In the office lobby of the 18th floor, Gao Pingfeng’s assistant’s expression changed accordingly.

“Teacher Gao, doesn’t the person in charge of YWY Studios look too young?” The assistant murmured in confusion, “Our Weiyi is a major game company. Why must we hand off the game script to another studio, ah?”

The smile on Gao Pingfeng’s lips vanished and he said calmly, “What do you know? He’s the boss of YWY. He became well-known with ‘The Last Fog” some time ago, and has a backer behind him.”

As he spoke, he glanced at the lobby monitor and said, “I’m going to the corridor to smoke.”

The assistant was accustomed to paying attention to people’s words and following every step. “Teacher Gao, why are you pointing out that he has a backer?”

The two of them approached the security access corridor, and Gao Pingfeng’s tone became more relaxed. “I’m not pointing out anything. Didn’t you see the news about Pei Yi’s ‘financier’ not long ago?”

Even if public opinion subsequently reversed and all the pressure was pushed onto Chanming Studios, netizens attacked Nanchan Games and other producers, including boss Ke Ming, but almost everyone ignored one thing—

The matter of Pei Yi and the ‘financier behind the scenes’ seemed to have disappeared from the internet, and had not been investigated in depth.

Who would believe that no one was behind this, ah?

The assistant was clever, and understood at once. “Teacher Gao, this Pei Yi looks so clean, but he’s actually……”

“Ai!”

Gao Pingfeng let out a tsk, and deliberately kept the topic half hidden and half revealed.

The assistant thought about it, and the more he thought, the stranger his expression became.

He glanced at Gao Pingfeng’s calm appearance, and both flattered and spoke from the heart, “Teacher Gao, I feel sorry for you. How long have you been in this business? And how long has it been for him?”

“Even though the momentum of ‘The Last Fog’ was good some time ago, and the ‘Traces’ sold to the subsidiary was also excellent, doesn’t Pei Yi have a financial backer? Maybe he hired a ghost writer to write for him behind the scenes!”

“How good is the game script you wrote some time ago? Why did the company’s senior management choose to partner with him, an outsider, rather than allow us to achieve results and benefits for ourselves?”

The assistant’s flattering words hit a painful spot deep in Gao Pingfeng’s heart.

As the chief planner of “Seventeen Days,” Gao Pingfeng had worked fifteen years to reach his current position. Only he knew how upset and frustrated he was.

Because “Seventeen Days” under his hands had become one of Weiyi’s leading projects, he could be called “Teacher Gao” and “General Manager Gao” by other employees when he walked into headquarters—

Gao Pingfeng thought that he had finally made it, and felt proud.

He had originally thought that if Weiyi wanted to expand into the new area of “movie games,” it would give priority to its own employees no matter what!

After all, rich water shouldn’t flow into other people’s fields, right?

With this idea in mind, Gao Pingfeng handed over the game script he had designed and confidently awaited for a high-level appointment.

In the end, he waited all the while, only to get this result—

Assist Pei Yi? If this spread, who would be taking advantage of whose fame!

Gao Pingfeng suppressed the grievances deep in his heart and continued to pretend to be magnanimous in his answer, “Xiao Lin, this is because you don’t know better. When the company’s senior management made this decision, they naturally had their own considerations in mind.”

Others may not know, but Gao Pingfeng understood clearly—

The company’s senior management asked him to follow the new project just to keep an eye on Pei Yi’s every move.

If the other party subsequently made any mistakes or overstepped during the project, he could take the opportunity to take control.

“Old employees like me are like bricks, to be moved wherever there is a need.”

How could a young man like Pei Yi, who was in his early twenties and was superficial and showy on the surface, be able to control the overall situation?

From the previous night to the time they met just now, weren’t they calling “Teacher Gao” one after another?

What was the use of blocking Gu Jianshen any further? When the project ended, he would definitely take over Pei Yi’s name and become the planning director of this movie game!

When Gao Pingfeng thought of this, his downcast mood felt a little lighter. He touched his pocket, but only took out an empty cigarette case.

The assistant was very discerning. “Teacher Gao, I’ll buy one for you.”

He turned around quickly, but the moment he took a step forward, he suddenly froze, and the smile on his face turned to astonishment. “M-Mr. Pei.”

Hearing the assistant’s inexplicable panic, Gao Pingfeng immediately turned to the side and looked over—

Pei Yi had returned to the 18th floor at some point, and was standing in front of the safety access corridor’s open door!

“……”

Gao Pingfeng’s eyes froze for a second, and limitless embarrassment and questions arose within him.

Didn’t he say he was going upstairs to sign a supplementary contract with senior management? Why did he come back again? When did he come back? How much did he eavesdrop?

“Why is Teacher Gao so surprised?”

Pei Yi was the first to break the stagnant atmosphere in the corridor, and said as if to explain, “Our Mr. Li is solely responsible for signing the contract with your company. There’s no use in me going along.”

“You’re a smoker?”

Pei Yi weighed the cigarettes in his hand and said casually, “I thought there wouldn’t be anyone on the 18th floor, so I planned to secretly smoke in the corridor. I didn’t expect…..”

The last three understated words made the hearts of Gao Pingfeng and his assistant skip a beat.

Pei Yi took in their subtle expressions and smiled harmlessly. “I didn’t expect that you, Teacher Gao, smoke as well?”

He approached slowly and took a long, slender cigarette from the box. He tapped the cigarette holder on the box very skillfully, put it in his mouth, and lit it with a lighter.

The series of movements were performed smoothly, making him look like an experienced smoker, which was completely inconsistent with his external image.

Pei Yi took out a cigarette and handed it to Gao Pingfeng. He said with raised eyebrows, “Teacher Gao, do you want to smoke? I just want to have a chat with you.”

Gao Pingfeng found that Pei Yi’s emotions were not out of the ordinary, but didn’t dare accept if there was something wrong deep down.

“No, I have a cough that hasn’t gone away in the past two days, so I have to restrain myself.”

“Yeah?”

Pei Yi held the cigarette in a slender, good-looking hand. He exhaled a thin puff of smoke, then glanced at the assistant.

He didn’t seem fierce or angry, but under the smoke, he carried an aura that could not be challenged.

“…….”

The assistant suddenly realized Pei Yi’s hidden character beneath his young appearance, and his Adam’s apple rolled nervously. “T-Teacher Gao?”

Gao Pingfeng also gave him a look. “You go buy me cigarettes first.”

The assistant got his consent, and quickly slipped away. After saying a lot of bad things just now, he looked a little guilty from the back.

There was a click as the security access door completely closed.

Gao Pingfeng didn’t know what Pei Yi had in mind, so he reluctantly put on an easygoing attitude. “I didn’t expect that Mr. Yi smokes too? You don’t look the type.”

Pei Yi took another puff of the cigarette and replied lightly, “In our industry, how many of us don’t smoke?”

Game architecture was one of the most mentally demanding types of work. Long-term, high-intensity creative writing could make people depressed, and smoking was capable of emptying one’s brain.

Pei Yi would smoke one or two of these in the past when he was extremely tired, but he was not addicted to cigarettes and didn’t rely on smoking to relieve his fatigue regularly. Instead, he preferred to use sweets as a self-healing method.

Since transmigrating, Pei Yi had refused to touch them due to Bo Yueming, a lover with no bad habits.

But he had needed an excuse to go back today, so he borrowed the cigarettes and lighter from his friend.

Pei Yi threw the cigarette butt into the trash can in the corridor and asked casually, “Teacher Gao, do you have any objections to me?”

Gao Pingfeng had guessed that Pei Yi would attack, and denied it. “How could I?”

Faced with this lie, Pei Yi smiled and said, “It doesn’t matter if you have an opinion. I’m here to tell you—”

“I’m the boss and game architect for YWY. The one who reached a partnership with me is Weiyi, not you, Gao Pingfeng.”

“…….”

Gao Pingfeng was stunned, and the corners of his mouth slowly dropped.

Even though he had roughly guessed Pei Yi’s character from the reversal of public opinion some time ago, he didn’t expect that the opponent’s lethality would only increase when he came into actual contact with him.

“You were unknown for the first ten years, but in the next five, you finally became the deputy game planner of ‘Seventeen Days,’ then took over the position of chief planner when the previous one fell ill.”

Pei Yi briefly touched on Gao Pingfeng’s past, then asked sharply, “Teacher Gao has been studying longer than me, but his grades are not necessarily better than mine, are they?”

Gao Pingfeng’s face turned red. “You!”

Pei Yi blew out another smoke ring and remained unmoved.

Anyway, Gao Pingfeng already disliked him, so why should he embarrass himself when it came to speaking and follow the other person’s wishes?

Pei Yi warned unceremoniously, “Cooperation is cooperation. The division of labor must be clear, so don’t show off your little calculations.”

Whether it was Gao Pingfeng himself or some of Weiyi’s senior leaders, Pei Yi would not give them a chance to pick up the slack.

If he put in the appropriate effort, he would obtain the benefits he deserved!

Gao Pingfeng was dissatisfied. “Mr. Yi, you’re young. It is better to restrain your temper.”

Pei Yi laid him bare, “No matter how angry I am, how can I compare to Teacher Gao, who says one thing in front of people and another thing behind their backs?”

“If you are dissatisfied, please go to Weiyi’s senior management. Don’t even think about making trouble with me. There should be no chance for us to cooperate in the future.”

Gao Pingfeng didn’t expect to be treated like this by a young man such as Pei Yi. His voice trembled. “What do you mean?”

Pei Yi stubbed out the cigarette butt that was about to burn out on the edge of the trash can. He threw it in, saying ironically, “I hope that Mr. Gao will continue to shine with ‘Seventeen Days.’ My game project cannot please you, a game Buddha.”

Gao Pingfeng frowned. “Hearing Mr. Yi say this, are you planning to ‘fire’ me?”

He had been used to smooth sailing in recent years because of “Seventeen Days,” and game producers of Pei Yi’s age who came into contact with him in the past had to politely call him “Teacher Gao” upon meeting.

But look at things now.

He lowered himself to work for Pei Yi, but the other party didn’t appreciate it?

Gao Pingfeng held back his anger and reminded insincerely, “Has Mr. Yi overlooked something? This project is a collaboration between two parties, and I am not an employee of YWY Studios!”

Who did he think he was?

With a small studio like YWY, how could he become the boss at a major company like Weiyi?

Pei Yi smiled back calmly. “En, I understand. I’m just taking the first step.”

“…….”

Gao Pingfeng only felt that his punch had hit cotton, and was even more frustrated.

Pei Yi refused to spare him an extra glance, and left along the security access corridor stairs.

Halfway there, he took out his phone to look at it again—

Not long ago, the phone in his pocket had vibrated. Upon taking it out, Pei Yi saw that it was indeed a text message from Bo Yueming.

“Qiao Dong said that you took cigarettes? What did you do?”

“…….”

Pei Yi didn’t expect that he would be “betrayed” by his assistant, and his initially lofty posture suddenly softened.

Knowing that Bo Yueming was far away in the capital and couldn’t see or smell him, Pei Yi still hid the cigarette and lighter, and shook off the possible smell of residual smoke on his body.

Then he responded cleverly, “Er-ge, I’m busy. I’ll talk to you tonight. Love you ~”

. . . . . . .

The 23rd floor, inside the small conference room.

Weiyi’s general project manager, Ning Jing, asked for the third time, “Mr. Li, we sent the content of this supplementary agreement to YWY for review five days ago. Does your studio still think there are any problems?”

As she spoke, she glanced at Gu Jianshen beside her.

Signing the supplementary agreement was originally an easy process. Unexpectedly, Li Yuan said that he wanted to check it again, and asked about a few more details—

They went back and forth, and it took a while. 

Gu Jianshen realized something and asked tentatively, “Mr. Li, where did Mr. Yi go?”

As soon as he spoke, there was a knock on the door outside the conference room.

Pei Yi was called in, and entered with a polite apology. “Sorry, I was delayed by something just now.”

Gu Jianshen replied, “It’s okay. Please come in quickly.”

Pei Yi sat down next to his friend. “How is it going?”

Li Yuan kept his heart grounded. “The supplementary agreement is consistent with the electronic version, and there are no problems in the details.”

Ning Jing took the opportunity to ask, “Can the contract be signed?”

Pei Yi’s eyes flickered, and he said straightforwardly, “I have a supplementary condition that I would like Boss Ning to listen to.”

“…….”

Ning Jing and Gu Jianshen looked at each other and nodded slightly. “Mr. Yi, just say it.”

Pei Yi appeared relaxed. “According to the previous cooperation agreement, we, YWY, will be fully responsible for this game project from the game structure to the movie script, right?”

Gu Jianshen nodded. “Yes.”

“In this case, I don’t need the assistance of your company’s Teacher Gao Pingfeng.”

“Please believe that YWY Studios and I have the ability to complete the corresponding work, and the shooting content will be followed up with your company in real time.”

Pei Yi knew how to speak according to the situation. He did not use a commanding tone, and only emphasized, “The creative signature of the movie game after it is launched can only be signed by our studio.”

A smile flashed across Li Yuan’s eyes. He had guessed that Pei Yi would do this—

His friend’s attitude toward work had always been clear. He would seize all exposure and benefits for YWY Studios.

Even if he was cooperating with a major game company like Weiyi, he would not allow the other party to take advantage of them intentionally or unintentionally outside the contract!

Ning Jing’s eyes went still, but she still attempted to fight. “Mr. Yi, Teacher Gao is an excellent game architect. He……”

Pei Yi slowly leaned back in the office chair and stared at Ning Jing. “Boss Ning, you should understand what I mean.”

This short sentence actually revealed a bit of a controlling aura.

Just when Ning Jing thought that Pei Yi was going to use his words to put pressure on them, he subtly changed his tone. “I don’t deny that Teacher Gao has excellent hit games, but the movie game we’re collaborating on this time is in a completely new category, after all —”

“If the attempt isn’t good, it will easily affect the reputation of Teacher Gao and your company.”

“Since our YWY is responsible for the creation of the game script, we should naturally shoulder this pressure. We can’t just sign the contract and be a hands-off shopkeeper, right? It’s not honest, ah.”

As for who “not honest” referred to, everyone present knew very well.

Ning Jing’s hand tightened on the pen as she thought silently.

She had met many leaders of project partners, but she had never met someone like Pei Yi—

He was full of confidence and strength at such a young age, and could speak clearly without losing his sense of proportion. It was almost impossible to find a reason to go further.

Pei Yi’s eyes flashed slightly, and he explained further, “Boss Ning, YWY does need Weiyi’s exposure channels, but we also promised long ago that we are willing to bear all risks of failure.”

“If your company must put someone in and there is a disagreement, whose responsibility will it be?”

“I would rather have long-term cooperation and mutual profit between us. What do you think?”

Ning Jing gave a faint sigh, feeling slightly moved. Compared to short-term cooperation, long-term benefits were the most attractive—

“The Last Fog” by YWY Studios was obviously on the trend toward becoming a hit game, and it currently had a bright future!

As long as this partnership was a happy one, when the other party continued on to release “The Last Fog 3.0” in the future, Weiyi would have one more opportunity to invest and cooperate than Xunya Technology!

. . . . . . .

At two o’clock in the afternoon, the temporary conference room was filled with staff transferred from various departments of Weiyi.

Gao Pingfeng pushed the door open along with his assistant, looked around, and sat in the front row of the conference room as a matter of course.

The assistant couldn’t locate Pei Yi, and whispered nervously, “Teacher Gao, are you sure we want to continue participating in this project?”

After escaping from the security access corridor in the morning, he did not leave directly. Instead, he hid outside and overheard the entire conversation between Gao Pingfeng and Pei Yi.

Gao Pingfeng grew angry when he thought about what had happened that morning. He gritted his teeth and said, “What are you worrying about? With my qualifications, are you still afraid that the company’s senior management will not allow me to participate?”

If Pei Yi and YWY hadn’t suddenly formed a partnership, he would have taken over the first trial of movie games this time!

What’s more, Pei Yi was not a senior executive of Weiyi, so who had the right to decide whether he should stay or go?

The words in the security access corridor that morning were just those of a young man who cared about face and was putting on a facade. How could it be so easy to kick him off the project team!

Just wait and see!

If he could stay on the project team, sooner or later, he would take the real power back into his own hands!

Thinking of this, Gao Pingfeng stood up with determination. “Okay, everyone be quiet!”

He intended to preemptively stabilize his position on the project team. “Everyone from our company is here, right? Then I will just……”

Before he could finish his opening remarks, Pei Yi and the others opened the door and walked in. 

Their eyes met.

Pei Yi’s acting skills came online again, and he acted surprised. “Hey, why is Teacher Gao still here? I remember that I gave you notice this morning?”

The curve of Gao Pingfeng’s mouth slipped, but he tried to hold it steady again. “Mr. Yi, what notice?”

Pei Yi calmly sat down in the main seat next to him and looked at Gu Jianshen, who had followed him in. “Mr. Gu, please convey the decision made by the top management of your company to your own employee.”

This sentence drew the attention of everyone in the conference room, and their eyes turned unconsciously to Gu Jianshen and Gao Pingfeng.

It was said that when a new official took office, he swept out the old, but Pei Yi obviously intended to use someone else’s hand to sweep this person out.

Gu Jianshen knew Pei Yi’s work style and trusted in his abilities. “Teacher Gao, Mr. Yi is solely responsible for this game project. Boss Ning says that ‘Seventeen Days’ is about to release a new season, so you must still go and oversee it.”

“…….”

These well-reasoned words were actually a public slap to Gao Pingfeng’s face. His smile completely vanished, and an unspeakable humiliation welled up in his heart.

What was the use in him going back to oversee it, ah?

He had basically been removed from the project in front of so many employees!

Pei Yi gave Qiao Dong a look.

In just two or three months of training to be an assistant, Qiao Dong’s ability to see what needed to be done had greatly improved. He took the opportunity to speak out, “Teacher Gao, we are going to have a meeting here soon. Could you please leave?”

“…….”

Leave?

This was an eviction order!

Gao Pingfeng recalled his ambition prior to this meeting, and couldn’t do anything for a moment!

It was a pity that no matter how reluctant he was, he could only leave the meeting room stiffly!

---

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Chapter Ninety <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Two

The stronghold of the star pirates was inside the mine. It wasn’t only them there, as they had captured the residents of Chonghua City as hostages and locked them up inside with them. Due to this, the actions of the Empire were constrained. For example, the Empire could not use artillery bombardment or block the mines, nor could they act rashly. The star pirates could threaten the hostages at any time.

The Imperial army was divided into two groups. One was led by Luo Ran, assisted by Wang Qiuyuang and Freeman from the front, and the other by Lucas.

“The Empire is attacking…..!”

The star pirate battleship was also parked in the cave. Huntsman looked at the red dots on the screen at the front and rear, and frowned slightly.

It could be seen that the rear team not only had a small number of people, but it was also using a hidden path. If it wasn’t for Huntsman’s sudden whim and meticulous attention to details, which caused him to install a detector on the difficult trail behind, they wouldn’t have discovered them at all.

And in the front was a relatively regular army, walking the mine road. Huntsman raised his eyebrows, stroked his chin, and said: “Are they trying to…..create a diversion?”

Use the front army as cover, and then strike from the rear.

The adjutant beside Huntsman also nodded, saying viciously: “Lucas loves to use such dirty tricks!”

In the last meteor shower, they suffered from such a blunder.

