The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 494 Eating
The "horse-faced man" was rolling on the ground howling in pain, clearly badly injured by Li Miao, an outsider. Gao Lei, however, didn't care at all, and even had a look of pleasure on his face.

Although they were from the same school, the discord between them was already out in the open, and they were too lazy to even bother with pretense.

Gao Lei stepped over him as if he were stepping over a dead dog, then turned to Li Miao with a smile, gestured, and led the three of them forward.

A short while later, they arrived at Gao Lei's residence.

It's a farmhouse courtyard; it doesn't look luxurious, but it's certainly quiet.

Zhao Ying took the child and went to a side room to breastfeed.

Li Miao and Wu Mingxiao sat down at the stone table in the courtyard.

Gao Lei said he was going to arrange the food and drinks, and then he turned around and left.

The courtyard fell silent immediately.

Li Miao leaned against the table, propping his face up as if he were dozing off.

Wu Mingxiao looked around aimlessly. He was a silly boy who had never seen anything before, and everything seemed new and exciting to him.

After watching for a while, he couldn't hold back any longer and whispered to them.

"Brother Li, what kind of martial art did you use to strike that horse-faced guy just now?"

Li Miao smiled with his eyes closed.

"The Mysterious Heaven Finger is highly praised by all who have used it."

"Want to learn? I'll teach you!"

Wu Mingxiao's face turned pale.

"That 'Mysterious Heaven Finger'?"

Li Miao smiled.

"Which other sect could have the Mysterious Heaven Finger technique? The Ming Cult, of course—"

"Hey hey hey hey—" Wu Mingxiao quickly waved his hand to interrupt.

"Forget it, Brother Li! I'm not learning anymore!"

"Keep your voice down!"

Wu Mingxiao looked around, afraid that someone might have overheard what Li Miao had just said.

In the present-day Great Shuo, the term "Ming Cult" has become a complete taboo. This is not only because of the assassination attempt by the Yang family, but also because the Manichaeism of the Western Regions, under the guidance of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, entered the Central Plains and carried out a large-scale crackdown on the remnants of the Ming Cult. Naturally, this resulted in bloodshed and even the extermination of entire families. Now, no one dares to utter the words "Ming Cult" anymore.

Someone like Li Miao, who possesses the direct lineage of Ming Cult martial arts and openly proclaims it, would inevitably cause trouble if someone with ulterior motives overheard him.

Not to mention, these men also have cases against them in Fukang County!
Wu Mingxiao nervously looked around.

What are you afraid of?

As his gaze swept to the doorway, he indeed spotted a pair of eyes looking inside!

"who!"

Wu Mingxiao stood up, sword in hand.

"That's a question I should be asking you!"

A righteous-looking man with tears in his eyes followed Wu Mingxiao's words and peeked into the courtyard. He walked in like a crab, his legs wide apart, the scabbard at his waist tapping against his thigh with each movement.

It was a horse-faced man named Wu Zhi.

Although he put on a dignified appearance, it was clear that Li Miao's finger strike was not easy to bear, and his earlier statement that it would "swell three to five times" was not an exaggeration. His figure was revealed as he walked.

"It's you again, you bird—pfft!"

Wu Mingxiao was about to curse, but seeing Wu Zhi's comical appearance, he burst out laughing halfway through his sentence.

Wu Zhi's face immediately turned as red as blood.

Using the scabbard to slightly shield his face, he endured the pain, straightened up, and pointed at Wu Mingxiao, about to rebuke him angrily.

“This is the property of my Dayan Hall. Gao Lei is just a bandit who came here with some skills. His word doesn’t count here! Nor can he say who can come in!”

"Now all of you get out!"

As he spoke, he took several steps forward and reached out to grab Wu Mingxiao's arm from a distance, as if he wanted to pull him away.

Wu Mingxiao snorted coldly.

