Chapter 584
Chapter 584
Chapter 584
Li Zhuiyuan walked to the chicken coop, opened the small door, and before the boy could reach in, the two old hens sitting inside opened their eyes and pushed the eggs they had laid in the past two days out of the coop. Then they closed their eyes again and continued meditating.
It doesn't feel like a deprivation; it feels more like a favor of leaving us undisturbed.
After collecting the eggs, I went to the bamboo garden and picked some vegetables.
I stir-fried some mushrooms and greens, garlic sprouts and cured pork, and also made a tomato and egg soup. I also cooked more rice than yesterday.
The food was served, the boy sat down, picked up his chopsticks and took a couple of bites, when the sound of the bamboo door being pushed open came from the doorway.
“Hey Li, you’re home alone with a child, don’t you even know how to lock the door?”
Li Zhuiyuan ignored him.
Zhao Yi walked to the stove, lifted the pot lid, served himself a bowl of rice, and sat down at the table to eat with everyone.
Those who didn't drink alcohol or soda ate the meal very quickly.
Li Zhuiyuan put down his chopsticks and went to wash up by the flowing stream in the courtyard.
Zhao Yi poured the remaining rice from his bowl into a serving dish, stirred it, and quickly shoveled it into his mouth. He then went to the stream and washed his face thoroughly.
The white invitation was placed on a wooden stump in the courtyard, and Zhao Yi saw it as soon as he entered.
The best result from their joint deduction has occurred, indicating that Xu Ming's side has lived up to expectations and successfully dug the canal.
Zhao Yi picked two cucumbers, rinsed them in the stream, and handed one to the boy.
Li Zhuiyuan didn't answer; he was full.
Zhao Yi shrugged, taking a bite from the left and then the right.
With a crisp sound in his mouth, Zhao Yi asked, "Have you been in touch with your men these past few days?"
"You don't have a phone here."
There's no signal on the mountain; if you want to make a call, you have to go down to the small shop where Chen Jing bought Jianlibao last time.
After Zhao Yi and the others left, the boy did not step out of the garden gate.
"You have more than one way to contact me."
"No need."
"That's true. With Runsheng and the others' strength, there's no need to worry about entering a normal wave. The only difference is the transition from completing it normally to completing it perfectly."
"Now that you have already diverted the river water towards the Ming family, even a centipede with a hundred legs will not die easily. Doing anything more may alert the other side, and it will be a loss."
"Well, I'm not as meticulous and cautious as you. I still need to learn. How about you lend me the 'Secret Scroll of Tracing Ancestors' sometime so I can take a look?"
"After it's done."
“Hey, I’m not forcing you to ask. If you feel it’s difficult, then… try to overcome it. But please don’t say forget it.”
"Sometimes, seeing things too clearly isn't necessarily a good thing."
"If it were completely dark, that would be fine, but having to turn a blind eye is unbearable."
When do we depart?
"Right now, do you expect me to stay here and enjoy a pastoral idyll with you two? You're not Ayou, and I'm not her."
If Ah-you were here, it would be quite fun to tease him.
But when facing this man surnamed Li, Zhao Yi only dared to repeat the words he had uttered when he entered the room.
As Li Zhuiyuan entered the house, he passed a wooden stake next to the steps and saw the height markings of Chen Jing on it.
When I first met A Jing in Dujiangyan, A Jing was young and short, but after constantly absorbing demonic power, he grew very tall, and the top mark was already the same height as the boy.
Upon arriving at the guest room, she changed into the clothes that Zhao Yi had prepared for her earlier, which were in a bamboo basket.
The new clothes fit well, but they weren't Li Zhuiyuan's usual style; they belonged to Chen Jing.
Stepping out of the house, Zhao Yi was waving a werewolf mask in his hand.
They're made of plastic and sold at stalls in the Lushan scenic area. You can get a 50% discount by bargaining, and if you speak Jiujiang Mandarin, you can get an even bigger 50% discount.
After adjusting the elastic band, Zhao Yi put the mask on Li Zhuiyuan's face.
Taking two steps back, in that brief moment, the boy's demeanor changed, and he looked exactly like Chen Jing.
