Sui and Tang Dynasty Generals

Chapter 64 Father-in-law Li Liyan's Shock

New Year's Eve.

Xin County was bustling with activity, with the streets crowded with pedestrians, common people, men, women, young and old, all visiting the street vendors' stalls.

The most lively place is the Nuo Temple several miles outside the city!
Thousands of people from Xin County, regardless of gender, age or status, all watched more than a hundred strong men practicing the Nuo dance.

The origin of Nuo dance can be traced back to the primitive hunting period, which was related to totem worship and witchcraft. During the Zhou Dynasty, Nuo dance was incorporated into the ritual system.

According to the records in the pre-Qin period documents, the Nuo ritual was intended to regulate the yin and yang of the four seasons so as to ensure a harmonious balance of cold and heat, favorable weather, good harvests, safety for people and animals, and prosperity for the country and the people.

During the Han Dynasty, the Nuo ceremony in the Han court was particularly grand and has been passed down to this day.

On the night of every New Year’s Eve, Nuo dance activities would be held in the city. At that time, not only the people in the city, but also the villagers from the surrounding villages would come to the city to pray for peace in the coming year.

Li's house.

Unlike the bustling city not far from the mansion, no matter how busy the servants of the Li Mansion were, the atmosphere inside the Li Mansion seemed a little depressing.

The first is that Old Li still has not returned to Xin County this year, and the second is that there is still no news about Fu Zihou. Seeing Old Madam Li's worried look, other people in the mansion are naturally affected.

Li Shaozhi, Li Liyan, as well as Li Chengzhi, Li Chenggao and Li Lingchuan all returned home.

Chengzhi and Chenggao are the sons of Li Chongli, the eldest son of the royal family, and Lingchuan is the elder brother of Li Qiong.

In recent years, except for Li Chengzhi in Pingyao County.

Li Chenggao and Li Lingchuan both served as officials in Wuyang County with their fourth and fifth uncles.

"The Fu family must be very worried, remember to go over and sit for a while!"

Seeing that the servants had prepared everything, Old Lady Li instructed Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan to let their two sons visit the Fu family and talk to Fu's Erlang.

"Mother, don't worry!"

Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan were both under 40, especially Li Liyan, who was only 33 years old. After hearing their mother's instructions, they both nodded seriously, and then, led by Li Anren and Li Anjing, walked out of the mansion.

"Cai'er still doesn't want to go out?"

Old Lady Li watched Silang and Wulang leave, then turned to look at her eldest grandson Nonggui.

"That child was very stubborn this time. She held the sword and refused to listen to anyone. When my beloved passed by just now, she didn't even open the door for her father!"

Changsun Nonggui shook his head.

Over the years, Li Cha has longed for family affection more than anyone else, and she is even more obedient to her father Li Liyan. This is the first time that she has refused to see her father even when he wanted to speak.

"Zihou must not get into trouble!"

Changsun Nonggui sighed and looked up at the sky above the yard.

Fu family residence.

Led by his two sons, An Jing and An Ren, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan met everyone from the Fuji family.

"Since you're here, why bring so many things?"

The old man looked at the servants of the Li Mansion behind Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan, who brought more than ten kinds of things, big and small, including a lot of wine and meat, and said in a somewhat reproachful manner.

"Shaozhi! Meet Uncle Fu!"

"Li Yan! Meet Uncle Fu!"

When they saw Mr. Fu, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan raised their hands and bowed respectfully.

Not to mention Li Shaozhi's experience in the Fu family when he was young, even Li Liyan's name has some connection with Mr. Fu.

"Don't be polite, come in!"

The weather was too cold and Grandpa had difficulty walking, so he waved his hand and told Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan to feel free and come in and sit down.

At this time, Fu Rui also bowed to the two of them. Fu Rui was older than both of them, so Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan addressed him as brother.

Although Tao was worried about her son and looked haggard these days, she tried to cheer up when she saw the guests.

Zhang and Tai both wanted Tao to have a rest, but seeing that Tao insisted on working and occasionally raised her hands to wipe away tears, they had no choice but to let Tao work with them.

"Uncle, this is the herb Shaozhi brought back from Wuyang County. I heard it can cure cold legs. Uncle, please give it a try. If it doesn't work, Shaozhi can find it for you later!"

Li Shaozhi sat down beside the stove and looked at Fu Lao with concern.

It is true that Li Shaozhi was narrow-minded in the past, because when others offended him, he didn't want to suffer any loss or be bullied, so he liked to retaliate. But for those who have done him a favor, Li Shaozhi will remember it more than anyone else.

This time, when he heard that there was no news about Fu Lao's grandson, Li Shaozhi in Wuyang County mobilized almost all his connections, asked around, and also greeted the city guard officials in every place. If he saw a young man named Fu Zihou, he would be sure to inform him.

It can be said that regardless of whether Fu Zihou had ever been to Wuyang County or not, the three names of Fu Zihou had already spread among the soldiers and generals guarding the city gate of Wuyang County.

