Under the cover of the night sky, Lu Changsheng arrived safely outside of Li Hongzhuang's courtyard.
Before entering, he took a mont to observe his surroundings. After confirming no one had followed him, he peered into the courtyard. It was pitch dark, with no sign of movent inside. Satisfied, he quickly climbed over the wall and landed inside.
Creak...
In the courtyard, a door to the main room opened, and Li Hongzhuang's soft voice drifted out. "Brother Shisan, you're finally here."
Lu Changsheng walked toward the room and stepped inside. As he entered, she lit a candle. Warm light slowly filled the room, and the dim fla illuminated her pale and exhausted face.
"Have you not recovered?" Lu Changsheng asked.
Li Hongzhuang shook her head. "I have, but ever since Zhao Qilei's death, the Zhao family has been tracking down like mad. They're convinced that I was the one who killed him. If I hadn't disguised myself, they would've found by now."
The Zhao family held great power in Nanyang City, and regardless of her disguise, they would have found Li Hongzhuang if given enough ti. Fortunately, she had left Nanyang City earlier. If she had stayed, their n would have already caught her.
"The Zhao family..." Lu Changsheng frowned.
He was the one who had killed Zhao Qilei and the other martial artists from the Zhao family. But because those incidents were also tied to Li Hongzhuang, the Zhao family had turned their fury toward her instead. This spared Lu Changsheng both the trouble of dealing with them himself and the risk of having his true identity exposed.
"Only six of the Zhao family's seven sons remain. Should I deal with the remaining six too?" Lu Changsheng proposed.
"Uh..." Li Hongzhuang was taken aback. The Zhao family was one of the top powers in Nanyang City, but Lu Changsheng spoke as though he could wipe them out with a flick of his hand.
After a brief pause, she shook her head. "Forget it. Our priority right now is to seize the Marrow Transformation Pill from the Cui Clan. Let's not stir up more trouble before that."
To her, Nanyang City was only a temporary stop anyway. Once she obtained the Marrow Transformation Pill, she would leave and never return. The Zhao family wouldn't be able to touch her then.
"Alright." Lu Changsheng nodded, choosing not to press the matter. "Then when do we head out?"
"Tomorrow morning. We'll et in the forest outside the city."
After discussing their plan in detail, Lu Changsheng returned to Miao Shou Garden.
It'll take at least ten days, maybe half a month, to reach Jubei City. I should let Miaoren Hall know before I leave.
That night, he went to bed early, and the night passed peacefully. The next day, he made his way straight to Miaoren Hall to find Wang Ruhai.
"Physician Wang," Lu Changsheng said, "I'll be leaving Nanyang City for about ten days to half a month. While I'm gone, I'll have to trouble you to oversee Miaoren Hall."
Wang Ruhai stood up imdiately. "Please don't worry, Physician Lu. If you have business to attend to, go with peace of mind. With here, Miaoren Hall will be in good hands."
"Thank you. Then I'll leave it to you."
The two had worked together for a while now, and they got along without any issues. Naturally, Wang Ruhai would always be willing to help Lu Changsheng.
With things at Miaoren Hall settled, Lu Changsheng returned to his courtyard to make his final preparations.
A horse stood quietly in the courtyard, the sa mare he had rented for his journey to Wu Mountain City. She was gentle by nature and quick to sense her rider’s will, so he bought her after that trip. It didn't cost much anyway.
"Ti to stretch your legs," Lu Changsheng said, patting her neck. The mare seed to understand what he ant and trotted happily around the yard.
***
Clip-clop, clip-clop.
The mare's hooves struck the ground in a steady rhythm as they galloped toward out of the city.
As they approached the forest beyond the city, travelers passing by in small groups along the road ca into view. Lu Changsheng stopped to look around, and his expression shifted into a frown. Li Hongzhuang was nowhere to be seen.
Just then, a middle-aged woman carrying a basket full of vegetables slowly approached Lu Changsheng. Her complexion was pale and waxy, with a large black mole on her cheek that made her look rather unattractive.
