Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 330 A Visit (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Huo Xingyuan was humiliated in public once again, and left in a huff with a livid face.

Huo Qi and Huo Zhang followed behind. As they passed Lu Xingzhou, Huo Zhang secretly gave him a thumbs up.

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly.

After everyone had left, Lu Xingzhou whispered to Pei Chuyun, "What you just did..."

Pei Chuyun glanced around furtively. Everyone else had left, but Sheng Qingfeng and Su Yuan were still there, along with some members of the Demon Suppression Division. She immediately put on a serious face and said, "I was just kidding."

Where did that courage to risk your reputation go?

"He lacked courage, was captivated by male beauty, and acted impulsively."

Lu Xingzhou chuckled and reached out to brush a stray strand of hair from her forehead.

Glancing at Sheng Qingfeng's ashen face, she moved her hand, but ultimately didn't reach out.

Pei Chuyun glanced at him with disdain: "Cowardly scoundrel."

This was intolerable! Lu Xingzhou grabbed her and kissed her.

Pei Chuyun's eyes widened, Sheng Qingfeng's eyes were like copper bells, Su Yuan's mind went blank, and the fierce generals of the Demon Suppression Division around them looked as if they had lost their parents.

It's impossible to fully describe everyone's feelings.

Lu Xingzhou didn't want to think too much about it. He knew how difficult it was for the little demoness to make her statement just now, and he couldn't contain his emotions.

Of course, the kiss wasn't anything too outrageous; it was just a brief touch before they parted. Pei Chuyun snapped out of her daze, vigorously wiping her mouth, and reached out to slap him: "You lecher!"

Lu Xingzhou let her hit him, chuckling, "It was worth it."

Sheng Qingfeng's voice, squeezed out between clenched teeth, reached the scene perfectly: "How long are you going to flirt in my Demon Suppression Division's courtroom?"

Pei Chuyun pointed at Lu Xingzhou: "The Demon Suppression Division, right? I'm going to sue this lecherous scoundrel for indecent assault!"

Sheng Qingfeng gritted his teeth, his face expressionless: "Fine, please let the victim go back first. We'll talk after we've finished the interrogation."

"Huh?" Pei Chuyun was dumbfounded: "How come Huo Xingyuan is allowed to bring his son to sit in on the class?"

"Because he was not the person who was sexually assaulted."

Pei Chuyun: "..."

Lu Xingzhou finally laughed out loud: "Alright, tell me about Huo Lu's autopsy results?"

Sheng Qingfeng glanced at him sideways, "You, a suspect, come here to ask the head of the Demon Suppression Division about the autopsy report..."

If you don't kiss other women in front of me, I might be okay with it, but now get as far away from me as possible.

Sheng Qingfeng finally said coldly, "If it's not suitable, then forget it and get lost."

Su Yuan said at the opportune moment, "I would also like to hear it."

"..." Sheng Qingfeng turned his face away from Lu Xingzhou and said expressionlessly, "For a common knife wound, just slit the throat. Huo Lu was staying at the Huo family villa, a place dedicated to recuperation, with quite a few guards, including a third-rank expert. At the time of the incident, even the third-rank expert did not react... Although they were not guarding him closely, but at some distance, it was not too difficult, but it can at least prove that the infiltrator was a person skilled in stealth and assassination, thus pointing more to someone who came from the Yama Palace."

Su Yuan glanced at Lu Xingzhou and asked on his behalf, "Why didn't you ask that in court?"

"I'm here to clear this bastard's name, not to solidify the suspicion against him!"

"Actually, it's nothing," Lu Xingzhou said. "Anyone who knows a little bit knows that I didn't learn any stealth or assassination techniques in the Underworld because I was a cripple back then."

"Once it's announced, are you going to explain to everyone what they think, one by one? Or is the Demon Suppression Bureau going to issue the announcement for you? Nonsense!" Sheng Qingfeng said with exasperation, "Pay close attention to official matters, learn properly, don't always think you're smart and know everything. There are always things you haven't considered!"

Lu Xingzhou bowed and said, "Yes, thank you, Head Master."

For some reason, Sheng Qingfeng really wanted to hear him utter the word "Yue" right now, but unfortunately he didn't.

So no matter how he looked at him, he was repulsive. The smiling "first talented woman" next to him was even more hideous. So he simply stopped entertaining the Imperial Advisor, snorted coldly, and turned away: "You know what you need to know. I also know that you didn't kill the person, but you have to help me solve this case, otherwise I won't care about you here or there, I'll just arrest you!"

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

Pei Chuyun watched Lao Sheng leave with a smile, then tiptoed and whispered in Lu Xingzhou's ear, "Aren't you afraid that by provoking Lao Sheng like this, he'll never be willing to marry his daughter to you again?"

Lu Xingzhou, with his hands clasped in his pockets, said, "He was never going to agree anyway... It makes no difference. In the end, it's up to Gua Mei herself. What I want isn't Lao Sheng."

