Chapter 18: The Bandit Scholar

Chapter 18: The Bandit Scholar

Chapter 18: The Bandit Scholar

In addition to Li You, there were three other people. These three people were the white-faced middle-aged man wearing a robe and two young men who stood on his left and right when Li Hu blocked his way before.

Li Hu introduced Zhu Shenzhui to each other. The two young men were both miners and were the brothers who initially followed Li Hu to kill the steward and start the rebellion.

The one with the long face is called Lu Yishen, and the taller one is called Hu Lin. They are both sworn brothers of Li Hu at the mine.

As for the white-faced middle-aged man in a long shirt, his origin surprised Zhu Shenzhui. This middle-aged man was called Zhang Xijun, and he was actually a scholar.

A scholar is a scholar, but not an ordinary scholar.

According to the Ming Dynasty's imperial examination regulations, only those who passed the county and prefectural examinations could be called Tongsheng. And only after becoming a Tongsheng were they eligible to take the academy examination, and once they passed the academy examination, they could become Xiucai.

Don’t think that it is easy to pass the examination to become a scholar. Ordinary people in later generations think that it is easy to pass the examination to become a scholar, and even passing the examination to become a juren or a jinshi is not difficult.

But in reality, it is not so easy to pass the examination to become a scholar. To become a scholar, one must first become a student, and to become a student one must first pass the county examination and the prefectural examination. These two levels can directly eliminate most of the scholars. Some people have studied for their entire lives but are still old students, and cannot pass the examination to become a scholar until they are old and have old hair.

In other words, to become a Tongsheng, one must first pass the county examination, and only after passing it can one be eligible to take the city examination. The county and city examinations are not as difficult as thousands of troops crossing a single-plank bridge, but they can be said to be one in a hundred, so it is not easy to become a Tongsheng, let alone to take the city-wide examination and become an excellent scholar.

This Zhang Xijun was actually a scholar, but how could a scholar follow Li Hu into the mountains and become a bandit? This couldn't help but make Zhu Shenzui feel strange.

Subconsciously, Zhu Shenzui couldn't help but look at Zhang Xijun twice more. Zhang Xijun avoided Zhu Shenzui's gaze somewhat unnaturally and lowered his head subconsciously, as if he had some unspeakable secrets about his background and current situation.

Li Hu didn't care about these things and talked enthusiastically about the martial arts competition with Wang Jinwu just now.

After entering the hall and sitting beside Zhu Shenzhui, Wang Jinwu had always been restless and had no interest in what had just been said. He looked around with a curious look.

It was not until Li Hu talked about the martial arts competition that Wang Jinwu became interested and could not help but interrupt.

Having said that, although Wang Jinwu won, as the person involved, Wang Jinwu knew very well what the actual situation was. If it weren't for the shot fired by Zhu Shenzhu, he would have lost the competition even more.

Wang Jinwu admired Li Hu's abilities very much, and this silly boy Wang Jinwu was also a straightforward guy. After subduing Li Hu, when Li Hu was not afraid of himself but pleaded for his brothers, Wang Jinwu developed a good impression of Li Hu.

It can be said that the two of them could not reach a deal without a fight, and they immediately started chatting animatedly. The more they talked, the more excited they became, and they even gestured a few times on the spot when they were excited.

What Wang Jinwu lacks now is only battlefield experience, but Li Hu has an advantage in this regard. During the conversation, he gave Wang Jinwu some pointers, which made Wang Jinwu even happier.

While they were chatting happily, Wang Chuer came to report that the camp was ready. Zhu Shencui asked Wang Chuer to arrange for the brothers to light a fire and cook, and then rest as usual. While talking, Zhu Shencui did not avoid Li Hu and others, and gave the order generously, which made Li Hu and others admire Zhu Shencui even more.

However, Li Hu and the others did not notice that while Zhu Shenzhui and Wang Chuer were giving instructions, he secretly gave Li Hu and the others a wink, and Wang Chuer immediately understood what he meant.

You must be on guard against others. On someone else's territory, no matter how confident Zhu Shenzhui is, he still has to make some preparations. After all, they have only known each other for less than half a day. Zhu Shenzhui is not a new and stupid boy. No matter how generous he appears, he still has to be on guard. The world is dangerous. Although it is important to treat others with sincerity, your own safety is more important!
That night, Zhu Shenzui did not go to the camp to rest, but stayed directly in the temple and chatted with Li Hu and others for a long time.

Zhu Shencui was a man of extraordinary bearing and wide knowledge, especially when it came to border troops and miners, he did not look down on them at all. In addition to what had happened before, the more Li Hu talked, the more he admired Zhu Shencui.

If he hadn't felt that he was not worthy of the title, Li Hu would have even wanted to burn yellow paper and kowtow to Zhu Shenzhui to become sworn brothers. Even if that wasn't the case, Li Hu and others still had great respect for Zhu Shenzhui and called him "Sixth Master" all the time.

It’s a pity that there is no wine in the mountains, otherwise, with Li Hu’s temper, he would have to toast Zhu Shenzhu with a few glasses.

Zhu Shenzui didn't care about it, and it was the same with replacing wine with inferior tea. He smiled and said that there would be plenty of opportunities after settling down. He was also quite interested in Li Hu's experience at the border, so he took the opportunity to ask Li Hu a lot about past events at the border, which naturally included the situation of the Mongols in the north.

