Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 34

Soon, the enemy...

The rebels surged forward, this time with greater discipline. One man wielded a shield knife in front, solely for self-defense, while four or five spearheads emerged from his side, advancing swiftly. Simultaneously, more rebels scaled the walls on both sides, long spears in hand, kneeling low, slowly approaching—clearly intending to get close to Li Ji before thrusting their spears down.

Li Ji thought to himself, "I'm doomed. This time, I'm not just being attacked from both sides, I'm completely surrounded..."

He seemed to see Death grinning as it approached him step by step. In his despair, countless heroic figures flashed through his mind... but actually, none of them. His mind was basically blank; he only wanted to kill one more person so he could die with fewer regrets! Just like before, he didn't wait for the enemy troops on the north and south to approach simultaneously before charging north. Halfway there, he heard screams of agony as the rebel soldiers who had climbed the wall fell to the ground one after another—it must have been A-Cuo reaching out to help again.

I wonder just how many flying swords that little girl is carrying? Theoretically, it shouldn't be too many...

Li Ji's eyes widened in fury, his teeth clenched as if about to shatter, and he lunged forward, swiftly slashing down at the enemy at the front wielding a shield-like blade. Knowing his strength, the enemy merely gripped the blade with both hands in defense, unwilling to easily retaliate. With a series of clangs, the two exchanged four blows in an instant.

But then the enemy soldiers behind him began to thrust and stab relentlessly, forcing Li Ji to twist his waist and dodge, retreating with his feet. With each step he took back, the enemy wielding the shield-knife advanced like a shadow. For every three steps Li Ji retreated, the enemy followed three steps forward. Li Ji inwardly cursed, for the rapid footsteps behind him were clearly getting closer, and he, busy dodging the spear thrusts, didn't even have time to turn his head.

I never imagined that after transmigrating to this world, I would die in this inexplicable place before accomplishing almost nothing... Li Shi, I died to save your mother, will you be grateful? Or will you scold me for misjudging Li Changwei, saying he's a useless piece of trash, completely unfit for any important task, since Consort Shen will ultimately meet her demise...?

Just then, a voice was heard shouting from afar: "The Tang army is entering the city! The Tang army is coming!"

Those rebel soldiers only came to plunder some valuables and rape a few palace maids. They never intended to fight a bloody battle with the women of the inner palace. It was only because Li Ji was too brave and killed several people in an instant that the general in charge of the troops was really embarrassed. If I can't dismember this spineless bastard, I won't be able to vent my hatred. Moreover, if I meet my colleagues in the future and talk about this, how shameful I will be.

The general hid behind the army, confident that he was safe, which is why he was willing to drive his soldiers to fight to the death and surround Li Ji. He didn't care how many soldiers died, because he wouldn't get hurt. Sooner or later, he would turn that eunuch into a hedgehog.

However, upon hearing that the Tang army had already entered the city, the general couldn't help but panic. He knew that many rebel soldiers had already looted and fled the palace or even the city before nightfall, while he, preoccupied with arguing with a eunuch, had delayed until now. If the Tang army entered the city, with their massive numbers, not only would he be unable to defeat them, but he probably wouldn't even be able to escape far!

We need to leave quickly; we can't stay any longer.

He immediately turned around, ignoring his own soldiers, and ran north.

Soon, shouts of "Tang army enters the city!" rang out again, not just from one person, but from many shouting in unison. Even the most oblivious rebels heard the news and were filled with fear. Coupled with the fact that their commander had left, they lost all will to fight and fled, abandoning their weapons.

It was only inches away. Seeing that Li Ji had nowhere to avoid it, several spear tips were about to pierce him at the same time. He almost closed his eyes and waited for death, but the spear tips were withdrawn... Then the rebels ran away frantically from both ends of the alley, leaving Li Ji alone, holding his sword, standing in the pile of corpses in a daze.

—Am I really that lucky? It's already dark, how could the Tang army have attacked the city so hastily and managed to break through so easily?

