139 Escort tax money?

Zhai Le didn't return empty-handed.

Left hand two altars, right hand two altars, returned fully loaded.

With a nimble leap, easily flipping over a low wall and jumping inside, before he could steady himself, a very familiar face appeared in his sight. He almost lost his balance, the relaxed smile on his face slightly frozen, but he consciously stood firm.

He softly called out to the person, "Brother Ah..."

Zhai Huan still dressed in a scholarly manner, remained unruffled upon seeing his big cousin leaping over the wall from outside. "Has Xiao Fang been having a good time these days?"

Zhai Le smiled broadly and boldly approached, "Very good. Brother Ah, let me tell you, Shen Xian is such a fun person. I've never met anyone quite like him, very interesting, very interesting indeed."

As he recounted his experiences these past few days, Zhai Le couldn't help but smile, his naturally charming eyes shimmering with joy.

He plopped down opposite his cousin, happily sharing his experiences of castrating pigs.

Zhai Huan: "...???"

When his cousin mentioned that Shen Xiaolang was good at castrating pigs, his expression froze for a moment. But when his cousin added that he had also learned the art of castration, and had castrated sixteen piglets - seven sows and nine boars - in one morning, Zhai Huan's years of facial management almost faltered.

He rubbed his forehead with a headache, "And you find this fun?"

Zhai Le thought seriously for a moment, "To say it's fun isn't really accurate. The pigs scream so miserably and harshly. It's just watching Shen Xian's earnestness in castrating them that makes this work quite interesting."

Even the most boring things can be interesting with someone to keep you company.

Zhai Huan's lips moved but he didn't say anything.

Yet Zhai Le understood him, even if his cousin said nothing.

Castrating pigs wasn't some prestigious job, and it was dirty and tiring dealing with those things. But if, as Shen Xian said, it allowed common people to enjoy delicious meat, what did a little dirt and fatigue matter?

However, there was one thing that puzzled him: who was the first to discover that castrated pork tasted delicious? And why did they choose to castrate their own pigs?

Seeing his cousin not speaking, Zhai Le smiled as he contemplated his own plans, "If castrated pork really does taste good, we could raise more in the future. Shen Xian said they could be ready in six to seven months. Wouldn't that be two cycles a year? That's better than other livestock."

Feeling a bit thirsty, he noticed there was a game set up on the chessboard, a cup of lukewarm tea next to him, and even the cushion he was sitting on still had some warmth. He looked around, "Is there a guest?"

Zhai Huan replied, "Hmm."

"The person left?"

Zhai Le hesitated whether to get up.

Zhai Huan waved his hand to signal him not to get up, "Just left."

"Oh, good, good."

If he returned a bit earlier and his cousin's friend saw him not using the main gate but climbing over the wall, it could leave a bad impression.

Zhai Huan asked, "Xiao Fang isn't curious who that person is?"

"I trust Brother Ah's friends."

He always trusted his cousin, not paying much attention to his social circles. As long as Brother Ah didn't suffer, it was fine. Just like how he made friends, Brother Ah wouldn't interfere either.

Though Zhai Le didn't ask, Zhai Huan wouldn't hide it from his closest cousin. He casually said, "He's the County Governor."

Zhai Le was stunned, "The County Governor? Four Treasures County's County Governor?"

Zhai Huan nodded in acknowledgment, "Yes, it's him."

"He wants to recruit Brother Ah?"

It wasn't that Zhai Le looked down on people, but he didn't hold a high opinion of the County Governor of Four Treasures. Their family wasn't without roots in their southeastern homeland. If he really extended an olive branch, it would be somewhat laughable.

Zhai Huan lowered his eyes, "No recruitment."

He had hinted a few times and was politely declined each time.

Zhai Le muttered, "Good that there's no recruitment. I just feel this person isn't very upright, scheming, with a petty demeanor. Although I trust Brother Ah won't be taken advantage of, one can never guard against everything. Is he just visiting friends this time, or is there another purpose?"

Seeing his cousin preparing to be on guard, Zhai Huan chuckled, "There's another purpose."

Zhai Le frowned slightly.

He didn't know whether he should ask about the purpose.

Zhai Huan confessed first, "He said Four Treasures County is short of manpower. The Gong clan's fugitive rebels are still at large, and they need to increase manpower for search operations. Coupled with internal unrest in the county, they can't spare much military strength for the time being... So he wants the two of us to help him out."

The two brothers were being asked for help???

What kind of task required this level of martial force???

Even more strangely, why would they ask two young scholars and warriors who were just passing through for help...

It was truly baffling.

"What kind of help? Even if Four Treasures County is short of manpower, shouldn't it be easy to mobilize hundreds of people? What about the garrison?"

Most Wudan warriors would choose military service, which was rarely seen outside, but garrisons were not uncommon. Take a Rank Seven Official for example, Four Treasures County's garrison could certainly find one or two. If Rank Seven Officials were hard to mobilize, what about Rank Five and Six officials?

Why ask for outside help???

"To help escort a batch of supplies..." Zhai Huan paused, then added, "These supplies are very important, and the County Governor attaches great importance to them. He has already mobilized all available manpower. Just worried about accidents, so he asked us to lend a hand... Mostly taxes and silver."

The County Governor didn't directly say what they were escorting, but based on the hints in his evasive words, Zhai Huan could guess the gist.

Upon hearing this, Zhai Le couldn't help but gasp in disbelief.

"Tax and silver, this, this—"

His intuition told him he shouldn't wade into this murky water.

So, with a serious expression, he said, "Even the County Governor himself said the internal situation is unstable. If they're really escorting tax and silver... Isn't this like a bald head with a bullseye on it??"

Why not send their own troops for escort?

Are they really so afraid of being robbed that they need heavy military escort!

At first, Zhai Huan's expression was calm, but when he heard the latter part, he almost choked, unable to help but laugh, "A bullseye on a bald head... Xiao Fang, where did you learn such witty words?"

"I learned from Shen Xiong," Zhai Le didn't hesitate to "sell out" Shen Tang, "Brother Ah, that's not important. If it really is tax and silver, who knows how many eyes are watching within Four Treasures County... If we take on this hot potato, wouldn't we be asking for trouble?"

Zhai Huan: "..."

Once again, it's this Shen Youli Ren.

It looks like these two really get along well.

"At first, I wanted to refuse... but it's really 'hard to refuse such a hearty invitation.' If it's escorting a disguised team, there shouldn't be any major issues. Besides—wouldn't it be even better if something really happened?" After saying this, a glint passed through the young man's dark eyes, "This County Governor is cunning and values his life. To ensure the tax and silver are safe, he naturally wouldn't leave anything to chance."

"A disguised team?" Zhai Le breathed a sigh of relief when he heard it was a disguised team. It's not that he's paranoid, he's genuinely worried that they might become scapegoats for something. However, his cousin's words puzzled him a bit.

From the sound of it, Brother Ah is hoping for something to happen???