No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 834: The Great Sima...Not Big

late at night.

Li Dalang was awakened from his deep sleep by someone.

"Wake up...Prince...wake up..."

"what?"

Li Dalang opened his eyes in a daze and saw Shunbo shaking his arm quickly at the head of the bed, his wrinkled face looking a little anxious.

"What, what's wrong?"

Li Dalang was so scared that he immediately turned over and got out of bed, and the blanket covering his stomach slipped off.

He looked around hurriedly and found that he was still in the guest room of the inn and the luggage on the table had not been moved.

The entire guest room was pitch black, with the occasional chirping of insects coming from outside. He saw the position of the moonlight falling on the window, and it seemed to be the fifth watch.

In the pitch-black room, everything was silent.

Only Shun Bo, who appeared beside the bed, seemed a little out of place in this atmosphere. If it were a strange old man, Li Dalang would probably be scared to death.

"Hush, Prince, keep your voice down. It's nothing. Please put on your clothes first and follow me downstairs. Don't make any noise and don't bring any luggage. Just come..."

Li Dalang was startled for a moment, and was about to ask further questions when Shunbo suddenly turned around, put his index finger on his dry lips, and whispered:
"Your Majesty, Princess, Princess, and Miss Xie are all awake and waiting for you."

Li Dalang immediately calmed down.

He obediently got out of bed, put on his clothes, and followed him out at a very fast speed.

While walking down the stairs, he tried to slow down his movements, but since he had just woken up and his brain was still in the rebooting stage, he inevitably walked unsteadily, like a tipsy person, walking with one foot light and one heavy, and looking a little clumsy.

This uncertain movement made Shun Bo, who was booing, anxious.

Li Dalang coughed subconsciously, and when he saw Shunbo turning around, he immediately covered his mouth.

Finally, with the old housekeeper trembling with fear, Li Dalang went downstairs safely, walked through the guest rooms where everyone was sleeping, and came to the backyard of the inn.

Outside the door, a carriage was parked motionless in the shadows not far away.

A nightingale was singing in the distance.

Li Dalang suddenly woke up and focused.

He followed the uncle with some caution, and when he saw the familiar tall figure at the driver's seat, his eyes met hers.

Li Dalang breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Miss..."

"Shh, get in the car."

The girl raised her finger to her lips.

"it is good!"

Li Dalang bent down and got into the carriage, and Shunbo followed closely behind him and got in together.

Xie Lingjiang was still wearing the same red dress he had worn during the day, but he had a black silk cloak on the outside and a coachman's hat on to cover the bright red color of his eyes. Sitting in the carriage, he seemed to blend into the darkness, with only a pair of clear eyes visible under the hat.

Xie Lingjiang glanced at Li Dalang who was getting into the car, and his eyes fell on his wrist.

A string of wooden Buddhist beads has fallen back onto his wrist.

Just now when Li Dalang was brought closer to the carriage by Shunbo, before he could see her face clearly, Li Dalang secretly clenched the string of wooden Buddhist beads on his wrist.

This was left to him by his senior brother.

Xie Lingjiang nodded imperceptibly.

It seemed as if she acknowledged his vigilance.

I also breathed a sigh of relief.

Just remember what the senior brother told you before he left.

Li Dalang didn't know that he left an impression of being rough but delicate in Xie Lingjiang's mind.

He got into the carriage and saw that it was almost full.

My father is Li Xian, my mother is Wei Mei, and my younger sister is Li Guer.

Taoist priest Lu Ya and his maid Cai Shou are all there.

Li Guoer sat opposite Li Xian and his wife. There was an empty seat next to her, so Li Dalang sat there tacitly.

Everyone's eyes were on him who came hurriedly.

"Why did Dalang oversleep? Didn't we agree to go back and wait for news?"

Wei Mei complained a little.

Li Dalang said subconsciously:
"I didn't expect it to happen so soon. After dinner, I went back to my room and thought I would just close my eyes and take a rest at the table. Then I didn't know how I ended up lying on the bed and falling asleep..."

Wei Mei couldn't help but complain:

"You kid, you can sleep peacefully in any environment. What if you encounter danger..."

"Hey, Mei Niang, stop talking."

Li Xian raised his hand to stop Wei Mei. His eyes were a little bloodshot from staying up late at night due to his old age, but his tone was gentle:

"Da Lang is better than me in this respect. He is broad-minded and slow-witted. He doesn't take anything to heart. He falls asleep quickly and has a good sleep at night. This is how he can withstand the pressure of adversity and have the energy to do things, instead of tossing and turning every day and being exhausted. This is his advantage.

"I used to think this was a manifestation of being a vulgar person, but now I know that this is a quality of being wise but appearing foolish. It is a blessing. Just keep doing it, Dalang. Don't listen to your mother."

Wei Mei was speechless, her eyebrows raised, but since everyone around her was nodding in agreement, she controlled her temper, put on a stern face, and reached out to straighten the messy collar of her eldest son Li Fusu.

Li Dalang scratched his head.

I was a little confused by being praised by my father.

But looking at my father's appearance, he seems to be in a good mood tonight. Although he didn't look like he slept well, it might be because he just received the treasure bag from Tan Lang from Miss Xie in the evening.

