Time flew by, and eight years passed by in a hurry.
The Long Dragon spent many years to successfully turn over a new leaf. From a small gang of ruffians in the Western District, which was hated by their ancestors, it became the most powerful Chamber of Commerce in Shuo Province.
Li Yue also upgraded from a sinister and vicious dwarf in the Shuo Province's underground forces, to a golden bachelor who was favored by the women outside the Great Wall.
Yes, you didn't see wrong, it was a golden bachelor.
As Li Yue grew older, her facial features gradually developed, and her appearance increased exponentially. When she dressed up properly, she could make all the servants in the Li Residence doubt their lives.
For the convenience of moving around, and because she couldn't comb her hair well, she usually dressed as a man. Occasionally, she would dress as a woman, and it was Tie Chuanjia who combed her hair.
Tanhua Lang objected to this. He thought that women were too strong and wouldn't have a good future in this world.
Li Yue didn't take Li Xunhuan's words seriously, and the two had a cold war for a while.
As the saying goes, if you don't belong to the same family, you won't enter the same family. When Big Li And Little Li was stubborn, no one could persuade her. In a fit of anger, Li Yue even moved to the Long Dragon's dormitory, and lived with the gang members of the same age for a while.
Hoodlum naturally followed Li Yue. When Li Yue moved to the dormitory, he followed without saying anything.
Tie Chuanjia and Uncle Fu were in a dilemma. They couldn't directly side with anyone, so they could only try to ease the relationship between the two.
Everyone thought that Li Yue would be the first to admit her mistake and move back to the Li Residence, but less than half a month later, it was Tanhua Lang who lowered his head first.
It turned out that when Li Xunhuan "accidentally" passed by the dormitory, he unexpectedly found that the little girl didn't use her status as a gang leader to order others to do work for her. Instead, she was like the other boys and girls of her age, washing her own clothes, folding her own bed, and cleaning the house.
It was cold in the twelfth lunar month, so even if she mixed hot water in the basin when washing clothes, the little girl's delicate white hands were still frozen red and swollen, like radishes dug out from the snow.
Li Xunhuan's heart softened, and without saying anything, he took the little girl home.
In fact, even if Li Xunhuan didn't go to the dormitory, he would still bow to the little girl first.
After all, the person who came in third in the exam usually had the principle of unconditional forgiveness for those close to him.
Since then, unless it was a matter of life and death, he didn't say anything to the little girl.
With Li Xunhuan's indulgence, Tie Chuanjia and Uncle Fu's tolerance, and Hoodlum's unconditional support, Li Yue became more and more free.
On the day of her hairpin ceremony, she encouraged Zhu Ting to make her a full set of disguise equipment, including a fake Adam's apple, shoulder pads, fake chest muscles, and fake [Noise Suppressor].
On the day Li Yue received the finished product, Li Xunhuan was also at home. He saw the little girl put on the full set of disguises with his own eyes and hugged the Long Dragon, whose cheeks were still red after knowing the boy's true identity. His expression changed from the initial shock to that of despair.
Tanhua Lang: I'm afraid I adopted a fake daughter.
After that, the little girl changed into women's clothing several times to deal with people who didn't have eyes. After a while, whenever Li Xunhuan saw Li Yue in women's clothing, he would feel his scalp go numb. He subconsciously felt that someone near Shuo Zhou was going to be unlucky.
After a few days, Tanhua Lang would always hear new rumors about the city from the tavern. In the rumors, there would always be an astonishingly beautiful female character, either a seductive ghost or a fox demon. In any case, they weren't human. And the protagonist who met such a character usually had a miserable ending.
At this time, Tanhua Lang would always silently pick up his wine cup and take a sip with complicated feelings.
Time changed most people's appearance, but it couldn't erase the longing in their hearts.
He had lived outside the pass for a long time, and Li Yue often gave him all kinds of small troubles. Although Li Xunhuan didn't drown his sorrows in alcohol every day, in the depths of his heart, he always missed his hometown, as well as that figure that he couldn't speak of with bitterness when he thought of it.
On a crisp autumn day, Big Li And Little Li finished breakfast together as usual. Just as Li Yue was about to go out and patrol the Long Dragon Shop, Li Xunhuan said in a calm tone, as if he was talking about the weather, "Chuang Chuai, get ready.
