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Chapter 416: I went to the southwest and met the king of the southwest (asking for monthly tickets)
Mu Taihong was in a tense state of mind and also had great martial arts skills, so he could not hide the slight sound from him. Black Tiger and the divine bird opened their eyes wide and stared at the auspicious sign of gently biting off a bamboo shoot beside them.

Eat, eat, eat, just know how to eat!

Mu Taihong held the knife in his hand, his spirit tensed, he walked over, and suddenly gathered his strength, he heard a violent gust of wind in the air, the knife slashed down, breaking the bamboo in front of him, but he saw inside the bamboo, there was only an iron-eating beast, chewing the bamboo slowly.

There are auspicious signs in the southwest. According to legend, they are the mounts of the Lord of Jiuli in ancient times. However, no real auspicious signs have been seen over the years. As for normal iron-eating beasts, there are quite a lot of them in the southwest.

Not all mythical beasts and auspicious animals are like the Qilin, which is unique and special in its group.

Mu Taihong breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It turned out to be an iron-eating beast..."

He slowly put the knife in his hand back into the scabbard and relaxed.

He picked up a fruit and threw it over, saying, "Suck, suck, suck."

"Come and eat."

"Ha, I forgot, it's not a dog."

Auspicious: “…………”

Mu Taihong breathed a sigh of relief. He felt that the noise just now had frightened him so much that his clothes on his back were soaked. He knew that this was not a place to stay for long, so he left immediately. He just sighed and said, "It's a pity that the owner of the Xue building, Xue Shuangtao, left so early."

"Otherwise, arrest this traitor who is stirring up trouble in the southwest."

"Bind him and send him back to Chen."

"His Majesty the Emperor will be delighted. Glory and wealth will be within his reach!"

Mu Taihong thought of the beautiful appearance of the owner of the building, Xue, who was dressed as a man, and his heart was hot. But he also remembered that there were two people who often followed the owner of the building. One of them was white-haired and had an arrogant temperament. He was the fourth of the ten great masters in the world, the Crazy King Chen Chengbi.

The woman next to her has a temperament as cold as ice and also has the skills of a master.

He didn't dare to act rashly, so he could only think about it in his heart. After saying a few words of hatred in his heart, he left. After he was far away, the auspicious teeth slowly fell and gently bit off the bamboo shoots.

Chew chew chew.

Xue Shuangtao?
He sounded familiar. Xuanhu beside him raised his eyes slightly and said in human language, "Is he the one wearing the wooden hairpin on his head?"

Xiangrui suddenly realized: "It means the one who brought three full carts of fruit."

"A big tub of animal milk."

"The one who came to see us specifically?"

Some time ago, an envoy from the State of Chen came. The poster who was disguised as a man got the information from somewhere and really found himself. At that time, Xiangrui wanted to play dumb, but failed.

At that time, the moonlight by the water swayed slightly with the ripples. The host squatted by the bamboo forest and lake, smiled and stretched out his hand, holding a freshly peeled bamboo shoot, and smiled gently and generously: "If you agree."

"As long as I am still in this world, I will give you endless bamboo shoots, all year round. I will give you as much as you want. I will prepare whatever flavor you want. How about that?"

"Is this kind of deal still acceptable?"

The girl smiled slightly, her eyes were clear brown.

Auspicious Road:
"She said that someone named Li Guanyi might come later."

"Give me a chance to look after this man."

Xiangrui sighed and finally decided to take action: "Anyway, no matter what, let's fish out these twenty-four beads first."

........................

On the way to the southwest.

The bronze tripod whistled several times and stopped moving. Li Guanyi grinned, thinking that the southwestern divine beast was really difficult to deal with. The Nine-Colored Divine Deer said in a soft voice, "That child might be a little shy?"

"You should feel much better if you go see Him in person."

Li Guan nodded, and the bronze tripod gradually calmed down. As he went further southwest, he could feel the flow and change of a great trend. His internal energy surged, and the foundation of the eighth level was slightly improved.

Even the injuries left after the battle with Jiang Su.

During this process, there is also a trend of gradual recovery.

This is the general trend.

Leaving the Xixixiong City in the Western Regions and heading to the southwest, the place is quite far. Even riding on the divine dragon horse, it will not arrive in an instant. It took ten days to reach the southwestern territory. On the road, more and more people came and went.

When people chat, they already have a southwestern accent.

