DWGL _ Chapter - 22

Chapter 22: The Secret Room 

This kung fu cures all diseases

The Wu family's carriage dealership was full of people, looking at goods and asking for prices, and business was booming.

Chu Yuan looked at the signboard from across the street and was about to enter when he was stopped by Duan Bai Yue, so he wondered, "What's the matter?"

"Since you are disguised as a hawker, naturally you have to lean forward with your temperament." Duan Bai Yue reminded, "Walking like this, you don't fit in with your looks."

Chu Yuan paused and asked, "Then how do I walk?"

Duan Bai Yue said, "Just like the people on the street."

Chu Yuan: "......"

He didn't think that he was different from the people walking.

Duan Bai Yue smiled and shook his head, pushing his straight back down a bit: "Just like this, or even bend your back a bit."

Chu Yuan wondered, "So simple?"

Duan Bai Yue nodded and went into the Wu family carriage with him.

The staff were too busy to greet the two strangers, so they called out from afar to let the guests look around first and came over when they were free.

"No problem." Duan Bai Yue said, "You just keep busy, we have nothing else to do, so we'll just come and have a look."

The carriages were lined up in the backyard, and there were quite a few different types of carriages, and behind them were newly made tables and chairs. When they tried to go inside, they were stopped by the butler, who told them that the back of the house was the private residence of Boss Wu and that guests were not allowed to enter.

Duan Bai Yue apologised and the two of them wandered around the shops before leaving the caravan and walking slowly along the street.

"What have you found?" Chu Yuan asked.

"Nothing at all." Duan Bai Yue replied. The carriage shop mainly sells carriages of all kinds, as well as tables, chairs and benches, and nothing else, so I really didn't see what those wooden boxes were for.

"According to the villagers in Qiufeng Village, someone from the carriage shop will be there tomorrow to collect the goods." Chu Yuan said, "At least we can follow them and see where the wooden boxes ended up."

Duan Bai Yue nodded, "Good."

"Let's go." Chu Yuan said, "Let's go back to the courier house."

"There are a lot of people in the daytime, what if they are found out." Duan Bai Yue shook his head, "We'll go back at night."

"So what are you going to do now?" Chu Yuan asked.

"We've been out for so long, and we haven't had a meal." Duan Bai Yue reached out and pointed, "There's a restaurant, so we can fill up our stomachs before we go back."

Chu Yuan frowned.

"Let's go." Duan Bai Yue dragged the person upstairs without a word. The waiter enthusiastically came to greet him, so Chu Yuan didn't say anything more. After reading the menu for a while, he ordered a soup with green vegetables and a bowl of stuffed tofu.

Duan Bai Yue casually said, "Duck with eight treasures, beef in drunken wine, roasted pork feet, sea cucumber balls, braised lamb leg and fish in a bag."

The waiter replied while reminding him, "Just you two gentlemen? I'm afraid that's a bit too many dishes."

Some of the people at the neighbouring tables inevitably looked over their shoulders, and Chu Yuan immediately felt a sense of a rice bucket on his back.

This time, not only his face was uncomfortable, but also his body started to feel tense.

Duan Bai Yue handed him a cup of tea: "It's made from fried grain, different from tea, but it has a different flavour."

Chu Yuan took a sip of the tea and it was full of barley aroma.

"Do you still like it?" Duan Bai Yue asked.

Chu Yuan nodded: "It's a little sweet."

"I told you not to eat at the courier house all the time." Duan Bai Yue said, "The world knows that the emperor is thrifty, the local officials even want to cook a few more fish and bowls of meat for you, have to worry about whether they will lose their brains."

Chu Yuan shook his head, "If you continue to exaggerate, I will not be clean and frugal, but have a brain problem."

Duan Bai Yue laughed and reminded him in a low voice, "You still call yourself me outside?"

Chu Yuan paused and said, "Me."

Duan Bai Yue laughed more and more and asked the waiter to bring some tea with flowers and leaves so that he could try some fresh ones.

The dishes were quickly served, and a table was set up with a dazzling array of steaming dishes. Seeing that his appetite seemed to be quite good, Chu Yuan didn't urge him, and he kept eating slowly with him-naturally, someone would still look over from time to time, but it would be okay to have a few more times. It's always easy to tolerate, and it's not embarrassing to be treated as a rice bucket.

Duan Bai Yue asked, "Why is your appetite so bad today?"

Chu Yuan looked up, "Hmm?"

"That duck leg has been tossed around in your bowl, at least a dozen times." Duan Bai Yue reminded.

Chu Yuan: "......"

I really couldn't eat it.