We're going to the Central Plains at the end of the month. "
At this time, there were only three days until the end of the month. After hearing Li Xunhuan's words, Li Yue quickly withdrew the front foot that she had stepped out. She turned around and looked at Tie Chuanjia in the eyes.
She said in a light voice, "Uncle Li, what about me?
I also want to go to the Central Plains to take a look. "
"Xiao Yue, you … it's better for you to stay in Shuo Province. We're going to the Central Plains … and we'll be back soon."
Li Yue knew very well that Li Xunhuan was lying, but she had no intention of exposing him. Instead, she smiled and said, "Okay." This time, it was Tanhua Lang's turn to feel uneasy.
Verbally agreeing was one thing, but physically fulfilling it was another. Li Xunhuan, who had wandered the jianghu for many years, understood these twists and turns. After he repeatedly asked and received Li Yue's guarantee that she wouldn't secretly follow them to the Central Plains, he reluctantly relaxed.
Tie Chuanjia watched as Big Li And Little Li finished their conversation. He slowly sighed and went to pack their luggage.
Li Yue walked out of the Li residence as if nothing had happened. After she entered the Changlong Gang Headquarters and dealt with the trivial matters of the gang, the first thing she did when she was free was to look for Hoodlum.
Most people in Long Dragon worked in shifts. Only the managers and above were like the government officials and had a break every five days.
Hoodlum could be considered Li Yue's personal bodyguard. He also had a break every five days and usually lived in a double room in the dormitory building.
Because he had a glorious history of easily beating up twenty or so people of the same age who didn't obey him, and because he didn't usually interact with others, no one dared to live with him in the dormitory building. For the past few years, he had lived there alone.
Today was Hoodlum's break day. When Li Yue found the youth, he had just come back from sword practice. The moment he met Li Yue's gaze, the youth's eyes were still filled with astonishment.
Although the weather had turned cold, Hoodlum still wore the thin summer clothes that were commonly seen in summer. However, at this moment, his shirt was completely soaked from his sweat and clung tightly to his body, clearly outlining the youth's newly formed muscles and thin waist.
He stood facing Li Yue. A drop of sweat was dripping from the youth's hair to his collarbone, then slid down his ivory white skin and into the depths of the youth's lapel.
Li Yue originally wanted to get straight to the point, but when she saw this scene, she couldn't help but whistle and praise the youth without hiding anything.
"Wow ~ Hoodlum, in another two years, even if the words' Strangers Don't Approach 'were written on your face, there would still be men and women who would be willing to chase after you, right?"
The youth's expression didn't change, but his ears were so red that they were about to bleed. Li Yue coughed softly and entered the dormitory with him.
"Stop fooling around. I'll be direct. Do you still remember our previous agreement?
Now that Uncle Li and Uncle Tie are going to the Central Plains, they aren't willing to take me with them. Therefore, I request that you fulfill one of my wishes and go to the Central Plains with them.
Uncle Li might be the reincarnation of the Holy Father, but he's not hopelessly stupid. On the other hand, Uncle Tie is easily obstinate and stubborn. Therefore, please keep an eye on them, especially Uncle Tie. "
"Alright, I promise you."
"Wait, I haven't said how long … Forget it. Anyway, it won't be more than three months. Besides, I'll come anyway."
Hoodlum frowned slightly, as if puzzled. Since Li Xunhuan and the others didn't agree, why did Li Yue still want to go to the Central Plains?
The girl had already seen through Hoodlum's thoughts from the change in his expression. She cleared her throat and said righteously,
"I promised Uncle Li that I wouldn't go with them, and I also wouldn't secretly follow them to the Central Plains. However, I never said that I wouldn't go openly.
Besides, I'll only set off after they leave for a week, so it won't be considered following them.
You, on the other hand, must remember when you go to the Central Plains. Don't easily believe what others say, especially beautiful women!
You must remember that the more beautiful a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive others! "
The youth lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment. Then, he raised his head and looked seriously at Li Yue. His tone was extremely firm. "You won't."
"Who said so? If I were to deceive others, I'd sell them and count the money for me.
