Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne-Chapter 159 - 137: Have You Read Military Strategies?

Zhao Yao, whom Sun Kui worried about, was happily chatting with the so-called dangerous person.

Seeing that the middle-aged man was willing to talk to him, Zhao Yao excitedly began to share with him all the good food he has eaten and the fun things he has encountered or heard about.

The quiet courtyard became lively because of Zhao Yao.

The middle-aged man didn’t mind Zhao Yao’s chattering and patiently listened to him babble on and on.

Chu Huan and the other three, waiting outside for Zhao Yao, thought that something might have happened to their newly recognized leader since he hadn’t come out for so long.

Tong Xi came out to tell Chu Huan and the others that Zhao Yao was fine.

Upon hearing that someone truly lived in this residence, Chu Huan and the others were very surprised. They also wanted to go in and take a look, but Tong Xi told them that the man in the wheelchair wouldn’t allow them to enter.

"Why can’t we go in?"

"Right, we are the leader’s lackeys." Zhang He was now wholeheartedly and willingly serving as Zhao Yao’s lackey.

"The owner of the house said he doesn’t like too many people." Tong Xi said, "Even I can’t go in anymore."

"Aren’t you worried about leaving the leader alone inside such a strange house?"

"Exactly, the owner of this house is weird, who knows what he might do to the leader."

"The leader might be in danger."

"Your Highness..." Tong Xi almost said [Your Highness] again, but fortunately, he caught himself and changed it to, "The young master said he wouldn’t be in any danger, and asked me to wait outside with you all."

Tong Xi was also worried about Zhao Yao being alone with that strange man, but His Highness wouldn’t let him follow, so he had no choice but to come out.

"Our leader is really bold." Zhang He and the others greatly admired Zhao Yao.

Chu Huan frowned and said, "The leader will really be okay?"

"If there were any danger, it would have happened when the young master and I first went in." Tong Xi told Chu Huan and the others, "There are many experts hidden in this residence." Moreover, their skills surpass his. He didn’t notice them at first; it was only just now that he realized it.

"Experts?" Chu Huan and the others exclaimed, "Really?"

"Yes." Tong Xi turned back to look at the residence behind him, his expression serious, "The owner of this house is not an ordinary person."

Song Jicai said, "No ordinary person would dare live in such a haunted house-like place."

Shen Sen said, "What on earth could the mysterious owner of this house possibly be?"

"He used to be a soldier," Tong Xi relayed Zhao Yao’s guess to Chu Huan and the others.

"A soldier?"

"Living in a house like this, he probably wasn’t an average soldier." Chu Huan and the others’ fathers and brothers were soldiers, so they understood soldiers well. Typically, once a soldier becomes disabled in the legs, they retire from the army, and the court and army provide some compensation, but not enough to afford a house this big. "He must have achieved some significant military accomplishments to live in a house this large."

"Who he really is, we’ll know by asking our fathers when we go back." In Song Jicai’s view, matters relating to soldiers should be known by their fathers.

Shen Sen cautioned, "Didn’t our fathers warn us not to go near this house? If we go back and inquire about the owner, it would reveal that we’ve been near this place again."

Thinking of how their fathers sternly warned them not to approach this house, Chu Huan and the others couldn’t help but show a trace of fear on their faces.

Tong Xi said, "The Great General and others must know who the owner of this house is, otherwise, they wouldn’t have warned you all not to approach it."

"Makes sense." Zhang He nodded in agreement, "Our fathers surely know."

"Did this person commit some crime? Otherwise, why would our fathers warn us?" Shen Sen suddenly thought of something, looking surprised, "Could this person have been involved in something serious?"

"If he committed a major crime, he’d be imprisoned, executed, or exiled, not confined here." Chu Huan said, "I doubt the owner committed any major felony."

"It doesn’t matter who he is, as long as he’s not a ghost." Song Jicai sat down on the stone steps at the entrance of the residence, "Let’s just wait for our leader to come out."

