Chapter 19

Cheng Duo and Yong-ge returned to the inn and found that many people had moved into the small courtyard they were renting.

Most of these tenants had tied their mules or donkeys directly to the animal shed at the entrance, while the unloaded carts and goods were piled up in the middle of the courtyard. With the crowd and the noisy animals, the courtyard became very noisy.

When Cheng Duo entered, he could sense a momentary pause in the conversations of the people inside, and many of them looked at him with both open and hidden scrutiny, appearing very cautious. However, when they saw the skinny Yong-ge following behind him, their vigilance decreased significantly.

Cheng Duo felt a sense of familiarity with this scene. He used to be one of them, always cautious of the powerful supernatural beings when traveling outside. But now, he had become the target of scrutiny… It actually didn't feel bad.

They had already eaten dinner outside, so Cheng Duo asked Yong-ge to wash up and go back to the room to sleep. Just before closing the door, he saw Yong-ge looking at him with wide eyes, seemingly a bit uneasy. So he softened his tone and said, "If anything happens in the middle of the night, knock three times on the wall, and I'll come over immediately."

During his earlier inspection, Cheng Duo had already noticed that the walls of the inn were very thin. With his hearing, he could quickly hear any movement nearby.

At this moment, he forgot that Yong-ge had even stayed in the chaotic Malti Street and wouldn't be afraid of staying in an inn. At that time, Yong-ge was still alone! Although he now had several brothers living together, if any of them had malicious intentions and opened the door at midnight, the consequences would be unimaginable.

From this, it could be seen that Yong-ge was extraordinarily brave…

But Cheng Duo was concerned and chaotic. At this moment, he hadn't realized that he had already categorized Yong-ge as one of his own… No, not just as one of his own. He had softened his heart towards Yong-ge countless times, but Cheng Duo didn't think about what that meant at this moment.

Yong-ge obediently nodded and closed the door in front of Cheng Duo. After taking off his outer clothes and lying on the bed, he suddenly remembered why Cheng Duo had said that. It was because he was sleeping on the other side of the same wall.

When Cheng Duo checked the rooms earlier, they had also looked at the layout of the two rooms together. The positions of the two beds happened to be in the same place. If it weren't for this wall, they would practically be sleeping on the same bed…

As Yong-ge thought about this, his cheeks started to burn, and he covered his face with both hands, quickly dispelling those thoughts from his mind. Then, as if the wall was some ferocious beast or flood, he not only distanced himself from it but deliberately turned away, lying on the bed with his face away from the wall.

Perhaps as punishment for his wild thoughts, an hour later, Yong-ge was still lying wide awake in bed, unable to sleep.

In the darkness of the room, he inexplicably turned towards the wall and stared at it for a while. Suddenly, he reached out and lightly tapped the wall three times.

Just as they had agreed with Cheng Duo before.

But after tapping, he covered himself with the blanket and laughed silently. Because he knew that Cheng Duo on the other side couldn't possibly hear it.

However, he didn't know that the man opposite him was a supernatural being. Cheng Duo, who was still half asleep, heard the noise, and with a turn, he jumped out of bed. He didn't even fasten his clothes properly, leaving his shirt open, and arrived outside Yong-ge's room.

Looking at the intact door, he hesitated for a moment, not using his palm to push it open but gently knocking on the door. "Yong-ge?"

Upon hearing the knocking outside the door and Cheng Duo's voice, Yong-ge was startled. He hesitated for a moment on whether to open the door, but then he heard Cheng Duo knocking for the second time.

This time, Yong-ge no longer hesitated. He got up, put on his outer clothes, and quickly opened the door. Bright moonlight sprinkled into the courtyard, and the animals in the shed were already sound asleep, occasionally making noise by snorting or rubbing their hooves against the ground.

Cheng Duo stood with his back facing the courtyard, his tall figure illuminated by the moonlight. Yong-ge couldn't see his expression clearly, but he heard him ask in a low voice, "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Nothing." Yong-ge felt a bit embarrassed, under Cheng Duo's gaze, it took him a while before he said, "I just… couldn't sleep and wanted to see if tapping three times would work…"

He didn't expect the effect to be so good, immediately attracting Cheng Duo. Was he wearing donkey ears or something?

"…"

Seeing Cheng Duo not saying anything, Yong-ge forced a smile and said, "Why haven't you slept yet? That's… really unfortunate."

Cheng Duo stared at him expressionlessly, "I was sleeping, and you woke me up!"

"Then go back to sleep quickly, I won't disturb you anymore." Yong-ge cautiously pushed Cheng Duo.

Cheng Duo had good night vision. Through the dim moonlight, he saw the pleasing smile on Yong-ge's face and those guilty big eyes gazing at him… He actually found it a bit cute.

The anger from being disturbed in his sleep dissipated instantly, but Cheng Duo still maintained a cold expression and scolded Yong-ge heartlessly, "What are you randomly knocking for in the middle of the night? Go back to sleep. If you wake me up again for no reason, be careful, I'll beat you!"

Cheng Duo raised his fist, and when he saw Yong-ge quickly retreat into the room and close the door, he felt like he might have gone too far.

