Great Dao Lord through Deducing Myriad Arts

Chapter 195: Chapter 172: Mysterious Noble Guest, Stay Away from Trouble

Step 1: Contextual Analysis

Literary genre: This appears to be a Chinese web novel, specifically a xianxia/wuxia novel with elements of martial arts and cultivation set in historical China.

Language style: The language is somewhat formal, with narrative descriptions and dialogue. It contains typical Chinese web novel elements like cultivation terminology, historical setting references, and character interactions.

Tone: The tone is serious but not overly dramatic. It’s focused on the journey and observations of the protagonist.

Plot keywords: Journey, escape, danger, observation, suspicion, nobles, eunuch, guards, restaurant

Characters:

- Wu Liangchen (武良辰): Male protagonist, appears to be a skilled martial artist with good perception

- Erya (二丫): Female character, seems to be Wu Liangchen’s love interest

- White Old Man (白老头): Male, appears to be Erya’s father

- Mysterious Noble Man: Male, around 30 years old, described as handsome with commanding presence

- Old Eunuch: Male, serves the mysterious noble man

- Guards: Multiple characters protecting the noble man

Step 2: Integrated Translation and Polishing

Now I’ll translate the text section by section while applying all the specified rules:

The text begins with Wu Liangchen and his companions traveling away from Huai Mountain toward Huangpu Guard. They’ve left the territory of Cyan Cloud Mountain, making Erya and her father feel relieved, though Wu Liangchen remains cautious.

The narrative explains the current political situation, with Great Yan empire being in decline, bandits and families controlling roads, but merchants still finding ways to transport goods for profit.

They stop at a roadside restaurant to rest, and while eating, Wu Liangchen notices an unusual convoy arriving. A eunuch arranges accommodations, and a noble-looking man emerges from the main carriage, surrounded by elite guards. The man notices Wu Liangchen watching him and gives him a curious acknowledgment, as if recognizing him.

Wu Liangchen feels uneasy about this encounter and decides they should leave immediately to avoid potential trouble. Meanwhile, the noble man decides not to pursue Wu Liangchen, mentioning that their encounter was coincidental.

Now I’ll provide the full, polished translation while carefully following all the specified rules.

By now, Wu Liangchen and his companions had left Huai Mountain and reached the border between Yunmeng and Jing’an Counties. At this pace, they would arrive at Huangpu Guard in a few more days.

Crucially, they had now left the sphere of influence of Cyan Cloud Mountain, which allowed the father and daughter of the Bai family to breathe a sigh of relief, their hearts slightly more at ease.

Wu Liangchen wasn’t particularly concerned about this matter, because ever since he had repelled that assassin, Cyan Cloud Mountain had taken no further action.

Their attitude was clear—they intended to set this matter aside for now.

Wu Liangchen could guess the reason why.

It was obvious that Cyan Cloud Mountain was currently focusing all their energy on dealing with Dinghai City.

In comparison, his matter was insignificant.

After all, only a village chief had died, and in the eyes of the Great Village Chief, this was probably equivalent to losing a dog—certainly not worth expending too much energy on.

But Wu Liangchen remained vigilant, knowing that as his strength grew, a confrontation with Cyan Cloud Mountain would be inevitable.

However, his most urgent task was to escort Erya back to Huangpu Guard, so Wu Liangchen temporarily put these distracting thoughts aside and continued their journey day and night.

After entering Jing’an County, road conditions improved significantly, and there were now inns and restaurants along the way where they could rest. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

On this day, about two days’ journey from Huangpu Guard, the main road was bustling with activity.

Merchant caravans passed by continuously, bringing various goods to Huangpu Guard and then transporting exotic items from overseas to various cities across Great Yan.

Although Great Yan was effectively dying, with many roads controlled by bandits or family clans, this situation only made the profits from transporting goods more lucrative.

Driven by these enormous profits, there were always capable individuals who could navigate routes impassable even to government officials.

Of course, how many "deities" they had to pay tribute to along the way, and how much profit actually remained in their pockets, only these merchants knew.

But as the saying goes, there are always people willing to risk their heads for business, while no one asks about a losing venture. The endless stream of merchant caravans winding their way along the road indicated that their profits must be considerable.

It seemed that regardless of the times, some people always managed to live quite comfortably.

Especially in these chaotic times, when ordinary people struggled to survive, those with connections could amass great fortunes.

Wu Liangchen shook his head silently, knowing this world was beyond saving. The current prosperity was merely the final radiance before the dynasty’s death.

"Brother Xiaowu, are you tired? Why don’t we find a place to rest until the afternoon sun isn’t so fierce?" Erya asked softly from behind the curtain.

She was concerned for her lover, fearing the scorching midday summer sun might harm Wu Liangchen.

The old man from the Bai family, who had just been replaced in the carriage for a rest, had a (⊙_⊙)? expression.

Wu Liangchen merely smiled at this. "Good idea. I’m getting hungry anyway. Let’s find a place to eat something and rest."

There were many roadside eateries of various grades, including several proper-looking restaurants.

Wu Liangchen stopped their carriage at a clean restaurant with many vehicles outside. An attendant came forward to look after their horses while he led Erya and the old Bai man inside.

It was mealtime, and the restaurant was crowded, mostly with traveling merchants.

There were no private rooms available, but Wu Liangchen didn’t plan to stay long anyway, so he chose a quiet corner to sit down, casually ordered a table of excellent dishes, and instructed the waiter to prepare them quickly.

Seeing that Wu Liangchen ordered generously and had a distinguished manner, the waiter didn’t dare to be negligent. He promptly brought tea and snacks, then hurried to the kitchen to expedite their order.