Although Tan Lang had always told his father to act on his own before he left, saying that events that changed one's destiny required taking risks, his father must have been touched and relieved to receive Tan Lang's guidance at the critical juncture.

Li Dalang thought secretly.

Everyone has arrived.

Without hearing any greeting, Li Dalang felt the carriage under his butt slowly starting up and the wheels rolling forward.

Don't know where to go.

Li Dalang didn't ask, but looked around and saw that everyone's faces were either serious or expectant.

The father raised his hand, touched his arms, carefully took out a small box, opened it, and wiped the night pearl with his sleeve.

The night-shining pearl emitted cool moonlight that illuminated the dim carriage.

Li Dalang saw that there was a moonlight long sword across the knees of A'mei Li Gu'er. She lifted the curtain with a normal expression and looked out the window. Her white and tender left hand was tightly grasping the hilt of the sword, and her right hand was tapping the sword lightly with her fingers. It was unknown what she was thinking.

Li Dalang was not surprised.

All the way from Hanyang County on the Jiangnan Road to the sacred city of Luoyang, A-mei often lost herself in thought like this.

He turned his head and saw out of the corner of his eye that his mother Wei Mei's right hand was tightly clenched with a seal engraved with the word "Red Lotus". The sweat from her palm soaked the ancient seal, but she didn't notice it.

Wei Mei frowned frequently and stared at the night view outside the window.

Although after he got on the car, Xie Lingjiang and Li Xian did not mention what they were going to do or who they were going to meet on this late-night trip.

But the atmosphere in the car has made Li Dalang realize the importance of this trip.

Except for the tripod sword and other items that they could not leave behind, they did not bring any other luggage. They traveled light and only brought people with them.

Li Dalang's Adam's apple moved and he swallowed.

Just in the evening, they acted according to Tan Lang's first brocade bag and asked Rong Zhen to go to the palace.

Li Dalang really didn't expect the response from the other side to be so quick, so he overslept.

Li Dalang suddenly remembered what Tan Lang had said.

There are not many moments in a person's life that can change their destiny, and there are only a few major choices they can make, and they may even seem very trivial at the time.

In Tan Lang's words, it was just normal at the time.

But the results were completely different.

Even if you choose one day earlier or later, the outcome will be completely different.

If you step on it, you will go up.

If you miss, there will be no more to come.

Just like two years ago today, he and his parents and sister were still living in a poor county in a corner of the south of the Yangtze River, and he was just a nerd who had never been touched by a mother.

The days ahead will be like the only yellow mud official road in this remote county town leading to the provincial capital Xunyang, the end of which can be seen at a glance...

Take the carp leaping over the dragon gate, a story that is often talked about by the people.

Below the Dragon Gate, in the surging river, thousands of carp are leaping hard, vying for the first place.

Is the carp that finally crosses the dragon gate definitely the strongest and most deserving?
Not really. The carp that leaps over the Dragon Gate and turns into a dragon is definitely not the most powerful carp among the ones that cross the river.

There are countless people who are stronger than him.

But once you jump over the Dragon Gate, you're done. From then on, you'll turn into a dragon, and the immortals and mortals will be separated.

How cruel fate is.

Only life and death are fair.

A huge sense of destiny, of either a new life or falling into the abyss, entangled Li Dalang's heart.

He couldn't help licking his dry lips.

At this moment, out of the corner of his eye he saw a slender hand tightly gripping the hilt of a sword, the back of the hand turning white.

In the darkness, this bare hand seemed dazzlingly white.

Li Dalang moved his eyes upwards.

It’s the sister sitting next to me.

She had lowered the curtain and seemed to be sitting upright. Her expression could not be seen clearly. I didn't know whether she was resting with her eyes closed or looking straight ahead.

But it prefers a calm and understated attitude.

Li Dalang couldn't help but lower his head and look at her pale hands clenched under her sleeves.

What is A-mei thinking about?
Are you nervous or excited?
Are you feeling the same as him at this moment?
Li Dalang is not sure.

I don't know what I will face after I get off the car... betrayal or a sudden rise to fame?
But if you ask him if he's nervous...

But not much.

Li Dalang silently stretched out his hand, grasped the blade of the Moonlight Sword, and held it tightly.

The moonlight sword, which was originally trembling slightly as Li Guoer's pale little hands clenched tightly, stabilized.

The brother and sister both held a sword.

In the dim light, Li Guoer vaguely turned his head and looked.

Li Dalang didn't turn his head, but faced forward and smiled to himself.

I don’t know if Li Guoer saw it clearly.

After a while, she turned her head back, and the hand on the hilt of the sword relaxed a little.

Li Dalang suppressed his smile and took a deep breath.

His palm clenched the sword.

He is not afraid at all.

He is not a nobleman who is just lucky and has a good fate.

He didn't come to the capital alone.

He came here on behalf of Tan Lang and all the firewood carriers in the world!
About an hour later.

The carriage arrived at an abandoned mountain temple a hundred miles outside Luoyang City.

Everyone got off the bus at the temple gate.

