The Extreme Pull Between Two Men

Upon hearing Li Lianhua's tone, Cao Hansheng knew that Li Lianhua hadn't taken his challenge. He was probably just using the ten-item agreement to distance himself from Li Lianhua.

"Brother Li, you know me. I always value my life very much. I also know you, Brother Li. I believe you would not force me to do anything against my will."

"Hehe, Brother Cao is still the same as before, always so straightforward. Well, since you've come from afar, it's an honor for me to have you here. For the past ten years, I've always remembered your culinary skills. I'll leave this spare rib to you."

"Is this one of the ten things?"

"Brother Cao, you can decide for yourself. If you say it's okay, then it's okay."

"Haha, Brother Li is much more humorous than before. I was just joking. This spare rib has a good balance of fat and lean meat; it looks perfect for braising. Brother Li, we have the meat, but do we have any wine?"

"Of course I won't disappoint Brother Cao. Good wine is served when friends come."

"That's good. Today, I must drink with Brother Li until we're completely drunk. By the way, should I get involved with the Feng Huo Tang? I guarantee there won't be any trouble afterward."

Li Lianhua definitely couldn't let Cao Hansheng get involved in this matter. After all, instructing a master thief to steal things wasn't exactly a respectable thing to do. The key was that Cao Hansheng knew her true identity, and Li Lianhua was somewhat embarrassed to do so.

"I don't need Brother Cao's help with this. I can handle it myself. Brother Cao, there's something I don't know if I should ask you. Your footwork looks familiar."

It looks somewhat like the Moon Shadow Stepping Waves, the unique lightness skill of the Moon Shadow Sect that was wiped out by Blood Hand Sword more than two years ago. Moreover, I heard that when Blood Hand Sword first entered the martial arts world seven years ago, his rapier skills were already superb.

Cao Hansheng did not answer him, but walked around the Lotus Pavilion. There was a pillar next to the stairs to the second floor with a sword mark on it. He touched it with his hand.

"Brother Li, the wood you used for this Lotus Pavilion looks familiar. It looks like the wood from that half of the big ship in the rocky beach of Yueshan Village."

"Brother Cao, you have a good eye! This timber is indeed from that half-ship back then. But with your sharp eyes, did you recognize this dog?"

As Li Lianhua finished speaking, she whistled at the fox spirit, and the dog immediately ran to him and rubbed against his legs. Cao Hansheng took a closer look and pretended to be curious.

"Could this be the same dog from back then?"

Ten years is truly a long and arduous time; everything has changed. They say a dog is loyal to its former master, but I think this vixen is quite ungrateful, completely forgetting about me.

"After all, ten years is still too long. According to human lifespan, the fox spirit is already an old woman. It's inevitable that she'll become a little confused when she gets old, so it's only natural that she doesn't remember Brother Cao."

"It was cuter when it was small. But Brother Li's Lotus Pavilion is really nice, it has a lot of life in it. It seems that Brother Li has really become Li Lotus over the years. It is truly gratifying to be able to return to simplicity."

"Brother Cao has changed. His Taoist robe makes him look like a hermit. I wonder if his cooking skills have declined."

"I dare not say anything else, but you can certainly look forward to Brother Li's cooking skills," Cao Hansheng said, and began to prepare the ribs as if he were at home.

Cao Hansheng turned a piece of spare rib into two dishes, one braised and one stewed. With Li Lianhua's remaining food, they managed to make six dishes. Watching the ingredients turn into a delicious feast, Li Lianhua couldn't be more envious.

"It still has to be Brother Cao. But the most delicious dish in my memory is still the seafood that Brother Cao made for me in Yueshan Village. I will never forget that taste."

"That shows Brother Li is a man of deep affection. The dishes are ready, how about the wine?"

Upon hearing Cao Hansheng's question, Li Lianhua took out two jars of wine from a cupboard. "Such good food, how can there be no wine? Wouldn't that be a waste?"

Cao Hansheng took the jar of wine, uncorked it, and smelled it. "Good wine. This is from Gaoyou Old Cellar in Yangzhou Prefecture. It has been aged for at least ten years. Brother Li has really gone to great lengths."

"Brother Cao, you truly understand wine. How many decades does one have in a lifetime? It's fate that we can share this wine. If it weren't for your help back then, I wouldn't have had these ten years."

"Brother Li's words truly make me ashamed. I have offended you in the past, and I hope you will be magnanimous. I will offer you a bowl of wine as a sign of respect."

After pouring himself a bowl of wine, Cao Hansheng gave Li Lianhua a perfunctory toast, then drank it all in one gulp, put down the bowl, and looked at Li Lianhua.

"I knew what Brother Li wanted to know. After leaving the secret room of the Bodhisattva of Great Joy, I did not leave Jiucuo Mountain, but went to the depths of Jiucuo Mountain and stayed there for three years."

Then Cao disguised himself as a Taoist priest named Wumingzi and began to travel the world. In less than five years, he challenged a total of 73 skilled swordsmen across the country, losing 39 of them, but later winning them all.

Furthermore, twenty-seven of them died at my hands, and thirteen of them even had their sects wiped out by Cao, including the Moon Shadow Sect that Brother Li mentioned.

It was because of that battle that Cao was seriously injured and earned the nickname "Bloody Hand Sword". However, he was also hunted down everywhere, with people wanting to make a name for themselves by taking Cao's head.

However, Cao did not give them a chance. After killing a group of people, he returned to Jiucuo Mountain to continue his cultivation. Through this incident, Cao suddenly felt that the matter of saving Brother Li back then was actually insignificant, because Brother Li gave Cao the means to survive.

"If it weren't for the Yangzhou slow tea I carry, I, Cao, would surely be buried somewhere long ago, and I certainly wouldn't be here in the Lotus Pavilion drinking and reminiscing with Brother Li. My reason for coming out of seclusion this time is to repay Brother Li's kindness. Please do not refuse my ten requests."

Listening to Cao Hansheng casually recount those events of swords and shadows, Li Lianhua couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. People are truly fickle; if it were her younger self, she definitely wouldn't have been able to drink this wine.

"Brother Cao is as ruthless as ever, and his methods are also very flexible. It is said in the martial arts world that Brother Cao is one of the ten most difficult masters to deal with."

"It's just a bit of hardship, Brother Li, you're too kind. Back then, who in the martial arts world didn't know that the Taoist Wumingzi was a shameless scoundrel? But there were people even more shameless than me, Cao."

In pursuit of immortality, Bai Kefan, a powerful figure in the Hebei region, actually drank the blood of young boys. To satisfy his desires, he kept seventy or eighty blood slaves in his household, who drank his blood regularly.

There was also the Green Mountain Sword Madman, who on the surface was the living Mengchang praised by everyone, but behind the scenes he was the leader of the Black Bee Twelve Thieves who were hated by everyone. He truly knew that you could know a person's face but not their heart. At that time, I, Cao, knew how rare and precious Brother Li's kindness was.

"If it weren't for Brother Li's benevolence back then, and if it were someone else, let alone teaching me martial arts, I would have been lucky if they hadn't killed me to silence me."

Although Cao Hansheng spoke with great passion, Li Lianhua was no longer the Li Xiangyi of yesteryear. She simply poured herself a bowl of wine and offered it a toast to Cao Hansheng.

"Brother Cao, it's just a pity that I no longer have the spirit I once had. Looking back now, I realize that I went a bit too far. From now on, we'll settle our scores."

PS: Thank you to readers [甄傍] and [的小一片山] for the bonus chapters. I wish you both the best of luck in winning the grand prize of 888888 points and good fortune in the Year of the Horse.