Chapter 32 Jiangnan Lu Mansion
It was late at night when Deng Changchuan brought Liu Xunyi back to the Lu Mansion. Because of the previous experience at Sushui Pavilion, Liu Xunyi did not dare to be too conspicuous in the Lu Mansion, nor did he dare to alarm anyone. Deng Changchuan led him to a rather deserted side room in the side yard to spend the night. After Liu Xunyi simply tidied himself up, he lay on the couch, thinking about the experiences of the past two days, and could not fall asleep for a long time.

Liu Xunyi nearly lost his life on the third day after arriving in Quanzhou, which made him feel apprehensive about the martial arts world he had longed for. Compared with the dangers of intrigue in the court, the open and secret struggles in the martial arts world were no less dangerous. The situation could change again and again over a meal. People were two-faced, saying black was white and white was black. Not only did they kill people without blinking an eye, but they also killed people with reason and evidence, and they killed people with a sense of righteousness.

If Deng Changchuan hadn't reminded him tonight, Liu Xunyi would not even know how he died. Not only would his life be in danger, but he would also be branded as a villain despised by everyone, and his death would be both confusing and unjust.

I originally thought that everyone in the martial arts world was a hero, but I didn't know that all crows are black. In the eyes of Sikong Zhu and Shen Dongshan, Liu Xunyi is just like a cat or dog on the street. Life and death, honor and disgrace are not important at all. Now that I think about it, if I really listened to Sikong Zhu's high-sounding words and went back with him, I'm afraid I would have died by now.

At this moment, his gratitude towards Lin Fangda increased even more, and at the same time, he felt deeply guilty for his rash behavior.

Liu Xunyi reached into his bosom and took out the handkerchief given to him by Zhao Xin. A soft look finally appeared on his tired and solemn face. His fingertips felt the smoothness of the handkerchief. Zhao Xin's every frown and smile also appeared in his mind, especially the words "I'll wait for you", which made Liu Xunyi's heart warm.

"For Xin'er, I will go through mountains of swords and seas of fire." Liu Xunyi said silently in his heart, "I must go back alive. I promised her that I must go back alive to see her..."

Liu Xunyi, who was obsessed with Zhao Xin, became more and more determined in his belief in a state of half-sleep. The handkerchief pressed against his chest brought him endless warmth, and it was as peaceful as holding Zhao Xin in his arms, which gradually calmed Liu Xunyi's uneasy mind.

Liu Xunyi lay on the couch with a lot of thoughts in his mind, tossing and turning from time to time. He didn't know whether he could sleep that night or not. However, the sky in the east was already turning slightly pale.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Liu Xunyi was quietly awakened by a crisp knock on the door while he was half asleep. He opened his eyes slightly and stared blankly at the dim sky outside the window, as if thinking about his current situation. After a moment, he slowly opened his mouth and said, "Who?"

"Brother, it's me, Lin Fangda!" Lin Fangda answered from outside the door. His tone sounded quite happy, and it was obvious that he was in a good mood at the moment.

Upon hearing this, Liu Xunyi quickly got off the bed, opened the door and welcomed Lin Fangda, who was smiling, in, and asked, "When did big brother come?"

"I arrived before dawn." Lin Fang said, "Today is a big day, so I came here early so that I can wait for the Lord's orders. It's still early for me to come to the Lu Mansion, so I didn't disturb my brother's sweet dream."

"If Palace Master Luo has any orders, just tell me. I will be very disrespectful to refuse." After saying that, Liu Xunyi changed the subject and asked hurriedly, "Brother, did Si Kongzhu embarrass you again at Sushui Pavilion last night?"

"He dares?" Lin Fangda, holding a plate of porridge in his left hand and a bundle in his right hand, walked into the house and replied, "To be frank, even if Sikong Zhu wants to beat a dog, he still has to see who the owner is. He wouldn't dare to embarrass the people in Prince Xian's Mansion even if he had ten courage. Haha... Did you sleep well last night, my brother? You were chasing thieves and saving people yesterday, you must be exhausted, eat some porridge quickly!"

"Thank you for your concern, big brother. Luckily, Fifth Master Deng took care of me last night. I am fine." While Liu Xunyi was speaking, he took the porridge and the bag from Lin Fangda's hand and asked, "Then Lord Luo... did you blame big brother for my problem?"