While Li Ji was in a daze—mainly because one foot had already stepped off the precipice of life and death, but was suddenly pulled back by someone, which felt unreal and his brain short-circuited for a moment—he heard someone on the wall call out, "Come up quickly!" Li Ji looked up and saw A Cuo with half of his body sticking out of the wall, his right hand hanging down as if to catch him.

He then took a deep breath and said, "No need, since the Tang army has already entered the city..."

Unexpectedly, the little girl glared and shouted, "People say the Tang army entered the city, but did the Tang army really enter the city? Even if the Tang army entered the city, there would definitely be a riot when they first entered the palace. Do you think they would kill or not kill a Yan eunuch covered in blood and holding a knife? You have such a smart face, yet you are so stupid!"

Li Ji thought to himself, "Hmm, do I look that smart?" He knew the little girl was right, but he still refused to reach out and take her hand—"I'm too weak, you can't pull me up. Let's put the ladder down..."

Before he could finish speaking, he heard footsteps again and looked in the direction of the sound. He saw a streak of fire rushing towards him from the south through the pitch-black night. Li Ji's heart jumped into his throat again. He quickly gripped his sword and assumed a fighting stance.

He had just breathed a sigh of relief when he suddenly felt a soreness in his arm muscles. He had no idea whether he could still fight Jia Yuyong in a fierce battle, or how many he could kill this time...

As the flames drew closer, the man in the lead called out, "Is that An Zhili, the eunuch, up ahead?"

Li Ji's rising confidence immediately deflated, and he couldn't help but curse, "You're the eunuch! Your whole family are eunuchs!"

Chapter 21, Holy and Good Temple

Li Ji cursed loudly, "You're the eunuch! Your whole family are eunuchs!" Although he couldn't see the person's face clearly yet, the voice sounded familiar. Who else could it be but Chen Fu?

Meanwhile, Chen Fu led his men, torches in hand, to provide backup. Hearing Li Ji's curses, he couldn't help but chuckle. But then he saw the ground littered with corpses, and in the torchlight, he saw Li Ji covered in blood, and he gasped in horror.

"Changwei, are you alright?"

"What's so good about it? If you had arrived any later, you would have been collecting my corpse—has the Tang army really already entered the city?"

Chen Fu came over and grabbed Li Ji's arms, looking him up and down. He said, "The Tang army is still encamped at Xin'an... Hearing that the rebel army was looting the palace, we rushed to their aid. Fearing we were outnumbered and unable to reach Sichu, we lied and said the Tang army had entered the city to intimidate them." He then glanced at the wall, as if to ask, "Shen..."

Li Ji reached out and covered his mouth, then whispered a warning: "Since the Tang army has not yet entered the city, we must be wary of the rebels nearby. We must not leak the news yet—yes, that person is in the courtyard."

Then he looked up at the wall and saw that A-Cuo had half his head sticking out, looking out hesitantly. Li Ji said, "He's a friend—the rebels have retreated, you can open the door and let him in."

But A-Cuo shook his head: "It can't be opened... I'll just put the ladder down."

The problem is that the door is blocked by two large water vats. These things, with the water inside, weigh about half a thousand pounds. Everyone can barely push them together, but they can't pull them—there are no levers, so there's no way to exert any force. If Li Ji were still here, it might be possible, but the problem is that Li Ji is outside the courtyard.

Fortunately, the ladder was quickly lowered, and Li Ji, Chen Fu, and the others climbed up and jumped into the courtyard one after another.

Li Ji had already inquired and learned that Chen Fu had brought twenty servants from the Yu family this time—and although they were called servants, they were actually used as guards and bodyguards. They were divided into two teams, one led by Chen Fu and the other under Yun Lin's command. They had come separately but had not yet arrived.

Yu Ling was a well-informed person in Luoyang. He knew that An Qingxu had fled in the dead of night before many of the rebels had even heard the news. He knew those rebels well and knew what they would do once they learned that the city had been abandoned and their families had become expendable pawns. So he immediately contacted the officials and wealthy merchants with whom he had always been on good terms, gathered his servants together, and armed them for self-defense—if they were scattered and fought individually, they would most likely be defeated one by one.