Duan Bai Yue stretched out his chopsticks to get the duck leg into his bowl and brought him a lighter bamboo suntan soup.

Chu Yuan wanted to say something, that I had already taken a bite.

But Duan Bai Yue obviously didn't care, and finished it in three or two bites, and took another chunk of beef.

Chu Yuan couldn't bear to think about it.

The amount of food he had eaten was probably the same as when he was at the courier house a few days ago, he hadn't even eaten a single meal.

When the meal was over, the sky outside was already dark. Duan Bai Yue put down the teacup and felt that this was called eating. The previous soup and water in the station hall were at best fruit belly.

Chu Yuan said, "Can we go back now?"

Duan Bai Yue looked out of the window, the Yanshui River was twisting and winding, and the view on both sides was quite good.

But Chu Yuan had already got up and gone downstairs.

Duan Bai Yue felt sorry in his heart, so he had to follow behind and said in his heart that if he had the opportunity next time, he would definitely enjoy the scenery and blow the wind together.

Chu Yuan didn't have the mind to think about anything else, so he stepped up all the way back to the station, and let Si Xi burn hot water when he entered the door.

Eunuch Si Xi hurriedly ordered down, and then looked at Duan Bai Yue with a questioning look, what is the matter with the emperor, why does he want to take a bath when he comes back?

Duan Bai Yue finally noticed something strange: "What's the matter?”

“The mask is too stuffy." Chu Yuan said.

“I'll help you.” Duan Bai Yue stretched out his hand and groped in his ear, then tore off the mask.

Chu Yuan whispered in pain, red dots had already appeared on his face, and it was itchy when he looked at them.

“Ouch!” Eunuch Si Xi was shocked, how could it be like this?

“Why didn't you tell me earlier?” Duan Bai Yue was also taken aback, asked him to sit in a chair, and lit up the lights again.

Chu Yuan said to himself, ‘Looking at your attitude just now, I didn't know that you had been hungry for ten days and had only managed to catch a full meal. It is better not to disturb you if you can.’

Duan Bai Yue was distressed and annoyed, so he first dabbed a handkerchief with warm water and gently wiped his face clean, then applied medicine: "Does it still hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt all the time." Chu Yuan said, "It's just a little ticklish."

"It's because I didn't think it through earlier." Duan Bai Yue put his hair back together. He could sneeze in the dusty Xu residence, let alone cover his whole face with medicine. Fortunately, it was only half a day, otherwise, it would have been worse.

His face was icy and cold, and the itching he had just felt in the restaurant was no longer there, but it was not uncomfortable. Chu Yuan looked at Duan Bai Yue's face close at hand, and said calmly: "Looking at your expression, it looks like you are going to disfigure your face."

"Nonsense." Duan Bai Yue was dumbfounded, "Don't worry, it will be fine in the morning at most."

Chu Yuan said, "Hmm."

Duan Bai Yue continued to check carefully and found that there was really nothing serious, and after the medicine had been applied, the red spots had also receded quite a lot, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

Chu Yuan looked at him with some amusement.

"You're still laughing." Duan Bai Yue sat beside him, "I won't take you to play like this next time."

“But tomorrow the people from the carriage dealer will go to Qiufeng Village to pull the goods." Chu Yuan said.

“I'll just go." Duan Bai Yue said, “You are waiting for news at the station.”

"Your Majesty." Eunuch Si Xi said again from outside, "Do you want to summon the imperial physician?"

"No need." Chu Yuan said.

Eunuch Si Xi was very worried, is it really not necessary, otherwise it would be better to take a look.

"Eunuch don't have to worry." Duan Bai Yue opened the door, "This king will take care of Emperor Chu."

Eunuch Si Xi could only nod his head and sigh bitterly in his heart.

People say that the Xinan Mansion is full of poison, but now it seems to be true.

How could a disguise make the Emperor look so red?

In the room, Duan Bai Yue saw Chu Yuan resting, so he sat on the edge of the bed and extinguished one of the candle flames.

Chu Yuan asked, "Isn't Duan Wang going next door?"

"I'll keep an eye on you." Duan Bai Yue covered him with the blanket, "If you feel uncomfortable anywhere, tell me."

"You think of me as too weak." Chu Yuan laughed.

Duan Bai Yue thought to himself, But I am just too weak.

But after thinking about it, he obviously couldn't say it, so he said, “Sleep.”

Chu Yuan couldn't beat him, he wanted to lean sideways against the wall, but he was pressed down again: “There is still medicine on your face, don't move, just sleep like this.”

……

Eunuch Si Xi wondered why Xinan Wang had not come out when the candle flame had gone out.