"Brother Shisan," the woman called out softly.
Lu Changsheng's eyes widened in surprise. "Miss Li, is that you?"
Li Hongzhuang's beauty was the kind you couldn't forget, yet now she looked like an ordinary middle-aged woman that no one would think twice about.
Li Hongzhuang smiled. "This is my disguise. The Cui Clan's influence runs deep in Jubei City, so going in as ourselves would be dangerous."
Lu Changsheng nodded. "But I don’t know how to disguise myself."
"Then allow to help you, Brother Shisan."
"Much appreciated, Miss Li."
After looking around to ensure no one was nearby, Li Hongzhuang led him behind so bushes. There, she proceeded to alter his appearance with practiced care. Lu Changsheng stayed still and cooperated as she worked.
After almost an hour, she finally stepped back, her forehead glistening with sweat.
"All done," she said, handing him a small mirror.
Lu Changsheng looked at his reflection and saw a rugged, broad-shouldered man with a thick beard staring back at him. His face, posture, and even his build had changed. She had padded his clothing and changed his outfit completely. Even soone close to him would not recognize him now.
"Miss Li, this disguise is incredible," Lu Changsheng remarked, genuinely impressed. "Would you be willing to teach this skill soti?"
Being able to disguise yourself was a practical, if not essential, skill in the jianghu. If Lu Changsheng could master it, he would no longer have to don black robes and hide his face when traveling by himself.
Li Hongzhuang chuckled. "Of course. It's only a minor skill, but one that takes ti to perfect. I'll teach you once we've settled this matter."
Lu Changsheng nodded. With their disguises complete, the two erged from the bushes, mounted their horses, and rode toward the open road.
The two took their ti on the road, arriving at Jubei City after three full days of travel.
This was Lu Changsheng's first ti in Jubei City. As soon as he entered the city, his eyes were drawn to a massive stone stele in the central square.[1]
"That stele is the symbol of Jubei City," Li Hongzhuang explained. "It's been here for centuries. According to legend, a wealthy rchant once hired over a hundred craftsn to carve it. The carvings depict the daily lives of the city's people from centuries ago. Though so parts were damaged in later wars, most of it managed to endure. In ti, the monunt beca the city's landmark, and the city itself was renad after it.[2]
Lu Changsheng nodded and approached the stele. Its surface was worn by wind and rain, and many carvings had faded, yet he could still make out scenes of townsfolk going about their lives. The monunt stood as a silent witness to the city’s history, and to Jubei City, it was a priceless artifact.
Suddenly, a burly monk wearing a string of massive prayer beads pushed his way through the crowd. His expression twisted into a cruel grin as he shouted, "Liu Sanlang! The Patriarch graciously invited you to be his guest, but you had the nerve to reject him. Don't bla for teaching you a lesson now!"
"Vajra Palm!" the monk roared, thrusting his palm forward.
Boom!
A force slamd into the man as he tried to flee. The impact sent him staggering, blood sprayed from his mouth before he fell heavily to the ground.
The crowd scattered in panic as the monk strode over. He looked down coldly at the fallen man.
"Liu Sanlang, was this really necessary? If only you had accepted the invite from the Patriarch, I wouldn't have had to resort to this. Now look at you... Pathetic!"
"S-Save... ..." Liu Sanlang gasped, looking up at a burly man, and reached weakly for his foot.
The monk followed Liu Sanlang's gaze and saw a burly man and a haggard-looking middle-aged woman standing a few steps away.
"Master, please, go ahead," the burly man said, stepping back from Liu Sanlang’s grasp.
The monk threw his head back and laughed. "Hahaha! Liu Sanlang, look at this, there's no one in Jubei City who wants to save you!"
Then he seized Liu Sanlang and dragged him away.
1. For so visual references of Chinese stone steles, click here, or here. ☜
2. The direct translation of Jubei City (巨碑城) in English is "Giant Stele City." The character "bei (碑)" in Jubei City ans "stele" in Chinese. ☜
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