My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 237 The Great Hero Liu Hongji

"right here."

Changsun Wuji reined in his horse and pointed to the small, dilapidated courtyard in the distance.

Li Shimin looked in the direction he pointed. This place was located in the east of Luoyang. If it weren't for Changsun Wuji leading the way, Li Shimin would never have imagined that there was such a dilapidated place in Luoyang.

The roads here are narrow, and many houses are piled up haphazardly. These houses are dilapidated and small, with wooden fences that reveal the uneven, potholed ground inside, which emits an unpleasant smell.

Li Shimin frowned. "This place is far from the Imperial Academy. How could the people here really know what's going on over there? Or are they just spreading false information to swindle money?"

Changsun Wuji shook his head and said earnestly, "There is a great hero here. He has a great reputation in Luoyang. Many chivalrous people come to befriend him. He is righteous, generous, and keeps his promises. He is a true hero and not a greedy villain."

Upon hearing Changsun Wuji's description, Li Shimin's eyes lit up. "If that's true, even if I don't know the details, I should still befriend him!"

Changsun Wuji led him to a dilapidated courtyard. Standing outside the gate was a down-on-his-luck swordsman dressed in coarse cloth, carrying a sword in his arms. Upon seeing the approaching people, he stepped forward to block their way.

"What brings you here, sir?"

He looked at the older Changsun Wuji.

Changsun Wuji bowed and said, "I have come to see Brother Liu. My name is Changsun Wuji. This is my calling card. I made an appointment to visit you yesterday."

The young swordsman immediately nodded, "No need for name cards, my brother instructed me to come with you."

Changsun Wuji led Li Shimin inside. Li Shimin discovered that although the small courtyard was dilapidated, it was a hidden world inside. After going around the small house in front of them, there were many haystacks. The warrior pushed aside the haystacks, revealing a small door. He led them through the small door and they arrived at the second courtyard.

The courtyard was surrounded by high walls, which, though dilapidated, did block the view. In the middle of the courtyard, more than ten people were sitting.

These men were burly and fierce-looking, all carrying swords and dressed as wandering knights.

Upon seeing strangers enter, they all looked up and stared at them, creating a rather oppressive atmosphere.

"Haha, don't scare my guests!!"

Then they heard someone laugh and stand up. The person who stood up was not old, about the same age as Li Jiancheng. The group of wandering knights is usually relatively young. As they get older, they will no longer continue to be wandering knights. They will either turn over a new leaf or advance from wandering knights to formal bandits.

Wandering knights do not engage in productive work; they spend their days stealing chickens and dogs and doing shady things, making them objects of disgust for both the government and the people.

The person who got up was definitely not of commoner origin, judging from his appearance alone. He had no experience in agricultural production. He was not particularly good-looking, but his expression was very gentle, which was out of place with those fierce wandering knights.

Changsun Wuji stepped forward and bowed to the man. After exchanging greetings, Changsun Wuji introduced Li Shimin, who was standing to the side, to the man.

"Brother Liu, this is the Li Erlang I often talk about, Li Shimin."

"Shimin, this is Liu Hongji, a chivalrous hero from Luoyang."

"Brother Liu."

Li Shimin smiled and bowed, but Liu Hongji was somewhat surprised, "Could it be the second son of the Duke of Tang?"

"A benefactor, a benefactor indeed!"

Liu Hongji bowed with a smile and explained, "I am from Chiyang. My grandfather once served as the governor of Hezhou and had a relationship with the Duke of Tang."

"I see!"

Li Shimin hurriedly grabbed his hand, "I had no idea we had such a connection. I should have come to pay my respects to Brother Liu sooner."

"How dare you, how dare you."

Liu Hongji happily led Li Shimin to meet the heroes and introduced him to his identity. When they learned that the child in front of them was the son of the current Duke of Tang, the heroes' expressions quickly changed, and their attitude became friendly. They stepped forward to introduce themselves, revealing their desire to befriend him.

Li Shimin did not underestimate them and talked to them in this way.

Liu Hongji followed Li Shimin to his seat, surrounded by the chivalrous figures. Li Shimin, without any hesitation, quickly established rapport. He knew exactly how to talk to these wandering knights, recounting his own chivalrous deeds in Xingyang and Loufan. Hearing about Li Shimin's chivalrous exploits, the crowd held him in even higher regard, and the atmosphere became increasingly harmonious.

