Chapter 434 – Arrival of Liu Zhi
That sound left a deep impression on Li Yun, but he was more concerned about his master and didn’t dwell on it too much.
Li Yun had lived in seclusion with his master in the deep mountains for many years; the place was remote and steep, yet he found it familiar and endearing.
Even with his eyes closed, he could navigate with ease.
Spotting a familiar pond, a radiant smile broke across Li Yun’s face.
“Master! Your disciple is back!”
Li Yun pushed open the thatched cottage door, only for his smile to freeze on his face—there was absolutely no one inside, and dust had accumulated quite a lot on the table and stove.
“Master?” Li Yun pressed his lips together. Since he could remember, his master had never left this mountain, but judging by the thickness of the dust, it had been a long time since anyone resided here… Where could his master have gone?
After a moment’s thought, Li Yun lifted the shabby curtain of the inner room and bent down to check beneath the sleeping platform. He felt a small indent where his master would often hide things. With a mind to try his luck, he fished around and his fingertips brushed against something hard—he pulled it out and was astonished to see it was a roll of writing.
True to his master’s impression of being sharp and vigorous like a spear, the handwriting was equally bold.
【Foolish disciple, seeing this letter is like seeing me.】
【You’ve grown up; you can take care of yourself, which eases my worries. By the time you read this letter, I will be out seeking vengeance. If I return alive, I shall come back; if I am unfortunately killed by the enemy, do not seek revenge.】
【Written by Xie Qian.】
Li Yun blinked in disbelief, reading the note over and over until, reluctantly, he accepted that his master had indeed gone to seek vengeance… but he had never heard of his master having any enemies all these years…
Would seeking vengeance be dangerous? Were the enemies very strong?
Li Yun’s mind was a swirling mess, and he felt as if he had lost his senses.
After a while, he stood up, used a wooden basin to fetch water from the pond, and tidied up the cottage until it was spotless.
The next morning, he found a brush and wrote down his whereabouts on a bamboo slip, then returned it to its place.
If his master returned safely, he would surely follow the clues to find him.
Carefully closing the door of the thatched hut, Li Yun left with a look of desolation.
Meanwhile, as Li Yun ventured into the mountains to seek his master, an unexpected guest arrived in Xiangyang County.
Bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun, a convoy of over fifty carriages approached the west gate.
With the current strong defenses in Xiangyang County, entering and exiting the city required rigorous inspections.
As the guards were about to step forward to question them, a wooden token flew over, and the guard caught it, looking slightly dazed.
“Get someone sensible to come here; the individual in this carriage is not someone you can casually check.”
The guard was instantly enraged.
Who dares to show off in Xiangyang County?
Just as he was about to lash out, a comrade nearby pulled him back, giving him a look to check out the family crest on the carriage.
Family crest?
The guard glanced down at the wooden token and then at the understated carriage in the crowd.
The two bore the shape of willow leaves—seemingly like a few willow leaves, but it was ingeniously designed to resemble the character “Liu.”
But… did that pattern seem a bit familiar?
“What are you standing there for! Isn’t that the family crest of Liu County’s magistrate?!” his companion whispered urgently.
The guard nearly dropped the token in shock, and with trembling hands, he stepped forward to inquire.
“Is the noble inside the carriage a relative of Liu County’s magistrate?”
There hadn’t been any notice of members from the Liu clan arriving recently, and the guard felt a bit aggrieved, worried he might lose his job.
The person smiled and replied, “The noble inside is indeed a relative of your Liu County’s magistrate. Hurry and report this to avoid any delays.”
The guard was completely astonished, hurriedly returning the token, “Noble, please wait a moment; I’ll inform them right away.”
That said, this guard remained cautious, not reporting directly to the magistrate but seeking out Feng Jin instead.
“You say the lord’s relative has arrived?”
Feng Jin furrowed his brow. The lord’s family was mainly in Hejian, and Liu Zhi was far away in Chongzhou. How could they possibly come to Xiangyang County?
Regardless, he had to go see for himself; only then would he know if it was true.
“Lead the way,” Feng Jin commanded, striding toward the city gate.
Upon seeing the carriage, he was already about eighty percent convinced.
At that moment, the carriage curtain was pulled back from the inside, revealing half of a familiar face.
Feng Jin almost lost his composure. How did Liu Zhi end up in Xiangyang County from the remote Chongzhou?
“Huaiju, don’t make a fuss,” Liu Zhi said hoarsely, heavily laden with fatigue, “Let’s enter the city.”
With Li Yun taking leave, nobody was managing the farmland, so Jiang Pengji simply took matters into her own hands.
Wearing a pair of straw sandals and carrying a set of wooden clogs under one arm, she ambled leisurely back to the city.
Her pant legs rolled up above her knees, her originally fair legs were now caked in mud, and her long hair was carelessly tied up with a piece of twine.
On the way back, she felt a bit hungry, rummaged through her pockets, and bought two steamed buns with a few coins, carrying one in each hand while nibbling on one, looking nothing like the magistrate of Xiangyang County.
Thus, the sight of Liu Zhi’s daughter was far from anyone’s expectation.
Spotting Liu Zhi, Jiang Pengji was so stunned that she forgot to take a bite of her bun.
The audience in the live stream was equally flabbergasted by the sight of their broadcaster and her partner.
Feng Jin and the others quietly sat in the hall, where the seat that originally belonged to her was now occupied by a distinguished middle-aged man. The years had not diminished Liu Zhi’s allure; his graying hair only served to accentuate his mature charm. Time favored this man, making him appear even more charismatic than before… but that wasn’t the main point—the real question was, how did Liu Zhi end up here?
As a regional lord, one generally couldn’t leave their territory without an edict.
Jiang Pengji, still munching on the bun, incoherently called out.
“Father?”
Liu Zhi glanced at Jiang Pengji, who was dressed like a rough young lad, and his already aching head felt even worse.
He thought… he must have raised a fake daughter.
“Why did you come to Xiangyang? The world is so chaotic right now…” Jiang Pengji quickly swallowed the bun and was about to step into the hall to see the neat and clean floor, only to look at her muddy legs; she silently stepped back, “I’ll clean up right away… Father, please wait, Huaiju, you all attend to him first…”
Jiang Pengji scrubbed off the mud, pulled down her pant legs, donned the wooden clogs, and approached Liu Zhi with steady steps.
Her attempts at pretense would undoubtedly draw comments from the audience.
【Five updates today!】: Rubbish streamer, your father just saw your roughest side, and now you’re trying to act dignified! The expressions of both streamer and her father are too amusing. It’s like a father did a surprise check and caught the son watching something he shouldn’t!
【Guess if it’s true or false】: My heart aches for the streamer’s father; he must suspect he raised a fake daughter.
Ignoring the distracting comments in the live stream, Jiang Pengji respectfully bowed to Liu Zhi.
Liu Zhi’s eyes scanned her from top to bottom.
“Come here and let your father take a look… you’ve really lost weight, and you look taller than before…”