Both Li Zhuiyuan and Zhao Yi possessed extremely advanced puppetry skills, so disguising themselves was not difficult for them.
But the most skillful disguise in this world is to be naturally unadorned.
Of course, you can't use it in ordinary situations, or you'll go too far.
But for those high-end banquets, as long as you can show up there, you have the best disguise, like the Ming family's funeral banquet.
Who would have thought that the little wolf cub beside Zhao Yi had been replaced by someone else, and this was the very person he was with?
Pushing open the garden gate, Zhao Yi led Li Zhuiyuan down the mountain.
His car was parked next to the convenience store. It was a passenger van with the words "Beautiful Jiujiang, Magnificent Lushan" pasted on it.
It was something Liu Jinxia and her friends bought when they visited Jiujiang last time, and Zhao Yi has kept it ever since.
Zhao Yi let Li Zhuiyuan get in the car first, and then he went to the convenience store and brought up another case of Jianlibao and a case of soy milk.
"Hey Li, feel free to drink, but be careful of the bumpy ride in the car, don't choke."
Zhao Yi started the car and slowly drove out of the scenic area and out of Jiujiang.
Ming Qinyun's death anniversary was not held at the Ming family ancestral home, but at the location shown on the treasure map of the ruins.
For thousands of years, the Ming family has had a peculiar attitude toward that region, treating it as both a place of suppression and a place where dragons rise to power. They neither delve too deeply into it nor allow outside forces to interfere.
As a member of the Dragon King's faction, they naturally have the right to keep secrets, and even if these secrets were made public, no one would dare to pry into them.
But since the Ming family had considered this place as a backup for the Wangjiang Tower in the previous wave, it meant that the Ming family's situation was already critical.
“Hey Li, I suspect that place is to the Ming family what that peach grove is to you.”
It's hard to keep any secrets from Zhao Yi completely. When he came to Nantong in the past, he stayed at the house of the bearded man who lived right across from the peach grove. Not to mention, he also had intimate interactions with Qing An.
Li Zhuiyuan shook his head: "Qing'an, there's only one."
Zhao Yi nodded: "Yes, because there's only one Qing'an."
The Ming family's fundamental techniques, especially the side effects of practicing them, seem rather familiar. Furthermore, Li Zhuiyuan can even put members of the Ming family into beverage cans as supplements, which is already a natural complement in the literal sense.
Therefore, Li Zhuiyuan had long suspected that the Ming family's ancestor might be related to Wei Zhengdao.
To be more specific, was the ancestor of the Ming family, like Qing'an, one of the geniuses who followed Wei Zhengdao back then?
After all, Qing An was showing signs of being deeply affected by the side effects of the "Black Book Secret Technique";
On the Ming family's side, it seemed to be a side effect of Wei Zhengdao "devouring" them.
The difference with the latter is that the Ming family cannot directly devour evil spirits, nor can they replenish their physical bodies; it is more like a second-best option: nourishing the soul.
If one is not careful, or rather, except for a very few geniuses in each generation, such as the Ming family Dragon King in history, the rest of the Ming family members will face the problem of their souls becoming too bloated and overburdened when practicing this technique.
This really seems like a secondary modification and evolution based on a thorough understanding of the side effects, using them in a way that makes the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
However, the Ming family ancestor must have already died; he could not possibly still be alive like Qing An.
As Zhao Yi said, there is only one Qing'an, while the Ming family is the Dragon King's family. The Dragon King of the Ming family in history would not allow an ancestor of his family to survive to this day.
Just like Zhao Yi back then, if he wanted to follow in his ancestors' footsteps and walk the path of the Dragon King, the first thing he had to do was to eliminate those ancestors in his family who sought immortality.
"Hey Li, if the Ming family hadn't taken advantage of the old lady and Qin Liu's misfortune back then, wouldn't it have been more advantageous for the Ming family after you rose to power?"
Zhao Yi knew about the young man's abilities. The side effects of the Ming family's secret technique might be able to be modified by the young man, so that the Ming family members would no longer all have a violent temper.
This is not only due to innate trust, but also to the self-taught healing ability developed through long-term illness.
"The way you put it is like the theme of this martial arts world, like that slogan."
