The Affairs of the Martial World - Vol 2: Chapter 21

Ever since encountering Yi Xue at the tavern, Zhu Que had been unable to think of anything but drinking for three consecutive days, neglecting food and tea.

After spending a whole day drinking with him, Fuying felt that being with someone who was infatuated was quite dull; every three sentences revolved around the woman, so he made an excuse to leave.

Zhu Que, unable to control his emotions for a moment, strolled through the bustling market in Suzhou, hoping to have another chance encounter with Yi Xue again, but he never did.

Since ancient times, the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions had been known as a land of fish and rice, with a prosperous populace, and Suzhou and Hangzhou stand out among them. As the saying goes, “Above there is heaven, below there are Suzhou and Hangzhou.” Unless one was immersed in it, it was difficult to appreciate the subtleties within.

Zhu Que resided in the capital city; although the capital was the nation’s capital, it ultimately possessed only a solemn atmosphere, lacking this kind of scenic beauty.

At this time, it was still early March; the northern country was still chilly with the biting north wind, while in the south, spring had arrived with warm flowers blooming, and one could see the hint of green in the grass from afar.

Zhu Que felt lonely and wanted to experience the bustling crowd in the market, but his heart was heavy, and he couldn’t fully immerse himself.

Suddenly, the crowd scattered in all directions as a person rode a tall horse, galloping through the market and knocking over many stalls on both sides of the street.

In the midst of the bustling market, there were actually people who acted recklessly, completely disregarding the safety of the surrounding citizens, engaging in such reckless behavior; it truly showed a blatant disregard for the law.

Zhu Que was already in a bad mood, and seeing this only worsened it. He stepped into the middle of the road, ready to stop the person.

The rider shouted all the way, even cracking the whip at those who couldn’t dodge in time. Seeing Zhu Que standing in the middle of the road blocking the way was clearly intentional. Truly, it was a case of evil daring to challenge the brave; he disregarded Zhu Que’s life and death, pulling the reins with all his might. The horse came to a sudden stop in front of Zhu Que, rearing up, its front hooves aimed at Zhu Que.

Amid the exclamations of those around, the person shouted, “Good dogs don’t block the road! Are you blind in your dog’s eyes?”

As the horse’s hooves were about to step on Zhu Que’s head, Zhu Que grabbed one hoof with each hand and pulled back. The horse knelt down under the force, and the rider, gripping the reins tightly, managed to stay mounted without falling. Zhu Que seized the rider by the collar and yanked him off the horse. The rider, who had initially appeared arrogant and proud, immediately slumped down but still shouted, “Do you know who I am? I am from the Suzhou government office, rushing to deliver a message to the imperial envoy. If this delays important matters, watch your……life.”

He originally wanted to say, ‘Watch out for your dog’s life,’ but since his own dog’s life was in someone else’s hands, he spoke a bit more politely.

To deal with this bullying scoundrel, Zhu Que directly slapped him twice, leaving his cheeks red and swollen. Then he threw him to the ground, kicked him, and said, “If I see you riding like this again, disregarding the safety of others, I’ll take your life. Get lost.”

The man covered his face, slowly mounted the horse, and carefully rode a short distance. When he turned back and saw that Zhu Que had not followed, he cursed and went to deliver the message.

The people around praised Zhu Que’s chivalrous deeds.

Zhu Que felt quite pleased with what he had done when suddenly a person dressed as a servant approached and said, “My master just passed by here and saw the young hero acting with righteousness, punishing the bandits. He greatly admires you and wishes to befriend you; it would be a great honor if you do not refuse.”

Zhu Que, originally having nothing to do, also wanted to find someone to chat with. Seeing that the servant spoke very politely, it showed that the master must also be a well-educated person, so he nodded and followed the servant to a carriage.

The servant lifted the curtain of the carriage, allowing Zhu Que to get in, and then signaled for the carriage to continue on its way.