"That’s true, as long as he’s not a ghost." That thought had terrified them earlier.

Inside the house, Zhao Yao was talking with the middle-aged man when suddenly an unremarkable-looking man brought them two cups of tea. First, he handed a cup to Zhao Yao, and then served the middle-aged man.

"Thank you," Zhao Yao said gratefully. The man who served the tea nodded slightly and then left. He didn’t say a word throughout.

Watching the man leave, Zhao Yao thought he seemed peculiar, but couldn’t pinpoint exactly why.

After speaking at length earlier, Zhao Yao felt thirsty and started drinking the tea in big gulps.

The middle-aged man just sipped one or two mouthfuls of tea and then looked at Zhao Yao, asking, "Have you read any books on military strategy?"

"Military strategy?" Zhao Yao was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head and said, "No, I’ve only started my education this year, and I’ve been reading for just over three months."

The middle-aged man noticed Zhao Yao frowning slightly at the mention of reading and asked, "Don’t like reading?"

"Not at all." Zhao Yao replied honestly, "I dislike reading the most, there’s nothing interesting about all those Confucian four-character idioms."

"That’s true; reading those Confucian classics can indeed be dull and useless." The middle-aged man said warmly, "Reading military books is interesting. You should try it."

"Really?" Zhao Yao never thought about reading military books before.

"You could start with the ’Spring and Autumn Annals,’" the middle-aged man suggested, "It’s filled with stories of commanding and fighting battles, which are quite intriguing, and I think you might enjoy it."

"But, Uncle, the ’Spring and Autumn Annals’ isn’t a book on military strategy; it’s a history book." Although he hadn’t read it himself, Zhao Yao had heard his fourth brother mention while sorting books that the ’Spring and Autumn Annals’ was history.

"It does record many famous battles as well, you can take a look at it." The middle-aged man continued.

"Since Uncle said so, I’ll take a look at it when I get back."

"If there’s anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask me," the middle-aged man said.

Zhao Yao smiled and said, "Alright." Just as he finished speaking, he suddenly realized something, looking at the middle-aged man with excitement, "Uncle, are you implying you want to teach me military strategy?"

The middle-aged man glanced at Zhao Yao, not directly answering his question, he said, "Start with the ’Spring and Autumn Annals.’

"Uncle, rest assured, I will make sure to read it thoroughly." Zhao Yao thought this uncle might be trying to test him first to see if he had potential. If he did, perhaps the uncle would indeed teach him military strategy, "But, Uncle, I can only come to see you next month."

"Next month?"

"I have to attend classes on weekdays and only get one day off each month, so I have to wait for next month’s break to come see you again." Although he could sneak out via a secret passage, his mother certainly wouldn’t allow him to visit an uncle at night, "My family is quite strict about education, I can’t go out at will."

The middle-aged man, recalling something, grew momentarily thoughtful, before recovering his expression.

"Then come back during your break."

"Uncle, we can communicate every day with letters." Zhao Yao suggested, "I’ll ask my bird friends to deliver messages for us."

"Bird friends?"

"Yes, I have many bird friends; they can help deliver letters." Zhao Yao said, recalling that Zhang He and others mentioned a lot of crows here, "I even have crow friends, Uncle, if you don’t mind, I can have my crow friends deliver messages to you."

"Crow friends?" The middle-aged man was intrigued by the notion of someone having friendship with crows.

"Yes, crow friends; they can also deliver messages." Knowing that most people find crows ominous, Zhao Yao continued, "Uncle, if you find crows unlucky, I can have other birds deliver the messages."

The middle-aged man asked, "Don’t you find crows unlucky?"

"Luck or unluckiness is what people say, not crows. A crow is just another bird."

The middle-aged man was surprised by Zhao Yao’s insightful words, despite his young age.

"I only have crows here, so let the crows deliver the letters."

"Uncle, why do you only have crows here?"

"Maybe because I am unfortunate."

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