The True Lord has arrived

Chapter 49 Meeting in Dreams Will Eventually Come

From the moment she stopped here, Hu Erniang had been studying this sword.

To be honest, this sword is very strange. Ever since that man ran out of money while drinking and gave her this sword on credit, it has never made a sound or whistle. It can be drawn, but it is just an ordinary sword.

Apart from that, there's nothing unusual about it.

Qingzhu sometimes disliked the sword, thinking that her grandmother must have been deceived.

I heard that the poet has been having a rough time these past few years, living a life of unrestrained indulgence and freeloading. But Qingzhu's complaints were all dismissed by Hu Erniang with just a few words.

The younger generation was ignorant, but only Hu Erniang knew that this sword was definitely different. The reason she stopped in front of this mountain was also related to the sword's unusual nature.

Now, the sword indeed whistled, and Hu Erniang felt somewhat dazed.

When she heard the knock on the door, she placed her palm on the sword case and felt the lingering resonance of the sword inside. Her heart was stirred, and she subconsciously stood up, clutching the sword case. Even though she was an old fox who had seen many places in the world, she felt a little helpless at this moment.

Qingzhu had already gotten up and gone to open the door.

Just now, a gossipy scholar ghost came over, saying that he hoped the young master could stay temporarily to avoid the rain. Fox spirits and ghosts often have dealings, and this gossipy scholar was very sweet-talking. First, he called the old woman "sister," and then he praised Qingzhu for being beautiful.

Finally, she added that her husband was a very handsome and refined young swordsman.

Qingzhu thought to herself, "No wonder fox spirits like to associate with scholars."

She has such a sweet tongue.

But what young man could be as handsome as the young man I saw that day?
The knocking outside was silent, but then came the voice of the scholar ghost.

Qingzhu asked slowly and deliberately, "Who is it?"

Pushing open the door, Hu Erniang, carrying the sword box, stepped forward, her eyes wide.

The timing was perfect; the rain and fog outside had stopped. A black horse taller than a man appeared, and a young man with blood-stained clothes and a knife at his waist seemed extremely tired, yet his demeanor was completely different.

The voice of the blonde, blue-eyed fox woman finally pierced through the rain and mist.

Upon seeing Qingzhu, the young man paused, then smiled and said:

"Chang'an."

He paused slightly before saying:
"Zhou Yan".

A chilling sword cry emanated from the sword box in Hu Erniang's hand, gradually subsiding as she pressed her hand against the box, clearly sensing the lingering divine aura emanating from it.

Her heart calmed down.

confirmed.

It's him.

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

Qingzhu's eyes widened, she blinked, and recognized the young man, saying:

"You, how did you get here? Lord Zhou?!"

The last time we met, it was also with this phrase, "Chang'an Zhou Yan."

This time, Zhou Yan from Chang'an came through the rain and mist, but although he said the same things, the meaning behind them was different, and the fox woman's face was flushed.

Sanlang also popped his head out and looked at Zhou Yan. When Zhou Yan saw that it was a familiar person, he breathed a sigh of relief, and his fatigue and vigilance relaxed a little. He said, "Can we come in first?"

"Ah, good, good!"

Qingzhu quickly pushed the door open, and Zhou Yan carried Shen Cangming in. He placed Shen Cangming on the bed, and Hu Erniang suppressed her excitement. She knew what the important matter was.

Seeing Shen Cangming's injuries, his eyes twitched, but he was shocked to see that Shen Cangming was still alive.

What kind of monster is this? !
What kind of fierce battle did they encounter?
Looking at Zhou Yan's transformed demeanor, she suddenly realized something.

Perhaps this young man was still too inexperienced to attract the sword's attention.

Has something happened...?

This triggered a reaction from the sword.

While thinking to herself, Hu Erniang checked Shen Cangming's injuries, breathed a sigh of relief, took out the prepared medicine, and treated Shen Cangming's wounds.

Because Zhou Yan was beside him, Shen Cangming slept peacefully. Hu Erniang and Zhou Yan left the small house, and then Hu Erniang whispered, "This gentleman is..."

Zhou Yan said, "My Uncle Shen."

"How is Uncle Shen's injury?"

Hu Erniang roughly guessed the relationship between Zhou Yan and Shen Cangming, and said, "Logically speaking, this person's injuries should be fatal, but I see that his blood and qi are condensed and flowing within him, which means he has at least the foundation of a seventh-rank Xuan Guan."

"Or rather, even with severe injuries, he still retained the foundation of a seventh-rank Xuan Guan."

“His other injuries are not a problem. The main issue is the penetrating wound in his abdomen, which looks like it was from a Tang army elite crossbow. If it were a technique from the Mo family’s Xuan Guan lineage, it would be enough to pierce through iron armor and penetrate rocks at close range.”

"This hero Shen Cangming must have reacted instantly to avoid a fatal blow, but..."

"Given his reaction speed, it's clear he's not blind in his left eye."

