nyslfriends Chapter 57 You young people should be full of vigor and high spirits.
Chapter 57 You young people should be full of vigor and high spirits.
The Green Wolf Gang amassed considerable wealth through shady dealings such as collecting taxes and protection fees, but they didn't know how to manage it.
Most of it was squandered.
In the end, Chen Ye and his companion only found a few loose silver coins and a few ordinary pieces of jewelry.
According to the previously agreed terms, this territory was subsequently handed over to Zuo Dongxi.
To avoid any unforeseen complications, Chen Ye and Su Guang quietly left after finishing up the mess.
Back to the residence.
Chen Ye drew water from the well and washed away the bloodstains from his body in the courtyard.
He splashed cold water on his face, wiped it off hastily, dried it quickly, went back to his room, and fell asleep immediately.
There are countless gangs and factions in the capital.
The patrol and inspection offices had limited manpower and couldn't handle everything, so they simply turned a blind eye. As long as things didn't escalate, the government was too lazy to get involved in the conflicts between the martial arts world in the capital.
The disappearance of the Green Wolf Gang and the merger of the Patrol Horse Gang went unnoticed by the residents of those few streets; in the vast capital city, not even a ripple was made.
So in the following days, Chen Ye's life returned to normal.
After Zuo Dongxi sorted out all the affairs of the Green Wolf Gang, the three of them, as usual, gathered for a drink at Hongxiuzhao.
In the private room.
Zuo Dongxi took a sip of wine and began to recount how he took over the Green Wolf Gang.
The whole process went relatively smoothly. He reconnected with the people in the government office and took on jobs such as collecting taxes and running errands for the government office to win them over.
He already had a legitimate business running a carriage and horse shop, and they weren't exactly known for their fighting and violence.
At Chen Ye's suggestion, the practice of extorting "security fees" on the street was abandoned.
After chatting for a while and confirming that there were no further oversights, the chapter on the Green Wolf Gang was considered closed.
After drinking a cup of wine, Chen Ye looked up at Zuo Dongxi and Su Guang and instructed them, "This matter has served as a reminder to us. From now on, we must be extremely vigilant and keep each other informed of any developments. If you have any unresolved issues, feel free to ask me."
"Right now, we need to keep a close eye on the Feng family. Madam Feng will find out sooner or later who exposed her son, and she might already know. However, the aftermath of her son's scandal is still ongoing, so she doesn't dare to act rashly. Once things calm down, she might target us. We must take precautions to prevent this from happening."
Chen Ye was the youngest of the three, but after the Green Wolf Gang incident, Zuo Dongxi and Su Guang had unwittingly become completely subservient to him.
The Feng family's affairs were also of interest to them, so the two of them immediately and solemnly agreed.
After chatting for a while, the three of them went their separate ways, ending the gathering.
……
Su Guang's house was a small old house deep in the alley. The paint on the door was peeling, but the bluestone slabs in front of the door were swept clean.
On this day, Chen Ye had a day off and nothing to do, so he decided to ask Su Guang to go outside the city to train horses.
Su Guang opened the door, dressed in a simple old cloth outfit with the cuffs rolled up to his elbows.
When he saw Chen Ye, he was slightly taken aback, leaned the broom against the door, and let him in.
I came here at night before and didn't get a good look at his house.
This time, during the daytime visit, the scenery of the courtyard came into clear view.
The yard wasn't big, but it was kept tidy.
A water vat, a half-withered old locust tree, and a few freshly washed clothes hanging on a clothesline.
Under the locust tree, Su Guang's mother was resting in a recliner, with an old blanket covering her legs.
She was thinner than Chen Ye had imagined, and her hair was completely white, loosely tied up with a wooden hairpin.
Hearing the noise, she turned around and looked at Chen Ye with a puzzled expression.
Su Guang walked to her side, bent down and said softly, "Mother, this is Chen Ye, a friend I made in the manor."
Chen Ye understood, knowing that Su Guang had kept it a secret from his mother and had not told him about being expelled from the Feng family.
He stepped forward half a step, bowed, and said, "Greetings, Madam."
Mother Su raised her head, her gaze lingering on Chen Ye's face for a moment before she gave him a friendly smile and said, "Oh, he's Guang'er's friend. Please have a seat."
After greeting them, the old woman tugged at Su Guang's sleeve and muttered, "You didn't even tell us you were coming... We didn't prepare anything nice to entertain you, it's really impolite of us."
"Brother Chen and I are acquainted, he won't hold these things against me," Su Guang replied gently.
Even if they don't mind, we can't be rude.
Su Guang did not refute, but lowered his head and admitted his mistake, saying, "It was my son's negligence."
The woman pointed to her room and said, "I have some melon seed tea that your father left behind, and some candied fruit that you bought the other day. Go and get it, and treat your friend well."
Su Guang agreed to everything, turned around and went into the house. When he came out, he brought out a plate of candied fruit, then hurriedly went to the kitchen to fetch hot water, made tea and served it to Chen Ye.
With everything arranged, Su's mother finally relaxed.
After chatting for a while, Su's mother heard that her son was associating with respectable friends, and she felt relieved.
"Is Guang'er doing a reliable job at the manor?"
