Chapter 448

Perhaps Chen Guanlou had created a misconception for outsiders, making them believe he relied on his sword technique to roam freely. Without a sword, he was just a weakling.

He didn't carry a sword when he sent his eldest sister home today.

On the way back, some people couldn't hold back and intercepted him halfway.

Without a sword, wouldn't Chen Guanlou be easy pickings?

Chen Guanlou:...

He was wrong; he shouldn't have created such a big misconception for outsiders.

Looking at the three low-rank martial artists blocking the road, he was uninterested and very bored.

"Don't come one by one, come together."

"How arrogant."

"I'd like to see if your mouth is more arrogant or the sword in my hand is more arrogant."

Chen Guanlou picked his ear, very impatient. He was still hungry and planned to have another bowl of rice at Sister-in-law Chunxiang's place. These three were babbling on—when would it end?

"Too much nonsense. Are you not capable?"

"Absurd!"

"Rampant!"

A bunch of loudmouths.

Chen Guanlou didn't intend to continue indulging them. His fingers moved slightly, and the three weapons of the three men detached, changed direction in mid-air, and killed directly toward the three low-rank martial artists.

"You, you, you..."

"It's broad daylight, and this is a public place, so I won't kill you. You better take care of yourselves."

As soon as he finished speaking, the three weapons pierced directly into the limbs of the three low-rank martial artists, drawing blood!

Chen Guanlou walked away directly. He passed through the middle of the three and headed toward home. He ignored the screams behind him.

Then, he met an old acquaintance, Seeing Qi Wuxiu.

"You didn't tell me your cultivation was so high."

"You didn't ask."

Chen Guanlou frowned slightly; he didn't want to meet Seeing Qi Wuxiu at this time. He had originally thought about maintaining his identity as an ordinary prison clerk, but now it seemed that wouldn't work.

Seeing Qi Wuxiu looked at the three martial artists groaning on the ground behind him and suddenly asked, "If it were me, could I survive one move under your hand?"

Chen Guanlou:...

This question...

"Are you coming to me as an individual or as a Brocade Uniform Guard?" He had to be sure.

"I am coming to you as a friend." Seeing Qi Wuxiu said solemnly.

Chen Guanlou laughed, a laugh of relief. This friendship could still be maintained; that was good.

"Since you asked, I will tell you as a friend: with your cultivation, you cannot survive one move under my hand."

Seeing Qi Wuxiu looked dejected, depressed, and said unhappily: "I thought I could at least survive two or three moves. It turns out you wouldn't lie to me, and I can't even survive one move!"

The mood was quite complicated.

He had originally thought his good buddy was inferior to him in every way, but suddenly the true face was revealed, and he was actually a hidden big shot. To say it was despair, that wasn't it. To hug his thigh, his mindset hadn't shifted yet. To say he was depressed, unhappy, and jealous—that was definitely there. Hate? That was not there.

Anyway, the mood was very complicated and couldn't be adjusted in a short while.

"I treat you as a friend, so I won't lie to you." Chen Guanlou was also very frank. At this point, lying or not didn't have much meaning. The mask was broken, so he might as well play big.

Seeing Qi Wuxiu nodded, "Drinking?"

"I have to patrol tonight; I only have half an hour at most."

"Enough. I'll treat you; I have money."

"Wait, you actually have money."

Chen Guanlou suddenly discovered that the people around him seemed to be poor ghosts.

Lu Datou gambled whenever he had money; out of thirty days a month, he had to spend twenty-five or twenty-six days sponging off others.

Seeing Qi Wuxiu had too high expenses and was broke every month; every month there were a few days when he had no money to eat and ran to him to sponge off food and drink.

They were all poor wretches who didn't know how to save or manage money; they deserved to be poor for a lifetime.

The two found a small tavern. Seeing Qi Wuxiu's economic strength was limited and he couldn't afford a big meal, so he could only pair it with two small side dishes for the wine.

Chen Guanlou didn't mind.

Even if there was only a plate of peanuts, he could eat and drink while passing two or three hours alone. This was the joy of drinking.

The wine and food were served. Seeing Qi Wuxiu poured several cups of wine in a row, a bit tipsy, and then said: "You must be careful. Your name has already been registered in the Brocade Uniform Guard, and many people will pay attention to your whereabouts in the future. Also, the Brocade Uniform Guard has gathered a group of martial arts experts for Jiang Tu specifically to deal with the Hou Fu. Tonight will definitely not be peaceful."

"If it were peaceful tonight, that would be strange." Chen Guanlou smiled indifferently, "Won't telling me these things affect you? Does it count as leaking secrets?"

"It doesn't! These things can be known just by asking around. The Brocade Uniform Guard didn't intend to hide it from anyone. Clearly, Marquis Pingjiang is still fighting in the North, and the rebel Guo Dachun is still tossing about, and it's getting more and more serious. I really can't figure out why His Majesty wants Jiang Tu to target the Hou Fu?"

Seeing Qi Wuxiu held his wine glass, head buried, full of worries.

Since he started working for the Brocade Uniform Guard, he hadn't been happy. Everything was beyond his expectations. Even Chen Guanlou was actually a hidden big shot.

As for himself, he was still a clown.

"Because of a guilty conscience!" Chen Guanlou said four words lightly.

"Who? Who has a guilty conscience?" Seeing Qi Wuxiu didn't react for a moment.

Chen Guanlou smiled without saying a word.

Seeing Qi Wuxiu was dazed and finally reacted, "You mean... how is this possible? Why does he have a guilty conscience?"

"Because he acted arbitrarily, destroyed the foundation of the country, destroyed the foundation of the imperial court, destroyed the orthodox concepts that everyone has insisted on for a long time, and destroyed the order that everyone has worked so hard to establish. Destruction is easy, construction is hard. He knows very well that he will be countered sooner or later. So he has a guilty conscience, and because of fear, he must strike first."

"But there are wars in both the North and the South."

"He can't care about that much anymore. And he has reserved a way out. So far, this farce is just a private feud between the Hou Fu and the Jiang Fu. Since it's a private feud, it can be mediated at any time. Advance or retreat—what a wonderful move. He cannot resist such temptation."

Chen Guanlou analyzed the whole thing calmly.

Is this complicated?

To say it's complicated, it's truly complicated, after all, it involves that old immortal, the old Emperor.

To say it's simple, it's actually quite simple. The old immortal's paranoia is acting up again; he's not comfortable without causing some trouble.

As for Jiang Tu, a lackey, a thug, a consumable that can be discarded at any time, he is not worth mentioning.

The Brocade Uniform Guard is just beating the drums; if there are orders from the palace, they move. If there are no orders from the palace, they only need to be responsible for maintaining order, keeping the struggle between the two sides within the prescribed range, and not letting it expand.

The fighting must be firmly pressed into the two words "private feud."

Seeing Qi Wuxiu buried his head and didn't make a sound for a long while. When he did speak, it was earth-shattering.

"I plan to leave the Brocade Uniform Guard. This job is becoming less and less suitable for me."

"Are you sure? Can your family agree? You must think clearly."

"I have already thought very clearly."

"What do you plan to do after leaving? Can the Brocade Uniform Guard agree?"

"I don't know, I haven't thought about it." Seeing Qi Wuxiu's style was definitely quitting without a plan. He wasn't happy with this job, so he didn't care about anything else and quit first. As for the future, future matters can be discussed in the future.