Chapter 15 See old friends in a foreign land

　　"Hit!" a child shouted excitedly, followed by cheers from several other children.

　　Zhou Ge slowly opened his eyes. To the left, the tree shadows danced in the breeze, and to the right, several children held slingshots. Not far away, several small wooden stakes stood, with the farthest one lying on the ground.

　　This was his fourth night sleeping in the Green Valley since leaving Xiyue. According to the locals, in another two days, he would be able to enter Changyin Mountain and enter Shaowen territory.

　　He got up, had a few drinks of water, ate some dried provisions, picked some tender grass to feed his horse, picked a few wild fruits, and stored them as provisions.

　　It was time to get going. He galloped northwards.

　　Before nightfall, he arrived at a small town.

　　A large rock in front of the town had three big characters carved across it: "Piaolingye". Two strings of colorful lanterns hung from the rock, making the town name very prominent.

　　On the other side stood a long and short stone, about 1.2 meters tall and about 2 meters long. It had a short poem carved on it: "When spring flowers begin to bloom, winter leaves wither away; Thousands of wanderers arrived here and asked where to return."

　　Zhou Ge had read some books and knew that many places were different from Xiyue. They divided the year into spring and summer and autumn and winter. No matter how much was written in the books, Perhaps this trip would give him a chance to see it for himself.

　　He led his horse into town and walked slowly along the road.

　　There weren't many people in town, and most of them were travelers. The shops on both sides lit up their lanterns to attract customers. Everywhere he went, someone would say "Come and take a look," or "Sir, do you need a place to eat or stay?"

　　The businesses in town were diverse, but at night, the most eye-catching ones were the brothels. The girls at these brothels smiled and welcomed customers, while some even hung up signs to advertise their misfortunes. Zhou Ge knew he couldn't handle all these various women, so he simply avoided them.

　　He also avoided several gambling dens and passed by several drunks before arriving at a relatively quiet tavern. The tavern's signboard had three big characters on it: "Piaolingye".

　　The tavern had two floors, with a few lights on the second floor and more oil lamps on the first floor. Inside, there were five tables with customers.

　　The tavern's name was the same as the town's name, which Zhou Ge thought was interesting. He handed his horse over to the doorman and entered after explaining what he needed.

　　The drowsy waiter saw a new customer and greeted him enthusiastically.

　　"Sir, do you need a place to stay?"

　　"I'll also have something to eat. Just bring me a few pastries and a pot of light tea."

　　The waiter looked him over and said, "You're a first-timer here, aren't you?"

　　"How can you tell?"

　　"Everything here is free except for our pastries and tea."

　　"There's such a good deal? Isn't there a fee for staying at the inn?"

　　"You're joking, sir. If a beggar came here, our owner might have a change of heart and feed them for several days, but you're dressed well enough that you must have some money. Let me recommend something else for you."

　　"Then let's have a bowl of porridge, just make two side dishes, just eat it alone, forget about the dim sum, and make a pot of weak tea."

　　"Okay, okay, I'll be there soon."

　　Sitting there waiting, he fished out a wild fruit to serve as an appetizer.

　　Just then, there was a halt of horse hoof sounds at the tavern's door, and a young man with twin swords around his waist entered.

　　His arrival caused a small commotion. Two tavern boys put down their work and went to his side, one sweeping the dust from his clothes, the other bringing him a damp towel to clean his face.

　　"The young master has returned," one of them said.

　　The young man wiped his face several times and sat down nearby. "Just bring me some food and feed the horse," he said.

　　"Right away, right away," they replied.

　　Zhou Ge turned his head and looked at the man, feeling that he looked familiar. As the man walked closer to the lantern light, he saw him clearly.

　　"Is that Shen Huan?" he asked.

　　Shen Huan looked around and saw someone sitting three tables away.

　　"Zhou Ge? Is that you?" he asked.

　　"Yes, it's me."

　　It was natural for them to feel close after meeting again.

　　As the host, Shen Xian treated him to a meal, and the tavern boys and girls saw that their master was treating a guest so well, so they didn't dare to be negligent.

　　He had already heard about Jiang Xiao city, and he also knew about Hao Yun's escape This trip was to return to Beici County to report to He Junshou, even if he didn't catch them, he still needed to report.

　　He was curious about Zhou Ge's purpose and asked, "Where to, Zhou Ge?"

　　"Huajun County to visit my teacher."

　　"Oh? We're on the same road before Nanci County. How about we travel together tomorrow?"

　　It was wonderful to have a familiar face along for the journey, so Zhou Ge gladly agreed.

　　Soon, the food arrived, and they ate while chatting.

　　Zhou Ge was completely unfamiliar with Shaowen, so he took this opportunity to learn more about it.

　　Shen Huan was very open and shared everything he knew. He guessed that Zhou Ge had another purpose for this trip and that he probably had a mission. Curious and not expecting him to elaborate, he asked casually, "May I ask what you are investigating?"

　　"Oh...the matter of Flying Star Sect." Many people had come to investigate, so he didn't think it was a secret anymore. After saying this, he looked at Shen Huan expression and saw that it was slightly serious. "What's wrong? Many people have come here before..."

　　After about half a moment, Shen Huan placed his teacup gently and asked, "Do you know a boy Bai Liang, the leader of Feixing Peak on Snow Mist Mountain?"

　　"A child?"

　　"He is nearly forty years old, how could he be a child? I have heard that he can make a type of elixir called Shansheng Dao that can maintain a person's appearance at the age of sixteen or seventeen, even if they are over eighty years old, they will look no more than thirtysomething."

　　"Why mention him? The leader of Flying Star Sect...could it be...?"

　　"You are very clever, you guessed correctly. This person is the leader of Flying Star Sect."

　　"Oh..." He never expected it to be so simple; just by meeting a policeman on the road.

　　Seeing his expression, Shen Huan guessed what he was thinking: "As I said earlier, investigating Flying Star Sect is not a secret everywhere. The leader of Flying Star Sect, Buyun, is also not a secret. Have you ever thought about why no one has taken action against his misdeeds for several years? Not only that, but from my observations, no one has ever dared to go to Feixing Peak to seek justice."

　　"Do you mean to say that... he is exploiting the power of someone?"

　　"You guessed it. You are indeed intelligent."

　　"Who are the supporters behind him?"

　　After hearing that, Shen Huan hesitated before answering. "This person has a long story; if you want to know more, come with me to Beici, okay?"

　　The situation was turning out to be more complex than he had anticipated. If he wanted to investigate and clarify the matter, he had to go to Beici.

　　"Alright, I'll travel with you." He agreed right away.

　　When Zhou Ge returned to his room, he mulled over the conversation at the table, thinking about Bai Liang. If he were exploiting someone's power, there would be three possibilities: the city governor, his family, or his friends. Of course, he would also need his own strength.

　　This person's exploitation of power could also be one of three things: first, the prefect or someone even more powerful, maybe connected with the country and the region; second, his master, maybe his teacher supported and approved of him strongly; third, his friends.

　　Considering Shen Huan, his backer was probably not the Beici County magistrate. As for what it really was, he had to go there and see for himself.