Next time, I'll try selling you. Do you believe me? "
Hoodlum didn't say anything. His eyes were filled with a hint of a smile. Clearly, he didn't believe Li Yue's words.
Li Yue knew that he had a kind of naivety and straightforwardness that didn't understand the ways of the world. She criticized him in her heart for a while, but didn't say anything else. She left the dormitory building to prepare Li Xunhuan's luggage.
On the day of departure, Li Xunhuan and Tie Chuanjia were already prepared when the sun had just risen.
Tanhua Lang was initially prepared to set off in an ordinary carriage. However, under Li Yue's persuasion, they switched to the reinforced shock-absorbing carriage that Long Dragon Shop had recently developed.
Not only was there a small heater in the carriage, but there were also several folded secret cabinets stuffed with medicine and dried food. The two horses pulling the carriage were old horses from the Central Plains. Their speed wasn't the fastest, but their endurance was astonishing.
After tossing and turning like this for almost an hour, Li Yue still felt that something was missing. She nagged endlessly as if she was an old woman, talking endlessly to the person who came in third and Tie Chuanjia.
Li Xunhuan smiled bitterly and patted Li Yue's head. He lifted the curtain and entered the carriage. Tie Chuanjia was about to raise the whip when Li Yue let out an "ah" and quickly pushed Hoodlum into the carriage.
"I know you think that I'm a burden, but Hoodlum definitely won't!
I've already told him that you're not allowed to refuse!
Both of you are old, and one of you is in poor health. If you don't want Hoodlum to go to the Central Plains with you, I'll immediately hire ten more people to set off with you. "
When she said this, the two middle-aged men in the carriage no longer objected. After Hoodlum settled down in the carriage, Li Yue looked steadily at Tie Chuanjia.
"Uncle Tie, when you go to the Central Plains, you must take good care of yourself. I still have to take care of you when you're old.
My martial arts haven't improved much over the years, and I've only saved up some money. If anyone dares to make you suffer, I'll make sure that they'll have a hard time from now on.
Don't think that I'm joking, Uncle Tie. You know that once a woman hardens her heart, she can do anything. "
The young girl spoke each word seriously. The Bearded Man instantly had mixed feelings. He softly agreed, shook the reins in his hand, and drove the carriage to the east gate of Shuo Province City.
When the back of the carriage could no longer be seen on the street, Li Yue curled her lips and turned to the white-haired but energetic old man in the mansion.
"Uncle Fu, thank you for your hard work!
I'll be leaving for the Central Plains in seven days. "
The old man looked at the young girl with a kind expression. He supported himself with his walking stick and nodded with a smile.
The carriage drove out of Shuo Province and into the vast wasteland.
Two of the three people in the carriage were taciturn people. Therefore, the three of them didn't speak to each other at the beginning of the journey.
When it was almost noon, Tie Chuanjia parked the carriage in a flat and open area and started preparing lunch. Li Xunhuan stopped sculpting the doll in his hand and smiled at Hoodlum, who was hunting and roasting meat.
"Hoodlum, since you're Xiao Yue's friend, can you tell me if you're really willing to come to the Central Plains?
If not, as an elder, I'll apologize to you on her behalf. "
The youth rolled the roasted meat and replied with a cold expression, "I have an agreement with her.
"I have a prior agreement with her, so I owe her this.
Also, I came to the Central Plains on my own accord. I have to stand out among my peers. "
"You're a young man, but you're an old man in the world of wanderers. You can be considered to have come at the right time to wander about in the world of wanderers at your age. It's a pity that you're going in the same direction as me, who's plagued with trouble. It's inevitable that your mood will be ruined."
"That's not the case. Ah Yue told me that if I want to stand out among my peers, it's best to travel with you."
Tanhua Lang quirked an eyebrow. "Did Xiao Yue ask you to defeat me or the people who come to cause me trouble?"
"I can't win against you right now."
Hoodlum spoke the truth honestly. His gaze landed on Tie Chuanjia's back before he quickly looked away. "Ah Yue told me that there's a way for me to become famous in the world of wanderers at the fastest speed possible."
"Oh? What's the method?"
"She asked me to take the sword in my hand and challenge people from Guannei all the way to the Central Plains."
