Chapter 1376

Under Xu Mubai's guidance, passing by the elegant courtyard where they had drunk tea and gambled that day, Hu Xiaotian deliberately looked down at the ground; the bloodstains on the floor had already been cleaned up, as if nothing had happened. Ahead, bamboo grew in rows; entering from a small path in the bamboo grove, looking out, a sea of green pleased the eye. Walking among them, a gentle breeze stirred, bamboo shadows swayed, rustling sounds continuous in the wind, making one feel indescribably refreshed in such hot weather; one had to admit the Xu family still had considerable taste.

Xu Mubai quietly sized up this cousin of his; although Hu Xiaotian had changed clothes today, he still looked mismatched, wearing a short-sleeved shirt with big trousers, his arms bare, a pair of smooth long legs, and wooden clogs on his feet. Xu Mubai secretly chuckled, thinking this cousin paid too little attention to his appearance—aside from dock laborers, no one normally dressed like that.

Hu Xiaotian has always done as he pleased, caring only for his own comfort and ignoring others' feelings; in the sweltering heat, making him wear a long robe gave him a prickly heat all over.

Following this bamboo path to its end, the view suddenly opened up; ahead appeared a jade-green, clear pond filled with lotus leaves, pink lotus blossoms in full bloom, dragonflies occasionally skimming the water, and a winding long bridge led to a waterside pavilion at the pond's center—the place where they were entertaining Hu Xiaotian lay within that pavilion.

On the bridge stood more than ten lovely maidens, each greeting Hu Xiaotian with smiling faces.

Hu Xiaotian deliberately said to Xu Mubai, 'Cousin, there are plenty of beauties in this pleasure house.'

Xu Mubai smiled and said, 'These are mere vulgar fans, not exactly top‑tier beauties, but the women here are mostly clean and proper; cousin, tell me which you like and I'll send her to the ship to serve you.'

Hu Xiaotian gave a hehe laugh, thinking this cousin wasn't very articulate—first calling them vulgar fans, then being so generous; if I took one, wouldn't that show my taste is low?

Everyone entered the pavilion; two lovely maidens stood guard at the door, and inside the Eight Immortals table was already laden with delicious dishes. Hu Xiaotian had expected Xu Fengwu to be here, but seeing no trace of him inside, he felt a bit puzzled and asked Xu Mubai, 'Who is the host of this place?'

Not long after, Xu Fengwu appeared in the pavilion. Upon learning Hu Xiaotian's true identity, Xu Fengwu was greatly surprised. Although the Jinling Xu clan had no contact with Hu Xiaotian, the Xu family had been keeping tabs on his every move over the years, and they had witnessed his achievements. Though the old matriarch had never publicly commented on this grandson, no one could deny that Hu Xiaotian was the most accomplished among the younger generation of the Xu family. His reputation now even surpassed that of the former Minister of Revenue, Hu Buwei. Such a person, Xu Fengwu naturally dared not offend; though his status in the Xu clan was not low, he was not a direct descendant, and his standing was still inferior to Xu Mubai's.

Xu Fengwu's expression showed a bit of embarrassment; by seniority, Hu Xiaotian should call him maternal uncle, but after their earlier unpleasantness, he feared Hu Xiaotian would bear a grudge, so he had just chosen to avoid him. If Hu Xiaotian had not brought up the matter himself, Xu Fengwu would have avoided appearing at noon today.

Hu Xiaotian, after all, is someone who can take up and let go; he truly resents only the old matriarch, not to the point of showing a cold face to other Xu family members, and the more resentment he feels inside, the more he hides it, until one day he will make the old matriarch know that whatever one does, there must be a price.

Before Xu Mubai could introduce him, Hu Xiaotian rose on his own, smiling and said, 'This must be my maternal uncle; today really is a flood that drowned the Dragon King's temple—relatives not recognizing each other; please forgive any offense.'

Xu Fengwu looked rather flattered and surprised; seeing Hu Xiaotian take the initiative to greet him, it was like having a step down, and he immediately beamed, 'Xiaotian! Hehe, you've kept me in the dark all this time—do you know I've been proud of you these years? No! The whole Xu clan is proud of you!'