Huntsman’s eyes darkened slightly, and he sneered.

Naturally, the same mistake couldn’t be made a second time.

Huntsman had almost never won against Lucas. The star pirates could only loot and bomb before Lucas led the army, but once confronted by Lucas, they had no chance of victory.

Winning against Lucas had almost become Huntsman’s obsession.

And the last time they rolled out the Meteor Shower, it was overshadowed by Lucas.

From beginning to end, Huntsman brooded over this.

Such a precious Meteor Shower had been manufactured and prepared for so long, only to hit empty sheets of iron. Instead, Lucas counterattacked with the army and the star pirates suffered heavy losses.

Huntsman clenched his fists tightly, and said with a gloomy expression: “Get ready to fight!”

He boarded the battleship, leading the star pirate army to the rear.

. . . . . . . .

They were coming.

Lucas was in Lion One, holding the electronic map to observe the enemy’s camp.

He was right. As expected, Huntsman had brought the main forces here. “Fire!”

Following Lucas’s order, the entire elite team formed a circle.

Boom—

Baboom—

It was a more ferocious Kaleidoscope than the last time, with more intense artillery fire and greater numbers. 

It seemed more suitable in this small enclosed space, and the other party had nowhere to hide.

The stone walls vibrated continuously due to the battle between the two sides. A lot of gravel and dust fell, and a buzzing echo could be heard.

The entire mine was illuminated by artillery fire.

Lucas didn’t bring many people, but they were all elite troops who had undergone training day and night. They could swiftly follow Lucas’s instructions to change position, and continued to use the Kaleidoscope to fire toward the star pirates, forcing them back.

Even though Lucas was Huntsman’s enemy, the star pirate couldn’t help but admire Lucas’s foresight at this moment. He maintained the Kaleidoscope formation singlehandedly, solidly attacking and evading at the same time.

However……

Watching the battle before him, Huntsman realized something.

Lucas hadn’t come with reinforcements or hidden troops, so it really was only this team.

Huntsman then snatched the main battleship mic and shouted sharply: “Front team, respond to me if you hear this!”

“Zhi…..zhi…..”

Huntsman paled.

For a moment, Huntsman couldn’t accept that he had been tricked again.

Lucas’s elite squad was actually a cover to attract their fire?

The real army was ahead?

Lucas wasn’t creating a diversion. That huge army was indeed the Empire’s main force, and it was Huntsman himself who was trapped.

Had Lucas known what he would think, and deliberately do the opposite?

Huntsman couldn’t believe it.

As the chief commander, Lucas dared to entrust the army to another commander and hand over the battle situation to another person? And used himself as bait?

What was the background of the commander in front?

…….

Luo Ran.

Huntsman supported himself on the control console, his expression twisting.

What was happening.

What was happening?

How did he lose again?

The hostages had presumably been rescued by the army, and the stronghold had also been breached and fallen.

“Boss? Boss? The adjutant was a little anxious and upset. “What’s the matter? The front……”

“Shut up.”

Huntsman’s expression was terrifying.

It didn’t matter.

He also had one last Meteor Shower.

He had prepared a total of three. The first was the trial test in the city, and the second time he was countered by Lucas, but he still had a third chance.

After the First Prince left the capital, he met with him once to ask the star pirates for protection. The condition was that he would provide the materials to complete the third Meteor Shower. That was his last trump card.

Thus, the third Meteor Shower was hurried out overnight.

Now, it was also Huntsman’s last trump card.

“Do we need to go back?” The adjutant asked cautiously: “There seems to be something wrong at the front.”

“No need.”

It wouldn’t matter.

The only way to save themselves now was to kill Lucas and throw the Imperial army into a panic.

Huntsman looked viciously at Lion One, where Lucas was, like a hungry ghost eyeing its prey.

“Fire!”

He didn’t believe it. Lucas only had such a small team, but could turn their world upside down? They still couldn’t subdue him?

Buzz—buzz—

Huntsman was startled.

What was that sound?

Scrr—Scrr—

Huntsman turned his head and saw his adjutant suddenly looking fierce, crouching down and covering his head as if in pain.

It wasn’t just the adjutant. Huntsman could see that many people outside also had such symptoms to varying degrees, and it had already greatly affected their combat capability. There were also a few unsteady aircraft that fell directly to the ground.

Huntsman’s gaze froze. He saw that the Imperial army mechas were all equipped with spiritual disruptors, and everyone inside the mechas were wearing protective helmets.

……Motherfucker!

Lucas was overjoyed to witness Huntsman’s frantic appearance.

Because of the First Prince’s arrogant attitude, the star pirates may either not know of the side effects of UNK or underestimate them. After all, the star pirates’ understanding of UNK came from the First Prince.

That was why they didn’t expect that after injecting so much UNK, the Empire only needed to prepare countless spiritual disruptors and turn the sound waves to the maximum to destroy these greedy people.

This was why Lucas dared to bring such a small team to fight the star pirates.

It was also why Lucas discussed with the king of Luobing beforehand and allowed the star pirates to have the mine and process UNK.

It was too early for the UNK excavated by the star pirates to be put into aircraft or weapons, so their most widespread use must be direct injection into the human body, so that they could gain stronger combat effectiveness.

As everyone knew, UNK caused harm after being injected into the human body. Not to mention Alphas and Omegas, Betas would also not be spared if they overdosed.

The star pirates tried to bite off more than they could chew, and it backfired on them.

Looking at the chaotic star pirate forces before him, Huntsman gritted his teeth and said: “Take out my Windchaser!”

“And get the Meteor Shower ready to launch!”

. . . . . . .

“Adjutant Wang, support coordinates X4Y1.”

“Adjutant Freeman, stay where you are!”

Luo Ran stood in front of the console, without moving his eyes from the screen and the window for half a moment, calmly giving out instructions.

The two adjutants already had much experience in battle, and had also been with Lucas for many years. So even without Luo Ran’s instructions, they could assess the situation themselves and reduce the burden on Luo Ran.

As Lucas had said, he was really more of a “supervisor.”

The dense Imperial army entered directly through the main entrance of the mine, and the aircraft and mechas landed to clear obstacles along the way.

Luo Ran looked out the window and saw that the originally quiet mine had become a hellish sea of flames.

His vision was full of fire. The plants in the mine were aflame, and the mechas were colliding with one another and trying to destroy each other. The aircraft was also greeted with artillery fire.

After the spiritual disruptors were switched on, the star pirates in front of them were no different than zombies in a movie, howling and waving their weapons as they rampaged.

Luo Ran also saw people falling right out of the mechas and aircraft, and some being directly blasted to pieces.

One by one, living people were gone so quickly. Death seemed very easy in this place.

More and more equipment and limbs piled up on the ground. Luo Ran could smell leaking fuel through the high-pressure glass of the battleship.

Luo Ran frowned slightly.

He had established a spiritual connection with Lucas, and it was not the first time he had been in such a situation, so he could still handle it.

It would be over soon.

“Surrender! I surrender!”

“Please, turn it off! Turn it off!”

There was no telling who started it first, but as soon as the words were spoken, it was like an already fragile balloon being poked with a needle, and all the fight went out of the star pirates.

Seeing the star pirates kneel down with their hands raised, Luo Ran sighed and asked the adjutants to take them into custody.

After recovering the star pirates, Luo Ran and the brigade accelerated deep into the mine to join Lucas.

Luo Ran contacted Zheng Lan, the only adjutant at Lucas’s side.

“Adjutant Zheng! Please respond!”

“Zi…..zi, Admiral, he and Huntsman…..zi, fell into the mine!”

Luo Ran’s heart sank.

What?

The army soon joined up with Zheng Lan and the others.

Lucas had brought elites, but not many of them. Facing the star pirates with several times their numbers, although he preemptively used the Kaleidoscope and spiritual disruptors to buy time, it was still a bit of a strain as time went on. Several disruptors had been blown up, and the Kaleidoscope formation had fewer people. They were gradually unable to maintain it.

But after Luo Ran joined as reinforcements, the situation reversed immediately.

Zheng Lan boarded Luo Ran’s battleship and said: “The star pirates went crazy and focused on the Admiral, even disregarding their lives. The Admiral fought one-on-one with Huntsman under artillery fire, and then they were thrown by concentrated fire into the mine…..!”

Zheng Lan pointed to a large hole nearby. It was incredibly deep, and led far underground.

Luo Ran took a deep breath and said: “You take command, I’ll lead a team down. Stay in touch!”

Zheng Lan subconsciously refused. Luo Ran was a pregnant Omega, how could he take the risk of leading the team!

But Zheng Lan met Luo Ran’s eyes, and his commanding aura put him at a loss for words for a moment. He subconsciously gave a military salute and shouted: “Yes!”

The arrival of the army lightened the burden of the troops. The Kaleidoscope formation was established again, and Luo Ran led a team down into the mine.

Zheng Lan commanded Wang Qiuyang to intercept the star pirates who also wanted to go down to rescue Huntsman and stop Luo Ran.

Gunfire exploded behind Luo Ran as he rushed down without hesitation.

Baboom—

Luo Ran controlled the aircraft to avoid the sudden flames in front of him.

Not far away, Lion One was fighting an aircraft.

The black aircraft looked different from ordinary ones, a fighter jet with a shiny shell — Windchaser was light and flexible, and had the same firepower as Lion One. It was suitable for a star pirate who had never received mecha training.

Luo Ran could see Huntsman controlling the aircraft, aiming at the cabin and glass of Lion One. After all, the rest of Lion One was impeccably hard.

Lion One was also moving its limbs, trying to smash the aircraft in front of it.

One large machine and one small fought each other, attacking and retreating.

But when Huntsman saw Luo Ran, he knew it was the end.

He had lost.

If Luo Ran had come down, then the situation above had already been settled.

Huntsman smiled, and started a series of commands.

— The Meteor Shower was about to begin.

— The countdown was ten seconds.

“Ten…..”

The monotone female voice of the system began to count down.

---

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Chapter Ninety-Two << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Four

Liu Xian’an refused to give it a try, he was already very drowsy and wanted to sleep. But fortunately, His Royal Highness Xiao Wang only said that he didn’t want to prove how physically worthy he was. After all, there was still a mess in the city at this time and it was really not suitable for talking about romance, so he just slept peacefully through the night with the other’s arms around him. When Liu Xian’an woke up at noon the next day, Liang Shu had already gone out and A-Ning was dozing on his stomach at the bedside.

“When did the prince leave?”

“Early in the morning.” A-Ning yawned. “The prince is really capable, he doesn’t seem to need to sleep very much.”

“It isn’t that he doesn’t need to sleep, but that there are too many things to do and no time to rest.” Liu Xian’an sat up. “We must finish Song-xiansheng’s act quickly so that the prince can sleep peacefully for a few days. How far have the rumors in the city gone now?”

“Everything is going according to plan.” A-Ning said, “In two days, Song-xiangsheng will ‘resurrect from the dead.’”

It was true that he had to “live” quickly, because if he didn’t come back to life, the people in the city would likely be driven crazy by the sound of hammering iron all night long. The entrance of the government office was nearly blocked by the crowd, and under the questioning of the people, the government finally relaxed a little and implicitly admitted that the blacksmith’s shop had indeed been “a little abnormal” recently.

“What does ‘a little abnormal’ mean? Could it be that Song-xiansheng is forging iron?”

The government official replied vaguely, ah, something like that, something like that.

“Then what should we do next?”

“What should you do? Song-xiansheng is not a murderous ghost, what are you afraid of?”

It was true to say so, but he couldn’t be clank clank-ing every night. It was too noisy to sleep, ah. The common people had dark circles around their eyes and were all miserable.

“Persist for just two more days, two more days,” The government officials reassured everyone. “After two more days, Song-xiansheng will be able to work during the day.”

As soon as these words were uttered, the entire street was in an uproar. Hearing this stance, was it true that this person was slowly gathering yang energy to resurrect? It was so bizarre that few people in the city would believe it, and everyone spent another two nights with the sound of clink, clink, clank, clank. In the early morning of the third day, before full light, everyone surrounded the door of the blacksmith’s shop and held their breath, waiting to see if Song Changsheng would really appear.

“The prince and Young Master Liu are here too!” Someone shouted at noon.

Liu Xian’an hadn’t woken up much, and his eyelids were presently drooping, but unlike the sleepiness of the common people, he was not disturbed by the noise, but was harassed by His Royal Highness Xiao Wang and could not sleep at all.

Liang Shu had his own explanation for this. You sleep, I touch, we don’t disturb each other.

Liu Xian’an looked up at the sky and sighed.

Local officials also accompanied Liang Shu, and the public’s discussions lowered in tone. Nobody dared to ask what happened, but there was no need to ask further, because not long after, the closed door opened in front of them with a squeak.

A person slowly walked out, and upon closer inspection, it was Song Changsheng. All of the rumors were confirmed at this moment. Heavens, he was actually alive?

Because of the presence of His Royal Highness Xiao Wang, the common people did not flee in all directions, but still had the courage to approach tremblingly and ask: “Song-xiansheng, these few days……where have you been?”

“I walked to the gates of hell.” Carrying a long sword on his back, Song Changsheng cupped his hands and bowed deeply. “Thanks to the help of the prince and Young Master Liu, I was able to return to the world.”

The sun shone warmly on his body, his whole face glowing with color, and there was also a shadow. No matter how you looked at it, he was indeed a living person. But he had vomited blood and died a few days ago. At least a dozen doctors were present when his pulse stopped, so it was absolutely impossible for the diagnosis to be wrong.

The hearts of the common people were anxious and unsettled as they watched Liang Shu and Liu Xian’an personally collect Song Changsheng and leave.

“What does this represent? It represents that Song-xiansheng was not fated to die, ah!” A notoriously unpleasant-voiced man in the city analyzed plausibly.

Who was Song-xiansheng? He was a warrior who sacrificed his life to blow up cultists. Even if he inadvertently followed the dao of the Baifu Sect and was poisoned by the demon girl, how could the King of Hell accept him? Hadn’t he still sent him back with all his hands and feet? Look, not only did this person return, but all the poison had disappeared, and he was full of vigor. The three-foot sword on his back shone like water, with a cold, sharp edge. Presumably, it was a new sword forged for the purpose of eradicating the Baifu Sect and avenging his dead wife!

Subsequent news from the government also proved this point. Once the fact that Song Changsheng was resurrected from the dead was confirmed, all kinds of discussions about the Baifu Sect in the city took a new direction. The common people were anxious and afraid to speak out in the past few days, but they changed their attitudes and began to talk openly again about this matter. They talked extensively, clamoring to arrest the cult—because even if they died, they would be credited with a meritorious service by the King of Hell and released again, so what was there to be afraid of?

In the end, the government had to come forward secretly to quell public opinion, lest there really were some fools who rushed into the demons’ nest alone. The announcement repeatedly stated that the garrison would take care of cleaning up the cult. Everyone just needed to be vigilant and live their normal lives, don’t be too nervous, don’t be too excited, and don’t run around!

One spread to ten, ten to a hundred, and the story of Song Changsheng quickly spread all over the country. The content became more and more fantastic, until in the end, Song-xiansheng was no longer a human being, but a sword fairy, an exorcist appointed by the heavens who had come down to earth to assist His Royal Highness Xiao Wang in eradicating the Baifu Sect.

“Didn’t you see that when Song-xiansheng came out of the blacksmith’s shop, there was a golden light? Anyway, I still can’t keep my eyes open to this day!”

The people in other places were very envious. Why didn’t Song-xiansheng come to earth in their towns, look at Raven City’s pride.

Inside the government office, Song Changsheng said in shame: “I didn’t do anything but go along with the plan and pretend to be dead. I can’t bear the great kindness of the common people.”

“How did you not do anything, didn’t Song-xiansheng blow up White Crown? To destroy the Baifu Sect’s decades-long plans by yourself, I think that no matter how great the kindness is, you can afford it.” Liu Xian’an said, “Taking a step back, even without mentioning White Crown, Song-xiansheng’s scene alone has made countless believers start to whisper in their hearts.”

Betraying the Buddha Mother and beheading the Holy Envoy, in the reincarnation doctrine of the Baifu Sect, it would not be too much for such a traitor to die a hundred or a thousand times in ways tragic enough to match the crimes committed. But now, not only was Song Changsheng not dead, he was also living better day by day. To live and become famous, wouldn’t other people secretly have these thoughts?

“However, it is impossible for the Baifu Sect to stop here, and they will definitely mount a frantic counterattack.” Liu Xian’an said, “The prince says that we must rush back to Garrison City as soon as possible.”

“He wants to go to war?”

“That’s about right,” Liu Xian’an said. “We can’t continue to allow the heretical cult to be arrogant. Now is a good opportunity to lure them out of the cave.”

The folk customs in Raven City were surging, and everyone was singing songs about fighting against the cult. Liang Shu and his party were sent off as they left Raven City, and Chang Xiaoqiu and Song Changsheng also walked with the large group — along with that butcher. Since his status in the Baifu Sect was not low, he should be able to spit something out under severe torture. Or even if he wouldn’t spit it out, hanging him from the city gate and beating him every day could also have the effect of deterring the cult.

His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was not like those civil servants who were particular about kindness and generosity. His logic in this aspect had always been simple and crude. If one came, kill him, if a hundred came, kill them, ten thousand, one hundred thousand, it was all the same solution.

The butcher knelt on the ground gasping for breath, cursing Liang Shu that sooner or later he would be tortured in hell’s sea of flames. Liu Xian’an didn’t want to speak to him at first, but after hearing the man’s cursing grow louder and louder, he opened the door and entered the courtyard. The butcher looked up and saw him coming, adding a new curse: “You also won’t escape!”

“Why should I try to escape?” Liu Xian’an regarded him with some annoyance. “You’re right, the prince is going to your sea of hell tonight, so that he can completely wipe out that strange fiery realm as soon as possible. After wiping it out, he will quickly behead a group of Baifu Sect followers and send their souls to build houses and bridges, doing bitter work to atone for their sins.”

The butcher may have never expected such a strange way of cursing back, and was a bit stunned for a moment.

Liu Xian’an continued: “There are still tens of thousands of brave and loyal soldiers wandering in the heavens above Dayan, waiting to live in new houses. At present, there is an extremely short supply of manpower for rebuilding in the afterlife. I see that you are as strong as a cow, so how about you go work alongside them!”

Hearing what he said, the two guards who were there for protection immediately stepped forward and shook out soft whips from their sleeves. One held the person down, and one strangled his neck. Standing by the side and watching, Liu Xian’an reminded, don’t cut the head off, he needs to keep his eyeballs, or there will be no way for him to build walls and make tiles when he goes down.

“Cough, coughcough!” The butcher struggled instinctively, seeing that he was about to die. It was His Royal Highness Xiao Wang who entered the courtyard in time to stop the palace guards.

Liang Shu frowned and said: “Did he provoke you?”

Liu Xian’an replied: “It doesn’t count as such, he was just a bit noisy.”

“I say, you disappeared halfway through your afternoon nap.” Liang Shu rubbed his eyes with his thumbs and led him in the direction of the bedroom, then turned back to say coldly, “If you dare to wail and howl like ghosts and wolves again, you will be beaten until you shut up.”