When Li Xunhuan heard Hoodlum's answer, he opened his mouth but could not say anything for a long time. In the end, he rubbed his eyebrows with a pained expression and tactfully tried to dissuade the boy, who seemed to be showing signs of wanting to do something.
"Xiao Yue … she's right, but it's best if you don't do that."
The journey from Shuo Province to Tanhua Lang's hometown, Baoding Li Garden, could not be considered far.
But the emperor was young, and the court was controlled by powerful officials. Beijing's ability to control the outside world had naturally decreased. Quite a number of official roads had been in disrepair for a long time, and even jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards dared to hurt people in broad daylight.
Besides, the world of martial artists was at its peak right now, and heroes from all walks of life were emerging one after another. In contrast, evil spirits and crooked paths also appeared one after another.
This journey could not be considered far, but in a certain sense, it was filled with danger.
Li Xunhuan and his group only dared to drive a carriage through the wild because they were bold because they were skilled.
However, Li Yue's martial arts were mediocre, and she could only deal with a few local ruffians. No matter how smart and quick-witted she was, it would be very difficult for her to safely travel from outside the Great Pass to the Central Plains.
Half of it was for her own selfish reasons, and the other half was to expand the Long Dragon's commercial market. Li Yue spent a few days, especially taking people from the shops, and forming a small but capable caravan. She merged it with the Li family's veteran caravan and headed to Baoding together.
The plan had been drawn up, and all that was left was to arrange for personal attendants.
Unfortunately, Uncle Fu was old and could not withstand the long journey. Li Yue did not like servants to take care of her, so she had no choice but to bring two servant girls from the Salesian Bureau, as well as several people from the Lulin who had changed careers to become armed escorts, to accompany her on the journey to the east.
The people in charge of the travel arrangements were all veterans, and they had already arranged everything along the way. From Shuo Province to the Great Pass, the entire journey could be considered smooth.
On a rainy evening, because there was no village in front of them and no shops behind them, the caravan could only rest in an abandoned temple nearby.
Before the caravan leader and a few people pushed open the door, they could already see the fire in the ruined temple, as if someone had already occupied the relatively complete back wing.
After pushing open the door of the ruined temple, they were greeted by a young man from Jianghu, who seemed to be the person in charge of the night watch.
Because he was alone in the main hall, the young man was inevitably in a bad mood, and his attitude was very bad as he asked the caravan to find another place to take shelter from the rain.
In order to avoid trouble, the caravan leader quietly went up to the young man and said all kinds of good words, and also gave him a not small bag of money.
The young man weighed the bag of money in his hand, pretending to be troubled for a while, and then reluctantly agreed to let the caravan people into the main hall to take shelter from the rain, but he was not willing to let the caravan people go near the back wing.
The leader reluctantly agreed, and just as he was about to report to the actual owner of the caravan, Li Yue, she coincidentally put away her oil paper umbrella and stepped into the main hall.
In the young man's vision, Li Yue, the "young man" who could still brighten up the ruined temple after being drenched in the rain, directly bumped into Li Yue, the young man's face turned red, then black, then red again. In the end, he glared at Li Yue fiercely, then left the main hall.
Li Yue, who was left in the main hall, was confused, but the caravan leader was a middle-aged man who was used to seeing the wind and the moon, so how could he not know the change in the young man's mind, but he did not expose him. Instead, he smiled and asked the caravan people to quickly bring the carriages and horses to the main hall to take shelter from the rain.
Most of the people in the caravan were veterans, and the speed of moving goods was far faster than the newcomers. After a while, the main hall was filled with people of the caravan.
Because it was raining, the air was particularly humid, and the temperature was dropping day by day. The experienced leader of Shangdu was afraid that someone would catch a cold and fall sick, so he immediately asked the caravan people to move away, leaving a few empty places for the bonfire, and ordered his men to cook a few pots of ginger soup, and gave a bowl to everyone in the caravan.
Li Yue could not sleep because of the strong smell of ginger in the main hall. She held the bowl of ginger soup in her hand, and it was difficult for her to swallow. Coincidentally, her maid called her, so she naturally put down the bowl of soup and walked over, "What's wrong?"
"Young … Young Master, look, the stone statue of Guanyin in the main hall is really beautiful."
"Don't be rude … Hey, this stone statue, the carving is really exquisite, it looks like a living person."
