Stay away from the Chen Kingdom Royal Family.
After Murong Qiushui said these words, he refused to divulge anything more.
These six words weighed heavily. As Li Guanyi lay on that broken stone bed, it seemed as if the words were still echoing in his ears. The name "Chen Kingdom Royal Family" naturally carried a significant weight, especially since his aunt had mentioned that they needed to leave the territory of the Chen Kingdom before she could tell Li Guanyi about his past.
This made Li Guanyi's mind fill with all sorts of speculations.
Could it be that the ones who poisoned me were the Chen Kingdom Royal Family?
Or could it be that my parents, whom I've never met, and my uncle were harmed by the Chen Kingdom Royal Family?
Or perhaps…
Various thoughts spun in Li Guanyi's mind.
But whichever thought it was, none were good.
Staying within the Chen Kingdom posed a great threat and danger to both himself and his aunt; this place was not safe. They needed to escape quickly. However, the Chen Kingdom was a major power with a well-established system, an enormous entity that was immovable for an individual.
Li Guanyi turned over.
Lying flat, lying on his side, he still couldn't sleep.
One issue after another bubbled up in his mind like boiling water.
Ten years.
They had been escaping for a full ten years. In those ten years, his aunt had raised Li Guanyi from a three-year-old child to a thirteen-year-old teenager, and over this decade of travel, they were actually not far from the borders of the Chen Kingdom.
But there were still many things they needed.
They needed the inhabitants' registry of a major city.
To cross the border, they also needed an official document of passage.
In times of war, to obtain such an exit permit at the level of leaving the country, one needed the approval from the Border Control Department with their cinnabar seal to cross the border, where iron cavalry armed with hard bows patrolled and could execute any unauthorized crossers on sight.
They also needed martial skills and enough gold to settle down after leaving the Chen Kingdom.
Problem after problem, worry after worry.
Li Guanyi tossed and turned, unable to sleep, as if his body was rebelling against his mind. He sat up, his fingers tracing patterns on the thin fabric covering the bed. He grabbed some porcelain bottle ornaments and placed them, reflecting the obscure state of the world to ordinary people.
Having struggled through ten years of hardships, Li Guanyi had encountered all sorts of people and pieced together broken bits of information, which gave him a vague understanding of this world.
The Jiangnan region and part of Central Plains belonged to Chen Kingdom.
With control over the river and natural fortifications, it was the most culturally flourishing area. He placed a piece of silver.
To the north, straight up, was Ying Country, which occupied Central Plains and parts of Jiangnan, exerting their influence over these lands with majesty, looking out over the entire world. He placed a large bowl.
Further north across the pass were the vast grasslands and the Turkic Khan tribes, known as the kings of heavy cavalry.
On the western side of Ying Country outside the border, Tuyuhun had also mustered troops and horses extensively, equally major.
It seemed that between the powerful Tuyuhun and the mighty Turkic tribes, there was also a large area mixed with many tribes. At the northeastern intersect of Ying Country and the Turkic tribes, there was another large area belonging to Qidan, Rouran, Wuluo Marquis, and other alien tribes.
As spring turned to night, the stars shone brightly.
The young man sat cross-legged on the stone stacked bed, with the night wind calling mild insect chirps. His dark eyes reflected the ornaments in front of him, witnessing the complete view of this world for the first time as a young boy.
Along with a broken pottery bowl, a white jade elixir bottle lay next to a piece of silver.
Miscellaneous items were arranged in various ways.
Chaotic and disordered.
Yet looking out, it was all under heaven.
All within my embrace.
As Li Guanyi looked at his bed brimming with bowls and utensils, his forehead twitched.
The world has been in chaos for three hundred years.
The whole world had already become a pot of confused porridge.
The nominal Great Emperor, supposedly the sovereign over all, holed up in Central State and was already a mere figurehead.
Alien tribes fought amongst themselves; meanwhile, in the north, Ying Country not only battled with its neighboring Turkic tribes, Tuyuhun, and Rouran but also covertly kicked the Chen Kingdom viciously. Twelve years ago, they seized the Eighteen States of Jiangnan, and the Chen Kingdom, facing Ying Country to the north and possessing wealthy lands, was relatively peaceful overall.
Beyond these major forces, in the buffer zones of these great powers, there were likely not a few small tribes and warlords. Not to mention that there would definitely be disbanded soldiers turning to banditry, and with the aristocratic families in the Martial World, it's no wonder that the ranger spirit was strong in this era, with such chaos.
Li Guanyi sat cross-legged there, looking at the 'map of the world's situation' laid out with bowls and utensils.
His eyebrows twisted into knots, he cursed, "What a rotten era."
But thinking of Yue Qianfeng, who despite severe injuries could still smash a mountain with a single punch, it was not hard to understand why this world had not been unified in 300 years.
Li Guanyi finalized his course of action.
First and foremost, boost his strength, then make money.
That was the only way to leave this Chen Kingdom.
After entering the realm, he had to have a hundred, no, three hundred taels of patterned silver!
Only then would he be safe.
Li Guanyi set a massive goal in his mind, and as he had a clear plan, sleepiness surged over him.
Thud.