Now that everyone had gathered, they needed to find a place with high walls and thick gates, easy to defend and difficult to attack, as a plan for a long-term defense. In fact, Yu Ling had already made a plan and had informed his relatives and friends in advance. The place he chose was in the southeast of Luoyang City, in a neighborhood called Zhangshan, and the site was the Shengshan Temple.

Shengshan Temple, originally named Zhongxing Temple, was first built in the first year of the Shenlong era. It was a Buddhist monastery. The following year, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang renamed it Shengshan in honor of Empress Wu Zetian. As this temple belonged to the imperial family, it was naturally fortified with high walls and thick gates, and occupied a large area. In the fourth year of the Jinglong era, in order to build more monks' quarters, dozens of nearby houses were destroyed, occupying almost half of the entire neighborhood. Not to mention the families and servants of a dozen or so wealthy merchants and officials, even if all the people from the surrounding neighborhoods crowded in, there would still be room for them.

Meanwhile, Yu Ling sent Chen Fu and Yun Lin with some of his household servants to the palace to fetch Consort Shen. Now that Li Ji had confirmed the woman was Consort Shen, if he didn't rescue her in time and something went wrong, Yu Ling himself would be in deep trouble. Even if he could protect his family amidst the chaos of the Yan and Tang armies, what good would it do? After Li Chu entered the city, his first order might be to execute Yu Ling and his entire family for failing to rescue Consort Shen…

Knowing the situation was still critical, Chen Fu succinctly explained the situation to Li Ji in a few words, then followed Li Ji into the kitchen. At that moment, the palace servants and eunuchs in the back courtyard, having heard that the rebel army had left, those with a little more courage huddled in the front courtyard to observe the situation. When Chen Fu saw so many people, he couldn't help but gasp.

They immediately focused their attention on Li Ji, their expression conveying the message: Who is this person? Quickly bring him out so we can protect him and retreat to Shengshan Temple.

Unexpectedly, Li Ji shook his head and instead ordered, "Move the water vat away and open the door—" He pointed at Chen Fu and said, "This is a good friend. You can all escape the palace with him and avoid the soldiers."

Chen Fu thought to himself, "Are you crazy? There might still be mutinous soldiers in the palace and on the streets. With so many people, how are we going to get through... Oh dear, another one has appeared! Just how deep is this courtyard, and how many more are hiding behind it?"

Suddenly, he felt Li Ji squeeze his wrist hard, then whispered in his ear, "As the saying goes, 'Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda'..."

Chen Fu thought to himself, "Is there really such a saying? But I don't believe in Buddhism and have never given away a single penny. What's the point of telling me this?"

Li Ji then said, “There are quite a few people. If we don’t take them with us, do you think they will let us go alone? If they start making a fuss, it might attract soldiers… Besides, I can’t tell which of them have any connection with that person—she has been hiding here for two whole years. Doesn’t she have any ties with him? If we leave them behind, I’m afraid that person will not be happy.”

Having no other option, Chen Fu waved his hand and said, "Everyone, please be quiet and keep your voices down as we escape from the palace..."

Someone asked, "Sir, where do you come from? And where are we going?"

“We are members of Lord Yu’s family. Lord Yu is currently at Shengshan Temple, where he has food and weapons…”

"Is it Yu Baiwan from Jishanfang?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji couldn't help but chuckle—so, Old Man Yu had such a nickname, which was quite fitting. Even the palace servants knew his nickname; it seemed this fellow wielded considerable influence in Luoyang.

As an outsider like Chen Fu, he naturally couldn't command the hundreds of palace servants and eunuchs. It was only thanks to Yang Sichu, supported by Consort Shen, that the commotion was quelled and the crowd calmed. Although Sichu was only a sixth-rank official—the highest rank among female historians was the head of each bureau, and even the fifth-rank officials might not be willing to obey—Old Madam Yang was already over fifty years old and had the longest and most senior position in the palace. Anyone who was still able-bodied and could run to Sichu for refuge was undoubtedly her junior.

