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Chapter 272 The Master is so cowardly

In late autumn, a light rain began to fall.

Golden leaves drifted into the small puddle reflecting the sky, eventually being crushed by passing wheels.

This is a horse-drawn cart used in Fengzhou to transport grain, and it is marked with the name of Wulu Trading Company.

Behind the carriage, migrant workers, who had been busy all year, wearing straw raincoats and bamboo hats, followed the carriage on their way home.

Despite the chilly weather, the cool air couldn't dampen the joy on their faces.

As they passed through checkpoints, the rumbling wheels gradually slowed down until they came to a stop.

After passing the inspection by the yamen runners dispatched by the Fengzhou government, they traveled another ten miles and encountered another inspection by the yamen runners dispatched by the Zhongzhou government.

The two inspections were very thorough; they not only searched their bodies, but even stabbed the grain carts loaded with grain several times with iron knives.

The migrant workers who came with the bus were not surprised, because they had heard that barbarians had appeared in Qingyun Tianxia a few days ago, and all the major immortal sects had sent people to capture them, but so far they had not been caught.

Therefore, not only Fengzhou, but also Youzhou and Yunzhou were placed under martial law, and all those who passed through the area had to be verified.

In fact, they had already been searched during the autumn harvest some time ago, so they were used to it by now.

"Wow, there's mutton too? Where did it come from?"

"Reporting to the officer, these are our own animals."

"Oh?"

Tie Niu bowed slightly to the officials and said, "We have several ranches in Fengzhou. I worked at one of them. This is what they gave me when I left."

Three or five officials gathered together: "Such a good thing! Who gave it to you?"

"The immortal lord who manages our ranch."

"I see. Judging from the sky, it's probably going to rain heavily soon. Let's hurry up and go."

"Thank you, sir."

Watching the convoy from Fengzhou slowly depart, the older official sat back down on his stool and picked up his teacup.

A newly arrived yamen runner, seeing this scene, was quite puzzled: "Brother Li, we haven't had meat in a long time, why don't we ask them for some bribes?"

Upon hearing this, the constable surnamed Li turned and glanced at him, saying, "Haven't you heard that it was a gift from an immortal?"

"Where is the grain on that truck? With so much grain, there must be a few bags left. The tax collection is about to start again this year, and my cousin's share is still undecided."

"That cart is loaded with taxes, every bushel is counted, how many heads do you dare to take?"

"?"

Seeing the newcomer's confusion, the old yamen runner Wang couldn't help but speak up: "Those people are all from Zhongzhou."

The young constable was somewhat surprised: "Isn't it forbidden to travel around without permission? How come people from our Central Plains have gone to Fengzhou?"

“More than a year ago, a company called Wulu hired a large number of people in our state who could not pay their taxes to work. Our county magistrate went along with it and agreed to let them enter and leave the country.”

Old Wang, holding his teacup, said, "They can work, but they need to leave their wives and children behind. Every year at this time, they also need to return to their place of origin and pay the full amount of grain as tax."

The constable opened his mouth: "There's such a thing..."

"Look, the autumn harvest in Fengzhou has just ended this year, and the Wulu Trading Company had already informed our master that the carts were loaded with taxes to be paid to the immortals, and in full and in the correct amount. Who would dare to touch them?"

After a long journey, through several days and nights, the caravan bearing the name "Wu Lu" finally entered the territory of Zhongzhou.

At this point, Tie Niu and several of his uncles and brothers from the same village were the first to leave the group.

They lived not far from the border of Zhongzhou. After waving goodbye to their companions and watching them head to a more distant town, the group returned home with their bags and belongings.

At this moment, in a courtyard in the east of the village, Tie Niu's wife was washing clothes in a wooden basin.

Upon seeing his family whom he hadn't seen for so long, this strong man felt a lump in his throat and couldn't help but burst into tears.

The wife, who was washing clothes, seemed to sense someone's presence. She turned around with a blank expression, and when she saw Tie Niu, she immediately exclaimed "Ah!" and ran over.

In that brief moment of getting up, his wife's tears had already begun to flow.

The two, who had known each other for a long time, finally embraced and their sobs grew louder.

"You heartless!"

"How have I been heartless?"

"You...you've gained weight while you're out!"

Tie Niu laughed heartily and reached out to pick up the half-slice of mutton.

His wife was surprised after seeing it: "Where did this come from?"