Li Hu was an upright man. As long as Zhu Shencui asked, he would tell him everything he knew. After chatting all night, Zhu Shencui learned a lot about the situation in the north, which was a pleasant surprise for Zhu Shencui.

In addition, Zhu Shenzui also gave Li Hu and others some advice, telling Li Hu how to gain a foothold in Yangtou Mountain.

Since Li Hu and others have settled here, they need to make long-term plans. Yangtou Mountain is in a dangerous position and is not far from Gaoping. Speaking of Gaoping, it is very famous. In ancient times, Gaoping was also called Changping, which was the Changping of the Battle of Changping between Qin and Zhao during the Warring States Period.

This place is a battleground for military strategists. Yangtou Mountain is just a few dozen miles north of Gaoping, overlooking Gaoping from top to bottom and south.

Li Hu and his companions found a good place to settle down in Yangtou Mountain, but it was not easy to stay there for a long time.

Zhu Shenzui promised Li Hu that they would pass Yangtou Mountain again on their way back in a few days, and would bring some food to Li Hu and his friends, as well as some farm tools, seeds and so on.

In the future, Li Hu and others can reclaim wasteland and cultivate land on Yangtou Mountain. Even though farming in the mountains is very difficult, they can at least make ends meet.

In addition, Li Hu and others can also collect some "tolls" from passing merchants. However, Zhu Shenzui also reminded that the merchants passing through Yangtou Mountain are all small merchants, and they must not do anything to drain the pond for fish. They don't need to collect much each time, just a hundred coins depending on the situation, and after collecting the money, they must ensure that the other party leaves Yangtou Mountain safely.

It would be great if we could build a few more thatched huts on the mountain trail, provide a place to rest and provide some tea or something. In this way, the other party will not only pay for the passage, but will also be happy to receive the service. After a few times, it may be a stable source of income in the future.

After listening to Zhu Shenzhui's suggestion, Li Hu and others' eyes suddenly lit up. They had never thought that the toll could be collected in this way. If they followed what Zhu Shenzhui said, not only would the risk be much smaller, but it would also be a long-term success. For a moment, several people nodded in agreement and discussed it happily. The more they talked, the more they felt that this matter could be implemented.

Zhang Xijun, who had been sitting there without saying much, looked up at Zhu Shenzhui in surprise, but he immediately lowered his head again. In the dim light of the fire, it was impossible to see his expression, let alone what he was thinking.

They chatted until late at night, and seeing that it was getting late, Zhu Shenzhui also wanted to take a rest as they still had to travel tomorrow.

Although he did not sleep side by side with Li Hu and others that night, it was almost the same. They slept in the main hall, with hay spread out and jackets covering them. Zhu Shenzhui put his right hand under the jacket and reached into his arms, tightly holding something. This thing was the iron spear head hidden in his arms.

After closing his eyes, Zhu Shenzhui did not fall asleep immediately, but just pretended to be asleep. After a long time, he heard the snoring of Li Hu and others nearby. The snoring came one after another with a sense of rhythm. Zhu Shenzhui gradually felt relieved. After a while, he fell asleep unknowingly.

Zhu Shenzhui had a dreamless night and woke up when the sky was just getting light.

After opening his eyes, he immediately looked around. Wang Jinwu on his left was still asleep. This kid was not sleeping well. He was smacking his lips in his dream, as if he was having a good dream about eating something delicious.

On his right, Li Hu had disappeared, but his son and three other people had not woken up yet.

Zhu Shenzhui stood up, tidied himself up a bit, and walked out of the main hall.

When he got outside, he saw Li Hu and a few others busy outside the yard. Hearing the commotion, Li Hu looked up and saw Zhu Shenzhu coming out, and hurried forward to greet him.

"Sixth Master, did you sleep well last night?"

"How can you feel uneasy with a tiger around?" Zhu Shenzhui said with a smile, which made Li Hu grin with a look of great happiness.

“What is this…?” Zhu Shenzhui asked, looking at the people who were busy.

Li Hu told Zhu Shenzhu that he had to find a place to live as soon as possible, otherwise he would have to live in cold weather. After listening to Zhu Shenzhu's advice yesterday, Li Hu thought it made sense and planned to make arrangements as soon as possible, and then do it according to Zhu Shenzhu's advice.

Nodding, Zhu Shenzhui said nothing, and told Li Hu that he would go to see the guys. Li Hu said it was okay, he was busy and would not go with him, Zhu Shenzhui said politely, and went straight to the place where Wang Chuer and others camped yesterday. When he got there, Wang Chuer and others had already gotten up and were packing up.

After asking about the situation, Zhu Shenzhui found out that everything was fine yesterday, just as he had imagined, and Zhu Shenzhui was relieved. Then, after packing up, Wang Jinwu also came over, and everyone had a simple breakfast together, and then said goodbye to Li Hu and others.

Li Hu knew that Zhu Shenzui and the others were about to leave, so he didn't try to keep them.

But Li Hu still insisted on taking a few brothers to accompany Zhu Shenzui, and Zhu Shenzui did not refuse, and accompanied them all the way to the path out of Yangtou Mountain.

Before leaving, Zhu Shencui held Li Hu's hand and said a few words, promising that he would bring something back in a few days and asked Li Hu to wait patiently on the mountain. Li Hu was so moved that his eyes turned red. Looking at Zhu Shencui and his party gradually going away, Li Hu and others bowed down in the direction where Zhu Shencui left and refused to get up for a long time.

(End of this chapter)