From their corner, Wu Liangchen’s group had a good view of the scenery outside the window.

Though it was scorching hot outside, the room was pleasantly cool. Add to that the iced sour plum drink, and it was thoroughly refreshing.

Wu Liangchen listened to the conversations of the traveling merchants around them.

These merchants who traveled extensively north and south had the most current information, but today they were mostly discussing trade matters. After listening for a while, Wu Liangchen found no important news.

By then their dishes had been served one after another, and the three ate at a leisurely pace.

It had to be said that despite being a roadside establishment catering to travelers, the food and wine were exceptionally tasty.

No wonder it attracted so many customers.

While the three were eating and drinking, a convoy suddenly came racing along the main road, stopping abruptly in front of the restaurant.

Wu Liangchen turned to look out the window, initially unconcerned.

After all, there were plenty of convoys on this main road—nothing unusual.

But upon closer inspection, Wu Liangchen noticed something out of the ordinary.

First, the composition of this convoy was strange—about five carriages, none carrying cargo, all surrounding a luxurious central carriage that was at least one size larger than ordinary ones.

Second, these carriages appeared to have come from afar, covered in dust, with the horses pulling them clearly exhausted.

Could it be some noble’s son out traveling?

This thought flashed through Wu Liangchen’s mind.

As he pondered this, he saw the carriages stop in the shade, and an old man leading several guards entered the restaurant.

"This is the menu. Prepare everything listed here, plus two more tables of premium dishes. Also, arrange a clean, quiet room—my master needs to rest," the old man called over the Shopkeeper, and the two began to discuss matters by the back door.

The room was noisy, and ordinary people wouldn’t have heard their conversation, but Wu Liangchen could hear every word clearly, which made him take notice.

My master?

That form of address was quite significant.

Moreover, the old man’s accent was distinctive, with a somewhat duck-like quality to his voice.

The Shopkeeper obviously found the request difficult: "Sir, as you can see, we have so many customers. Where would we find a room...?"

Before he could finish, the old man took out something and handed it over.

The Shopkeeper immediately changed his tone: "Of course, I’ll arrange it right away!"

The old man then returned to the carriage outside, bowed and said something. Moments later, two young maids lifted the curtain, and a man in his thirties descended.

This man was extremely handsome, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes. More importantly, he carried himself with uncommon dignity—clearly someone accustomed to high position, naturally exuding an air of authority.

Wu Liangchen watched closely as the guards immediately surrounded the man after he exited the carriage, their formation disciplined—obviously well-trained elite soldiers.

Wu Liangchen’s interest was piqued.

The pale, beardless old man was clearly a eunuch. Combined with these elite guards, this man’s identity must be extraordinary.

Perhaps a dignitary from the Capital?

Wu Liangchen pondered this as he watched the man survey the restaurant and smile. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm

"This will do. We’re fleeing after all—we can’t expect the same standards as in the Capital."

The phrase "fleeing" immediately brought tears to the old eunuch’s eyes. He lowered his head and said, "This servant deserves death for making the master suffer such hardship!"

"Enough, this is hardly your fault," said the man before walking toward the restaurant.

The Shopkeeper had been waiting at the door and rushed forward to greet him.

The man waved his hand, and the old eunuch immediately stepped forward to block the Shopkeeper.

"Is the quiet room ready? Where is it?" asked the eunuch.

"Right in the back. It was my unmarried daughter’s room, and it’s been prepared now," the Shopkeeper said, bowing repeatedly.

"Good, lead the way!" ordered the eunuch.

The group headed toward the side door, intending to go to the back courtyard.

At that moment, the man seemed to sense something. He turned his head and met Wu Liangchen’s gaze directly.

Wu Liangchen felt a slight chill.

This man had remarkably sharp intuition.

Wu Liangchen had merely been thinking about how he might assassinate this man and deal with the ever-present guards, but this faint killing intent had been detected by the other party.

At the same time, the man gave Wu Liangchen a meaningful look, then smiled slightly and nodded as if in greeting, before departing without waiting for a response.

Wu Liangchen frowned slightly.

Strange—the man’s final expression suggested he recognized him.

Yet Wu Liangchen was certain they had never met before.

Perhaps the man had seen his wanted poster?

Though Wu Liangchen no longer worried about that, since the Xiao family had fallen, making those wanted posters worthless.

Still, Wu Liangchen instinctively felt uncomfortable, particularly sensing that this man spelled trouble.

So he immediately said:

"Are you full?"

"Yes, we’re full!"

"Good, let’s go." Wu Liangchen tossed a silver coin to the waiter to pay for their meal.

Without asking why, Erya and the old Bai man immediately stood up and followed Wu Liangchen out of the restaurant.

After boarding their carriage, Wu Liangchen said solemnly, "These people are unusual, so it’s best we keep our distance."

The old Bai man, hearing there might be trouble, fully supported Wu Liangchen’s decision.

The three didn’t rest any longer and headed straight down the main road.

Meanwhile, in the quiet room at the back of the restaurant, the noble man received a report from one of his guards.

"Sir, the person you asked me to watch has left."

The man smiled. "What an alert fellow—sensing something amiss and immediately distancing himself."

"Should we pursue him?"

"No need!" The man shook his head slightly. "Our journey isn’t about him; we merely happened to cross paths. Let’s not create additional complications."

"Yes, sir!"

The guard withdrew, leaving only the man and the old eunuch in the room.

The eunuch, noticing that the man had only taken a few bites before putting down his chopsticks, couldn’t help but urge: "Master, is the food not to your liking? I’ll have them change it right away!"