Luohua Pavilion, Yuan Country.
"Zhuang Qian, does the Zhuang Family have any news concerning your brother and my Young Master?" Qi Heng asked eagerly.
Zhuang Qian looked at Qi Heng and Bi Liuyun, and said, "The Zhuang Family has a unique method of determining the life or death of the members and disciples of our family. One thing we know for certain right now is that my brother is still alive. If my brother is still alive, then Fourth Young Master Qi should be fine as well.
Bi Liuyun said a little excitedly, "Then do you know where your brother went?"
"The teleportation scroll's original destination was set as the Zhuang Family's residence, but there's a limit to the teleportation distance. The two of them should've only been sent halfway before stopping somewhere." Zhuang Qian said.
Qi Heng looked at Zhuang Qian calmly and said, "Then your Zhuang Family should already have some guesses. Young Master Qian, can you tell me where you think your brother is currently located? I'll go search for them."
Bi Liuyun looked at Qi Heng and said, "How about I go instead."
Qi Heng looked at Bi Liuyun and said, "No, someone has to stay behind to take care of our businesses in the Imperial Capital. There are many people who want to befriend the Young Master and Zhuang Hao, and there are also many people who don't have good intentions towards them. You're too well-known and eye-catching, so it's better for me to go."
Bi Liuyun took a deep breath, and didn't continue arguing with Qi Heng anymore.
Zhuang Qian took out a map and said, "According to the estimates of several family elders, my brother is likely to have landed here. This place borders three countries, where the people of Yuan Country, Li Country, and Rong Country all live together. The region is overrun with bandits and lacking in resources, and they're severely behind the times. The people there are poor, and many don't even have enough food to fill their bellies."
Bi Liuyun tilted his head and said, "There's not enough food! Young Master and Zhuang Hao won't go hungry, will they?"
Zhuang Qian took a deep breath and said, "It's not too worrying if they're only a little hungry, but I'm afraid that they'll starve to death. If Elder Brother really starves to death, then that might just be the most tragic death in the history of the Zhuang Family."
Bi Liuyun: "…"
By the lake.
Zhuang Hao held a sharpened, wooden stick and stood in the lake, trying to spear some fish.
Qi Shaorong stood near the lake and exhorted, "A-Hao, pay attention! Don't stab your own feet."
Zhuang Hao rolled his eyes at Qi Shaorong and thought to himself: Though he can't use any magic, his mind still works. There's absolutely no need for this kind of concern from Qi Shaorong!
Zhuang Hao continuously waved around his stick in an attempt to spear the fish in the water, but the fish here were very slippery. Zhuang Hao spent a lot of effort and still didn't succeed.
Zhuang Hao thought: If his magic was still there, then this wouldn't be nearly so troublesome. As long as he plunged his hand into the lake and created a whirlpool, he'd be able to catch a lot of fish.
A fish swam past Zhuang Hao and flicked its tail, completely drenching Zhuang Hao in water.
Qi Shaorong rocked with laughter when he saw this.
Yun Que looked at Qi Shaorong and asked curiously, "Just who are you two?"
Qi Shaorong looked at Yun Que, instantly feeling startled in his heart, "Sister Yun, why do you ask?"
"You and that guy don't seem like real thieves." Yun Que said.
Qi Shaorong thought: Where's the lie? They were arrested the first time they even attempted thievery, after all. He and Zhuang Hao really weren't suited for being thieves!
"Then what do you think we're like?" Qi Shaorong asked in reply.
"Like the young masters of a big family." Yun Que said.
Qi Shaorong was stunned for a moment, and thought to himself: Yun Que, this girl, has very good observational skills!
"Sister Que, you're right, it's just that he and I aren't the young masters of a big family, but a small family. The family fortunes declined and we owed others a lot of money. The creditors came knocking and took away everything. We had no choice but to head out and try to make a living."
"Neither you nor him ever learned cultivation?" Yun Que said puzzledly.
"We never knew that such a thing would happen to our family, so we neglected our cultivation early on and forgot about it." Qi Shaorong said disconsolately.
Although Yun Que was smart, her knowledge was still limited. After hearing Qi Shaorong's emotional speech, she immediately believed around eighty percent of it, "Your family had such useless people like you two, no wonder your family fortunes fell."
Qi Shaorong: "..."
"I caught one." Zhuang Hao said elatedly, holding up a one meter long fish.
Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao, who was soaked all over, and secretly found it funny. Zhuang Hao, this guy, he's really… He's the heir to the dignified Zhuang Family, yet he's so happy about catching a fish. Zhuang Hao was pretty cute like this, though.
Zhuang Hao waved his hands and the fish was thrown to the lakeshore.
Yun Que walked over to check and said with surprise, "This fish…"
Qi Shaorong saw Yun Que's expression and asked puzzledly, "What's wrong with the fish? Can it not be eaten?"
Yun Que shook her head and said, "It can be eaten, and it's also a good tonic. This is a copperhead fish, it's powerful and difficult to catch. If it's taken to the market, it can sell for a gold coin. The little thief is quite capable!"
Qi Shaorong : "…"
After a successful experience, Zhuang Hao seemed to have discovered the trick to catching fish, and many more fish were soon thrown ashore.
Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao in the water, and felt that Zhuang Hao appeared as if he'd entered a different realm.
Qi Shaorong crossed his arms and thought: Zhuang Hao even managed to attain a moment of enlightenment while catching fish. It's really…
Yun Que looked at the fish that were thrown over and couldn't help exclaiming, "This guy sure can catch fish. If you hadn't told me that he used to be a young master, I'd have thought that he used to specialize in catching fish!"