"There is absolutely no way his opponent could have ambushed him."

Hu Erniang commented. The Master of Qingming Workshop…

Zhou Yan stood quietly to the side, his hands clenched at his sides, and he exhaled, saying:

"What about Uncle Shen..."

Hu Erniang said, "Among the Xuan officials in the army, the most powerful thing is vitality. I don't know what your elder's own seventh-rank Xuan official lineage is, but your blood and qi are abundant and your killing intent is overwhelming."

"The most dangerous time has passed, and the injuries have been treated."

"Moreover, his will to survive is extremely strong, so you can rest assured, my lord, there is no danger."

Looking at Zhou Yan's battle-worn appearance and then at Shen Cangming's demeanor, Hu Erniang wisely refrained from asking about the specifics of what had happened. That old fox knew some things; it was better not to know, because knowing would only drag you into the mess.

Hu Erniang stopped her granddaughter, who wanted to further cultivate a relationship with the chivalrous man, and said with a smile:
"Young master, please rest first. If you still intend to go to Zhang Shoutian's house together, we can get there in a day."

She wanted to show the sword to Zhou Yan, but Zhou Yan was in a bad state right now, so it wasn't the right time to discuss it.

The old fox knows how to navigate social situations and wouldn't press for answers at this point.

Zhou Yan thanked her, and Hu Erniang gave them the small room on this side before leaving. Xiao Huiniang was also taken away. Zhou Yan looked at the sleeping Shen Cangming, and after closing the door, he finally couldn't control his exhaustion and sat there, panting heavily.

"Survived."

He thought that the Tang army's presence had been completely concealed, the monsters had been thrown around and killed seven or eight out of ten, and Shen Cangming had also survived. Only now did Zhou Yan feel a great sense of exhaustion wash over him.

Zhou Yan closed his eyes to rest. Inside his clothes, the remaining edict from the mountain god faintly emitted light, and he fell into a dream.

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

Chang'an City - Marshal Guangping's Mansion.

Consort Cui was teasing Li Zhiwei with a grape in her hand.

"Want some, Yunxiu'er?"

Both Consort Cui and Li Zhiwei's elder brother addressed her as Yunxiu.

When Li Zhiwei was born, clouds rolled over Zhongnan Mountain. At that time, the sages praised it as an auspicious omen. Based on the line "Clouds emerge from the mountain without intention" from Tao Yuanming's "Returning Home", they gave her the nickname.

Consort Cui was deliberately teasing the little guy.

"Alright, don't be so listless. So what if when the Shuofang Army arrived, Qingming Market was already gone? The army only managed to kill some minor demons and monsters and rescue a group of people, but they didn't find your savior among them?"

Li Zhiwei didn't want to pay attention to this guy who was getting more and more energetic.

Consort Cui, never one to back down, smiled gently, as if teasing a kitten that was deliberately ignoring her: "I remember, his name is Zhou Yan, right? Oh dear, could it be..."

She was deliberately exaggerating to tease Li Zhiwei.

However, the sound of the konghou being played nearby paused. Consort Cui raised her eyebrows and looked at the musician. The musician quickly apologized, saying, "It was because I heard a familiar name that I lost my composure."

Consort Cui asked, "A familiar name?"

"Yes."

Jiang Huaiyin looked at Li Zhiwei over there and replied:
"The musician Huaiyin once met Zhou Yan."

Li Zhiwei's eyes brightened slightly, intending to inquire further, but for some reason, after only a few questions, a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over her, and she began to look drowsy. Consort Cui smiled and said:
"Knowing about my benefactor's situation has put me at ease."

"The musician can go now. I'll tell her the story tomorrow."

Jiang Huaiyin said yes, then got up and left.

Li Zhiwei originally wanted to refute Consort Cui, but the drowsiness was so intense that she went to her bedroom, intending to rest for a while and think about how Zhou Yan escaped and how to avoid various dangers in this world.

Lost in thought, she drifted off to sleep. In her dream, she groggily opened her eyes and vaguely saw some familiar faces in front of her.

"Zhou Yan?"

Zhou Yan looked at the girl who appeared in his dream:
"Li Zhiwei?"

The girl mumbled sleepily, "I think I was asleep. Was I dreaming? Sigh, it's true, what you think about during the day, you dream about at night. Hearing news about you is the only good news I've had lately."

"On the contrary, I've been thinking about you even in my dreams."

"I really envy you, being able to stay outside."

She sighed, reached out, and slapped both palms against the boy's face.

"Is it this real even in dreams?!"

The girl, half-asleep in her dream, exclaimed in admiration.

He pressed and rubbed the boy's cheeks.

It feels really good!

Just like the real thing!
Li Zhiwei's thoughts paused for a moment, and then she suddenly realized something.

Li Zhiwei's gaze froze as she slowly met Zhou Yan's eyes. The girl's expression went blank, then panicked.

"Not a dream?!"

(End of this chapter)