"In the twenty-fourth year of Yuanxi, there was a good year. The late rice was ripe and the rice was three cents per pound. On September 9th, at the two o'clock of Shen and You, auspicious clouds were seen, which was a sign of great prosperity." - "Yanzhou Local Chronicle".
In the inner city of Yongning City in Yanzhou, a carriage slowly stopped in front of a magnificent mansion.
The carriage stopped, and a man in his thirties wearing a crimson official uniform got out. He narrowed his crescent eyes and looked at the word "Zhao Mansion" on the plaque of the mansion, with a solemn look in his eyes.
"Where did this gentleman come from?" Menzi came out and asked.
"My surname is Liu, and I come to Yingzhou." A man in official uniform handed over a greeting card.
"My lord, please wait a moment."
Menzi accepted the invitation and turned around to enter the house.
After a while, the door of the mansion opened again, and a purple-faced man in his forties, wearing a futou and a round-neck robe, came out.
Although this man was dressed as a butler, he was tall, rough-looking, and had a lot of flesh on his face, which made him look a bit nondescript.
A man in official uniform came forward and said, "Brother Tian, can Duke Zhen Guo be in the house today?"
"Master Liu, you're welcome!"
Hearing this, the purple-faced man waved his hands and said in a quaint manner: "We, Lao Tian, are just ordinary people, working in the government office. Just like... a little devil in front of the King of Hell's Palace. He should not be called that."
Then he smiled and said: "Master Liu, it's a coincidence that the Duke of Zhenguo only returns home on the 10th and 20th of every month. He happens to be at home today."
The official surnamed Liu felt relieved and said, "Brother Tian, please lead the way."
"please!"
The purple-faced man stretched out his hand to lead the way.
The two of them walked through the halls and courtyards, passing by carved beams and painted buildings, pavilions and pavilions. The official surnamed Liu couldn't help but feel emotional in his heart.
When they first met more than ten years ago, the current Duke of Zhen Guo was just an apprentice in a boxing gym, working as a catcher under him. Unexpectedly, he suddenly became the Duke of Dayue Zhen, the number one martial artist today.
All the people who worked with him and were kind to him in the past have risen to great heights.
For example, Tian Dabang, who was originally just a small river gang leader begging for food at the dock, has become a well-dressed and well-fed housekeeper of the Zhao family who is respected by everyone.
It's really unpredictable.
But having said that, he was able to be promoted quickly because of Duke Zhen Guo's credit.
This official surnamed Liu was the magistrate Liu of Qinghe County at that time. Because of his outstanding political performance, he had been promoted to the prefect.
Tian Dabang took Magistrate Liu to the study, called for tea, and said with a smile: "Justice Guo is meeting guests. Come back later."
Magistrate Liu thanked him and said, "Brother Tian, go ahead and do your work, I can just be by myself."
"Okay, Mr. Liu, I have something to give you."
Tian Dabang said goodbye and left.
Magistrate Liu drank tea absentmindedly and looked around the study at random, thinking: "When Duke Zhen saw me in the study, he didn't treat me as an outsider."
The room was clean and tidy, with simple furnishings. There was only a large desk and a bookcase, and a picture of the Nine Palaces hung on the wall.
The pattern of the Nine Palaces Diagram is somewhat special.
There are eight animals painted in the nine grids: bear, raccoon dog, mink, bat, white silkworm, catfish, rat and red silkworm, and one grid is empty.
Magistrate Liu secretly marveled, wondering what the purpose of so many unrelated animals being placed together...
At this moment, footsteps came, and a tall young man with a short mustache walked into the study.
The person who came was none other than Zhao Lin.
Magistrate Liu stood up quickly and said, "I'm going to pay homage to the Duke of Zhenguo." He said he was about to salute.
Zhao Lin stretched out his hand to support him and said with a smile: "Mr. Liu, you are so polite. Please sit down."
Magistrate Liu gave a few words of humility before sitting down carefully.
"When did Master Liu come?"
"This year is a good year. The grain harvest in Yingzhou is good..."
After sitting down, Zhao Lin casually asked a few questions about Yingzhou's current situation.
Magistrate Liu answered them one by one.
Zhao Lin was granted the title of Marquis in a battle eleven years ago, and won the first place in the next two martial arts competitions. He made an unparalleled contribution to Dai Viet, and was granted the title of Duke of Zhenguo at the age of twenty-six.
