In a resolute tone, Lin Feier, dressed in traditional attire, dared not disobey and could only say, "Can you please step outside first? I'd like to have a few words alone with him and then we can leave, alright?"
A woman's tears are the most formidable weapon, whether it's a youth of eighteen or an elderly person of eighty. It's difficult to resist. Seeing Lin Feier's pitiful plea, the middle-aged man in traditional attire left the room, closing the door behind him.
The middle-aged man in traditional attire waited outside the door for nearly half an hour before Lin Feier finally emerged from the room. As she closed the door, a tear rolled down her cheek.
There were words she didn't say six years ago, and even now, after six years, she still couldn't bring herself to say them.
When Jiang Yun woke up, he felt dizzy and his body felt weak and sore. Looking around the room, he realized he was in a guest room at an inn.
His throat felt dry, and Jiang Yun tried to get up to find some water but almost fell off the bed. His muscles were aching, and he couldn't gather any spiritual energy within his body.
"What happened? I remember killing many people, yes, Xiao Wanshan also died by my hand."
Using his internal energy, Jiang Yun checked his body and discovered that the power of the sword within him was quiet and abnormal. He attempted to activate the sword's power to heal his body.
"How is this possible? Why can't I use my sword's power at all?"
Jiang Yun's face turned pale, realizing that the power of the sword was imprisoned by an unknown spiritual energy in his dantian, rendering it completely beyond his control.
Cold sweat streamed down Jiang Yun's face. Without the power of the sword, he had lost his strongest means of attack. After trying again, Jiang Yun regained a trace of color in his face. At the very least, the Jiuli Divine Technique was still functioning, allowing him to be considered a normal warrior.
In the midst of misfortune, the fortunate aspect was that Jiang Yun hadn't completely lost the power of the sword; it was merely imprisoned by a mysterious spiritual energy, making it inaccessible to him.
"Even without the power of the sword, Jiang Yun won't be inferior to others. As long as I'm given some time, I believe the power of the sword can definitely break through this imprisonment."
Jiang Yun's gaze remained firm, and he didn't despair just because the power of the sword was sealed. Even when he first arrived in this world and discovered his meridians were sealed, making him a useless person, Jiang Yun didn't give up. Moreover, despite the sealing of the power of the sword, he still possessed the Jiuli Divine Technique and an unparalleled martial arts skill.
Jiang Yun was never one to give up easily. He believed that one creates their own path and wouldn't lose faith in himself due to minor hardships.
"Now that the Xiao family no longer exists, and my father's revenge has been avenged, there's nothing left for me in Yanjing City. It's time to search for my mother. I wonder if she's doing well."
When thinking of Yanjing City, Lin Feier's gentle and serene image appeared in Jiang Yun's mind, but he quickly dismissed it. Matters of love and personal desires were not his immediate concerns. His goal was singular—to continuously climb to the pinnacle of martial arts.
After leaving the inn, Lin Feier first went to the Lin family. The middle-aged man in traditional attire went straight to the point with Lin Shenhe and explained their intentions—to take Lin Feier away. Initially, Lin Shenhe disagreed, but after spending half an hour in the study with the middle-aged man, he respectfully saw him off.
Before leaving, Lin Shenhe specifically instructed Lin Feier to listen to the middle-aged man and learn from him. Lin Feier didn't know what the middle-aged man had said to her father to cause such a significant change in his attitude, but she didn't pay much attention to it. After all, she believed her master would never agree.
However, to Lin Feier's surprise, her master showed even more respect for the middle-aged man than her father did. As soon as he heard about the matter, he immediately expressed his support and sternly instructed her not to be disrespectful to the middle-aged man.
Lin Feier could tell that the middle-aged man's identity was definitely extraordinary, but no matter how she asked, he wouldn't say. She could only bury her curiosity deep in her heart. What worried her the most was Jiang Yun—she had no idea how he was doing now.
Twenty days later, Jiang Yun arrived at Daicheng in the Zhao Kingdom. This was the place where he and his mother, Wen Wan, had agreed to meet. Jiang Yun was already about a month late, and he didn't know how Wen Wan was doing. Fortunately, the people in the Zhao Kingdom were not as fierce as those in Yan Kingdom, which eased Jiang Yun's worries a little.
After finding a temporary inn and settling in, Jiang Yun went out to inquire about Wen Wan's whereabouts. Following the instructions of the innkeeper, he hired a messenger to gather information. After spending a few taels of silver, the messenger said he would have news for Jiang Yun in the afternoon. Jiang Yun instructed him to directly come to the inn if there was any information.
Around the ninth hour in the afternoon, the messenger arrived at the inn and provided Jiang Yun with an address. Jiang Yun followed the address and inquired along the way, finally finding the place in the evening.
It was a two-courtyard residence, not too big nor too small. A large red lantern hung at the entrance, confirming that Jiang Yun had found the right place. Two months ago, he had instructed Wen Wan to meet him here.
Jiang Yun pushed open the door and as he entered the courtyard, he heard voices coming from inside the house. It sounded like an older middle-aged woman.
"Wen Jia Meizi, Zhao Daguoren has come with sincere intentions this time. Look, Zhao Daguoren knows that you like paintings, so he specially had someone buy famous calligraphy and paintings from Wu'an City. Why don't you consider it?"
"Aunt Li, haven't I told you before? I really haven't considered these things. I can only thank you for your kind intentions."
Jiang Yun recognized the voice as Wen Wan's. Once he confirmed he was in the right place, he pushed the door and entered. Upon entering, he saw three people sitting in the small living room, with a table adorned with a large red box. Jiang Yun's face turned grim.
"Yun'er, why did you arrive so late?"
When Wen Wan saw that it was Jiang Yun who entered, her eyes turned red. She immediately approached him and looked him over for a moment before confirming that Jiang Yun was unharmed. Then she pulled him to sit down.
"And who is this?" The only man in the room, looking at Wen Wan holding Jiang Yun's hand affectionately, asked.
"Mr. Zhao, Aunt Li, this is my son, Jiang Yun. He just arrived from Yan Kingdom," Wen Wan introduced Jiang Yun, while Mr. Zhao looked embarrassed.
Aunt Li's face turned unfriendly upon hearing Wen Wan say that Jiang Yun was her son. She scolded Wen Wan, "Wen Jia Meizi, why didn't you mention that you have a son earlier? How am I supposed to explain this to Mr. Zhao?"
Wen Wan's expression changed slightly when she heard Aunt Li trying to shift the blame. She said, "Aunt Li, you and Mr. Zhao suddenly visited today, and I haven't mentioned your intrusion yet you dare to blame me."
Jiang Yun, seeing the red box on the table and combining it with Wen Wan's words, roughly guessed the situation. Aunt Li had brought Mr. Zhao today to arrange a marriage proposal, but judging from Wen Wan's tone, she seemed unaware of the matter. It seemed that they thought Wen Wan, being a lonely and weak woman, was easy to bully.