"Okay! If you're willing, I'll give this medicine a try!"

Aong looked at Li Shaozhi and nodded, then secretly glanced at Tao who was busy not far away, and then looked at Li Shaozhi.

"Nephew, is there any news about Zihou?"

Aweng asked in a low voice.

Hearing this, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan looked at each other and shook their heads at Fu Lao.

"No news yet!"

Li Shaozhi said, looking at Fu Lao's worried face, Li Shaozhi hurriedly continued: "Uncle, don't worry, nephew has already inquired about it, and there seems to be no news about the thief Zhang Jincheng!"

"If Zihou is in trouble, Zhang Jincheng must have returned to the county and gathered his former rebels. But according to Li Yan and my brother's inquiries, there has been no news of Zhang Jincheng in recent times. Even Zhang Jincheng's former followers can't find him!"

At this time, Li Liyan also spoke to Fu Lao, Liu Lao, Fu Rui and Fu Zhi.

Hearing what Li Liyan said.

Aweng, Fu Rui and Fu Zhi all breathed a sigh of relief. This might be the only good news at the moment.

"I don't know where Zihou is. If I hadn't chased the thieves that day, it would have been great. Now there would be nothing to worry about!"

Grandfather sighed, looked at his two nephews helplessly, and complained.

When Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan heard what Fu Lao said, they didn't know what to say. After all, they couldn't imagine that in the past, under such circumstances, they could lead troops to rescue Qinghe County when everyone had given up on Qinghe County, and finally defeated the rebel army.

Perhaps it was precisely because Fu Zihou was different from most people that he was able to do all that.

Therefore, fearing that the rebels would make a comeback, Fu Zihou led his men to pursue the rebel leader Zhang Jincheng without hesitation.

Inside the Fu family's residence.

Although Fu Lao and Fu Rui had been talking with Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan, the atmosphere was even more depressing than that in the Li Mansion.

Li Anjing and Li Anren, young and playful people, naturally could not sit still for a long time, especially when they vaguely heard the sound of drums coming from the street, as if the Nuo dance in the daytime had already begun.

So the two of them looked at their father and uncle chatting with Fu Aong. They looked at each other, slowly stood up and walked out of the house together.

Hearing Aunt Fu's instructions to eat millet cakes later, Li Anjing and Li Anren turned around and responded, then hurried to the gate. As they were about to open the gate, they saw a young man dismounting from his horse.

See that boy.

Li Anjing and Li Anren's eyes widened instantly: "Sixth brother-in-law!!!"

After confirming that he was not mistaken, Li Anren quickly turned around and shouted into the house: "Father, Sixth Brother-in-law is back!"

inside the house.

Hearing Li Anren's shout, Aweng, Old Liu, Fu Rui, Li Shaozhi, Li Liyan and others all walked out of the house. Zhang and Tao were even more hurried, not caring about anything else, and ran to the front yard.

The moment she saw Fu Zihou enter the house, Tao burst into tears and hurried to her son.

"Mother!" Fu Zihou felt a little guilty when he saw his mother crying.

"Zihou, are you okay? Zihou! Let me take a look!!"

Tao's hands were shaking as she looked at her son in panic. When she pulled away Fu Zihou's clothes on his chest, she saw that there was cloth wrapped around it. Her eyes were instantly filled with heartache.

"Mother, it's okay!"

Fu Zihou comforted softly.

"You little brat, don't mess around next time, or I'll break your legs!"

Zhang was also standing by, she cursed Fu Zihou, then she laughed and raised her hand to wipe away the tears from her eyes.

Fu Zihou nodded, and then saw that his father and others had already arrived at the front yard.

“Zi Hou!!”

The old man had cold legs and walked quickly with a limp. Fu Zhi and Tai Shi were too late to support him.

Seeing this, Fu Zihou hurried forward and asked Aung to slow down. When he saw the two men beside his father, he was a little confused, but thinking of what Li Anren had just said, he probably had a hunch about who these two men were.

"Zihou, come and greet your uncle Shaozhi and your father-in-law!"

Fu Rui was extremely excited to see that his son was safe and sound. He had a lot to say, but for the moment he held back and let his son say hello first.

"Zihou! Greetings to Uncle Shaozhi, greetings to father-in-law!"

Fu Zihou quickly raised his hand and saluted Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan.

"No need to be polite!"

Li Shaozhi did not speak this time, but Li Liyan spoke instead.

It was also the first time that Li Liyan met Fu Zihou. He couldn't help but look at Fu Zihou and then nodded with satisfaction.

"Zihou, where have you been these days? Why is there no news at all?"

Seeing Fu Zihou and Old Liu saluting, Grandpa couldn't help but frowning, and asked with a worried and reproachful tone.

"Zihou had captured Zhang Jincheng, but he was rescued by the thieves on his way back, so he chased him all the way, but he disappeared when he reached Ji County. Thinking that Zhang Jincheng was injured, Zihou didn't want to give up, so he searched for several days, but couldn't find him!"