Changsun Wuji sat not far away with a wry smile. He was the one who contacted these people first, but now he felt like an outsider.

He had never been a wandering knight-errant, and he couldn't even understand the slang used by Li Shimin and the wandering knights.

Of course, judging from their expressions and the tone of their voices, Changsun Wuji could guess that what they were saying was not a good thing.

When Li Shimin arrived at this group of wandering knights, it was like a bird released from its cage or a fish returning to the sea; he seemed more experienced than any of them.

Liu Hongji started to complain to him.

"Li Jun doesn't know this, but Luoyang is different from other small cages. This is a big cage. The double swords here are made of iron; they're real dead men. Last month, when we went to collect heads, we encountered falling rocks that killed three of our brothers."

"It's the same everywhere, it's just that you didn't pick the right spot. Who picks the right spot? Doesn't Luoyang have Duozu? Go pick Duozu! Shuangdao doesn't care about Duozu, he'll pick it every time!"

Li Shimin even began to teach them.

Changsun Wuji listened quietly as they shared their experiences as wandering knights. After a long time, Li Shimin had already put his arm around Liu Hongji's shoulder, and the two addressed each other as "brother," as if they were old friends who had known each other for many years.

"cough."

Changsun Wuji coughed lightly, reminding Li Shimin of the purpose of his visit.

"Brother Liu, I have come here today because I need your help with something important."

Li Shimin got to the point, and Liu Hongji nodded, "I know, it's about that incident in front of the Imperial Academy."

He looked at Changsun Wuji and said, “Brother Changsun found my friend earlier, and I happened to know some of his information, so we arranged for him to come to me. I won’t hide it from you, but many of my friends are short of money and were hoping to get some from you. However, we hit it off immediately, so let’s not talk about money!”

Liu Hongji said seriously, "The group of people who attempted the assassination were not from the Central Plains."

"Not from the Central Plains??"

“There’s a large eatery outside the Imperial Academy that I often go to with my brothers. We once encountered some strangers who were all carrying weapons. We thought they were wandering knights from out of town, so we wanted to teach them a lesson. But as soon as we stopped them, they beat us up.”

Liu Hongji narrowed his eyes. "I've dealt with many foreign merchants in the past. I know their accents. They're not from the Central Plains, nor are they ordinary people. Judging from their skills, they seem to be from the military. They use deadly moves every time they strike. I wanted revenge, so I took some men to keep an eye on them again. That day, I saw them heading towards the Imperial Academy. I didn't dare follow them too quickly, and then I heard that a high-ranking official had been assassinated at the Imperial Academy."

Li Shimin frowned. Upon hearing Liu Hongji's words, the first thing that came to his mind was that foreign merchant.

If it really was those people who did it, then it was definitely aimed at the younger brother. What connection could Yang Wang, a mere priest, possibly have with those Turks?

Seeing Li Shimin's grim expression, Liu Hongji asked, "Could it be that the assassin was related to you?"

"I suspect these people's aim is to assassinate my brother."

"what?"

Liu Hongji was taken aback, then showed his anger, "How dare they! A bunch of barbarians, they dare to come to Luoyang to harm my brother? Erlang, don't worry, the investigation has been very thorough these days, we dare not go out easily. Give me three days, I will send people to contact friends in various places. As long as these people are still in Luoyang, even if they are hiding underground, I can find them!!"

Li Shimin gently shook his head. "It's not that I underestimate Brother Liu, but you don't know this. These barbarians are no ordinary barbarians. They are extremely difficult to deal with, and even the government can't find them."

"Hahaha, if the government can't even find us, isn't it normal that they can't find us either?"

"Don't worry, I may not have much else here, but I have many friends. They are familiar with all the places in Luoyang, and the Hu people are easy to spot. They will definitely be able to find their trail. Just wait for my good news!"

Li Shimin repeatedly thanked everyone and stayed with them for a while before leaving with Changsun Wuji.

On the way back, Li Shimin also told Changsun Wuji about the news about the group of Hu people.

(End of this chapter)