Gu Yun remained calm as he took out an envelope from his arms and handed it to Chang Geng.

There was no letter in the envelope, just a piece of paper, and a cold smell wafted from it, as if it was a mixture of agarwood and sandalwood.

The night before, Xuan Ying found three envelopes from the kidnapped perfume master. This was one of them. The three envelopes had different smells. The perfume master was quite stubborn and refused to confess no matter how severely he was tortured. Of course, in such a short time, even if he confessed, Gu Yun might not believe it.

Among the three envelopes, this was the only one that Gu Yun could clearly explain the origin of.

According to legend, this incense was made by the previous emperor who believed in evil ways and ordered the palace maids to help him ascend to heaven. It was called "Imperial Incense". It was cold and unclear, but elegant and luxurious. The previous emperor had secretly stored some of it, and one year he lit it on a whim. The smell was really different from the incense commonly used in the palace.

The late emperor secretly told him that although this thing smelled good, it was also known as "the incense of national destruction". It should be lit once in private, otherwise the imperial censors would be furious if they knew about it, so he must never make it public.

Many years have passed, but Gu Yun is still deeply impressed by this "fragrance of the fallen nation".

Chang Geng tensed up for a moment, and Gu Yun noticed it immediately. Before he could write anything on his hand, he began to think about the possibility of guessing the answer correctly by throwing the envelope out.

Gu Yun weighed it up and thought, "One out of three, okay, I have a pretty good chance. If not, I'll just fight back."

Fortunately, he was the only one who knew this "certainty". Others could only see his apparent confidence and had to remain calm along with him.

The middle-aged man's expression changed. He took the envelope, put it under his nose and sniffed it several times, his face changing unpredictably.

Chang Geng thought: "Should we take action?"

Gu Yun, however, calmly patted the back of his tense hand.

The middle-aged man looked up at Gu Yun again, his expression became more serious, and he said: "I am Zhai Song, the chief captain of this group of merchant ships. I wonder where you are from and where you are going?"

This is jargon, and Chang Geng wrote it all down on Gu Yun's palm.

Gu Yun spoke for the first time and said, "Come from the ground and go to the weeds."

The middle-aged man who called himself Zhai Song seemed surprised. He hesitated for a moment, and his voice became slightly weaker: "Then... then I'll trouble you, Mr. Xiang. Please."

Gu Yun stood there motionless, very attentive, until Chang Geng gently pulled him, then he was led forward by Chang Geng with an expressionless face, just like a "Mr. Xiang" with no senses and a weird temper.

Then, using Gu Yun's wide sleeves to cover his palm, Chang Geng wrote on Gu Yun's palm: "How does foster father know their secret language?"

This was actually the conversation between two crew members that Xuan Ying overheard when he was ordered to monitor the merchant ship the night before. He reported it to him in detail. Gu Yun actually had no idea what it meant and was still deceiving people.

He boasted to Chang Geng like a wolf: "I know everything."

Chang Geng: “…”

The group successfully boarded the Japanese merchant ship. Several Japanese people popped their heads out and looked at the legendary Mr. Xiang curiously.

Influenced by Daliang, the culture of gods and Buddhas prevailed in Japan. When many people saw a monk following Gu Yun, they came out to greet him.

Chang Geng looked at these Japanese calmly - there were more of them than he had imagined, and they were all equipped with long swords in the name of escorting merchant ships. Some of them even had iron wrist buckles and strange-looking darts on their trouser legs and wrists. When he got closer, he could smell the faint smell of blood on them.

Suddenly, someone shouted from behind, and a masked Japanese man appeared behind Gu Yun without anyone noticing. Without saying a word, he swung his scimitar at Gu Yun's back.

Chang Geng reacted extremely quickly. Before he even drew his sword, he had already blocked the opponent's scimitar.

The Japanese man screamed strangely, and his thin body twisted into a strange arc. He looked like a boneless snake. The scimitar in his hand became an evil snake, and he stabbed Chang Geng seven times in succession. At the same time, his left shoulder suddenly opened up, and a Japanese boomerang rushed towards Gu Yun unexpectedly.