So several burly men worked together to move the water vat, open the courtyard gate, and then, led by Chen Fu, formed a long line and fled straight out of the palace. When they passed through the alleyways outside the courtyard, littered with corpses and blood, many palace servants and eunuchs felt their limbs go weak and nearly collapsed, needing their companions to support them as they walked. Of course, some were a little braver; Li Ji collected many weapons from the corpses and distributed them—"Even if you can't fight, you can use these for self-defense."

The palace servants and eunuchs looked at Li Ji differently now than before. Some were shocked, some were fearful, but a few, regardless of gender, also showed admiration. Among them, the head cook Pang pushed through the crowd, reaching out to grab Li Ji's arm, saying, "Today, thanks to you, Zhili! I knew long ago that although you look young, you are no ordinary person. You are destined to become the Director of the Palace Attendants or the Junior Director of the Palace Attendants..."

Li Ji quickly shrank back and dodged, thinking to himself, "Don't be ridiculous. I'll change out of this filthy outfit as soon as I leave the palace. I'd never be a palace eunuch!" But he said perfunctorily, "Sister Pang, please don't wander around. The alley is very narrow. If you all walk in order, you can get there faster."

He carried a horizontal sword, with a shield tucked into one side of his belt and four spearheads he had severed himself on the other, making him fully armed. He had also collected several flying swords and returned them to A-Cuo. A number of people were gathered around A-Cuo, asking her how she could speak, and noting that her eyes didn't seem as dull as before… A-Cuo couldn't answer, only shaking her head and avoiding their questions.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Li Ji pulled A-Cuo aside and said to the others, "Let's talk outside—A-Cuo and I are stronger, so we should cover the rear."

Unlike Chang'an, Luoyang's palace was not located directly north of the imperial city, but was partially surrounded by it. Furthermore, the imperial city was not located in the northern center of the city, but rather in the northwest corner.

The Luoyang Palace City was mainly divided into four parts. The main southern part, including the East Palace, was surrounded by the Imperial City on three sides. The northern part included Taoguang Garden, Yaoyi City, and Yuanbi City. With thousands of palaces and gates, it was difficult to break through in a short time. Who knew which city gate was still defended by rebels or was completely closed and difficult to open?

The same applies to the east side of the palace. Beyond the East Palace lies the Imperial City Wall, followed by the East City Wall. The west side is also the Imperial City Wall, which forms the northwest outer wall of the entire city. Naturally, it was locked and closed long ago when a major enemy was approaching. Therefore, Chen Fu and his men infiltrated through the Duanmen Gate (the main gate of the Imperial City) and the Youyemen Gate north of the Tianjin Bridge—the same gate through which the rebel army that raided the palace entered—and after passing through the Imperial City, they entered the palace through the Yingtianmen Gate (the main gate of the palace) and the Changlemen Gate. On their return journey, they naturally retraced their steps.

Fortunately, they hadn't gone far when Yunlin and his men arrived. He was late because they had encountered a chaotic battle and were forced to fight, resulting in the loss of half their men, and almost all of them were wounded. When he saw this huge, dark mass of people, Yunlin was speechless with astonishment.

During their escape, they still occasionally encountered small groups of rebel soldiers, but seeing that these palace servants and eunuchs were guarded by strong, valiant soldiers with swords, most dared not approach. A few less bright ones—the slightly smarter ones had already looted their fill and fled—would come up and ask, "Whose family are you? You've robbed so many palace servants; could you spare one or two of us?"

Of course, their response will be a fatal blow.

However, no one knew how many rebel troops were still lingering in the palace, or whether they would gather their companions and launch a large-scale attack. Therefore, Chen Fu urged them repeatedly, and Yang Sichu also warned them from time to time, demanding that everyone maintain order and move as fast as possible...

Li Ji and A Cuo walked side by side to cover the rear. After a while, they had just arrived at Chang Le Gate when they suddenly heard someone calling out from not far away, "Help... help me..." Li Ji recognized the voice and rushed over to check. He saw that it was the old eunuch who had once taught him. He had been stabbed in the leg and was lying in a pool of blood, struggling to get up.

Without saying a word, Li Ji carried it on his back and left.

