They had agreed to spend the Spring Lantern Festival together before leaving Shuo Zhou City, but the day before the Spring Lantern Festival, Lu Xiaofeng was packed up and taken away by his master.
Before they left, the master and disciple followed Li Yue's instructions and went to the school to solemnly say goodbye to the old teacher.
When they arrived, it was noon. It was still cold outside, and the students were all in the classroom around the stove to keep warm. Li Yue looked out of the window out of boredom and saw the figures of Lu Xiaofeng and his disciple.
This was Li Yue's first time seeing Lu Xiaofeng's master. The other party's long hair was casually tied behind his head, and his beard covered most of his face. His clothes were simple and plain, and there was a wine gourd hanging from his waist. He had an unruly air about him.
Were it not for the fact that the opposite party did not have any patches on his clothes, did not have any pouches hanging on his clothes, and did not have any stick type weapons like the Dog Beating Stick, Li Yue would have very nearly linked Lu Xiaofeng's Shifu to the legendary, renowned Beggar Clan member.
Perhaps because Li Yue's gaze was too focused, or perhaps because Lu Xiaofeng's master's martial arts were outstanding, Li Yue didn't look for long before the other party keenly stared at the classroom window and happened to meet Li Yue's gaze.
Realizing that the person staring at him was his disciple's good friend, Lu Xiaofeng's master winked at Li Yue. The smile in his eyes diluted his Jianghu aura and brought out a bit of intelligence and craftiness. With one look, one could tell that when he was young, he was a romantic and elegant person who flirted everywhere. He must have provoked a lot of young girls.
Although she complained, Li Yue was stunned for a moment. In a flash, she understood where her little friend learned his bad habit of winking. Unfortunately, Lu Xiaofeng was born with a baby face. When he did this, he didn't have the roguishness of a mature man like his master. Instead, it made people want to pull down his pants and slap his butt a few times.
The teacher and disciple stayed in the school for a while and then left. Before leaving, Lu Xiaofeng waved goodbye to Li Yue and Zhu Ting gloomily.
The old teacher had said everything he needed to say. None of his proud students had gone to Shuozhou Academy to study. He was not in a good mood, and even his afternoon classes were a little listless. After school, he did not repeatedly remind his students as he usually did. Instead, he waved his hand and told them to go home.
Li Yue didn't really care about Lu Xiaofeng's departure. Everyone had their own aspirations and couldn't be forced. Even if they were separated, there would be a time when they would meet again.
In addition, she still had a lot of things to do in the Long Dragon, so she didn't have the time to be sad. Zhu Ting, who was addicted to counting machines, was the same.
Therefore, after school, the two of them went straight to the workshop to check the Long Dragon Lantern made by Zhu Ting. After checking the details, Tie Chuanjia drove the carriage and directly sent the Long Dragon Lantern to the courtyard of the Changlong Gang Headquarters.
Although the dragon had always been a symbol of the royal family, in this day and age, unless you openly wore a five-clawed dragon robe on the streets or decorated your house with five-clawed dragon ornaments and declared that you wanted to rebel and ascend to the throne, it was not a big deal to occasionally decorate your house with a dragon pattern. The common people might be a little fussy and not use the word "dragon" in their name. The martial arts world and the imperial court had always minded their own business. Many organizations used the word "dragon" as their gang name.
The founder of the Long Dragon was more or less a martial arts person, so it wasn't strange to use the word "dragon". Li Yue didn't plan to change it. She even used the C-type jade pig dragon that was unearthed in the future as a blueprint and made the Long Dragon gang's logo.
The Long Dragon Lantern was also made according to this image. The dragon's four limbs were covered by auspicious clouds and only a few scales and claws were exposed. Even if someone wanted to say that the dragon didn't look like a dragon or that the dragon pattern was out of bounds, it would be difficult to find a flaw in the Long Dragon.
In the current dynasty, the Lantern Festival was a five-day holiday. Naturally, the Long Dragon Lantern had to be hung for at least five days.
Li Yue let the gang members light it up that night. After testing the effect, she didn't let the gang members extinguish the lantern. Instead, she arranged for the gang members to take turns guarding the lantern.
Everything had a good start. Li Yue followed Tie Chuanjia home to sleep with peace of mind. When the sky turned slightly white, she decisively got up and washed up, preparing to leave for the Changlong Gang Headquarters.
Tanhua Lang was drunk yesterday. When Li Yue finished her breakfast, he was still in a deep sleep. Tie Chuanjia was naturally able to free himself to go with Li Yue.
The road was crowded with pedestrians and it wasn't easy to drive a horse carriage. Li Yue simply walked with Tie Chuanjia to the west side of the city.
During the Lantern Festival, not only did they have to light lanterns, they also had to eat Yuanxiao, guess riddles, and perform lion dances.
The first two were absolutely no problem. Li Yue had already prepared the lantern a long time ago. Last night, they had already attracted a lot of attention.
The Yuanxiao was cooked in several large pots. The noodles were top-notch glutinous rice noodles. They were delicate, white, fragrant, and very good at suppressing hunger. Not only was it enough for the Long Dragon gang members to eat, they could also bring it back home to share with their relatives and friends.
As for the riddles and lion dances, it was a little difficult for the people on the list.
The gang was in a mess before. The original lion dance team had already dispersed. After Li Yue took over the Long Dragon gang, she didn't have time to organize people to train. She had no choice but to invite a lion dance team from outside to perform at the entrance of the headquarters. It was a good sign.