Zhao Yi looked out the car window and saw a slogan painted on the roadside marker: Harmony and Friendship, Equality and Mutual Assistance.
Without stopping, Zhao Yi, along with Li Zhuiyuan, arrived at their destination two days before the invitation's date.
If we remove the journey and only look at the changes in environment, for Li Zhuiyuan, it was like going from one mountain to another.
The scenery here is also beautiful, but unfortunately, no literati or poets have written articles or advertised it in history, so there are not many tourists from other places.
Zhao Yi drove the car into the courtyard of a guesthouse.
The guesthouse owner, a middle-aged man, greeted us warmly. He wore a white shirt and jeans, looked clean and not greasy, and had long hair, giving him a very artsy vibe.
The artistic temperament has nothing to do with age; anyone can be artistic at any age, provided that… you're poor enough.
Currently, even in Dali and Lijiang, homestays are still in the early stages of exploration. Fat Jin was one of the first to try it out. Locally, they can only attract a small group of people from nearby small cities who come for spring outings and autumn foliage viewing, and they usually make a day trip.
The guesthouse was doing poorly; there wasn't a single guest before Zhao Yi drove in.
Even Zhao Yi didn't let him off the hook. Pointing to the slogan on his van, he said that a travel agency had come to discuss cooperation, and the boss smiled wryly and waived the room fee.
Logically speaking, Young Master Zhao shouldn't be that stingy, but taking advantage makes him happy. Leaving the room fee after checking out also gives the boss the pleasure of feigning weakness. With the same cost, creating happiness for both parties out of thin air, why not?
Li Zhuiyuan and Zhao Yi sat down on the roof.
The boy gazed at the feng shui and weather ahead, while Zhao Yi looked down at the pedestrians on the town's streets.
The artsy boss brought over tea and sat down.
Perhaps because there were so few guests, he was exceptionally enthusiastic even when dealing with free customers.
His surname was Jiang, and his given name was Jiang Mo. After rinsing his throat with tea, he began to talk about his grand plans and dreams.
We chatted until nearly noon, when hunger interrupted our dreams.
He asked the two if they wanted to eat together. He could go downstairs and cook noodles, or they could go to the local restaurant across from the guesthouse. The food was authentic, but a bit expensive, even if he didn't ask for a referral fee.
Zhao Yi said he enjoys tasting local specialties from all over the country, and nothing is more representative than noodles.
Jiang Mo was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said okay, he would go down and cook, and call them when it was done.
After the boss and the other idlers left, Zhao Yi said, "I didn't see any Xuanmen people showing their faces in the town. The Ming family didn't set up any post stations here, nor did they place any external forces here."
Li Zhuiyuan: "The feng shui and auspicious energy are concentrated in the deep mountains in front, so people should only be left to guard the entrance and exit."
Zhao Yi: "Let's not wait until dark. After dinner, shall we go into the mountains to scare away the snakes?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "Does this fit your persona?"
Zhao Yi: "Hehe, I was quite reserved at first, but as your momentum grew stronger, I became more and more pretentious."
Just like in that old Qinglong Temple, I also have a little courtyard that belongs to me. Besides what they gave me, I also take full advantage of my initiative, wanting to go in and explore everywhere.
Li Zhuiyuan: "That's why the problem arose."
Zhao Yi: "This has nothing to do with me personally; it's just my fate as a front man."
Jiang Mo: "The noodles are ready!"
Zhao Yi stood up: "Let's go, let's try some local specialties."
I went downstairs to the kitchen, and there were three bowls of instant noodles on the table.
Zhao Yi picked up the packaging bag next to him and laughed, "No, you could at least cook us some local noodles, why are these instant noodles from another province?"
Jiang Mo: "We locals all eat at this place. Even the locals at the instant noodle factory probably don't eat here as much as we do."
Zhao Yi: "I see."
Jiang Mo: "Here, one spoonful of meatballs and one fried egg for each person. They're a perfect match for instant noodles."
After finishing their noodles, Zhao Yi said goodbye to Jiang Mo and then drove Li Zhuiyuan from the town to the scenic area.
The scenic area does not charge an entrance fee, and the railing on one side of the guard post hangs listlessly to one side, like an old man in the guard post, merely for decoration.
