According to Lan Xishan's idea, in two days, at most two days, his nephew would return to him because he couldn't stand the hardships of the martial arts world. He even thought about how to decorate the mansion in Frostskin City, and sent the cooks and servants there early to make preparations in advance.
Zhu Zhang said worriedly: "Uncle, I'm afraid this won't work."
Zhu Xiaosui also cried, "Uncle, you should bring the young master back as soon as possible."
"Why are you in such a hurry?" Lan Xishan stroked his mustache slowly. "I have already sent people to check the Wanren Palace. The food, clothing, housing and transportation are all very simple and rough. Think about it carefully. What can people in the martial arts world be so particular about? Xiaoyin has been spoiled since he was a child. He has never worn his own clothes. Now that there is suddenly no one to serve him, how can he bear it?"
Zhu Xiaosui said, "But I heard that Wanren Palace has sent disciples to the nearby city to buy daily necessities today."
But Lan Xishan still didn't care. What good things could be bought in the nearby city? Stay calm, we can win.
With their uncle being so stubborn, Zhu Zhang and Zhu Xiaosui had no choice but to continue keeping an eye on what was happening in Wanren Palace.
Very nervous.
The team continued to move north.
In a medium-sized black carriage, Zhu Yanyin was leaning on a fur cushion, yawning lazily, holding a volume of local chronicles sent by his cousin, and was about to fall asleep. Li Sui was beside him, using a dagger to cut sweet fruit for him to eat: "Why do you always read this kind of book recently?"
"I'm tired of reading the Jianghu novels. I want to change my mind." Zhu Yanyin put down the book in his hand, frowning, "I won't eat anymore. I'm full."
Li Sui wiped his hands clean: "Come here, I'll hold you and sleep for a while."
Zhu Yanyin took off his cloak and put it aside, then snuggled into Li Sui's arms.
Light, warm and so comfortable!
A middle-aged uncle who has never talked about love with people in the world will not understand this kind of happiness.
Two days later, the disciples who went out to buy luggage from the Wanren Sect returned one after another. Each of them carried large and small bags, and it seemed that they had made a lot of money. In order to carry these things, they even bought five more empty carriages. As for food, a new cook had been invited. He was a fat Jiangnan man who looked very authoritative and festive. It was said that he fried a flower basket-shaped fish for Master Zhu that night.
Lan Xishan: “…”
He finally sensed something was not right, and blew his beard: "Did Xiaoyin take the banknotes with him?"
"No, the young master's money is all with me." Zhu Xiaosui said, "He didn't even bring a change of clothes, so I had to deliver them to him later."
Lan Xishan thought for a moment, and continued to speak in a self-righteous manner: "Perhaps Wanren Palace wants to get close to Zhu Mansion, so it intends to please Xiaoyin. This situation is easy to solve and not difficult. I will find time tonight to talk to Palace Master Li in person."
Zhu Xiaosui glanced at Uncle Zhang anxiously. He still felt unsure. Why did he feel that this uncle who was a high-ranking official was not very reliable
In the evening, Jiang Shenglin stood by the fire, admiring the frying, stir-frying and deep-frying skills of the Jiangnan chefs for a long time. He felt quite gratified because he felt that Li Sui had finally lived a human life. He cherished life, knew how to laugh, and began to care about his friends. He was no longer as cold, stubborn and violent as he was at the beginning. He seemed to care nothing about anything except killing Chi Tian, like a deadly sword carved out of ice.
At this time, a group of people came from a distance.
"Lord Lan." Jiang Shenglin bowed and saluted. "Why did you come here in such cold weather?"
"I have something to see Palace Master Li." Lan Xishan took a look at the ham stew that had just come out of the pot. It was quite authentic. No, if my eldest nephew ate this stew every day, he would probably forget his uncle. This must be stopped at the source!
"Palace Master Li and Master Zhu are having dinner in the tent." Jiang Shenglin said, "If Lord Lan hasn't eaten yet, it's a good opportunity for you to join them."
Lan Xishan was not interested in eating, but he was quite interested in checking Zhu Yanyin's food, clothing, housing and transportation after leaving Zhu Mansion, so he led people to find out.
Zhu Yanyin said: "It's a bit spicy."
"I specifically told the cook to make it mild, how come it's spicy?" Li Sui tasted his remaining mutton fried rice. "How can this be considered spicy? The weather has been cold recently, so eating something spicy can keep the cold away."
Zhu Yanyin stuck out his tongue: "It's all red."
Li Sui put down the spoon: "Then don't eat it, I'll make you some sweet soup."
Second Master Zhu was very satisfied with this freedom and happiness of not having to eat anything he didn't want to eat. Without Uncle Zhang to supervise him, he didn't even have to follow the rules of etiquette. He moved the bench to sit next to Li Sui and leaned against him without any form: "I'm sleepy."
Li Sui tilted his head and kissed him: "Are you still sleepy?"
Zhu Yanyin got the upper hand and acted like a good kid, saying lazily: "That's not what I meant."
Li Suixiao: "What do you mean?"
Zhu Yanyin stretched out his hand to grab his earlobe, and was about to move closer to continue kissing him, but was suddenly grabbed by Li Sui by the back of the collar and placed upright on the bench!
"Sit tight!"
Lan Xishan lifted the door curtain: "Palace Master Li."
Zhu Yanyin sat upright, looking like a pure and upright young man.