"Fine!" Pei Chuyun's expression suddenly changed, and she reached out to pinch a tuft of flesh on his arm and twisted it violently: "You still say you and Sheng Yuanyao are just brothers!"

"I..." Lu Xingzhou's expression twitched as he pleaded with Su Yuan, "Imperial Preceptor, save me."

Su pretended not to see it.

If I report this to the Holy Lord, I'm afraid what you'll get pinched won't just be this piece of flesh, yet you still dare to ask me to save you.

That said, this guy is really brave...

In the end, it was Ah Nuo who bravely stepped forward and pried Pei Chuyun's fingers off, rescuing her master.

Pei Chuyun grabbed Anuo under her arm and said fiercely, "Last night he clearly went out to drink with Huo Zhang. If it weren't for running into some nasty guests, who knows when he would be back. How dare you make me wait!"

Suddenly, I felt myself being lifted into the air, and Ah Nuo picked me up and ran out the door in a flash: "Master, I'll help you control this crazy woman, you have something to say quickly."

Su Yuan, sleeves tucked in, looked at Lu Xingzhou with a puzzled expression. He had a feeling that with this Miss Pei's fighting prowess, even the Holy Lord would be beaten.

Lu Xingzhou said, "Well... Elder Su is making a fool of himself."

Su Yuan coughed twice: "What do you think of this case?"

"It's either Huo Qi or Huo Zhang, in short, they're not outsiders."

Su Yuan gasped, "The Huo family scions are truly..."

“I’ve known since I was a child that I was never a good person.” Lu Xingzhou smiled. “With Elder Su’s help, now that I’ve been cleared of suspicion, I have the initiative in my hands.”

"Are you really going to the Huo family for the gathering?"

"go."

"Aren't you afraid that Huo Xingyuan will directly turn against you?"

"They wouldn't have dared to openly harm me before... At most, they'd say they'd kill me in a dark alley and no one would know who did it. But back then, they were willing to risk everything and kill me, but now they can't afford the consequences..."

Of course, in the past, if you died, you were dead. At most, the Imperial Advisor or the Pei family, your political enemies, would besiege the Huo family. They would be in a sorry state, but it might not really be a big deal. If they were determined, they might actually dare to kill you.

Now, if you were to die, even if it were just an assassination attempt and no one knew who did it, the Holy Lord would probably march directly to the capital and wipe out the entire Huo family. Now, let alone the Huo family, even the Emperor wouldn't dare touch you. The person who most wants you to be the real culprit is the Emperor himself, so he can punish you on legal grounds…

Upon thinking of this, Su Yuan suddenly felt a thought. Lu Xingzhou seemed to have also thought of this question and looked at him as well.

Could Huo Lu's affair be related to the emperor...?

It's unlikely. Although Gu Zhanting has done a lot of things behind the scenes, he's not that low-level. This kind of scheme is more like something those idiots in the Huo family would do. It's possible they're just guessing the emperor's intentions and think he'd be pleased.

As a result, Sheng Qingfeng appeared to be pressing for answers, but in reality, he was biased. Su Yuan also stepped in to support him, causing Lu Xingzhou's matter to pass by without even a ripple.

"Now the Huo family probably really wants me to go back. The seemingly talented six brothers, two are dead, one is in jail, and the remaining three are fighting amongst themselves, ha." Lu Xingzhou leisurely walked away: "Then let me add fuel to the fire."

Su Yuan called out from behind, "Don't forget that your main objective is still the matter of the demon race's troops stationed in the northern border."

Lu Xingzhou waved his hand: "I remember. The Huo family is already closely related to this matter, so it's a win-win situation for both public and private interests."

…………

Huo family.

White banners were everywhere in the house. Huo Lu's body had been examined and returned to the ancestral hall, where his body lay in state.

Grand Tutor Huo Liancheng, who had been inactive for a long time, had come out to hold several meetings in the past six months, all because of his grandson's accident.

Let alone breaking through to the highest level in seclusion, he'd probably lose a significant portion of his life.

Originally, there were six grandsons gathered together, but now only three remain. One of them still has a swollen face, and only about half of his teeth are left. He sits there dejectedly, looking like a wilted eggplant.

The other two didn't like each other and sat there without even exchanging glances.

Huo Xingyuan stood quietly before the coffin, staring at it without saying a word, for a long time.

Time passed, and Lu Xingzhou, who had promised to come for dinner, still hadn't arrived.

Unable to bear the oppressive atmosphere any longer, Huo Heng covered his swollen face and angrily said, "Lu Xingzhou is deliberately keeping us waiting; this is an insult!"

Huo Xingyuan looked at the coffin and slowly said, "So what?"

Huo Heng was dumbfounded: "Huh?"

"He's humiliating you in public right now, what can you do about it?" Huo Xingyuan suddenly turned his head, staring coldly at his son: "You've been working in the Ministry of Works for years, how can you still be so naive! Lu Xingzhou is twenty years old, and he sees things much more clearly than you!"