The butcher was limp on the ground. Gao Lin crouched down to look at him, amused: “To be honest, I don’t know if you really believe in that Holy Maiden or if you just wanted to take the opportunity to sneak into the Baifu Sect and make money. But now let’s analyze it, ah. You believe in the Holy Maiden, and she didn’t come to help you just now. If you still believe, you are just unwilling to admit to a mistake. My family’s prince doesn’t have the patience to look at your death-embracing face. After he coaxes Second Young Master Liu to sleep, he will come to interrogate you. If you still persist in not speaking, it is better to slit your throat and kill yourself now, and save everyone a little time.”

The butcher’s mouth opened and closed for a long time, and he squeezed out an extremely dry sentence: “Baifu Buddha Mother…..save……save…..”

“Yes, it seems that you really believe it.” Gao Lin patted him on the shoulder and stood, untying the whip around his waist and throwing it to the guards. “Send him to see the Buddha Mother.”

There was a scream, quickly followed by a “wuwu” sound that should be the man being gagged.

Liu Xian’an stood by the window: “Will he talk?”

“He can only live if he talks,” Liang Shu said. “I don’t have the energy to move them one by one with emotion and reason. These people with broken brains can only be rewarded with a whip. Those who can be beaten sober will be saved, and if they cannot become sober, this is their fate.”

Liu Xian’an reached out to close the window, blocking out the sounds of torture: “So that is why it is widely rumored that the prince is violent.”

“And you, what do you think?” Liang Shu looked at him. He asked the question, but didn’t wait for an answer, saying, “There is only so much silver in Dayan’s treasury, and people all around the country asking for it. As the commander-in-chief, I often have to wait until the end, and take care of my soldiers and the civilians first with the food I manage to dredge up. It makes no sense that my own people are starving to death, but I still have to frugally feed those prisoners of war……if they catch our people, they will not give them a grain of rice.”

He spoke this long paragraph without stopping, as if giving and explanation, but also expressing the dissatisfaction in his heart that he had suppressed for many years. 

“En, I understand.”

“You really understand?”

“I really understand.” Liu Xian’an put his arms around his waist. “There is nothing wrong with benevolence, but it also depends on the occasion. In fact, everyone understands this truth. If you tried to throw those white-bearded old men in the court to the border and let them fight bandits and wolves in person, with a knife at their throats, they would probably not be benevolent.”

Liang Shu smiled: “All right, when I go back, I’ll tell Emperor Brother and do it like this next time.”

“There is no fixed answer to everything. People can only find the most correct path in the current situation,” Liu Xian’an said. “Besides, there is the prince guarding the border so that the royal city can be safe. In my opinion, it is the prince who is a great sage.”

Liang Shu shook his head: “I’m going to be praised to heaven by you.”

“I’m just telling the truth.” Liu Xian’an was firm. “Anyway, that’s what I think.”

And this must be correct, because no matter what old people said, they usually appeared to be very authoritative. And Second Young Master Liu was forty-eight thousand years old, so shouldn’t this be the truth?

At the same time he opened his mouth so sweetly, Liang Shu bit him hard, leaving a red mark on his collarbone. While being kissed cooperatively by him, Liu Xian’an said: “We’re going to Garrison City tomorrow, and Da-ge shouldn’t see this.”

Sure enough, Liang Shu stopped biting, but stretched out the tip of his tongue to lick him lightly. He didn’t have him in his hands yet, and it wouldn’t be good to be too unbridled.

Liu Xian’an continued to analyze: “After we meet, Da-ge will definitely test me over Commander Ku’s eye disease, and if I fail to answer correctly, I will be beaten again.”

“What beating, no more beatings are allowed in the future.” Liang Shu was displeased by these words, and said in a grand way, “I will tell him this myself when the time comes.”

---

Chapter Ninety << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Two

Although they were said to be distant brothers, Liu Zhenqing actually didn’t know Liu Xiaozhu’s lineage, but had heard his grandfather mention him before.

Through the current knowledge of Steward Fu and his personal servant Jin Li, Liu Zhenqing had a clear understanding of the relationship between the two families. 

A few hundred years ago, the two lineages belonged to the same family. It was said that the ancestors of the Liu family not only included princes and Imperial concubines, but even the only male empress in the history of the Yuan clan’s Great Zhou. It was the most prosperous and splendid generation of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and was known as the Eternal Heavenly Kingdom by foreign countries. The Liu family also reached its peak during that generation.

However, times changed, and the Liu family, along with the dynasty, had its ups and downs before gradually going downhill. There were serious differences within the family, which led it to splinter in two.

One of them stayed in the capital, where their population gradually withered. In Liu Zhenqing’s grandfather’s generation, they were still in a secure position. But later, when a treacherous minister like him appeared, the family was completely wiped out. The other branch ran a business association left by their ancestors in Jiangnan, which mainly engaged in water trade. Because they had long since cut off contact, they avoided being implicated by Liu Zhenqing. Later, because they donated money to support the national treasury, made many donations to help disaster victims, and even supported the military pay of the Huo family, they received a commendation by the new emperor and were even named Imperial merchants, and settled in the capital. It could be said that they saved a bit of glory on behalf of the Liu family ancestors.

This resulted in the Liu family being given special treatment in the capital. Even though they were from the same clan as the traitor Liu Zhenqing, they weren’t punished for it.

In Liu Zhenqing’s view, the head of the Liu family was very shrewd. He knew how to use public opinion to build momentum, and gave the greatest help to the Zhou Dynasty when it was at its weakest. This helped them stabilize their future and avoid being implicated.

And those strange looks the Huo army gave him likely stemmed from this contradictory relationship.

This Liu Xiaozhu had the same fate as him. He lost his parents early on and lived with his grandfather, only he himself had no other relatives and it could be said that he was…..radiant and splendorous since childhood. But Liu Xiaozhu also had two uncles and several cousins. Moreover, he had been addicted to playing with landscapes, birds, fish, and gold and silver since he was a child. He was not good at studying and not reliable in business. In short, he was extremely ordinary.

The Imperial merchant family did not have a title and mainly dealt in property management. Naturally, they feared that one more person would create more division in assets, especially the eldest grandson who only knew how to spend money. It was very possible that there was some subtlety in the relationship.

Although the steward spoke in a veiled manner, that kid Jin Li was a forthright person.

“It must be the Second Master or the Third Master who want to poison Master!” Jin Li said angrily.

But the steward said sternly: “If you don’t have evidence, then don’t talk nonsense. If you turn around and others hear you chewing your tongue, your tongue will be pulled out.”

“Steward Fu, you watched our master grow up, and you love him the most. How can you continue to be blind! Who else could it be? They’re always enigmatic, and they bully Master, who has no parents to protect him.” Jin Li was about to cry in anger.

But the steward couldn’t be as impulsive as him. Instead, he looked at Liu Zhenqing in embarrassment, a little worried that he would go back and make a fuss. He could only ask in a low voice: “First Young Master, what do you think?”

Liu Zhenqing had reached out his hand to lift the curtain and watch the increasingly familiar scenery outside in a daze. When he heard this question, he said innocently: “I don’t know, I’ve lost my memory.”

The chronic poisoning must have been caused by long-term use, which would let Liu Xiaozhu gradually consume it and die. It was reasonable and logical that his death was caused by a person close to him. It couldn’t be a servant who made the decision without authorization, and could only be a master, of which there were only a few. He, a distant cousin, would be smart enough to guess this, but he might not necessarily investigate. And even if he did, there would be a scapegoat.

But he would just let the old man beat them a little, and not let them get in the way of his recovery. He had no interest in avenging the original owner.

He had experience. Once something began, it wouldn’t end until the killing blow. He wouldn’t be so ruthless as to cause the Liu family to go completely extinct. Even if everyone thought he was temperamental, and his relatives wouldn’t recognize him……eh, okay. He could admit that the main reason was that he didn’t want to waste time and energy on other people’s affairs.

The two of them were dejected, and looked at Liu Zhenqing sympathetically.

Jin Li said angrily: “They are also the cause of Master’s amnesia. They must have found someone to kidnap him.”

The steward said with a sigh: “At that time, we all thought that the master had been incidentally targeted by thieves when he went out. When the ransom was demanded, I advised the Second and Third Masters to inform the Old Master that it would be too dangerous to pay the ransom directly. But the two masters were afraid that the Old Master was too old to bear the excitement, and took full responsibility. They couldn’t be stopped, and after they paid the ransom, the thieves broke their promise. If they weren’t caught, we wouldn’t have known that they were deliberately hired for murder! And they also came to trick us into paying the ransom, which is simply atrocious! This old slave is not speaking on behalf of the two masters, but this really doesn’t look like their handiwork.”

He didn’t dare talk about the poisoning before, but if they wanted him kidnapped, they would have done it many years ago. Why wait until now? That would be the epitome of neglectfulness.

In this paid murder disguised as a kidnapping, the Liu family could indeed be ruled out as suspects. But the murderer was someone Liu Xiaozhu knew. It didn’t take someone like Liu Zhenqing to realize this. Something must have happened recently, or Liu Xiaozhu must have offended someone in the past few days, causing the other party to neatly pay for his murder.

However, even though he was rather curious about this point, Liu Zhenqing still disregarded his principles and ignored it. In any case, he had lost his memory, so he would not express any opinions.

The steward had a headache from Jin Li’s noisiness, and could only change the subject: “It is thanks to the Huo army that you were saved this time. I will definitely arrange a big gift to thank them later.”

When he spoke of this, Jin Li got excited. “Right, isn’t this a story where the hero saves the beauty? Master, did you see General Huo?”

If this guy didn’t know how to use words, he shouldn’t speak. How was this like a hero saving a beauty? Besides, why was he so excited, ah?

Liu Zhenqing continued to just let it be. Confused.JPG

“It’s such a pity that Master has lost his memory,” Jin Li sighed.

The steward’s spirit rose, and he had the same “There is such a good thing?” attitude as Mo Qi.

“Cough cough cough. After all, the relationship between the two families is awkward, so it is better to have less contact. It doesn’t matter if you don’t remember. Repaying their kindness in this matter is just fine.”

“How is this possible? He is the mighty general who guards the country, and Master is obviously…..” 

Before Jin Li could finish speaking, he was glared at hard by the steward. “If you admire him so much, then enlist with the Huo family army. Don’t drag your master into mischief.”

Jin Li looked at the mystified Liu Zhenqing and wanted to say a few words, but faced with the pressure from the steward, he could only say: “Master, don’t you have anything to ask me?”

Although Liu Zhenwing was suspicious of their attitudes, to be honest, he really didn’t want to know.

“I have a question.”

Jin Li’s eyes immediately lit up.

“Did I give you your name?” Liu Zhenqing asked at last.

Taken aback, Jin Li nodded his head.

Liu Zhenqing said with satisfaction: “This is a rather good name. Come, let me spin you around.”

Jin Li looked confused as he was pulled around in a circle.^[1] What was his master doing? Had he lost his mind?

When they returned to Liu Manor, there were already people at the door to greet them.

Judging from their postures, it seemed that most of the family members were here, but their expressions were different and few of them were sincere. Their identities could basically be judged by their positions, ages, and clothing, but Liu Zhenqing couldn’t be bothered to greet them, and simply pretended to have lost his memory as he gazed at them with a blank expression.

“The child has suffered. His body……it seems to have a lot of injuries. Let Second Uncle take a look quickly. We’ll have him checked carefully later, give him treatment, and use the best medicines.”

Liu Zhenqing: The Second Uncle of the Liu family is a cat that weeps over the dead mouse and feigns compassion.

“I told you not to run around and make trouble for the family. What if you frightened your grandfather? How childish.”

Liu Zhenqing: The Third Master of the Liu family is angry and brainless.

Liu Zhenqing turned his gaze directly toward Old Master Liu.

The gray-haired Old Master Liu trembled slightly at the sight of Liu Zhenqing. He was clearly a bit agitated, but still maintained his dignity and face. 

“What’s wrong? You’re standing there without saying a word,” the old man said, looking him up and down with a frown.

The steward hurried forward and whispered a few words to him. The old man’s expression suddenly changed, and with a wave of his hand, he instructed everyone to stop standing there and return to the entrance hall.

After having Jin Li help Liu Zhenqing sit down, he did not instruct everyone else to do so. Everyone exchanged confused glances, and it wasn’t until the old man instructed the steward to tell them of Liu Zhenqing’s situation that their expressions immediately became wondrous and varied.

Then, he called the best doctor in the capital for a consultation. The man looked at the prescription that had been brought back and saw that it was consistent with Doctor Tang’s words, and the old man’s heart relaxed. The original doctor in the manor was detained.

After this tossing and turning, everyone in the hall stood obediently with assorted expressions. Liu Zhenqing watched this amazing face-changing performance and pretty much got the idea.

The steward soon came forward to whisper, and the old man directly announced that the arrested doctor had confessed that he wanted to deliberately harm the young master’s health, and then make money by treating it. He had been handed over to the government for disposal.

Liu Zhenqing drank his tea with a half-smile on his face. Instead of conducting a private investigation, he had decided to make a big show of it, and this was the end result. It seemed to be as he expected. The old man had weighed the situation and focused on giving a warning. He had no intention of investigating the real culprit on his grandson’s behalf.

Finally, he instructed that all the servants who took care of Liu Zhenqing were to be cleaned up, dispatched bodyguards to protect him, and hired a resident doctor to take care of him every day. This was a disguised form of protection and comfort for his grandson.

The eldest grandson was useless to the family, and the two sons were useful to the family. This approach could be considered heartless but reasonable.

And now the old man naturally knew who the real culprits were, and would issue a private warning and punishment. No matter how bold they were, at least as long as the old man lived, they would not dare to mess around. After all, they were already on the old man’s blacklist, and this also made everyone tighten their skin.

“As for hiring a murderer to kill someone.” The old man’s brow furrowed. He also couldn’t figure it out, and said directly, “Tomorrow, Lao Er and Lao San will go to the magistrate to inquire about the situation.”

The two of them swiftly nodded in agreement, but the old man still gave them a sideways look and said: “You two come to the study with me. I have something to say to you.”

The expressions of the two immediately turned ugly, and they looked at each other with uncertainty.

The old man gave Liu Zhenqing a few more words of comfort. Seeing that his eldest grandson didn’t have the same admiration for him as before, his heart felt a little sour and he said: “Everyone disperse. Don’t stand around, let Zhu’er go back to recuperate.”

The two aunts stepped forward at once to protect Liu Zhenqing. Knowing that he had lost his memory, they even specially introduced themselves.

Liu Zhenqing smiled at the most sincere person among them and said: “Second Aunt, ah, I’m not dead yet. Auntie doesn’t have to worry about mourning me so soon.”

The second aunt’s stout, natural face suddenly showed uncontrolled astonishment. There was no grandmother in the family, so the second aunt had the duty of the mistress, and her natal family was also an important partner of the Liu family.

Liu Zhenqing continued lightly: “The doctor also said that the poison will be cured soon, and I won’t suffer any pain.”

The second aunt’s face suddenly looked unsightly, and she could hardly maintain her dignity.

When he returned to Liu Xiaozhu’s elegant courtyard, Liu Zhenqing was waited upon and took a comfortable bath, then changed his dressings, drank his medicine, and lay down in bed. He felt as if he hadn’t rested in such a peaceful environment for a long time.

This night, he must have a good sleep.

As he was lying down, he felt something under the pillow. He fumbled for it and took it out, and was immediately confused.

A military book?!

Wasn’t Liu Xiaoshu a wealthy and idle young master? Could it be that he still liked to read military books, and was pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger? Liu Zhenqing was amused by his little discovery, and couldn’t help but smile and open it up curiously.

The first page listed the author of the book…..Huo Zanyuan?

Wasn’t this Huo Fenglie’s courtesy name? This military book was written by him?

Just as he was pondering, there was a sudden noise at the door.

Liu Zhenqing’s attention was instantly drawn to it, and he was about to ask someone to inquire when he saw Jin Li being pushed inside.

Then two aggressive young men came in. He had just met them, the children of the Second and Third Uncles.

The two of them were so furious that they disregarded etiquette and rushed into the inner room, cursing Liu Zhenqing angrily. “Liu Xiaozhu! It was your bad luck that you were targeted and kidnapped. It had nothing to do with us brothers, so why should it be blamed on us!”

“Right, my Er-ge and I had nothing to do with this matter, yet you filed a complaint and slandered us! You caused us to be punished because of your evil intentions!”

Jin Li immediately ran in front of Lui Zhenqing and blocked the way: “Second Young Master, Third Young Master, my master has lost his memory. How could he file a complaint? Don’t take this opportunity to bully others!”

“If this wasn’t the case, my father wouldn’t have beaten me!”

Liu Zhenqing took a look. En, the slap marks were obvious. He was beaten hard.

“My father didn’t just beat me! He is also making me copy books, and deducted my monthly allowance!”

En, as expected, there was a lot of resentment. It was likely that the two fathers were angry and took it out on their children, or they were not sure if the kidnapping had anything to do with the people around them and gave them an arbitrary warning.

Only then did the two angrily come here to get back at him.

Liu Zhenqing was wearing white underclothes, with his black hair hanging lazily over his shoulders. He sat cross-legged on the bed, resting his chin on one hand as he regarded them, and after they were finished blustering, he said calmly: “Although I’ve lost my memory, according to the general rules, won’t you be punished by Grandfather if you speak to your elder brother like this?”

Liu Zhenqing’s innocent questioned rendered the two of them speechless at once.

“Do you still dare to complain?”

Liu Zhenqing tilted his head: “Why don’t you dare? Or is it that you don’t dare to accuse me publicly?”

The two of them suddenly didn’t know what to say to this person who usually swallowed his anger, and could only point their fingers at Liu Zhenqing with trembling hands.

“Jin Li, go find Grandfather,” Liu Zhenqing said directly. Seeing the two people’s faces were distorted and they wanted to take action, he said: “Let’s see which is faster, the time it takes for Grandfather to come here or for you to beat me to death.”

The two people’s faces turned every color under the sun, and they could only clench their fists, as if they were the ones being bullied.

Jin Li responded loudly and was about to leave, but was stopped.

“We just came to explain the situation, we didn’t do anything!” 

“Right, we didn’t do anything, we just told you it wasn’t us!”

Liu Zhenqing gave a satisfied smile and raised a hand in invitation.

The two of them were sullen and frustrated, but the second brother glanced at the military book beside Liu Zhenqing’s pillow and thought of the perfect angle of attack.

He said triumphantly: “Hey, you’re even reading General Huo’s military book! You really don’t intend to give up!”

The Third Young Master immediately caught on and said sarcastically: “It’s not that he’s unwilling to give up, but that he’s not afraid of death! Don’t think there was anything special about General Huo’s rescue this time, he was just doing his duty.”

Judging from the proud faces of the two of them, they probably wanted to suppress his spirit. Liu Zhenqing didn’t quite understand their angle. Could it be that Liu Xiaozhu admired General Huo as much as Jin Li did?

Looking at the military book in his hand, this seemed like a possibility. But had these two wise guys forgotten that he had “amnesia?”

“We brothers are doing this for your own good, and advising you to return from your lost ways. Keeping in mind the origin of our two families, be careful of getting killed by General Huo if you offend him.”

Liu Zhenqing’s face darkened slightly. They didn’t need to remind him of this. When he died, he drifted around for a few days and knew very clearly how much the Huo army and the people of the Huo family hated him. 

Rumor had it that he took personal revenge because Huo-dage’s wife was also his own former junior sister and fiance. Later, the engagement was broken off and the two of them married. But that was in the eyes of outsiders. Perhaps it wasn’t the case, but the Huo family knew this much.