As Zhao Yi passed the guard post, he honked his horn once.
The old man was woken up from his afternoon nap and looked annoyed.
Zhao Yi tossed the old man a pack of cigarettes. The old man laughed, opened it, took out two, put one in his mouth and clipped the other to his ear, and tossed the rest back out of Zhao Yi's car window.
"Grandpa, besides the road leading up, is there another road we can walk on?"
"Yes, don't turn ahead, go straight, there's a gravel road, move the 'Construction Ahead' sign aside, and keep driving in."
"Thanks, sir."
After the van with the Jiujiang slogan drove away, the old man in the guard post silently took the cigarette out of his mouth, his eyes gleaming.
Once inside, you don't see many tourists, but occasionally you can see the sanatoriums across the hills.
After Zhao Yi got out of the car and pushed the sign aside, he continued deeper into the road. The road became bumpy, and pebbles bounced up from the tires, hitting the chassis with rhythmic sounds.
In the end, even the gravel road disappeared, leaving only ruts in the grass, which were incredibly bumpy and jolted back and forth.
Finally, there was no way out at all.
Zhao Yi: "We've arrived, it's just ahead."
Li Zhuiyuan: "It's time to bait you."
Zhao Yi: "Hey Li, don't get out of the car. I'm afraid if something happens to you, I won't be able to help but laugh."
Li Zhuiyuan: "If you're going to put on a show, you have to go all the way. There's no way you can get out of the car to fight while A-Jing is still sitting in the car."
"alright."
Zhao Yi took out his pipe, put tobacco in it, lit it, took a deep drag, and then rolled down the car window to exhale.
He then opened the car door and got out.
Li Zhuiyuan opened the car door and got out.
Zhao Yi handed the pipe in his hand to Li Zhuiyuan:
"Ah Jing, keep an eye on the fire for the boss. If it goes out, I won't let you off the hook!"
Li Zhuiyuan took the pipe and stood still.
Zhao Yi stretched, looked around, and smiled:
"Hehe, gentlemen, how long are you planning to keep hiding?"
A gust of wind blew by, and the swirling bits of grass were obscured by transparent veils, gradually revealing their figures.
They were dressed in the traditional clothing of the Ming family, with long swords at their waists. Most of them were in their early twenties, with the only older one being in his forties, whose hair was already half white.
As the leader, he spoke directly: "Who dares to trespass on the Ming family's forbidden area? Kill them!"
The group drew their swords and attacked the van.
Zhao Yi extended his right hand, and the tomb owner's knife flew out of the car and landed in his palm.
With a "whoosh," he drew his sword and leaped onto the roof of the van. The dragon skin on his body flew up, and ghostly energy above him transformed into a dragon shadow. All of this was coordinated with this sweeping sword strike!
"Clap! Clap! Clap..."
A series of explosions rang out, and blood mist splattered everywhere.
These young members of the Ming family were not to be underestimated in the martial arts world; they could be considered heroes. However, they were still too inexperienced in front of a seasoned veteran like Zhao Yi. With one strike, the attacking side was almost entirely wiped out in an instant.
Zhao Yi leaped down and focused his attacks on those who could withstand a single blow from him. They were basically all unable to withstand his blows, and they couldn't defend against them either.
In the end, only the middle-aged man with half-gray hair could exchange a few blows with Zhao Yi, and that was only because Zhao Yi deliberately held back:
"Ming family, what does this mean?"
"The Ming family needs to live! We must find a new path for the Ming family to survive!"
"What do I care if you want to live?"
"How can we live if you're here?"
Zhao Yi held back, raised his blade, and severed the longsword in the opponent's hand, then beheaded him with a single stroke.
After killing everyone, Zhao Yi sheathed his knife and threw it backward. The scabbard, carrying a powerful force, swept past Li Zhuiyuan and slung back into the van.
Turning back, he took the pipe from Li Zhuiyuan, took a puff, and said:
"Ah Jing, clean everything up except for that head, don't spoil the scenery here."
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, took out a small bottle, and poured a drop on each corpse.
This is Yin Meng's corpse-dissolving water, and it's the latest version. It was only when the teams that stayed in Nantong were distributed during this trip across the river that they were able to get their hands on it. However, Zhao Yi is different; he has plenty of ways to get the beta version.
