When this title was called out, Xue Shuangtao's expression froze. Here was the Xue family, and the eldest young lady of the Xue family had come out with the youngest guest elder in thirty years, which was already a noteworthy event.
Li Guanyi's call of "Xue family sister" had no hint of concealment, naturally attracting curious gazes from all around.
The young girl initially thought it was nothing significant.
Just a title, after all.
Very straightforward.
But somehow, when the gazes of those around her turned towards her, it made her feel her cheeks flush.
Looking at the shy and innocent boy in front of her, she knew deep down that this appearance was definitely an act put on by him, a response to her earlier remark about being older than him. Yet, her cheeks still burned as she pointed at him, gritting her teeth, stammering "you, you, you" several times, unable to articulate her words. She stamped her foot and said:
"Come early tomorrow, and you'll see!"
Then she turned around, her skirt fluttering like a lotus flower, before gathering up as she stepped away, her sleeves raised to cover her white jade-like face, with only a pair of eyes visible, her forehead flushed red as she hurriedly walked away.
The young boy smiled slightly, muttering to himself, "Ah, youth is truly wonderful."
"What a lovely young girl."
The people around watched this scene.
The spring was just right, a time when the grass grew and the orioles flew, with a heroic young man and a blushing young girl.
They looked at the boy with a bow on his back and a knife hanging at his waist, feeling in their hearts, "What a youthful time, so innocent and romantic."
Li Guanyi climbed into the carriage, and Zhao Dabing drove the carriage out from the side path of the Xue family, exiting through a side gate and onto a main road. The wheels of the carriage turned, merging into the crowd. Li Guanyi let out a breath, unfastened his knife, and placed it on his lap.
His demeanor returned to a warm tranquility.
Just a little girl, yet he felt somewhat embarrassed for having acted that way, feeling a bit hot.
He reached out to tug at his collar.
"Today is a bit too hot."
Zhao Dabing raised his head and looked at the cool March sun.
He grinned but did not respond.
He took out a handkerchief-wrapped bag of salted peanuts, shared some with Li Guanyi, and then pulled out a large water pouch filled with tea brewed from fat sea beans. He took out a tea bowl for Li Guanyi, and after driving for a while, he thought for a moment and said:
"Li little brother, I have something to say, just listen."
"You and the eldest young lady are about the same age. The eldest young lady's beauty goes without saying, and you are also a talented youth, but..."
He hesitated for a moment and said, "Don't have any other thoughts about the eldest young lady."
Li Guanyi smiled and said, "Why does elder brother think I have such thoughts?"
Zhao Dabing replied, "It's good if you don't. Although you are a guest elder, you are still just a guest of the Xue family. The guest elders of the Xue family are divided into three levels. Even the highest-ranking upper courtyard guest elder can only marry the young ladies of the Xue family's branches, which is already quite remarkable."
"Do you know that the eldest young lady's second aunt is the daughter of the old family head?"
Li Guanyi quietly listened to Zhao Dabing gossip about the main family. Zhao Dabing lowered his voice and said, "She caused a ruckus in the capital back then, befriending a young scion, and was severely punished by the old family head. Later, when that second young lady grew up, she still obeyed the family head's orders."
"She married Prince Jing and became a concubine."
"Everyone didn't understand; at that time, Prince Jing was just a leisurely prince. The Xue family wasn't a prominent family, but they were a well-known wealthy merchant family. To become a concubine was quite a disgrace, right? But the old family head was resolute. At that time, everyone thought perhaps the old family head was just seeking a peaceful life for the second young lady."
"Later, the previous emperor passed away, and in the years that followed, Prince Jing ascended the throne..."
"The second young lady became the Empress Dowager."
Li Guanyi said, "The Xue family is... an imperial merchant."
"What about the previous eldest young lady?"
Zhao Dabing hesitated and said softly, "You mustn't speak of this; it's been many years. The eldest young lady traveled the world and eloped with a man. That man was a general of the Ying Kingdom, and the old family head was furious, declaring that he would sever ties with her as father and daughter."
"I heard that the man felt quite indebted to the eldest young lady because of this."
"Now he lives in the Ying Kingdom and once clashed with Marshal Yue."
"Later, he drove the Turks north and opened trade routes westward, gaining great renown."
"Now he is the Grand General of the Ying Kingdom, and during the years when our Chen Kingdom had a good relationship with him, he wanted to return to pay respects to the old family head but was still driven away. The eldest young lady was pregnant at that time and knelt in the rain for an entire night, nearly fainting, yet the old family head refused to see her."
"At that time, the people of Jiangzhou said the old family head was too heartless."
"Even the current Emperor of Chen told the second young lady that she could be a bit more forgiving, yet the old family head remained indifferent, saying that since his daughter married an enemy country, it was as if he had no daughter. He even took the initiative to enter prison, asking the officials to monitor him. It was only after the current emperor issued an edict to appease the old man that he returned."
Li Guanyi paused in his chewing motion.
Zhao Dabing's detailed account of Xue Daoyong's anger was filled with pity for the previous eldest young lady and confusion and awe towards Xue Daoyong. However, Li Guanyi instinctively felt that Xue Daoyong was merely acting, and the purpose of this act was likely to deceive the Emperor of Chen.
Perhaps it was because he was an outsider; perhaps because he could see much of history from his past life, he could view Xue Daoyong's actions more fairly.
The old man had married his eldest daughter to a general of the Ying Kingdom, made his second daughter an Empress Dowager, and his son had a trade route to the Western Regions through Jiangzhou, while the Emperor of Chen had no suspicions about him. The Grand General of the Ying Kingdom felt deep guilt towards his eldest daughter and cherished her greatly.
As for himself, he bore the White Tiger and possessed a divine weapon.