"Young Master, if you say so, I think this stone statue of Guanyin looks like a person."
“
"… Who does it look like?"
"It looks like you, Young Master."
The two maids laughed together, and Li Yue sighed helplessly. The maids were not wrong, the stone statue of Guanyin did look like her. Strictly speaking, it looked like a more mature version of her who would wear women's clothes ten years later.
It was fate that they could meet this statue of Guanyin in the wilderness. Moreover, when Li Yue looked at the statue of Guanyin, she felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy.
Although she didn't believe in gods and Buddhas, she still respected the unknown person who could carve such a vivid stone statue. Moreover, she and her caravan were staying in the rundown temple tonight. Therefore, without waiting for the others to help, Li Yue straightened the crooked table by herself and wiped away the dust and cobwebs on the table. She even placed the fresh flowers she picked from the wild at noon on the table.
"It's a gift to Buddha with borrowed flowers. No, it's a gift to Bodhisattva. I hope everything will go smoothly after we reach Baoding."
Li Yue softly muttered a few words. Perhaps it was because of the flickering firelight at night, but she actually felt that the stone statue seemed to have smiled at her. But when she rubbed her eyes and looked again, the stone statue of Guanyin had returned to its original dignified, magnificent, and compassionate appearance. She could only pat her cheeks and throw away the strange thoughts that had suddenly sprouted in her mind.
The boss's abnormal behavior naturally attracted the attention of the staff. Two maids came over with concern and asked Li Yue the reason.
When Li Yue explained her illusion, no one knew who spoke first, but the people in the caravan who were originally sleepy immediately became energetic and began to tell absurd and terrifying ghost stories.
The first to tell the stories were all young people. The stories they told were basically the same as the stories of the teahouses, restaurants, and strange stories from the older generation, which sounded a little dry and boring.
At first, the veterans in the caravan planned to close their eyes to rest, but gradually, they were attracted by the young people and joined the ranks of ghost stories.
Most of the veterans were not literate, but they had traveled extensively and seen a lot. In addition to the novelty of the stories they told, they also had more details, which made the whole story more realistic. The audience in the hall listened with great interest.
When Li Yue started to tell the story, the nearby bonfires were not so bright. She deliberately lit a candle to give herself light and stretched out her voice to tell the classic ghost stories she had read before.
It was windy and rainy outside the ruined temple, and the candlelight in the hall was weak.
Under the flickering candlelight, Li Yue's face faintly gave off a ghostly aura. She scared the people in the hall so much that they gasped one after another. Some of the more timid people in the caravan almost fainted from fright.
When Li Yue reached the climax of the story, the door leading to the back wing was suddenly pushed open.
"Ah ah ah ah —"
"Help, don't look for me, don't look for me —"
Screams of different tones were incessant. Only Li Yue put down the candle in her hand and looked at the visitor with a calm face.
"Young hero, it's late at night. May I ask what you're here for?"
The young man who had been keeping watch in the hall snorted coldly and raised the beautifully decorated long sword at his waist.
"Why are you people shouting like ghosts? Be quiet, don't disturb the rest of my fellow disciples. If —"
"Senior brother, why are you talking nonsense with them? Let me talk!"
A girl in a pink dress walked out from behind the young man, her face full of disgust. But when she saw Li Yue, her expression changed several times, and finally settled into deep obsession and anger.
She took a deep breath and strode toward Li Yue, raising her hand.
"Well, you heartless man, I thought you died in the Western Regions. It turns out you're hiding here!"
Although Li Yue's kung fu was ordinary, she had been fighting with geniuses like Li Xunhuan and Hoodlum for the past ten years. Therefore, before the other party's hand reached out, she had already retreated three steps away and distanced herself from the girl in pink, avoiding the slap.
"Young lady, you —"
The girl in pink did not give Li Yue a chance to explain. In a rage, she untied the thorny long whip at her waist and threw it in the direction of Li Yue.
Li Yue could avoid it, but there were two little maids behind her who did not know kung fu. If the whip hit, the two little maids would be seriously injured or disfigured. She had to hold the long fan and barely blocked the blow. At the same time, she felt a slight tingling on her left cheek.
The girl in pink was about to attack again, but she was stopped by the night watchman.