Fu Zihou explained, looking at A-weng, Mr. Liu, and his father with some guilt.

"I'm sorry to have made Grandpa, Mr. Liu, and my father worried!"

Fu Zihou raised his hand and said.

"You! Don't be so reckless next time! Not only are we worried, but your grandmother Li has people asking for your news day and night, and there's also Cai'er, who holds your sword in her room all day! Your uncle Shaozhi and your father-in-law are also asking people to look for you everywhere in Wuyang County! You! Remember not to be reckless in the future!"

The old man warned, and when he thought of Fu Zihou's injury, his old face was full of distress. As soon as he finished speaking, he urged Tao to take Fu Zihou back to the house to check his injury.

"Grandfather, Grandma, Zihou's injury is fine. Zihou wants to go to the Li residence with Uncle Shaozhi and father-in-law first, so that Grandma Li won't worry!"

Fu Zihou said softly, looking at his grandfather, father, and mother.

When Grandmother heard what Fu Zihou said, he thought about it and nodded. Mrs. Tao was worried about her son and wanted him to go later, but when she heard her husband asking her son to go and see Li Cha first, she thought of Li Cha and couldn't help but nodded.

Seeing this, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan thought of their mother and Li Cha, and raised their hands to salute Aong and Fu Rui.

The Fu family lives outside.

Li Liyan was walking in the alley and saw that his brother Li Shaozhi loved Fu Zihou very much. While talking, he patted Fu Zihou's shoulder from time to time and couldn't help laughing and shaking his head.

Unlike himself who liked literature, his elder brother Li Shaozhi liked martial arts and combativeness since childhood.

Unfortunately, his elder brother's two sons, An Jing and An Ren, had average talent in martial arts, which made his elder brother like Fu Zihou very much when he saw him.

"Uncle, father-in-law, please wait a moment!"

Fu Zihou felt his uncle's love and the dull pain in his wound, and looked helpless. Fortunately, he came to the carriage, so he stopped.

"You two go back first!"

Fu Zihou said to Xia Jia and Cao Yong who were guarding the carriage.

"Yes!"

"Yes!!"

After hearing Fu Zihou's words, Cao Yong and Xia Jia quickly raised their hands, looked at Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan, and then turned and left.

"Quiet, Anren, watch outside and don't let anyone else get close!"

After Fu Zihou watched Cao Yong and the other man leave, he gave instructions to An Jing and An Ren.

Under the puzzled gazes of Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan, Fu Zihou saw An Jing and An Ren nod, then raised his hand to signal them to get on the carriage.

"Zihou, what is this?"

Li Liyan looked at the carriage beside the alley, wondering what Fu Zihou was going to do.

"I want to ask my uncle and father-in-law to look at someone!"

Fu Zihou said, looking at the two of them, motioning them to go up and find out, and then he was the first to step onto the carriage.

Seeing this, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan did not understand what Fu Zihou meant, but they could not refuse, so they came into the carriage one after another.

Inside the carriage.

The puzzled Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan saw Fu Zihou opening a wooden box. Thinking of Fu Zihou's request for them to see someone, they immediately frowned.

Why hide a person in a wooden box? What's so shameful about it?

Did Fu Zihou commit a crime, or is this person an unusual person?

Could it be Zhang Jincheng?
As one guess after another flashed through their minds, Li Shaozhi and Li Liyan stepped forward and looked at the person in the wooden box.

However, after just one look, Li Liyan's face changed instantly, and Li Shaozhi's expression was shocked, his eyes turned red visibly, and he walked forward with gritted teeth and grabbed his sleeve with one hand.

"Thank you~Yan!"

Li Shaozhi's face was extremely ferocious, and he almost roared out the name.

Looking at Xie Yan who was tied up and gagged, Li Shaozhi punched him in the face. Xie Yan screamed in pain and blood kept flowing from his nose.

"Uncle, let him kneel and kowtow in front of Uncle Shu Yun's spirit tablet!"

Fu Zihou asked Li Shaozhi to calm down, as killing him now would be too easy.

"it is good!"

Li Shaozhi was gasping for breath. Looking at the dizzy Xie Yan, Li Shaozhi didn't want to let this enemy who killed his brother get away with it so easily.

Li Liyan's expression wasn't much better, but at this moment, looking at his son-in-law beside him, Li Liyan was more filled with questions.

Why was Xie Yan tied in the box? Xie Yan was a member of the Xie family. Li Liyan and everyone in the Li family knew how protective the Xie family was.

"It was given by Xie! But this matter must not be spread out!"

Seeing his father-in-law's puzzled look, Fu Zihou explained softly and then looked at Xie Yan.

"What? Xie gave it to me!"

After hearing Fu Zihou's words, not only was Li Liyan shocked, but even Li Shaozhi looked at Fu Zihou with an incredible look.

(End of this chapter)