508 Meeting by the Road (2/2)

He saw that it was the Big Black Horse. What made him grow alert was that something had spooked the Big Black Horse, causing it to appear frantic.

Other than the natural disaster that had occurred more than a decade ago, the security of the Tang Empire had always been good. Ning Que was not worried for his safety. Even if the rare robber appeared, he would not mind getting rid of him for the good of the nation and to spread the good name of the Academy. He wouldn't mind even if it was a cultivator.

He won against Guan Hai and killed Dao Shi. He had blinded Liu Yiqing and had miraculously beaten Xia Hou. His prowess was proven. Even though Wang Jinglue might not be convinced, but the cultivation world had come to a consensus. Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, was the strongest person below the Knowing Destiny State.

Furthermore, he had Sangsang, the inheritor of the Great Divine Priest of Light by his side. With Ning Que's natal item by his side, he dared to battle against a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing destiny State. Of course, Grand Cultivators in Knowing Destiny State would know of his and Sangsang's identity and would not want to provoke the ire of the Academy and the West-Hill Divine Palace.

The Big Black Horse ran back to Ning Que and Sangsang, leaving a trail of smoke behind him. He panted heavily, looking terrified.

Ning Que looked at the trail of smoke gravely.

The smoke dissipated, leaving behind a bare-chested man holding a grass fork yelling loudly as he approached.

”You thief horse! Don't run! See if I won't kill you!”

The matter was quickly explained. The Big Black Horse had walked around and caught the scent of food at the village. He couldn't control himself and followed the scent, pushing his head into a window and ate the food of that family. It was discovered by the owner who then chased after him, intent on killing him.

Ning Que glared at the Big Black Horse. He thought that the horse was really a chicken. Ning Que fed him nourishing fruits every day, but he went to steal food from others instead! What's more, he had been so terrified just from the farmer chasing after him and panted like he was dying!

The Big Black Horse lowered his head shamefully. He thought to himself that it was indeed his fault for stealing food. It had better look more pathetic or Ning Que might punish him further.

Ning Que looked at the farmer and smiled bitterly. He placed his hands together and apologized.

The farmer held on to the straw fork with one hand and placed his other hand on his waist. He panted tiredly, saying, ”This fellow runs really f**king quickly. It is a good horse indeed! No wonder he drank a portion of the porridge in one gulp!”

Ning Que felt even more ashamed when he heard that the Big Black Horse had stolen a portion of porridge. He smiled bitterly, saying, ”It eats too much and is lazy. It's not really a good horse.”

The farmer shook his head in disagreement. He said, ”I have never seen a better horse than this, even when I was in the military camp. Not even the general's horse was better than this.”

The Tang Empire had a three-year military recruitment system. In order to gain more land, the size of its military had to be large. Furthermore, since the citizens of the Tang Empire thought highly of martial arts, many men had been through the military system. Ning Que knew that the farmer had retired from the military when he heard that and was not surprised. He took some money and handed it to the man, saying, ”Take this for the pot of porridge. The pot must be dirty too, so take this money for the entire pot of porridge.”

The farmer waved his hand and said, ”I saw that the horse was handsome and guessed that it had an owner. That's why I chased after it. I don't really need this money.”

Ning Que smiled and said, ”Why did you chase after him if not for the money?”

The farmer said matter-of-factly, ”That's because your attitude is good. If you had been snobby, then I would have charged you for the porridge and for my hard work in making the porridge.”

Such candor was often seen in the Academy and in the Tang citizens. Ning Que liked this a lot and he smiled, ”Since this is so, I shall not indulge in social niceties with you then.”

The farmer looked at the black horse carriage and Sangsang, who was in her handmaiden uniform. He guessed that they were resting there temporarily and invited them, saying, ”It's not convenient to speak here. Come to my house.”

Ning Que was good at social interaction and liked the farmer's character. However, he was still that cold youth from many years back and wanted to reject the farmer's invitation.

The farmer was unexpectedly persistent. He said, ”Since you will have to travel far, you will need to get water. If you mind, you can just pay me for it.”

Ning Que still wanted to reject him.

The farmer frowned and said, ”You look like someone who's been in the army. Why are you so wishy-washy?”

Ning Que looked at the determination in the farmer's eyes and thought of the City of Wei. He thought of the army men in the city and the words he left with General Ma before he left.

”Then let's go.” He smiled and said, ”But I want some alcohol too.”

The farmer laughed heartily and said, ”We have home-brewed wine. It's not good, but you can have as much as you want.”

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