The young man lay back, limbs spread out, eyes gazing at the weeds sprouting from the roof.
Weariness struck.
He stretched his body.
Yawned lazily.
His fist overturned Chen Kingdom, and his feet stepped through the Turkic.
He rolled over to sleep.
With one kick, he overturned this world.
No one beside the side couch.
......
After Li Guanyi woke up, although he had indulged in wild thoughts last night, he was still energetic due to his mastery of Inner Strength. He bought some inexpensive snacks, bid farewell to his neighbors with gifts as he moved, then rented a bull cart and transferred all his belongings to his new residence.
The yard was small, but tidy, with a platform made of clean green bricks around the well.
Upon entering, there was a main house with two bedrooms, a guest room on the left, and the kitchen with a storeroom on the right. Not far from the well stood a small cellar. The furniture, solid wood, was varnished to prevent moth damage. Facing the street, it was not far from various shops.
In Guan Yi City, it was a decent place to live, not overly luxurious, inhabited by respectable families, and worth mentioning is that the coachman, Zhao Dabing, made a special trip in a carriage from the Xue Family, decorated distinctively.
Li Guanyi noticed that the neighbors, who had been speculative on his and Aunt Murong Qiushui's arrival, now had their expressions softening at an incredible speed and filling with goodwill.
Li Guanyi and Aunt dined their first meal in their new home.
They had a clear soup with a tail of fish, two vegetarian dishes, and large white rice.
In the afternoon, Li Guanyi changed into new clothes, a blue shirt with a leather belt, and a jade pendant at his waist, his brow clear and bright.
He stepped towards the Xue Family's house.
Even though Guan Yi City was not small, there were two kinds of news that spread quickly, one concerning oneself and the other, news about the Xue Family.
Thus, Li Guanyi, who had just been fired, was quickly rumored within Huichun Hall to have found new employment at the Xue Family's and also moved to a new residence. Some clerks regretted not having fostered a good relationship with him earlier, and others planned to visit and improve relations.
Only the old shopkeeper browsed a medical book, his expression unchanging like dry old wood.
Dr. Chen, with goji berries swimming in his teacup, basking in the sun, leisurely said, "Let's talk about something strange today."
The old shopkeeper said, "Speak."
Dr. Chen said, "I heard that the Young Master was hanged up by his father yesterday and beaten. Two of the straps on his waistband broke. He cried and screamed all night long."
"What's strange about that?"
Dr. Chen laughed. "In the end, the Young Master's mother cried and hassled to get him down, and they called a doctor to check."
"Hey, guess what? It was just a flesh wound."
Dr. Chen slapped his thigh, laughing loudly, "He was beaten all night long, in excruciating pain, yet miraculously it did not damage any bones or joints. The father's medical skills are indeed shrewd; the father's life skills are indeed something else."
Dr. Chen held up a thumb and said, "Pity he raised such a worthless son."
The old shopkeeper did not care for these matters.
Dr. Chen said, "Li Guanyi is promising. We at Huichun Hall should think about getting closer to him. You have helped him, why not go and see him?"
The old shopkeeper said, "No."
Dr. Chen laughed unexpectedly, "You're a strange one. You seek out those whom others avoid, don't care about spending your own money, yet when others crowd around someone, you act as if you can't see it. Explain yourself."
The old shopkeeper, with dark, small eyes and wearing an old grey robe covered in white dust, said:
"When a child has a hard life, giving a helping hand is just a rule of mine; this rule in my heart is for myself, not to crowd around when they make it big. The more others crowd, the more I avoid, fearing they come to thank me."
Dr. Chen laughed in disbelief, cursing playfully, "What a stubborn mule."
The old shopkeeper was noncommittal. In the afternoon, after closing, he still strolled to the tavern and ordered a cup of wine for ten coins, but the chubby shopkeeper brought another cup of better quality instead. The old shopkeeper frowned, "You got it wrong."
"What got it wrong? No mistake, no mistake."
The chubby shopkeeper smiled and said, "It's from the lad you brought last time, and this too."
He brought over a jar of good wine, saying, "That lad came today, stored this jar of wine here for you."
The old shopkeeper was stunned, and the tavern owner smiled, saying:
"The two of you are interesting, you write a letter of recommendation for him, support a month's salary, not mentioning the help, not looking down on him, nor letting him owe you; he gives you a jar of aged fine wine, without thanking, no fuss or promises, not a trace of scent from money handlings."
"No entanglement, no beating around the bush, but also bloody quickly, with passion and righteousness."
"That's the camaraderie of us common folk in the Martial World."
The old shopkeeper listened to the tavern owner's laughter.
Lifting the ten coin cup of wine, he gulped it down, his lips slightly curling.
It was good wine.
Full of fierce spirit.
Inebriating.
......
As Li Guanyi walked on the road, he suddenly saw a crowd gathered ahead.
Through the crowd, he spotted the lavishly dressed Ti Qi, saw a Ti Qi affixing a scroll and shouting, "There is a fugitive, coming from outside, reward in silver for anyone who spots him!"
A fugitive?!!
Li Guanyi paused in his steps.
Could it be, Yue Qianfeng had returned?