The Lu Family Siblings

Lu Shouhuai.

Lu Pinghai, the county magistrate of Qingcheng County, is the youngest of the four sons.

Originally, the family discipline was lax, but after the eldest brother Lu Shoutao had an accident, the discipline became increasingly strict.

Lu Pinghai approved of Lu Shouhuai's decision to learn martial arts.

Studying and practicing martial arts are both important things.

Songhelou (Pine and Crane Tower).

A well-known local restaurant.

The branch of Songhelou in the county does business across counties.

Local officials and businessmen all enjoy coming to Songhelou Restaurant.

At this moment, in a private room at Songhelou Restaurant.

After rinsing the bowls and plates with tea, Pei Si began to chat with Lu Shouhuai.

"Brother Pei, I didn't mean anything by it. I just enjoy making friends, especially since we were classmates," Lu Shouhuai said, trying to warm things up.

"Brother Pei, are you a local?"

Lu Shouhuai sipped his tea, his brows slightly furrowed.

This stuff tastes awful, who would want to drink it?

"I'm a local. I grew up in Qingcheng County. Over the years, I've traveled all over the country with my master, learning various skills," Pei Si revealed casually.

Upon hearing this...

Lu Shouhuai's eyes lit up.

Well, so Brother Pei is actually a wandering swordsman.

In Qingcheng County, only a handful of families could afford to study martial arts at the Lingcang Sword Sect, and he had never heard of Pei Si.

His motivation for learning martial arts was also influenced by those vernacular novels.

Heroes of the martial world, sword cultivators of the Daoist sect.

There are also strange tales like a great sect leader splitting a river with a single finger, or a blind musician taking a person's head by plucking the strings of his zither, which are already very attractive to teenagers of this age.

Who hasn't fantasized about it?

"Brother Pei, could you tell me some of the strange and wonderful stories in the martial arts world?" Lu Shouhuai's eyes were full of eagerness to learn.

Seeing Lu Shouhuai's attitude, Pei Si expressed his understanding.

In my previous life, when I was a student, I also had fantasies.

On the vast playground with thousands of people, under the watchful eyes of everyone, a demonic cultivator suddenly descended upon the world, slaughtering living beings. But instead of retreating, he went against the tide and suppressed and annihilated the demonic cultivator with a single hand.

Or they could manifest themselves before others and directly become giants of light.

Pei Si told Lu Shouhuai some less important things, and Lu Shouhuai listened attentively and understood them perfectly.

After several rounds of drinks and five courses of food,

I drank some Shaoxing wine. Although it had a low alcohol content, the large quantity made me feel quite tipsy.

"Snapped!"

Lu Shouhuai slapped his thigh, exclaiming how satisfying it was, but his face still clearly showed lingering fear:

"Brother Pei, is that water monkey really as formidable in the water as you say?!"

"Even the government troops can't do anything about it!"

Pei Si was both amused and exasperated, and nodded.

After some probing, he concluded that Lu Shouhuai had no intention of harming anyone; perhaps it was just youthful exuberance and a fondness for making many friends.

Lu Shouhuai thought for a moment, then lowered his voice and said:

"I'm sure you must be curious, Brother Pei."

"Ling Yan, the instructor of the Lingcang Blade Sect, teaches my cousin martial arts at my uncle's house. Why should I go to a martial arts school?"

At this point, Lu Shouhuai glanced warily out the window, like prey, and continued:

"Don't be fooled by my sister's ladylike demeanor in public. You can't judge a book by its cover. At home, she's a real tigress."

"So I need to avoid her a little, but I don't dare to go too far away."

Upon hearing this, Pei Si smiled and said, "It's quite a coincidence, I met Miss Lu this afternoon."

"what?"

Lu Shouhuai froze, as if struck by lightning. He pointed at Pei Si, unable to speak coherently:

"Brother Pei, you must think this through carefully."

"It's just a business matter; you'll find out as soon as you get home," Pei Si said, glossing over the matter.

Lu Shouhuai gave an "oh," then suddenly adopted a mysterious demeanor and whispered, "Brother Pei, about the Red Lantern Goddess going up the mountain yesterday..."

After a while.

Pei Si was processing the information.