The style of food has also changed, with heavier flavors gradually appearing. Li Guan saw someone roasting peppers on a kang, then crushing them and eating them with dried peppers. It tasted good, but Mr. Wen Qingyu seemed to be disappointed.

After eating, I drank water frantically and coughed violently.

Then there were Houttuynia cordata and Houttuynia cordata. After eating them, Mr. Wen Qingyu looked embarrassed.

Mr. Wen Qingyu, whose family was originally from the Central Plains but who grew up in the Western Regions, had a diet that was not compatible with the southwestern area. However, Li Guanyi remembered that Mr. Yan Daiqing seemed to be able to eat spicy food.

But when we arrived at the largest city in the southwest region.

Li Guanyi prepared a visiting card and asked Mr. Wenhe to deliver it. However, after Mr. Wenhe took a walk, he came back and found Li Guanyi. He pulled Li Guanyi aside and said, "My lord, things have changed."

Li Guanyi was surprised and asked, "Mr. Wenhe, what's the matter?"

The plain-looking young man said, "There are three things wrong. First, there are a lot of guards in the city. It doesn't look like they are preparing to welcome guests. The city defense is more numerous than normal. I walked around the city and found that the city defense soldiers have mixed accents and there is a hint of hostility between them."

"I asked someone and it seems that there has been a temporary change in the people guarding the city recently."

"In the city, I saw cloth that was only available in the Chen Kingdom. There were too many people with a Chen Kingdom accent, and most of them walked silently. There were many places in the city that were dirt roads, and the places were wet, leaving traces when people stepped on them."

“These people walked by and there was no sound.”

"If it weren't for the fact that everyone in this southwest region has martial arts skills, then there's something wrong with these people."

Li Guanyi narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "What you mean is."

Wen He said, "The southwest has been ostensibly subject to the Chen Kingdom for nearly twenty years. With Chen Dingye's skills and his prudent nature, wouldn't he do something here? Even if Chen Dingye didn't do it, didn't that Tan Tai Xianming make preparations when he was alive?"

If that wasn't enough, Chen Dingye.

The four words "Tan Tai Xian Ming" made Li Guanyi's forehead jump.

Li Guanyi said: "It seems that this place doesn't welcome us that much. Sir, let's go and catch a tongue first."

Wen He nodded and said, "Caught."

Li Guanyi hesitated slightly.

"Have you asked clearly, sir?"

Wen He nodded.

Li Guanyi: "...What about the tongue now?"

Wen He showed a smile that said "My lord, you understand."

Li Guanyi grinned.

The simple young man laughed and said, "My lord, I am not a cruel and heartless person. I just used 72 kinds of Ma Fei Powder to make him drink a glass of wine, and then tied him up with a rope to let him rest for a while."

"In short, my lord, there seems to be quite a lot of trouble in the southwest."

Li Guanyi thought Wen He would say that they needed to be careful and wait and see how the situation develops, but Mr. Wen He said without blinking an eye: "General Chen Wenmian will arrive with a large army soon anyway."

"Why don't we find a place to have a good rest first."

Li Guanyi laughed: "As expected of you, sir."

Wen He said generously, "My lord, you are so kind."

"What does the Lord mean?"

Li Guanyi looked at the city and said with a smile, "Then let's do as you say, sir. Since we are already here, let's go into the city and find an inn to stay in. Let's see what is in the city."

Mr. Wen He smiled and said, "Very good, sir."

The group entered this southwestern city and saw that the architectural style was different from that of the Central Plains, Jiangnan, and the Western Regions. It was more exquisite, with a bit of bamboo style. As for the inn they were going to stay in.

Yaoguang made a divination herself, pointed to a simple-looking inn, and said quietly, "It will be smoother here."

The Nine-Colored Divine Deer also thought about it and chose that one:
"There is a sense of luck."

Li Guanyi also used the qi-watching technique taught by the old Sima Ming to see, and he found that above this ordinary inn, there was a faint trace of human luck rising. If it was not a reflection of the different identity of the owner behind the inn, then there must be a special guest in this inn.

So he found this inn among the numerous inns in this largest city in the southwest to stay in. Nangong Wumeng was a lively person, and was born in a martial arts sect on the border of Chen State. After that, he mostly traveled around Chen State.

After that, he traveled around the country with Li Guanyi and gradually became interested in visiting places he had never been to. He directly dragged Yaoguang out to stroll around the city. Li Guanyi thought about it and gave 90% of his purse to Nangong Wumeng.

