Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 20 Escort

Jiang Xun scoffed inwardly, but didn't show it on his face. He changed the subject abruptly, asking, "What brings you two here?"

Li Che casually replied, "I'm lost."

He answered extremely quickly, as if he had prepared the answer in advance, without even blinking.

Jiang Xun did not speak again.

get lost?

In this desolate wilderness, how could two pampered young masters and ladies have gotten lost?

He didn't believe it, but there was no point in calling him out on it, and he was too lazy to do so anyway. It was none of his business; they could go wherever they wanted.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Li Che wasn't in a hurry. He started from another direction, as if chatting casually: "Speaking of which, Jiangning Prefecture has been quite lively lately. I heard that someone has set up a competition there to choose a successor for the Sword God."

Jiang Xun looked up: "Sword God?"

"Lu Qingfeng, an invincible sword master more than ten years ago," Li Che said, his tone unhurried. "After his death, he left behind a legacy, which is said to be looking for a young man to inherit. The Sword God had an attendant named Huang, who has been traveling around for the past few years, selecting a suitable candidate. This time, the arena is set in Jiangning Prefecture, and young masters under the age of thirty can participate."

Jiang Xun listened without reacting.

Sword God? Successor?

What does it have to do with him?

He doesn't know swordsmanship, nor does he want to be a successor; that's something that martial arts practitioners fight over.

Seeing his lack of interest, Li Che added, "But I'm not too concerned about that. I heard something else—"

He lowered his voice and moved closer to Jiang Xun, a mysterious expression on his face.

"There seems to be news of a treasure map in Jiangning Prefecture."

Jiang Xun was taken aback: "A treasure map?"

Li Tang's eyes lit up, and she quickly interjected, "Yes, yes, yes! I've heard about it too! It's from that... what's-his-name Pavilion—"

"Tianji Pavilion," Li Che said.

"Yes! The Heavenly Secrets Pavilion!"

Jiang Xun looked bewildered, his eyebrows furrowed: "What Heavenly Mystery Pavilion?"

Li Che glanced at him, somewhat surprised: "Brother Jiang, you haven't heard of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion?"

Jiang Xun shook his head.

He's a petty thief, barely able to afford food, so he doesn't have time to inquire about such nonsense.

Li Che paused for a moment, as if organizing his thoughts, before slowly saying, "The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion was the most mysterious institution of the previous dynasty, Dasheng. It was dedicated to observing celestial phenomena and predicting good and bad omens for the royal family, and was also responsible for the royal family's security."

The pavilion employs a group of people called "Master of Fate," "Master of Stars," and "Master of Registers," each with their own duties.

During the previous dynasty, the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion held an extremely high position; its head was responsible only to the emperor.

"That amazing?" Jiang Xun became interested and leaned forward slightly.

"They were impressive, but their fate wasn't good either," Li Tang interjected, pursing his lips. "When the previous dynasty collapsed, the Tianji Pavilion suffered the same fate, and was wiped out along with everything else."

Li Che nodded: "They supported the previous dynasty, so the new dynasty naturally cannot tolerate them. The Tianji Pavilion was destroyed, and the people in the pavilion either died or scattered, and many classic texts were also lost."

"What's the deal with that treasure map?" Jiang Xun asked, his eyes sparkling.

"Legend has it that the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion has a secret treasure hidden in a forbidden area."

Li Che spoke in an even lower voice, as if afraid of being overheard by someone.

"It contains the wealth accumulated by the previous dynasty over hundreds of years, including gold and silver treasures, divine weapons, and various lost martial arts manuals. To find this treasure, you need a treasure map called the 'Zhou Tian Xing Chen Tu' (Celestial Star Chart)."

"A treasure map?" Jiang Xun's eyes lit up, as if he'd seen a roast chicken. "How much is that worth?"

Li Tang chuckled, covering her mouth, "Is money all you care about?"

Jiang Xun shrugged confidently, "Nonsense, how can we live without money?"

Li Che smiled and shook his head: "I don't know how much it's worth, but I've heard that the wealth inside is comparable to that of a country. However, this map was lost during the war, and nobody knows where it is."

"Then what you just said—"

"I've only heard about it," Li Che said, his tone returning to its usual unhurried manner. "Someone has seen clues about this map in Jiangning Prefecture. It's hard to tell if it's true or not, but quite a few people want to try their luck."

Jiang Xun stared at the fire for a while, lost in thought.

Treasure map.

Wealth that rivals that of a nation.

It does sound tempting, making one's mouth water.

But I'll just listen to it and that's it.

He's a petty thief who can't even read properly, trying to steal a treasure map? Isn't that just asking for death?

Seeing that he was still unmoved by reason, Li Tang became anxious.

Jiang Xun's words suddenly flashed through her mind, and an idea struck her. She blurted out, "As long as you're willing to go to Jiangning Prefecture, we'll pay you two hundred taels of silver!"

Two hundred taels?

Jiang Xun almost dropped the snake meat in his hand, and hurriedly caught it, getting oil all over the back of his hand.

He could steal for a year in Jiangzhou and still not steal two hundred taels.

I've seen twenty taels more than a few times, let alone two hundred taels.

Who are these brother and sister? Why are they so generous?

Seeing his expression—eyes glazed over, and he even forgot to chew the meat in his mouth—Li Che knew the time was right.

He spoke slowly and deliberately: "We're inviting you to Jiangning Prefecture, but there are conditions."

Jiang Xun raised an eyebrow and swallowed the meat in his mouth: "What are the conditions?"

"Your martial arts are superb; you must escort us to Jiangning Prefecture." Li Che took out a money pouch from his pocket and casually placed it on the stone in front of Jiang Xun, as if placing a copper coin. "Pay a deposit of one hundred taels first. We'll pay the remaining one hundred taels when we arrive in Jiangning Prefecture."

"Smack."

The money bag fell onto the stone with a heavy thud, shaking the stone itself.

Jiang Xun stared at the bag, his eyes darting around, and he made a gurgling sound in his throat.

Two hundred taels.

That's enough to buy a small courtyard in Jiangning Prefecture.

It's not big, but people can live there.

It's enough for Ali and the others to eat for several years; they couldn't finish eating meat even if they ate it every day.

He swallowed hard, then shifted his gaze from the money pouch to the faces of the brother and sister, looking at them one by one.

Li Che smiled gently, with the corners of his mouth slightly upturned, giving off an air of "you can consider it as you see fit."

Li Tang blinked, waiting expectantly for him to nod, her lips slightly pursed, as if afraid he would say no.

"Just escorting?" Jiang Xun asked, his tone slightly probing.

"It's just escorting them," Li Che nodded, speaking casually.

Jiang Xun thought for a moment, then picked up the money pouch and weighed it in his hand.

It's really heavy; the silver jingles inside, which sounds comforting.

"Okay." He shoved the money pouch into his coat pocket, quick and decisive, without even a stutter. "When are you leaving?"

Li Tang's eyes lit up, and she almost jumped up from the rock. She clapped her hands and exclaimed, "Tomorrow! We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning!"

Jiang Xun nodded, then lowered his head and continued gnawing on his snake meat, making a crunching sound as if he had just picked up the two hundred taels of silver.

Li Che looked at him and suddenly asked, "Brother Jiang, aren't you going to ask why we're going to Jiangning Prefecture?"

Jiang Xun didn't even look up, chewing on meat, and said indistinctly, "If you're willing to talk, you'll naturally tell me. If you're not willing to talk, it's pointless for me to ask."

Li Che was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

This person may look rough, but he's as sharp as a mirror.