"A gift from the gentlemen."

"Was it difficult to work in Fengzhou? Were you ever beaten?"

Tie Niu immediately shook his head like a rattle drum: "We won't get beaten up. The people who work with us are all very nice. Those immortal masters are also very polite. There are some things you might not believe when you hear them."

Tie Niu left after the New Year last winter. They first went to work at Wu Lu Trading Company, selling grain at low prices to those who couldn't afford food after paying taxes.

Then they were taken to Fengzhou and settled in by the government.

During the period leading up to spring plowing, they were essentially kept on a leash. After spring plowing began, they helped with the planting and were then sent to the pasture.

After saying all this, Tie Niu took out a money pouch from his pocket, and the loose silver inside made his wife cover her mouth.

Seeing his wife's expression, Tie Niu smiled slightly and told her that things would definitely get better and better in the future.

The common people at the bottom of society know very little about this world. Let alone the remnants of the race, they don't even know how the evil species came about.

One reason is their low social status, and another is that they devote all their energy to simply surviving, leaving them no time or energy to learn to read.

Because they know so little, they are optimistic that things will definitely get better and there will be no more surprises.

Little did they know that even the best days could be suddenly struck by disaster, shattering everything.

Back then, the human race and the demon race secretly joined forces, chose the right moment to rise up against the remnant race, and suppressed them with sacred artifacts.

The scene was as if the sky had been smashed down.

Then an old saying has been passed down among the people: "Even if the sky falls, there's always someone tall enough to hold it up."

But in fact, the fact that tall people can reach the sky is actually little known.

As migrant workers returned home one after another, the grain carts of Wulu Trading Company were all delivered to the county government office.

The yamen runners and clerks in charge of the inventory arrived in the courtyard early, checking the list of workers compiled a year ago and calculating the share to be paid according to the number of people.

The same scene was also happening in several other states and counties, with horse-drawn carriages traveling through the streets and alleys.

At this moment, in an inn in Anyuan City, Qingzhou, Yan Shuyi was standing on the second floor, watching the carriages bearing merchant flags enter the government office.

Spring planting and autumn harvest are always considered trivial matters by cultivators.

Even Yan Shuyi, who had never paid attention before, was now looking at it with unusual seriousness.

Although she was not involved in the entire Dongping Mountain Range incident, she was well aware that people from all the major immortal sects regarded what happened to the Bu family as a predestined opportunity for immortality, and they were scrambling to get involved.

Especially those elders whose lifespans are nearing their end, they would kill their way through the world just to seize them.

The only one with no ambition was that he only thought about killing the troublemakers and leading the people to farm properly.

Just then, a Lingjian Mountain disciple in charge of the Qingzhou expedition arrived and handed over a letter: "Master, news has come back from the disciples searching the barbarian tribes and the disciples of Tianjian Peak."

Yan Shuyi took the letter and glanced at it, her eyelashes trembling slightly: "Issue my imperial decree that all members of Lingjian Mountain, except those who are outside the sect, must return to the mountain within half a month."

"But the elders of Tianjian Peak seem unwilling to return to the mountain, and the disciples in the peak are also unable to go back for the time being due to the pressure from the elders of Tianjian Peak."

"Then go and tell them that if they don't want to go back, they should never go back."

"Yes!"

The disciple from Qingzhou put away the jade token, then turned and went downstairs, but couldn't help but glance back at the direction of the guest room as he left.

Just then, footsteps echoed through the inn's connecting corridor.

Ding Yao walked over from the direction of the guest room and bowed slightly: "Master."

Yan Shuyi turned her head at the sound and glanced at her: "Awake?"

"woke up……"

"What about the unambitious disciples of the Heavenly Academy?"

"Oh, young master has also woken up."

Yan Shuyi went to the Dongping Mountains because he was afraid that the Bu family would fall into the hands of those greedy people.

So after seeing Bu Qirong's aura dissipate, she left with her people, and also "incidentally" took the unconscious Ji You with her, and went to an inn in Anyuan City to rest for a while.

According to Zhuo Wanqiu's report, Ji You had been searching for the Bu family's whereabouts in the Dongping Mountains. He had been using his divine sense intensely and had also fought a series of battles. His spirit was already exhausted, so it was inevitable that he would fall into a deep sleep.

However, what puzzled her was that not only did Ji Youlian sleep for three days, but Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu also fell into a deep sleep after reporting their findings.

