Almost the moment he wrote down the name, Li Guanyi paused again.
The youth tapped his forehead lightly with the pen.
Li Guanyi, oh Li Guanyi, you came here to report safety to Elder Xue. Don’t keep thinking about the young miss, about the young miss. How can this be?
He crumpled the piece of paper yet again.
Impatiently, the Qilin Cat scratched its head with its front paw, then opened its mouth to release a weakened version of Qilin Fire, burning the ashes into blue smoke. Only then did Li Guanyi begin to write about Elder Xue.
He described his experiences and observations over this period of time.
It had been eight days since he left Guan Yi City, and he had successfully evaded all pursuers. With the help of Elder Zu’s gift, he encountered no obstacles at the checkpoints of the cities he passed through. All in all, one could say it was smooth sailing.
He ran into robbers blocking the road three times and had inexplicable duels with knights five times.
As a result, Li Guanyi’s purse was bulging.
However, in recent days, Li Guanyi noticed an increasing number of martial artists in the Martial World. As he comfortably traveled along in his ox cart, the number of people by the roadside carrying swords and blades seemed to increase by the day. The court and the Martial World were never truly separate.
With such big events happening in the court, coupled with the legend of the Qilin.
Naturally, there were surging waves within the Martial World.
Li Guanyi found that many Martial World figures were gathering near Zhenbei City, the largest city to the northeast of Chen Country. The place where Shaking Light had agreed to meet him was also there. He informed Elder Xue of the changes in the Martial World and hoped that Elder Xue could feel at ease within the court.
’The turbulence in the Martial World, at least the turmoil near a large area around Chen State Jiangzhou City, seems to be related to me. Therefore, I will travel incognito, with a weapon in hand, and be extremely cautious. I hope to get past the tumult of the Martial World,’
’Elder Xue also needs to be careful of the court’s storms and hidden arrows, which are no less treacherous than the Martial World,’
’Give my regards to Mrs. Xue,’
A letter was written at length on one page.
Li Guanyi had planned to fold it and tuck it away.
But he hesitated and then took another sheet of paper, writing:
"Shuangtao, seeing this letter is as seeing your face"
"I’ve been very bored lately, extremely bored."
"Thanks to Elder Xue’s help, the elite forces within Chen Country, including the Night Rider Cavalry, did not participate in chasing me down."
"Perhaps under the circumstances of the Prime Minister’s death, the change of the Prime Minister, and the alteration of the Crown Prince’s position in the Eastern Palace, someone like me is not of utmost importance to the vast Great Chen Country."
"So, you can rest assured."
"The Martial World is also odd. Aunt and I fled for ten years, and Aunt was very cautious, not getting involved in the affairs of the Martial World. We only occasionally noticed many big men with swords coming to the city, appearing very imposing; or some nights when all the doors would be tightly shut."
"Back then, I didn’t understand and thought life was simple. Now, when I realize what these signs mean, perhaps it signifies that I’ve already entered the Martial World."
"The ox cart is smooth, but very slow. I’ve seen many landscapes, and each city has its own food delicacies, which are mostly cheaper than those in Jiangzhou City. Sometimes people don’t speak the official language but local dialects instead, which I often don’t quite understand. That can be quite troubling."
"What exactly is the Martial World? I truly don’t quite understand. On the road, I also see knights sparring, dressed in white, which I think is wasteful. Such clothes get dirty easily, ending up covered in blood and dirt after the fight; washing them takes either money or effort."
"There are also strange things; some mountain people take care of their fields and also rob others. They aren’t as wealthy as those near Jiangzhou City."
"Knights seem to have more money than bandits, a truly strange world indeed."
Li Guanyi wrote many things without realizing it, stopping only when he ran out of paper. Coming back to his senses, he felt the breeze rustling the trees. The Qilin lay on his shoulder yawning. A fallen leaf drifted onto the young man’s shoulder; he reached out, picked up the leaf, and placed it inside the letter.
This might as well be the Martial World.
He sealed the two letters and then, to distinguish it from Elder Xue’s letter, he sketched on it the Nine Palace Turtle Shell Diagram that marked the first encounter between him and the young miss. Then, he handed it over to the Xue Family’s Shopkeeper in this place.
The Shopkeeper said respectfully, "Young master, we did not touch your ox cart, but we replaced the ox with a faster kind. We’ve prepared everything you need, including water, dry food, flint, a short knife, kerosene, and other items."
He then handed over a horsetail whisk, a bow, and a quiver of arrows, adding, "Young master, as you roam the Martial World, keep these things with you for self-defense."
"Our place is small, so this is all we have. If you go to Zhenbei City, there are Xue Family banks and corresponding items."
Li Guanyi, without any hesitation, took the bow and arrows, but declined the horsetail whisk.
Showing off the pine pattern ancient sword in his hand, the young man smiled nonchalantly, "With these, I have enough."
"These two letters, I’ll have to trouble the Shopkeeper," he said.
The Shopkeeper replied, "It is our duty to assist."
The Shopkeeper seemed to remember something and said, "Please extend your hand, young master."
Li Guanyi reached out his hand, and the Shopkeeper placed an item in his palm.
Gleaming gold, round and full.
It was a golden bean.
The Shopkeeper smiled and said, "The young miss instructed me before, if the young master comes to deliver a letter, to give you a golden bean."
He added, "One for each time."
The young man, holding the golden bean, suddenly understood the young girl’s intention.