Distant Mountain Battle Song

Chapter 97 The vastness of the heavens reveals the true meaning of the folk song.

"Name your price, I want this guy."

Zhang Min is a very decisive female agent. After Yun Ce introduced Peng Zeng's special qualities, she quickly grasped the key point: as long as someone like Peng Zeng is sent to the Panxing Tower, the test that she has been struggling to pass will definitely be passed easily.

Moreover, this time, to be on the safe side and barring any unforeseen circumstances, she plans to make a deal with Yun Ce rather than extort him.

Yun Ce laughed and said, "I've saved him twice, but he still refuses to come with me. I might as well take the money and exchange it for some fine jewelry for E Ji."

As soon as Yun Ce finished speaking, Zhang Min immediately replied, "Twenty gold ingots. This is the maximum amount of money and provisions I can use."

Yun Ce said with satisfaction, "It's a deal."

Zhang Min rubbed her hands together and stared at Peng Zeng as if he were an unparalleled beauty, saying, "I want to see with my own eyes how he recovered."

Yun Ce laughed heartily and said, "Of course, you will take care of him for the next few days."

Zhang Min was overjoyed and said, "Of course."

Peng Zeng's mouth moved as if he wanted to speak, but then he saw half a soft sword slide out of Zhang Min's sleeve. Although it was a soft sword, just by looking at its gleaming cold light, Peng Zeng had no doubt about its sharpness.

Zhang Min waved her hand, and the soft sword cut open the tightly wrapped cloth from head to crotch, exposing Peng Zeng's muscular male features. Zhang Min did not shy away from this and even used her hands to examine Peng Zeng's wounds.

"The knife wound here is two and three-tenths inches deep, almost damaging the heart meridian. There is a lot of bleeding. If there is no medical treatment, an ordinary person can only survive for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn."

The knife wound here is three and a half inches deep, with the blade penetrating the abdomen. It would have been inevitable that the intestines would have been severed. Yet, there is no sign of impending intestinal rupture. Tsk tsk, what a healthy body.

"This is a knife wound..."

Yun Ce and Zhang Min examined the wounds one by one. Sometimes, in order to check clearly, Zhang Min even cut the stitches that Gouzi had made. In a short time, Peng Zeng's wounds, which were originally healing happily, were messed up again by her.

"I am a conscientious seller. When I sell you goods, I can't just talk about the advantages without mentioning the flaws. Let me tell you, this person has a skill that others don't have, which is to ruin a business that started off very well at the most critical moment."

Zhang Min wiped the blood from her hands with a handkerchief and said with a smug look, "It's alright, extraordinary people always do extraordinary things."

The two had a very pleasant conversation. From beginning to end, neither Yun Ce nor Zhang Min asked Peng Zeng for his opinion, or rather, they never intended to ask.

Zhang Min stayed by Peng Zeng's side and refused to leave, while Yun Ce went to comfort E Ji.

Upon entering the house, he saw Eji holding a puppy and standing there in a daze. He sat down next to her and laughed, "Are you still upset about not killing Zhang Min?"

Eji shook her head and said, "I cannot kill Zhang Min. Even if you don't pull her away, I will still back down."

"Eji is usually cheerful and never keeps her troubles to herself. What's wrong with her today?"

Eji leaned her head on Yun Ce's shoulder and said, "My mother told me a long, long time ago that the more a man gives to a woman, the more it means that man is about to leave her."

Upon hearing this, Yun Ce took out the deposit Zhang Min had just given him from his sleeve, placed a pure gold ingot in E Ji's hand, and asked, "Do you want it?"

Upon seeing Jin Zi, Ji immediately clenched her fists tightly, and a tear slid down her cheek. Soon, more tears began to fall. She hugged Jin Ting, threw aside the puppy, and held onto Yun Ce's arm with both hands, saying, "I want the gold that my lord gives me, and I don't want my lord to leave me."

Yun Ce gently stroked her hair and said, "You are the luckiest woman in the world. You deserve to enjoy what you are meant to have: lasting wealth, a loving husband and wife, many children and grandchildren, and a long life."

Eji gave a bitter smile, looked up at Yun Ce and said, "Remove the 'long life' from me, I only want the first three, even if it's just one day."

Yun Ce patted E Ji's cheek and said, "Be bolder. Now that we're together, let's be a little greedier and have everything, the best of everything."

Eji smiled and said, "Alright."

Since Zhang Min arrived at the Royal Hunting Grounds, Yun Ce has been completely cut off from news of Chuyun City. Cheng Xiang, the former Black Armor Army centurion sent by Lao Cao, rode the Thunder Smoke Beast to Chuyun City yesterday.

The man returned in the afternoon, looking dejected. Yun Ce, E Ji, and Zhang Min, who were sitting side by side on the threshold cracking open some kind of beans in their shells, happened to see his dejected appearance.

Zhang Min turned to look at Yun Ce and said, "Let's make a bet."

Yun Ce shook his head and said, "Your sources are clearer than mine, I'm not taking this bet." E Ji spat out two bean skins and said disdainfully, "It's like saying your parents died."

Zhang Min laughed and said, "It might be even more serious than losing your parents. When I came out, the city was already in complete chaos. Many times, you couldn't even tell who was beating you."