Li Yue touched her cheek and saw a trace of scarlet on her fingertips. She frowned and looked at the pair of brother and sister who were trying to put on a play:
"Young lady, we have no grudges in the past and no hatred today. Why are you so ruthless to me without distinguishing right from wrong?"
"It must be your fault to be able to provoke Junior Sister to attack!
Now you dare to pretend that you don't know Junior Sister. Tell me honestly, what did you do to Junior Sister!? "
The young man's words froze the atmosphere in the hall. Many young men in the caravan stood up.
Li Yue looked coldly at the pair of brother and sister, a mocking smile on her lips.
The girl in pink's body suddenly stiffened. She let go of the young man's hand, stomped her foot angrily, turned around and rushed back to the back room.
Seeing this, the young man said some harsh words to Li Yue and chased after her.
There were a few young men in the caravan who were from the Long Dragon. They grew up with Li Yue. When they saw the young man leave, they rolled up their sleeves and followed him, ready to get back at him for their leader.
Li Yue raised her hand and stopped all the young men. The leader of the caravan walked to Li Yue's side and asked in a low voice,
"Young Master, it's a dark and stormy night. It's a good time to do things. Why don't we …"
Li Yue's heart was filled with a series of complaints, but she still looked calm on the surface, "It's not easy to get ashore. If we can avoid the old business, we won't do it.
Our first task is to reach Baoding safely. We don't need to care about other things for the time being. We'll deal with them after we reach Baoding. "
"Yes, Young Master."
The leader of the caravan urged the others to take turns to rest. Two young maidservants surrounded Li Yue. When they saw the small wound on her face, they immediately felt distressed and quickly took out some ointment from the medicine box.
"Young Master, Xiao Cui will help you apply some ointment. You can't leave a scar on such a beautiful face."
"That's right. In Xiao Qing's opinion, that pair of martial brother and sister must have been jealous of Young Master's beauty, so they splashed dirty water on you.
Especially that young lady. She's so funny. She actually said that Young Master had let her down. Bah! "
"Alright, Young Master's face is red from all of your scolding. You two young ladies should quickly rest.
If you rest late, you'll get old and have spots. "
Li Yue yawned for a while before persuading the two young ladies to rest. She found a spot with hay against the wall and hugged her cloak as she fell asleep. In a daze, she felt as if someone was looking at her and even touched her cheeks.
The storm stopped in the middle of the night, but the wind didn't stop for the whole night.
When the first ray of sunlight shone into the ruined temple, the caravan had already finished resting and was ready to go back to Baoding.
Most of the people in the caravan had a good rest. Only Li Yue was haunted by strange dreams all night. At the end of the dream, she even saw herself covered in blood with a strange smile. She was so scared that she directly woke up.
Because of the poor quality of sleep, Li Yue sat in the carriage and yawned. The maidservants advised her to rest, but she didn't want to fall into a mess of dreams again. She gritted her teeth and didn't sleep. The carriage shook so much that she couldn't separate her eyelids.
After traveling for a while, the carriage suddenly stopped without warning. Li Yue heard a familiar argument. She lifted the curtain and alighted from the carriage.
"What's going on?"
"Young Master, it's the young hero from last night. He —"
Before the leader of the caravan could finish his words, he was pushed aside by the young man from last night. The young man pointed the tip of his sword at Li Yue. His face was flustered and exasperated.
"Little White Face, is it you?
Quickly hand over my Junior Sister! "
Li Yue was stunned for a while before she reacted. She looked at the young man in disheveled clothes and blocked his sword with the handle of her fan.
"Young Hero, is it … your Junior Sister is missing?"
"It's really you, Little White Face!
Where did you hide Junior Sister? "
"Hero, since last night, our caravan has not interacted with you and your Junior Sister. I only guessed that your Junior Sister had gone missing from your mouth. So, how would I know where your Junior Sister is?"
Looking at Li Yue's calm and self-control, the young man was anxious and angry. He no longer had the leisure to listen to Li Yue's explanation. He held the hilt of his sword and stabbed at the young man, but the young man dodged one by one.
