Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 30 Is it true?
The woodcutter, carrying firewood on his back, stopped at the door of the restaurant.

He knocked gently on the door.

Soon, the servant opened the door and looked at him coldly.

"Want some firewood?"

"You didn't get caught in the rain, did you? Move in."

The woodcutter walked into the restaurant and the servant closed the door. The man dropped the firewood and quickly walked into the inner room.

The servant was watching and guarding in the courtyard.

The shopkeeper met the man and closed the door again.

"Go ahead."

The woodcutter frowned and said, "You are right, this guy is definitely not that ordinary!"

“As soon as our people arrived at Zhangjia Village, they were arrested.”

"What??"

"It is difficult for the village official in Zhangjia Village to find a beggar."

"he?"

The shopkeeper's expression became more solemn.

"You go on."

"Fortunately, our people came in the name of collecting medicine, so he didn't make things difficult for us. He just asked for some money."

"But there are too few people in this village. If we go over to investigate, the risk is too great."

"We found a man who used to live in Zhangjia Village. He now fishes by the river and has moved away from the village."

The woodcutter paused, then said with some joy: "We actually dug up something!!"

"Oh?! You say!"

"Liu Da and Liu Taozi are not from Zhangjia Village!!"

Hearing the woodcutter's words, the smile on the shopkeeper's face froze and he nodded indifferently.

"It turns out that Liu Taozi is not from Zhangjia Village. Great, I have indeed dug up important information!!"

"Don't worry, shopkeeper. I mean, they have nothing to do with Zhangjia Village. Liu Da's wife's surname is Zhang, but she is not from Zhangjia Village at all. Eight years ago, they suddenly appeared here."

"As for where they came from, even the people in the village don't know."

"Liu Da is a mysterious person. People in the village are afraid of him. He often disappears for a long time under the pretext of hunting. The longest time he disappears is several months. But every time he comes back, he brings back a lot of prey."

"He has a violent temper. When he gets angry, he beats his wife and son, and no one dares to stop him."

"He didn't talk to anyone, nor did he interact with anyone. He built a house in a peach forest outside the village. His only hobby was raising birds."

"The person I asked you to find out about is Liu Taozi, not Liu Da!"

The shopkeeper was a little angry, but he suddenly realized, "Raising birds?"

The woodcutter was a little excited, and he looked at the shopkeeper with his bright eyes.

"It seems like we are in the same business as each other."

The shopkeeper pursed his lips and asked, "What about Liu Taozi?"

"There are many rumors about him. According to the fisherman, Liu Taozi seems to be mentally ill. When he first came to the village, he was confused and sometimes talked nonsense. It didn't sound like human language, but like barbarian language."

"The villagers were terrified and even reported to the authorities to exorcise the evil spirit."

"Therefore, whenever he had an attack, Liu Da would hang him up and beat him, and often locked him in the room, not allowing him to go out. After five years of treatment, his mental illness was cured and he no longer spoke."

"Dementia??"

The shopkeeper was a little surprised, "I thought only the king of Qi had such a terrible disease."

"His mother once told people that it was caused by a fall from a horse when he was young."

The shopkeeper closed his eyes and fell into deep thought.

"Shopkeeper, do you want to continue investigating?"

"Yes, we must investigate it thoroughly."

The shopkeeper opened his eyes, with an inexplicable light flashing in them, "Do you know the name of the governor who is in charge of the Han Warrior Camp in Yecheng?"

"I don't know."

"His name is Liu Taozhi. He was probably a subordinate of He Liuhun in the past."

"We have investigated this person, but we can't find out anything. We can't find out his place of origin, birth year, family, or residence. We only know that he was born as a slave. This person always appears and disappears inexplicably."

"Few people have even seen him. We know nothing about him."

The woodcutter stood up excitedly and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Liu Taozi is that Liu Taozhi?!"

The smile on the shop owner's face froze again.

He hesitated for a moment, "Will the fisherman leak this?"

"Don't worry about that. He won't be able to leak it."

"That's good, you can go back now."

The woodcutter lowered his head and left the restaurant. When the man left, the innkeeper called the servant over and told him, "Pass the order and ask the woodcutter to return home as soon as possible and have them send someone else to replace him."

In the law school, everyone gathered in the front yard, sat at the desks, holding books, and chatting.

Everyone looked serious and taught each other, and they actually behaved like students from a county school.

Of course, Lu Qubing was familiar with those students and they would never do that.

Lu Qubing stood not far away, looking at the people who were studying seriously, a trace of loneliness flashed in his eyes.

"It's a pity that we can only read the Vinaya and not the classics." "It's not a pity. There are many people reading the classics nowadays, but they don't see any effect."

Hearing Taozi's words, Lu Qubing quickly shook his head.