Hu Xiaotian thought, 'Not likely!' In fact, it's just that saying: rich in the deep mountains have distant relatives, poor in the bustling city have no one asking. The warmth and coldness of human relations, the fickleness of the world—he had long grown accustomed to them. Not to mention the Jinling Xu clan, even his own father could scheme against him; human hearts are truly the hardest thing to fathom in this world. Still, Hu Xiaotian had little to regret; aside from this seven‑foot body, he could think of no connection between himself and the Jinling Xu clan, and if one had to be found, it would be for his mother's injustice—he intends to seek justice from the Jinling Xu clan and get to the bottom of it.

Hu Xiaotian thought, "How ridiculous!" Actually it's nothing more than that saying: "Wealth in the deep mountains brings distant relatives; poverty in the bustling market finds no one to ask." Human warmth and coldness, the fickleness of the world—he had long grown accustomed to it. Not to mention the Xu family of Jinling, even his own father could scheme against him; human hearts are truly the hardest thing to fathom in this world. But Hu Xiaotian had nothing to regret either; aside from this seven-foot body, he couldn't think of any connection between himself and the Jinling Xu family. If one had to insist there was, it would be to seek justice for his mother's injustice—he would go to the Jinling Xu family to demand an explanation and get to the bottom of it.

Seeing them enjoying themselves like a happy family, Zhao Wusheng indeed felt a hint of the warmth of long‑separated relatives reuniting, but he also understood that Hu Xiaotian was merely going through the motions; the Xu family's years of ignoring the Hu clan were common knowledge, and now seeing Hu Xiaotian rise above others and dominate a region, they had again acknowledged this kinship, to the point that even Zhao Wusheng looked down on the Xu clan a little—but since it was Hu Xiaotian's family affair, he didn't feel fit to intervene, merely drinking and eating in silence, and remarking that the food and drink were really not bad.

After three rounds of wine, Xu Fengwu had completely relaxed; he laughed and said to Hu Xiaotian, 'Xiaotian, I always thought you were stuck in Yongjiang, never expecting you to travel a thousand li to South Jin Island—I wonder what brings you here?'

After three rounds of drinks, Xu Fengwu had completely relaxed, smiling as he said to Hu Xiaotian, "Xiaotian, I always thought you were tied down in Yongjiang; I never expected you would travel all the way to South Ford Island—I wonder what brings you here?"

Xu Mubai said, 'If I'm not mistaken, you came this time to apply for the position of prince consort in Tianxiang Kingdom, right?'

Hu Xiaotian saw that Xu Mubai had already guessed it, so he stopped hiding it, nodded and said, 'Indeed, nothing can be hidden from you, cousin.' He secretly thought, this cousin is really sharp-witted.

Xu Mubai laughed, 'There's nothing unusual about that; lately, young heroes from all over the world are heading to Tianxiang Kingdom—whether by land or not, those going by water basically all pass through South Jin Island.'

Xu Fengwu said, 'That's right; the Tianxiang Kingdom has widely spread the news of recruiting a prince consort, causing quite a stir, and this time the conditions are very loose—any heroic figure aged eighteen to under forty can apply.'

Xu Mubai smiled lightly, 'You're wrong to think the conditions are loose; in fact, most are just filler. The Tianxiang Kingdom's empress dowager has a clever scheme—she's mobilizing such forces not just for show, but to pick a prince consort most advantageous to her; if the candidate lacks real strength, he won't even pass this hurdle.'

Xu Mubai smiled faintly and said, "You're mistaken if you think the conditions are lenient; in fact, most of them are just filler. The Empress Dowager of the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom has her own clever schemes—she's mobilizing troops not for anything else but to pick a prince consort most advantageous to her. If the other side lacks sufficient strength, just passing this hurdle of hers is impossible."

Xu Mubai glanced at him; Xu Fengwu realized he had misspoken and hastily swallowed the rest of his sentence.

But Hu Xiaotian had already deduced some other meaning from that half‑sentence, and Xu Mubai also noticed Hu Xiaotian's subtle change in expression; they clinked cups and Xu Mubai said, 'Don't hide it from you, cousin—I'm also going to Tianxiang Kingdom.'