At the age of twenty-nine, he even won the first prize as a Yuanjing martial artist, achieving the unprecedented "Great Four Yuan" level.
After County Magistrate Liu was promoted to prefect, he learned these secrets and couldn't help but secretly rejoice that he was kind to Zhao Lin back then.
At this time, he secretly observed that Zhao Lin's face had not changed much from before, and was more mature and stable. However, after all, his identity was different, and his gestures and looks were extremely powerful.
"Master Liu, you are the magistrate of Yingzhou. Is it in compliance with the rules to come to Yanzhou?"
Zhao Lin turned the tea cup on the table and asked intentionally or unintentionally.
"It's okay. I have other things to do when I come to Yanzhou, so I'm here to visit the Duke."
Magistrate Liu leaned forward and replied.
Zhao Lin nodded and said thoughtfully: "My brother Liang Song... is there any news?"
After becoming successful and famous, Zhao Lin brought up old friends and repaid those who were kind to him.
Those who are willing to come to Yanzhou will be taken over and arranged for errands. Those who are unwilling to come will also be taken care of locally in Qinghe County.
He also recommended several Liuhe Sect disciples to enter the outer courtyard of Xingyun Sect to practice martial arts. Those with average qualifications also helped find a way out.
The only regret is that Liang Song, who had the best relationship with him and had a life-long friendship, suddenly disappeared from the world without any news.
Because of the distance between the two places and his identity, it was inconvenient for Zhao Lin to check in person, so he wrote to Magistrate Liu for help. Two months later, Magistrate Liu came to his door in person.
"That's why I'm here."
Magistrate Liu looked calm and said: "I sent people to ask Liang Song's classmates and neighbors, recorded everyone he came into contact with in the three months before he left, and finally found some clues."
"oh."
Zhao Lin's eyes flashed, "Master Liu, please speak!"
Magistrate Liu continued: "In January of the 19th year of Yuanxi, a Taoist priest came from Qinghe County and made a special trip to Shuncheng Street to find Liang Song. Many people living in Shuncheng Street have seen this Taoist priest."
"Half a month later, Liang Song resigned from the Yamen and left the martial arts gym. Someone saw him leaving with the Taoist priest..."
Zhao Lin raised his hand to signal him to stop talking, and murmured to himself: "January of the nineteenth year of Yuanxi..."
After thinking about it for a while, I remembered that in February of the 19th year of Yuanxi, I wrote a letter to ask Liang Song to come to Yanzhou, but before the letter was sent, I received a letter from Liang Song.
Liang Song talked about some of the past in the letter, and at the end said he was grateful to his brother and would see him again in the future.
Zhao Lin felt strange at the time, what does it mean to meet again by fate? It sounded like a goodbye.
However, he was preparing for the third martial arts competition at the time and wanted to contact him later, but there was no news from Liang Song since then.
If it weren't for that letter, Zhao Lin even suspected that Liang Song had been killed or kidnapped. But before Liang Song left, he not only wrote to himself, but also resigned from his job as a police officer, indicating that he left on his own initiative.
"The timing is right!"
Zhao Lin nodded and frowned slightly, "Why are you related to the Taoist priest?"
Magistrate Liu did not dare to disturb him and waited quietly.
After a while, Zhao Lin recovered his thoughts and said, "Mr. Liu, please continue."
Magistrate Liu continued: "I inquired from the officers and soldiers guarding the city that Liang Song and the others left through the east gate. The lower official guessed that they might have gone to the neighboring county to the east, so he sent people to investigate."
"As a result, after asking around all the way, it turned out that they were not going to neighboring counties, but were walking southeast, passing through three states and more than a dozen counties, and finally arrived in Qizhou."
"Then no one ever saw them again."
Zhao Lin's expression changed, "Qizhou...is near the sea?"
Magistrate Liu said: "Exactly."
Zhao Lin shook his head and laughed, "Did my brother become a monk with a Taoist priest?"
After saying that, he cupped his hands and said, "Thank you very much, Mr. Liu."
Magistrate Liu said hurriedly: "Some trivial matters are not worth mentioning."
…
After seeing off Magistrate Liu, Zhao Lin returned to the study again.
When I walked to the Jiugong Diagram and stood with my hands behind my back, my mind suddenly thought of the young man who had just traveled through time and was digging the ground with a hoe in Mount Baekdu.
"Fifteen years..."
(End of chapter)