The rebels fought against the government troops, and sometimes they fought against the rebels. The wealthy households in the city united to fight against the government troops, but more often they also fought against the rebels and traitors who coveted their wealth, as well as the local thugs and ruffians.

In short, these days in the city, if you see someone, just immediately swing your knife and chop them up.

To curry favor with those people, the man surnamed Cheng escorted their families to the Royal Hunting Grounds to escape, but left his own family in the city to be killed. Isn't that ridiculous?

Yun Ce laughed and said, "A good life is one of gains and losses. This guy had the ability to climb over the city wall to save his family but didn't. It's clear that in his eyes, his family is something that can be sacrificed."

Zhang Min nodded and said, "When Zhou Chengming selected the Black Armor Cavalry, the conditions were very strict. He must have been one of the best to become a centurion. A limp is not a serious injury for a cavalryman. There must be something else going on that led to his dismissal by Zhou Chengming."

Perhaps it was the wind from the royal hunting grounds, or the white clouds drifting from the Gaoliang Mountains, or even the aroma of delicious food from home; they all masked the scorching poison emanating from Izumo City, two hundred miles away. This place was like another world, untouched by any unpleasantness.

The next day, Lao Cheng rode the Thunder Smoke Beast to Chuyun City again. This time, he carried a grappling hook to climb the city walls. While Yun Ce was still feeling guilty for his misjudgment, Lao Cheng returned before noon, with the grappling hook still hanging on the saddle, just as he had left.

However, Lao Cheng seemed very relaxed when he returned this time, as if a huge weight had been lifted from his heart. Perhaps his family members were all dead.

The only good news is that Peng Zeng's wound is healing incredibly fast, much faster than when Yun Ce saved him last time, almost a third faster.

Zhang Min sent out one messenger bird a day. On the third day, she received six messenger birds. Every time she opened a silk scroll, the corners of Zhang Min's mouth would turn up a little. After the contents of the six silk scrolls were completely read, Zhang Min slapped Yun Ce on the shoulder and said, "If you go to Chang'an and have no food or place to stay, you can come and rely on me. I will help you."

"when are we leaving?"

"Tomorrow afternoon, a giant albatross will come to take us away. Tell your wife to keep an eye on Dog King and make sure he doesn't get into a conflict with the albatross."

Yun Ce understood that "Xintianyou" was clearly a type of song, but after listening to Zhang Min's words, he realized that it should be a means of transportation, and judging from the name, it should be able to fly.

What is Xintianyou?

Zhang Min pointed to the large bird trail she had ridden up.

"It's ten times bigger than that; it's the king of birds."

Yun Ce looked at Zhang Min's large bird thoughtfully and asked, "Is the Xintianyou easy to catch?"

Zhang Min looked at Yun Ce and chuckled, "Don't dream about it. From the day these birds start flying, they only land when they are laying eggs. The female bird dies immediately after laying the eggs, and the male bird dies after incubating the eggs without eating or drinking. From the day their chicks hatch, they have to quickly leave their nests high on the cliff and fall off the cliff. If they learn to fly during the fall, they can live; if they don't learn, they will fall to their deaths."

This applies to ordinary albatrosses as well. As for the Bird King albatross, if you're born with it, you're born with it; if you're not, you're not.
"This king of the Xintianyou birds at Panxing Tower is inherited; we didn't capture it ourselves. There's only one like it in the entire Han Dynasty. If it weren't for receiving the extraordinary Peng Zeng this time, even with my authority, I wouldn't be qualified to use the Xintianyou bird for another hundred years."

Seeing Yun Ce's gaze fall on the large bird again, Zhang Min immediately said warily, "Don't even think about it. Owning this thing is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family."

Yun Ce was now extremely curious about the Xintianyou that Zhang Min had mentioned. Although large birds were rare, they were still within Yun Ce's comprehension. However, the Xintianyou was something he couldn't understand. He couldn't imagine how big that bird could be.

In five days, Peng Zeng's serious injuries had almost completely healed. This all happened right under Zhang Min's nose, and to her it was like a miracle. What Zhang Min envied most was that this guy had clearly been stabbed eighteen times, but now, apart from a red mark, there were no other scars on his skin.

Accompanied by Zhang Min, Peng Zeng left the house where he was recuperating. The first thing he asked Yun Ce was about the whereabouts of Granny Hu.

Yun Ce said he didn't know, but given the current chaos outside, an old woman with money and food might not survive long in the wilderness where bandits roam. Even if she managed to evade bandits, she probably wouldn't last long.

“I originally intended to take care of her in her old age. She shouldn’t have hurt me; in the end, she hurt herself as well.”

Yun Ce chuckled and said, "You've never made the right choice. You finally stood firm once, and you got hurt so badly."

Hopefully, the path I've chosen for you this time will be easier.

Peng Zeng shook his head, his eyes devoid of light. Like Yun Ce, he looked up at a dark cloud appearing on the horizon. The cloud did not remain high in the sky but descended rapidly. Just as Xintianyou's wings glided over the Royal Hunting Ground, the puppy in Eji's arms suddenly raised its head, baring its teeth and looking at the sky.

(End of this chapter)