The old eunuch finally saw who he was and felt somewhat relieved. He then leaned on Li Ji's back and asked in a low voice, "Is that person... really him?" Li Ji nodded, "Thanks to... the old gentleman for conveying the message."

Where is it located?

Li Ji pointed forward, and then heard the old eunuch say from behind, "Thank God, good people are indeed rewarded. Since I was able to save her life and perform this meritorious deed, I will surely be reborn into a good family in my next life and will not suffer torture again..."

He gently patted Li Ji's shoulder and said, "Go protect that person and leave me behind. Anyway, I don't have much time left..."

Li Ji shook his head: "Old sir, don't be discouraged. Of course I will save that person, and I will also save the other palace servants and eunuchs—since we've encountered them, how can we abandon them?"

A-Cuo glanced at him from the side and whispered, "You mean well, but I just hope it doesn't delay the important business."

Li Ji knew he had a sharp tongue, so he didn't dare to respond, lest he make another bold statement. He simply turned his head and smiled at her.

A-Cuo wasn't a jinx; they went through Chang Le Gate, then Right Ye Gate, and passed through Tian...

Chapter Twenty-Two, Amoghavajra

Tonight, Li Ji fought for nearly half an hour. Although his physical strength was still holding up, he was extremely exhausted mentally. The main reason was that he had never encountered such a life-or-death situation before, not to mention since his transmigration, even considering the nearly twenty years of lifespan of the original owner of this body in this world.

So he asked Yu Ling for a clean set of clothes to change into—the key wasn't the blood all over him, but the fact that he couldn't stand wearing eunuch's robes anymore—and then went to find a monk's room to sleep. Since he'd already sent A-Cuo to summon Consort Shen to meet Yu Ling—under the pretense of helping Yang Si-Chi—the heavy burden naturally fell on Yu Baiwan's shoulders, and he could finally relax a bit.

Since leaving Chang'an, Li Ji hadn't slept so soundly in almost a month; he opened his eyes to find the sun already high in the sky. He had just stretched and gotten up when he heard a voice outside the door: "Is Li Zhiguo awake? It's almost noon. I'll bring you some food." The voice sounded familiar; it was Jia Huai.

After Jia Huai brought in lunch, Li Ji ate while asking him, "What time did you arrive? I didn't see you last night." Jia Huai replied, "I didn't know Li Zhiguo had done something so serious. I rushed to Linhuai, but couldn't find him..."

The crucial issue was that Jia Huai didn't have any official documents from the military governor's office, so he couldn't enter the temple where Helan Jinming was stationed, nor could he find out where the military governor was or whether Li Zhiguo was with him. Helpless, he was forced to return to the vicinity of Suiyang and lie in wait until the siege of Suiyang was lifted. He finally found Nan Jiyun and learned that Li Ji had already rushed to Luoyang.

Upon hearing this, Li Ji hurriedly asked him, "Is Nan Ba ​​still alive? What exactly happened during the relief of Suiyang? Can you tell me the details?"

According to Jia Huai, Suiyang City was under heavy siege by the rebel army. The city was running out of food, and even Zhang Xun, Nan Jiyun, and others were half-starved, their hands too weak to hold weapons, let alone ordinary soldiers. It seemed that the city was about to fall. Just then, Xu Shuji arrived with his troops.

Although Xu Shuji was not a very good person, he was still quite capable. Therefore, he feigned an attack and stirred up trouble in various ways, forcing Yin Ziqi to stop attacking Suiyang and instead send troops to fight the enemy. Unfortunately, the remaining troops in the city had already lost their fighting ability. Otherwise, with Zhang Xun's wisdom and Nan Jiyun's temperament, they would definitely have opened the city gates and attacked from the inside, coordinating with the enemy from the outside.

As a result, the two armies fought a fierce battle southeast of Suiyang City. The rebel army was defeated, and countless soldiers drowned in the Bian River. Yin Ziqi was forced to lift the siege of Suiyang. Xu Shuji then ordered men to carry 100 shi of grain into the city, which saved the lives of less than 2,000 soldiers and civilians in the city. Zhang Xun had just finished a hearty meal when he rose to attend to his duties and offered Xu Shuji a plan to completely defeat the rebel army. Unfortunately, Xu Shuji refused to listen to him.