The county is going to hold a grand sacrificial ceremony for the mountain god.

Moreover, the mountain god temple needs to be expanded, and a temple keeper needs to be sent to reside there permanently.

It should at least be a minor prison sentence.

One sheep and one pig.

It must be said that the government responded quickly.

After this battle, the people of the county all knew that the Mountain Lord of Mengshan was powerful, and they would naturally worship at the temple, offer incense, and ask for his protection.

They dispatched temple keepers to reside in the temple long-term and legally collected incense money.

Although temples and Taoist temples are religious sites and should be based on spiritual practice and helping the world, some people still use them to make money.

High-ranking officials and nobles often donate their property to pray for blessings, atone for sins, or accumulate merit, and these donations are often exempt from taxes.

Temples like the one on Mengshan Mountain must have enjoyed privileges such as tax exemption and exemption from corvée labor. With these privileges came acts of offering sacrifices and registering names.

Land may be voluntarily donated to temples or Taoist monasteries, nominally becoming the property of the temple, while the original owner continues to cultivate and manage the land, but pays rent to the temple. Alternatively, one may register their household under the name of a temple or monastery.

At the same time, temples and monasteries can also set up "pawnshops," also known as "longevity pawnshops," to provide loans.

It can also provide believers with rituals such as praying for the deceased, praying for blessings and warding off disasters, and eliminating difficulties, as well as donations of incense money and merit money.

Such methods are constantly emerging.

Pei Si quickly went through the matter in his mind.

Well, in the end, this matter depends on the mountain king. That mountain king has quite an appetite, and if the government cannot satisfy him, he might cause some trouble.

Seeing that it was getting late, Pei Si suggested that the party end and then politely declined Young Master Lu's offer to see them off.

…………

The Lu residence.

Lu Pingshan and Lu Pinghai's large family lived together.

A modest carriage stopped in front of the Lu residence, and Lu Shouhuai got out, reeking of alcohol.

Lu Shouhuai smiled; tonight's meal was quite interesting.

But that Brother Pei was an extraordinary person, knowledgeable and witty, and his stories were full of clever remarks.

"Oh, Young Master Lu, where have you been gallivanting off to again?" a female voice rang out.

Lu Shouhuai shuddered, sobering up halfway.

Lu Shuangshuang was petting a white fox with red eyes, smiling at him.

From childhood to adulthood, Lu Shouhuai was most afraid of this older sister.

"Hey, instead of going to the martial arts gym to practice today, I met an interesting guy and we had a meal together." Lu Shouhuai scratched the back of his head and chuckled.

"Practicing martial arts is a respectable thing to do, much better than staying at home every day studying carpentry."

"Which martial arts gym did you go to? What's your buddy's background?"

"Let me tell you, you have to be careful when making friends, don't just befriend anyone." Lu Shuangshuang kept talking, like a barrage of cannon fire.

Lu Shouhuai felt a headache coming on and said helplessly:

"He went to the Lingcang Sword Sect. That guy's name is Pei Si. He's a wandering swordsman..." As he spoke, Lu Shouhuai covered his mouth.

The mouth moves faster than the brain.

Lu Shuangshuang bent down and put the fox down, then put her arm around Lu Shouhuai's shoulder:

"Brother Huai, we have instructors from the Lingcang Sword Sect right here in our household. Why do you still want to go out and learn? Are you trying to avoid me?"

"That will make your older sister sad."

"Ouch, sister, don't pull my ear," Lu Shouhuai cried out in pain.

Lu Shuangshuang snorted and clapped her hands: "Fine, fine, just don't cry during the sect's junior competition."

"Sister, you've met Pei Si before?" Lu Shouhuai smiled awkwardly and changed the subject.

"Okay." Lu Shuangshuang pointed at the fox and recounted the incident at Qingzhitang.

Upon hearing this, Lu Shouhuai clicked his tongue twice and simply shrugged, "Sis, you're being a bit stingy."

"Given Brother Pei's skills, a hundred coins a month is too little."

"Besides, the fact that he's willing to spend a hundred coins to learn martial arts proves that he's not short of money."

"If you ask me, Brother Pei must be the kind of chivalrous person who sees money as mere dust in his grave!"