Chapter 114: The Painting
Chapter 114: The Painting
Old Man Li, who had traveled far and wide and was very experienced, suddenly turned sideways and blocked the path of the two.
“This elderly gentleman, would you mind stepping aside?”
After a brief moment of surprise, Mu Feng quickly calmed down. He didn’t get angry, nor did he take action. There was a faint smile on his face.
An old book said that when traveling, one must follow the ‘rule of three parts’.
When meeting people, show three parts of a smile. When encountering trouble, yield three parts of courtesy. When staying at an inn, only drink three parts of your capacity. These were the principles to keep in mind when traveling. This time, they had to get to the Poison Sect as quickly as possible to retrieve the Yang Soul Pill and save a life. Time was urgent. Mu Feng tried his best to stay low-key and avoid any delays on the road.
Old Man Li looked gloomy and suspiciously examined Mu Feng and Jing Wushuang behind him. Even facing Mu Feng’s politeness, there wasn’t a trace of a smile on his face. “Who are you two? Where did you come from, and where are you going?”
The Green Kill Pass ahead was the only way to Jianshui City, and it was a forbidden place that made passing merchant caravans pale at the mention. Dangerous bandits had always haunted the area.
Old Man Li had made the caravan stay at the inn for three days precisely to gather enough people before setting off together. Over these three days, he had been secretly observing everyone who came and went or stayed at the inn, fearing that a spy from the bandits might sneak into the group. They were to leave early the next morning, and Mu Feng and Jing Wushuang had suddenly arrived late at night to stay. Their silence, low profile, refusal to drink, and lack of interaction with others naturally drew his attention quickly.
Clang…
Hearing Old Man Li’s words, the burly men in the inn said nothing. Almost all of them stood up at once, and many immediately drew the swords and knives they carried with them, their expressions unfriendly.
Bandits in other places only wanted money and wouldn’t kill easily, but the bandits at Green Kill Pass were exceptionally cruel. They either didn’t act, or when they did, they often killed to leave no witnesses. So, every time they had to pass through Green Kill Pass, even the bravest and most experienced escorts were extra tense.
“I am a Jianning Scholar, traveling with my book boy for study, heading to Jianshui City. We were delayed on the road and arrived late at night to lodge here. Please forgive us if we have caused any offense!” Mu Feng cupped his hands in a salute. Seeing the nervous looks on the merchants and escorts around him, he understood they had misunderstood.
“A Jianning Scholar out for study?”
Old Man Li looked suspicious and didn’t let his guard down just because Mu Feng said so. “Well, young man, do you have any official passes or credentials? How can you prove your identities?”
“Yeah, how can you prove you two aren’t bandits?”
“Search them, see what they have on them!”
“Why bother talking so much with them? Tie them up first!”
…
Clearly unconvinced, the crowd grew agitated, shouting as they gradually closed in. Some raised their gleaming swords, some even aimed crossbow arrows, as if facing a great enemy.
How to prove it?
Jing Wushuang’s face was tense, and she pressed close to Mu Feng nervously.
This trip had been very rushed. They hadn’t even brought extra clothes, let alone had time to obtain any official passes or proof.
Since ancient times, escorts and bandits were often connected. Some famous escort chiefs were originally cruel bandits. For their own benefit and safety, there was nothing they wouldn’t dare do!
“Shuang’er, prepare the ink and brush!”
Mu Feng remained calm and composed. He spoke in a low voice, his face hardly changing amid the surrounding blades and swords.
He had faced greater dangers and storms alone; he truly didn’t regard these escorts as a threat. Though there were many of them, over a hundred, if it came to a fight, probably none would leave this inn alive.
“Yes, young master, please!”
Jing Wushuang quickly took out the four treasures of the study from the book box and spread a blank sheet of paper on the table.
In front of strangers, she deliberately lowered her voice, calling Mu Feng “young master” and acting as an attentive book boy. After adding a little water, she began grinding the ink. Soon, a faint scent of ink filled the inn.
“Eh? Could it be that I misjudged them? Are they really scholars traveling for study?”
Seeing Mu Feng’s calm expression and the paper, brush, and ink Jing Wushuang had laid out on the table, Old Man Li, who had traveled far and wide for years, was surprised. He raised his right hand, signaling the impulsive escorts to calm down and wait to see how Mu Feng would prove they weren’t bandits.
“Understanding worldly affairs is knowledge; being skilled in human relations is literature!”
Looking around at the merchants and escorts, Mu Feng smiled faintly and picked up the brush to paint on the white paper. With a few strokes, he sketched a rough outline, then began filling in the details. Soon, a simple roadside inn appeared vividly on the paper—every tree, blade of grass, table, and chair was exact. Even the guests who had come to lodge and eat were lifelike.
In the center of the picture, a thin old man with cold, sharp eyes stood out. He was turned sideways, blocking two young people, his spittle flying as if he was speaking excitedly. Behind him, many escorts, sitting or standing, were all looking over. Some held a chicken leg, their cheeks bulging; some held wine pots, their faces flushed from drinking, looking utterly drunk… The scene captured the moment Old Man Li suddenly stepped out and blocked Mu Feng and his companion’s way.
“Maguan Inn!”
Mu Feng wrote four elegant characters above the painting, at the location of the inn’s signboard. He smiled at Old Man Li beside him and said, “Elder, look, can this painting prove our identities?”
“Yes, yes…”
Old Man Li’s face reddened. He nodded subconsciously and stepped aside to make way. It wasn’t until Mu Feng and Jing Wushuang’s figures disappeared upstairs that he snapped out of it.
Alike!
It was drawn too alike, too realistic!
Looking at his own conspicuous figure in the center of the painting, even though he was over sixty, he couldn’t help but blush in embarrassment.
After traveling so widely for so many years, he had never seen anyone with such astonishing painting skills, completely recreating the earlier scene. This level of skill probably surpassed even some so-called imperial painters!
Could a bandit who lived by the sword have such ability?
Old Man Li didn’t believe it. If Mu Feng and Jing Wushuang were really bandits sent from Green Kill Pass, he’d accept it!
“Li Qingfu, how could you just let them go like that?”
“Yeah, even if you don’t kill them, for safety’s sake, you should at least have tied them up first!”
…
The merchants and escorts on the periphery looked unfriendly. As they spoke, they approached fiercely, questioning Old Man Li who had stepped aside and allowed Mu Feng and his companion to leave. They had intended to ask further what was going on, but upon seeing the painting on the table, they all instinctively closed their mouths.
“Xiao Wu, isn’t that you? Hahaha, you rascal, biting a chicken leg but eyeing the woman at the next table.”
“Don’t laugh at others, look, who’s that drunk about to fall over? Can’t even keep his eyes open but still drinking!”
…
After the shock wore off, people started talking excitedly. Every one of them found their own likeness in the painting—their features, build, clothes… even their expressions and movements were perfectly captured.