"The old master knows Brother Su's character best. He is always prudent in his work and is highly regarded by the nobles in the mansion."
Hearing this praise, Su's mother's wrinkles deepened, and she smiled sincerely: "He still has a long way to go; his temperament needs further tempering."
Chen Ye said, "Madam, I've come here today for two reasons: first, to visit you, and second, to ask Brother Su for some pointers on riding skills so we can go for a ride together."
"Oh." Mother Su suddenly realized, glancing towards the stable in the corner of the yard, and said, "That horse in the stable, is it yours?"
She vaguely sensed that Chen Ye's identity might not be as simple as "friend," and that he might hold a higher position. So she turned to Su Guang and said, "Go and take care of your friend's business."
Su Guang knelt properly beside his mother, pulled the blanket up her lap, and said, "Mother, I will be back before noon."
Mother Su shook her head, sighed, looked at Su Guang with a complicated expression, and said, "You young people should be full of vigor, arrogant, and capable of doing what others cannot."
How can you waste your precious time on an old man like me? There's some leftover food in the house; I can just heat it up and we can eat it. You go and do your thing, come back when you're done."
……
"The old lady is truly wise and righteous, unlike an ordinary woman. Is there any family tradition or custom associated with you?"
"When my maternal grandfather's family was well-off, he had some education in literature."
"I see."
After leaving Su Guang's house, Chen Ye temporarily rented a dwarf horse from the horse market in the name of the Cui family, and the two of them left the city along the official road, one after the other.
"There are too many people and too many eyes on the street. The horses can't run freely, and the people can't play freely either. We can't make any progress in our training. Let's train outside the city. Even if we fall, it won't be shameful."
"Let's go."
Chen Ye simply spurred the horse's belly, gripped the saddle, and silently followed behind him.
The official road on the outskirts of Beijing is flanked by vast green rice paddies, offering a wide view, with the occasional oxcart slowly passing by.
The two stopped in front of a secluded, gentle slope.
Su Guang dismounted and handed the reins to Chen Ye, saying, "Let's not rush to ride; we need to get the horse to obey you first."
Chen Ye took the reins and mounted the horse.
The mare with its gleaming mane seemed to sense that someone else had taken its back, and it pawed at the ground somewhat uneasily.
Chen Ye followed the instructions Su Guang had taught him, reining in the horse and squeezing its legs. The horse took a few steps forward, but then veered off course and swerved towards the roadside bushes.
Su Guang stood by without helping, saying, "You've led it astray; use the reins to pull it back yourself."
Chen Ye, mounted on his horse, pulled on the reins to adjust it, and the horse snorted.
After several attempts, he gradually mastered some tricks, using the force of his knees pressed against the horse's belly to guide its direction.
This time, the horse finally moved forward obediently, its hooves making a steady sound, and circled around the gentle slope.
After practicing for more than an hour, Chen Ye was already able to trot on a gentle slope.
He had only seen others ride before, but when he got on one himself, he realized that riding a horse was not a very comfortable thing; his legs were chafed very painfully by the saddle.
If it weren't for his post-transformation cultivation, running like that for a long time would have worn away at least a layer of skin.
Su Guang handed him a kettle of water. Chen Ye took a sip, handed the kettle back, and asked, "You haven't finished using the money you got earlier, have you?"
"without."
"Go buy some Golden Soup and Jade Elixir and Tendon-Changing and Bone-Strengthening Soup, and try your best to undergo the fourth transformation."
The fourth transformation is truly miraculous; only after completing the fourth transformation can one attain the Bridge of the Sea and the Innate Realm.
Su Guang suddenly looked up, quite shocked, and said, "You've already undergone your fourth rebirth?"
Chen Ye didn't intend to hide it from him: "It happened a few days ago."
Su Guang stared at Chen Ye in shock, looking at him as if he were a monster.
How could it be so fast?
How old is he?
Su Guang quickly calmed himself down. He understood that Chen Ye meant he wanted him to keep up.
He immediately agreed.
"I see."
The sun gradually climbed to its zenith.
After resting for a while, Chen Ye mounted his horse again.
This time, he no longer needed to practice those basic movements. He had already grasped some of the key points and was beginning to become more adept at it.
Su Guang spurred his horse and galloped off, with Chen Ye following closely behind, feeling no fear whatsoever.
The two continued strolling along the road, gradually increasing their speed until they began speeding along the official road, raising a cloud of yellow dust.
They rode to a fork in the road and then reined in their horses.
The horses were panting heavily and covered in sweat.
Chen Ye lay on the horse's back, his heart pounding like a drum in his chest, the excitement of having learned to ride a horse had not yet subsided.
He straightened up and looked at the fork in the road ahead: one leading back to the city, the other west.
Su Guang pointed to the road heading west and said, "This road leads to Danfeng County. I went there once with Young Master Feng before; the tea there is very famous."
"Judging by the time, the young master of the Gao family should have started dealing with the Chongwu Tower matter."
Chen Ye glanced down the road but didn't reply.
The sun was shining brightly, and the wind in the rice paddies carried the scent of fresh grass as it passed between the two of them.
He tightened the reins and turned the horse towards the city: "Let's go, let's get back soon, don't keep the old lady waiting."