Yong-ge was now at the age of a high school student, and it was understandable for him to be a little lively when staying overnight outside.

Cheng Duo reflected on himself, touched his nose, and went back to sleep.

Perhaps because of Cheng Duo's warning, Yong-ge behaved obediently this time. He lay in bed and soon fell asleep. Of course, the same went for Cheng Duo. He had long cultivated the instinct to fall asleep quickly in the post-apocalyptic world and had no trouble with insomnia.

So, there was really no need for him to be so harsh on the little Yong-ge…

***

The next day, Cheng Duo remembered scolding Yong-ge last night and intended to be nicer to him. However, he didn't expect Yong-ge to be even more diligent. Not only did he wake up early, but he also went to the kitchen and brought back free breakfast, almost reaching the point of fetching water for Cheng Duo to wash his face.

The two guests from the room next to Yong-ge opened the door and saw Yong-ge and Cheng Duo standing at the door. The married guest smiled ambiguously at the two of them.

After Cheng Duo went to freshen up, he asked Yong-ge, "Is that your partner?"

Yong-ge hesitated for a moment with the tray in his hands and said, "No."

"I see, you're not married yet. It will happen in the future." If you get married, you'll live together. "When are you getting married? It should be soon, right? Don't deny it, I heard you two talking last night. The young couple has such a good relationship, staying up late to chat…"

Faced with the gossiping married guest, Yong-ge blushed and ran away. But Cheng Duo didn't have such trouble. That guest saw his tall and imposing figure, looking fierce, and didn't dare to approach him at all.

Cheng Duo returned to the room and saw Yong-ge with flushed cheeks. He asked curiously, "Why is your face red?"

"The water for washing my face in the morning was too cold, it made me freeze." Yong-ge quickly made up an excuse and urged, "Come over and eat. After we finish, let's leave early. We still have to go back this afternoon."

Cheng Duo didn't inquire further and sat down, taking a corn pancake and biting into it absentmindedly. "Rest assured, we have enough time… Hmm, this corn pancake is good. It's actually fried with oil and has minced meat in it?"

"That's right, it's only 30 wen per person. You can buy several catties of pork with that!" Speaking of it, Yong-ge still cherished money.

Cheng Duo: "…" They would never reach an agreement on this issue.

When the two of them left the inn, the sun had not yet risen. A hazy mist enveloped the streets, giving the illusion that the dirty and messy streets had become tidy.

Of course, it was just an illusion. Someone had simply cleaned the streets, making them appear slightly cleaner. However, this situation wouldn't last long, as horse-drawn carriages had already rumbled across the road.

Speaking of which, people in ancient times really went to bed and woke up early. Since Cheng Duo arrived here, he had never stayed up late. It was no wonder that some diligent villagers would start working at four or five in the morning; lying in bed was just boring.

Cheng Duo asked for directions and found out that an official road had been built from twenty li slope to Xiling Camp, so they didn't have to worry about taking the wrong path.

Both of them walked at a brisk pace and arrived at the camp gate in just over thirty minutes. There were villages nearby, but because they were strangers, the soldiers coming out from inside stared at them curiously.

Cheng Duo wasn't bothered by their gazes and let them look. It was Yong-ge who felt embarrassed and hid behind Cheng Duo with his head down.

"Excuse me…"

"Whom are you looking for?" Before Cheng Duo could finish, one of the guards on duty asked. It seemed like he wanted Cheng Duo to show some respect.

Cheng Duo ignored him and took out Meng Ji's identity card from his pocket, waving it in front of the soldier. "Is there a soldier named Meng Ji here?"

The soldier was surprised. "Are you looking for Captain Meng?"

It seemed that Meng Ji had quite a reputation. The soldier didn't say anything more and went to call someone with his companion.

When Meng Ji heard that someone was looking for him at the camp gate, he was initially confused. But when he heard that the other person had his identity card, his expression changed instantly. "Where is he? Take me to him!"

General Wei, who was nearby, found it strange. "Meng Ji, why are you so excited?"

"General, weren't you curious about the skilled warrior who killed Wu Gu and severely injured the captive? It's him! I left my identity card with him, and now he has actually come to find me."

No wonder Meng Ji was excited. The mysterious person's skills had amazed him, and he appeared and disappeared mysteriously, giving off an air of not wanting to meddle in anything.

Meng Ji had actually gone back to look for him before, but they were in the deep mountains at that time. He had inquired about the nearby villages, but there was no one matching the description of the mysterious person.

"Is it him? Could he really be that powerful?" General Wei was skeptical. He had personally seen the captive who was pierced through the chest and back by the wooden spear. He found it hard to believe that it was done with just a blunt wooden spear. And Meng Ji repeatedly emphasized that the person didn't rely on any external force; he effortlessly pierced the man!

When they all heard about it at the time, they thought Meng Ji was either delirious from his severe injuries or that the wooden spear had been tampered with.

Unfortunately, Meng Ji hadn't been able to bring back the wooden spear, so the mysterious person in Meng Ji's account remained an unsolved mystery.