He said earnestly: "Nangong, do you understand?"

The most beautiful woman in the martial arts world rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, okay, yes, yes!"

"In short, you should go to pawn shops, street vendors, and other places to hang out, right? It really makes you poor."

Li Guanyi gave a thumbs up and said, "Great!"

Nangong Wumeng picked up the purse, touched it, and raised his eyebrows provocatively: "So, General, Lord, do you have any reward?"

"The great Qin Wu Hou, the commander-in-chief of the army, the Khan of Heaven, the fifth most powerful general in the world."

"It's not like my efforts are in vain, right?!"

Nangong Wumeng lowered his voice, his eyes sparkling, and moved closer, smiling:
"Come on, call me sister."

Li Guanyi did not hesitate, and clasped his hands together:

"Sister Wu Meng, I'm counting on you."

Nangong Wumeng was stunned, his face flushed, but he sneered: "That's it?"

"Humph, a-nothing at all!"

"We have known each other for almost four years. You, you, you don't think that you can defeat me just like this, do you? Haha, that's ridiculous. I am no longer the girl I was three years ago. I am..."

Li Guanyi said: "Who took away all my fortune?!"

Nangong Wumeng said: "Tsk tsk tsk, otherwise, if you pledge your love to me, I may accept it."

Li Guanyi raised his eyebrows and responded with provocation, saying:
"Okay." Nangong Wumeng just spoke nonsense, sluggishly, and then flew out as if there was a spring under his feet, knocking down the door. He crossed his hands in front of him, his face flushed, staring at Li Guanyi, and stammered:

"You, you, you, stop, shut up!!!"

"You are a dissolute boy, you have no shame."

"You, you, you didn't even offer a betrothal gift, six gifts, or six gifts. What are you talking about?"

"This, this is something you can just say casually, you!?"

Nangong Wumeng's voice suddenly stopped.

Nangong Wumeng was stunned.

He turned around, grabbed Yaoguang and yelled, "Ahhhhhh, I'll remember you!"

"Just wait for next time, Pharmacist Li!"

boom!
Nangong Wumeng banged his forehead against the door, causing the door of the inn to collapse. He left yelling and holding the silver-haired girl under his arms. The silver-haired girl's hair was pulled straight and was shaking.

Li Guan laughed out loud.

This guy is so green yet he loves to provoke others.

Mr. Wen He left early and wandered around the city looking for information.

Lei Laomeng went to the southwest where wild animals were sold, and, at Fan Qing's request, went to where poor people lived to look for gambling houses and other places to investigate the people's sentiments.

Li Guanyi was sitting at the door of the inn, chatting with the shopkeeper. When talking about the architectural style of the city, he said that three hundred years ago there was a sage who had stayed in the southwest for a period of time.

There have been many improvements in the architecture and life in the southwest.

Li Guan smiled and said, "He is really a wonderful person. I wonder who he is. It's a pity that I can't meet him in person." The innkeeper said in Mandarin with a southwestern accent, "Meet him? Oh, it was three hundred years ago. How can I meet him again?"

“That’s true.”

The shopkeeper chatted with Li Guanyi in a casual manner. Li Guanyi drank a sip of wine. The shopkeeper was making a kind of rice stuffed in a bamboo tube. He smiled and said, "The guest doesn't look like someone from our southwest."

"It's not like they came to our city from other cities in the southwest."

Li Guanyi smiled and said, "The shopkeeper has a good eye. I am from the north, born in the Central Plains. My surname is Li, my name is Yaoshi, and I studied under the Imperial Academy. Now the world is in chaos, and the Imperial Academy's disciples are traveling everywhere. I can't stand the chaos, so I went to the southwest."

The little Qilin transformed into a cat was originally dealing with the snacks on the table. He was stunned when he heard the words. He raised his head and looked at Li Guanyi who didn't even blink when he lied, and fell into confusion.

The shopkeeper sighed: "Who says it's not true?"

"Before, I heard the news. Hey, but the news came from the King of the Southwest. Don't disbelieve it. I can open an inn here, so I must have my own way."

"My third aunt's second son's classmate when he was a child, the seventh uncle of the neighbor's family, is a lieutenant officer under the King of the Southwest. I heard that the overlord of the Central Plains, Qin Wu, is coming to our place."

"He said he was going to lead an army of 800,000 to attack our southwest!"

“Puff, cough, cough, cough—”

Li Guanyi nearly choked himself to death after spitting out a mouthful of wine.