Li Yue was already in a bad mood. Seeing the young man being so unreasonable, she did not want to hold back anymore. After blocking the young man's sword with the handle of her fan, Li Yue directly crashed into the young man's arms and gave him a heavy punch. Then, she kicked the young man to the side of the road.
"Your mind is not clear, and you can't listen to people properly. Then, stay here alone and calm down.
Whether you believe it or not, I have to say that no one in our caravan has seen the pink-clothed girl. If you have the heart, why don't you take a closer look around the ruined temple and wait a little longer. "
Li Yue did not want to be entangled with the young man anymore. She directly boarded the carriage and told the leader of the caravan to continue moving forward.
The spacious carriage continued to recede with the scenery outside the window. Once again, it shook slightly.
Li Yue stretched out her hand and gave a long yawn. When she opened her eyes, she saw the curious faces of the two young maidservants.
"Young Master, Young Master, how did you know that the pink-clothed girl was still in the ruined temple last night?"
"It's very simple. Last night, it rained for so long and so heavily that it washed away all the surrounding traces.
When we set off this morning, I didn't hear any movement in the back room. I also didn't see any footprints around the ruined temple.
That chivalrous Junior Sister is a girl who has been spoiled since childhood. Even if she is angry with her Senior Brother, she would definitely not choose to run out in the rainstorm. Most likely, she would stay in a corner of the ruined temple and watch her Senior Brother look around like a headless fly.
Perhaps that girl's anger has subsided and she will come out on her own. "
"Not necessarily, Young Master. Think about it. What if someone … came to the ruined temple before that pair of Senior Brother and Junior Sister?"
Xiao Cui's words gave Li Yue and the other young maidservant goosebumps. Li Yue exaggeratedly rubbed her arms and looked at the somewhat naive and ignorant girl with a complicated expression.
"Eh, Xiao Cui, I found that you have a special talent for telling suspense and horror stories. When we return from Baoding, I will definitely open a bookstore and specially invite you to write stories."
"Young Master is very annoying. You are making fun of Xiao Cui again."
"I don't dare, I don't dare."
Li Yue originally thought that being mistaken as a heartless man was just a coincidence. But when the caravan arrived at the small town inn near Wutai Mountain to rest, she was pointed at by a Jianghu heroine and scolded as a heartless man.
This heroine's facial features were distinct, her appearance was bright, and her skin was white. She had quite a bit of exotic blood. There were a few silver ornaments hanging on her body, but there were no conspicuous weapons. Her pair of soft hands were wearing gloves as thin as cicada's wings. It was obvious that she was a master of poison.
When she was in Shuo Province, Li Yue once heard a sentence from an experienced Jianghu veteran, "It is better to provoke someone who knows martial arts than to provoke someone who knows poison." She had always remembered this sentence in her heart.
After all, whether it was Li Xunhuan or Hoodlum, they were not people who used poison.
Without the experience of dealing with poisonous insects, Li Yue did not want to implicate other people in the caravan, so she had to bite the bullet and sincerely listen to the Jianghu heroine's 18 consecutive sentences.
Fortunately, the heroine only scolded Li Yue and did not greet her relatives and friends. After a long time, Li Yue unexpectedly felt that the heroine's accent was quite a bit of modern Sichuan dialect.
Li Yue was listening with great interest. On the other side, the heroine was tired of scolding. She put her hands on her waist and asked Li Yue:
"You heartless man, tell me the truth. Are you going to marry me or not?
I am such a beautiful woman, but you don't like me. What kind of girl do you like? "
Li Yue casually replied, "Myself." Glancing at the heroine's eyes full of suspicion, she decided to tell the truth and conveniently slander the real heartless man:
"This … this heroine, I will tell you the truth. I was born to be a playboy scum. I like all the beauties in the world, regardless of gender.
Marrying the heroine would only make her feel wronged. "
"You … you even like men?
I don't believe it!
“
"Then let's make a bet. Bet that the person I casually point to with his back to us is a beauty.
This can only be done by a veteran who has seen countless beauties. "
The heroine's face was full of disbelief. She believed that Li Yue deliberately did not want to marry her. Li Yue had no choice but to glance at the crowd on the street in front of the heroine. She casually pointed to a cyan-robed man standing with his back to them:
"Well, it's this man.
