With a sword drawn, he laughs proudly, his martial prowess dominating the heavens!

Chapter 96 Arrival in Hengyang: Qu Feiyan Reappears

While spring in the north is still chilly, Hengyang, far to the south, seems to be shrouded in a misty, damp atmosphere.

The city is crisscrossed by waterways, and the scenery of "Zhengxiang" (steamed Hunan) is particularly enchanting.

The city has seven gates. As the sun was about to set, three young men outside the northeast Xiaoxiang Gate were staring intently at the road.

Lu Dayou pursed his lips and loosened his collar. A cool breeze blew in, and he immediately felt much more comfortable.

The little monkey that used to follow me everywhere has disappeared to play somewhere.

These three are Linghu Chong, Lu Dayou, and Lin Pingzhi.

They were dressed in ordinary civilian clothes and carried no swords. They had been in Hengyang for half a month, and judging by the time, the Huashan disciples should be arriving soon.

"Junior Brother Lin, your senior brother doesn't want us to show off our skills. You're standing in a horse stance like a wooden stake, which is too eye-catching."

"All you do all day is eat, sleep, and practice martial arts. Can't you take a break?" Lu Dayou complained with a worried look on his face.

Lin Pingzhi accepted the Hunyuan Zhuang stance with some embarrassment. He had only been a beginner for a little over half a year, but the young master Lin's appearance had changed drastically.

A fair-skinned young man transforms into a dark-faced tough guy.

Leaving aside his internal strength, his physique has become noticeably more robust.

Young Master Lin walked over with an embarrassed smile. "Senior Brother Lu, please don't be offended. I'm just an ordinary junior brother. The new junior brothers are almost surpassing me."

If you don't work harder, you might not be able to enter the inner sect for three to five years. Wouldn't that be a disgrace to your senior brother?

"Yes, yes, you're working hard, you're right." Lu Dayou smiled helplessly, then rolled his eyes and leaned over to say, "Junior brother, from now on you should secretly work hard. What did Senior Brother say again?"

Yes! Work hard secretly, and amaze everyone!

Linghu Chong, who was listening from the side, found it interesting and interrupted with a smile: "Junior Brother Lin, don't listen to your Senior Brother Lu. He's just lazy and doesn't want to work hard."

Oh dear, I've been so busy these past two days that I forgot to tell you. Before your Senior Brother Lu and I went down the mountain, our Eldest Brother came up with a new method that is very beneficial for cultivating Hunyuan Gong.

There's no need to stand in that Hunyuan stance anymore.

Lin Pingzhi was stunned upon hearing this. He'd fallen behind again? Oh well...

"Brother, it's getting late, I don't think we can get there today. How about we come again tomorrow?"

Now that Linghu Chong is an outer disciple, he must be addressed as Junior Brother Linghu according to the rules of the sect, but outside, Lu Dayou really can't bring himself to call him that, so he can only use the respectful title of elder brother.

Then he added, "Should we inform the Hengshan Sect? Our senior brother didn't give us clear instructions before he left. Wouldn't it be impolite of us to arrive so suddenly?"

Linghu Chong pondered for a moment, "There's no rush. It's only early spring, and there's still half a month before I retire from the martial arts world. Let's wait until Master, Mistress, and Senior Brother arrive."

Looking up again, there were few pedestrians on the street. "Let's go, we'll come back tomorrow. Oh, by the way, has your accommodation been arranged?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Pingzhi quickly replied, "Inns and taverns are too noisy. Let's stay at the escort agency; there are enough rooms."

Linghu Chong said "okay" and then instructed, "Junior Brother Lin, from today onwards, make sure those two eat and drink well. Since Senior Brother is going to use them, we can't let others think that our Huashan Sect is mistreating prisoners."

"Brother, you've thought of everything. By the way, I've heard that Hengyang wine is famous throughout the land. Since we have nothing else to do today, why don't we go for a couple of drinks?"

Linghu Chong laughed and scolded, "Stop teasing me. I swore on the broken stone at Chaoyang Peak of Mount Hua that I would never drink again."

Senior Brother Lu, how rude of you to incite your junior brother to get drunk. When Master and Senior Brother arrive, they will surely report you.

"The punishment I suffered back then is now your turn!"

"Oh, bro, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I was just kidding."

"Oh, Master and Mistress are here."