As for…..Huo-dage’s death and the souls of one hundred thousand people in the Huo family army…..that was indeed his fault. He was guilty. He had even concealed the truth from the young Huo Fenglie, so he was most afraid of meeting him.

It was reasonable for Huo Fenglie to resent him now, and normal for the Liu family to be implicated.

The corners of Liu Zhenqing’s lips rose with difficulty. “Really? Then I’ll be careful.”

The two of them suddenly choked. They recalled that he knew nothing, but were still unwilling to give in, and said menacingly: “Then you’d better remember one thing. Back then, our distant brother Liu Zhenqing killed killed his older brother, General Huo. After Liu Zhenqing died, younger General Huo returned and learned the truth, so he dug up Liu Zhenqing’s grave, smashed his bones, and spread his ashes, burning it all! Do you understand how much General Huo hates people named Liu?”

Liu Zhenqing suddenly stiffened, and all the blood in his body seemed to freeze in an instant. If excessive blood loss had made his face pale, then at this moment, he had no blood left in it.

So……so ruthless?

Was this still the Huo Fenglie he remembered?

Liu Zhenqing’s heart beat like a drum, and he gave a dry smile.

There was a one year age difference between him and Huo-dage, but a ten year difference between him and Huo Fenglie. They were not in the same age group, so they didn’t spend much time together, but he naturally treated his sworn brother’s younger brother as a didi and cherished him dearly. However, they basically didn’t spend much time together in the years before his death, so they could be considered estranged.

So it was actually……normal for Huo Fenglie to do something like this in order to vent his anger for his brother and the dead souls of the Huo family army. When all was said and done, he was already dead. Apart from the initial stimulation, Liu Zhenqing gradually felt nothing at all.

Liu Zhenqing lowered his eyes and hid his expression. The others couldn’t see what he looked like, and only thought he was shocked.

Jin Li was close by, and heard his master murmuring to himself.

“After Er-gou gained power, he dared to dig up graves in the middle of the night…..I’m going to sue you later in front of your brother. It’s a pity that I saved your life in the first place. So heartless.”

Jin Li looked at his master in astonishment. His mind was truly broken.

“You two……you stop talking, my master is feeling uncomfortable.”

With the situation like this, those two fellows were naturally proud and thought they had hit a nerve. Only, they saw Liu Zhenqing raise his head: “Oh, I understand, then you two should also be careful. We are all members of the Liu family, so we will all be treated the same. Maybe General Huo will be in a bad mood one day and wipe us out!”

As soon as these words were spoken, the two people burst into laughter. “Sure enough, he doesn’t remember anything.”

“It’s so funny. No matter how fierce he is, he will never trouble us. After all, we never provoke him and annoy him all day long, unlike you.”

“Ah?” Liu Zhenqing really felt that something was wrong now.

The two said in a sarcastic and truly humiliating tone: “You idiot cutsleeve, have you forgotten that you fell in love with General Huo at first sight two years ago and pronounced your affection in public?”

“In the past two years, whenever General Huo was in the capital, you would pester him. You would go to either the General’s Manor of the military camp and pursue him blatantly. I really don’t know if you should be called brave or brainless.”

“Everyone in the capital knows that you’re obsessed with him. If I were General Huo, I would have cut you down with a sword. It’s obvious that there is a feud between us, yet you still had such delusions. It was just crazy. That he would save you can be considered a mercy on his part.”

Liu Zhenqing: What are they talking about? I seem to be hallucinating.

The military book under the pillow, the strange words of the steward, the strange looks of the Huo army……

That strange expression of, “He’s lost his memory. Can there be such a good thing?”

Liu Zhenqing: ! ! !

A blush gradually creeped up Liu Zhenqing’s pale cheeks and finally spread to his entire face. It wasn’t that he was shy, just that this was social death!

Huo Fenglie, who was a little kid in his eyes, had become the love object of his new identity!

God, ah! Take me! Send me a plane, I’ll reimburse you! 

How the hell was this more disconcerting than his grave being dug up, ah! His heart needed this stimulation to stop, okay?!

This damn love-hate relationship, why did it have to have so many twists and turns!

. . . . . . .

With the mission completed, the two brothers Mo Yu and Mo Qi reported back to the General’s Manor. 

One of the necessary things was to ask the general’s intentions.

“When our people were searching for remnants on the mountain, they found gold and silver treasures buried somewhere. We don’t know if they are the belongings of people who escaped or unclaimed property,” Mo Yu said.

“I suppose that even if it is unclaimed property, its origins are unknown. But if it was clean, who would bury it in the mountains?” Mo Qi said.

Huo Fenglie was studying a sand table. He didn’t think much of it, and said directly: “Give it to the magistrate. It will be confiscated if there is no rightful owner.”

“Yes!”

Mo Qi paused before he left, thinking, it couldn’t be that fellow, right? After all, it was rare to see him looking so plain when they met. But after thinking about it, he realized that this was impossible. That young master had no concept of money. He carried different accessories on him every day, and sometimes didn’t even realize if he dropped them. How could he dig a hole to hide money while running for his life, ah? Just leave it to the magistrate to find the owner. If it was really his, then it would be returned.

The next day, Second Master Liu and Third Master Liu went to the magistrate to inquire about the kidnapping incident, and happened to be asked about the unclaimed property. As soon as the two of them saw the tattered clothes wrapped around the outside, they knew who they belonged to. But then they heard that if the owner was not found, it would be confiscated for the Huo army, and they immediately ingratiated themselves, telling the magistrate that it could be confiscated. Wealth was something external to one’s life.

On the other side, Liu Zhenqing, who had been sleeping in a haze, awakened from a dream. He held his forehead and murmured: “Fortunately, it was just a dream. The digging of graves and crazy pursuit of love is all fake, hahaha…..fuck! How could it be fake! Some guy’s sweetheart’s military strategy book was left right there! 

His heart was exhausted. Destroy it, ba!

Liu Zhenqing covered himself with the quilt and continued to sleep. He inwardly vowed to recover from his injuries as soon as possible, plan it all out, and then calmly stay away from everything in the capital. 

Although he didn’t know how much property he could take with him, there was the wife money buried on the mountain, which was enough for him to start a new life.

He must fly far away! No one could stop him!

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[1] Jin Li’s name translates to Koi Fish, so LZQ is spinning him for good luck. 🙂 ⮐

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Consider donating via Kofi here!

Chapter Two << Table of Contents >> Chapter Four

When the old military doctor was brought into camp, he saw a very slender young man lying on the bed. The man’s hair was tied back casually, and there was blood residue at the tips. The white strips of fabric on him were soaked through. A cold gust of wind blew in as the door curtain opened, lightly stirring a few strands of black hair. With snowy skin and dark hair, he didn’t look like a soldier at all.

“What’s going on?” The old military doctor asked doubtfully.

“We encountered a kidnapping incident when we went up the mountain. This is the hostage.”

“Why does he look familiar?”

“Why wouldn’t he? He’s Liu Xiaozhu of the Liu family.”

“That rich little young master?”

“That’s him. Considering his usual appearance, it’s no wonder that he got kidnapped. It seems he was robbed by the thieves.”

“Huh, it’s rare to see him dressed so dully.”

As Liu Zhenqing lay there, the corner of his mouth that no one could see twitched. He thought to himself, can you two stop pointing out flaws? Can you give me some useful information? Apart from knowing his current identity as Liu Xiaozhu, and that he usually liked to wear gold and silver to show off in the city, he still didn’t know the key points.

Liu Zhenqing didn’t know when he had developed the habit, but no matter how serious his injury was, it was difficult for him to fall into a long-term coma. He had woken up as soon as the military doctor arrived. He wanted to gain some useful information, but the result was only complaints.

“Only, General Huo will probably have a headache if he finds him here.”

Liu Zhenqing’s heart skipped a beat. The Huo family had produced generals for generations, both men and women. Which general was this?

“Our general won’t care. I haven’t seen the general have any mood swings toward anyone. But we should quickly treat the wound and send him back to the Liu family in order to avoid trouble. Our task here is not yet completed.”

When Liu Zhenqing heard this, he made the judgment that no matter what, the relationship between Liu Xiaozhu and their General Huo should not be good. But it wasn’t to the point of wanting him dead, so he still came to his rescue.

After explaining the matter, the one with the soldier’s voice departed, leaving the old military doctor to treat the wounds.

In this situation, Liu Zhenqing naturally couldn’t continue to pretend to be asleep. He could only feign that he had just woken up, and appear as if his head hurt.

The old military doctor said, “Young Master Liu, don’t move. The wound is quite serious, let me take care of it.”

“I’ve troubled you.” Liu Zhenqing raised his head to take a look. The sixty-year-old military doctor was in good spirits. He looked familiar, but Liu Zhenqing couldn’t remember him for the moment. He said: “What is this old gentleman called?”

“My surname is Tang.”

The unhesitating answer proved that this body did not know Doctor Tang, but the old man knew him. In this case, he must be well-known far and wide.

He said by the way: “I seem to have pain in several places on my body.”

He was being treated anyway, so Liu Zhenqing would do his best to make use of it. Although he could treat himself with his medical skills, he was mentally and physically tired, and it was more comfortable to lie down and not move.

Doctor Tang did not feel awkward, and dutifully helped him deal with all the wounds on his body. In the end, he pressed his wrist with a frown, seeming hesitant.

“Doctor Tang, what is it? Is something the matter?”

“Young Master Liu, you have been poisoned, and for a long time. It…..should not have been by the people who kidnapped you. This……”

Liu Zhenqing’s expression remained unchanged. “Can it be treated?”

Doctor Tang said: “Young Master, don’t worry. I will give you a prescription that will let it fade away slowly. It isn’t difficult. It’s just that in the future……don’t let yourself be poisoned again. If you are unsure, test everything you put in your mouth with a silver needle.”

“What would this poison do in the end?” Liu Zhenqing asked.

“When it accumulates to a certain extent, a man’s vitality will go out like an oil lamp going dry, leading to weakness and death,” Doctor Tang said with a worried look on his face.

Seeing that Liu Zhenqing was silent, Doctor Tang sighed, feeling that although this young and worldly man was a little aimless and leisurely, he still had quite a shock when facing this sort of matter. After all, this was most likely done by someone close to him. Sure enough, there was evil inside the big family, but he could only point it out.

While Doctor Tang was turning around to write the prescription, Liu Zhenqing reached out to feel his pulse and determine if what the man said was true. Then he darted his eyes……

After writing the prescription, Doctor Tang was about to speak a few words of comfort when he saw Liu Zhenqing suddenly raise his head and say with an innocent expression: “Then, my current amnesia is related to this poison?”

Doctor Tang was so surprised that his white beard stood up. He quickly waved his hand and said that it had nothing to do with the poison, then reexamined Liu Zhenqing at once. He could only speculate that it was caused by the serious head injury.

“The young master truly doesn’t remember anything?”

Liu Zhenqing nodded.

When encountering such a situation, Doctor Tang was worried, ah, and could only keep inquiring and examining.

This gave Liu Zhenqing the best chance to understand the current situation, but the answer to each question just made his heart feel colder.

This was a mountain near the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty. He was the eldest grandson of the Imperial merchant Liu family, and should be a distant relative of the original Liu family. No wonder the faces were somewhat similar. It was not an illusion, but an actual relationship.

It was now the thirteenth year since the new emperor, Yuan Jue, succeeded the throne, which was about eight years since Liu Zhenqing’s death.

Yuan Jue was still serving as the emperor.

Then the current leader of the Huo family army should be……the second eldest son of the Huo family, Huo Fenglie!

If he was still alive.

Doctor Tang didn’t mention his general, and Liu Zhenqing was too guilty to bring it up. If he was dead, then in the end, Liu Zhenqing was the one who had harmed him. If he was alive, then he must hate him.

Liu Zhenqing could guess why this doctor looked familiar. He used to go to the military camp with Huo-dage, and he had a good memory. After many years, even if he met someone once, he would have somewhat of an impression of them. Generally, the people who worked as military doctors in the Huo army would stay for many years, and he should have met the other party in the military camp.

The more Liu Zhenqing thought about the past, the more unwilling he became. Why was he made to time travel again, and even to a time when they were all acquaintances? He really just wanted to be reincarnated without any distractions!

He couldn’t really tell what he felt, but in any case, he was pretty tired.

Doctor Tang’s inquiries were fruitless, and he could only say: “This doctor has little talent and little knowledge. When you return to Liu Manor, Young Master Liu’s family will definitely invite the best doctors to treat him.”

Just as he was talking, someone opened the curtain and entered. The second he spoke, it was clear that he was the person who had just left.

“Young Master Liu is awake? Just in time, someone from the Liu family is looking for him outside. If he can move, I will send Young Master Liu off at once.” This man was young, with a standard martial figure, but his features were a little immature and he couldn’t hide his impatience. There was some innocent arrogance on his face, and he obviously felt that Liu Zhenqing was delaying things here.

“I don’t know…..” Liu Zhenqing also wanted to leave, but there was something he had to ask clearly.

He was about to ask about the ruffians, and had only opened his mouth when the other person habitually answered first, “Our general isn’t here!”

“…….” Who wants to ask about your general ?! I’m also afraid of meeting your general, who knows who it could be, ah! It could be said that at this point, he was afraid to meet any acquaintances. Although the other party couldn’t recognize him, it was better to just disappear without seeing them.

Before Liu Zhenqing could speak, Doctor Tang said dutifully: “Mo Qi, Young Master Liu probably doesn’t want to ask about this. He is in a bad situation now and cannot be left to someone he doesn’t trust. Are you sure the visitors are safe?”

“What’s wrong?” Mo Qi put away his impatience and asked in confusion.

Doctor Tang explained it to him.

Mo Qi looked at Liu Zhenqing in shock, as if he had suddenly realized something. No wonder this fellow hadn’t bothered to ask questions as soon as he came in.

And Liu Zhenqing saw that Mo Qi’s expression when he looked at him was full of wonder. Then he asked: “Amnesia? Then you don’t know me either?”

Liu Zhenqing shook his head apologetically. He really didn’t know him. When he was still alive, this young guy was still a teenager. And he spoke with a bit of a northern accent, so he probably wasn’t a local.

Mo Qi sucked in a sharp breath, and his eyes immediately widened. He said excitedly: “Then our general……”

Liu Zhenqing paused.

He heard a name that came as no surprise.

“Huo Fenglie! Huo Zhanyuan!”^[1]

The courtesy name ‘Zhanyuan’ was given to him by Huo-dage on the battlefield, but after he died, Huo Fenglie wasn’t old enough to use it.

Liu Zhenqing’s heart relaxed, and he looked at Mo Qi blankly without even blinking his eyes.

At this time, Mo Qi was not only astonished, but also revealed the suppressed expression of, “Can there be such a good thing?”

Liu Zhenqing narrowed his eyes slightly. He felt that everyone in the Huo army had a strange reaction toward this body. Why did he feel that it wasn’t just because of that ‘treacherous minister who once harmed the Huo family army?’

Mo Qi was quick to say resolutely: “I have seen the visitors. They are the steward of Liu Manor and Young Master Liu’s personal servant. It is said that Liu Manor paid the ransom but could not wait for the other party to release him, so they quickly led officers and soldiers to hunt them down.”

Mo Qi wanted to make a complaint. He felt that the Liu family was unreliable and could not save the hostage in such a way. It was the stupidest thing to do.

Liu Zhenqing naturally understood how stupid this approach was. He didn’t know if the Liu family was really that stupid, or if they didn’t want to save their eldest grandson at all. “What about those two ruffians?”

“One was shot and killed, and the other was captured alive by the soldiers present. But they didn’t get anything out of him during interrogation. They didn’t know who their employer was, and were just paid to do things,” Mo Qi said.

“Many thanks.” Liu Zhenqing didn’t bother to ask further questions. They were sure to be caught, and he was safe for the time being. Instead, he said in addition: “I was poisoned and lost my memory. Sorry for troubling you, but can you……”

Doctor Tang: Keep it a secret? You’re afraid of a family scandal, so you’ll secretly detoxify yourself? Making noise about it is no good?

Mo Qi: Keep it a secret? The enemy is overt, so you’ll strategize in secret, lest the other party find another way to harm you after being defeated, and dig out the murderer at the same time?

“Make it known in a major way. At the very least, have a serious talk about it later in front of the officials and the Liu family,” Liu Zhenqing said calmly.

Doctor Tang: “Uh…..all right.”

Mo Qi: Sure enough, he doesn’t have a brain.

Liu Zhenqing gave a faint smile.

Waking up and turning the tide was what the standard time traveler would do. He was too tired in his previous life, and now he just wanted to take it easy. What revenge and finding the murderer? Forget it, ba.

Although Liu Zhenqing still cherished his life, now he just wanted to find a chance to rid himself of everything. If the heavens wouldn’t give him a chance at a complete rebirth, he would create one for himself. After everything was stable, he would find an opportunity to change his identity and remain anonymous, stay away from the capital, and be a wealthy salted fish. The money for a wife on the mountain could not be buried in vain.

With such publicity, those who wanted to harm him would definitely not take action in the short term. He would give himself time to breathe, and when the time came, he would take his leave.

Liu Zhenqing thought this was very good, and with the methods he had honed over the years, this small thing would be easy to handle. Doctor Tang and Mo Qi clearly wanted to insinuate a warning to him, but in the end, this damnable thing couldn’t be persuaded.

Damnable thing Liu Zhenqing glanced at them and couldn’t help but find it amusing. The people of the Huo army were as upright as ever. But it was also a bit strange. It seemed that the Huo army didn’t express much anger toward the “Liu family.”

After he went out, he ignored the soldiers in the camp who were looking at him strangely, and saw a team of dozens of people in front of the military camp entrance. They included officers and soldiers, as well as members of the Liu family.

The two people standing in front were so anxious that their eyes were red. When the old and young men saw Liu Zhenqing, they rushed over, but were stopped by the guards at the entrance.

“First Young Master!”

“Master!”

Liu Zhenqing walked over and was tugged at and fussed over by the two of them. The looks on their faces were quite genuine.

Seeing that Liu Zhenqing had no reaction, they thought that he was seriously injured and in a daze. However, when they heard what Doctor Tang and Mo Qi had to say, they suddenly burst into tears.

“Damn it, who did this! Who actually hurt our First Young Master like this!”

“Master, my master, why don’t you even remember Jin Li?^[2] I have served you since childhood!”

The two of them were aghast, angry, and grieved, full of emotion at the revelation of such shocking news. People would at least give their most instinctive reaction at first before covering it up a bit, but these two did not. Liu Zhenqing didn’t have time to observe the servants behind them. At least these two were worthy of belief and truly cared about the original owner.

Jin Li pressed toward Liu Zhenqing to ask questions, and the steward quickly thanked Mo Qi.

Mo Qi waved his hand, hoping that this large group of people would leave quickly and not delay things.

Just as everyone was encircling Li Zhenqing to board the carriage, people galloped over on warhorses. Liu Zhenqing knew something of the structure of the Huo family army. It looked like an urgent message was being sent.

From a distance, he could only hear “capture the enemy, “ruined the plan,” “escaped to the depths,” and “lost the trace.”

Mo Qi’s expression turned ugly.

Liu Zhenqing could probably understand what was going on.

It likely had something to do with him asking them to catch the ruffians.

Mo Qi sullenly arranged for support.

Then he heard Liu Zhenqing’s voice not far away: “Lieutenant General Mo, can you come over here? I have something to say.”