Duan Bai Yue leaned against the bedside, quietly watching over the person beside him, and closed his eyes to recuperate. After a while, he checked on him again and waited until the red spots had completely faded and even checked his pulse to make sure nothing else was wrong before he got up and went back to his room.

Listening to the soft sound of the door of the house, Chu Yuan opened his eyes and looked at the top of the bed, with a little...smile on the corners of his lips for no reason. He hugged the quilt sideways, but he was out of the gods all night.

Early the next morning, Duan Bai Yue secretly went to Qiufeng Village. He waited until the afternoon, and then he saw the Wu family's carriage driver pulling up at the end of the village. The man from yesterday greeted them warmly, and they laughed and carried the finished pieces of wood onto the cart. After counting the pieces and settling the bill on the spot, the two of them dispersed.

Duan Bai Yue raised his eyebrows, the silver was really not that small.

The man drove the carriage all the way back to Dayan City and sent the wooden pieces to different warehouses in batches. At the end of the day, there were three large boxes left, which looked like the wooden boxes from yesterday.

Duan Bai Yue followed the man all the way, first through the private house behind the shop, then around and finally into an old and dilapidated courtyard, where he took out the key and opened the door, carrying the three large boxes inside. After taking a look around to make sure no one had noticed, he sashayed back to the front.

The house looked like it was leaking in all directions, and no one knew how long it had taken to repair it, even the roof looked like it could leak with one foot. Duan Bai Yue leaned against the window and took a look inside, but was slightly stunned - the room was empty, except for a few pieces of broken wooden boards, and the three boxes just now were not even a shadow.

There are secret passages,...... Duan Bai Yue smiled and turned around to go back to the courier house.

"A secret passage?" Chu Yuan was surprised at his words.

"If you want to do something unseen, you have to do it in a secret place." Duan Baiyue said, "Although we didn't find the mechanism today, it doesn't matter, we will be able to see the clues after a few more times."

"Will there be any danger?" Chu Yuan asked.

"There shouldn't be any danger, just don't scare the snake." Duan Bai Yue asked, "What about you? Have you found out about the relationship between the Wu family's carriage dealership and Xu Zhiqiu?"

"They are very close." Chu Yuan said, "But this carriage dealership is one of the most prosperous shops in Dayan City, so it's not surprising that it has had a few more dealings with the government."

"There are many carriage shops in the city, when did the Wu family become popular?" Duan Bai Yue asked.

Chu Yuan replied, "Two years ago."

“In other words, before Xu Zhiqiu took office, the Wu Family carriage shop was still a little-known shop. To have today's climate, it must be secretly supported by the government." Duan Bai Yue said, “One more thing, the woman who pretended to be a firewood deliverer before, after leaving the house, went back to the Wu family carriage dealership, like a rough maid."

Chu Yuan asked, "What should we do next?"

"Why don't we just let a long line catch a big fish?" Duan Bai Yue said, "I will keep an eye on the carriage house, at least to find out what they are doing in secret."

"Then I will send someone to keep an eye on Xu Zhiqiu's end." Chu Yuan said, "From what you said that day, it seems that Lan Ji has almost pushed him to the brink of extinction. He will probably make a decision in the next few days."

Duan Bai Yue nodded: "Okay.”

“Duan Wang!" The two of them were talking, but when he saw him leaning over coldly, Chu Yuan instinctively hid back.

“What are you afraid of?” Duan Bai Yue smiled blankly, “Business is over, let me look at your face, how's it going?"

"It's alright." Chu Yuan said, "Si Xi insisted on dragging the accompanying physician to come and see it this morning."

"And then what?" Duan Bai Yue pulled a chair over and sat beside him.

"Then the physician observed and checked the pulse, and found that nothing was wrong, but he did not dare to say that he had not diagnosed anything, so he kept on trembling there." Chu Yuan said.

Duan Bai Yue laughed: "This is not like your nature, deliberately scaring people."

"Your Majesty." Eunuch Si Xi said outside, "The evening meal has been prepared."

Duan Bai Yue's mind instantly conjured up a bowl of green vegetables and tofu.

"Pass it on." Chu Yuan commanded.

Duan Bai Yue thought, ‘Fortunately, I got some extra oil and salt yesterday.’

Eunuch Si Xi opened the door and brought in the dishes one by one, usually three or four dishes would be finished, but this time there were at least seven plates and eight bowls on the table, and a big fish - it was really big.

Duan Bai Yue: "......"

Chu Yuan picked up the bowl and said, "Is Duan Wang going to keep watching?"