"You can't say that. If you don't study the classics, you won't understand anything. You won't know about the Wei and Jin dynasties, let alone the Han dynasty."

"Classics are not just the writings of saints. Part A records the classics and the six arts, Part B records the books of philosophers, including the various philosophers, military books, mathematics, and medical skills, Part C records historical books, and Part D contains poetry and prose."

"This was divided by Xun Xu, a famous scholar back then."

"And these are not something they can learn. Isn't it a pity?"

As Lu Qubing was speaking, a figure suddenly appeared outside the door. It was the old official who delivered the meal. He did not dare to come in, but just stood outside the door, looking inside anxiously.

Lu Qubing glanced at him and said, "Brother Taozi, I'll go over first."

Lu Qubing walked through the crowd of students and quickly came to the man.

"Lu Gong!"

"I heard that a new chief priest has arrived!"

"We are gathering everyone, you better get ready quickly."

Liu Taozi looked at Lu Qubing who was leaving in a hurry, took a few steps, and sat next to Kou Liu.

"Brother."

"You haven't been to that restaurant again, have you?"

"No, brother, who are they?"

"No need to ask any more questions."

"From now on, you can study here and find a way out. It would be best if you could become a village official. Take your family with you and stay away from here."

"only!!"

The officials of the county school gathered at the gate.

There were not many people, less than twenty including the miscellaneous officials.

They all put on their most beloved clothes, washed and combed their hair, dressed themselves up and smelled fragrant, cleared their throats, and prepared themselves to welcome the guests.

When they saw Lu Qubing coming, some people greeted him with a smile.

For some reason, this good-natured man who used to be very easy to bully and whom even the officials could talk back to, has now gradually become a little solemn.

This made everyone no longer dare to look down on him. Not to mention flattering him, but they also didn't dare to bully him.

"Cheng'an has seen many major events. I heard that this new county magistrate was recommended by Lord Yang himself."

"No, I heard that he is not the county magistrate, but I am acting on his behalf to handle local affairs. He is a great nobleman!"

"Yesterday when I came to Cheng'an, I didn't even greet the nobles, but I came to the county school first. What a wise man this man is!"

"That's right! Could the person recommended by Mr. Yang be an average person? He must be a virtuous person!"

From their conversation, Lu Qubing learned that they were not welcoming the new chief priest, but the new local official.

Everyone was looking forward to this and chatting about the news about this noble man with a different kind of light in their eyes.

If it were half a month ago, perhaps Lu Lingshi would have joined them and looked forward to the arrival of this great man sent by the temple.

But now, Lu Qubing doesn't feel anything.

He stood not far away in silence, his face calm and expressionless.

During these days, he has met so-called celebrities and nobles.

He even had no expectations for the virtuous Yang Gong as rumored.

He learned one important thing - rumors are just rumors.

Suddenly, a clerk's shout was heard outside, and soldiers came in one after another.

Everyone looked at the scene, stood straight, and prepared to welcome it.

Lu Qubing stood indifferently not far away, looking into the distance, and finally, he saw the newly appointed nobleman.

Lu Qubing was stunned, with some surprise in his eyes.

Not only him, but many other officials were also stunned at this moment, with their minds blank.

A handsome man walked into the courtyard surrounded by a crowd of people.

What a handsome face this is!
What words can describe it?

Lu Qubing was the first to wake up, and thought silently in his heart: If that fat pig were still there, I'm afraid it would pounce on me, right?
The handsome man smiled and turned a blind eye to everyone's rudeness.

The officials around him couldn't help but scold him, "How dare you! Why don't you pay your respects?!"

At this moment, everyone just greeted him in a panic.

"I am Gao Su, the Duke of Lecheng County, and I am here to handle local affairs on your behalf."

"The county school in Cheng'an is really big. No wonder it can nurture so many talented people."

When everyone heard his self-introduction, they were horrified. Several of them immediately changed to kneeling and bowing, while the others were trembling with fear.

Oh my god! He is the grandson of Emperor Shenwu! The son of Emperor Wenxiang!

We were so rude just now!
Gao Changgong looked at the people in front of him who were in a state of panic and said jokingly, "I was not panicked when I saw the scholars in the county, so why are you so nervous? Aren't you afraid that I will ask for your teachings?"

Everyone calmed down and said they dared not.

Only then did Gao Changgong allow them to take him to visit the county school.

As they walked along the street, people's opinions of this noble man became higher and higher!

They had never seen such a kind and gentle nobleman. Even just standing beside him and talking to him for a few words was so intoxicating.

Even Lu Lingshi, who had been on guard, was a little shaken at this moment.

Are there really good people?
ps: Ahaha, Lanling King makes a domineering appearance. I remember that my first version was conceived with Lanling King as the protagonist. Please give me some monthly votes and recommendation tickets~~~
(End of this chapter)