As for Gu Yun, I don't know if he was just putting on an act or what, he just stood there motionless, as if he had no idea at all!

In a hurry, Chang Geng separated the scabbard and the sword in his hand into two, and threw the scabbard fiercely, knocking the boomerang away when it almost brushed Gu Yun's chest.

This was not the first time that Chang Geng had fought with someone, nor was it the first time that he had been in such danger. However, it was the first time that someone had almost hurt his little godfather in front of him. A thin layer of red suddenly appeared in his eyes, and the Ulgu in his body suddenly began to stir.

He let out a low shout and suddenly moved his wrist downwards, using the moves he usually used to deal with the sword puppets. The scimitar in the Japanese man's hand trembled violently and was almost bent. Before the other party could withdraw the knife, Chang Geng had already kicked him in the waist.

It is said that some Japanese people must be thinner than ordinary people in order to climb walls and assassinate enemies. This snake-like man must be one of the best among them. Although he is indeed agile and cunning, he is also unable to withstand the attack. Chang Geng's kick almost knocked his intestines out. He could no longer hold the scimitar in his hand and staggered away.

Chang Geng didn't want to let him go, he picked up the scimitar on the ground with his toes and pinned it in front of the Japanese man. The long sword turned in his palm and was about to split the Japanese man in half.

This happened in a flash, and no one around, whether enemies or friends, had time to react. Chang Geng had already made a sudden move and was about to kill, and three shouts of "Stop" rang out at the same time.

Several Japanese long swords stretched out from all directions at the same time, trying to block Chang Geng's unparalleled sword style.

The stunned monk Liangran finally had time to wipe his sweat - Chang Geng actually meant what he said the night before when he threatened to stab him to death.

Chang Geng whispered, "Get out of the way."

Zhai Song hurried over and said repeatedly: "It's a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding. Mr. Shangchuan has just arrived in Daliang and doesn't know the rules. He saw that I was carrying a knife and wanted to make a joke. My brother, please be magnanimous and don't take it seriously."

Chang Geng stared at the snake man who retreated behind the crowd with slightly red eyes, and squeezed out two words from between his teeth: "A joke?"

Zhai Song smiled and turned to Gu Yun who was standing aside as if nothing had happened: "Mr. Zhang..."

Looking at the wooden face, he remembered that these top perfumers were blind and deaf, so he took a step forward and wanted to reach out and pat Gu Yun's arm.

Before he could touch the person, a strong wind suddenly blew from behind. Fortunately, Zhai Song reacted quickly, otherwise his wrists would be in danger.

Chang Geng: "Don't touch him!"

Zhai Song: “…”

Among this group of people, there is one who can't hear, one who can't speak, and a pair of half-grown children who look like waist drum sticks. He is the only one who can speak for them, and the scabbard of the weapon in his hand has not been picked up yet.

The atmosphere was tense for a moment.

At this time, Gu Yun finally spoke: "Why are you still wasting time here? Don't miss the departure time."

He seemed to be completely unaware of the thrilling conflict just now.

Zhai Song hurriedly tried to smooth things over, "That's right, we are all family..."

Before he finished speaking, Gu Yun had already raised a hand as if no one was around. Chang Geng paused, picked up the scabbard on the ground with the tip of his sword, put the sword back into the scabbard, stepped forward to take Gu Yun's hand, and helped him walk inside.

Monk Liangran had to stay behind. He bowed amiably to the frightened Japanese crowd, and then he took out a bunch of rotten wooden Buddhist beads from somewhere. He painted a layer of dark red lacquer on the outside of the beads, pretending that they were made of small-leaf red sandalwood. However, the lacquer had been rubbed off by the monk over the years, and the beads became a string of mottled small-leaf red sandalwood.

The handsome monk with a white face, who was also dressed in mottled clothes, smiled and chanted sutras silently. While he was trying to pray for the souls of the group of people in front of him, he urged Fatty Ge and Madam Cao to catch up.

