Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 177 Reunion with the Old Immortal
All three of them drank quite a bit of wine, and under the influence of the alcohol, they fell asleep together on the same bed. Duan Yu, being easygoing, fell asleep quickly, while Murong Fu tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

Afraid that Murong Fu would talk to him, Jiang Mingzhe lay on his side without moving, breathing evenly and pretending to be asleep. In the middle of the night, when he heard Murong Fu get out of bed and push the door open, he didn't care and really fell asleep.

When he woke up the next day, he opened the door and a maid immediately brought him hot water to wash up.

After washing up and getting dressed, Jiang Mingzhe asked, "Where is your young master?"

The maidservant immediately replied, "Reporting to Young Master Jiang, Master Deng, Master Gongye, Master Bao, and Master Feng all came last night. Young Master Jiang was talking to them and, fearing it would disturb Young Master Jiang and Young Master Duan's rest, went to the pavilion halfway up the mountain. They are still there now."

Jiang Mingzhe asked her for directions and went to the pavilion. There he saw Murong Fu, full of energy, holding a table in one hand and gesturing with the other as he talked eloquently. The four retainers were all beaming with joy.

Hearing Jiang Mingzhe's footsteps, the group turned to look. Murong Fu smiled and said, "Brother, you're awake! Come, let me introduce you. Brother Bao and Brother Feng need no introduction. This is Brother Deng Baichuan and Brother Gongye Qian, both pillars and loyal ministers of the Murong clan! Brothers, this is Brother Jiang Mingzhe!"

Jiang Mingzhe looked at Deng Baichuan, who was over fifty years old, with a stout and robust build and an honest and dignified air. Gongye Qian was around fifty years old, dressed as an old scholar, with squinting eyes and carrying a large wine gourd.

Upon seeing Jiang Mingzhe, the two men immediately knelt down without saying a word. Jiang Mingzhe was taken aback and quickly went to help them up, saying, "You are both seniors, how can you perform such a grand ceremony? Please get up quickly!"

He supported Deng with one hand and Gongye with the other, exerting force that caused Gongye Qian to sway slightly, while Deng Baichuan remained motionless, kowtowing loudly as he said in a deep voice, "Young Master Jiang's brilliant plan is comparable to Zhuge Liang's Longzhong Plan. The Murong family has been wandering aimlessly for generations, but has finally found a way out. Our kowtow is on behalf of the Murong family's retainers for generations. Young Master, you deserve it!"

After saying this, he stood up. Jiang Mingzhe had just pulled him, and although he hadn't used his full strength, the force he exerted in his haste was considerable. The two of them still kowtowed. His skill was far superior to that of Bao Butong and Feng Bo'e.

Especially Deng Baichuan, whose internal strength is incredibly powerful. In Jiang Mingzhe's opinion, even Murong Fu would find it difficult to match him in terms of internal strength alone.

Bao Butong and Feng Bo'e exchanged a glance, then turned and left. Jiang Mingzhe was puzzled when the two of them, who had already walked several feet away, suddenly turned back and knelt down, kowtowing with remarkable efficiency.

Bao Butong laughed loudly, "My fourth brother and I don't have the skills of our eldest and second brothers. If you try to pull me up, I definitely won't beg. But a true man would rather use his wits than his strength. Brother Jiang, what do you think of my plan, old Bao?"

Feng Bo'e retorted, "What do you mean by 'your plan'? It's clearly our plan!"

Bao Butong said, "No, no. If I hadn't looked at you first, how could you have such wisdom?"

Jiang Mingzhe thought to himself that since this guy had come out, he definitely couldn't say anything, otherwise he would keep going on and on, wouldn't that be just wasting his time? So he clasped his hands in a fist and said to Deng Baichuan and the other man, "I am sworn brothers with Murong, and it is my duty to help him."

Gongye Qian said with delight, "This phrase 'it's our duty' shows that we're brothers! I heard that you once had a drinking contest with Chief Qiao of the Beggars' Sect. I've heard that he has an unparalleled capacity for alcohol. The fact that you could drink with him shows that you're extraordinary. Let's have a contest sometime."

Jiang Mingzhe smiled and agreed. Murong Fu laughed and said, "Now that my brother is awake, let's go down the mountain together. Let Kumārajīva pay respects to our late father first, and then we can talk about other things."

