New and dark light years

Chapter 356 Tang Family Visitors
Looking at the extremely smug Liu Shen, Li Lin nodded and said, "It is indeed very impressive."

"Hahahaha!" Liu Shen threw her head back and laughed triumphantly: "There's one thing I'm better at than my eldest sister."

Li Lin asked curiously, "You really want to beat your older sister that badly?"

"Not really." Liu Shen floated a little closer to Li Lin and said in a disappointed tone, "I was just thinking that when I'm capable in the future, I won't need my eldest sister to protect us so often."

"She protected you?" Li Lin asked curiously, "Didn't you two break up? You haven't seen each other for a long time."

“That’s because we’ve all forgotten a lot of things.” Liu Shen opened her eyes wide and said loudly, “But I still vaguely remember… she used to protect me and my third sister, otherwise we would have died long ago.”

Li Lin became increasingly certain that the Tree Fairy was the type who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside.

Such a woman... is very rare.

The lion dance troupe arrived at the gate, and finally a golden lion snatched away the incense ball, which meant that the temple was officially 'opening'.

A young eunuch led several people out from inside. He first solemnly bowed to the crowd, then announced in a high-pitched voice, "The auspicious time has arrived! Lanlin Zhenjun Temple, time to offer incense!"

After shouting, he stepped aside and let the worshippers in.

Those who were allowed to enter first were naturally the three county officials.

Wen Bi walked in front, with Li Lin and Jiang Jili walking side by side behind him.

The three entered the temple and walked along a white stone path. On both sides of the path, there were many exotic flowers and plants.

The path led directly to the main hall. When the three arrived at the main hall, they saw the two-zhang-tall stone statue of the Blue Scale True Lord.

The stone statue was sculpted in a very majestic manner. Li Lin looked at the stone statue, then at the willow mirage floating beside it, and after comparing the two, he felt like laughing.

But thankfully, I managed to hold back.

After all, there were quite a few people behind the three county officials.

The eunuch took out nine incense sticks, three for each of the three county officials.

This is considered the first incense offering.

The three lit the incense, bowed once, and then placed it into the incense burner.

Liu Shen flew down, ignoring the other two, and went to the three incense sticks that Li Lin had placed. She took a deep breath, then her expression narrowed, and she flew around the main hall happily.

Li Lin seemed to see her inhale a strange kind of 'smoke,' but it was so faint that he couldn't see it clearly.

The three then stepped aside, and a dozen or so gentry also came up, each taking incense and paying homage to the stone statue of Qinglin Zhenjun.

The three county officials then left the magnificent hall and arrived at the entrance.

By this time, a large number of people had gathered here, most of whom were preparing to set off for Tianjin or had come from other places by detour.

It is estimated that there are already two or three thousand people waiting to go in and worship.

Looking at the crowd, Wen Bi said with some envy, "The county magistrate has really made a great contribution this time."

“You, the county magistrate, also have a share,” Jiang Jili said with a smile.

Wen Bi chuckled softly and nodded.

Then Jiang Jili looked at Li Lin and said, "It's thanks to the county magistrate that he was willing to give me this opportunity."

Li Lin waved his hand: "I'm preparing to pursue a military career, so the achievements I made as a civil official are useless to me. You can make it up to me later if you have the chance."

“That’s only right,” Jiang Jili nodded.

An alliance is simply a matter of mutual exchange and complementarity of political resources.

Having received Jiang Jili's promise, Li Lin mounted his horse and said, "I have something to attend to first, so I'll take my leave."

The two men bowed.

Then the two watched as Li Lin galloped along the official road on horseback.

Wen Bi said, "The county magistrate is skilled in both literature and martial arts. The way he rides on horseback has the demeanor of a great general, which I can't imitate."

“You are a scholar, magistrate, so it’s normal that you can’t compare to him in this respect.”

Wen Bi said, "But when he calms down, he is even more scholarly than you and I."

Jiang Jili was speechless for a moment, and could only sigh deeply.

He also considers himself a promising young talent, but comparisons are odious.

Li Lin arrived at Lushan'ao to check on the condition of the Lingtian culture medium.

As soon as she arrived, Li Yanjing pounced on her.

"My husband, I miss you and Sister Qing and Sister Luan so much. When can I go back?"

"You've worked hard." Li Lin stroked her smooth face. "Once the rice paddies are almost finished, I'll let you go back."

In reality, Li Yanjing was just talking. The body she possessed was, after all, from a brothel, and vying for favor and credit was an instinct for it.

Although she had no ill intentions, she would try to impress Li Lin whenever she had the chance.

After calming Li Yanjing down, Li Lin went to the culture medium area.

By this time, the rice stalks on the thirteen culture media had grown quite tall, almost reaching his waist.

Li Lin didn't know much about farming, but he knew that under normal circumstances, even rice from the south wouldn't grow this fast.

To the naked eye, all thirteen culture media appear to be in similar condition, but upon closer inspection of the rice leaves, it becomes apparent that the rice leaves in three different culture media appear to be slightly different.

It's greener, and... there seems to be more 'energy' inside the leaves.