The two men, who were playfully fighting, turned their heads and saw about ten people and ten horses heading straight for Hengyang at the end of the official road.

Leading the group were Yue Buqun and his wife.

His clothes were ordinary, but the horse he rode was quite handsome.

Having come all the way from Mount Hua, Lao Yue was riding high on his success.

The Wang family of Luoyang presented him with a horse, and the branches of the Fuwei Escort Agency in various places made arrangements in advance, addressing him as "Master Yue" repeatedly. The old man's face burned with embarrassment as he listened to the flattering words.

In addition, the battle in Fuzhou had intimidated the "heroes" with the Huashan Gentleman's Sword. Old Yue, who had been living in seclusion on the mountain for more than half a year, only now realized that his name had become so famous.

He couldn't help but think to himself, "The martial world is truly a beautiful place; I should explore it more with my junior sister!"

"Disciples Linghu Chong, Lu Dayou, and Lin Pingzhi pay their respects to Master and Mistress."

"Hmm." Yue Buqun nodded with a smile. Ning Zhongze glared at him and jumped off her horse.

"Chong'er, thank you for your hard work."

The couple knew a little about Li Che's arrangements, but they considered them just in case.

When Linghu Chong saw his master's wife's gentle gaze again, he was momentarily overwhelmed with emotion, as it had been a long time since he had heard his master's wife call him that.

"Master and Mistress, your lodgings have been arranged. Your disciple will escort you there."

"Alright!" Old Yue added, "Che'er, take my visiting card to the Liu residence first thing tomorrow morning."

"Disciple understands."

The group entered the city gate and turned onto East Street.

As Li Che approached the branch office, his eyes flickered, and he saw a small figure leaning against the alleyway across the street.

Wearing a white veiled hat, holding a string of candied hawthorns in her right hand, she reached under the veil and took them out, losing two hawthorn balls in one bite.

His left hand rested on the short sword at his waist, which was Ren Yingying's sword.

What's this girl doing here?

Are you waiting for me?!

Qu Feiyan slightly lifted a corner of her veil, her small face puffed out, and her lips glossy.

Then he pointed to a restaurant in the original location with a skewer of candied hawthorns.

Li Che's gaze swept over the plaque above, which read: Huiyan Tower!

When they looked again, Qu Feiyan was no longer at the alley entrance.

After everyone entered the escort agency and settled in, it was already past midnight.

The journey had been tiring, and seeing that he had nothing to do tonight, Li Che went out alone.

On the second floor of Huiyan Tower, by the window, Qu Feiyan rested her elbows on the table. The dried fruit in the plate was empty, and the fruit peels were piled up into a small mountain.

The light veil in front of her billowed up and down; what's so fun about a child blowing air like that? It's definitely not because she's angry.

"That stupid thief! He knows someone needs him, but he's been gone for so long! It's infuriating!"

"cough--!"

"Brother Li, I knew you'd come!"

Li Che:

'

""

"What do you want? Where's Lao Qu? Why are you wearing an apron so late at night? Are you disfigured?"

The apron puffed up even more...

After a moment, Qu Feiyan said in a low voice, "Why bring up my grandfather? He composes and plays the piano all day long. My granddaughter is not as important as his piano strings."

"You've had your tongue spiel for as long as I haven't seen you in a while."

Li Che chuckled immediately. "How did you know I'd be here today?"

"Tch, what's so strange about that? Everyone in the martial arts world knows that the Fuwei Escort Agency has become the private property of your Huashan Sect. Those three big oafs have been guarding the city gate for three days in a row, putting on airs and standing there like statues."

"Then who can we wait for?"

That brat is quite clever.

But what exactly constitutes private property?!

"Do you think I want to bring this piece of junk? There are eyes and ears everywhere outside the Liu residence; someone might recognize me."

"Alright, alright, let's get down to business. Old Qu wanted to see me?"

Qu Feiyan's face turned sour again. "He doesn't have time. What exactly did you mean by what you said in Luoyang last time? What did you mean by waiting for the right opportunity and changing your appearance? You weren't just trying to fool my grandfather, were you?"

For some reason, I've been feeling restless lately.

Brother Li, please tell Feifei your method.

Li Che:

'

""

That brat is so pragmatic. She was acting like a stupid thief just a moment ago, but now she's calling me Brother Li so awkwardly.