This puzzled the young appraiser of Lingjian Mountain; what exactly had these three been doing in the mountains? However, upon hearing that Ji You had woken up, Yan Shuyi didn't think too much about it and turned to walk towards the stranger's room.

Tap, tap, tap, the embroidered shoes lightly trod on the wooden floor, but soon the sound turned into a clattering sound.

However, after a short while, her pace slowed down, she became more ladylike, and her expression became much more indifferent.

Pushing open the door, I saw Ji You sitting at the dining table, eating a bowl of white porridge in front of her.

Just as Ding Yao said, he was extremely exhausted. Although his spirit had recovered a lot, his strength had not recovered, and his muscles were very sore.

At this moment, Yan Shuyi stepped across the threshold, looking at the unfamiliar man in front of her with an air of superiority, and then sat down next to him.

Feeling the fragrant breeze, Ji You gently looked up: "Where am I?"

Anyuan City.

How did we end up in Anyuan City?

Yan Shuyi also picked up her chopsticks: "The three of you are sleeping like the dead, so you can't go too far. This is the closest place to the Dongping Mountains, so we can only settle you here."

Ji You's expression faltered slightly when she heard "three," but she quickly realized who the other two were.

Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu stayed up with their son-in-law the whole time so they wouldn't dream about him while they slept, and their spirits were probably exhausted to the extreme.

Ji You looked up and asked, "What happened after I fell asleep?"

"The elders of each sect are still not giving up and are still investigating matters concerning the Bu family. They have been investigating the Bu family's interpersonal relationships over the years, but so far they have not found anything too crucial."

"Still checking?"

Yan Shuyi nodded: "This matter is not so simple, because some things don't make sense."

Ji You pondered for a while: "You also think the Bu family is too small?"

"The Bu family has been in decline for a century. They are not even comparable to the Zheng family, let alone some of the minor families in Zhongzhou. Yet they have accomplished something that even the Zheng family has not been able to do. This is very strange."

Upon hearing this, Ji You couldn't help but recall Bu Qirong's dying words.

He said that only he knew about this, and that it was a divine choice, but he was not sure if it was the truth or a lie to save his life.

However, having read a large number of books in the library, he knew that the human race had never given up on studying the ruins over the past thousands of years.

But only now has someone secretly grasped a little bit of the situation, which shows that this matter is not easy.

After killing the Bu family, he cut off the direct possibility of trouble. Even if there were still clues to be found, there would be no result in the short term.

Thinking of this, Ji You couldn't help but recall another matter: "What about the barbarians? Have they been captured?"

Yan Shuyi shook his head: "All the major immortal sects are busy following the clues to the Bu family. Only the disciples of each sect are pursuing them. The barbarian tribe has a clan king with eight general kings. How can they be so easy to capture?"

"The Northern Border has a Great Immortal-Slaying Array; how did they manage to enter the Nine Provinces?"

"The soldiers guarding Luoyue Pass are dead; they committed suicide."

Ji You frowned: "Suicide out of fear of punishment?"

Yan Shuyi hummed in agreement: "The report I received is as follows: the guards of Luoyue Pass secretly colluded with the enemy and temporarily opened the city gates with the command token."

"If we don't look for clues, what other methods are there to open the great formation?"

"A sacred artifact."

People who are naturally suspicious are never easily convinced by evidence and answers given by others, so they always want to explore deeper into the subject.

If the Immortal-Slaying Formation can only be opened by sacred artifacts besides the tokens held by the Northern Garrison, then this matter is of utmost importance.

The problem is that the one who wields the sacred artifact is already the strongest in Qingyun, so why would he need to secretly collude with the barbarians?

Ji You pondered for a long time, when suddenly he heard Yan Shuyi's voice in his ear.

“My Spirit Sword Mountain and your Heavenly Book Academy have always been at odds. You may wonder why I, the Master of Appraisal, would protect you. It’s not for any other reason than my appreciation of you as a person.”

“A disaster is a disaster, and it is definitely not some kind of divine blessing. The example of Qiling has already shown this point, so you did the right thing.”

"If you were a disciple of my Spirit Sword Mountain, I would certainly reward you and make you my personal disciple, but unfortunately you are not."

"Besides, many people saw me taking you away in the mountains, and afterwards some people will inevitably say that I am too lenient in my duties. So after the meal, I will send you away."