It's a feeling that can't be described in words, but when you see it, you understand that it has more vitality than other rice plants.

That's roughly the idea.

Li Lin nodded with satisfaction. The conditions of these three culture media were similar, and they seemed to have transcended the category of 'ordinary' rice.

Then he took Li Yanjing to rest, as a way of 'making up' for her.

As evening approached, Li Lin rode his horse to the government army camp outside Tianjin.

At the same time, four military commanders were recruited.

He routinely inquired about the internal affairs of the garrison, such as accounting issues and training problems. Finally, he kept Ji Bo behind alone.

The young military commander stood calmly in front of Li Lin, waiting for Li Lin to speak.

“I remember you came from the Tang family’s border army.”

"Yes!" Ji Bo replied respectfully.

What do you think of General Tang Qi as a person?

"He is an excellent superior."

Li Lin asked with a smile, "So... who arranged for you to be in this position?"

"The Mu family."

Li Lin raised an eyebrow slightly.

He was a little surprised.

Generally speaking, the Mu family were related to the emperor through marriage, and should not have been allowed to associate with hereditary military officials, as it would easily arouse the emperor's 'reluctance'.

So, if arranging for someone to come over isn't done on a friendly basis, then it's considered 'poaching'.

Of course, this is just Li Lin's own speculation. Although the possibility is very small, the Mu family may actually have some connection with the Tang family army.

After all... people's hearts are unpredictable.

However, upon hearing that it was arranged by the Mu family, Li Lin was temporarily relieved.

He asked, "When you were with the Tang family's border troops, did you ever see the white elephant?"

"Of course I've seen it. It's so big, it's hard not to see it."

Li Lin asked with great curiosity, "I heard that many members of the Tang family army ate white elephant meat, so it must be quite miraculous."

"The white elephant divine flesh has the most mediocre effect. The ones that can really have special effects are the brain, heart, and... yang whip."

Li Lin instinctively tilted his head back: "What special effects will eating these things have?"

"They will all gain some inexplicable supernatural powers."

Hearing this, Li Lin's expression turned serious: "How big is a human brain? How big is an elephant's heart? How much do you need to eat to see results?"

"All three are about the size of a county town gate, and you should see results after eating about a pound of them."

Li Lin's expression immediately furrowed: "So, in other words, many people in the Tang family army already know special supernatural abilities?"

“If not a thousand, there must be at least two or three hundred.” Ji Bo said with some envy, “I have a friend who was transferred away after eating it. All I know is that he was originally just a simple martial artist, but later he was able to ignite fire in both hands and strike with sword energy, which was extremely lethal.”

Hearing this, Li Lin sighed.

He also understood why the Tang family army was so eager to extend its reach into Jin County.

Because it has expanded.

There are hundreds of experts with special supernatural powers and techniques, and that number may still be growing.

Having soldiers and provisions at their disposal, they wouldn't be thinking of rebelling; otherwise, they'd be mentally unstable.

Then Li Lin looked at Ji Bo and said, "Do your job well. You're still young. You might be able to sit in my position in the future."

Ji Bo immediately lowered his head and said, "This humble general dares not presume to hope for such a thing."

Li Lin waved his hand and said, "You can go down now, and please invite Mu Tianen over for me."

Ji Bo bowed and left.

Not long after, Mu Tianen entered the tent.

He looked around and, seeing no one was there, cupped his hands and smiled, saying, "This is what Brother Yi told me to call you. He said we're family, so we shouldn't speak like strangers."

This was the first time the two had met in private.

Li Lin laughed and said, "Alright, then I'll call you Xiao En too."

"Okay," Mu Tianen replied with a smile.

Li Lin continued, "I have already refined the pills, and I will have them placed in this tent tomorrow. The ones in the boxes are to be sent to the palace, and the remaining two small boxes, one is for you, and the other is for Brother Mu Yi."

Mu Tianen exclaimed joyfully, "Really?"

"I don't lie."

"There may be some body-strengthening pills inside."

"Of course."

Mu Tianen paced back and forth excitedly, muttering to himself, "I'm saved now, I'm saved."

Although the voice was very soft, Li Lin still heard it, and his expression turned strange.

Mu Tianen also noticed Li Lin's strange expression. He immediately suppressed his smile and said, "It's just that I haven't been feeling well lately. Don't overthink it, Brother Lin."

"I won't overthink it." Li Lin tried his best not to smile.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going now..." Mu Tianen said somewhat awkwardly.

Li Lin waved.

Mu Tianen slipped away in an instant.

There were no problems with the government troops for the time being, so he instructed the four military commanders to supervise the soldiers' training more closely before riding home.

I had just arrived at my front door when I saw someone standing outside.

The other person was wearing a blue long robe and had an ordinary appearance, but he stood ramrod straight, clearly a trained martial artist.

Li Lin dismounted, secretly on guard, and asked, "May I ask why you are standing at my doorstep, sir?"

The man smiled, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "My name is Tang Feng, and I have come to request an audience with County Magistrate Li."

Li Lin's expression turned serious.

(End of this chapter)