Mo Qi revealed his impatience once more. Although the victim could not be blamed for this matter, it was impossible to indulge him in such a situation. They must also split up in order not to cause delays. However, the failure of the mission was still depressing. Those they wanted to capture were spies who were harmful to Great Zhou, not petty thieves.

Everyone was leaving at this moment, and there were still various demands. This was indeed a troublesome person.

With a livid face, Mo Qi finished arrangements and instructed everyone to mount their horses and prepare to set off. He quickly went to the carriage, about to refuse all of Liu Zhenqing’s unreasonable requests.

Only, the man turned his head to look at the distant mountain and said: “The wind on the mountain is blowing southeast, and the mountain is high in the southeast but low in the northwest, sloping downward in a semi-encircling manner. The place we came down should be in the southeast. To catch the people hiding there, has the lieutenant general considered burning the mountain?”

Mo Qi’s heart trembled, and he suddenly raised his head to look at Liu Zhenqing standing on the carriage.

Liu Zhenqing ducked his head and lowered his eyes, smiling leisurely. He was wrapped in a fox fur cloak that had just been put on him by a servant. The white fur made his injury look even more morbid, but there was a sort of imposing manner that made people hold their breath.

Mo Qi couldn’t describe it for a moment. It felt like facing a general, someone who was born to be superior……it put awe in one’s heart.

“Burn the mountain?” Mo Qi was momentarily overwhelmed by Liu Zhenqing’s sudden concern for serious business.

“Of course, don’t actually burn the whole thing.” Although there was no such thing as being thrown in prison for setting fire to a mountain in this era, it still needed to be said. “Just use the flammable dead leaves on the mountain and use a few tricks to make the smoke thicker. You should know how to do this. Follow the direction of the mountain wind and create some momentum, and you can naturally create the illusion that the mountain is burning. Leave an exit in the northwest corner and just wait and see.”

Mo Qi was dumbfounded. What kind of grand plan was this? No, what kind of deception was this, ah? It was ruthless and cunning.

“That…..will they throw themselves into the trap?”

“When the smoke billows and all the animals on the mountain flee to one place, they will also panic and choose their own way. Unless they are willing to die for their cause, with such a large movement, they are most likely to think that you are burning the mountain behind to force them to death, and can only run away as desperately as possible. After all, an aggressive move on our territory would seem very reasonable to the enemy. If they can’t hide, they at least won’t run toward a place where there is fire. Then the next step is to catch the turtle in an urn. They can give it a try or wait to die. As long as they have brains in their heads, they will make this choice.”

Mo Qi was truly speechless, and didn’t even react when his subordinate called him from behind.

Liu Zhenqing gathered up his robes. His body was thin, and he was still cold. He exhaled a white breath and said: “This is the only way I can make up for the losses I’ve caused you. If it works, I won’t owe you any life-saving grace. The mountains and weather are suitable, so go quickly.”

Having said this, Liu Zhenqing got into the carriage. The Huo army was excellent at traditional warfare between two forces, and no matter what, it would be a battle involving more than a hundred people. But encircling and capturing people in a mountainous and forested area was not suitable for their kind of large-scale warfare. A small trick to deceive people was enough.

Mo Qi was so overcome by this method that he forgot to speak for a while, until he was pulled onto his horse by his subordinates who had come to help him. 

When they met up with Mo Yu, he was the first to dismount. The two were brothers, as well as lieutenants of the Huo army. When they got together, Mo Yu was astonished that Liu Zhenqing had come up with such a method, and after some discussion, they decided to use it.

Mo Qi, who was guarding the northwest with his men, was uneasy and somewhat doubtful of the feasibility of this method. However, when he saw a group of animals running over in terror, Mo Qi immediately alerted his troops, and sure enough, they saw ten people appear soon after.

The number of people traveling on this mission was not high, but there were enough to handle this. The task was efficiently completed, and the people were all taken down.

But at this moment, a sharp shriek pierced the air, and a dark shadow shot out of the trees and straight into the sky. 

Mo Qi felt that something was wrong after looking closely, so he promptly took a bow and arrow out from behind him, nocked an arrow, and shot.

That was a falcon, which was extremely fast and was not a bird that would appear in this area. It was obviously brought by the other party. They must have known that they couldn’t escape, and intended to take a gamble on the falcon to convey the news. It must not be allowed to get away.

But the distance was too far. Mo Qi’s arrow couldn’t hit the falcon, and the arrows of others couldn’t make up for it. Everyone was anxious at this time.

The distinctive sound of a horse braying approached in the distance. The war horses under the soldiers immediately paced, taking two steps back and to the side, as if to give up their positions.

In an instant, everyone’s spirits soared, and Mo Qi was even happier. Just as he was about to turn around, he felt a strong wind approach. 

As a figure flashed in front of him, he felt someone step on his shoulder. When he returned to his senses, that person had already taken the bow and arrow in his hands.

When he raised his head again, a tall, sharp figure had jumped up high, practically hanging in the air with a stern and austere aura. The full arc of the bow conveyed the huge power of his straightened arm, and with one mid-air shot, the arrow soared into the sky!

The whoosh was accompanied by a brief cry as the prey was shot and fell.

“The general is mighty!” Everyone immediately gave a loud cheer, endlessly excited.

The captured people were all stunned, craning their necks to look at the man and curse: “Huo Fenglie! Sooner or later, you will die at the hands of my king!”

The figure in the air fell, and there was already a tall war horse as dark as night standing below him. Looking at his stature, he was strong and tall, and had a good figure that could only be achieved through long-term horseback riding. With civil and military sleeves, black armor, and dark red robes, he was as chilling as ice.

Huo Fenglie waved his hand to signal others to find the prey, and looked at the captured people.

He was handsome. The kind of handsome that was like a sword in its sheath, dangerous and sharp, but with restraint. He had a majestic presence without being angry, but his aura was overwhelming, and his every move was filled with the chill of the cold wind.

Those people wanted to curse him again, but heard Huo Fenglie say: “Knock them all unconscious.”

Following this order, the soldiers neatly knocked out the prisoners to prevent them from committing suicide. The shot falcon was soon recovered, and the mission was completed perfectly.

“Set fire to the mountain?” Huo Fenglie listened to Mo Qi’s report and looked at the thick smoke that was gradually dissipating in the distance.

Mo Qi quickly explained. He thought Huo Fenglie would be impressed, but didn’t expect the other party’s completely unsurprised expression. He had clearly figured out the theory when this method was mentioned. As expected of the great general who could command the three armies at the age of twenty-six. He was truly clever. Wait, wasn’t this the same as admitting that that other fellow was truly clever? Mo Qi accepted it. After all, the impression that fellow left on him was very bad, but he had to be grateful.

“Did you come up with it?” Huo Fenglie glanced over. Although it was a question, his low tone seemed to already contain the answer. 

Mo Qi was crushed. His boss knew him so well that it was impossible for him to show off. Naturally, he would not be greedy for credit. For once, he spoke up for Liu Zhenqing and made him look good  in front of the general.

Incidentally, he mentioned the kidnapping, poisoning, and amnesia.

But unsurprisingly, their general didn’t react at all to this bold person who had been harassing him for a long time. He just answered: “The report should be written accurately.”

This meant credit should be given to those who deserved it.

But if not for his amnesia, he probably wouldn’t want credit at all, and would just want the general to look at him.

But that fellow had no discernment. Because of his ancestral connections, anyone in the know understood that there really was no chance. After all, their general hated that treacherous minister. If the current Liu family hadn’t made great contributions, they wouldn’t have been treated so leniently.

In terms of seniority, Liu Xiaozhu and that treacherous minister could be regarded as distant brothers.

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[1] Huo Fenglie’s courtesy name, Zhanyuan (战渊), can be translated as War Abyss. Badass. ⮐

[2] Jin Li (锦鲤) means Koi fish. ⮐

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Chapter One << Table of Contents >> Chapter Three

T/N: Guys, I’ve started yet another project! This one has everything – romance, action, intrigue, sweetness, angst…..and an absolutely shameless protagonist! Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

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It was the twentieth day of the twelfth lunar month in the capital, the coldest day of the year. 

The streets were covered with snow, icicles hung from the eaves, and the cold wind blew into one’s face like a hard slap from the heavens.

No one would want to go out in such weather.

But this day had been buzzing since early in the morning. People rushed about to tell each other the news in spite of the cold wind, and lively crowds could be seen everywhere on the streets.

A group of people even knelt down and worshiped around the thirty-meter-high Coiling Dragon Jade Pillar.

“Heaven has eyes! The ancestors bless us! Finally, the treacherous minister no longer has a chance to harm our Great Zhou Dynasty again! He died well!”

“If you ask me, such a death was too easy for Liu Zhenqing, a treacherous minister who brought disaster to the country!”

The Three Kings Rebellion had just come to an end the day before, and this morning, they heard that the traitor Liu Zhenqing had died violently.

This was simply a pleasant surprise for the Great Zhou Dynasty. After all, once the three kings were successively destroyed, there was a shadow in everyone’s hearts. Even though the three kings were rebels and traitors and deserved to be destroyed, if they were all gone, who could compete with Liu Zhenqing, who covered the sky with one hand and had all the power in the world! Could they rely on the little emperor who had not yet taken charge of the government or the officials and ministers who had little power?

Perhaps Liu Zhenqing would seek to establish his throne the next day, and the Great Zhou Dynasty would have to change its name.

But they never expected that once everyone woke up anxiously, they would hear of such a happy event. It was almost like a dream.

The powerful official’s death was so sudden.

“It’s true? Liu Zhenqing died like this? How did he die?”

“I heard that he was kidnapped by the last rebel prince and died with him! It can be regarded as doing a good deed for the Yuan family!”

“Didn’t I hear that he was kidnapped and accidentally shot to death by the rescuers?”

 “It doesn’t matter how he died as long as he’s dead. A disloyal and unjust person such as Liu Zhenqing, if the former emperor and the First Prince hadn’t trusted him and promoted him, how could a dandy who always caused trouble everywhere take charge of the regent’s golden seal to assist the new emperor and sit in the high position of Prime Minister of the country?”

“Ai, he was given too much power and got carried away. I heard that Vice Prime Minister Jiang once wanted to reorganize the cabinet to displace his authority, so that the new emperor could smoothly transition to power, but he was forcibly suppressed by Liu Zhenqing. He also conveniently imprisoned a group of loyal veterans in the Sky Prison. Isn’t this just trying to control the situation in the government, bring chaos to the laws and discipline of the court, and use the new emperor as a puppet? His disloyalty is obvious to everybody.”

“Thanks to the Liu family, who had generations of loyal ministers and good generals, such a thing happened. It was a complete embarrassment to the Liu family.”

“The Liu family has practically died out, and there is no need for the emperor to exterminate the whole clan. This is retribution.”

Since there was no intact family, something else would have to be done. Everyone was gearing up and waiting for the new emperor to handle Liu Zhenqing’s affairs.

On the first day, the officials who went to arrest the faction members returned without success. Who were the faction members? It seemed they didn’t know for the moment.

It must be that Liu Zhenqing was isolated and forsaken, detested by everyone. All those who were with him in the beginning abandoned the darkness and embraced the light.

On the second day, the officials who raided the manor returned empty-handed. What about the money he embezzled and the bribes he accepted? Why hadn’t they found a single valuable thing in the house?

Liu Zhenqing must have been suspicious and cunning, with a guilty conscience. He was afraid of failure and left a way out for himself, hiding all his money.

Then, everyone waited for the collection of incriminating evidence.

This happened very quickly. Within seven days, evidence came to the palace from all directions of the Zhou Dynasty. Many of the evil rumors spread over the past few years were true.

There was severe flooding one year, and corrupt officials made money from the disaster relief. Some people had appealed desperately, but were ignored, and it was Liu Zhenqing’s tacit approval that led to numerous casualties among the victims that year.

At that time, excessive taxes and levies were imposed in the south, and the problem was serious. A good official was recommended to go and investigate, but he was assassinated by Liu Zhenqing. In the end, even his family members in the capital were wiped out.

One time, a southwest border city was being harassed by foreign tribes, and struggled to maintain its position while waiting for support. Liu Zhenqing went there and directly forced the good general who was guarding the city to his death, offering his head to appease the anger of the foreign tribes. This nearly caused the border city to fall and the common people to suffer.

What was even more outrageous was that he tricked his way into becoming a sworn brother, then took advantage of Marshal Huo resisting the enemy while being besieged to cut off his food and fodder. Heedless of the situation of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he only indulged in his own selfish desires and vented his personal vendettas, causing Marshal Huo and the Huo family’s 100,000 troops to be trapped to death. And at that time, it was said that he was having an affair with the enemy prince. If the servants hadn’t seen the prince’s name engraved on his back later, no one would have known that he had done such a shameless and scandalous thing.

He persecuted the faithful and honest and was malevolent, his crime the same as treason.

Not to mention what he did in the capital. He violated the law of heaven by not giving the Emperor his due, and deliberately suppressed him. He killed innocent people indiscriminately, and was vicious and merciless. He imprisoned the royal family and ostracized clan members. There were even rumors that the Three Kings were planning to leave the capital, but Liu Zhenqing refused, so it was likely that he was the one who forced the Three Kings to rebel.

At this point, his crimes had been determined, and there were too many to write down.

When the three characters “Liu Zhenqing” were engraved on the side of the Coiling Dragon Jade Pillar, condemning him to infamy for thousands of years, the crowd became agitated.

Even if someone occasionally expressed regret, he would be scolded with disdain and ridicule when they said that the former Liu Zhenqing was most likely to be remembered as a gifted scholar, a handsome man, and a loyal minister.

But who could forget in the bottom of their hearts that bright young man in the capital back then?

There were two versions of things. They said he was a dandy, but that was because he lived a free and easy life and did not behave according to conventional sense.

They once saw him, a handsome man dressed in snow white, casually leaning against a window in a comfortable posture. He was audacious enough to make fun of a royal grandson, who had forcibly taken a young girl on the roadside. When the other party was getting angry, he took the wine in his hand and drank it without haste, and smiled elegantly as he told the other party to cool down, lest he become so angry that he spontaneously combusted. As a result, when the other party came to attack him, he had already jumped out the window and fled without a care for propriety, leaving no trace of his dignity and face. He used a real man’s ability to stand firm or bend to the extreme, making the other person hop about in anger.

There were countless such incidents, which made others not know whether to laugh or cry. At the same time, they discovered that this person was very talented and handsome, and he gradually became famous.

Before he came of age, he was well-known all over the country, and his beauty was unparalleled.

Subsequently, there was turmoil in the government and the public, and he entered the court to assist the new emperor.

And who could deny that the original Liu Zhenqing was able to make good decisions and had extraordinary courage? 

When the troops were getting ready to fight outside the pass and the court was in turmoil, he could fight with the ministers verbally and settle disputes in the court. Together with Marshal Huo, he became the pillar of the crumbling Zhou Dynasty.

It was a pity that this person would eventually be made hateful by power.

However, the new emperor probably still cared about the many years of master-disciple relationship between them, and left him a coffin. He was not qualified to enter the Liu family cemetery, so he could only be settled in a common graveyard.

There were angry people who went to the grave to spit on it and curse, but every time they went back, they would find that the tomb had been cleaned up. They never expected that someone would help such a villain, and everyone became even angrier.

It wasn’t until half a year later that Huo Fenglie, who had taken over the Huo family army, returned victoriously. As one of the victims, as well as the younger brother of Marshal Huo, he naturally hated Liu Zhenqing to the core.

Then the grave was dug up, the bones were crushed, and the ashes were scattered and burned. Even the emperor didn’t pursue the matter after hearing about it.

In the end, he deserved what he deserved.

Eight years passed, and nobody mentioned Liu Zhenqing anymore.

. . . . . . .

Liu Zhenqing felt that he had slept for a long time.

Accompanied by a pain that felt like his heart was splitting in two, Liu Zhenqing slowly woke up.

All of a sudden, a slap hit him in the face. The blow made his head buzz and his cheek hurt.

A not quite distinct voice reached his ears, gradually becoming clearer. “Be honest! Don’t force me to kill you now!”

Liu Zhenqing immediately felt himself being pushed to the ground, and a pair of hands groped around his body, pulling at his clothes.

Wait? What was going on? Wasn’t he dead? Even if he wasn’t dead, who would dare offend him so, a powerful official who was below one and above more than ten thousand? Was he not afraid of being flayed alive by him?

A sneer came from nearby. “Lao San, I told you to search for money and items. What, are you interested?”

“In any case, the boss wants to sell him to Nanfeng Pavilion after everything is done, so why not have a taste first and inspect the goods? It will probably cost a lot of money to sleep with one like this in the future!”

“Heh, it’s up to you. Finish up before the boss comes back. Don’t waste time.”

Presently, there was the sound of somebody leaving and closing the door.

From the initial confusion to actually feeling in crisis at this moment, Liu Zhenqing ignored his dizziness and bit his tongue to keep himself as awake as possible.

Because his body felt weak, he didn’t struggle desperately, but quietly observed.

The roof above his head was dilapidated, and there was a toppled Buddha statue in the corner of his eye. This place was a ruined temple, devoid of people. Calling for help would definitely be useless.

The person holding him down was a tall, brawny man with dark skin and yellow in the whites of his eyes. His face was villainous and there was a dagger at his waist. He was probably a fugitive.

“Damn it, the clothes of a young master are troublesome!”

How could an impatient man endure such clothing with three layers inside and out, and a cumbersome belt? The quality was pretty good, and it couldn’t even be torn. He was so impatient that he wanted to just pull out his dagger and cut it open.

Suddenly, a crisp, pleading voice sounded.

“Da-ge, I’ll, I’ll take it off myself. Please don’t hurt me.”

The man was stunned for a moment, and looked at the young master beneath him who suddenly understood his circumstances. There was still a palm print on his fair and tender cheek, and his previous expression of wanting to commit suicide seemed as if it had not completely vanished yet.

That pair of tearful eyes were very beautiful upon closer inspection. The clear eyes and long, thick lashes were still stained with moisture, and then he blinked a few times, as if fanning out the aura contained in them. The lips that spoke softly were even more moist, looking tasty and delicious.

He didn’t think this young man was that attractive before, and was only aroused by his struggling. But at this moment, in order to avoid suffering, he slightly raised his eyes with the corners of his mouth slightly curled, his expression full of submission and obedience. His appearance became charming, and it was as if he had changed into a different person.

The man’s lower body was so excited that his brain stopped working. Proud that he had tamed a high-ranking young man from a noble family, he straightened up magnanimously and motioned for the other person to take off his clothes.

Liu Zhenqing looked grateful at once, and propped up his body with shaking hands, using both hands to touch his belt.

“That’s right. This is what life is like. Be good and gege will arrange for you to go to a better place. You will suffer less in the future……”

Before the man could finish his arrogant words, he heard a sound. He sensed a cold light flash before his eyes, and before he could react, his neck felt slightly cold and he could no longer make a sound when he tried to speak. He could only instinctively reach up and cover his neck, trying in vain to stop the blood that poured out continuously.

The man stared at the person before him with wide, disbelieving eyes. He could see Liu Zhenqing holding a dagger in one hand, the one that had been hanging at his waist. With one hand, he carefully wiped away the blood that had accidentally splashed onto his face. His movements were calm and casual, but the chill in his eyes was awe-inspiring.

“Life is so long, but you had to take a shortcut. Isn’t this the end? Allow me to arrange for you to return home, ba.”

