Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 123 - 106: Thunderous Tactics

"The Lord has recently suffered an assassination attempt, so the city gates are closed while they’re searching for the would-be assassin. But all four gates have been shut for ten or fifteen days now—who knows when they’ll open again!"

"Heh, assassination? I bet Lord Zhao’s just putting on a show, closing the gates to keep himself safe!"

"That coward—"

"Shhh~ Brother, be careful what you say!"

······

Lu Chang’sheng stood outside the West Gate Traveler’s Inn, listening to the chatter drifting out from within, his brow furrowing slightly.

He saw a scholar walking by and reached out to stop him.

The scholar was just about to lose his temper, but seeing how tall and imposing Lu Chang’sheng was, he held his anger in check and asked what was wanted.

"Excuse me, is there any way to get into the city?"

He’d been listening outside for a while and noticed this guy seemed to know the most.

Every rat has its own paths.

So, he stopped him to ask.

He also took out a few taels of silver and offered them over.

The scholar’s eyes lit up a bit, but he didn’t take the money.

After all, it was obvious this man wasn’t some commoner, and anyway, he didn’t really have any reliable information. If he offended this guy, he’d be in trouble.

"No way?"

"Yeah, they’ve closed the gates before, but usually the Wild Wolf Gang can find a way in. This time—no chance!"

Listening to the scholar sigh and walk away, Lu Chang’sheng also felt rather helpless and annoyed.

So that night, taking advantage of the thick darkness, he and the White Ape climbed the walls and snuck into the outer city.

Man and ape moved with lightning speed, and the city’s outer wall was much lower than the inner one—patrols weren’t as tight either. They got inside with ease.

The next morning, Lu Chang’sheng tidied up his clothes, found a secluded tavern to stay at, and then headed straight for the government office.

"Scholar Lu?"

The Longyang Prefecture soldier on gate duty saw Lu Chang’sheng and was visibly startled, quickly saying, "Please wait a moment!"

He turned and hurried off; soon, he returned with a Junior Official, who ushered Lu Chang’sheng into the Guest House of the government office.

This office had both administrative areas and guest reception areas.

But in the administrative section, everything was strictly by the book. In the Guest House, though, it was mostly private matters outsiders weren’t supposed to know about.

Once Lu Chang’sheng was seated, the Junior Official poured tea while subtly probing for more about his identity.

Top Scholar wasn’t a simple title—it meant he had official status. But which prefecture was he from?

The Junior Official wasn’t high-ranking enough to say for sure, so he wanted Lu Chang’sheng to confirm.

But after a while, he suddenly froze, not even noticing he’d overfilled the teacup.

"Scholar Lu from Black Mountain Prefecture?"

"That’s right."

Lu Chang’sheng keenly noticed the Junior Official’s expression suddenly go a bit stiff.

The Junior Official said, "So it’s Scholar Lu from Black Mountain Prefecture! My apologies—please allow me to go make a report."

Watching the Junior Official walk away, Lu Chang’sheng glanced down at the cup, only half-filled with tea, and showed a faintly meaningful expression.

"Looks like, in the end, I misjudged them."

He picked up the teapot beside him and filled the cup the rest of the way.

Took a small sip.

Took another small sip.

And another.

By the time he’d finished the tea, more than an hour had passed.

He didn’t linger, got up and walked out.

"Scholar Lu, leaving so soon? Why not stay a bit longer?" The Junior Official stood at the door, seeing someone out, and when he saw Lu Chang’sheng, forced a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Lu Chang’sheng laughed, "That’s all right. I’ll be back later!"

The Junior Official’s face darkened. As soon as Lu Chang’sheng walked off, he turned to a pair of rotating guards and said, "No matter who comes tonight, don’t let them in. Got it?"

"Yes, sir!"

Lately, lots of Black Mountain Prefecture folks had come here to Longyang Prefecture to try to persuade Lord Zhao to march against Black Mountain—that’s really pissed him off. Plenty of the Noble scions who tried persuasion got punished.

He was just a mere Junior Official in the office, barely managed to scrape up a Ninth Grade rank—couldn’t afford to get on anyone’s bad side.

Just follow orders!

"The office isn’t open—what, is he going to turn the world upside down?"

The famous Scholar Lu from Black Mountain—anyone mixed up in officialdom knew that name well. Back in the imperial exams, they’d placed all kinds of private bets with quite a bit of silver coins on the outcome. Who knew, none of them ended up winning—Scholar Lu from Black Mountain cleaned everyone out.

No one forgot that lesson.

The Junior Official added a few more instructions; maybe his senses were especially sharp, but he even arranged for a few more Prefecture Soldiers to join the night patrol—just to be safe.

Before heading back to the inn, Lu Chang’sheng made a point to buy a ton of food and brought it back with him.

Not wanting to bother anyone else, the White Ape stayed behind at the inn.

"Brother White Ape, come eat!"

Lu Chang’sheng opened the bag he’d brought—inside were piles of roast lamb and roast beef, along with meatballs and roast fish.

The White Ape’s face lit up happily; he gave everything a sniff, seemed to think it smelled much better than expected, then grabbed a fish and gulped it down in one bite.

The next moment, even his monkey face seemed to brighten with joy.

"Hoo-hoo~"

"Tasty, right?"

"Hoo-hoo~"

Lu Chang’sheng laughed heartily, knowing the White Ape loved wine. He pulled out a wine jar, but this batch wasn’t very strong. With the White Ape’s tolerance, even a whole jar wasn’t going to get him drunk.

"Later tonight, I’ll need your help with something, Brother White Ape!"

With food and drink to spare, Lu Chang’sheng and the White Ape chatted for a while.

He realized that while the White Ape didn’t seem especially bright, he was about as sharp as a five- or six-year-old child. And when it came to survival instincts, he was even more clever.

"Hoo-hoo~"

"Thanks a lot, Brother White Ape," Lu Chang’sheng said solemnly.

Here in the heart of the Prefecture, even Lu Chang’sheng and the White Ape didn’t dare get careless.

First of all, there was no guarantee they could dodge a hidden arrow.

Prefecture Soldiers were stationed in the inner city, outer city, and even outside the city—all in various strengths. In this world, there were True Qi Realm and even Innate Realm warriors who could take on thousands or tens of thousands alone. So, any properly outfitted army would have several ballistae and even some giant Eight-Ox Crossbows.

This was what even a top-rank True Qi expert feared most—facing masses of armored troops.

Among the troops, there were specialized tactics to deal with elite martial artists. Add in all kinds of crossbow arrows, and even someone at Hong Yuan’s level could end up paying with his life.

This was exactly why Lu Chang’sheng didn’t just smash his way into Black Mountain Prefecture with the White Ape.

It was just too risky.

In a battle between prefectures, even the rebellious troops wouldn’t lack for crossbows. If he slipped up, he really might never come back.

"Say, Brother White Ape, do you need any weapons?"

Lu Chang’sheng asked.

He’d just asked casually—after all, he’d sparred with the White Ape for more than a month and had never seen him use a weapon.

But to his surprise, the next moment, the White Ape started miming out a bunch of moves.

Lu Chang’sheng paused for a second, then nodded.

As night fell, man and ape took advantage of the dim dusk and headed to a Martial Arts Hall, knocking on its door.