Hearing this, Lin Fang smiled bitterly and said, "Originally, the mansion master wanted to punish me this morning, but fortunately Ningyu pleaded for me in time, saying that my brother had saved our lives, and that I helped you last night to repay the favor. The mansion master is very understanding and would not pursue the matter any further? Moreover, there was no big trouble last night, so the merits and demerits offset each other, and I naturally escaped. Hehe..."

"It's my fault that I have implicated my brother. If I hadn't acted rashly to save Miss Bai, I wouldn't have gotten into so much trouble." Liu Xunyi said with a wry smile.

"Brothers shouldn't talk about other things, and it's all in the past." Lin Fangda waved his hand nonchalantly, "Eat something, brother, and then change into the clothes in this bag. I'll take you to see a good show later."

"What a good show?" Liu Xunyi drank a bowl of hot porridge in two or three mouthfuls, opened the bundle, and saw a set of plain light blue cloth clothes inside. He couldn't help but look puzzled, "What is..."

"Didn't you say last night that you wanted to see Mo Cen's grand ceremony of retiring from the underworld?" Lin Fang said. "Although Master Shen refused to help you and caused so much trouble, he made a difference in the end. Last night, Master Fifth Deng brought you to the Lu Mansion in broad daylight. The rest of the matter will be easy for me to handle. This is the clothes of the servants in the Xianwang Mansion. Please put them on first. After that, you can blend in with the Xianwang Mansion's people and go to the Lu Mansion martial arts field with the Lord of the Mansion to participate in Mo Cen's grand ceremony of retiring from the underworld."

Upon hearing this, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but feel grateful, and hurriedly said: "Brother, I am already very grateful that you are thinking of me, so how can I say that I am wronged?" After that, Liu Xunyi hurriedly changed into cloth clothes, and Lin Fangda personally put a small crooked hat on him, making Liu Xunyi look more like an accompanying servant.

Walking out of the side yard, it was already bright. There were crowds of people everywhere inside and outside the Lu Mansion. Disciples from different sects were passing by the corridor bridge in groups of three or five. Apart from the occasional whispers, most of them were in a hurry and kept silent. The solemn atmosphere was completely different from that in Su Shui Pavilion yesterday.

"Brother." Liu Xunyi suddenly grabbed Lin Fangda's arm and whispered, "Thanks to the generous help of Palace Master Luo last night, should I go to visit Palace Master Luo first to express my gratitude?" Lin Fangda thought for a moment, looked at the sky, shook his head and said, "Brother, there is no need to be polite. The Palace Master has never been particular about such trivial matters. What's more, the Palace Master has probably been sent by Mr. Lu to leave, so we'd better go to the martial arts field and wait for orders."

Luo Tianjin's status was so prominent that Lu Tingxiang would definitely treat him as a guest of honor. He would never mix with ordinary disciples. In fact, Liu Xunyi had anticipated this. He just wanted to give it a try. After all, for him, seeing the world and retiring was a small matter, but getting close to Luo Tianjin was a big deal.

"I was reckless. I will follow your instructions." Liu Xunyi was not stubborn. He followed Lin Fangda and a group of disciples from the Xianwang Mansion through the courtyards and gathered together with people from all directions towards the martial arts field in the seventh courtyard of the Lu Mansion.

The Jiangnan Lu Mansion had twelve main courtyards in front and back, and twelve branch courtyards on the left and right, totaling thirty-six courtyards. The pavilions, towers, waterside gardens encountered along the way were even more interconnected and varied. If Lin Fangda hadn't led the way, Liu Xunyi would have gotten lost.

The seventh courtyard of the Lu Mansion is named "Chongwu", which is the largest courtyard in the mansion. The Chongwu Hall with five bright rooms and eight dark rooms is located in the north. Outside the hall is a martial arts field that can accommodate hundreds of people for training. There are dozens of rooms on each side of the martial arts field. Those who can live in these rooms are definitely not ordinary people, but top masters of the Lu family.

According to the rules of the Lu Mansion, the courtyard before Chongwu is the outer courtyard, and the courtyard after Chongwu is the inner courtyard. Therefore, the courtyards from the first to the sixth are the outer courtyards, where the children of other families and servants live, while the courtyards from the eighth to the twelfth are the inner courtyards, where the direct descendants of the Lu family and the female relatives of the mansion live. The inner courtyards after the eighth courtyard are not open to any outsiders, so the Chongwu Courtyard in the seventh courtyard is the greatest sincerity of the Lu family to receive foreign guests. If ordinary guests are sent away in the first or second courtyards, they can be called honored guests if they can enter the third courtyard of the Lu Mansion. As for the Chongwu Courtyard in the seventh courtyard, it will only be open when such martial arts events are held.

