Chapter 153 The Ugly Scholar on the River
Zhao Yushu and A Yao rode side by side on the official road heading south. A Yao finally got used to the bumpy ride of the donkey. He was even bold enough to switch with Zhao Yushu to try the horse. Then he climbed back on the donkey's back with a huff, rubbing his butt that was broken into four pieces.
"Brother Zhao, why didn't you say goodbye to Sister Lan Ling and Sanniang?"
"Do I need to ask you for permission to say goodbye?"
A Yao curled her lips: "I thought they would go with us."
"What are you thinking, little kid?"
Zhao Yushu smiled. How could he not say goodbye to Lan Ling and Fang Sanniang? And he said goodbye together.
"I want to go to the south with Sanniang."
"The South? The Red Lotus?"
"Well, you can't just listen to rumors. You have to go and see for yourself, right?"
"Yes, if I want to find you..."
"Bring your good wine, come to Dongdu or Xijing, and wait for me."
"Wait for you."
"Don't lose the fan again." Lan Ling waved her hand, and the Buddhist beads on her wrist glowed.
Fang Sanniang stood beside Lan Ling and just nodded to Zhao Yushu as a farewell.
Zhao Yushu left a few days earlier than Lan Ling and the others, but they did not leave until all the refugees had left.
Lan Rong stood on the city wall and looked at the gradually decreasing number of refugees. He had already written a memorial and sent it to Xijing, characterizing the incident as a small-scale civil unrest. General Sun also cooperated and wrote a memorial, stating that a stampede occurred during the suppression of the civil unrest, and unfortunately more than a hundred soldiers were killed or injured.
Regardless of the truth, the two chief military and political officers of Nanyang were of the same opinion and decided to suppress the matter.
Duke Yue's plan was temporarily bankrupt after more than 10,000 refugee lives were lost in Nanyang.
"I don't know whether this step is right or wrong." The wind was strong in the city, making Lan Rong's casual clothes rustle.
"At this point, if you are still arguing about right and wrong, these people died in vain, and your daughter ran away in vain." General Sun was also in casual clothes. The garrison in the city had already withdrawn to the military camp outside the city. As soon as the new military order from the court arrived, the army would set off.
"This has nothing to do with my daughter."
"I'm just telling you this. I've been trying to understand something these days. If everyone hadn't been so scheming and deceitful, and had just done the right thing like that idiot Zhao Yushu, no matter who tried to stop them, there wouldn't be these refugees, and there wouldn't even be the Red Lotus Cult."
Lan Rong snorted disdainfully: "With his temper, he won't survive more than three months in the court."
"So he is not in the court. He is luckier than us."
Nanyang is far away from Xiangfan, only slightly closer than Dongdu. Zhao Yushu and A Yao rode non-stop all the way to Xiangfan. He now urgently wanted to rush to Jiangning. He didn't want Wang Shaolin to go back so openly and be his little duke.
The journey was safe and sound. Although Xiangfan's status was not as high as Nanyang at that time, the developed waterways made the entire city seem more prosperous than Nanyang.
The two men did not stop. After staying in Xiangfan for only one night, they boarded a passenger ship which was large enough to go directly to Jiangning.
"It's such a shame to sell the horse and donkey like this." A Yao, a native inland man, unexpectedly did not get seasick. He lay on the railing and muttered to himself while watching the waves below.
"We can't help it. This ship doesn't allow livestock to board, and there's no one here who knows how to send us back to Nanyang. So let's just consider it as Comrade Xiao Wang sponsoring our travel expenses."
"I think there are some boats that can do it, and they're cheap."
"I have been tired for a long time. It's rare that I can relax for a while. Let me have a good rest." Zhao Yushu yawned and walked back to the cabin. He booked two mid-range cabins. It was not that he was reluctant to book a higher-end one, but the only Tianzi cabin had been taken long ago.
The boat was large and comfortable, quite similar to a small cruise ship from my previous life. Not only was the land larger in this world, but the river was also much wider, and this was not even the widest part of the river.
I don’t know how long I slept, Zhao Yushu got up and touched his stomach, feeling a little hungry.
This kid A Yao always goes to eat by himself when it’s time for dinner and never calls me. In his words, if you don’t know to eat when there is food, you deserve to starve.
When he got out of the cabin, he saw a bright moon in the sky outside. Fortunately, there was still some dinner left. Zhao Yushu took a steamed bun with some pickles and ate it while going to the deck to look at the moon.
The boat is not allowed to sail at night to prevent accidents due to unclear visibility. At this time, the boat is parked at the shore, and passengers in groups of three or four are on the deck enjoying the summer breeze.
"Brother, could you please let me have this place? It's a great place to enjoy the moon. I'm in the mood to paint a picture. I'd be very grateful."
Zhao Yushu turned around and saw a young man, slightly older than him and dressed like a scholar, looking at him with a smile while holding a small table.
This young man was very strange. He was not tall and was rather thin. His bachelor's gown looked a little loose on him. The most peculiar thing was his face. His nose was too big, his lips were very thick, and his eyes were narrowed into slits. In short, he was ugly.
"Oh, you're welcome, please."
Zhao Yushu made way for him, and the young man thanked him again. He put down the table, took out the pen and ink from under his armpit, sat down on the spot, and began to grind the ink seriously.
Zhao Yushu stood aside, watching the man grind the ink carefully, and then looked up at the moon.
The moment the young man raised his head, the pair of eyes that had been squinting suddenly opened. Although they were still small, they seemed to have magical power, instantly making all his facial features come alive.
Zhao Yushu held half a bite of steamed bun in his mouth and forgot to swallow it. At that moment, he understood what the finishing touch meant.
Subconsciously, Zhao Yushu's spiritual power flowed to his eyes. An ordinary person, an ordinary person with no cultivation, had never seen an ordinary person so dazzling.
There are so many strange people in the world.
The young man seemed to be unaware of Zhao Yushu's spying. After staring at the moon for a long time, he took a deep breath, lowered his head, dipped the brush in ink and started writing.
The bright moon rises over the river, all in one breath.
"Good!" Zhao Yushu couldn't help but applaud.
The young man smiled and said, "If you like it, I'll give it to you."
Zhao Yushu suddenly felt a little embarrassed and scratched his head: "How can I take someone's love away from me?"
Then he took the painting with the ink still wet, overjoyed.
The young man couldn't help but laugh again: "You are very good, not bad, come here again after breakfast tomorrow, don't sleep so long."
The young man cleaned up the table, closed his eyes again, and walked slowly back to the cabin.
Zhao Yushu continued to scratch his head. He was obviously an ordinary person, so why did he feel like he couldn't help but want to listen to what he said?
"Brother Zhao, who is that person?" A Yao came over from nowhere and looked at the painting in Zhao Yushu's hand: "Oh, it's a really good painting, did he give it to you?"
"I don't know who he is either, but I should know tomorrow morning."
"Why do we have to wait until tomorrow morning? Can't we just go over and ask?"
"You know nothing. I told you to wait, so you wait. You have no respect for your parents!"
Ayao felt a little aggrieved. When did I have to wait?
Zhao Yushu touched his chin, as if he was about to meet someone extraordinary.