Hu Xiaotian gave an 'oh', having already guessed that Xu Mubai was nine times out of ten motivated by the same purpose.

Xu Mubai said, 'Grandmother told me to go join the fun; now that I know you, cousin, are also coming for this, I naturally won't compete with you.'

Hu Xiaotian chuckled, 'I'm also just going to see the excitement—what a coincidence to travel together.' In his heart he thought, 'Compete with me? Can you even beat me?'

Xu Mubai nodded, 'I had exactly that in mind; us brothers traveling together to Piaoxiang City will give us someone to talk to along the way, and we'll also get to know each other better.'

Xu Mubai nodded and said, "I was just thinking the same—let's go together as brothers to Fragrant Mist City; along the way we'll have someone to talk to, and we'll also get to know each other better."

'A word is enough!'

Hu Xiaotian quietly shifted the topic to the old matriarch: 'By the way, how is Grandma's health these days?'

Xu Mubai replied, 'Not too good; since her daughter passed away, the old matriarch fell seriously ill from excessive grief, lingering for over half a year before recovering, though her spirits are nowhere near what they were. Now she's recuperating at her villa in Bailu Bay, Jinling, never leaving the gate, and I rarely see her either. We had planned to spend Mid‑Autumn with her this year, but she sent me off to Tianxiang Kingdom to join the festivities instead.'

Xu Mubai said, "It's not good. Since my paternal aunt passed away, the grandmother fell gravely ill from excessive grief, and after lingering for over half a year she finally recovered, though her spirits are nowhere near what they were. Now she's staying at the villa in Jinling White Sand Bay to recuperate, never stepping out of her gate, and I hardly ever see her. We had originally planned for me to keep her company during this year's Mid-Autumn Festival, but she's sent me off to the Heavenly Fragrance Kingdom to join the festivities instead."

That day's meal was fairly harmonious; Hu Xiaotian didn't want to linger long on South Jin Island, for there were still too many things awaiting him in Tianxiang Kingdom. After lunch, soldiers from the harbor came to report that the ship's supplies were fully stocked and ready to depart at any moment, so Hu Xiaotian decided to leave immediately.

Xu Mubai had no objections either; after making preparations, he led four maidservants aboard the ship to accompany Hu Xiaotian.

Xu Fengwu made a half‑hearted attempt to detain him; of course he didn't really want Hu Xiaotian to stay, for this junior branch was not easy to deal with. Once the relationship was clarified, he dared not mention Xiao Rou again; as for those sixty thousand taels of silver notes, he treated them merely as a greeting gift, and besides, he even had someone send some fresh fruit and wine to the ship, not caring about the expense at all.

After sailing south from South Jin Island for eight days, they reached the great port of Jinsha, the number one harbor of Tianxiang Kingdom. The sea voyage these past days was all smooth sailing with fair weather; Hu Xiaotian and Xu Mubai conversed happily, Xu Mubai being a well‑read, versatile talent in both civil and military affairs, whose views on many matters made Hu Xiaotian look at him anew—this orthodox heir of the Jinling Xu clan was no ordinary person.

Xu Mubai's outward conduct was gentle and refined, appearing inexperienced in worldly affairs, but in practice he was meticulous, leaving no loopholes; most of what he and Hu Xiaotian talked about were trivial matters, and whenever the conversation touched on Xu family secrets he would skillfully sidestep them, making it hard to extract the desired information from his words. Consequently, they spent much of their time chatting about flowers, snow, moon, and wind. Both being sharp, each could see the other's wariness.

Xiao Rou's hand had recovered well; judging from the current progress, this hand should be preserved, and once fully healed it ought not to impair function, and outwardly it would be hard to tell it had ever been severed by a blade. Hu Xiaotian's miraculous medical skill had everyone exclaiming in awe, after all, nobody had ever seen a severed hand reattached before. (To be continued~^~)

Xiao Rou's hand has recovered ideally; based on the current progress, this hand should be preserved, and once fully healed it should not affect function, and externally it would be hard to tell that it had once been severed by a single blow. Hu Xiaotian's miraculous medical skill left everyone marveling, after all nobody had ever seen a severed hand that could be reattached. (To be continued~^~)