Liu Zhenqing smiled and stretched out a hand to tap the man’s forehead, and the man fell straight down. Then he stood up, but he still felt dizzy.

Touching his head, Liu Zhenqing found blood on his hand. It was obvious that his head had been seriously injured before.

Before he could think carefully about the current situation, there was conversation outside the door.

“Boss, why are you back so early?”

“Damn it, I got the ransom, but the reward wasn’t given. They said they wouldn’t give it until the government saw the body. This is to prevent us from benefiting twice.”

“Then what should we do? This kind of beauty is worth a lot of money if sold.”

“No matter how beautiful he is, it won’t be as much money as the reward. And when I just went up the mountain, I saw a group of people who had something off about them. There were quite a lot of them, and I don’t know if they’re here to look for him. I feel like they’re dangerous, and it is no longer safe here. Where is Lao San?”

“He’s……he’s busy in there!”

“Tsk! That trash. Come, let’s kill the hostage and retreat quickly.”

The two of them prepared to rush in as they spoke, calling for Lao San while kicking in the door.

As a result, as soon as they came in, they saw their brother lying in a pool of blood, and the person who had been kidnapped not long ago had disappeared.

There was a back door to this ruined temple. The two people’s expressions immediately changed, and they chased after him at once. As soon as they exited the back door, they could indeed see a figure in white flashing into the forest in the distance. The two men immediately shouted and began to chase him.

He didn’t know if he had a concussion. Not only was he dizzy, but his body felt extremely heavy as he fled, and he pretty much couldn’t run. He could already hear curses in the wind, but there was no other option than to make a run for it.

Don’t look at how neatly he just defeated the enemy. He didn’t know martial arts at all, and that move was a special one that Huo-dage taught him. It could only be used when the opponent was undefended and had the skills of a three-legged cat.

Now that there were two opponents who were big and powerful and determined to kill him, those tricks to take advantage of another’s unpreparedness were useless.

Sensing that the sounds behind him were getting closer and closer, Liu Zhenqing was just considering which direction he would be most likely to encounter the group of people the boss had just mentioned, when his foot suddenly slipped and he promptly fell down the slope beside him.

Liu Zhenqing inwardly cursed the heavens. Wouldn’t this kind of accident cost him his life? What bad luck.

However, no matter how difficult the predicament was, he would instinctively refuse to give up, and instead observe the situation. Suddenly, his eyes flashed. He was close to a mountain pass, and at this time, there were shouts and footsteps on the mountain road above. Soon, the sounds moved forward. They apparently hadn’t realized that Liu Zhenqing had accidentally fallen.

Liu Zhenqing took a deep breath and silently retracted the three-character sutra he had just sent to the heavens.

It was not advisable to stay here for long. Liu Zhenqing quickly got up and dragged his aching body in the opposite direction, until his willpower could no longer drive his body and he really had to slow down.

As he was looking for a secluded place to hide, there happened to be a small puddle. Liu Zhenqing hurried over to drink the water and relieve his dry throat.

As a result, he was stunned the moment he lowered his head.

Although he had long felt that the stature of this body didn’t suit him, he also guessed that he had been reborn once more. But when he saw this completely unfamiliar face, Liu Zhenqing was still stunned for a handful of seconds.

Damn, he had transmigrated again.

In fact, he was originally a young social worker in modern times. After his sudden death, he had traveled to a completely unknown historical dynasty, the Yuan clan’s Great Zhou Dynasty, and became the ten-year-old young master of the Liu family living in the capital. He was raised with fine clothes and good food, and grew up happily. Although he died tragically later, he felt that enough was enough, and he was ready to drink Meng Po’s soup and be reincarnated. Unexpectedly, the King of Hell didn’t follow the rules, and put him into circulation at will.

He would definitely file a complaint next time!

Liu Zhenqing touched his chin and looked at the reflection in the water carefully. The figure in the water swayed, as if also looking up at him.

After removing the dirt and grime, the face was gentle and delicate. The facial features weren’t too prominent and the proportions were just right, with a pair of lively eyes. Their color was the same as his original eyes, a rare light amber. The eyes were mellow, the lips full and red, and the overall appearance was not aggressive.

It looked much more honest than his last face did, which was an absolute advantage for someone accustomed to deceiving others.

He didn’t know if it was just him, but he felt that it was somewhat similar to his last face, although he couldn’t pinpoint the details.

He had no memory of this body. It could only be determined based on the conversations between those three people that this was a wealthy young master. This transmigration was much worse than the last one.

He would definitely file a complaint!

The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. The blood had been congealed before, but now fresh blood flowed out, likely because of the running just now. His head was dizzy.

The wound was not small. Based on the basic medical skills he had accumulated in his previous life, he could judge that the original owner had died because of this.

He stood up and used the dagger to cut a strip from his clothes, intending to bandage his head.

He glanced at it casually and found special dark patterns on the clothes, and couldn’t help being surprised.

No wonder that big guy couldn’t tear it apart. Wasn’t this the special fabric made by the Liu family?

Could it be that since he was still related to the Liu family, this was still the Zhou Dynasty? No way, ah, there was no one left in the original Liu family. After his death, even if there were still Liu family members, they would definitely have been implicated.

His head hurt. Forget it, he wouldn’t think about it for now.

This fabric was strong, and would function as half a suit of armor when worn. Naturally, the finished product was also very heavy. No wonder it was hard for him to run. It wasn’t entirely because of his injury.

Although this cumbersome clothing was elegant and refined, it was not conducive to escaping and must be removed.

He took advantage of the chance to reduce the weight, but after fumbling for a while, Liu Zhenqing was very frustrated with himself. He was so anxious to escape just now that he didn’t realize that the burden on his body was not just the clothing.

There was a necklace made entirely of gold and inlaid with precious jade, a white jade belt, several high quality jade pendants, a hair tie that was actually made of high-grade black jade, and a bag full of money in his sleeve. This outfit, which exuded the aroma of a fat sheep, was completely comprised of gold and jade, forming a moving treasure chest. This aesthetic was truly vulgar. And it also added an additional ten kilograms of weight to him.

No wonder that man was ordered to search for property before!

After tidying up, he wore a single warm, light layer, feeling as light as a swallow.

Looking down again, he found that he was slender and of a medium height, and looked a little frail. He was currently wearing a white shirt, but didn’t care about propriety. His life was at stake.

Liu Zhenqing did not run away immediately. For every step, he thought ten steps ahead. Looking at the wealth everywhere, he slewed his eyes and found a nearby tree, wrapped his belonging in his clothes, dug a hole with the dagger, and hid them well.

Perhaps this would be the capital for him to settle down and find a wife in the future.

After doing this well, Liu Zhenqing listened carefully to the movements on the mountain while fumbling downhill.

The mountain was not high. Maybe if he got down to the roadside, he would have the chance to seek help.

Naturally, Liu Zhenqing also expected that the two ruffians would wait at the foot of the mountain if they were unable to find him, so he could only move forward cautiously.

Sure enough, he soon saw two people looking around at the intersection. Liu Zhenqing crouched in the tall grass and watched for a while, then decided to just change his path. However, just as he was about to stand up, he felt extremely dizzy. Liu Zhenqing knew that he wouldn’t last long with this injury. He was going to set the record for the shortest transmigration.

While he was in a dilemma, he heard the sound of galloping horse hooves not far away.

Liu Zhenqing looked up and saw a group of people on horseback about to pass by on the road. They also noticed the people on the roadside, and the two ruffians immediately bowed and made way for the team, trying to pretend that they were just passers-by.

But they were still surrounded by several horses.

“Who are you! What are you doing here!”

“These humble ones are from a landowner’s family at the foot of the mountain. We are here to catch an escaped slave.”

Liu Zhenqing frowned. He saw that the group of people were tall and upright. Their backs were straight and there was somewhat of a pattern to their movements, as if they had been trained. They should be officials. They weren’t wearing uniforms, only basic military robes, so their identities could not be determined. But they had obviously gone up the mountain for some purpose. Although they were wary of the two people they had met, they weren’t on guard against them, and were obviously certain that the two ruffians were not their targets. So they probably didn’t care much about these two people……

After some thought, Liu Zhenqing could only seize the opportunity. He rushed forward suddenly. “Heroes, help me, these two are bandits. They kidnapped me here, please help me, heroes!”

Liu Zhenqing continued to stumble and crawl, rushing toward the horses in an extremely embarrassing manner. The horses were so frightened that they became restless, but they were quickly stabilized, and everyone looked down at the person slumped on the ground.

The ruffians were naturally shocked at this moment, and hurriedly said: “This is the escaped slave we were just talking about. He’s a lunatic who talks nonsense. We’ll take him away now.”

As he spoke, he was about to step forward and pull Liu Zhenqing away, but in the next second, a long sword swung down and stopped in front of him. 

The ruffian’s face paled, and he tried his best to explain and try to save the situation. Even though he said this, his body had already instinctively retreated. In the end, he had a guilty conscience. 

Someone said, “Seize them,” and the two of them fled. People immediately gave chase.

Liu Zhenqing was a little surprised. He had thought to say a few words, but didn’t expect that these people would believe him right away. 

When he looked up, he felt certain at once. These people were either looking at him with wide eyes or complex expressions, and must be familiar with this body.

“Young Master Liu, are you all right?”

Liu Zhenqing said with peace of mind: I’m indeed from the Liu family.

The one who had just stretched out his sword to stop that man got off his horse to help him. Although his tone was harsh, he was still polite. Just as Liu Zhenqing was about to say a few words of thanks, he spied the wolf symbol clearly engraved on the sword hanging at his waist.

The wolf was the symbol of General Huo.

Liu Zhenqing suddenly felt as if he couldn’t catch his breath. General Huo had been polite and friendly to him before, but his soul had lingered after his death, and he’d seen what happened afterward. It was entirely conceivable that if General Huo’s people found out that the core of this body had been replaced by Liu Zhenqing, they would immediately cut him to pieces. And they probably wouldn’t give someone from the Liu family a second glance.

The Liu family and the Huo family? Who on earth was he now, ah!

Before he could regain his breath, his body truly hit its limit. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

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Table of Contents >> Chapter Two

Author: Yun Feixie (云非邪)

Synopsis:

Liu Zhenqing was a notorious powerful official in the history of the Zhou Dynasty.

It was rumored that he was ruthless, brought trouble to the Imperial Court, used the young emperor as a puppet, and had a disloyal heart.

However, heaven had eyes. In the end, Liu Zhenqing was shot through the heart by an arrow and died tragically.

No one could calculate how many sins he had committed. They only knew that after his death, a victim dug up his grave in the middle of the night, crushed his bones, and scattered his ashes.

After his death, Liu Zhenqing reflected on himself. He, a transmigrator, had been reborn as the favored eldest son of a prominent noble family. How had he become a treacherous official?

It was probably because he worked too hard.

He swore that in his next life, he would treat himself well. As a result, in the blink of an eye, he became a distant relative of the same clan eight years later.

Although he was still the eldest son, he was a love-minded cutsleeve. Moreover, everyone in the capital knew that he was frantically pursuing the man who had dug up his predecessor’s grave, General Huo Fenglie.

The people around him still had grudges against him from his previous life, and he was attacked from both sides.

Liu Zhenqing: ……How about I keep a low profile?

Thus, the traitorous official didn’t want to take revenge, but only wanted to stop trying, escape, and live a wonderful retired life as soon as possible.

But when he finally arrived in a carriage at the city gates, the city was sealed shut.

When he looked back, the God of War Huo Fenglie, who was supposed to be standing in front of thousands of troops without a change of expression, was in a state of disorder. As if he had lost his manners, he grabbed Liu Zhenqing’s wrist tightly and lowered his scarlet eyes, his voice slightly unstable: You…….where are you going?

He said: You can’t leave, come home with me.

Liu Zhenqing: ……

Fuck! He couldn’t have recognized him, right? According to the rumors, he was the villain who killed his brother, coveted his sister-in-law, and plotted against his country!

Thinking of the fate of his last body, he shivered.

The little wolf cub finally took home the bone he had longed for. Soon after, the gossiping souls of the people in the capital burned brightly.

Wasn’t it said that the General had a person he was deeply in love with, which was why he had refused the Emperor’s marriage offers several times? Why had he started to hide away a lover? Was he hiding that idiot who had originally harassed him?

Sure enough, a strong man could be won over with persistence!

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Chapter 1	Chapter 60	Chapter 119
Chapter 2	Chapter 61	Chapter 120
Chapter 3	Chapter 62	Chapter 121
Chapter 4	Chapter 63	Chapter 122
Chapter 5	Chapter 64	Chapter 123
Chapter 6	Chapter 65	Chapter 124
Chapter 7	Chapter 66	Chapter 125
Chapter 8	Chapter 67	Chapter 126
Chapter 9	Chapter 68	Chapter 127
Chapter 10	Chapter 69	Chapter 128
Chapter 11	Chapter 70	Chapter 129
Chapter 12	Chapter 71	Chapter 130
Chapter 13	Chapter 72	Chapter 131
Chapter 14	Chapter 73	Chapter 132
Chapter 15	Chapter 74	Chapter 133
Chapter 16	Chapter 75	Chapter 134
Chapter 17	Chapter 76	Chapter 135
Chapter 18	Chapter 77	Chapter 136
Chapter 19	Chapter 78	Chapter 137
Chapter 20	Chapter 79	Chapter 138
Chapter 21	Chapter 80	Chapter 139
Chapter 22	Chapter 81	Chapter 140
Chapter 23	Chapter 82	Chapter 141
Chapter 24	Chapter 83	Chapter 142
Chapter 25	Chapter 84	Chapter 143
Chapter 26	Chapter 85	Chapter 144
Chapter 27	Chapter 86	Chapter 145
Chapter 28	Chapter 87	Chapter 146
Chapter 29	Chapter 88	Chapter 147
Chapter 30	Chapter 89	Chapter 148
Chapter 31	Chapter 90	Wedding Extra 1
Chapter 32	Chapter 91	Wedding Extra 2
Chapter 33	Chapter 92	Wedding Extra 3
Chapter 34	Chapter 93	Wedding Extra 4
Chapter 35	Chapter 94	Wedding Extra 5
Chapter 36	Chapter 95	Wedding Extra 6
Chapter 37	Chapter 96	Wedding Extra 7
Chapter 38	Chapter 97	Alt Timeline Extra 8
Chapter 39	Chapter 98	Alt Timeline Extra 9
Chapter 40	Chapter 99	Alt Timeline Extra 10
Chapter 41	Chapter 100	Alt Timeline Extra 11
Chapter 42	Chapter 101	Alt Timeline Extra 12
Chapter 43	Chapter 102	Alt Timeline Extra 13
Chapter 44	Chapter 103	Alt Timeline Extra 14
Chapter 45	Chapter 104	Alt Timeline Extra 15
Chapter 46	Chapter 105	Alt Timeline Extra 16
Chapter 47	Chapter 106	Alt Timeline Extra 17
Chapter 48	Chapter 107	Alt Timeline Extra 18
Chapter 49	Chapter 108	Alt Timeline Extra 19
Chapter 50	Chapter 109	Alt Timeline Extra 20
Chapter 51	Chapter 110	Alt Timeline Extra 21
Chapter 52	Chapter 111	Alt Timeline Extra 22
Chapter 53	Chapter 112	Alt Timeline Extra 23
Chapter 54	Chapter 113	Alt Timeline Extra 24
Chapter 55	Chapter 114	Alt Timeline Extra 25
Chapter 56	Chapter 115	Alt Timeline Extra 26
Chapter 57	Chapter 116	Alt Timeline Extra 27
Chapter 58	Chapter 117	Alt Timeline Extra 28
Chapter 59	Chapter 118	Alt Timeline Extra 29

“You…..” Lucas shouted in a whisper: “In broad daylight, you’re offending public decency!”

“I’m not taking this!”

Luo Ran glanced at the hand that Lucas was pressing against the wall near his head, and said with a smile: “In broad daylight, you’re offending public decency.”

Lucas scoffed coldly, and directly kissed Luo Ran’s lips, rubbing them hard.

Luo Ran frowned slightly and reached out to push this person away.

It really was broad daylight, and this was a corridor where people came and went…..!

The kiss was so intense that the two grew increasingly short of breath.

Lucas hugged him tightly, moving down from his lips to bite his chin.

“Admiral, you’re a dog…..ah.”

Lucas held Luo Ran’s Adam’s apple in his mouth, and said: “I told you to call me by name.”

Lucas pressed down on Luo Ran’s neck and bit his gland.

“Lucas!” Luo Ran said: “Let’s go back to the room.”

Lucas smiled, picked him up, and went back to the room.

And half a day later, the test results came out.

It was an important time, so the efficiency was naturally heightened.

In the meeting room, Xia Zhi stood at the front and pointed to the report on the projection screen as he explained.

“All our previous conjectures about EX1 are correct, as we’ve discovered.” Xia Zhi said: “This is a female insect. In their society, the female insect is the most noble existence, responsible for reproducing and protecting the group. Therefore, they are born with the desire to protect their own children and the males of the group. Of course, they also have the ability to do so.”

Xia Zhi pointed to the hard armor on the insect’s back and said: “Only the female insect can produce hard armor by itself to release the radiation that causes stone to deteriorate. The male insects and larvae are actually very small. The female insects are initially small, of course, but as they grow older, they develop increasingly thicker carapaces.”

“That is to say, the thicker the armor on the female insect, the higher the status.”

“So the mother insect probably regards Secretary Luo as its child.”

Luo Ran frowned slightly.

It turned out that he had guessed correctly.

No wonder the insect was so stubborn about taking him back.

Lucas glanced at Luo Ran.

This would be difficult to deal with.

Xia Zhi continued: “As for the plant that Secretary Luo brought back, after countless tests and experiments, it has been confirmed that it can indeed resolve the side effects of UNK radiation!”

As soon as these words came out, there was an uproar in the conference room.

This meant that UNK could be refined and used.

However, it should be used an appropriate amount, instead of injecting it or even mining it in bulk like the First Prince advocated before.

“I’ve blocked the news, and none of the personnel in the institute will disclose half of it.” Xia Zhi said: “We’re waiting on the decision of the Admiral and His Royal Highness the Second Prince.”

“En.”

Luo Ran also thought, in that case, killing or driving out the female insect was not necessary. Its work and rest led to the birth of UNK, but if the side effects could really be resolved now, it wouldn’t be a bad thing to use UNK correctly.

Lucas asked: “Is there any way to get the female insect to go back underground?”

“No.” Xia Zhi shook his head and said: “Not unless it achieves its purpose.”

“Since that’s the case, the matter of the insect is suspended. It can’t leave its habitat in the cave, so let’s leave it at that.” Lucas waved his hand and said: “The star pirates on the outskirts of Chonghua City are our primary target.”

“Yes!”

The mine on the outskirts of Chonghua City was occupied by star pirates, and the Empire had to find the most suitable route of attack.

The projection screen was replaced by a large map. It had been provided by Mu Yuan, and the roads to the mine were intricate.

After discussing for a while, Luo Ran began to feel nauseous.

“Secretary Luo?” Wang Qiuyang, who was sitting opposite Luo Ran, said anxiously: “What’s wrong with Secretary Luo?!”

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the conference room became tense and looked at Luo Ran worriedly.

Xia Zhi stuffed warm water and medicine into his hands.

“It’s okay.” Luo Ran took it and rubbed his chest, saying: “Continue.”