Liu Xunyi and his companions walked along the way, and there was a sentry every three steps and a sentry every five steps. Everywhere there were Lu family guards with swords and knives, looking cautiously at the disciples of various sects coming and going. The defense was very strict. It is not difficult to see how much the Jiangnan Lu Mansion attaches importance to this conference. Liu Xunyi became more and more frightened as he walked. This kind of pomp and circumstance is probably no less than that of the Prime Minister's Mansion in Lin'an.

When Liu Xunyi followed the crowd into the martial arts arena, it was already crowded with people. The noisy sounds were endless, and the originally solemn atmosphere became lively and exciting.

At this moment, six banners were placed on the left and right sides of the martial arts arena. The banners on the left were embroidered with the names of the six major sects, Shaolin, Wudang, Kunlun, Kongtong, Emei, and Qingcheng, while the banners on the right were embroidered with the names of the Xianwang Mansion, Jinjianwu, and the four major martial arts families, Jiangnan Lu Mansion, Shuzhong Tang Sect, Hexi Qin Family, and Xiangxi Teng Family. The twelve major righteous forces in the Central Plains martial arts world were all present, which showed that the Jiangnan Lu Mansion had a great reputation, or that the "Shocking Wind and Rain Picture" had a great charm in the martial arts world.

There are several small flags standing on the south side of Chongwu Hall. Most of them are second- and third-rate forces in the martial arts world and green forest gangs in Jiangnan. Most of them have obtained a seat by currying favor with the Jiangnan Lu Mansion. However, even so, these people will be able to exaggerate this matter in the future. You know, being invited by the Lu Mansion to participate in such a grand event is a great honor in itself, which is enough to prove that one's status in the martial arts world is not bad.

The most eye-catching thing at this moment, apart from the flags waving in the wind, was the shining golden basin placed on the stone platform in the center of the martial arts arena. There was some clear water in the basin, which was used for Mo Cen to wash his hands in the golden basin today. Next to the golden basin was an eight-immortal table, on which was placed a large birthday peach made of pure gold, and around the birthday peach were piled up birthday gifts sent by various sects.

Lin Fangda led his men to the flag of the Xianwang Mansion and waited. Liu Xunyi looked at the crowd with excitement. At this moment, there were more than 500 to 600 people in the martial arts field. Disciples from various sects were greeting each other and chatting. Most of those who were brought here were masters of their sects. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that there are many masters in the Lu Mansion today. For Liu Xunyi, who saw this scene for the first time, he couldn't help but feel excited.

Under each banner, there were three chairs for the three most senior members of the sect to sit on, while ordinary disciples could only stand. However, all the chairs were empty at this moment, and it was obvious that none of the truly prestigious people in the martial arts world had arrived.

Lin Fangda smiled softly to Liu Xunyi beside him and said, "My dear brother, you are going to feast your eyes today."

"What do you mean, brother?"

"Have you heard of the Twelve Heroes of the Central Plains Martial Arts World?" Lin Fang said, "They are the twelve heroes with the highest status in the Central Plains Martial Arts World today. Regardless of martial arts, prestige or status, they are all great figures standing at the top of the Central Plains Martial Arts World. Almost half of the Twelve Heroes of the Central Plains Martial Arts World are here today. How many people have never seen one of them in their entire lives? You can see so many today, isn't it a feast for your eyes? Haha..."

Liu Xunyi nodded in sudden enlightenment and said, "The twelve heroes of the Central Plains martial arts world are the leaders of the six major sects, the heads of the four major families, plus the Northern Sage King and the Master of the Golden Sword Dock. The twelve of them together are enough to subvert the entire Central Plains martial arts world. But apart from the Northern Sage King and Mr. Lu, I wonder how many of the other ten are here today?"

"Boom!"

Suddenly, the golden gong in the northeast corner of the martial arts field was struck violently, and the clear and loud gong sound echoed between heaven and earth, making the noisy scene quiet in an instant. Everyone in the field couldn't help but be refreshed, and then they all cast their eyes to the Chongwu Hall in the north, but saw a figure swaying in the hall, as if someone was about to come out.

Lin Fangda looked up at the clear sky, then turned to Liu Xunyi with an excited look and said seriously, "It's the third quarter of the morning. The show is about to begin."

……

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(End of this chapter)