Lan Xishan was obviously surprised, but not by anything else, but by the layout of the tent. There was a silver charcoal brazier on the ground, and thick furs were hung everywhere, which was very effective in keeping out the cold and wind, forming a sharp contrast with the cold weather outside. The precious nephew was so hot that he even took off his cotton-padded jacket. His cheeks were rosy and shiny, and he was only wearing a thin jacket. There were seven or eight plates and bowls in front of him, with chicken, duck, fish and meat. He looked like he was living a happy life like a god.
Uncle: Sense of crisis!
Zhu Yanyin also has a sense of crisis. Don’t say that you suddenly change your mind and want to take me back.
Li Sui stood up and asked: "Master Lan, do you want to talk to me about something?"
"Yes." Lan Xishan glanced at Zhu Yanyin, "May I ask if it would be convenient for you to talk for a moment?"
Zhu Yanyin: "I want to go too."
Lan Xishan: "Eat your meal well!"
"… "
Li Sui and Lan Xishan went to the next tent.
Zhu Yanyin immediately dropped his chopsticks and went over to eavesdrop intently.
Lan Xishan looked at the shadow on the tent: "..."
Li Sui took the initiative and said, "Xiao Yin is living well with me, Lord Lan, don't worry."
Lan Xishan disagreed: "Although Palace Master Li can take care of his food, clothing, shelter and transportation, the Wulin Alliance is on this trip to defeat the Demon Sect. It is really inappropriate to bring along a weak scholar. He can't help much, and he is used to being spoiled and can't stand the slightest hardship. Bringing him along will only add to the burden."
Zhu Yanyin felt a tightness in his chest when he heard this. He wondered if he was really his uncle, so he coughed in protest.
As a result, Lan Xishan immediately ordered loudly: "Come here, take the second young master back to rest."
Zhu Yanyin: “…”
Seeing that the Imperial Guards were already in front of him, Zhu Yanyin simply went into the tent: "I won't leave. You promised to let me stay in Wanren Palace and even signed a contract!"
"It is so dangerous to fight against the Demon Cult. If you stay in Wanren Palace, it will not benefit Palace Master Li at all." Lan Xishan ignored the written note. After all, old-timers are good at going back on their words, so he continued, "On the contrary, if you are willing to stay in Frostskin City, then no matter what trouble Palace Master Li encounters, your uncle will be able to help him."
This has made it very clear. If Wanren Palace wants to curry favor with the Zhu family, the only option is to stand on the same side as himself. It will be useless to win over the spoiled and willful nephew, so why not hurry up and recognize the current situation and act bravely
This old fox who is like a fish in water in the officialdom is so skilled in speaking and doing things that you can't help but admire him.
But everyone knew that Palace Master Li had no interest in the Zhu Mansion, so he said, "Thank you, Lord Lan, for your kindness. However, Wanren Palace has not encountered any trouble for the time being, and I will protect Xiao Yin."
Lan Xishan raised his beard and said, "Think about it again."
Zhu Yanyin hid behind Li Sui, guarding against his uncle like a thief - mainly because he was afraid that he would send the Imperial Guards to kidnap him again. He had better be careful with what the Queen Mother was like back then!
Lan Xishan was very angry with his eldest nephew.
Zhu Yanyin took the opportunity to call the Wanren Palace disciples to send his uncle back to his residence. When he lifted the door curtain, he saw a commotion in the distance, as if something had happened again, so he went with Li Sui to see what was going on.
Zhao Mingchuan was also standing outside Wan Zhuyun's tent. When he saw the two people coming, he said, "Sanqing is back."
Zhu Yanyin wondered: "Who is Sanqing?"
"The eldest disciple of the Yan'er Clan. Earlier, Alliance Leader Wan sent the Yan'er Clan and the Sushan Clan south to Fengcheng to investigate the matter at the Shangru Villa."
Now only Sanqing has returned, and he came back in a panic, with half of his leg broken, and fainted in the cold winter snow. Fortunately, he was picked up by the Beggars' Sect disciples. After the news spread, more and more sects gathered, and the scene was completely silent. Although no one said it, everyone could vaguely guess in their hearts that something had happened again.
Jiang Shenglin woke Sanqing up with a bowl of medicine.
Zhu Yanyin stood at the very edge of the crowd and could only vaguely hear some intermittent words, but it was enough to piece together what happened - the Demon Cult sent people to launch a surprise attack on the two major sects, and the Yan'er Gang and Sushan Sect were all kidnapped on the way before they even had time to reach Fengcheng. Sanqing escaped because he hid in the bushes.
These two sects were both big gangs in the martial arts world, and their leaders were masters among masters, yet they were defeated so easily. And there was something even more serious. These two groups of masters were brought back to the Burning Fire Hall, like "fertilizer". How much higher would the skills of Chi Tian and the remaining nine guardians be
Wan Zhuyun's face was filled with gloom, and so were the others. The morale boost that had been brought by Li Sui's killing of the seven Dharma protectors some time ago was wiped out again because of this new incident.
"Who is the person sent by the Demon Cult?"
"The four sisters of the Huang family, as well as the Silver Pen Scholar and the Golden Toad, but the Golden Toad was also seriously injured in the fight and had one of his arms chopped off."
Zhu Yanyin calculated that there were at least hundreds of people in the two major sects, and the combined internal strength...
He turned his head and looked at Li Sui worriedly.
Li Sui put his arm around his shoulders and said softly, "It's okay."