Luo Xingyuan said: “Do you need to go and rest?”

“Yes!” Freeman didn’t even blink.

These adjutants, including Luo Xingyuan, still felt that it was magical. Secretary Luo was actually a delicate, fragrant, and soft Omega……

There were no Omegas on the front lines of the military, but not only could Luo Ran fight, he could also lead the army. Over the past few years, the military department had been properly handled so that Lucas had no worries at all, and the entire department was grateful.

This was so astonishing that it seemed to defy the laws of nature. It caused everyone to look at Luo Ran and unconsciously want to take care of him more, not to mention that there was still an excellent heir to the Empire.

“The meeting is adjourned.” Lucas turned off the projection screen and said: “It’s very late, and we’ll have a meeting when Mu Yuan and the Luobing army join us tomorrow morning.”

“Yes!”

After the conference room emptied, Lucas stepped forward and gently rubbed the top of Luo Ran’s hair. He had worked hard.

“I’m fine.” Saying this, he reached out to grab Lucas’s sleeve.

When an Omega was pregnant, he would be stickier toward his Alpha, and Luo Ran had become more dependent on Lucas’s pheromones. 

“Adm…..Lucas…..”

“En?”

“Can I…..wear your jacket?” Luo Ran said with red ears: “This will also reduce your troubles.”

Swish—

In the next moment, Lucas took off his jacket and put it on Luo Ran himself.

“I’ll give you the jacket, and I’ll give you the person.” Lucas grinned and said: “If you want to hug me, just tell me, and I’ll be here whenever you want.”

Luo Ran grasped the military jacket that was a few sizes too big for him and gave a low “En.”

Soon after, Lucas went to military headquarters to deal with the mechas, and Luo Ran planned to go back to the room and catch up on sleep. He had become more and more lethargic lately.

On the way, he saw Luo Xingyuan standing to the side as if waiting for him.

Luo Ran smiled and said: “Ge.”

“Ranran…..” Luo Xingyuan glanced at Luo Ran and stopped talking.

Luo Ran asked: “How is Adjutant Rong?”

“He’s in good health, and he’s recovering pretty well.” Luo Xingyuan paused and said: “Ranran, that……”

“What is it?”

Luo Xingyuan lowered his head and scratched the back of it, saying: “I’m sorry, Ranran. Our parents and I didn’t know you were an Omega……”

Luo Ran paused.

Luo Xingyuan’s face flushed, and he said: “It’s this brother who is sorry and didn’t take good care of you.”

“It’s this brother’s fault.”

Luo Xingyuan thought to himself, Luo Ran had just grown up at that time, but the little Omega worked outside to earn money so that he could study. How difficult and grievous it was, ah.

He wasn’t anything at all like an older brother.

“It’s fine, it’s over. We’ve already said we won’t talk about the past.” Luo Ran reached out and lightly patted Luo Xingyuan’s shoulder. “Isn’t it all good now?”

“En.” Luo Xingyuan glanced at Luo Ran’s military jacket, and said with a smile: “Thanks to the Admiral.”

Luo Ran’s lips hooked up slightly.

“Our family really owes you so much.” Luo Xingyuan sighed heavily.

Then Luo Xingyuan opened his arms and said: “Come here, give me a hug.”

Luo Ran’s body was full of Lucas’s pheromones, which would cause discomfort to Luo Xingyuan, so the two of them didn’t get too close, and only hugged slightly.

It was enough to convey their feelings.

“Don’t say you owe me…..I just got lucky.”

Back then, he lost his family and entire ethnic group and survived being raised by an insect for more than half a year. He was already crazy and mute, and after being sent to the orphanage, no family wanted him other than the counselors arranged by Admiral Alton.

It was Luo Cheng who had served as a counselor to guide Luo Ran. Later, when he saw how pitiful the child was, he brought him home and personally took him in hand, teaching him word by word.

Luo Ran said with a smile: “When I go back later, I might be reprimanded by Dad for concealing my gender.”

“What are you afraid of? You have the Admiral to back you up.” Luo Xingyuan rolled his eyes, smiling as he said: “Speaking of which, are you and the Admiral planning to get married after this campaign is over? The whole Empire is expecting you to get married and have children, and it will definitely go crazy if you announce your pregnancy.

“I’m not sure…..” Luo Ran was a little embarrassed.

Luo Xingyuan raised his eyebrows and said: “The Admiral hasn’t proposed or mentioned it to you yet?”

“No.” Luo Ran said helplessly: “The Admiral should be the type who won’t propose, and would rather get married simply and casually.”

Lucas was a straightforward man, and Luo Ran couldn’t imagine him romantically proposing or preparing for a wedding.

The two talked and laughed, and then Luo Xingyuan sent Luo Ran back to the room.

. . . . . . .

The next day, Mu Yuan brought the Luobing army to meet them. Lucas took the eastern route, and Mu Yuan took the western route, and the two sides finally joined together. Mu Yuan had also gotten great results, and wiped out many star pirates along the way.

Two days later, after finalizing their plans and route, the Imperial army set off for the mine.

Just as they were about to arrive, the star pirates sent “envoys” to negotiate.

“Our request is very simple.” The envoy was a prickly one, and his attitude was quite arrogant as he spoke: “Huntsman asks that you let us officially settle in the capital, give us citizenship, and we will stop fighting. A truce is good for the Empire and good for us. How about it?”

Lucas raised his eyebrows and said with a smile: “Bull. Shit.”

This was the star pirates’ only request, but it was also the Empire’s bottom line and something that could not be agreed to.

If they agreed, all their sacrifices and persistence would be meaningless.

If they agreed, they would be simply selling the Empire to the wicked, luring wolves into the house. If they opened the doors and let the predators officially settle in, they would have a fair and just reason to plunder.

“We can compromise.” The envoy said with a straight face: “We can sign a contract, and we won’t make trouble after we settle in. We can also provide assets.”

The envoy smiled and said: “Admiral, a single word from you can save many lives and end the fighting. You should know what should be done.”

For this negotiation, the Council, the Empire, and the Luobing Royal Family had also sent people. Mu Yuan was also there, but naturally, Lucas’s decision was final.

“I’ll say it again.” Lucas said with a smile: “Bullshit.”

“…….” The envoy’s complexion changed, and he sneered coldly: “Admiral, otherwise, do you have some conditions?”

“My conditions are also very simple.” Lucas said: “Take your people and weapons and scram to another galaxy, and never invade again. Then it is not impossible for our Empire to withdraw its troops.”

The envoy also smiled and said: “Bullshit.”

“This being the case, the result is clear. There is nothing to talk about.” Mu Yuan got up and waved his hand to motion for his adjutant to come forward.

The envoy warned: “When two countries are at war, envoys should not be killed.”

Lucas sneered. He naturally wouldn’t kill the envoy, but he wanted to scare him.

“Of course we won’t kill them. We have many criminal laws in our Empire.” Wang Qiuyang said with a smile: “Not only do we not kill them, we also give them superior treatment.”

Freeman played along: “That is, the supreme member experience.”

The envoy’s face was a little pale, and he said stiffly: “You…..the Empire only has this small measure?”

“You’ll know right away how big this measure is.”

After the envoy was taken away, Luo Ran could hear his wailing from outside the door, likely because he was so frightened.

Luo Ran couldn’t laugh or cry.

Lucas got up and went to the mecha room, and Luo Ran followed.

Glancing at the person next to him, Lucas asked in a low voice: “There is only one stronghold before the mine?”

“En.”

“Can you do it?”

Luo Ran pulled the military coat that belonged to Lucas tight to his body and said with a smile: “I can. Rest assured, Admiral.”

“Besides, Adjutant Wang and Adjutant Freeman are here, but on the Admiral’s side……”

The troops were divided into two groups, with Luo Ran on one side and Lucas on the other.

Luo Ran said: “The Admiral must pay attention to safety.”

“En.”

Lucas opened his arms to Luo Ran and said with a smile: “Hug me and charge up your Admiral.”

This was their consistent ritual. It had lasted so many years, and now was no exception.

Luo Ran reached out and hugged Lucas.

“Charging complete. I’ve been charged by the top Omega.” Lucas quickly planted a kiss on Luo Ran’s cheek.

The rest of the adjutants couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.

“Then, see you all at the mine.”

---

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Chapter Ninety-One << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Three

The plane landed in Haishi on time.

As soon as Pei Yi and the other three walked out of the airplane pick-up port, the saw a familiar figure.

They made eye contact.

Gu Jianshen walked up with a smile. “Mr. Yi, Mr. Li, we meet again. Welcome back to Haishi.”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan glanced at each other, a little surprised by Gu Jianshen’s appearance. The latter said, “Mr. Gu, why are you here in person? Wouldn’t it be enough to send a staff member from your company?”

“How is that possible, ah?” Gu Jianshen shook hands with them and responded jokingly, “Letting ordinary staff receive two big bosses who are our partners. If you’re not greeted well, it would be our Weiyi’s fault.”

The group of people walked to the car and opened the trunk.

Gu Jianshen tried to help Qiao Dong move the suitcase, but Qiao Dong moved it by himself.

Gu Jianshen saw Qiao Dong’s small stature and said, “You can’t tell by looking at him, but this little brother is quite strong!”

Pei Yi smiled and said, “Let me introduce you. This is my assistant, Qiao Dong. You can contact me through him in the future for follow-up matters.”

Gu Jianshen nodded. “Okay, let’s get in the car! I’ll take you to the hotel to check in!”

As requested in advance, they had already booked an independent suite in the hotel where the competition was held last time.

Qiao Dong sat in the front row at the request of the two bosses, while Pei Yi and Li Yuan chose to sit in the back row.

The car slowly started and drove smoothly onto the roadway leading into the city.

Gu Jianshen, who was driving, brought up the topic again, “It will be almost half past six when we arrive at the hotel. I arranged dinner in advance. Will Mr. Yi and Mr. Li eat a little bit? It’s just the right…..”

Halfway through his words, he fell silent.

Through the rearview mirror, Gu Jianshen saw Pei Yi and Li Yuan sitting in the back seat, in the same posture of lowering their heads and holding their cell phones.

They were each concentrating, with smiles on their lips, sending WeChat messages to unknown people.

Qiao Dong also noticed the suddenly quiet atmosphere and in a low voice, explained in their stead, “Mr. Gu, they just got off the plane and are reporting that they’re safe.”

Gu Jianshen had been transferred from Nebula Fun Tour back to Weiyi group headquarters. Moreover, he was promoted to manager of the copyright department, which also gave him additional say regarding investments. His future was bright.

As soon as he finished speaking, Pei Yi, who had sent Bo Yueming a message that he was safe, raised his head and spoke calmly, “Sorry, Mr. Gu, what were you saying?”

Gu Jianshen knew that Pei Yi had a lover, so he didn’t blame him at all. “I said, you two must be hungry after coming all this way. I booked a private room at the hotel restaurant where you are staying, and notified the other two leaders.”

“It just so happens that we can all meet, get to know each other, and communicate.”

Pei Yi knew that the meeting between the two parties was unavoidable. “Of course, Mr. Gu. Please arrange it.”

Gu Jianshen sighed deeply and didn’t conceal anything. “This ‘Mr. Gu’ sounds really unfamiliar. We’ve at least gotten to know each other, and the cooperation some time ago was quite pleasant.”

As for the connected games and projects, they were promoted through private communications. This friendship was much deeper than that of ordinary partners.

“Well, I’m two or three years older than you, so I’ll just call you by your names. If you two are willing, you can call me Brother Gu?”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan looked at each other and said without much entanglement, “Okay.”

Gu Jianshen was very good at getting around in the world, and had considered everything for them. “You guys go back to the room to settle in later, and then come to the private room after you’ve finished tidying up. There’s no rush.”

“En.”

“We’ll trouble Brother Gu.”

. . . . . . .

This was the first time the two parties were meeting since their partnership, after all, so they couldn’t be disrespectful and make them wait.

Pei Yi and Li Yuan took a brief rest, then quickly went to the box reserved by Gu Jianshen.

In the elegantly decorated box, Gu Jianshen took the initiative to act as a middleman. “Here, let me introduce you—”

“These two are YWY’s Mr. Pei Yi and Mr. Li Yuan, and this is general assistant Qiao Dong.”

In addition to Gu Jianshen, whom they were already familiar with, there were two unfamiliar faces in the box, a man and a woman.

Gu Jianshen gestured politely toward the long-haired woman on his right, “This is Ms. Kong Li, the executive director of our movie game.”

Kong Li had graduated from a famous film school and had always been passionate about making horror movies.

Her debut film “Soul” several years before was shortlisted for an international short film award, and she also won “Best New Director” that year!

For nearly ten years, Kong Li had taken root in the filming of horror and supernatural films, and had produced many popular movies.

Weiyi was able to hire Li Kong as its executive producer this time precisely because this new shooting mode drew her interest.

“Hello, Director Kong.”

Pei Yi spoke on behalf of YWY Studios, “You are the expert and we are the laymen when it comes to movies. Please take care of us in the next two months.”

When Kong Li saw Pei Yi’s young face and his humble and sincere way of speaking, her impression of him gradually rose.

“Mr. Yi, good to meet you. You’re younger than I thought.” She reached out to shake his hand, not hiding her appreciation—

“The game script you provided this time is very interesting. I hope we can communicate more and strive to successfully test the waters of this new method.”

“Certainly.”

Seeing Kong Li greet Pei Yi and Li Yuan one by one, Gu Jianshen introduced the other person on the left.

“Also, ah, this is our gold medal game planner from Weiyi, Gao Pingfeng.”

Gao Pingfeng looked to be in his thirties or forties, and wore black thin-framed glasses. He smiled and nodded hello to Pei Yi and Li Yuan.

Gu Jianshen was as good at speaking as always. “I’m a person who has a fair eye for copyright investment, but when it comes to the plot and text, I’m a bad student.”

He patted Gao Pingfeng’s shoulder and said subtly to Pei Yi, “I know that YWY is mainly responsible for the game script this time, but—”

“If you have any ideas or tangles about the game script in the future, you can discuss it with Mr. Gao. He will cooperate with you throughout the entire process to complete the writing of the game script.”

Gao Pingfeng nudged the frame of his glasses, looking very cooperative. “Mr. Yi is in charge, and I am here to assist.”

Li Yuan knew how to get along at the wine table better than Pei Yi, so he responded politely, “Teacher Gao is too humble. I have heard your name in the gaming circle for a long time.”

Pei Yi didn’t know Gao Pingfeng very well, but he still went along and said, “Yes, ah, I would like to learn more from Teacher Gao.”

After the two parties finished their polite greetings, they took their seats.

Pei Yi’s eyes wandered unobtrusively over the faces of Kong Li and Gao Pingfeng again, and his hand under the table quickly edited and sent a WeChat message.

After finishing this, he raised his glass at Gu Jianshen’s invitation.

In the end, this night was just the first meeting, and the two parties did not delve too deeply into work. Instead, they agreed to go to Weiyi headquarters the next day for a meeting and the formal handovers.

The meal ended just after nine o’clock.

As soon as he returned to the upstairs suite of the hotel, Pei Yi took off his coat and asked, “Qiao Dong, how is the investigation going?”

“Investigation?” Li Yuan was a little confused. “What are you investigating?”

Qiao Dong explained, “Before dinner began, Brother Yi asked me to investigate Gao Pingfeng.”

The WeChat message Pei Yi hid at the dining table just now was sent to Qiao Dong.

Li Yuan responded, “No wonder. I was wondering why you left to go to the toilet and never came back.”

Qiao Dong smiled sheepishly, feeling that his excuse had been a bit clumsy.

He handed over the information compiled on the tablet and returned to the topic, “Brother Yi, take a look.”

Pei Yi took it, and listened to Qiao Dong talk at the same time—

“Gao Pingfeng is thirty-eight years old this year, but is already considered a veteran-level game architect at Weiyi headquarters. He has nearly fifteen years of experience in the industry.”

He had practically accompanied Weiyi from a small company to being at the top today.

“He’s been able to stay with a game company that doesn’t belong to him for fifteen years? That’s a long time.”

There was a hint of admiration in Pei Yi’s eyes, but at the same time, some confusion. “Then he should have quite a few game works under his belt?”

He had been on the Youtu forum for so long, but had very little impression of this person.

Pei Yi’s fingertips slowly slid down the tablet as Qiao Dong continued his introduction.

“I found out that Gao Pingfeng has participated in many small game projects, but didn’t occupy the main leadership role. However, in the past five years, he had a particularly successful hit game.”

Li Yuan answered quickly, “Seventeen Days.”

Upon hearing this game, Pei Yi suddenly realized, “He was the chief planner of the game?”

“Seventeen Days” was a turn-based RPG mobile game launched by Weiyi five years ago. The copyright of a supernatural novel had been purchased from overseas, and then localized for Chinese audiences.

Once it was launched, it caused a stir in the Chinese gaming community and was even exported to nearly ten countries. As a result, the team behind the scenes became well-known.

Li Yuan shook his head slightly. “I vaguely remember that Gao Pingfeng was not the chief planner in the beginning?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Pei Yi saw the information on the tablet. “He only took over as the chief planner of the Seventeen Days game three years ago.”

Qiao Dong added, “Brother Yi, I just checked the chronology of Seventeen Days on the game forum. Originally, the chief planner of the game from Chinese localization to distribution was Chen Min.”

“Three years ago, she fell ill due to long-term overwork and had to resign in order to recuperate, so Gao Pingfeng, who was originally the deputy planner, was promoted.”

He had been in the position of the game director of Seventeen Days until now.

Pei Yi’s eyes flickered as he gave back the tablet in his hands. “I understand, thank you for your hard work.”

Li Yuan sat down on the sofa with his friend. “Why did you want to look into Gao Pingfeng? Do you think there’s something wrong with him?”

Qiao Dong took back the tablet and said, “I saw that Teacher Gao was smiling, shouldn’t he be easy to get along with?”

Easy to get along with?

Pei Yi thought about this phrase for a moment, and only said, “I think Weiyi is still on guard against us, or in other words, they want to gain greater say and control.”

It was clearly agreed that YWY would be responsible for the game script, but now they suddenly sent Gao Pingfeng and called him an “assistant?”

To put it bluntly, didn’t they just want to get involved in the game script?

Li Yuan thought for a moment. “Although, it’s reasonable for Weiyi to do this.”

After all, it was one of the top game companies in China. The division of shares had been controlled by Pei Yi at 40-60, and even the core game script rights were controlled by YWY. It was inevitable that Weiyi’s senior management would be a little unwilling.

Pei Yi raised his eyebrows. “En, but the fact that they are unwilling doesn’t mean that we’re taking advantage.”

The reason YWY Studios could obtain the rights and shares was not charity from Weiyi’s top management, but an exchange of commercial interests—

Pei Yi needed Weiyi’s exposure channels and connections, and Weiyi was also interested in YWY’s next Last Fog 3.0, and wanted to take the opportunity to reach an additional cooperation.

Qiao Dong was a little nervous. “Brother Yi, do we need to be on guard against Gao Pingfeng and Weiyi?”

“The partnership is set, and if we’re on guard, we won’t be able to cooperate. Besides, I trust Gu Jianshen’s character. Weiyi will not go back on its word and cause a setback, but Gao Pingfeng—”

Pei Yi shook his head. Gao Pingfeng’s smiling face reappeared in his mind, and a dark light flashed in his eyes. “Weiyi is Weiyi, and he is who he is.”