The corpse on the ground quickly evaporated, and Li Zhuiyuan carried the head back to the van.
Zhao Yi turned his pipe down, patted it, and got into the car. Li Zhuiyuan followed. The moment the door closed, the formation inside the car was activated.
"That guy surnamed Li is really disrespecting me. I thought the show would start after I got to that place, but before I even got there, he put me on these cheap extras."
I remember back in Listening Wind Canyon, the Ming family went to great lengths to kill you; you still haven't finished that drink you were drinking.
Li Zhuiyuan: "The number of actors is limited."
When a power is in decline, its internal conflicts will inevitably intensify, and it is easy for it to split. However, the Ming family is the Dragon King's family after all, and most of its members are willing to stand with the family even at this moment, to share the same hatred of the enemy and overcome the difficulties together.
This means that the number of internal opposition members that can be deployed at this moment is very small.
Zhao Yi: "From this perspective, it is indeed much better than the family tradition of my Jiujiang Zhao family."
Li Zhuiyuan: "Your comparison is somewhat insulting to Dragon King Ming."
Zhao Yi: "I saw three entrances to the barrier, but I'm too lazy to look closely and rack my brains. Just tell me the result."
Li Zhuiyuan: "One truth, two traps."
Zhao Yi: "What's inside?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "It's as if there's an incredibly profound soul consciousness, dormant."
Zhao Yi: "A soul without a master?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "Mm."
Zhao Yi: "Let's go back and go through the next stage of the river water process first, and then I'll escort you to officially dive in tonight."
Li Zhuiyuan: "Okay."
Zhao Yi: "Unclaimed souls, hehehe, we can team up to design a huge firework display and release it into the sky for them on the day of the Ghost Festival!"
Li Zhuiyuan: "This is the ideal situation, I hope so."
Zhao Yi: "Pah, pah, pah, don't say such unlucky things... Never mind, you're a bodhisattva, do as you please."
When Zhao Yi passed the guard post again, the old man was gone, but he still stopped the car.
Li Zhuiyuan rolled down the car window and threw the severed head into the guard post.
When they drove back to town, it was almost dusk. Zhao Yi went to the restaurant across the street, ordered food, paid the bill, and asked the owner to cook it and deliver it to his guesthouse.
As they drove into the courtyard, Jiang Mo was sweeping the floor. The orange tree that had been specially transplanted when the guesthouse opened hadn't sprouted yet, and it looked a bit like the guesthouse itself—dead.
Jiang Mo, leaning on his broom, asked, "How's the scenery?"
Zhao Yi: "Not bad."
Jiang Mo: "I'll cook what we're having for dinner."
Zhao Yi: "I've ordered some food, it will be delivered later so we can eat together."
Jiang Mo: "That's so embarrassing."
Zhao Yi and Li Zhuiyuan returned to their room, a standard double room, where each of them sat on a bed.
Li Zhuiyuan was reading a book, Zhao Yi was smoking, and there were talismans pasted on the doors and windows of the room to warn outsiders.
"Crash..."
The talisman on the window made a sound, and a figure appeared by the window.
Zhao Yi got up and walked over.
"You've been frightened."
Although the tone of voice had been altered by the bamboo tube during their last conversation, Li Zhuiyuan could still tell that it was the Ming family elder who had come to deliver the invitation.
It seems that the Ming family has entrusted him with directing this play.
Zhao Yi: "Ha, I'm here to offer gifts, what kind of talk is this?"
“The house has been a bit chaotic lately, and someone is bound to be scared.”
"What about the family rules?"
"It's been taken care of, it's nothing serious."
"Well, I thought your family had changed its way of entertaining guests."
"You're joking. At this point, whether or not to change it is no longer up to my family to decide."
"Yes, I think so too."
"A little respect, to calm my nerves."
A wooden box was placed on the windowsill, and the figure disappeared.
After a while, Zhao Yi opened the door and brought in the wooden box.
Inside the box was the head of the old man from the guard post, and above it was a divination mirror that sealed the old man's soul.
This is the most efficient anti-counterfeiting measure. You don't have to worry about being fooled by fake people; you can verify it yourself.
