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“How long have we been traveling?” Feng Qingyang glanced back at the weary group behind him and asked Wen Zhuo.
“We’ve been on the road for seven or eight hours straight. Last night, we were delayed by the thieves from the Gate of Life and Death. If we don’t speed up, it will be difficult to reach Nian Yang City by the sixth day,” Wen Zhuo replied.
“Indeed, it’s hard on the brothers, especially for the young escorts who are facing such troubles on their first mission. Their spirits must be low,” Feng Qingyang said, turning to Wen Zhuo. “By the way, how is your injury? Is your blood circulation still fine?”
Wen Zhuo smiled and patted his chest. “You know my physique; I have never been burdened by illness over the years. You can rest easy; I’m fine.”
Wen Zhuo paused slightly, a look of confusion crossing his face. “However, I find something puzzling. Although this trip to Nian Yang isn’t far, it’s fraught with danger. Why didn’t you call upon Luo Yihua and Qiong Fengzi for assistance? If they were here, our escort team wouldn’t have been in such a predicament last night.”
Feng Qingyang nodded. “How could I not know what you’re saying? However, both Luo Yihua and Qiong Fengzi are nursing old injuries, especially Luo Yihua with his chest wound that nearly cost him his life. They just completed a long journey in the northwest; I couldn’t bear to put them through more travel fatigue. Besides, with you, Wen Zhuo, accompanying me, I feel much more at ease. Furthermore, new escorts like Yang Cheng are the future hope and foundation of Feng Qingyang Bounty House; they need opportunities to hone their skills.”
Wen Zhuo nodded as if he understood Feng Qingyang’s good intentions. “However, there is still one thing that truly confuses me.”
“What is it?” Feng Qingyang asked with a smile.
Wen Zhuo pulled out a White Stone Box from his pack and asked, “I noticed that Yang Cheng’s White Stone Box is identical to the one you gave me. Which box contains the item we’re protecting?”
Feng Qingyang smiled mysteriously and took out another White Stone Box from his own bag, handing it to Wen Zhuo. The latter grew even more puzzled as he looked at both boxes and asked, “Why is this? Why did you keep one for yourself?”
Feng Qingyang pointed at the group behind them and said, “I gave each of them one.”
“Ah?” Wen Zhuo chuckled in disbelief. “What’s the reason for such behavior?”
Feng Qingyang shook his head with a smile. “I fear that if I suddenly become overly cautious about my life and truly hand over the item, I won’t be able to remember who has what. Even if I feel fear later on, there would be nothing I could do.”
Wen Zhuo shook his head and looked at Feng Qingyang. “Though we’ve known each other for many years, sometimes I can’t see through you at all.”
Feng Qingyang laughed and patted Wen Zhuo on the shoulder. “I’m not a woman; if you could see through me completely, wouldn’t that cause quite a stir? Ha ha!”
Wen Zhuo could only smile wryly in response, left speechless.
Wu Xia Town, though named as a town, is actually sparsely populated, with only about thirty households in total.
The only inn in the town is also called Wu Xia Inn. Feng Qingyang reined in his horse beneath the weathered sign of the inn and remarked, "It has been nearly ten years since I last set foot here, yet it remains unchanged, still unforgettable."
Wen Zhuo glanced at the nearly crumbling inn and couldn't help but chuckle, "It's hard to imagine what this inn looked like ten years ago."
Feng Qingyang and Wen Zhuo arranged for a few porters to push several carts filled with pumpkins to the backyard before returning to the inn's main hall.
Inside the hall, apart from the people from Feng Qingyang Bounty House, there was no one else. The innkeeper approached with a beaming smile, "Gentlemen, may I ask if you are here for a meal or just to rest?"
Wen Zhuo replied, "First a meal, then we will rest for the night. Please arrange it as you see fit."
The innkeeper nodded with a smile and walked towards a side door, seemingly to prepare the food.
Before long, two sleepy waiters rushed in from the back, appearing to have dozed off due to the inn's lack of business, only to be awakened by the innkeeper's call.
Feng Qingyang and Wen Zhuo sat across from each other while others took their seats as well. The two waiters hurried back and forth, serving water and brewing tea, bustling about.
Feng Qingyang watched the two waiters and suddenly smiled at Wen Zhuo, "Do you know what I did in my childhood?"
Wen Zhuo looked into Feng Qingyang's eyes and smiled back, "A waiter?"
"Indeed, you are quite perceptive; I was indeed a waiter. I remember that during my time as a waiter, my favorite thing was to doze off, and my greatest hope was to encounter generous guests."
Feng Qingyang fondled his teacup with a smile. Wen Zhuo said, "If that's the case, your innkeeper must be struggling in business due to having such lazy staff like you."
Feng Qingyang smiled without replying but kept his gaze fixed on the waiter's blue short coat, murmuring, "It seems this innkeeper must be a miser."
"Oh? What makes you say that? Does he resemble your former innkeeper?" Wen Zhuo laughed.
Feng Qingyang gently pointed to the two waiters in the distance and asked, "Do you notice anything unusual about them?"
Wen Zhuo, seeing the strange expression on Feng Qingyang's face, also put away his smile. After a moment of contemplation, he replied, "It seems that the green outfits of those two waiters are slightly short; they don’t appear to be tailored for them."
Feng Qingyang remarked lightly, "It seems we have either encountered two impersonating waiters or run into a stingy Innkeeper."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Innkeeper emerged from the back carrying dishes and drinks, his face beaming with a smile. He placed the food before Feng Qingyang and Wen Zhuo, saying, "This is a specialty dish of our town—braised duck tongues. Please enjoy."
Feng Qingyang nodded and picked up his chopsticks to stir the food a few times but did not take a bite. Instead, he asked, "May I know your surname, Innkeeper?"
The Innkeeper smiled broadly and replied, "My surname is Ma, with the grass radical."
Feng Qingyang scratched his head with his chopsticks and muttered, "Ma, with the grass radical. How come I remember that many years ago the Innkeeper here was surnamed Zhang? Where has he gone?"
Innkeeper Ma quickly nodded and said, "The one you mentioned is Innkeeper Zhang; he left Wu Xia Town some time ago. This inn was sold to me by him."
A look of realization crossed Feng Qingyang's face as he suddenly exclaimed, "This is not good!"
Innkeeper Ma was startled and asked, "Sir, what is the matter?"
Feng Qingyang looked at Innkeeper Ma and said, "I just remembered that the previous Innkeeper was not surnamed Zhang; he was actually surnamed Meng. My memory is truly poor, but how could you also have remembered it incorrectly?"
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