He started coughing violently: "How much?!!"

You learned arithmetic from Mr. Wenhe, right? !

The shopkeeper patted Li Guanyi on the shoulder with an expression that said, "Don't disbelieve me, young man. You are only eighteen or nineteen years old. You must have never seen a large army going into battle. Hey, it's okay, it's okay."

"How many people in the world can see such a scene?"

"Eight hundred thousand troops. Hey, I say eight hundred thousand troops, but I'm afraid there are millions of them. Qin Wuhou has many counselors and brave generals under his command. Yan Daiqing from the Western Regions, who was known for burning cities and slaughtering people and creating endless karmic debts, was also conquered by Qin Wuhou."

Li Guanyi held the wine glass in a daze, unable to utter a word.

Um? ?

Ok? ? ?
Why does this story sound like someone else's?

Li Guanyi grinned, thinking to himself that if he had a million-strong army that could conquer the whole world, there would be no need for all this trouble. If he had a million-strong elite Qilin army, the four directions could be pacified.

Li Guanyi sighed and just chatted while eating the special southwestern food.

The shopkeeper served him three kinds of tea unique to the southwest, the first bitter, the second sweet, and the third aftertaste. The food included rice cakes, rice shreds, etc. While the old shopkeeper was cooking, there was a small stove next to him, roasting small cubes of tofu. After being roasted, they were puffy and crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and they were eaten with chili powder.

He took a bite of tofu and drank a sip of tea, shaking his head and smacking his lips.

Then chat with other familiar customers.

It was really comfortable and relaxed, as if these mountains were blocking the way. The battle with the Central Plains and the Western Regions was really different. The little Qilin was dealing with a kind of candied fruit made of winter melon, which he had never seen anywhere else, and he was enjoying the battle.

Li Guan took a sip of tea, but suddenly realized something was wrong. The bronze tripod whistled. He raised his eyes slightly and saw a big man entering the inn. He was wearing a robe with dark patterns and had an imposing manner. He was about fifty years old, but looked younger than Lu Youxian.

In Li Guanyi's eyes, this big man's aura was flowing, and he faintly turned into a Dharma image, which actually had an eighth level of heaven. He walked in here without saying a word, and just went to the window on the third floor to drink alone.

Li Guanyi put down the wine bowl, and saw with his eyes the powerful spirit of this big man. There was a faint flow of human luck and entered into Li Guanyi's bronze tripod. Li Guanyi's heart moved slightly, knowing that this was probably the Yaoguang divination and the kingly luck he had seen.

He grabbed the Qilin who was chewing on candied winter melon nearby and put him on his shoulder.

He ordered a pot of good wine and strode away.

Duan Qingyu, King of the Southwest, was drinking alone, feeling troubled by the affairs of Qin Wuhou. On the one hand, the hundreds of thousands of troops led by Qin Wuhou had clearly already pacified Lu Youxian, but they had not withdrawn their troops at all, and no one knew where they were going next.

Secondly, he had a vague feeling that in this vast territory of the southwest, not all city lords were willing to form an alliance with the son of the Duke of Taiping. He was very troubled, so today he simply left the palace and came to the restaurant where he usually drank to drink alone.

This restaurant is nothing special, except that it was where he, Li Wanli and Chen Fubi drank and competed with each other in drinking.

Many years have passed, and the old friend has left. He still loves this restaurant and has a good impression of it.

He drank jar after jar, using the strong aroma of the liquor to dispel the feeling of depression in his heart.

Suddenly he noticed something and looked up to see a young man approaching. He was wearing a simple green robe and a jade hairpin, and he looked quite dignified. Li Guanyi used the "Jiangnan Misty Rain Twelve-story Tower Skill" to slightly conceal his temperament and said with a smile:
"Dude, you can drink a lot!"

Duan Qingyu was a free and easy-going person. He had never expected someone to talk to him, but he was not annoyed. He just smiled and said, "Hahaha, I was drinking alone and was a little rough. I am sorry to make you laugh."

Li Guanyi said: "Such boldness makes me envious."

He bowed slightly and said with a smile: "I am Pharmacist Li, a merchant from the Central Plains and a student of the academy. I came here to avoid the war in the Central Plains. I am unfamiliar with the place and the people, but I saw that you were drinking happily, so please don't blame me for coming over to talk to you."

Duan Qingyu saw that he was so calm and generous, and said with a heroic smile: "What is there to blame?"

