OBS Chapter 29: Guo Guiyuan
Chapter 29: Guo Guiyuan
After Qian Bin respectfully poured the wine, he stood aside and smiled when he met Wu He's gaze.
"You're Wu He, Li Bo's apprentice?"
Guo Guiyuan glanced over, and in an instant, Wu He felt a sharp pain in his eyeballs, as if a sharp sword had pierced his eye.
A strong person!
Someone even stronger than Li Bo!
Wu He's breathing became rapid and he quickly steadied himself, then clasped his hands in a salute: "Reporting to the General, Lord Li has not accepted me as a disciple; the rumors circulating outside are merely false."
"Yu Long already told you, right?"
"I said so."
Guo Guiyuan tore off a large piece of mutton, held it in his hand, and stuffed it into his mouth. He waved his greasy hand, and Qian Bin walked over with a suit of armor.
"From this day forward, you will be the tenth general of the Dingzi Scout Team, responsible for tasks such as capturing Khitan spies in the city and patrolling the curfew. Your salary and benefits will be explained in detail after you are officially registered."
Guo Guiyuan continued slowly and deliberately, "Do a good job. This general likes young and promising people the most."
Wu He took the armor: "Yes."
"Brother Wu, from today onwards we are colleagues. I am the tenth general of the Bingzi Scout Team. If you have any questions, you can come and ask me." Qian Bin said with a smile.
"Alright, we'll have to trouble Captain Qian a lot." Wu He replied with a smile.
During this encounter, he realized that Qian Bin had already figured out that he was the thief who broke into his home that night.
At this moment, he smiled politely, but his eyes held a hint of danger.
Yu Long, who was standing next to him, was very perceptive and noticed something amiss. He narrowed his eyes slightly.
At that moment, the tent flap was suddenly pulled open, and a soldier strode in.
"General Qi! Physician Wen has arrived!"
"Oh? So fast?"
Guo Guiyuan gasped slightly, picked up a white cloth from the table to wipe his mouth, and stood up: "Please come in quickly!"
"yes!"
"You three can retire now. Yu Long, take Wu He to register."
"Yes."
As Wu He stepped out of the tent flap, he saw a familiar, tall, thin gray figure walking towards him on the dirt road ahead.
He had delicate features, prominent cheekbones, and piercing eyes. He wore a simple gray long coat that had been washed until it was almost white.
It was Wen Xin.
"Hahaha!"
Then came a hearty laugh, and Guo Guiyuan strode out, quickly heading towards Wen Xin.
"Dr. Wen! We're troubling you again this time!"
"General Guo, what are you saying? With our friendship, there's no need to trouble yourself."
The two spoke naturally and intimately, looking like old friends chatting.
"Come, come, let's have some wine first. My back has been hurting terribly these past few days, and only Dr. Wen's Mianyang acupuncture can relieve it."
……
Wu He watched from the side and asked Yu Long curiously, "Chief Yu, General Guo and Doctor Wen seem to have a very close relationship."
"Hehe, of course, Doctor Wen is General Guo's savior."
Yu Long recounted: "Back when General Guo accompanied the Emperor on the Northern Expedition, he was seriously injured and nearly died. It was Physician Wen who used the Mianyang acupuncture technique to keep him alive and pulled him back from the brink of death."
"General Guo has been fighting in various places in recent years and has suffered from many hidden ailments. It has always been Doctor Wen who has been treating him."
Upon hearing this, Wu He felt a little relieved, recalling the rumors he had heard when he inquired about Wen Xin.
Wen Xin became famous back then for saving a general, who turned out to be Guo Guiyuan.
Later, when Wu He went to the archives to register the documents, he also learned about General Guo Guiyuan from Yu Long.
His ancestral home is Chang'an, and he is said to be the great-great-grandson of Guo Xin, the general of the Anxi Army in the late Tang Dynasty. He is extremely talented in martial arts and cultivation.
During Emperor Shizong's Northern Expedition, he made outstanding military achievements and was hailed as a genius who revived the Guo family's martial spirit.
