Chapter 65 Settling the Bill

Before they set out, Senior Brother Li Hanguang had told him.

As a Disciple of the Maoshan Sect, there was no need to look at anyone's face anywhere.

Even the reigning Saint had to show the Maoshan Sect a measure of respect.

Therefore, when away from home, there was no need to let himself suffer any grievances.

Jiang Chen had taken these words to heart, which was why he dared to cut off one of Cheng Ji's ears in broad daylight without hesitation.

The Jinwu Guard were all stunned, standing frozen in place, not knowing what to do.

Seeing this scene, Zhang Lingyi couldn't help but cover her mouth with her sleeve, her eyes wide.

Xiaoqing even screamed out loud and closed her eyes.

"Mmph, hmph!" Cheng Ji was in extreme pain; suppressing the urge to scream, he let out a painful snort from his nose.

He desperately needed to vent right now, so he looked at one of the Jinwu Guard.

"Pick up the ear."

That Jinwu Guard stood there blankly.

"I told you to pick up the ear!"

The Jinwu Guard then hurriedly bent down to pick up the ear from the ground.

"Even if you are a Daoist from Maoshan, you cannot assault a member of the Jinwu Guard in broad daylight!"

He took his ear, his face twisted, looking viciously at Jiang Chen.

"And if I did assault you, what will you do about it?" Jiang Chen said calmly, his expression unchanged.

"You!" Cheng Ji's face became even more twisted and hideous, partly from pain and partly from anger.

From a young age, he had been a favored child of heaven; upon entering government service, he went straight into the Jinwu Guard and was promoted to a Rank 6 Zhaowu Captain within two years.

Although it was a titular post, his Family was currently helping him seek the position of Left General.

Although it might take some time, now that his ear had been cut off, he feared the Saint would no longer value him in the future.

He had to avenge this tremendous humiliation today!

Cheng Ji looked at Zhang Lingyi, forcing a gentle expression onto his face.

But because of the pain and anger, it appeared even more twisted and hideous.

"Young Miss, you should return to the manor with me first. I will naturally send someone to inform the Great Protector at top speed."

"Very well, General Cheng." Zhang Lingyi glanced at Jiang Chen again, then turned and followed Cheng Ji away.

Seeing that they didn't have to fight Jiang Chen, the Jinwu Guard all breathed a sigh of relief.

Are you kidding? They were just here to gild their resumes and collect a government salary; was there any need to fight to the death?

Once all the Jinwu Guard had left, voices finally began to sound in the inn again.

However, these people still looked at Jiang Chen and his group with a hint of fear; daring to beat a government official in the street meant their background was not ordinary.

"Fellow Daoist Jiang, you are truly fierce." Zhang Zhongjian exclaimed truthfully.

"I am merely borrowing the tiger's might, relying on the prestige of the Maoshan Sect and my Revered Master." Jiang Chen said modestly.

"Alright, Fellow Daoist Jiang, you and I must part ways here. I have something to do in Chang'an City."

Speaking of this, Zhang Zhongjian paused. He picked up the sword on the table, looked at it, and his expression became unreadable.

"This sword belonged to an old friend of mine. We haven't seen each other for ten years, and I haven't set foot in Chang'an for ten years either. Coming to Chang'an this time is to return the sword to her."

Jiang Chen subconsciously followed his gaze and looked at the sword.

It didn't matter if he didn't look, but upon looking, he felt a bit suspicious.

Because why did he feel that the design of this sword was somewhat familiar?

However, this feeling was fleeting; when he looked again, he felt nothing, as if seeing it for the first time.

"Fellow Daoist Jiang, if fate allows, we shall meet again!" Zhang Zhongjian cupped his hands.

Jiang Chen also bowed: "We shall meet again, Fellow Daoist Zhang."

Zhang Zhongjian laughed, picked up the long sword, and left with great heroism.

Watching Zhang Zhongjian leave, Jiang Chen prepared to settle the bill.

The innkeeper tapped on his abacus, finally looked up, and smiled: "Customer, the total is 520 wen. 500 wen will suffice."

Under normal circumstances, they wouldn't offer a discount; living in Chang'an was not easy, and offering discounts made it even harder.

But who could blame him when the person in front of him was someone who dared to cut off a Jinwu Guard's ear in public?

Even the Jinwu Guard didn't dare to make a peep in the end and ran away with their tails between their legs.

But unexpectedly, even with the discount, this Daoist Revered Master was still dissatisfied.

Jiang Chen looked up in astonishment and blurted out: "How much? 500 wen?"

You have to know, he hadn't even lost his composure like this when facing that bald donkey from Pure Land Temple.

"Are you sure you didn't miscalculate?"

"This..." The innkeeper was in a difficult position; he had seen many people like Jiang Chen.

Asking for the price with a grand air, and then putting on an expression of disbelief.

Usually, people like this were typical freeloaders.

"Daoist Revered Master, you also ordered two large plates of beef and a pot of yellow wine last night. As you know, beef is expensive."

Jiang Chen frowned: "Did you remember wrong? I do not eat beef."

The Daoist "Five Prohibitions on Eating" was an ironclad rule; he naturally had to follow it.

Among them were beef, snakehead fish, dog meat, wild goose, and turtle.

Additionally, there were the five pungent vegetables.

Returning to the topic, the innkeeper said with a troubled face: "Daoist Revered Master, actually our shop is offering discounts today. How about a discount?"

Jiang Chen was furious. Was he the type of person to freeload?

Jiang Chen almost said this out loud, but fortunately, he held back and maintained his persona.

"Show me the ledger."

Jiang Chen took the ledger, and upon looking, his eyelid twitched.

Good heavens, he had been wondering what was up with the 500 wen; it turned out the other three people hadn't paid for their stay.

Under Zhang Zhongjian's bill, it clearly stated two plates of beef and a pot of yellow wine!

Dirty, truly dirty!

However, Jiang Chen didn't really hold it against them. Zhang Lingyi and Xiaoqing had left in such a hurry, and given Zhang Zhongjian's carefree nature, it was normal for him to forget if no one reminded him.

Money was merely an external possession.

Jiang Chen produced a piece of broken silver from his pocket.

"It should be about one tael."

The innkeeper looked troubled: "Daoist Revered Master, our small shop does not accept silver."

Jiang Chen said indifferently: "This is all I have."

"Alright, alright."

The innkeeper took the silver with a worried face, only to find Jiang Chen still standing there.

"Daoist Revered Master?"

"Why are you just standing there? Give me my change!" Don't think he didn't know that the ratio of silver to copper coins in the Tang Dynasty was around 1 to 1000.

He just forgot that in this period, silver was not yet widely circulated; it mainly circulated among merchants and was more like a commodity representing credit.

The innkeeper looked pained; could he say the meal was on the house now?

In the end, the innkeeper brought Jiang Chen 500 copper coins, a bulging little bag that felt quite heavy.

Actually, the innkeeper didn't lose out; although the circulation of silver was limited, it wasn't impossible to spend.

Jiang Chen took the small bag and walked out of the inn, heading towards the city gate.

He planned to find a place to stay in the city's ward market later.

Whether it was renting or going to an inn.

...

(Brothers, entering Chang'an tomorrow!)