Now that the siege of Suiyang had been lifted, neither Xu Shuji nor Helan Jinming were willing to advance any further. They simply repaired the city's defenses and continued to hold their ground. Yin Ziqi, unwilling and reluctant, remained lingering in the west of the city. The two sides were locked in a stalemate for three whole days, and then—Zhang Hao arrived.

Zhang Hao appointed Lu Qiu Xiao, the prefect of Qiao Commandery, as his vanguard, leading tens of thousands of troops from western Henan to relieve Suiyang. While Lu Qiu Xiao was engaged in battle with the rebels, He Lan Jinming and Xu Shuji remained on the city walls, refusing to offer support, which led to the Tang army's defeat. Lu Qiu Xiao abandoned his troops and fled, nearly annihilating Zhang Hao's main force. Fortunately, Zhang Hao's skillful command, with the over-fifty-year-old prime minister personally taking up arms, finally halted the rebel offensive.

Immediately, Zhang Hao, holding his imperial staff, executed Lü Qiu Xiao at the army's front to uphold military law. He then sent messengers via a roundabout route to inform the city of Suiyang of Lü Qiu Xiao's head, ordering generals Helan Jinming and Xu Shuji to come out of the city to provide support. Upon seeing their colleague's head, the two generals panicked and appointed Nan Jiyun and Lei Wanchun as vanguards. The following day, they opened the city gates and charged out, joining Zhang Hao in a pincer attack from the east and west, inflicting a crushing defeat on the rebel army. Yin Ziqi died in the chaos, and Yang Chaozong led his remaining troops back to Luoyang…

Of course, most of these events were not witnessed by Jia Huai himself, but rather he found Nan Jiyun after the war and listened to Nan Jiyun's account—including what Nan Jiyun had heard from Chen Ruo about Li Ji persuading Helan Jinming and kidnapping Xu Shuji.

Upon hearing this, Li Ji felt relieved—Zhang Xun and Nan Ba ​​were still alive, which was good—but at the same time, he couldn't help but feel angry at Helan Jinming and Xu Shuji, thinking to himself, "Are those two lazy donkeys? They only take one step when whipped?" Having lifted the siege of Suiyang, he dared not fight the rebel army again. If Zhang Hao hadn't arrived in time and executed Lü Qiu Xiao as a show of force, the final outcome might have been that Yin Ziqi led his 100,000-strong army back to Luoyang smoothly.

In this way, An Qingxu might not have abandoned the city and fled. The Tang army from the west would still need a fierce battle to recover the eastern capital, and he himself would be forced to play the role of a eunuch in the inner palace for many more days.

If Helan Jinming were to return, that would be one thing, but given Xu Shuji's dark psychology and actions, if it weren't for the hope that he would lead troops to rescue Suiyang, I would have strangled him on the spot, or forced him to drink poison! When I see Li Chu and Li Tan—Li Bi might have already resigned and returned to his hometown—I must have a good talk with them. This villain must not be allowed to live!

Then Jia Huai continued, saying that after learning that Li Ji had left Helan Jinming's troops, he hurriedly rode to Luoyang City. He entered the city just three days ago and made contact with Yu Ling and Chen Fu. After An Qingxu fled in the night, Yu Ling sent him to sneak out of Luoyang to find the main army near Xin'an and deliver the message.

Li Chu and Li Shi both lived in Xin'an City—as expected, Chief Clerk Li Bi was nowhere to be seen—Guo Ziyi, Pugu Huai'en and other generals led the main force and encamped at the foot of Changshan Mountain in the southeast of the city, because there was still a rebel army thirty miles away in Cijian, which served as a shield for Luoyang.

The plan was to launch a general offensive against the Cijian rebels early the next morning—which is today—but...

It is estimated that by midnight at the latest yesterday, the rebels should have heard the news of An Qingxu's northward flight and would most likely have to retreat, or even scatter in disarray. Therefore, Li Chu was overjoyed after receiving Jia Huai's report, and Li Tan seized the opportunity to offer a plan, urging Guo Ziyi to quickly inform him that troops could be dispatched tonight to launch a surprise attack on the rebels and inflict heavy losses on them.

