I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 74 - 63 The Host

Currently, transportation isn’t very convenient, and the transmission of information is inevitably delayed. In such an environment, a good storyteller cannot stay in one place. He must travel far and wide, visiting various districts to gather tales and historic anecdotes. Only through extensive travel can he broaden his knowledge and accumulate a wealth of stories.

Guo Dongyang is already in his fifties. He is constantly on the move, much like a diligent little bee, collecting various unusual and interesting stories from different places, which has honed his storytelling skills to perfection.

If it were an ordinary person, it would be hard to keep up with Guo Dongyang’s conversation. Even well-read scholars might not have such a rich array of experiences as he does.

Fortunately, Xu Qing is no ordinary person. He can speak casually about anything from ancient history to modern science.

The two of them chatted about everything under the sun as they traveled.

But inevitably, their conversation began to veer towards discussions about heroes over brewed wine.

It seems that this is the dead end that men most easily wander into during idle chats.

Guo Dongyang, having drunk the fake wine brewed with wine worms, became as excited as if he were in heat.

He lashed out at famous historical figures from ancient to modern times, almost saying that only Xu Qing and himself were the true heroes of the world...

Luckily, there was only one living person in the carriage, so no matter how intense Guo Dongyang’s words were, they couldn’t reach anyone else’s ears.

Otherwise, the consequences might be even more tragic than those of Sima Gong.

In short, this old man was quite interesting. Not only was he well-read and knowledgeable, but he had also learned some self-defense skills and never traveled without a sword, which gave him a carefree and casual demeanor.

He just talked too much and never stopped along the way.

"Younger Brother Xu, your wine is truly delicious, even more so than the famed pear blossom brew of the Capital City..."

Muttering drunkenly, Guo Dongyang lay back in the carriage and soon fell asleep, snoring loudly.

Xu Qing shook his head helplessly, then urged the horse to speed up as they headed toward the Prefecture City.

...

The Jinmen Prefecture City was already bustling, and with the spring exams approaching, scholars from all over gathered, making the city even more lively than usual.

Guo Dongyang woke up to find that the carriage had already reached the city gate.

The guards at the gate, based on their intuition, selected suspicious individuals for examination and checked travel permits. Xu Qing, thinking himself to look kind and trustworthy, was still stopped by the guards and asked for his travel permit.

He felt certain that Guo Dongyang was the problem; the man’s face looked so shady, like a nose snuff bottle, that he seemed untrustworthy.

And so, Xu Qing felt he was simply caught in the crossfire!

After entering the city, Guo Dongyang enthusiastically invited Xu Qing along, claiming to be very familiar with Jinmen and a regular at the city’s major teahouses. Seeing an old friend, he said, he’d surely treat him well.

Xu Qing knew full well that they just met by chance and had no deep friendship. Guo Dongyang’s enthusiasm was merely to dig out the stories in Xu Qing’s head.

When they arrived at a teahouse, it turned out just as Guo Dongyang had said. As soon as he appeared, the teahouse staff treated him like a long-lost relative, rushing over to greet him.

The tea house shopkeeper hurried down to serve Guo Dongyang tea in person.

"It’s been half a year since I last saw Brother Dongyang. You must have gathered even more stories from your travels in Jiangnan..."

As they exchanged pleasantries, several old patrons familiar with Guo Dongyang also came up to say hello.

Xu Qing was amazed. These storytellers really weren’t exaggerating. From the way it looked, even famous actors wouldn’t have such a great reputation.

"Shopkeeper Wan, I need a favor. Could you advance me fifty silver taels? I will stay here and tell stories for a few days. Once I’ve earned enough, I’ll repay you."

"No problem at all!"

The money was retrieved, and Guo Dongyang handed it to Xu Qing.

"Ten taels for the carriage fare, and the rest for the drinks you owe me."

"My wine is not worth forty taels."

Hearing this, Guo Dongyang moved closer to Xu Qing, his not-too-serious face showing a bit of a sycophantic smile as he said, "No worries. Consider the rest as my payment for learning from you. I have no other hobbies, I just love storytelling..."

Xu Qing remained silent.

Recently, he didn’t know why, but he kept encountering people wanting to learn from him. Yesterday, a twelve or thirteen-year-old boy wanted to be his apprentice. Now, this fifty-year-old man was also seeking to learn from him.

When did he become so popular?

Faced with Guo Dongyang’s sincere request, Xu Qing did not refuse.

On the way to the Prefecture City, Guo Dongyang had shared many interesting stories from across the land, stories that were not easily come by.

As a return favor, telling him some stories and sharing a few scripts wasn’t much.

After making up his mind, Xu Qing asked the teahouse waiter for a bag of persimmon cakes, put it on Guo Dongyang’s tab, and said, "When I have some free time, I’ll write down those stories for you."

Then he left the teahouse without looking back.

Back at the teahouse, Guo Dongyang beamed with joy and ordered the waiter, "Make a note, I’m starting the storytelling now!"

The waiter curiously asked, "Master Guo, what are you going to tell today?"

Guo Dongyang chuckled, "Today’s story is a new one, just two words—Zombie Adventure!"

...

Xu Qing, after leaving the teahouse, made his way to the Prefectural Magistrate’s Office.

The day after tomorrow was the scheduled day for the prefectural exams. According to custom, all child students had to provide proof of identity and a letter of guarantee written by a sponsor.

Only after multiple verifications, proving they had no shady background or fake names, could they obtain the Examination Guide to take part in the prefectural exams.

Xu Qing had neither relatives nor friends, but fortunately, Wang Lingyuan and Prefect Tang Zhou acted as his sponsors and provided him with the letter of guarantee.

Thus, he was not worried about passing the qualification inspection.

After completing the formalities for the Examination Guide, the sky was already getting dark.

Xu Qing strolled along the bustling streets of the Prefecture City for half an hour. He felt the scenes here were just okay. Apart from being larger, it wasn’t much different from the Linhe District.

When he walked to Flower and Bird Street, it was already dark, and Xu Qing managed to buy a few dozen fresh bird eggs from the last vendors packing up.

These were good since he was tired of eating just raw eggs, and the fresh bird eggs made a nice change in flavor.

Thinking he had seen all there was to see, Xu Qing reflected that the Wu family brothers, who had left half a day earlier, were probably resting at an inn somewhere.

The last time he tested his Shoe Throwing Inquiry Technique, he arrived at the Book Phoenix Pavilion just ahead of the Wu family brothers. He wondered whether the mystical magic had worked or if it was just a coincidence.

Now with no one around, he could verify it again.

Thinking of this, Xu Qing took off his shoes and, with one foot bare, began his inquiries.

If you asked why he didn’t keep an extra pair of shoes just to use as the dharma artifact for the Shoe Throwing Inquiry Technique?

To be honest, it wasn’t because Xu Qing was not thoughtful.

Some magical practices require rituals and preparations, and the Shoe Throwing Inquiry Technique is no different.

The essence of this magic lies in taking off and throwing the shoe. Each time the road is inquired, the caster must wear the shoe before taking it off again. Only then does the throw carry the greatest spiritual energy.

Xu Qing even suspected that the mystical power of the Shoe Throwing Inquiry Technique somehow came from his own foot odor...

As the streets gradually emptied of people, Xu Qing continued to throw his shoes, winding his way through seven or eight miles, until he finally reached the destination indicated by his shoes.

Once again, it was a gateway with two large red lanterns hanging high.

This time, the plaque illuminated by the red lanterns didn’t say Book Phoenix Pavilion, but rather "Jade Shadow Pavilion."