Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Chapter 569: Sad Zhao Shan

The waiter had received a lot of money yesterday, and remembering Jiang Shangxian's words that he would prepare more local specialties of Luoyang for this guest, he prepared a table of breakfast early this morning and reserved a great seat by the window before knocking on the door to wake up Zhao Shan.

He had to rush to buy these things before he had to go to work, but the food was cold and not tasty. Zhao Shan was stunned when he was called.

He was pushed into a chair in a daze, and the aroma of food along with the cool spring morning breeze outside the window hit his face, and he woke up.

Looking at the table full of various breakfasts, Zhao Shan felt warm in his heart - Aunt Jiang was indeed much kinder than Cui Yi.

With a grateful heart, Zhao Shan began to cram food.

Every time he ate something, he couldn't help but think of Li Xueyan - he wondered if she had eaten these when she first came to Luoyang?

Then he thought that Li Xueyan was a foodie, and it was because Jiang Shangxian cooked well that the two of them were as close as sisters. They must have eaten together before, and he felt a little sweet in his heart again - he was also eating what Xueyan ate.

But this sweetness had not yet melted in his chest. He couldn't help but think that if Xueyan was really sent to marry a foreign prince as Aunt Jiang said, wouldn't she never be able to eat these foods again in the future?

Zhao Shan's emotions were jumping back and forth between sweetness, sadness, and bitterness. He was immersed in his own world and ate silently. He didn't notice that a group of people came down the stairs of the store, passed by him, and went downstairs again.

This group of people was Zhao Ji and his group.

Perhaps the aroma of the breakfast on his table was too tempting, the guards couldn't help but turn around and look at his table again and again.

They are so unlucky.

We arrived too late yesterday. The kitchen of the inn had been shut down and there was no cook. They were all strong men who could not stand being hungry. They were all starving at this time. When the guys saw the food, they wanted to pounce on it and finish the whole table.

But now they were in a hurry, and without Zhao Ji's permission, they didn't dare to say that they wanted to eat something to fill their stomachs.

Fortunately, Zhao Ji is not made of iron. He also needs to eat, and his nose is not disabled, so he can smell the fragrance of food.

He was just about to say he was going to buy some dry food for the journey when he saw a guard lagging behind, looking back repeatedly. He frowned and scolded him, "We have a heavy responsibility and should be cautious. If we can complete this mission successfully, we will be able to satisfy our appetite when we return to Chang'an!"

Unexpectedly, after being scolded, the guard's face flushed red, and suddenly an idea flashed through his mind: "The man sitting by the bed on the second floor eating breakfast just now looked familiar to me."

"look familiar?"

Zhao Ji squinted his eyes and looked towards the second-floor window. Unfortunately, Zhao Shan had no interest in looking at the scenery. He was so busy eating that he could only see a glimpse of the side of his face. "Can you recognize who it is?"

When traveling far away on errands, the most taboo thing is to meet acquaintances.

Maybe it's just to ruin the show.

The man thought for a while, then said hesitantly, "It seems to be Zhao Shan, the scholar from Jixian Hall. I've seen him several times in the palace. I heard he's been on leave at home recuperating from illness. I don't know how he ended up here."

They were the guards of King Wei. Li Tai was favored and often went in and out of the palace. The guards would take turns to follow him into the palace. Although there were many guards and their turns were not many times, they had met Zhao Shan from afar.

It was because Zhao Shan used to look plump and handsome when he wore his official robes, but now he looked depressed in his casual clothes and had lost a lot of weight. That was why I didn't think of him at first.

"Zhao Shan? Could he be from the Tianshui Zhao clan?"

As soon as Zhao Ji heard the name, he had some impression in his mind. The Tianshui Zhao family and the Dunhuang Zhao family were originally from the same clan, but they had separated long ago. Although the relationship has not been as good as before in recent years, there are still some contacts.

I seem to have heard that there was a traitor there who was devoted to literature. Jixian Hall is indeed a good place for retirement...

Since we are from the same clan, we are half of the younger generation. Thinking of this, he smiled and said, "These scholars get sick all the time. They have a lot of things to do. They have to change places to recuperate."

"wrong!"

Another guard stared at Zhao Shan's profile for a long time, and finally realized something was wrong: "The day before yesterday at the post station, he seemed to be there too, with those people from the Cui Mansion!"

However, Zhao Shan's face was almost buried in the bowl at that time, and it was dark, so they didn't pay much attention to him.

"I heard that Master Zhao has always been on good terms with Shaoqing Cui..." someone started, and immediately someone else talked about the relationship between Zhao Shan and Cui Bianxu.

"really?!"

Zhao Ji really didn't know about this. First of all, the relationship between the two Zhao families was not that close. In addition, they were far apart. The Tianshui Zhao family would not tell the Dunhuang Zhao family about every little thing.

Especially since Cui Bianxu was the son of Cui, born to a woman from the Zhao family of Dunhuang, the fact that they rushed to visit him seemed like they wanted to curry favor with the Zhao family of Dunhuang.

After Zhao Yue got married, she had little contact with her uncles and aunts from her natal family. Even if she sent a letter back to the Zhao family, she would not mention such things.

Zhao Ji pulled the reins and became cautious: "If that's the case, could it be that they didn't board the ship last night?"

Otherwise, wouldn't it seem a bit strange that Zhao Shan appeared here alone?

"Third Master, can I go to the store and check it out?"

"Well, let's go sit at the restaurant across the street."

Zhao Ji pointed at someone and said, "Go to the dock first to arrange the boat."

"Yes!"

The person who went to inquire returned quickly. In front of Zhao Ji, a bowl of mutton soup made with spring water from western Henan was still steaming. "Third Master, Zhao Shan was staying alone at the Di Inn. I heard someone brought him here yesterday and paid a few days' rent in advance. I've made thorough inquiries, and the person who accompanied him looks exactly like the newly married Madam Jiang from the Cui family."

Zhao Ji held the big bowl and sipped the soup in small sips. From time to time, he used his chopsticks to pick up two slices of mutton and put them into his mouth. He motioned the guard to sit down and eat with him. For a moment, the only sounds at the nearby tables were the sounds of people drinking soup and eating meat.

After finishing the entire bowl of soup, Zhao Ji stroked his swollen belly and commented, "Everything in Luoyang City is good, except for this mutton soup, which is not as good as the one in Guazhou."

The guards put down their bowls at the same time, regardless of whether they had finished eating or not. Only Qi Sanlang was still eating without noticing.

Zhao Ji looked toward the second-floor window of the inn across the street. Zhao Shan was no longer there. He raised his right hand and wiped his thumb across the corner of his mouth. "This scholar Zhao and I are distant relatives. Although we are five generations apart, you can't write two Zhaos with one stroke."

Qi Sanlang paused, and just as he was about to say something, he saw him casually scraping the table vigorously. "I met an old relative in a foreign land. Please ask him to come over and talk to me. At my age, my health is not as good as before. I still need a younger person to serve me."

"Yes!"