Huo Heng was somewhat unconvinced: "Isn't all he knows how to do is use brute force?"

Huo Xingyuan was so angry he almost laughed: "This is the first time I've heard anyone say that the judge of the Underworld uses brute force! Tell me, since he came to the capital, apart from beating up your pig brain before he left, what brute force has he ever used?"

Huo Heng: "..."

Huo Xingyuan grew angrier as he spoke: "Even when I beat you up, you pig-brain, it was all under the guise of jealousy, making it difficult to deal with him. Once things got out of hand, you, a mere official in the Ministry of Works, got beaten up for being jealous of someone. Do you think people would laugh at him, a student of the Alchemy Academy, or you, an official? Even Prince Jin could only suffer in silence back then; he had his pride too! Do you understand? Aren't you resentful that Prince Jin didn't stand up for you, that your father didn't say a word? Aren't you blaming us, huh?"

Huo Heng: "...And what about this time?"

"Who told you to block his way? You already have a grudge, and then you block his path. Wouldn't it be pointless to hit him? Look, your older brother was there too. Why didn't he stop him? Why didn't he use his brute force on your older brother? You idiot!"

"Alright." Huo Liancheng's aged voice rang out: "Did Xiao Qi really agree to come back for dinner?"

Huo Xingyuan caught his breath and nodded, "Yes. But I don't think he intends to reconcile; he seems more like he's here to vent his anger."

"It's alright," Huo Liancheng said. "The problem between us and him is that we haven't communicated enough. If we can sit down and have a proper talk, we can always find a direction. As long as he's willing to come, it's a good start."

"Yes."

“Now he is the Grand Preceptor’s top disciple.” Huo Liancheng paused here, seemingly puzzled by the matter. After all, it was a fact that Lu Xingzhou fought for the Tianyao Holy Land, but Ye Tinglan had not announced that she had gained another disciple.

According to rumors circulating in the Tianyao Holy Land, Lu Xingzhou was under the tutelage of an elder surnamed Feng, but only as an "unofficial disciple."

But for a mere unnamed disciple, isn't the acting Grand Preceptor being a little too kind to him?
Huo Liancheng paused, then continued, "Regardless of whether he is or not, treat him as a disciple of the Imperial Preceptor for now. He is no longer an ordinary student of the Alchemy Academy, but someone with a powerful backer. When he was a student of the Alchemy Academy, he already possessed a golden body, and given his ambiguous relationship with the Pei and Sheng families, we could hardly act rashly. Now, his golden body shines even brighter..."

Huo Qi couldn't help but ask, "Grandpa, do you really mean he wants him to acknowledge his ancestors?"

To this day, Lu Xingzhou has been using Huo Shang's identity in an ambiguous way, just to make the Huo family think that no matter whether Huo Shang intends to acknowledge his ancestors, at least he cannot kill his father or ancestors, so the situation is not so urgent that it is irreconcilable.

Otherwise, they would have already gone all out to kill Huo Qing, and everything would have been over.

But since it's Huo Shang, the Huo family is still debating whether he wants to be recognized as a member of the family. They tend to believe that if everyone compromises, for example, to the point of allowing him to become the next head of the family, then nothing is insurmountable.

For Huo Shang, his behavioral goal was closer to "fighting for his pride".

Huo Qi especially thought so. Huo Qi was the one who wanted to kill Lu Xingzhou the most because he felt that Lu Xingzhou's existence would threaten his position as the successor.

It's all crooked.

“We should appease him and make him promises this time.” Huo Liancheng sighed wearily. “If necessary, you should apologize to him.”

Huo Qi couldn't help but ask, "What promise?"

"It doesn't matter what promises are made." Huo Liancheng said calmly, "Whether a promise is kept or not... times change, and no one knows what will happen in the future."

Saying this in front of his grandchildren was a way of reassuring everyone; at least in the old man's heart, Lu Xingzhou was ultimately an outsider.

Huo Qi breathed a sigh of relief, while Huo Zhang revealed a cold smile.

"Furthermore, at our first meeting, I will not show myself and will say that I am in seclusion." Huo Liancheng said slowly, "No matter what agreement Xingyuan reached with him, or what conflict arose... since I have not spoken yet, we can still smooth things over."

Huo Xingyuan felt a stirring in his heart, and he felt that many of his worries had dissipated.

That's right, this leaves room for maneuver and makes things less difficult to handle.

Just as he breathed a sigh of relief, a servant announced from outside, "Master, Lu Xingzhou has arrived."

Huo Xingyuan said, "Please let them in."

"He said... he said he wanted to open the middle door."

Huo Qi said in a low voice, "Who does he think he is?"

Huo Xingyuan glared at him: "You'll have to tone down that attitude later."

After saying that, he instructed his servants, "Open."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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(End of this chapter)