Don't let them escape back to Hebei unscathed and return to An Qingxu's side.

Immediately afterward, Jia Huai secretly returned to report to Yu Ling, and returned to Shengshan Temple at daybreak.

So Li Ji said, "Since you've been busy all night, you don't need to stay here with me anymore. Go and rest." Jia Huai agreed, but refused to leave. After a moment's hesitation, he finally straightened his face, turned around, and knelt down.

Li Ji quickly put down his chopsticks and reached out to help him up, saying, "What are you doing?" Jia Huai kowtowed and said, "Li Zhiguo is loyal, brave, and resourceful. He dared to coerce a third-rank official and was able to save the lives of the people of Suiyang. I, Jia, am in awe! From now on, I will follow Zhiguo's lead and hope for his guidance."

He originally only knew that Li Ji was powerful and had strong backing, but after the Suiyang incident, he realized that although this young man had a baby face and seemed somewhat mediocre, he was actually very cunning, bold, and ruthless. He was not Helan Jinming, so of course he would not suspect that Li Ji's actions were taught by Li Bi. So why not hurry up and swear allegiance and cling to the powerful backer?

If he didn't have this intention, why didn't he catch up on sleep after riding his horse for most of the night, instead of waiting anxiously outside the monk's cell for Li Ji to wake up?

Li Ji sighed inwardly: After so long since transmigrated, it's finally rare to find a junior willing to bow down and pay homage... Of course, he couldn't show any pride on his face. Instead, he pulled Jia Huai aside and comforted him kindly, saying, "Brother Jia and I have been through thick and thin together. Moreover, lifting the siege of Suiyang was not solely due to my efforts; Brother Jia's contribution was also indispensable..."

You don't know, but the poison you gave me has come in very handy this time.

"In that case, we should join hands and move forward together. Why bother with such a grand ceremony? Brother Jia, there's no need for such formalities. You've already performed the great service of saving Suiyang and Consort Shen. Perhaps in a few days, your achievements will surpass mine..."

Jia Huai thought to himself that it was impossible, but... if I skipped several ranks, I could become a deputy lieutenant or even a colonel, so there was still a chance.

Then Li Ji said, "Therefore, we two should not address each other as brothers..."

"How dare you."

"Or you may call me by my courtesy name, Changwei, Brother Jia. May I ask what your courtesy name is?"

“Jia is a rough man and has no courtesy name. Li Zhiguo… Changwei, please just call me by my name.”

Li Ji initially wanted to say that it didn't matter since the other person didn't have a courtesy name, he would give him one... but then he thought it over and realized it was inappropriate. Firstly, courtesy names were given by elders, and he had just told people that they could address each other as brothers, so it would be a slap in the face to give them a courtesy name right away. Secondly, he wanted to maintain his image as a rough and unrefined person, so he couldn't possibly cite classical texts to give them a courtesy name.

The character 槐 (huái) means "tree"... Li Ji never memorized the classics, he only remembered the meaning of the character. He couldn't recall any classic texts mentioning this character, let alone its meaning of beauty. Even if he pretended to be an elder, he wouldn't look like a cultured person... at least not like a cultured person of this era.

Therefore, he could only continue to call him "Brother Jia" and urge him to go and rest. After Jia Huai left, Li Ji continued eating. These past few days, pretending to be a eunuch in the inner palace had made him extremely vegetarian, and he realized that just as even a landlord's house would have no surplus grain during a famine, the food of the lower-ranking servants in the palace could not possibly be refined... He had thought that now that he was out of the palace, he could finally have some meat, but who would have thought that the lunch Jia Huai brought would be just as vegetarian—

There were only two large bowls of mixed grain rice, a dish of boiled cabbage and gluten, and a dish of pickled vegetables.

Li Ji thought to himself, "This is a Tantric Buddhist temple. I thought Tantric Buddhists didn't observe fasting... I guess I'm just ignorant about religion and got it wrong."