"You don't need to worry after you return to Tianshu Academy. If anyone uses the matter in the mountains to cause you trouble, I can testify on your behalf."

Yan Shuyi, like a senior in a high position, made the arrangements in a calm tone.

This is how she imagined herself to be when facing Ji You: aloof, proud, and calm, without a trace of whining.

However, Ji You didn't buy it at all and reached out to pinch his cheek.

You even saw me off after dinner. Was that for my own good? You were just trying to hurt me.

The last time they met was before entering the sacred site of the ancients, when he threatened her, saying that life would never end.

When the time came out, this girl didn't even go to Mount Xuwu anymore. She only dared to send him letters with stick figures to threaten him. She was such a coward.

Yan Shuyi realized that she had not been able to intimidate him, and still maintained her dignified gaze: "You and I have known each other for a long time, and I have been taken care of by you several times in the winter. I will not blame you for your rudeness, but we are not suitable for each other."

"?"

"Actually, I only recently realized that my heart is set on the great path and I have long since lost interest in personal feelings."

When Ji You pinched her, her back was straight, but she suddenly felt some discomfort in her lower back.

So he reached down and found that his belt was tied very, very tightly.

Just as he touched the strap on the left side, intending to pull it open, his expression couldn't help but froze slightly.

His belt looked as if it had been untied and retied, and was now knotted tightly.

Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu had been asleep for three days, just like him, so it couldn't have been them who unlocked it.

Besides, his clothes hadn't been changed, so it made no sense to just loosen his belt and then tie it back up.

In other words, the man loosened his belt in order to remove his belt.

Ji You suddenly narrowed her eyes and looked at Yan Shuyi.

That makes sense, since the arrogant girl has been waited on since childhood, and her belt-tying skills are indeed questionable.

When we were kissing at the Pantheon before, her belt came undone a few times, and he had to tie it back for her. It's not surprising that it was tied in a tight knot...

[Heart Towards the Great Way]

[I have long since lost interest in romantic relationships]

Yan Shuyi also noticed that Ji You had discovered the strangeness of the belt, and couldn't help but turn her gaze aside, revealing the unique indifference of the appraiser who wielded the sacred artifact.

Ji You looked at him: "Master Appraiser?"

Yan Shuyi acted as if it were none of her business: "What's wrong?"

"My belt was untied by someone, as if they were carefully examining something, and then tied back into a tight knot. Has the forensic expert seen the suspect?"

"It was done by Ding Yao."

"?"

"You're really good at shifting blame," Ji You couldn't help but glance at her after hearing that.

Thinking to himself, based on the plot Ding Yao screamed out that night, if it really was her who solved it, then she wouldn't just solve it, she'd eat it.

Seeing that he didn't believe her, Yan Shuyi gathered sword energy in her palm, feeling an urge to kill him and end it all.

Ji You sensed the sword energy and subconsciously leaned back slightly, but his brows furrowed instantly, and he hissed.

Yan Shuyi turned her head: "What's wrong?"

"Some internal injuries..."

Elder Fang didn't live that long for nothing; his powerful iron blade was indeed not to be underestimated.

Although he won in the end, he also suffered a solid blow from his opponent's knife, which pierced through his waist and abdomen. In addition, he had to lie down for three days, and the pain felt like his muscles were twisting together.

Upon seeing this, Yan Shuyi's eyes became thoughtful, and a glimmer of light suddenly appeared in her usually aloof eyes.

Ji You was pressing a major acupoint on her lower back, trying to suppress the pain with spiritual energy, when she saw the slender and arrogant ghost in front of her gently raise her arm.

"?"

Yan Shuyi raised her chin slightly, looking at him with a cold and arrogant gaze, as if she wanted to hug him.

Seeing this, Ji You's lips twitched. She thought to herself, "This arrogant guy really knows how to change his tune. He knows I have an injury in my waist and abdomen, so he thinks he's all that now, huh?"

However, facing Yan Shuyi's condescending gaze, Ji You still stretched out both hands, and a fragrant breeze instantly wafted over her.

He lowered his head, and the little appraiser in his arms still had that aloof expression, as if he were just a chair.

Even Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu knew that although their cold and dignified appraiser had a tough tongue, she actually loved being held by her son-in-law.

But because of her fear of sex, she never dared to express those feelings after they met again.

(End of this chapter)