Qi Shaorong smiled dryly, and thought: Zhuang Hao's quite good at adapting to different situations. He's able to master a lot of things very quickly.
Yun Que and Qi Shaorong were talking when they heard the sound of horse hooves coming from afar.
Yun Que stood up and looked at the people who were heading towards them in the distance. She narrowed her eyes and said with some surprise, "The Flying Tiger mercenary group, it's the Flying Tiger mercenary group."
Yun Hu, who was originally catching fish in the water, was full of excitement as he walked ashore. He looked at the people from afar with a flushed face.
There were ten people from the Flying Tiger mercenaries travelling in this group, all of whom were riding Feiyun Horses [1]. They rushed from the distance, and their power and might was enough to deter anyone in their way.
Except for the female leader of the mercenary group, who was at level five, the rest were at level three or four.
Qi Shaorong had heard Yun Hu talk about the leader of the Flying Tiger mercenary group before, and now that he saw the person in real life, he couldn't help but look closely at her.
The female leader is dressed in lively red clothes, and her chest and thighs were exposed. Her face couldn't be considered remarkably stunning, but her figure was good and she was full of vigor.
The originally careless and casual Yun Hu suddenly became shy when he saw her, and his whole body was red like a cooked shrimp. It was an amusing sight.
"A-Hu, you've broken through!" The leader said heartily, raising the horsewhip in her hand.
Yun Hu smiled stupidly and said, "Yes! I'm already a level three martial artist."
The leader looked at Yun Hu and said, "Not bad! Who are these two? They look unfamiliar."
Yun Que stepped forwards and introduced them, "They're a distant family relative. Their family ran into some trouble so they came to stay with us"
The leader nodded and said, "So it's like that!"
She looked towards the fish on the ground and said, "You've caught a lot of fish! How about selling some to me?"
Yun Hu hurriedly said, "If Sister likes it, you can take it all, there's no need to pay."
"How could I accept this?" The female leader said.
Yun Hu eagerly scooped up the fish on the ground and handed them all over to her.
Zhuang Hao looked at Yun Hu and couldn't help but be at a loss for words. You should know, he's the one who caught most of the fish that Yun Hu gave to the female leader. As a result, all the fish that he had caught were taken by Yun Hu to court someone else's favour.
The leader waved her hand and tossed out four gold coins. Yun Hu, Yun Que, Zhuang Hao, and Qi Shaorong each received one.
Zhuang Hao looked at the gold coin in his hand, and he didn't know whether to laugh or to cry.
The mercenary group came and left in a hurry. After buying the fish, they quickly left
Yun Hu gazed reluctantly at the female leader's back as she left. Yun Que looked at Yun Hu, hating iron for not becoming steel, and said, "Snap out of it, they've already left."
Yun Hu's expression changed and he said with some disappointment, "I know."
Yun Hu looked at the gold coin in his palm, clutching it like it was a treasure.
Qi Shaorong looked at Yun Hu and said, "She's gone now, stop smiling so stupidly."
Yun Hu restrained the smile on his face and said, "Isn't Leader Sister very pretty?"
Qi Shaorong looked at Yun Hu and jokingly said, "She's pretty. She's not only pretty, but also very strong. I reckon she can beat you into a pancake in just a few moves!"
Yun Hu: "…"
Zhuang Hao walked dejectedly next to Qi Shaorong and said, "I had originally wanted to grill some fish for you, but they were all sold to someone else."
Qi Shaorong smiled and said, "How does it feel to be rewarded with one gold coin?"
Zhuang Hao smiled bitterly and said, "Not that great."
Qi Shaorong: "…"
Yun Hu looked at Yun Que, who seemed lost in thought, and asked, "Sister, what are you thinking about?"
Yun Que crossed her arms and said, "I just think it's a little weird."
"What's weird?" Yun Hu asked.
"It's weird that the Flying Tiger mercenary group has appeared so often around here! There aren't any fierce monster beasts that can be found in this place either." Yun Que said.
Yun Hu looked at Yun Que and said, "Sister, maybe there's a predestined relationship between me and the Flying Tiger mercenaries!"
"Brother, don't overthink it. I think that the Flying Tiger mercenary group should have a purpose for coming here." Yun Que didn't hold back and directly poured cold water on Yun Hu's thoughts.
Qi Shaorong's ears couldn't help but perk up when he heard Yun Que's words.
Yun Hu asked dazedly, "Purpose? What purpose!"
Yun Que paused and said, "In fact, there seems to be an influx of people coming through this area these past few days."
Yun Hu's eyes widened, and he sneezed lightly.
"Sister, why's that?" Yun Hu asked.
Yun Que shook her head and said, "How should I know. However, according to legend, there may be a treasure hidden here somewhere."
"This place is so backward and rundown, how could there be a treasure? I've lived here for so long, and I've never even found a copper coin before!" Yun Hu said, feeling dissatisfied.
Yun Que glanced at Yun Hu and pretended to put on an earnest and serious appearance, "The so-called treasures of heaven and earth will only appear to those who are destined for it, and not those who aren't destined! Even if the treasure is in front of you, you'll only brush past it without realizing, Brother! If you don't have that kind of destiny, then you can stop dreaming."
Yun Hu: "…"
Qi Shaorong and Zhuang Hao couldn't help but look at each other.
Footnotes:
Feiyun Horses: "Fei" means "to fly" and "yun" means "cloud."