As the saying went, you could know people, and you could know faces, but you couldn’t know what was in their hearts.

Pei Yi didn’t want to be arbitrary, but he had an intuition that this person wasn’t as easy to get along with as he seemed on the surface.

Pei Yi glanced at the time and called a stop. “Never mind, it’s useless to think too much now. It’s getting late, let’s wash up and go to bed. We have to go to Weiyi headquarters for the meeting tomorrow.”

Li Yuan and Qiao Dong looked at each other and nodded.

. . . . . . . 

Half an hour later.

Pei Yi walked out of the bathroom after washing up. The bedding was specially brought from the Imperial Capital and laid out by the hotel staff.

Looking at the familiar dark blue sheets, Pei Yi felt that something was missing. He dug out the coat he had brought from the open suitcase, wrapped up in it, and lay down in bed.

Pei Yi picked up the cell phone on the bedside table and muttered subconsciously, “It’s not even ten o’clock yet, are you asleep?”

The next second, the phone screen jumped to the WeChat communication page.

Bo Yueming, who was far away in the Imperial Capital, seemed to have a natural understanding with him and made a video call exactly at that moment.

Pei Yi quickly answered the call and looked at his lover on the video. “Er-ge.”

There was a smile in Bo Yueming’s eyes when he heard this address. “Are you done with work?”

Pei Yi reported casually, “En, we had a meal with the other Weiyi party. I’ve already washed, and I’m in bed.”

Bo Yueming could clearly see the coat wrapped around him, and chuckled. “Can you sleep with my coat on? What time do you have to get up tomorrow?”

“Nine o’clock. We’re going to Weiyi to sign the additional agreement at 10:30.” Pei Yi shrank into the quilt.

Bo Yueming noted this down. “Then I’ll wake you up at that time tomorrow?”

Pei Yi nodded and said, “You’d better think of a way for me not to lose sleep tonight first.”

This was probably related to how he had grown up. Every time he was in a strange environment, he would be awake until one or two in the morning before falling asleep.

Sometimes he would even stay up all night, unable to get used to it.

Bo Yueming seemed to have considered this problem a long time ago. “Do you have any headphones? Put your phone on the bedside table, turn off the light, and lay down.”

Pei Yi obediently did as he was told, placing his phone on the bedside table and laying down on his side with his headphones on.

He looked at his lover on the screen and teased, “Er-ge, you’re not treating me like a three-year-old and telling me a bedtime story, are you?”

Bo Yueming accepted his teasing and asked fondly, “Do you want to hear a bedtime story, or do you want to hear me sing a lullaby to coax you to sleep?”

“…….”

Pei Yi was stunned. He didn’t expect that Bo Yueming would mention a “lullaby,” and raised his head eagerly. “For real? You can sing, ah?”

Bo Yueming added, “Turn off the light.”

Pei Yi replied, “It’s too dark, I won’t be able to see you clearly.”

Bo Yueming coaxed him, “You can still hear my voice. Be good.”

Pei Yi could only turn off the light as instructed. As soon as he lay down, a light, steady lullaby came from his headphones—

It was a lullaby with an English melody that he had never heard before. Rendered by Bo Yueming’s voice, it had the ability to soothe a person’s heart.

Pei Yi felt that his ears were numb, and his heart was so swollen with happiness that he was overwhelmed.

Whether he was in the orphanage or adopted later on, nobody had ever sung him a lullaby.

Pei Yi closed his eyes and said with unbelievable cuteness, “Er-ge, this is the first time someone has sung me a lullaby to put me to sleep.”

Bo Yueming stopped singing for a moment, but didn’t speak, then continued on again.

Even though they were separated, Pei Yi felt like his lover was leaning against him, holding him tightly in his arms as he fell asleep, just like before.

Time was drawn out long and slow by the looping lullaby.

After an unknown amount of time, Pei Yi’s breathing gradually calmed down. Bo Yueming on the other side stopped singing the lullaby.

“Kitten?”

“Mm-huh.”

The babbled response was a cute, unique thing that Pei Yi only did when sleeping.

Bo Yueming’s innermost being was touched by warmth and softness, and he added in a whisper, “Good night.”

. . . . . . .

When Pei Yi and the others arrived at Weiyi headquarters the next day, Gu Jianshen was still in charge of receiving them.

“The second to fourth floors are peripheral game exhibition halls, and the fifth and sixth floors are the staff canteen and kitchen.”

“From the seventh to the seventeenth floor are the planning, art, technology, online publicity, copyright, and logistics departments. They are divided according to the size of the departments, and there are high-rise offices from the 20th floor up.”

“If you look out this window, those two buildings are used specifically to house the servers, and the other two buildings are staff dormitories.”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan heard about Weiyi’s domineering division of departments, and invariably revealed a trace of yearning and fighting spirit.

No matter how good they thought they were, there was always someone who was better.

As the owners of YWY Studios, they also looked forward to their studio achieving such a large scale in the future.

Of course, they couldn’t grow fat in one bite, and must take every step in a down-to-earth manner.

Just like this partnership.

Gu Jianshen took them to the 18th floor and explained further, “This office building is specifically used for short-term external project cooperation. When the meeting starts in the afternoon, the personnel transferred from various departments will be working.”

As soon as the lingering sound faded, this group of people glimpsed a familiar figure.

Gao Pingfeng approached with his assistant, and the former still had a smiling demeanor. “I guessed that Mr. Gu would bring you here, so I waited in advance.”

Li Yuan nodded politely. “Teacher Gao.”

Gao Pingfeng explained his purpose for coming, “Mr. Yi came from the Imperial Capital. Perhaps you are unfamiliar with the personnel division of our Weiyi project team?”

“If you are comfortable with it, shall I arrange workstations for everyone and establish a work group?”

What appeared to be non-aggressive and friendly help actually hid a deeper intent to seize power. 

Pei Yi’s eyes flashed slightly, and he didn’t evade. “Of course, Teacher Gao has more experience leading large projects than I do.”

“Teacher Gao, there’s no rush in this matter. It can be arranged after everyone arrives in the afternoon.” Gu Jianshen calmly turned his watch and changed the topic. “I still need to take them upstairs to discuss re-signing the agreement. We’ll talk about this later.”

Gao Pingfeng still smiled easily, saying, “You guys go to work first.”

Gu Jianshen simply smiled back and shifted his position. “Then let’s go upstairs first. We will complete the supplementary contract in the morning and hold the meeting in the afternoon.”

“Okay.”

The group turned and walked toward the elevators, leaving Gao Pingfeng and his assistant behind.

The office where the contract was to be signed was on the 23rd floor. When the elevator reached its destination, Pei Yi was in no hurry to step out.

He looked at Gu Jianshen standing by the elevator door and asked in a respectable manner, “Brother Gu, please wait a moment.”

Gu Jianshen understood his meaning, and stepped tactfully to the side.

When he was the only one left in the elevator, Pei Yi whispered to Li Yuan and Qiao Dong, “I’ll follow you two in later, I’m not going yet.”

“Remember, put off signing the supplementary contract for the time being and wait until I come back.”

Li Yuan frowned slightly. “Pei Yi? What’s wrong?”

Pei Yi looked at his friend and said, “Pear Garden, did you bring your cigarettes?”

“Yes.”

Li Yuan cooperated and took the cigarettes and lighter from his pocket, both of them brand new.

Since he started dating Yan Cen, he was afraid that his lover wouldn’t like the smell of cigarettes, so he would either avoid smoking or restrain himself. After buying these cigarettes, he might not use one in ten and a half days.

Pei Yi took the cigarettes and lighter from Li Yuan and gave him a meaningful smile. “Wait, I’ll go meet Gao Pingfeng first.”

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Chapter Eighty-Nine <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-One

The quilt was bathed in light, and the winter sun was warm but not glaring, falling on the large expanse of the soft bed. Such a morning was very suitable for lovers to lie in bed together. Because everyone was busy until midnight the previous night, now no one dared to disturb His Royal Highness Xiao Wang. Even A-Ning next door was still sleeping in, and the entire back courtyard of the government office was quiet.

The floral scent between the bed curtains was fragrant, the atmosphere beautiful. The lovely forty-eight thousand year old Sleeping Immortal suddenly felt a bit parched. Liang Shu got up and poured him a cup of thirst-quenching sour plum and tangerine peel tea. Second Young Master Liu frowned after drinking so much. He barely drank half a cup, but the sourness didn’t wake him up, so he yawned and got back under the covers.

Liang Shu drank the remaining half cup of tea, then lifted the quilt and got back into bed, embracing him from behind……he still refused to stop, and caressed his calloused hands all the way up the other’s waistline. The sleeping clothes were soft, and fell apart after a few strokes. He thought they were a hindrance, so he simply peeled them off bit by bit.

So Second Young Master Liu, who was lying leisurely in the clouds of the Three Thousand Worlds, had to get up and bid farewell to the sages. I still have something to do, so I’ll go out first. After speaking, he covered up and fled as if being chased by dogs, in a rare hurry! The white crane submerged into the clouds with the immortal in fluttering robes, and the cool mist and rain fell onto his face one after another, wetting his skin. Liu Xian’an opened his eyes and stretched out his hand to block it, but Liang Shu held his wrist with a smile and pressed it back onto the pillow, leaning their foreheads together: “What, you won’t keep sleeping?”

Having spoken, he didn’t intend to wait for an answer, but lowered his head and bit those lips that still carried a trace of green plum flavor. Liu Xian’an didn’t have the slightest room to resist. The difference in strength between them was truly great, so he just vaguely thought that the hot spring in his dreams was not as good as this.

Because A-Ning had not brought him books after a long time, Second Young Master Liu’s understanding of this sort of thing was still very superficial, at most a sentence like “the soul was in the clouds”……at this moment, he was indeed to entangled that he didn’t know which cloud he had flown to. Unable to bear it anymore, he put his arms around the other’s neck and called softly, “Your Highness,” but instead of pleading for mercy, he unexpectedly poured oil on the fire.

Liang Shu grasped his waist and gritted his teeth, saying, you’re going to kill me.

Liu Xian’an was very puzzled, who is killing whom now? I am clearly the one being killed.

Liang Shu took his hand, and Liu Xian’an’s fingers seemed to be scorched by fire. The prince raised his eyes to look at the person next to him and asked: “You can’t?”

Second Young Master Liu was about to answer that he really couldn’t, but Liang Shu had already enveloped his hand and said: “I’ll teach you.”

He directly taught an enchanting lesson.

In the afternoon, the sounds of voices and footsteps finally came from the corridor, as well as A-Ning’s footsteps, which were getting closer and closer. He seemed to lie at the door to check for movement, and when he heard noise in the room, he hurriedly stood up straight, but only Liang Shu came out.

“Your Highness.” A-Ning glanced into the room. “My young master……”

“Let him sleep a little longer.” Liang Shu closed the door behind his back. “After an hour, go in and serve him.”

In an hour, it would be dark. A-Ning sighed sadly, the prince was really spoiling the young master! He went to the kitchen to work for a while, calculated that it was almost time, and just as he entered the door with water for washing, Liu Xian’an was already sitting up, moving his sore shoulders.

A few brocade handkerchiefs were thrown on the ground. A-Ning unknowingly leaned over to pick them up, and Liu Xian’an said urgently: “Don’t touch them!”

A-Ning was taken aback: “Why?”

Wrapped in the quilt, Liu Xian’an murmured lightly: “Don’t touch them with your hands, get a broom and sweep them out.”

A-Ning: “…….”

He felt that he should perform his duties as a servant, and said tactfully: “Y-y-young Master, you and the prince……how good this is.”

Liu Xian’an replied, in fact, I won’t miss these things much, otherwise you can go talk to the prince.

A-Ning was dumbfounded: “Ah?”

Liu Xian’an put on his shoes and got out of bed, taking the opportunity to change the subject: “How is the city currently?”

“The whole city is abuzz.” A-Ning put on his clothes for him and opened a window to let air in. “Everyone is talking about the blacksmith’s shop.”

It was more and more mysterious. Originally, even the government officials’ faces told of deep secrets, so didn’t this firmly show that something was wrong with the matter?

“Most of what is said relates to Song-xiansheng,” A-Ning said. “They say that his spirit is forging iron.”

An entire night of clink, clink, clang, clang had made the people in the city dizzy, and when people were not fully awake, they didn’t have time to think and analyze, and could only follow the crowd in a daze. There was a haunting, who wouldn’t be afraid? There were not many people on the streets during the day, and in the evening, there was not even a wild dog, only the northerly wind blowing and rustling the leaves.

Liang Shu said: “I had initially wanted to take you to have a good meal, but now I can’t even find an open restaurant.”

“I’m not hungry.” Liu Xian’an stretched, standing at the end of the empty street. “I used to dream about scenes like this a lot.”

“An empty city?”

“En, an empty city.”

The wind blew and the fallen leaves rustled, and there was only one person in this world, walking alone on a long road that seemed never-ending. Sometimes it rained and sometimes it snowed, but because the people on both sides of the street would not open their doors for that person, he could only continue to move forward against the wind and rain until his shoulders were covered in frost and snow.

“Did you get tired from walking?”

“I just sat on the steps to rest.”

“Why didn’t those white-bearded old men accompany you?”

“Because they all had their own things to do.”

Discussing the dao, retreating into seclusion, drinking and composing poems with friends, dancing with swords by a waterfall. In short, everyone had their own business, and nobody wanted to come walk in an empty city.

Liu Xian’an said: “But every time I got tired from walking, A-Ning always called me back to reality, so this was not a nightmare. It was just a little boring.”

This lonely dream distressed Liang Shu. He held the other’s hand and promised: “I’ll accompany you from now on.”

They were originally heart-pounding words of love, but His Royal Highness Xiao Wang added domineeringly at the end, let’s see who dares not open the door for you.

Liu Xian’an: “…….”

He smiled and clasped the other party’s fingers, saying, okay.

Due to Liang Shu joining him, it seemed that hundreds of dream cities would become lively together, whether they were truly lively or forced to be lively. Anyway, Liu Xian’an liked this sort of change very much, and also looked forward to changing from a lonely traveler to part of the bustling world of mortals.

However, the same deserted Raven City would not be as lively as His Royal Highness Xiao Wang wished any time soon. Almost every house was locked. The two of them couldn’t find a place to eat, so they could only return to the government office and make bowls of rice noodles. After eating, they walked in the courtyard for a while.

The watchman was trembling with fear. Starting from the south of the city, he announced that everything was dry, be careful of fire…..fire……

His voice shook, and he froze in place, watching the flames in the blacksmith’s shop that were about to soar up to the sky again. There was a layer of cold sweat on his back. Why had he come again?

The clink, clink, clank, clank sound of striking iron could be heard again, and the people of the city lamented in their hearts, the one who should come still came. They pulled their quilts up to cover their heads, not daring to make a sound, and only hoped that the government would come forward to solve it quickly. No matter how bad it was, it would be fine if they found a wizard who could exorcize demons. What was with not letting people sleep every night?

Liang Shu and Liu Xian’an remained in the blacksmith’s shop. Song Changsheng said: “This is the first time I have admired the prince’s sword so closely.”

“In Song-xiansheng’s eyes, how does this sword look?”

“It is a peerless sword,” Song Changsheng praised. “Three hundred years in the past and three hundred years in the future, it might be difficult to find such a good, hard piece of black iron. It can be seen that the craftsman put a lot of effort into making the sword, and even I cannot find any faults. It is a pity that there is no name for such a sword.”

“The sword was given to me by Emperor Brother. He didn’t say what the name of the sword was, so I didn’t ask.” Liang Shu smiled. “But as long as it’s long enough and sharp enough to attack and kill the enemy, it doesn’t matter what it is called.” 

Liu Xian’an also took the sword curiously, and it was so heavy that it took him two hands to lift it. Liang Shu held his arms and took him away from the fire, taking the sword back as he said with a frown: “If you want to go back and play, I will let you play slowly. Messing around here, be careful not to get caught in the fire.”

This made the powerful sword that protected the border sound like a toy that could be played with casually. Song Changsheng was a person who had been married, and with just a word and a glance, he could tell the unusual relationship between these two. Half astonished and half envious, he thought of his dead wife. His eyes became hot again, and he hurriedly turned to hide them: “Your Highness, this sword is too heavy. If Second Young Master Liu wants one, I will forge a shorter, lighter one for him.”

“No need.” Before Liu Xian’an could speak, Liang Shu refused on his behalf, saying, “But I do want to ask you for a sword.”

Song Changsheng asked: “What sword does the prince want?”

“A Pojun sword.”

“All right.” Song Changsheng was very straightforward. He nodded in agreement and said: “It is only that I initially wanted to die, so I threw all the swords into the furnace and melted them into a puddle of molten iron. If the prince wants one, I will have to start from scratch, and it will take at least half a month.”

“I’m not in a hurry, take your time.” Liang Shu said, “If you can’t finish it in Raven City, just go to the Northwest Military Camp to continue. You should also take a look at the weapons workshop built in the desert. When all the bellows are pulled at once, it can light up the entire sky. It is not sophisticated, but it is spectacular.”

The number one swordsmith of the Central Plains was not wooed away by the Baifu Sect, but was firmly tied to the Northwest Garrison by Liang Shu. Song Changsheng had no opinion on this either. He considered himself a person who had already died once, and all the rest of his life had been gathered back. He also admired His Royal Highness Xiao Wang and was naturally willing to follow him with all his heart, working together to eradicate the cult and protect the stability of his homeland.

The three of them stayed at the blacksmith’s shop for most of the night. After returning to the manor, A-Ning brought hot water for washing. Liang Shu watched Liu Xian’an wash his face for a moment, and couldn’t help but ask: “Why haven’t you asked me why I want that Pojun sword?”

Liu Xian’an raised his head, rinsed his mouth, and replied: “It is to give to Young Head Escort Chang.”

Liang Shu was taken aback: “You can also calculate this?”

Liu Xian’an wiped his face with a handkerchief and replied in a muffled voice: “It is recorded in the books that a Pojun sword is two foot three in length and two cun in width. It is shorter and wider than ordinary swords, and Chang Xiaoqiu’s sword is just that long and wide.”

Liang Shu: “…….”

It can be calculated that you are very capable.

A-Ning waited for his young master to wash up, and when he picked up the wooden basin to change the water, his eyes were still turning wildly. Liang Shu didn’t understand, and waited until the door was closed to ask: “You master and servant, what kind of charade are you playing?”

“It’s nothing.” Liu Xian’an waved his hand perfunctorily.

Liang Shu refused to give up: “Speak!”

“Ai, it’s really nothing.” Liu Xian’an sat on a small stool to soak his feet. The water was too hot, and his whole body was steaming, his face flushed red.

“Will you say it or not?” Liang Shu crouched down in front of him, reaching out to hold one thin ankle.

Liu Xian’an: “…….”

After a long silence, he exhaled briskly. Your Highness, don’t throw dirty handkerchiefs everywhere.

Liang Shu reacted: “Pfft.”

He lowered his head and pressed a kiss to the other’s knee: “What are you saying?”

I didn’t say anything, and I didn’t want to say anything. Liu Xian’an wanted to cover his mouth, but considering that he had just touched his feet with his hands, it wouldn’t be good. So he struggled to move back, warning that if this kind of thing happened too much, it would result in kidney deficiency.

Liang Shu said: “I’m not that weak, you give me a try.”

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Chapter Eighty-Nine << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-One