Chapter 996: Chapter 832: Pink-Bottomed Black Boots

Gu Chengyu carefully watched the reaction of the man in the lead. Perhaps deciding they posed no threat, the man’s expression shifted from guarded to natural as he sized them up.

When his gaze fell on the burly man and the old man, however, a trace of gravity appeared on his face.

Gu Chengyu saw the four deliberately close in together, then choose the table closest to them.

He turned back to glance at that burly man and found the fellow clearly uninterested in the four. After his initial wariness, he no longer paid them any mind.

Gu Chengyu’s heart sank. It seemed eight or nine times out of ten the other party really had come for him.

Once the four sat, Gu Chengyu swept his eyes over them a few times, focusing on their posture.

They sat upright and rigid, backs straight, every muscle tense, and held no conversation after sitting down.

"Here we are! Dear guests, the braised rabbit in sauce and the red-braised pork hock you ordered. The other dishes will take a bit longer, please enjoy these first."

The waiter raised his voice as he set the dishes down on Gu Chengyu’s table.

Ming Yan was the first to take a cloth bundle from his breast, unfold it, and draw out a Silver needle. The gazes from the two surrounding tables instantly converged on them.

In Gu Chengyu’s view, one had best err on the side of caution when traveling. Testing for poison with Silver needles was perfectly normal. He did not believe those two tables wouldn’t test their food.

The four exchanged glances first, a hint of wariness in all their eyes.

The leader stared fixedly at Gu Chengyu’s group, giving them another thorough once-over. That bearing from head to toe was the sort you saw on a noble son; just unclear what he was doing out on the road.

Besides, a tender-skinned young master like this ought to have a carriage when traveling. Under this blazing sun, even rough men like them were uneasy from the heat.

Yet this master and his two servants were only riding three horses, and even their luggage was extremely simple. Each had just one bundle, and it was obvious from the shape there was almost nothing inside—perhaps only two changes of clothes.

If he truly were a noble son traveling, how could he be this simple and sparing?

The leader felt that being overawed by their looks at first, then dismissing them afterward, had been most unwise. This master-and-servants trio was absolutely not as simple as some noble family’s young men.

Thinking of the task his master had entrusted to him, he withdrew his gaze. Best not create extra trouble.

No matter who they were, as long as they posed no threat to them, there was no need to provoke them further.

The atmosphere inside the tea-house slackened at once; the four also began to converse.

Gu Chengyu listened closely. Their official speech carried a trace of accent, actually somewhat similar to that of his hometown, Jingyuan Prefecture, with only slight differences.

Could these four have come from Jingyuan Prefecture? He listened a while to what they were saying—it was all about fabrics, so they ought to be cloth merchants.

He just didn’t understand why the four had also come on horseback. Had they already sold off their goods? Even then they should have a cart for transporting goods, shouldn’t they?

Just as Gu Chengyu was lost in thought, the burly man at the other table suddenly knocked hard on the tabletop.

The waiter hurried over. "Dear guest! Do you have any orders?"

The man drew out a two-tael Silver ingot from his breast, pointed at a plate of braised rabbit in sauce on the table, then slapped the Silver down.

The waiter could tell the fellow probably wanted to settle the bill, and seeing him point at the rabbit, probed, "Dear guest, would you like some more rabbit to take away?"

The man nodded and did not spare the waiter another glance.

The waiter was instantly a bit troubled; you had to state an amount for takeout, didn’t you? Since the two had entered the tea-house they hadn’t said a word, which truly made things difficult for him.

They couldn’t both be mute, could they? What were the odds of that?

"Then shall I use the remaining Silver to pack rabbit for you?" he pressed on, bracing himself.

"Mm." The burly man let out a single nasal syllable, then lifted the tea-cup on the table and took a sip.

The waiter let out a breath of relief, even as he grumbled inwardly. So he wasn’t mute at all—why wouldn’t he just speak?

Gu Chengyu frowned. The two seemed accustomed to taciturnity. Yet that one response just now left him with a vague sense of strangeness he couldn’t put into words.

Moments earlier the pair had still held hostility toward them, looking as if they might strike. Yet now they were actually paying the bill and leaving. Were they planning to give up?

Or had they decided the tea-house was too crowded and inconvenient for action, and were planning to intercept them on the road instead? Any of these were quite possible.

Earlier he had vaguely suspected they might be bandits who’d taken one look at his fine clothes and decided to pull a job.

But he had just ruled that out. Tossing down two taels of Silver in one go, they clearly weren’t short of money. And that treasure knife of his was no cheap piece either.

Besides, the Shopkeeper of this tea-house surely made a tidy sum every day. Why hadn’t they targeted the Shopkeeper instead? Unless they were accomplices?

Countless suspicions flashed through Gu Chengyu’s mind in an instant, but those two walked out of the tea-house without a backward glance, mounted their horses, and galloped south.

One had to admit, once they left, the atmosphere inside the tea-house relaxed at once.

Gu Chengyu could feel that the four also grew more at ease than before; even their posture slackened a bit.

Yet that very slackening let Gu Chengyu spot a clue: he realized the four were actually wearing official boots.

The Dayan Dynasty, unlike the previous dynasty, did not regulate commoners’ clothing so harshly. Anyone of any status could wear boots, but boots were still divided into ranks, otherwise there’d be no way to mark status.

Commoners’ boots had straight seams, made from front and back pieces stitched together, and didn’t look all that refined.

Official boots, however, were six-seam boots, exquisitely crafted, and there was also a great difference in materials between the two.

Though the four were not wearing the "pink-bottomed black boots" that officials usually wore, the style was extremely similar. Gu Chengyu’s eyes narrowed slightly. Could these men be from the government?

Otherwise they wouldn’t be wearing six-seam boots. If someone reported them, at the lightest they’d get several dozen strokes, at the heaviest their homes would be confiscated and they’d be exiled.

This main road was the only way through to Jiangnan, but after the court had dispatched him to Jiangnan, it should have been impossible for them to send anyone else.

Before he set off, the Emperor had originally said he wanted Lu Chen to travel with him. After all, the previous treasure map case in Hejian Prefecture had been handled by the two of them working together.

But Gu Chengyu had refused firmly. After what happened last time, Lu Chen must have figured things out by now. If he dragged him along again this time, not only would the other’s guard be up, he’d also end up dragging him back.

At this critical juncture, taking Lu Chen along would absolutely tie Gu Chengyu’s hands and feet.

Besides, if Gu Chengyu handled this matter properly, the credit would basically all be his. If he added a Lu Chen to the mix, wouldn’t the merit have to be split again?

So bringing Lu Chen would be all harm and no benefit. The Emperor then gave Gu Chengyu two other candidates, and Gu Chengyu, helpless, could only lay things out frankly.

The large-scale collapses in Changtian Prefecture definitely had something to do with the quality of the embankments. If they stuffed some official of unknown faction into the team, getting things done would become much more difficult.

In the end, once the Emperor learned he had two followers with excellent martial arts, he agreed.