Chapter 123: Going to Luoyun Prefecture Again

The sight of Lu Yang leisurely enjoying his meal made Song Fuyao increasingly irritated.

She had been imprisoned for around three years now.

During this time, she had encountered all sorts of guards. Some were indifferent, some were stern, and a few enjoyed making things difficult for the prisoners under their supervision or squeezing out some money from them.

However, she had never encountered someone like Lu Yang.

To her, he was very strange, and he always exuded a sense of detachment, like a sage or hermit, yet always behaved in that irritating way.

Song Fuyao gritted her teeth, deciding to just ignore him.

Who wants your stinky chicken? I’m not even going to look at it!

However, a moment later, her eyes unconsciously drifted towards the food container again, the roasted chicken glistening under the light.

Song Fuyao silently lowered her head again.

Damn it!

Lu Yang noticed her movements from the corner of his eye but said nothing.

Usually, he would eat with Zhao Ming and his other colleagues in Guard Leader Sun’s office. The food was purchased from nearby restaurants, and they would spend their meal discussing trivial matters concerning the prison.

Occasionally, Zhao Ming would mention some interesting news he had heard from his family’s pharmacy. Old Sun, when present, would contribute a few stories from his many years of service.

Today, however, Lu Yang had deliberately chosen to eat here.

He had already arranged to take another extended leave, and he intended to depart from the Imperial Capital the following morning.

His destination was Wuyuan Province.

It was time to check on Zheng Hui’s business, and he also wanted to visit his family to see whether his father’s promotion had been finalized.

He estimated that the journey and the matters awaiting him would take two or three weeks.

Since he might not see Song Fuyao for a while, informing her beforehand seemed reasonable.

After all, they had spent the past two years seeing each other almost every day.

Although their conversations consisted mostly of insults and arguments, it was still a familiar routine.

Lu Yang swallowed the food in his mouth before speaking.

"By the way, I’ll be leaving tomorrow."

Song Fuyao’s spoon stopped moving.

Lu Yang continued calmly, "I’ll probably be gone for two or three weeks. There are some matters I need to attend to in Wuyuan Province."

He picked up a piece of meat and took another bite.

However, when he lowered his chopsticks, he noticed that Song Fuyao had raised her head, staring directly at him unblinkingly, with unusually sharp eyes.

Lu Yang paused, a bit unnerved by her gaze.

"...What?"

Song Fuyao said nothing, just looking at him with those piercing eyes.

Just as Lu Yang was about to ask another question, he suddenly realized that he was still eating and choked on his food.

"Cough! Cough!"

Lu Yang immediately covered his mouth and coughed several times.

He hurriedly picked up the gourd and drank some fruit wine.

At the same time, he circulated his Blood Qi, guiding the food down his throat and resolving the discomfort before it could become a genuine problem.

After several breaths of time, he finally recovered.

He lowered the gourd and looked at Song Fuyao with an expression that was difficult to describe.

Song Fuyao finally blinked, the corners of her mouth rising slightly.

"What’s wrong, dog official? Are you so afraid of leaving that you’re choking on your own food?"

Lu Yang stared at her calmly and took another sip of the wine.

He seemed to understand why some people in the cultivation world preferred to settle their grievances with their fists.

There were times when words simply could not express one’s feelings adequately.

Unfortunately, beating a prisoner for insulting a guard was against the rules.

Lu Yang couldn’t help but sigh heavily.

"Forget it."

He looked down at the food container.

There was still a considerable amount of food left, along with most of the fruit wine.

After a moment’s thought, he pushed the container closer to the opening of her cell.

"Here, take it."

Song Fuyao stared at him, seemingly unable to believe what she was witnessing for a moment.

Then, she looked at the food, swallowing her saliva before looking back at Lu Yang.

"...You’re giving me this?"

"Half of it," Lu Yang corrected her. "I still need to eat."

Song Fuyao immediately reached for the container.

Lu Yang pushed the wine gourd towards her as well.

"The fruit wine is included. There’s no alcohol in it, so you don’t need to worry about that."

Song Fuyao looked at the gourd before nodding repeatedly.

"Fine, fine! Just give it to me!"

Lu Yang passed the remaining food through the opening.

Song Fuyao accepted it with remarkable speed, as if afraid he might change his mind.

Lu Yang stood up and dusted off his clothes.

"Eat slowly, don’t choke."

Song Fuyao glared at him while clutching the food, continously stuffing the food into her mouth.

"Get lost!"

Lu Yang nodded.

"Very well."

He turned and walked away.

Behind him, Song Fuyao’s voice rang out again.

"And don’t come back empty handed next time!"

Lu Yang’s just waved his hand dismissively.

...

The following morning, Lu Yang departed from the Imperial Capital.

He had already informed old Sun of his leave, and the necessary arrangements had been made. Zhao Ming would assist with several routine matters during his absence, while the other guards would continue performing their duties as usual.

Once everything had been arranged, he left the city.

The journey proceeded just like last time.

Lu Yang traveled along the main roads, occasionally stopping at villages and towns to purchase food and replenish his supplies.

He encountered merchants, traveling cultivators, and ordinary people going about their daily lives.

However, he once again failed to encounter any cultivator bandits.

It seemed that his luck in this regard was exceptionally poor. Though it did not matter much at this point.

He had invested one hundred and fifty taels in Zheng Hui two years ago. If the business had developed successfully, he would soon have access to a reliable source of income starting next year.

As for the cultivation resources he needed, he could consider his options after inspecting the business.

If necessary, he could also purchase some resources using the money he had saved from his salary.

He might not be wealthy, but he was not entirely destitute, either.

After nearly a week of continuous travel, the familiar scenery of Luoyun Prefecture gradually appeared before him.