My game even includes ancient times

He Shi was taken aback when he was called out to him, and casually picked out a plain one.

Bai Yushen took the hair ribbon, paid the bill along with the sword tassel, and after leaving the shop, placed the hair ribbon in He Shi's hand.

He Shi, holding the hairband, reacted for a moment: "For me?"

Bai Yushen laughed again: "Of course, I just saw that the burlap strip you used to tie your hair was about to break. Put this on instead, it looks pretty sturdy."

This was the third person, besides Lao He and the immortal, to give him something.

It wasn't about giving alms; it was simply about giving him something he needed.

He Shi felt himself sinking into that unreal, floating feeling again, but this time he quickly pulled himself out of that thought because Bai Yushen held his hand again.

He Shi's fingertips twitched slightly. This time, he didn't try to break free. Instead, he followed Bai Yushen to the pastry shop, the bookstore, and the roasted nuts shop.

When they left the market, both of them were carrying a lot of bags and packages.

Bai Yushen carried a large pile of paper packages in one hand and held He Shi's shoulder with the other. The two arrived at a street on the other side of the town. In front of a two-story building, He Shi saw the familiar carriage. Chu He was nowhere to be seen in the carriage; only the old horse was pacing around boredly.

"Let's go. This Yang's Restaurant may not be big, but the food is quite good. We come here often. Let's have a simple meal today. It's still quite a distance to the village."

He led He Shi into the store, skillfully went up to the second floor, stopped in front of a small private room, and lifted the curtain on the door.

Chu He was sitting at the table drinking tea when he looked up at them and said, "You've arrived."

Bai Yushen called out loudly, "Waiter, bring the food!"

After hearing a reply from downstairs, she led He Shi over, put their things down, and sat down at the table.

Chu He remained aloof, only nodding slightly at He Shi.

Bai Yushen picked up the teapot and poured two cups of tea, placing one in front of He Shi.

He Shi glanced at Chu He and noticed that he had hardly spoken since meeting Bai Yushen.

On the contrary, Bai Yushen, who looks fierce, seems quite kind.

Bai Yu took a sip of hot tea, rummaged through a pile of paper packets at his feet, opened one, and placed it on the table. He Shi saw that it was a packet of roasted melon seeds.

He recognized the food, but had never eaten it.

Chu He, who was sitting quietly to the side, reached out, grabbed a handful from the paper package, took one and put it to his lips, and began to eat it expressionlessly.

He Shi secretly watched him crack a few, then took some from the paper packet, mimicking his gesture by placing the pointed end between his teeth and gently biting it—

With a "click," a small object fell onto the tip of his tongue, and He Shi rolled it into his mouth and chewed it.

It tastes a bit strange, but it's quite fragrant.

He Shi knocked on another one, chewed it, and then knocked on another one...

When the waiter brought the dishes on a tray, he noticed two piles of sunflower seed shells, one large and one small, in front of two of the customers.

After a satisfying meal, the three set off again.

About an hour later, they crossed the terraced fields at the foot of the mountain and arrived at the gate of the mountain villa. From there, carriages and horses could no longer go up.

He Shi jumped off the carriage and stared blankly at the huge stone tablet, which was ten feet tall, with two large, flamboyant characters deeply engraved on it.

He didn't recognize the character, but he felt that it looked very imposing.

Bai Yushen took the horse and carriage to the nearby horse farm, returned with a pile of things, and said to He Shi with a smile, "Let's go, let's go see Master Chu first."

Meanwhile, in a courtyard deep within the mountain villa, Chu Zheng sat quietly under a huge withered tree, his gaze solemn as he looked at the things placed on the stone table in front of him.

It was an exquisitely crafted octagonal metal box, with a neatly cut piece of white paper underneath, on which was written a sentence—

'The son of an old friend, please take good care of him.'

Xia Yuan, who had been standing behind him, explained, "Just a quarter of an hour ago, I came out of the study and saw this thing at a glance. I didn't dare to touch it without permission, so I hurriedly went to ask you, Master."

She paused, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes: "What is this?"

Chu Zheng did not answer her question, but instead asked, "Yuan'er, from yesterday until now, has any outsider entered the manor?"

Xia Yuan recalled for a moment: "No outsiders have come here, and after the steward reported the accounts for the past ten days to me this morning, no one has come to this courtyard since."

Chu Zheng was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, "This is the thing I asked the second brother to find."

Xia Yuan was taken aback: "Second Junior Brother? Hasn't he returned yet?"

“Yes.” Chu Zheng picked up the paper from under the box, his gaze falling on the unremarkable words. “The strangest thing is this. To be able to infiltrate the Chu family so silently, one must be a top-notch expert, yet they only left such a cryptic letter—”

He looked at the box: "And a thank-you gift."

Xia Yuan's expression changed slightly, and she said in a deep voice, "Could something have happened to Second Junior Brother?"

Chu Zheng shook his head slightly and threw the paper on the table: "If you want the Chu family to take care of some 'old friend's son,' you certainly wouldn't be stupid enough to offend me."

Just then, a gray pigeon fluttered its wings and flew into the yard, landing on the shelf under the eaves.

Xia Yuan walked over, pulled out a scroll of paper from the small bamboo tube tied to the pigeon's leg, opened it and read: "Second Junior Brother is back, with Third Junior Brother, and also... a strange child?"

Chu Zheng raised an eyebrow and looked down at the note on the table that was gently sliding in the wind.

'The son of an old friend', could it be...?

He stood up, the hem of his Shu brocade robe gently brushing against the stone bench: "Come on, let's go to my courtyard and wait for the second and third brothers to come back."

Inside the villa.

He Shi stepped onto the wide, flat stone steps and looked at the huge martial arts arena not far away.

Two shirtless men were wrestling, surrounded by cheering crowds. Further away, several people were practicing with knives, their sweat rising in wisps of white steam.

Bai Yushen, who was walking in front of him, noticed He Shi's gaze and explained with a smile, "This is the Chu Clan's Northern Martial Arts Arena. There is also a Southern Martial Arts Arena over there. Every day, many off-duty members of the clan practice martial arts here. A few of us or those seniors occasionally come to give them some pointers."

He Shi nodded, looked away, and continued walking forward with them.

After walking for about fifteen minutes, Chu He, who was at the front, stopped and said, "We've arrived."

Upon hearing this, He Shi raised his head and curiously looked at the unremarkable little courtyard in front of him.

Chu He stepped forward and gently knocked on the door. A calm male voice came from inside: "Come in."

Chu He withdrew his hand, straightened his clothes briefly, pushed open the door, and went in first.

Bai Yu patted He Shi's head and followed him inside.

He Shi took a breath, glanced down at the high threshold, and then stepped over it.