Zhao Yi closed the box again and said, "Come on, the orange tree in the yard has fruited, let's go pick some first."
Li Zhuiyuan followed Zhao Yi out of the room, carrying the bag. From a distance, the orange tree looked unchanged, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that it bore many fruits hidden among the green leaves.
Zhao Yi was tall, and after picking the oranges one by one, he threw them into the bag in Li Zhuiyuan's hand. The moment he finished picking them all, the green leaves quickly withered and fell to the ground, and Jiang Mo's afternoon sweeping was in vain.
Back in their room, after closing the door and putting up talismans, Zhao Yi and Li Zhuiyuan peeled oranges together.
This is a gift from the Ming family to Zhao Yi to calm his nerves.
A single segment of orange flesh, when tasted, is not only refreshing and invigorating, but also a spiritual fruit that nourishes the soul; each one is of considerable value.
Zhao Yi opened the wooden box again, poked the divination mirror, and released the old man's soul.
The old man stared intently at Zhao Yi: "Those idiots believed you, which led to the Ming family's current predicament. You and they both deserve to die!"
Ignoring the old man's curse, Zhao Yi picked up another orange and continued peeling it, saying to Li Zhuiyuan:
"Hey Li, why are you only eating one? Don't try to save me any money. You have no idea how well I've been living these past few days."
Li Zhuiyuan: "It's far less effective than a beverage, and it's troublesome to peel."
Zhao Yi: "Then you sit there and don't move. I'll peel the orange for you."
The old man said, "My Ming family was defeated by those fools and you, you treacherous dog with wolfish ambitions! You deserve to die a thousand deaths!"
Zhao Yi: "It must have been tough for the Ming family. It must have been very difficult to find such a weak and self-righteous old man in their family."
Old man: "You..."
Zhao Yi: "Hey Li, I'm not happy about this. If we could exchange an elder for your life, I think the Ming family would definitely be willing to give up one, two, three... in a line to do so."
"When they come to me, they just give me some old geezer to fob me off. How worthless must I be in their eyes?"
"To be able to direct a play for you, using the power of the dead and involving Ming Qinyun, is already a great honor."
"Not at all. Back then, at least the old lady sent Uncle Qin to me. That was a real favor to me."
"If you're really giving me face, you should send Aunt Liu."
"That won't do. If we don't have substance, where will we put our face?"
The old man looked at Zhao Yi with suspicion, then slowly turned his soul to look at the boy wearing a werewolf mask on the other side of the bed. He realized that something seemed wrong.
"Hey, Mr. Li, I've peeled it, take the orange."
"Don't eat."
"Then why don't you try something else to change things up?"
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, removed the mask from his face, and looked at the old man's spirit.
After the old man clearly saw the boy's true face, his previously calm spiritual state became heavy and showed signs of becoming malevolent. However, he did not go completely insane and still retained some of his sanity, speaking as follows:
"Mingzhishan greets Patriarch Li."
Li Zhuiyuan did not respond, but simply looked at him calmly.
Knowing that the mountain's malevolent influence was continuing, his consciousness became disordered:
"Why is Patriarch Li here? Why is Patriarch Li with Zhao Yi? Patriarch Li, our Ming family is willing to admit our mistakes, make amends, and apologize for the grievances of the past. We hope that Patriarch Li will..."
Li Zhuiyuan: "The Ming family's lineage must be broken."
Ming Zhishan: "Patriarch Li, we are both from the Dragon King's family, with deep ancestral ties, yet you show no mercy whatsoever?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "What right does your Ming family have to talk to me about ancestral ties?"
Knowing that Shan's face was distorted, his soul transformed into a black mist, shooting towards Li Zhuiyuan like a sharp arrow:
"Since that's the case, then I'll take you down with me!"
Zhao Yi, acting alongside him, nervously shouted, "Oh no, be careful!"
Caught off guard, Li Zhuiyuan had no time to react before the black mist entered between his eyebrows.
Zhao Yi chuckled twice, then sat down to continue eating his oranges.
Li Zhuiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhao Yi: "How is it?"
Li Zhuiyuan: "It's comfortable, but it's a bit wasteful, since I'm already full of energy."
Zhao Yi: "Carrying stones up the mountain is also a kind of happiness."