With Wu Zhi's martial arts skills, he really is no match for him!
Without even drawing his sword, he tried to slap away Wu Zhi's outstretched hand. But before he could even touch him, the menacing Wu Zhi suddenly let out a scream.

"Ow!"

He clutched his groin and collapsed to his knees with a thud. Behind him, Gao Lei, who had returned, curled his lip in disdain, put away his cudgel, placed two jars of wine and a food box on the table, grabbed Wu Zhi's belt, and walked out.

He returned a moment later and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Li Miao.

"I apologize for the embarrassing situation, Brother Li."

Then they opened the food box, took out the food and wine, and placed them on the table.

Li Miao opened his eyes, raised an eyebrow, and smiled knowingly.

"How did our fellow disciples end up like this?"

As he spoke, he reached for his wine glass and raised it.

Gao Lei took the wine jar and poured him some wine, then sighed.

"The reason is actually what my junior brother just mentioned."

"It's nothing more than the eight words 'having skills but still seeking a master, which is fundamentally wrong.' No matter how hard you try, you will never gain the trust of your master and will inevitably be ostracized."

"In addition... well, I really can't change my bandit nature. A few days ago, I couldn't help but have a fight with my junior brother, and as a result, we were both banished here, supposedly to be punished together."

Gao Lei put the wine jar away, poured himself a glass, and looked down at his own reflection swaying in the glass.

"But, to put it bluntly..."

"The talk of being punished together is just for show. I reckon my junior brother will be able to return to his sect in less than a month. As for me, I might have to stay here for the rest of my life."

"Heh, never mind, never mind."

Gao Lei slammed the wine jar on the table and raised his glass.

"Today I met Brother Li and Brother Wu, and it felt like we were old friends at first sight. Let's drink this cup to the brim!"

After that, drink it all in one gulp.

Wu Mingxiao followed suit and downed a glass, but Li Miao merely raised his glass, took a sip, and put it down, looking at the hearty and enthusiastic Gao Lei with amusement, thinking to himself.

"Isn't it about time to ask?"

Sure enough, just as he was thinking this, Gao Lei asked with a smile.

"Speaking of which, Brother Wu, what brings you to this remote and impoverished place? If you're just passing through, this place is in the middle of nowhere, and it doesn't seem like you're heading to any major city nearby."

Wu Mingxiao opened his mouth to answer.

A cold female voice came from behind him.

"I'm just lost, what's it to you?"

Zhao Ying walked over and sat down, taking a pair of chopsticks for herself.

Gao Lei's face stiffened after being retorted, but he immediately burst into laughter again.

"Haha, Miss Zhao is indeed straightforward. I like Miss Zhao's personality; she speaks so frankly!"

Zhao Ying didn't even look at him, only letting out a low, cold laugh.

"Ah."

He picked up his food and ate, ignoring everyone else.

Gao Lei, feeling rebuffed, thought Zhao Ying's personality was strange, so he stopped talking to her and turned to chat with Li Miao and Wu Mingxiao, holding his wine glass.

However, in his conversations, he was always intentionally or unintentionally probing the three people's origins and whereabouts.

Li Miao easily brushed it off with a few words, but Wu Mingxiao got more and more drunk and almost blurted out the truth several times, only to be interrupted by Zhao Ying next to him.

Gao Lei was repeatedly confronted by Zhao Ying and ignored by Li Miao, and he could no longer maintain his composure. In the end, he only cared about eating, and after finishing his meal, he stood up and bowed.

"Since there are women here, I'll lend this courtyard to the three of you. I'll go and rest somewhere else."

"If you need anything, just look for me in the east courtyard. I won't bother you any longer, farewell."

After that, he turned around and left.

Feeling embarrassed, Wu Mingxiao was about to get up and chase after him to talk when a hand pressed him back down from the stool.

Zhao Ying said coldly.

"Hold your breath and concentrate, circulating your energy throughout the body."

"If you say another word, this man will sell you out!"

(End of this chapter)