enter the palace for an audience. For someone like him, it was an awkward time. Although noon had not yet arrived, and it could still be considered morning, for most people in Tokyo, they had already completed half a day's work, eaten something, and were preparing for the afternoon's work. However, for the upper class, this was still part of the long, slow night spent lounging in bed, dreaming sweet dreams. It would take another hour or two before they would lazily get out of their soft, plush beds, wash and dress under the service of their maids, preparing for the upcoming banquets and entertainment. For them, the sun in the sky and the darkness of night did not pose any obstacles; thick curtains could block out the morning sunlight, and bright candles and lanterns could replace the sunlight. Whether it was day or night, early or late, made no difference to them.

  Han Xiaoji was also a member of this upper class, and in order to maintain a good impression on the emperor, he carefully groomed his whiskers before setting out and even lightly applied some rouge to his face - this could cover up the pale complexion brought about by last night's late revelry. As the emperor was an artist, he often viewed his officials with an artistic eye, and for those who conformed to this gaze, he was not stingy in granting them favor. As a member of the Central Secretariat, Han Xiaoji's residence was extremely important, although it did not compare to the prestige of drafting imperial edicts as a Grand Councilor, but from his family background and origins, Han Xiaoji's official career had yet to reach its peak, he was always waiting for an opportunity to climb further up the ladder of power. Was this audience an opportunity? With this question in mind, Han Xiaoji excitedly entered the inner court.

  "Han Zuo Shi (the ancient title for the person in charge of daily affairs) asked this side to wait a little, there are still others inside the palace!" The small inner attendant on duty quickly lifted the pearl curtain with the agility of a cat and said in a low voice that in the direction he pointed was a narrow ear temple. The interior decoration was very simple, except for a chair, there was only a gilded beast-headed incense burner, a strong fragrance wafted out from the mouth of the furnace, filling the air inside the ear temple with a pleasant atmosphere. Han Xiao looked not far away and saw that it was the Temple of Wisdom where the emperor usually received his ministers across the corridor. Except for the two maids standing at the entrance of the corridor, there was no one else, making it seem particularly empty.

  "May I ask who is that person?" Han Xiaoqu pressed down his voice and pointed to the Rui Si Temple with a slight gesture. The little eunuch seemed not to have heard Han Xiaoqu's question at all, but just stood there motionless. After a few minutes, Han Xiaoqu felt that the other party was writing on the armrest of the chair with one finger, and he glanced over with the corner of his eye.

  "High?" Han Xiao's eyebrows slightly furrowed.

  Inside the Ruisi Hall, the official casually wore a Dongpo scarf on his head, with a yellow robe draped over a silk half-shoulder. In front of the close ministers, he often dressed in this way, which was very popular among scholars and officials, as if to tell others that the person standing here was not the emperor, but a refined and knowledgeable scholar-official. He saw him holding a mouse-whiskered jade pen, concentrating on writing something on the rice paper in front of him. On the opposite side of the desk, the current commander-in-chief, Taishi, who was in charge of the three yamen, actually the highest military commander of the Northern Song Dynasty at that time, Gao Fang, was slightly bowing his body, with his eyes closed and his nose closed, as if he had entered a state of meditation.

  At last, Zhao Jie let out a satisfied sigh and put down the mouse-whisker jade pen in his hand. Obviously, he was very pleased with his own work. It seemed that he had only just noticed Gao Huan in front of him, and smiled: "Ah, I've just entered a state of trance, come, you're also the first among martial officials, sit down and talk, sit down and talk!"