Chapter 1 The County Magistrate and His Assistant

It was only at this moment that the county magistrate and his assistant came to their senses.

The assistant plopped to his knees on the spot, while the county magistrate rushed down from above to the main hall, also kneeling.

"Your Majesty, spare us! Your Majesty, have mercy! Your Majesty, spare us! Your Majesty, have mercy..."

The two kowtowed repeatedly, praying that Jiang Chen would let them off.

Jiang Chen looked at them and sneered.

These two had gone to such extremes; did they really expect him to show leniency?

If he let these two off today, the Great Wei would have a hundred more county magistrates setting up city entry and exit fees tomorrow!

"Xu Zhen'an, when you return to the capital, take these scoundrels with you! Have Yang Yongqi send some new people over!"

"Yes!"

Having done all this, Jiang Chen sheathed his kingly aura and smiled as he approached the trembling old man.

"Old man, you've been frightened."

The old man waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare."

Seeing the old man's overwhelmed state, Jiang Chen didn't say much more, saying, "Jingyue, see the old man out."

Once Jingyue returned, Jiang Chen didn't linger. He took Jingyue, returned to the inn to retrieve the carriage, and once again embarked on the journey to Zhongzhou.

Just as Jiang Chen was about to reach Changshan, the capital city became lively.

Xu Zhen'an led a group of officials to the Ministry of Justice to turn themselves in. Only then did the ministers of the capital realize that His Majesty had made a private visit.

No wonder there hadn't been a morning court for days.

The answer they received from Feng Jin was that His Majesty was unwell.

For days, they had even begun to suspect that Jiang Chen was critically ill, but they never expected that Jiang Chen had already appeared near Baozhou Prefecture, hundreds of miles away, and had discovered a county magistrate charging city entry and exit fees.

By the time they reached Changshan, the weather had become even colder, and snow was falling. Jiang Chen and Jingyue had already put on their cotton-padded clothes.

After traveling for most of the day, they finally saw a tavern. Jiang Chen told Jingyue to stop for a rest.

Entering the main hall of the tavern, Jiang Chen felt much warmer. The waiter greeted them.

After ordering a few side dishes and a pot of wine recommended by the waiter, Jiang Chen and Jingyue slowly began to eat.

Before long, the door covered with thick cloth was pushed open from the outside, and a voice rang out at the same time.

"Waiter, bring a jar of wine and five jin of roasted meat!"

Such a bold style made Jiang Chen couldn't help but look over curiously.

He saw a man with a resolute face and thick eyebrows enter the tavern.

The most obvious thing about this man was his clothing.

Although light snow was falling outside, the man was wearing thin clothes and didn't seem to feel the cold at all.

The waiter was startled and hurried to greet him, saying, "Sir, can you finish all that?"

"What? Are you afraid I can't pay?"

The man laughed and took out a silver ingot, placing it on the table: "Just bring the food, whether I can finish it or not, you'll get your money!"

The waiter gave a smile and went to prepare the food and wine.

The man found a table against the wall and casually leaned his weapon against the wall.

Jiang Chen glanced at it; it was a red-tasseled spear.

Just as Jiang Chen withdrew his gaze, he felt the other man's gaze on him.

Jiang Chen smiled at him as a greeting.

The man seemed to have a naturally outgoing personality. Seeing Jiang Chen smile at him, he laughed and cupped his fist at Jiang Chen: "Zhao Ting from Changshan."

Zhao Ting?

Quite imposing.

Since the other party had revealed his name, Jiang Chen couldn't hide his own. He smiled and gave an alias: "I'm Jiang Long."

"Jiang Long? River-crossing Dragon? Good name!" Zhao Ting laughed loudly.

At this moment, the waiter brought up a jar of wine and five jin of meat. Zhao Ting invited, "Brother Jiang Long, how about drinking together?"

Jiang Chen smiled and agreed, going over to sit at the same table as Zhao Ting.

"Waiter, bring another bowl!" Zhao Ting said.

After the bowl was brought, Zhao Ting poured two bowls of wine, then raised the bowl in front of him, saying, "Brother Jiang Long, please!"

With that, Zhao Ting drained his bowl, turning it over to look at Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen smiled faintly, not declining. He raised his wine bowl and also drained it in one gulp.

A hint of surprise appeared on Zhao Ting's face. He had clearly seen that there was only one pot of wine on Jiang Chen's table.

He had thought that the other party wasn't much of a drinker, but now it seemed that he had underestimated him.

Especially since Jiang Chen's expression remained clear and unchanged after drinking, Zhao Ting couldn't help but feel a competitive spirit rise within him.

He poured two more bowls of wine, again drained them, and then looked at Jiang Chen.

Toward such a generous person, Jiang Chen knew that he absolutely couldn't show weakness.

He also drained his bowl in one gulp.

As soon as the wine entered his stomach, Jiang Chen activated the Qiankun Guiding Art to dissolve the alcohol.

For Jiang Chen, as long as he wasn't afraid of getting full, he could completely remain sober after a thousand cups.

After two bowls of wine, Zhao Ting became even more surprised.

His drinking capacity was among the best in Changshan.

He never expected to meet an opponent today.

His competitive spirit flared up, wanting to compete with Jiang Chen.

"Waiter, another jar of wine!" Zhao Ting shouted.

The waiter was taken aback and advised, "Sir, this jar of wine is not small. An ordinary person would need half a day to sleep it off after just one bowl..."

Zhao Ting directly interrupted the waiter's rambling: "Stop talking nonsense, quickly bring the wine! This Brother Jiang Long and I have already drunk two bowls, do we look like we're in trouble?"

The waiter stared blankly at Jiang Chen and Zhao Ting, clicking his tongue in amazement.

Usually, guests would be dizzy after drinking one bowl.

Today, these two guests had drunk two bowls and were completely fine. Truly a strange thing.

The wine was quickly brought up. Jiang Chen didn't decline and competed with Zhao Ting.

A jar of wine was soon emptied. With the Qiankun Guiding Art, Jiang Chen naturally felt nothing. Zhao Ting's face was slightly red.

Seeing that Jiang Chen's face remained unchanged, Zhao Ting was filled with admiration.

"Brother Jiang Long, I'm impressed!"

Zhao Ting exclaimed, "You're the first person I've met who can surpass me in drinking."

Jiang Chen laughed and didn't explain much, saying, "In this kind of weather, Brother Zhao, what are you doing in these remote mountains and wildlands?"

Mentioning this matter, Zhao Ting immediately perked up.

"I heard that there's a very powerful wild beast nearby, and it has injured many people. I've come here to kill it!"

The waiter guarding the counter heard Zhao Ting's words and quickly said, "Sir, you mustn't!"

Zhao Ting asked in confusion, "Why mustn't I?"

The waiter said, "Sir, that wild beast is especially powerful. Several people have had this idea before, but unfortunately..."

The waiter shook his head repeatedly as he spoke. Clearly, all of these people had failed.

Zhao Ting wasn't scared in the slightest. Instead, he became even more heroic: "Then I must eliminate this menace for the people!"

Perhaps aided by the alcohol, Zhao Ting said this as he stood up, grabbed his red-tasseled spear, and walked out.

As he walked out, Zhao Ting turned back to look at Jiang Chen: "Brother Jiang Long, you wait here, I'll go catch that wild beast and bring it back to have with the wine!"