After the establishment of Xiongzhou, the troops have been stationed here to deter the Khitan in the north, and have become the backbone of the Xiongzhou garrison.
In short, working under him is a promising career path.
After being registered in the military, Wu He was completely freed from his status as an "unregistered and undocumented person".
A ninth-rank general receives a monthly salary of ten taels of silver and three doses of tiger bone ointment, which is much more generous than that of an ordinary tenth-rank general.
As night fell completely, the complicated procedures were completed, and the recipient received a set of leather armor, a tall horse, and some equipment such as a crossbow and a flag spear.
They also saw soldiers from the T-shaped scout team in the military camp.
There were thirty people in total, all of whom were tempered martial artists who had entered the realm. When those "sir" were called out, Wu He experienced what it was like to be a leader for the first time.
Their daily task was to patrol the three streets in the south of the city and keep an eye on the movements of the Khitan spies in the city.
As the team leader, Wu He doesn't need to clock in on time, so he has a lot of free time.
However, just as he mounted his horse and was about to return to the Desire Immortal Pavilion, a figure slowly walked over.
"Captain Wu, may I have a word with you?"
Qian Bin carried a jar of wine with a warm smile...
Somewhere on the battlefield, Wu He pushed the bowl of wine in front of him back and said calmly, "Captain Qian, please speak your mind."
Seeing this, Qian Bin didn't press the matter. He picked up the rough porcelain bowl and drank it all in one gulp, then slowly said, "It was I who sneaked into your room that night."
"Captain Wu is a smart man, so I won't beat around the bush. Name your price, how much silver will it take for you to hand over the sword manual?"
"That belongs to Master Li. If Master Li agrees, I can give it to you for free."
"If he agreed, I wouldn't have contacted you."
Qian Bin put down the wine jar, reached out and placed his hand on Wu He's shoulder, and said seriously, "Captain Wu, since you didn't become his apprentice anyway, handing over the sword manual to me won't be considered betraying your master."
"How about this, fifty taels of gold, plus a thirty-year-old precious medicinal herb. Is that a fair price?"
Fifty taels of gold, thirty years of precious cultivation.
This compensation is indeed fair, and could even be described as generous.
But Wu He still gently shook his head: "It still requires Master Li's approval."
Qian Bin took a deep breath: "Why? What good will this do you?"
"There's no benefit to it; not everything in the world should be driven by self-interest."
Wu He calmly removed the hand from his shoulder: "Isn't Master Li your savior? It's not a good thing to repay kindness with enmity."
"I didn't deny it."
Qian Bin's face darkened completely, and he said coldly, "But are you so stubborn that you insist on being my enemy?"
Wu He gave him a deep look, then smiled slightly and patted his chest.
"Captain Qian, you insist that I say it directly: add a little more."
Qian Bin's eyes widened in surprise: "You mean...?"
"One hundred taels of gold for a thirty-year-old precious plant... isn't that a fair price?"
"...Okay! Money is no problem."
He gritted his teeth and agreed.
Gold, silver, and other material possessions are clearly insignificant compared to a sword manual.
"Then go get it now, we're at..."
"Captain Qian, Yuxian Tower is far from here. Why don't you go get the money and come back to Yuxian Tower with me to get the sword manual?"
"Very well, you may wait here for a while."
……
Qian Bin was an impatient man. In less than a quarter of an hour, he came over with a bulging bundle in his arms. The two hit it off immediately and headed straight for the Delightful Immortal Pavilion after leaving the camp.
"Captain Wu's acting is quite good. I really thought you were the stubborn and obstinate type."
"The world is bustling with people chasing after profit; those who don't know what's good for them wouldn't be alive today."
"Excellent! Brother Wu is quite learned. Don't worry, after this is done, we'll be on the same side. I'll recommend you to General Zhao Guangyi. Your future prospects are much better than General Guo's."
"Is that so? Then thank you very much, Brother Qian."
……
The two chatted and laughed, acting like brothers.
It was just passing through some dark place.
Whoosh~
The sound of the cold iron blade leaving its sheath was crisp and clear.