"I'm drinking alone, and no one dares to talk to me. I'm so bored. Come on, since you're here, why don't you sit down and drink more? I'll tell you about the beautiful scenery and delicious food in my southwest."

"Hahaha, shopkeeper, bring some more wine. This will be my treat to this little brother from the southwest."

The shopkeeper agreed.

Li Guanyi thanked him.

Duan Qingyu was just a man of heroic character, and he was also the leader of the tribe of the southwestern city lords, so he just treated the visitor as an outsider. Even if it was just anyone who talked to him, he would not bully the weak by relying on his status.

Duan Qingyu is the King of the Southwest and has great martial arts skills. When he drinks, he just swallows it whole to relieve his boredom. He never thought that the people from the Central Plains could be like this.

It reminded him of his old friend, and the more he drank, the more he enjoyed it. The same was true for Pharmacist Li from Central Plains. Duan Qingyu got angry and had a drinking contest with the boy. As a man, he would always have a strong desire to win in these small matters.

Duan Qingyu was half annoyed and half angry.

I don't believe it.

I can’t beat Li Wanli’s son in a fight, so today I’m here to drink with Li Wanli. Even if a person from the Central Plains comes, I can’t drink with him!
There is no such truth in this world!
The shopkeeper was moving wine back and forth, and in a short while, the two men had drunk up all the wine reserves in the shopkeeper's restaurant. The shopkeeper's forehead was sweating, and his mouth was grinning.

Today I sold it with great pleasure.

Duan Qingyu finished the last bowl of wine and laughed loudly, saying, "It's great, it's great. Drinking is a lot more fun when two people, even if it's just you and me, who just met by chance, than drinking alone!"

"Today's drink is on me!"

"Old shopkeeper, please put it on the account for me. Little brother, we'll see each other someday if we have the chance. Hahaha, have a good time in the southwest!" He stood up to leave, but saw several people suddenly running towards him, heading straight to the third floor of the restaurant, running towards Duan Qingyu.

The leader was Mu Taihong. Seeing Duan Qingyu hiding his identity and drinking, he was moved and deliberately shouted:

"No, my lord!"

"Twenty-four pearls, the national treasure of our Southwest country, have been lost."

Duan Qingyu was shocked, and then he stood up suddenly, extremely angry, and grabbed Mu Taihong by the collar:

"What did you say?!!!"

Mu Taihong said: "The national treasure is lost. The lords of the cities in the southwest have gathered in the palace. Please go back quickly. This matter is so serious. It is really a matter of great importance to our country!"

Duan Qingyu knew the seriousness of the matter. The gift to Duke Taiping was given in order to save the country. Even the city lords had complaints about Duke Taiping's reputation. Now that the national treasure was recovered, it had great significance and weight for the southwest.

He stood up and was about to leave. Mu Taihong had made up his mind to use this method to ruin the reputation of the King of the Southwest, and then use this method to affect the matter with Qin Wu. He wanted to make this matter bigger. Suddenly he stretched out his hand, pointed at Li Guanyi and the other diners in the restaurant, and said:

"This matter is serious and everyone knows about it. Your Majesty, these people are outsiders. We should take them back and keep them under guard for the time being."

"A man from the Central Plains suddenly came here and knew about this matter. I am worried that he will expose the matter. Please take him back as well. Once the matter is settled, he will be released."

Duan Qingyu was furious: "If you hadn't said something wrong, this wouldn't have happened!"

"This is our southwest matter, why involve outsiders?!"

Li Guanyi sensed that Duan Qingyu's luck was rising, and he looked to the side and saw that luck was rising in the direction of the palace. It actually brought together all the city lords in the southwest who were originally scattered in their own cities. The bronze tripod was stimulated by the luck and vibrated continuously. Li Guanyi's heart was slightly moved:

"Since this matter is of great importance, then... Senior, there is no need to do this."

"I believe that Southwest China will not wrongly accuse me."

Li Guanyi answered frankly.

Duan Qingyu was moved. He reached out his hand and patted Li Guanyi's shoulder heavily, saying, "Don't worry about this matter. I will definitely take care of it. Little brother, come with me. I will not wrong you in the southwest."

Li Guanyi smiled and nodded, calm and composed.

On the Jiuzhou Cauldron, the destiny is roaring.

The side of the third-ninth bronze tripod lit up faintly.

The third of the Nine Cauldrons represents the hegemony.

Things should be done.

(End of this chapter)