You should write to me often!
Li Guanyi couldn’t help but laugh, as he seemed to see the young girl staring at him with wide eyes. He found the young miss strange, at times naive and innocent, yet at other times capable of such great decisiveness and calm.
Whether it was that time in Guan Yi City where she shattered her Jade Pendant to silence the crowd,
or when she let Li Guanyi hold her hostage during their time at the Xue Family’s home,
she showed extraordinary decisiveness.
Yet, the act of writing a letter to a golden bean seemed to have taken a great deal of pondering, as if it were a complex solution that took a long time to formulate. Li Guanyi remembered when he was still a part of the Imperial Guard, how the girl had pushed the golden beans through the gap in the window, one by one falling to the ground with a tinkling sound, luring him over.
That was how she had led him over.
Back then, the young Imperial Guard sat there, lifting his head to see the girl in palace attire squatting down, her skirt trailing on the ground, smiling at him with a tilted head, stray hairs dangling at the temples, sunlight showering upon her body, gilding even the tips of her hair.
Memories are indeed wounding.
Li Guanyi tossed a golden bean and teased with a laugh,
"However, shopkeeper, isn’t there a bit of a problem here?"
"I wrote two letters."
The shopkeeper froze, then stuttered, "Ah, this, this, young master, just a moment."
Li Guanyi burst out laughing, promptly stopping the shopkeeper, and then extending a hand to place the golden beans on the table. The shopkeeper paused, noticing Li Guanyi grab his hat and put it on, simply saying, "Uh, shopkeeper, just let me know when you’re sending the message."
The young man’s hand pressed down on his hat.
"It’s Li Guanyi who wants to write to her."
"Make sure she doesn’t get it wrong."
The shopkeeper savored the words, the same phrase harboring drastically different implications, tasting the deep meaning within. Consequently, his face also carried a smile as he took away the golden bean, bowing and saying, "As you say, young master, I will report this accurately."
Li Guanyi adjusted his hat and took his leave, carrying his sword as he walked. Outside, a youth was practicing martial arts, holding the fresh Famous Hero List, excitedly heading inside. The town was small, just like the Xue Family’s grocery store, which had a tiny entrance; messages and horses moved slowly here.
Thus, Li Guanyi paused, letting that enthusiastic youth go ahead of him.
The young man politely thanked him.
Li Guanyi said, "Don’t mention it," as the two passed by each other. The youth glanced sideways out of reflex, only able to see half of the Taoist’s face under the rim of the hat, the tips of his hair fluttering and the corners of his mouth slightly curved upwards.
The two quickly passed each other by.
Grasping the list, the youth went in and shouted to the Xue Family’s shopkeeper, "Dad, dad, look!"
"The new list has finally arrived. They say it was out earlier, but it’s like they disdain our remote place, even the news gets here so slowly. This time, Little Sword Saint is even more formidable, but that Spear Madman, wow, so impressive; just debuted in the Martial World and shot up to thirty-one!"
"With the Martial World so vast, when can I ever achieve such martial arts?"
He sighed, his eyes full of longing, then added, "By the way, dad, who is this Taoist? He looks quite handsome."
He thought for a moment and felt that it wasn’t merely about being good-looking, but rather a unique aura that was hard to describe.
It just felt different.
The Xue Family’s shopkeeper looked at the Martial World ranking list, then at the Taoist’s retreating figure, and said, "A guest of the Martial World."
Li Guanyi looked at his own ox cart, a fresh green ox, freshly brushed and fed good grass mixed with soybeans, looking spirited. Li Guanyi patted its head and then sat on the ox cart, which pulled him towards his intended destination.
The ox cart was indeed slow, but that, in fact, made it safer.
He had gradually realized one of the fundamental principles of the Military School, which is to do the opposite.
The ox cart left, managing to reach another small town just before sunset. The town was smaller than the last, with just one main street where there were restaurants, a clinic, and food stores.
Li Guanyi, feeling hungry, parked his cart next to a restaurant.
Then he clomped up the stairs and ordered two bowls of noodles and a few dishes from the shopkeeper. Of course, he himself wasn’t fussy, but the Qilin was different. This creature was picky about its food, wanting to try everything, and wouldn’t eat without vegetables and meat.
The Qilin defended its position staunchly.
I’ve been confined for ten years, no, eleven years.
Bled daily for alchemy, had it been a regular person, not even eight lives would suffice.
Not to mention that after getting out, first, it transferred power to Li Guanyi as a trump card; then it fought with the top martial artist Xiao Wuliang, and finally charged into battle, which would severely deplete any being’s Primordial Qi.
Eating well is quite normal!
For the Qilin to regain the kind of energy it had for one fight, it would take half a month to replenish fully, and to restore to its peak would require lots of Spiritual Treasures and Elixir Pills to smooth over the side effects of a decade of confinement and torture.
Even with plenty of Spiritual Medicine, it had to be nurtured slowly.
Qilin doesn’t like dry food, so Li Guanyi often hunted meat for it; if there were towns or villages, they would go inside to eat good, homely food. Two bowls of noodles arrived, plain with some greens, topped with sliced braised meat. The Qilin, transformed into a cat, was nibbling on a large pig’s trotter.
Li Guanyi noticed the curious gazes.