novelhk Page 160
Page 160
The weather was indeed as Gongsun Sheng had described—exceptionally hot and dry.
The scorching sun caused all the moisture in the mountain forest to evaporate.
The entire hillside was like a steamer.
Even when hiding in the shade of a tree, with no outsiders around, there's no need to wear the mask that Liangshan made.
Yet he was still sweating profusely, feeling uncomfortable and soaked all over.
Princess Tianshou, unable to bear the heat, was looking for a mountain spring to wash her face, leaving He Chai to keep watch over her.
Before she could speak, He Chai exclaimed in a low voice, "Your Highness, could this group be the ones escorting the birthday gifts?"
Princess Tianshou quickly looked around.
Sure enough, a group of about a dozen people were seen slowly walking along the muddy road.
Some were pushing carts, others were carrying loads on their shoulders.
Everyone, regardless of who they were, was completely covered up.
And the man walking in front,
Even though she was wearing a mask, the bluish birthmark on the side of her forehead was still visible.
Princess Tianshou recognized the man as Yang Zhi, the Blue-Faced Beast, and was overjoyed.
They quickly led the horses, which had rings in their mouths, and quietly walked a short distance deeper into the hillside with He Chai.
Once they were sure they couldn't hear anything from the other side of the muddy road,
The two then mounted their horses and galloped towards Chao Gai and the others.
Upon arrival,
Princess Tianshou announced that the birthday tribute had arrived.
Chao Gai and the others, who had been drowsy, were suddenly energized.
They quickly pushed the cart up the hill.
Princess Tianshou and He Chai
He deliberately stood in the sun for a while, until his face was flushed and covered in sweat, before...
Only then did they ride their horses from deep within the hills to the rear of Yang Zhi and the others...
Chapter 223 The Miserable Yang Zhi
Princess Tianshou and Hechai rode forward along the dirt road.
In the blink of an eye, they saw Yang Zhi and his group walking ahead of them.
In this sweltering heat, even going shirtless is unbearable.
Not to mention Yang Zhi and his group, most of whom were wrapped up tightly.
Many of them began to sway and stagger as they walked.
One of the men pleaded with the leader to let them rest for a moment.
But instead, he was given a good scolding.
The leader was none other than Yang Zhi, who had left Daming Prefecture.
He was vigilant and cautious day and night, and even today, when he arrived at the inn at the foot of the hill...
Yang Zhi was also afraid that there were bandits staying in the inn, so he did not dare to stay any longer and urged everyone to get up and continue on their way.
Just then, they saw two riders catching up from behind.
Yang Zhi then took the opportunity of scolding the soldiers to deliberately speak loudly,
"Don't delay any longer! Our master has been suffering from the plague for half a month. If we are delayed any longer and fail to reach Liangshan for medical treatment, I will skin you alive!"
After he said that, the two riders were indeed astonished as if they had seen a ghost.
He hurriedly turned his horse aside, bypassed them at a distance, and galloped forward.
The two riders were scared away.
Yang Zhi looked at the dejected group and shouted, "Hurry up! Go a little further and we'll rest in the woods!"
"Officer Yang,"
The elderly man lying on the cart, pretending to be a patient, suddenly spoke up.
"It's already June, and the weather is unbearably hot. Can't we find an inn to rest during the day and continue our journey at night?"
The old man who spoke was none other than Xie Duguan, the wet nurse of Lady Cai, from the Liang family of Liang Zhongshu in Daming Prefecture.
Originally, after leaving Daming Prefecture, Steward Xie had been pretending to be sick the whole way, and didn't even have to walk himself, so he was naturally relaxed and comfortable.
Unexpectedly, after entering Shandong province, the weather suddenly became extremely hot and dry.
This steward Xie is going to play the role of a patient infected with the plague again.
Every day, they could only lie in the stroller, wrapped up tightly, and exposed to the scorching sun.
After these past two days, he naturally couldn't take it anymore.
“We are now disguised as ordinary people. This deep mountain forest is secluded and deserted. At night, there are either bandits robbing the road or wild beasts like jackals and wolves. How can ordinary people dare to travel at night?”
Yang Zhi kindly advised, "Old Steward, please be patient for two more days. By then, we will be able to leave Shandong. At that time, you won't need to pretend to be sick anymore and can move around freely."
As the two were talking, a soldier carrying a load suddenly fell to the ground, and the load also fell to the side.
Upon seeing this, Yang Zhi hurriedly stepped forward.
After adjusting the carrying pole and making sure the bundled valuables inside weren't exposed,
He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He then picked up a willow branch he had casually broken off on the road and whipped it hard at the fallen soldier.
"You lazy good-for-nothing! This is a birthday gift from the Grand Secretary to Prime Minister Cai. If even one or two things are damaged, you couldn't afford to pay for it even with your dog's life!"
The soldier trembled all over from the beating and could only plead in a trembling voice.
"Officer Yang, I really can't walk anymore. It's so hot, and I'm all bundled up. Ever since the sun rose, I've felt dizzy. I really can't walk anymore..."
Before he could finish speaking, Yang Zhi had already lashed out with the willow branch in his hand, striking him repeatedly.