This time, all the Japanese people they met along the way watched them leave as if they were facing a great enemy, and for a while no one dared to go up and say hello.

Chang Geng nervously escorted Gu Yun to the room specially prepared for perfumers on the merchant ship. He carefully glanced outside the door before closing it. Chang Geng turned around and said, "Yi..."

Gu Yun turned around and put a finger to his mouth.

With Gu Yun's current hearing ability, unless someone shouted loudly next to his ear, he would not be able to hear anything clearly.

The surroundings were so quiet that only whispers could be heard by him, but he could tell from the air current created by Chang Geng's rapid turn when he closed the door that the child might want to talk to him, so he stopped him before he could.

Gu Yun's special medicine was prescribed by an old marquis's former subordinate, a folk expert who was found from somewhere, when he was in his early teens. Before that, he had been enduring the inconvenience of hearing and eyesight and living in blindness.

The old marquis has been a tough guy for half his life, and he is strict with himself. He is even stricter with his son than himself. He doesn't know how to write the word "favor". No matter if Gu Yun can see it or not, no matter what he feels in his heart, he has to practice the skills he should practice, and the iron puppet will definitely not show any mercy just because he can't see and hear. That is not the sword puppet he used to play with Chang Geng - although the sword puppet looks scary, after being specially adjusted, it will stop when fighting with others, and the sword in its hand will not hurt anyone.

The real iron golems are just a group of heartless beasts when they start fighting. Why would they care about this?

He had to deal with them through his weak vision and hearing as well as the breeze blowing around him. No matter how hard the young Gu Yun tried, he could never keep up with the old marquis's demands on him. Every time he just adapted to a certain speed and strength, it would be increased immediately.

The old marquis's original words were: "Either you stand up on your own, or you hang yourself on a beam. The Gu family would rather die out than leave behind any waste."

This sentence was like a cold steel nail that had been driven into Gu Yun's bones when he was very young and could never be removed. Even after the old marquis passed away and Gu Yun entered the palace, he did not dare to relax for a single day.

This extreme sense developed over the years can always help him cover up a little in some occasions. This is also the reason why he does not wear thick clothes unless his mortal body cannot bear the cold.

Because the thick fox fur and bulky cotton coat would affect his feeling.

Gu Yun fumbled in the air for a while, and wrote on Chang Geng's palm: "The one you just fought with was a Japanese ninja. Those people are very good at stealing. Be careful of the walls."

Chang Geng lowered his head and couldn't help but grab Gu Yun's calloused hand. Then he let out a long breath of anger that had been churning in his chest and shook his head in self-mockery - Gu Yun was always calm, and he was always the one who was scared half to death.

Gu Yun was puzzled, wondering why he was sighing so loudly. He turned his head to "look" at him and raised one eyebrow.

Chang Geng took advantage of his blindfold and stared at him wantonly.

Gu Yun traced his arm to his head and patted him on the head.

Chang Geng closed his eyes and almost wanted to rub his hand, but luckily he managed to hold back.

He took Gu Yun's hand off and wrote, "This is the first time I've seen this kind of scene with my foster father. I feel a little unsure and a little scared."

The most frightening thing was the moment when the Japanese man threw the boomerang towards Gu Yun's chest.

Gu Yun seemed to remember something and suddenly smiled.

Chang Geng: "What are you laughing at?"

"I was too indulgent towards you," Gu Yun wrote on his palm in a flamboyant manner, "If I had dared to say the word 'afraid' in front of my father, I would have been beaten with a stick."

Chang Geng thought silently: "Then why don't you ever spank me?"

Not only did he never hit him, he rarely spoke to him harshly, and he would never say more than three sentences of harshness.

At first, he was afraid when facing the Sword Servant Puppet and couldn't adapt to it. Gu Yun never showed too much disappointment or impatience. After more than a year, Chang Geng recalled that it was not the look of a strict senior teaching a junior, but more like he was smiling at a child playing clumsily.