He built a lotus pond in the Xue family, filled with lotus flowers and koi, naming it Tingfeng Pavilion.
Enjoying the company of grandchildren, fishing in the lotus pond.
Listening to what wind?
Zhao Dabing sent Li Guanyi back to his residence.
The young man watched Zhao Dabing's carriage disappear into the distance before returning to the courtyard, sharing today's experiences with his aunt. He heated the yellow rice porridge he had brought back from the Xue family for her and suddenly recalled the sound of his aunt's zither when he was feeling troubled while holding the divine weapon today.
He had never liked practicing the zither before, but today he took the initiative to play.
Then, under his aunt's comforting gaze of "my little Li Nuer has grown up," he was told it was time to play chess. Murong Qiushui played the zither for Li Guanyi while pointing out his mistakes and simultaneously narrating the moves on the chessboard, completely defeating Li Guanyi.
Murong Qiushui slowly concluded, a sly smile on her face:
"Li Nuer's chess skills are still quite average, but much better than before."
"You need to work hard to surpass your aunt."
Li Guanyi: "…………"
Playing chess was already a rare pastime in this era.
But always losing was a different matter.
Li Guanyi was labeled a terrible chess player by his aunt, having never won a single game. His aunt also wouldn't let him go out to play chess, saying that if he couldn't even beat her, a mere woman, how could he go out and not be laughed at for losing?
Li Guanyi had no way to refute that.
Today, having held the divine weapon and received its inheritance, he was already extremely fatigued. After his aunt played the zither for him, his mind felt quite hazy. Playing chess again consumed his mental energy. After washing up, Li Guanyi collapsed onto his bed and quickly fell asleep, waking up when the moon was high in the sky.
He sat up, breathing and adjusting his qi, and opened his inner garment to see the bronze cauldron above.
The Red Dragon and White Tiger法相 were imprinted upon it.
Unfortunately, only a head could currently emerge, and when the Red Dragon appeared, the White Tiger could not, and when the White Tiger emerged, the Red Dragon would be pressed against the cauldron, becoming an imprint.
Li Guanyi looked at the complete jade liquid.
Ninety-eight percent came from Xue Daoyong, and the remaining two percent came from the divine weapon, the Po Yun Zhen Tian Gong.
What would happen?
Li Guanyi closed his eyes, adjusting his breath several times before his consciousness touched the bronze cauldron.
The cauldron shook and tilted to one side.
The jade liquid suddenly fell, and the internal energy of the Po Zhen Qu had reached the twelfth layer of perfection. The jade liquid flowed, not affecting the Po Zhen Qu, and the words imprinted in Li Guanyi's mind after holding the divine weapon today lit up again—
[Three Vehicles of Entry Method]!
[One Arrow Cold Light]!
The second archery secret technique suddenly shone brightly, and the jade liquid fell into it.
The divine essence transformed into a divine general, still demonstrating this secret technique, but this time, it did not easily achieve great success as before. It seemed that the path was blocked, and the jade liquid could not enter. Li Guanyi watched the divine general demonstrate the technique, gradually becoming entranced.
He watched as the divine general drew the bow, observing the flow of qi and法相 accompanying it, shooting an arrow.
In the end, even the divine general disappeared, leaving only the illuminated acupoints and meridians.
Li Guanyi instinctively circulated the internal energy of the Po Zhen Qu within.
After many attempts, he completed a transformation akin to the internal energy circulation within the divine general.
"So that's how it is. It involves mobilizing internal energy, coordinating with the法相, using one's own internal energy to provide energy for the法相, and then relying on the法相 to attack, using the法相 as a weapon."
Upon comprehending this layer, the jade liquid seemed to encounter no further obstacles.
It rapidly fell, continuously completing the internal circulation of [One Arrow Cold Light] within Li Guanyi's body.
In his mind, there seemed to be thunder and the roar of the White Tiger.
Xue family法相 secret technique, [One Arrow Cold Light].
Successfully cultivated!
Xue family, Tingfeng Pavilion.
Thirteen fist-sized luminous pearls hung in the air, illuminating the room as if it were daylight.
The old man was reading a letter, looking at the last message from his son, which mentioned that a friend of his was coming to Guan Yi City to discuss a major business deal.
After finishing the letter, he closed it in his palm, turning it to ashes.
At that moment, he suddenly sensed something was off. The air in the night was particularly still, even the chirping of insects in late spring had vanished. The air felt heavy as water, causing an inexplicable unease in his heart. The old man appeared in the front hall where the divine weapon was kept.
The Po Yun Zhen Tian Gong remained well-preserved there.
The old man breathed a sigh of relief, placing his palm on the bow's body, recalling the young boy holding the bow today.
But he was startled, thinking he could truly lift it.
The old man smiled slightly, but as his palm brushed over the bowstring, he felt a slight pain, blood trickling from his fingertip. Xue Daoyong was momentarily stunned, seeing the Po Yun Zhen Tian Gong tremble slightly, as if a fierce tiger that had been lying in wait for years finally stretched its body and opened its eyes.
The old man's eyes widened slightly.
"What is this..."
In the next moment, the heavy air was torn apart like satin.
The bowstring of the Po Yun Zhen Tian Gong suddenly trembled, and every drop of water in the lotus pond outside Tingfeng Pavilion was instantly shattered into mist, which then gathered, seemingly transforming into the aura of a White Tiger, raising its head and letting out a thunderous roar towards the heavens.
The roar of the fierce tiger shook the heavens and the earth—
The bowstring's cry suddenly exploded, echoing endlessly.
In the ranking of divine weapons, the bow ranked first.
The Po Yun Zhen Tian Gong awakens!
(End of this chapter)