"Don't make excuses. What's so unbearable about a mere scorching sun!"
Seeing this, the other soldiers rushed over to plead for him.
Even the two guards sent by Liang Zhongshu couldn't stand it anymore and spoke up.
"In this sweltering heat, they're all bundled up and carrying loads; they're probably suffering from heatstroke. If you hit them and kill them, you'll have to carry the load yourself; we won't take responsibility!"
Upon hearing this, Yang Zhi calmed down considerably.
He carefully examined the face of the fallen soldier and saw that his complexion was ashen, confirming that he had not lied.
In fact, Yang Zhi's bad attitude towards his soldiers was mainly because this escort of the birthday tribute was related to his future career.
He knew in his heart that if he failed again this time, Liang Zhongshu would definitely not let him off!
At that time, we'll offend Gao Kan first, then Cai Jing.
Where could he possibly find refuge in the Song Dynasty court?
As for reviving the Yang family of Tianbo Mansion, that's even more of a pipe dream!
Because they were so concerned about the birthday gifts,
Yang Zhi was on edge the whole way, which made his already bad temper even more violent.
Now that the soldier seems to have truly caught the heat, if he collapses, it will certainly disrupt the escort mission.
Yang Zhi quickly agreed, "How about this, everyone hang in there a little longer. Even if we need to rest, it'll be cooler in the woods than on the main road!"
Several soldiers helped their fallen comrade to his feet, and the man struggled to lift the load.
The group then headed towards the woods on the hillside.
Having just reached the hilltop, the group of soldiers saw that the forest was deep and dense.
Although it was a bit stuffy, it was still much cooler than the muddy road at the foot of the hill.
The crowd cheered immediately, each scrambling for a patch of shade under the tree.
After they fell down, none of them wanted to get up, and soon they were snoring loudly.
Yang Zhi wanted to urge them to take turns on duty and then rest for the afternoon, but Steward Xie and the two guards all came to persuade him otherwise.
Unable to dissuade them, the blue-faced beast had no choice but to pick up his broadsword and survey the area himself.
After walking about ten steps forward, they saw the two riders who had passed by earlier under the shade of a tree.
One of them was dressed as a scholar; he was handsome and fair-skinned.
The other person was dressed as a servant and was also a large, burly man.
Upon seeing Yang Zhi and his group arrive,
The servant hurriedly stood up and said anxiously to the scholar, "Young master, it's that group that's infected with the plague! Let's get away from them!"
The scholar, however, remained pressed against the tree, eyes closed, unwilling to move an inch.
"Don't, don't rush me. I'm so hot I can't even take a step. As for the plague, we can just wear masks, that's all!"
After saying this, the scholar pulled up his mask and turned his back to the outside.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade his master, the servant could only pull up his mask and stand trembling beside him, watching Yang Zhi and the others with fear and trepidation.
Yang Zhi recalled that the two men had just passed by them from behind, and even when climbing the hill, they had been on horseback.
Such disregard for one's mount is indeed something only a wealthy family would do.
Listening to the two men talking, the scholar who was the host couldn't even bear this heat; he preferred to stay near the person infected with the plague rather than move an inch.
Although the attendant was trembling with fear, he dared not leave his father's side as long as his master remained still.
The master and servant showed no signs of anything amiss.
Thinking this, Yang Zhi lowered his guard and continued walking forward...
Chapter 224 The Cicada Has Been Caught in the Net
After walking another ten steps or so, and seeing that there was nothing unusual,
Yang Zhigang was about to turn around and go back when, unexpectedly,
Suddenly, a figure flashed through the woods.
Yang Zhi leaped up, shouted, and strode after him!
His shout startled all the soldiers lying down, as well as the scholar and his servant!
The soldiers quickly stood up and gathered around Supervisor Xie and the two officers.
The scholar and his servant stood up, at a loss for what to do.
Just as everyone was somewhat panicked and confused,
But Yang Zhi returned dejectedly.
Steward Xie hurriedly inquired what had happened.
Yang Zhi chuckled and said, "It's nothing, just some men who sell dates, resting in the woods ahead."
Only then did Xie Duguan, the two officers, and the other soldiers feel relieved and lie down again.
The scholar complained, "He looks like a hero, but he's so cowardly. He screamed at a few date vendors, making me think we'd encountered bandits!"
Xie Duguan and his men already harbored resentment towards Yang Zhi during their journey, so they were naturally happy to see him make a fool of himself.
Yang Zhi ignored the master and servant, pretending not to hear them, and leaned against the tree, closing his eyes to rest.
The scholar complained for a while, but seeing that Yang Zhi did not react at all, he also felt bored and asked the servant for water.
The servant took out the gourd containing water, shook it, and immediately said with a bitter face, "Young master, the water is all gone."
The scholar, however, did not believe it. He snatched the gourd, opened the lid, and was about to drink from it, but sure enough, not a single drop of water came out.
"Ah, in this sweltering heat, a sip of wine would quench my thirst and relieve my fatigue! Come to think of it, it's all your fault. There's a liquor store down the mountain, why didn't you just grab some and take it with you?"