Gu Yun wrote again: "The Japanese are very troublesome when they start fighting. They have many tricks, but there are not many real masters. You can see that his boomerang is coming with great force, but in fact the trajectory is curved. It is just to test whether I am really blind. There is nothing to be afraid of on this ship of Japanese people. What I am worried about is their destination."

Merchant ships had to slowly sail from the inland through the route between sea transport and the canal, enter the sea and head east, delivering living things to the Japanese mainland, passing through several inspection stations.

There must be a perfumer on board the spice ship, who must hand in inspected samples when passing through inspection stations. So no matter what the real purpose of these merchant ships is, there must always be a perfumer to cover up their tracks.

After the boat had been sailing for ten days, Fatty Ge sneaked into Gu Yun's room and said, "Mr. Hou...Mr. Zhang, Brother Chang Geng."

After saying this, he saw the eye patch on Lord Gu's face and muttered, "I forgot he's deaf."

As he spoke, he began to take things out of his arms, first two compasses, and then a box that kept emitting white steam. This little fat boy was very magical, his stomach seemed to be stretchable, and he could put a lot of things in his arms by shrinking it, and take things out... He didn't even seem to "lose weight".

Chang Geng: "What is this? Is there something burning inside?"

Fatty Ge laughed and said, "Hey, purple flowing gold."

Chang Geng asked in surprise: "Don't you think it's too hot?"

Ge Pang Xiao took off his clothes and saw a dark plate on his chest. It was used to insulate the place where the short gun was installed on the heavy armor. He cut it into a bellyband shape. Ge Pang Xiao shamelessly patted his belly and said, "Iron bellyband!"

Gu Yun took off his blindfold, put on the glass mirror, and came over to carefully look at Fatty Ge's masterpiece. He was very impressed. He felt that these naughty kids seemed to know nothing and only knew how to play, but they had the courage to leave Yanhui Town and follow Chang Geng to the capital at such a young age. Although they might not have any ideas in their minds, they must have a lot of ideas.

Fatty Ge learned the monk's sign language and said, "Who said that only women can wear bellybands?"

Gu Yun gave a thumbs up - you are right.

Chang Geng: “…”

The two compasses on the table were spinning in circles facing each other, and Ge Pang Xiaoyong motioned for them to look, tapped the table lightly with his hand, and gestured with a three - the compasses had been out of order for at least three days.

Gu Yun was often out and about, so he could understand at a glance. Feng Shui masters usually carried two compasses with them when they went out. If one of them failed, they could tell by looking at the other one whether it was a compass failure or a problem with the location. There were often places on the sea or in the desert where a compass could fail, so merchant ships and fishing boats would usually avoid them. However, this group of Japanese people not only did not dodge, but also deliberately drove in. There was no doubt that their route had deviated from the intended destination.

"Coming from the ground and going to the grass", what exactly does this "grassroots" refer to?

Fat Ge: "Luckily I brought this."

As he spoke, he opened the small box that had been emitting white steam, and saw an extremely delicate little thing inside. There was a rapidly rotating small wheel in the middle, connected to an axle, and there were several golden rings on the outer circle. In the corner was engraved the word "Ling" in seal script. It was actually a product of Lingshuyuan.

"This is the mold given by Lingshuyuan. When it rotates, this axis always points in one direction," Fatty Ge pointed, "This is it - it's more accurate than a compass, but it costs a lot of purple gold. The finished product has not been produced. I heard that it was rejected by the higher-ups. The master and I secretly made one. Before I came here, I took a piece of purple gold from the bottom of a bowl off my eldest brother's sword puppet."

Gu Yun carefully reached out and picked up the little thing. It was so delicately made that he was afraid that he would break it if he used too much force. "If Shen Yi saw this, it would be enough to make him pledge himself to you."

Chang Geng felt a tightness in his chest after hearing his words.

Fat Ge took out a sheepskin map from somewhere, spread it wrinkled on the table, and gestured on it with his short and stubby fingers for a long time, finally landing on one point.

"Based on this direction, Master Liaoran and I have deduced that we will soon reach this place."