Duan Bai Yue felt that he needed to explain that he was not always able to eat as much as he did yesterday, but that he had been eating bean curd and vegetables for several days in a row, and his stomach was just a bit empty of oil and salt.

However, Chu Yuan had already taken a piece of pork ribs and was slowly eating it.

So Duan Bai Yue swallowed his words - if he could eat a few more pieces of meat every meal, it would be worth it.

Inside, the candle flames danced and the only sound was the sound of the two of them eating.

Duan Bai Yue asked, "The night pearl?"

"Hm?" Chu Yuan lifted his head, not hearing clearly, "What night pearl?"

"There's something glowing in the cupboard." Duan Bai Yue reached out and pointed.

Chu Yuan looked at it, and then said, "It's Fenxing."

Duan Bai Yue smiled, "You've been carrying it around with you?"

Chu Yuan continued to eat: "No."

Duan Bai Yue served a bowl of soup him, but he felt that something seemed wrong, thought about it and asked, "Is it really Fenxing?"

Chu Yuan: "......"

What is the need to lie about such things?

"The day I got it from Nine Mysteries, it was not even as good as a night pearl, not to mention glowing." Duan Bai Yue explained.

Chu Yuan froze slightly, then stood up and opened the door of the cabinet, taking out a bead from it.

It was blue and round, translucent like a cat's eye of a different colour.

Duan Bai Yue: "......"

"Is it wrong?" Chu Yuan handed the bead back to him.

Duan Bai Yue took it in his hand and saw that it was indeed in the shape of Fenxing, but ...... was actually glowing?

Chu Yuan was also puzzled: "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Duan Bai Yue returned the object to it, "No wonder everyone wants it, it really has a spiritual energy."

Chu Yuan put Fenxing back in the palm of his hand: “I don't know what the use is, I just hear people talk about it occasionally." I accidentally mentioned that the two of them were young at that time, but he didn't expect that one day, it would actually be found by him.

“Just put it away if you like it, no matter what use it is, you can be happy when you look at it." Duan Bai Yue said, “If you want anything else in the future, just say it."

Chu Yuan took the beads back, sat back at the table and continued to finish the soup, and drank another cup of tea to gargle his mouth.

Duan Bai Yue felt that he was a little crazy again, and even when he wiped his mouth, he felt very pleasing to the eye.

Chu Yuan said, "Duan Wang can go back.”

Duan Bai Yue: “...”

Chu Yuan looked at him.

Duan Bai Yue asked, “Can't I sleep next door?"

“How can a hard board bed be comfortable." Chu Yuan shook his head.

Duan Bai Yue said to himself, ‘Here the bed is soft, but-’

"Duan Wang." Chu Yuan interrupted him from his drifting thoughts.

Duan Bai Yue sighed: "Ok."

Today was the 15th day of the lunar calendar, so it was time to go back to take the medicine and practice.

Duan Nian was waiting for him at the inn, and there was a letter from Nan Mo Xie on the table.

Duan Bai Yue asked, "Can I not read it?"

Duan Nian looked bitter: "Wang Ye, forgive me if you don't read it, afraid that Master Nan will be fed me the worms."

Duan Bai Yue could only open it with a headache.

Inside was a book of martial arts secrets - only one, really. There were eight stances and an internal martial arts technique, which was not difficult to read.

Duan Bai Yue opened another piece of paper and saw that it was densely packed with a lot of bragging about this martial art. It could cure all kinds of illnesses, from wind chills and headaches to men's impotence and inactivity, and it could even cure women's abdominal pain and post-natal bleeding.

Duan Nian looked at it with trepidation: "Does Wang Ye really want to practice?"

Duan Bai Yue asked in return, "Why not?"

Duan Nian was speechless.

What else is there to do?

Any normal martial artist who was given this so-called "secret manual" would not want to practice it, right?

Duan Bai Yue picked up the decoction on the table and drank it all, and then went into his bedroom.

Duan Nian had to guard the outside with anxiety, fearing that his Wang Ye might inadvertently develop a problem with his practice.

After all, Master Nan did not seem very reliable.

At Xinan Wang's Mansion, Duan Yao was lying on Nan Mo Xie's back: "Master!"

"No." Nan Mo Xie refused in one breath.

"I don't want to practice, but I can't even look at it?" Duan Yao rubbed his face against his.

"If I say no, no." Nan Mo Xie locked the secret compartment and casually dismissed the matter, "Yao-er's eyes are wrong, there's no Bodhi Sutra here."

It's clearly there! Duan Yao's eyes were filled with resentment.

　Master was so stingy.

—— ฅʕ•̫͡•ʔฅ ——ㄚ

Note: ...

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