The lion dance team was found by Uncle Fu. Uncle Fu couldn't be more reliable. Therefore, the lion dance performance not only received loud cheers from the gang members, but also attracted a lot of residents in the west side of the city to come and watch. The relationship between the Long Dragon gang members and their neighbors also eased a lot because of this.
As for the riddles, there were a lot of people in the Long Dragon who couldn't read. They were illiterate. Not to mention that they didn't know much about literature, they also lacked common knowledge about life.
Li Yue came up with a few simple riddles, but not many people could guess them. The local ruffians didn't feel embarrassed. They only felt that the new gang leader was making things difficult for them. Li Yue was helpless. She had no choice but to choose the simplest one, throwing the dice. She let them decide what they would get.
In the end, Li Yue didn't expect that just by throwing the dice, the gang members would also divide into small groups to compete with each other. They would say harsh words and boos to each other. Some of them were even secretly preparing to cheat.
When a gang member threw six sixes in a row and was about to show off to the others and ask the new gang leader for a reward, Tie Chuanjia, who had been silent all this time, rolled up his sleeves and walked to the middle of the gang members.
Tie Chuanjia snatched the bamboo tube from the ruffian's hand and threw three dice into it. When he shook the dice, he didn't have any dazzling skills. But when he put down the bamboo tube and moved it away, there were only six pieces of dice left on the table. The total number was 21.
The local ruffians and hooligans who had been watching the whole process immediately fell silent. When it came to the dice game, they all behaved themselves and did not try to play any tricks. Some of the old foxes who could not stop themselves even painfully gave the dice to the young gang members who did not know how to play tricks. The faint anger between them also disappeared completely.
Li Yue knew that her and Tie Chuanjia's existence would make it difficult for the gang members to fight. After repeatedly ordering them not to fight, she and Tie Chuanjia left the Changlong Gang Headquarters together.
When they returned home, Li Xunhuan had just woken up.
Even though his body still reeked of alcohol, his clothes were messy, his hair was messy, his face was extremely sleepy, and his eyes were a little red, Tanhua Lang still looked youthful and beautiful — no, no, no, no, he was extraordinarily handsome.
Just based on his face, Tanhua Lang indeed had the capital to make people remember him for a lifetime.
Of course, Li Yue only dared to criticize him in her heart. She wouldn't be stupid enough to say it out loud. Otherwise, her pile of copybooks would increase by a lot.
The lunch was arranged by Uncle Fu. He took care that Tanhua Lang didn't eat breakfast, so all the food on the table was light and easy to digest. Even so, Li Yue still ate a lot.
She wanted to go out and play, but she didn't want Li Xunhuan to trap her at home to drink. She could only force him to go out with her.
Uncle Fu originally wanted to say that he was old and didn't want to participate in young people's affairs, but Li Yue still dragged him out of the house.
The most lively place during the festival was the temple fair. Li Yue had never participated in it before. She excitedly read riddles in front of the lanterns. Her line of sight turned, and a familiar figure came into her sight.
The cold of the first month had not subsided. The youth was still wearing shabby and thin clothes that didn't match the season. His entire body was covered in dust, but his face wasn't as cold and emotionless as before. Instead, there was a rare panic and anxiety. His eyes were filled with an indescribable urgency and desire, like a dying person grasping at a life-saving straw.
The two of them looked at each other. The little girl wanted to smile and greet him, but the youth took the initiative to grab the little girl's hand. His voice was full of suppressed hoarseness.
"I want to find a doctor. I-I won't owe you anything … Whatever you want, I'll agree to it."
The youth's palm was burning hot, and he used a lot of strength to grab the little girl. Li Yue tried to retract her hand in pain, but after thinking about it, she still endured the pain and responded to the youth.
"Don't worry, tell me. What kind of doctor do you want?
Is it for external injuries, internal diseases, or emergency treatment? "
"Emergency treatment!"
Li Xunhuan certainly wouldn't disagree because he wanted to save someone. Li Yue's first reaction was to find Uncle Fu and Tie Chuanjia.
During the Lantern Festival, almost everyone in Shuo Zhou City came out to play, and the doctors were no exception. It wasn't easy to find a suitable doctor in such a short time.
Fortunately, Uncle Fu had been doing business in Shuo Zhou City for a long time, and he had a good relationship with a reliable old doctor. Li Yue also had a local gang, the Long Dragon. She didn't dare to guarantee anything else, but they were definitely familiar with the streets and alleys of Shuo Zhou City.
Li Yue hastily asked Fu Bo, who was by her side, about the old doctor's usual haunts. The gang members scattered in all directions and searched around the old doctor's clinic and the temple fair. After many inquiries, they finally found the old doctor.
The old doctor looked at the group of local hooligans and thought that he had gotten himself into big trouble. His face almost turned green. After Li Yue sincerely explained the reason and offered him some money, he calmly led the gang to his clinic, took out a large and heavy wooden box, and stepped into the carriage.
Most of the people were crowded around the temple fair, so the number of people leaving the city was much less than usual. The one leading the way was the young man, and the one driving was Tie Chuanjia. Naturally, the speed was faster than what Li Yue expected.
However, the youth's home was in the remote wilderness, and the journey wasn't smooth. Li Yue and the old doctor were very uncomfortable in the carriage.