Looking at his back, I know that he is definitely a gentleman who is as gentle as jade and indifferent as the clouds! "
As soon as Li Yue finished speaking, the cyan-robed man happened to turn around. He was indeed as Li Yue said, a handsome man with a gentle temperament.
The young girl subconsciously whistled. As soon as the whistle sounded, she regretted it. However, the cyan-robed man seemed to have sensed something and smiled at her. Then, he crossed the vast sea of people and walked towards the young girl with firm steps.
When she was face to face with the cyan-robed man, Li Yue did not even dare to breathe. The heroine's gaze kept jumping between the two. Just as she was about to ask something, the cyan-robed man smiled at Li Yue and said:
"We haven't seen each other for many years since we parted that day.
I wait for you every day, but I don't see you. Now that we meet here, everything is destined. "
This conversation was foggy and faintly ambiguous, but it was enough to make the heroine imagine a melodramatic drama with ups and downs. She glared fiercely at Li Yue and left the inn without hesitation. She could still hear the heroine cursing from afar:
"F * ck you, I was blind!"
Li Yue smiled awkwardly. When she met the cyan-robed man's unfocused eyes, she suddenly remembered that the other party could not see.
Under the baptism of the indescribable gazes of the entire inn, she calmly held the cyan-robed man's hand and led him to her room on the second floor of the inn. Then, she removed the fake Adam's apple from her throat and restored her original voice:
"Long time no see, Yuan Suiyun … Brother ~ How did you recognize me?"
The young girl's original voice was clear, pure, and full of vitality. There was a hint of craftiness in it, like a mountain spring flowing in the forest.
Yuan Suiyun nodded slightly and replied in a clear voice:
"Although I can't see, I can hear it clearer than anyone else.
I won't forget your tone after hearing it once. After all, you're the only one in this world like you. "
"Are you praising me or scolding me?"
"Of course it's a compliment."
"Okay, okay, okay. I believe you.
I have to apologize to you first. This trip to the Central Plains was too rushed and I didn't have time to go to Taiyuan. It's my fault.
To run into each other here, it was truly a small world.
Let's go out for a meal later. I'll treat you as compensation. "
"What if I don't agree?"
"Our Brother Suiyun is so reasonable. Why would he make things difficult for a helpless little girl like me?"
Yuan Suiyun sighed and pretended to agree helplessly.
Li Yue clapped her hands and indicated for Yuan Suiyun to wait here. She went next door to change her clothes.
Li Yue originally planned to change her clothes simply. Who knew that she would be pressed into the room by two worried maidservants to dress up? It took a full two hours before Li Yue was released.
Li Yue felt a little apologetic for making her childhood friend, whom she had not seen for a long time, wait for her for such a long time. Therefore, before Yuan Suiyun could ask, she took the initiative to explain to him:
"I'm sorry, Suiyun. If I wasn't worried about meeting a girl who would call me a heartless man when we go out for a meal, I wouldn't let you wait for so long.
No matter what you want to eat, drink, or play tonight, I'll take care of it all. "
"Speaking of which, I'm very curious. How did you get involved with a woman from Miaojiang?"
"Well, it's a long story. Let's find a place to eat first. I'll tell you later."
When the two walked out of the inn, the night had already shrouded the surroundings.
The town was located in the basin between the mountain range and was built adjacent to Mount Wutai. Because the mountain was full of incense and the mountain scenery was excellent, tourists came here all year round to play. Therefore, it was more lively than other towns and villages. In terms of population, it was almost comparable to a small city.
There was no curfew in the town. When it was dark, there was a lively night market.
Li Yue and Yuan Suiyun strolled on the streets together. She thought that she could look around freely. However, because she had not dressed up properly for a long time, she forgot how influential her appearance was. As a result, the two of them were surrounded by mountain tourists.
No matter how thick-skinned Li Yue was, she did not want to cause trouble for her good friend. She was thinking about how to avoid the crowd when Yuan Suiyun reached out and grabbed her waist. She used qinggong and directly jumped onto the roof with her.
The two of them quickly passed through the center of the crowd and found a remote alley to jump down.
In the dark alley, the young girl leaned against the wall with her arms around her chest. She was thinking about how to apologize to her good friend. She frowned and thought for a while. It was Cyan-robed Young Master who broke the silence first.