It was quiet all around, with only the occasional chirping of insects in summer.

The temple was pitch black.

Everyone walked into the temple and looked carefully, only to see two figures in the temple.

They all stood in front of the dilapidated statue.

The man was very short, wearing the plain white palace clothes that Li Dalang was familiar with.

There is another one...even shorter.

Standing in front of Rong Zhen, he seems to be the leader.

Li Dalang looked curiously and saw a cloaked figure.

Just as everyone reached the statue, the cloaked figure turned around, slid down his hood, revealing his face, and began to sing.

The unique female voice and majestic tone resounded inside and outside the ruined temple:
"Xunyang Prince Li Xian, Crown Prince Li Fusu, I, under the order of the Holy Emperor, escort the two Highnesses to the palace to recuperate. I decree this!"

The atmosphere of the dilapidated temple is completely silent.

At the glances from Rong Zhen and Xie Lingjiang, Li Xian and Wei Mei hurriedly knelt down to express their gratitude, and pulled Li Dalang along with them.

Li Dalang was a little clumsy and knelt down belatedly, looking at the chubby face of the "shorter figure" with surprise.

It turned out to be a little girl of six or seven years old.

She is even shorter and more immature than Rong Zhen, who has a young loli figure.

However, the chubby little girl standing next to Rong Zhen was like an adult, with her hands behind her back and her chin slightly raised.

The pink little girl suddenly turned around:

"Rong'er."

She handed back the string of eighteen seeds she was playing with and put it on Rong Zhen's wrist. A deep purple air flashed across the eighteen seeds, and golden light appeared on the eighteen seeds in response.

Li Dalang, who had learned a little about the ways of Qigong from Tan Lang and Miss Xie, widened his eyes.

This porcelain doll-like little girl is a top-grade Qi-refining practitioner and a great master in the martial arts world!

Judging from her relationship with Rong Zhen, could she be the Great God of Destiny?
The master of Sitianjian?

No way, it’s so small?
I thought Ms. Rong Zhen was already small enough.

Shouldn't she be as old as Deputy Supervisor Nanny Song?

Under the statue of the God of Wealth, a chubby little girl spoke in a childish voice as ethereal as a distant mountain:

"This is Rong'er's great fortune. You should keep it. You are not to blame for what happened in Xunyang. You have made a great contribution by getting back the complete fake Ding Sword. This is a great achievement. I will ask the Holy Emperor for your contribution."

Rong Zhen still had a cold face, but his tone was full of respect and intimacy:

"Yes, Master."

The adorable little girl stood with her hands behind her back like a little adult, then glanced sideways at the mandarin duck jade hairpin on Rong Zhen's head, then suddenly stood on tiptoes and gently stroked the hairpin.

Like a pat on the head.

Everyone heard that the little girl seemed to whisper something in Rong Zhen's ear.

"...Well...from now on, you are the ninth generation of the Lighting Master of our company..."

The little girl's tone was somewhat doting and partial.

Rong Zhen lowered his eyes.

Everyone looked at Rong Zhen, and then at this young but domineering little girl.

Some of them looked at each other in confusion, wondering why the style of painting was wrong? Shouldn't the big one touch the small one, and the tall one touch the short one?

Xie Lingjiang bowed, neither humble nor arrogant:

"Thank you for your hard work, Great Sima."

The chubby little girl glanced at Xie Lingjiang with her black pearl-like eyes. She didn't respond, but her eyes fell on the mandarin duck jade hairpin on Xie Lingjiang's head. It was unknown what she was thinking.

After a while, the group left the mountain temple.

The chubby little girl walked in front with her hands behind her back.

Rong Zhen followed closely, half a body length behind. Everyone saw Rong Zhen's expression and it seemed that she had an amazing trust in this chubby little girl.

Halfway through the walk, everyone saw the chubby little girl in front of them suddenly raise her hand, pull out the mandarin duck jade hairpin on Rong Zhen's head, and hand it back to Rong Zhen.

The pink little girl tilted her head:

"Why are you imitating the way women tie their hair into high sideburns for no reason? This is not a joke."

After saying that, she walked forward with her hands behind her back and said in a light tone:
"You will be seeing the emperor later. You must not violate etiquette by changing your hairstyle. Also, if Rong'er gets married in the future, it can only be decided by the Holy Emperor."

The Great God of Destiny of Holy Week turned and walked away, his short legs leading the way for everyone else.

The atmosphere among the crowd at the back became vaguely strange.

As the pink-faced girl finished her words, a wind suddenly blew in the dilapidated temple, blowing across the jet-black hair of the beautiful girl in palace dress. The wind was like a dexterous big hand, tying her black hair into a standard palace bun.

A purple-black pattern appeared on the mandarin duck jade hairpin, and it shot out with a "whoosh" and inserted itself into the hair at the back of Rong Zhen's head, stabilizing her hairstyle.

Rong Zhen was as usual, cold and silent, quietly holding the Buddhist beads he gave her in her sleeves, not letting go.

She pursed her lips and followed the petite figure of the chubby little girl.

Everyone followed.

Let’s follow this childish little girl into Luodu at night.

(End of this chapter)