Outside, Jiang Mo's shouts could be heard:
"Brother Zhao, there are only three of us, why did you order so much food? Come out and eat, or the food will get soggy!"
……
After dinner, Jiang Mo set up three chairs in the yard, took out his guitar, and began to play and sing folk songs.
"I come from the mountains, carrying orchids..."
Zhao Yi lit a small candle in front of him, and Jiang Mo smiled and greeted Zhao Yi, thinking that Zhao Yi was helping him to create an atmosphere, so he sang even more passionately.
Li Zhuiyuan sat in the chair, looked up at the sky above, and saw a halo around the moon appear and then disappear at an extremely fast speed. This was a signal that the Liang sisters had arrived.
Zhao Yi was about to start a meeting when he stood up and said, "Brother Jiang, it's getting late, let's get some rest."
Jiang Mo shook his head: "The moon is beautiful tonight, we should enjoy it and not waste it."
Zhao Yi: "How do you plan to deal with the rent for your guesthouse in the second half of the year?"
Jiang Mo picked up his guitar, walked back to his room with a dejected air, and closed the door.
A moment later, the door to the guesthouse was pushed open, and the Liang sisters and Xu Ming walked in.
"Boss!"
The two sisters were very happy to see Zhao Yi; their love for him was genuine.
Xu Ming scratched his head, like a child who had done something wrong: "Boss, I'm back."
Zhao Yi: "Let's go inside and talk."
Once inside, Zhao Yi offered them oranges. The two sisters peeled one and then continued peeling the next, clearly accustomed to this luxurious lifestyle.
Xu Ming took an orange, twirled it in his hand, and looked down.
However, although the three felt that A-Jing was a bit quiet tonight, they did not suspect that A-Jing had been replaced. After Li Zhuiyuan entered the room and took off his mask, Liang Li choked on the orange.
Li Zhuiyuan's official appearance made the two sisters dare not continue to be lively.
Liang Yan reported, "Boss, we've successfully completed the mission!"
Zhao Yi nodded and praised, "Well done."
Xu Ming gritted his teeth, stood up, and said with great remorse, "Boss, I'm incompetent, I'm guilty, I messed up the job."
Zhao Yi: "So, according to the requirements in the plan, have you cleaned up both the beginning and the end?"
Xu Ming: "After I realized I had failed, I tried to clean up, but... but I probably didn't clean it up completely. The people from the outer gate of the Ming family came too fast, and I almost couldn't escape."
Zhao Yi: "In other words, there is an extremely small chance that the Ming family, through the traces you left behind, will realize that I am stirring up trouble in the martial arts world under the name of the Li family?"
Xu Ming knelt down with a thud: "Boss, it's my fault, it's all my fault!"
Zhao Yi patted Xu Ming on the shoulder: "No, you did a great job."
Xu Ming thought Zhao Yi was being sarcastic and became even more frightened.
Zhao Yi: "Here, have an orange."
Xu Ming is a loyal subordinate, but his loyalty is not absolute; he is willing to risk his life to complete a mission, but he cannot sacrifice himself for a cause.
This is common practice among followers who worship the Dragon King on the river. They follow you on the river to earn merit; they don't need to sell their lives to you.
What Zhao Yi gave Xu Ming was an impossible irrigation canal. To be precise, Zhao Yi's real purpose was to dig half of the canal so that the waves would overflow and spread.
Apart from Xu Ming, no one else could be competent for this task, because the Liang sisters and A Jing were truly willing to risk their lives for it!
Therefore, after Zhao Yi returned to the Bamboo Garden in Lushan and saw the invitation, he had the confidence to ask Li Zhuiyuan for the "Zhuiyuan Secret Scroll," and Li Zhuiyuan did not hesitate and immediately agreed.
Admittedly, the two parties have a history of good relations, but whenever there is a new collaboration, they adhere to the principle of equal business dealings and keep things separate.
This time, Zhao Yi offered a significant stake, enough to exchange for the secret scroll.
The key to successfully directing this wave towards the Ming family was Zhao Yi, who successfully instilled the Ming family's murderous intent towards him, making them determined to:
He ruined those...white gloves!
(End of this chapter)