The group chatted and laughed as they descended the mountain. Duan Yu and Kumārajīva were already dressed and waiting, and Azi and the other girls were also ready. Murong Fu then had someone bring the horses and headed to Murong Bo's tomb.

Along the way, Murong Fu spoke of the plans: "I greatly admire Xiao Feng, but now that he has confirmed his identity as a Khitan, and Shaolin Temple has a blood feud with him for killing his father, if things get out of hand, Shaolin Temple has countless masters, and he will definitely suffer. Although he is a Khitan, he has done many good things for the Song Dynasty over the years. Others may not care, but I will. A Zhu and A Bi, you two accompany Young Master Duan to stop him on horseback. Mingzhe and I will be there shortly!"

When A'Zhu heard that she was going to help Xiao Feng, she was overjoyed and quickly said, "Young Master, although we have many horses in our manor, we only have one truly outstanding horse, Lightning Yellow. If it were any other horse, I'm afraid it wouldn't be able to catch up with Master Xiao."

Mu Wanqing said, "It's alright. Jiang Lang and I have two horses, a Black Rose and a White Rose, both of which are rare and precious. They are currently in an inn in Suzhou. I will go and fetch them for you to ride later."

Murong Fu continued, "Second Brother Gongye, there is one more thing I need to ask of you. Hire a group of scholars to dismantle all the secret manuals we have returned to Shishui Pavilion and make three copies. I will give one copy to my virtuous brother, another to the Great Wheel King, and the remaining copy will soon prove very useful to me!"

Kumārajīva was overjoyed upon hearing this and immediately cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "Young Master Murong is truly a man of integrity!"

Murong Fu smiled slightly, thinking to himself, "Give me at most two or three years, and I will destroy your Qing Tang Tubo. How many secret manuals can you memorize in these two or three years? By then, won't they be taken back by me in one fell swoop?"

As they spoke, the horse rode all the way to a depression halfway up the mountain. Backed by a high peak, with mountains flanking it on both sides, and a low peak in front, and then the mirror-like surface of Taihu Lake, it was an excellent place for a burial site, where a large tomb stood. The tombstone in front of the tomb simply read: "Tomb of Murong Bo".

Jiang Mingzhe knew the tomb was empty, so he remained silent and followed the others down to pay their respects. Kumārajīva knelt down and wept bitterly, pouring out his heart and recounting the whole story of capturing Duan Yu. Seeing his eyes full of tears, it was clear that his friendship was genuine.

Murong Fu offered the prepared offerings one by one. After everyone finished their prayers, Duan Yu stepped forward, kowtowed, put his mouth to the tombstone, and traced the tombstone with his finger. He spoke and gestured, and indeed told Murong Bo, who was "below the nine springs," the sword manual of the Six Meridians Divine Sword.

Having resolved his inner conflict, Kumārajīva no longer bothered to eavesdrop. To avoid suspicion, he deliberately walked away to a distance. Only after Duan Yu finished speaking did he return to bid farewell to Murong Bo. Murong Fu seized the opportunity to step forward and inform Murong Bo of his plans to establish the Qing Tang Kingdom and seek the hand of a princess. Kumārajīva swore before the grave that he would do his utmost to help.

By the time they descended the mountain, it was already afternoon. Mu Wanqing, along with Zhong Ling and A Zi, accompanied Duan Yu, A Zhu, and A Bi, left Xishan Island and headed to Suzhou City to retrieve their horses. Kumārajīva, accompanied by Deng Baichuan and Gongye Qian, was able to enter Huanshi Water Pavilion to read books.

Murong Fu settled everyone in, summoned a small boat, took Jiang Mingzhe aboard, and rowed all the way to Mantuo Manor.

The two went ashore, and a maid saw them and hurriedly went to inform Li Qingluo. Before long, Li Qingluo came with a smile on her face. The two bowed to each other, one saying, "Nephew greets Aunt!" The other said, "Sister Qingluo, your little brother is back! The food at Canhezhuang is not as good as the food here, sister."

As soon as he finished speaking, a man sneered, "Young Jiang, you've caused me a lot of trouble, and you just ran away. You even went to my beloved daughter's house to freeload. You really have a lot of nerve. Hmph, where is that little girl, Azi?"

(End of this chapter)