Chapter 101

Xikou is about 150 li west of Mount Shenwu and should be considered part of the Xiangdong region. Another 200 li further west is roughly Dongtinghu, and if one were to continue west, one could pass through Mount Tianmu to return to Mount Wulong in Xiangxi.

Although he had never been to Xikou, at this moment, Liu Xiaolou suddenly felt a bit homesick. He missed that simple, dilapidated courtyard, he missed that unremarkable bamboo forest, he missed that endlessly rushing Wuchao River, and he missed the village below the mountain with its curling wisps of cooking smoke...

And the big white goose that would dash back and forth, flapping its wings.

When should he make a trip back to bring the big white one over, let it taste the Dragon-Beard Golden Carp and the crayfish, as well as the spirit rice, and then pour two mouthfuls of Dan Gui Xiang down its throat?

Su Jiuniang did not enter Xikou Town immediately; instead, she took Liu Xiaolou on a detour to the northeast and stopped at the edge of a dense forest.

"Stay here, and don't move around. Find a tree, hide behind it, and don't reveal your tracks," Su Jiuniang instructed.

Liu Xiaolou obediently listened, found a tree to lean against, and sat down. Su Jiuniang, meanwhile, flew up to the tallest tree with the densest canopy, and through the dappled branches and leaves, she stared intently toward the northeast.

There was a manor there, quite large in scale, with layered buildings and overhanging eaves, nestled among green trees and flowers, with hints of luxury visible.

Manors like this usually belong to high-ranking noble families.

"Jiuniang, whose manor is this?" Liu Xiaolou asked, looking up from under the tree.

"The Yin family," Su Jiuniang replied casually, her gaze fixed firmly on the manor.

"The Yin family? Are they very powerful?" Liu Xiaolou asked again.

"Not bad; they have been attached to the Qingyu Sect for two hundred years."

"Who does Jiuniang want to mess with?"

"What? Don't talk nonsense; I don't want to mess with anyone!"

"Alright, Jiuniang, could it be that you want to raid the manor?"

"Even more nonsense! Why would I raid the manor? Hey? That time at the Zhou family manor last year, did you actually do it or not?"

Liu Xiaolou hurriedly offered a defense, curled his lip, and said nothing more.

Su Jiuniang peered at the Yin family manor from the treetop for a long time before landing lightly and pacing back and forth in front of Liu Xiaolou.

Not knowing how many circles she had walked, she finally found a tree as well, sat cross-legged beneath it, took out a spirit stone, and closed her eyes to cultivate.

Liu Xiaolou couldn't stand it anymore. We ran all the way here for an entire night, just for you to let me watch you cultivate in the wilderness? No matter how beautiful you are, old lady, this isn't how you look at things, right?

"Jiuniang? Jiuniang?"

"What is it?"

"What are we going to do next?"

"We aren't doing anything; we wait."

"Wait until when?"

"Wait until someone comes out."

"Who does Jiuniang want to wait for?"

"A person."

"Someone from the Yin family?"

"Yes! Stop being so noisy!"

"Then how long do we have to wait?"

"Until he comes out."

"What if he doesn't come out?"

"Shut up!"

"Alright..." Liu Xiaolou agreed, but continued anyway: "Back when we were at Mount Wulong, if we wanted to find someone, there were many ways; we didn't have to wait around like this, because we wouldn't be sure when they would come out. Perhaps in three or five days, the opportunity would be missed."

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Su Jiuniang opened her eyes and stared at Liu Xiaolou with a face full of disdain, but she didn't tell him to shut up again.

So Liu Xiaolou was able to continue: "A person always has friends and family, right? We only need to find his acquaintances, whether by pleading, trickery, or direct threats and even force; there is always a way to force him out. Does this person Jiuniang is looking for have any friends or family?"

Su Jiuniang frowned: "Why involve the innocent?"

Liu Xiaolou said: "As long as we don't take their lives, it's fine. Of course, if the matter is of great importance and we encounter someone stubborn, we have to use methods. How can we not make them suffer a little?"

After a moment of silence, Su Jiuniang suddenly stood up: "Let's go!"

Liu Xiaolou followed Su Jiuniang out of the forest and detoured to the southeast of Xikou, where there were a few small manors with only a dozen rooms, far from being comparable to the Yin family's manor.

Su Jiuniang pointed to one of them and said: "This is a concubine kept by Yin Wugong; he couldn't bring her into the main house, so he built an outer residence here."

"Yin Wugong?"

"The legitimate son of the Yin family, named Gong, meaning respect, yet he is extremely arrogant, so people call him 'No Respect' (Wugong). After it spread, it became a homophone, but it wasn't called wrong. This person is soft and feminine on the surface, but his belly is full of bad water; he is no different from that poisonous insect."

Liu Xiaolou asked: "How does Jiuniang want to deal with him?"

Su Jiuniang shook her head: "Just make him retreat in the face of difficulties."

Liu Xiaolou nodded: "Understood, this brat is very bad; he actually dared to set his sights on Jiuniang. It really is enough to make both gods and men angry! Let's get him!"

Su Jiuniang bit her lip and said: "We can't act recklessly. The Yin family is a branch of the Qingyu Sect, and their status is even above the Zhou family of Dongtinghu; it's not good for my family to fall out with them."

Liu Xiaolou said: "Our Su family is the main branch of the Danxia Sect, and the Danxia Sect is a Cave Heaven sect, which has a higher status than the Qingyu Sect. So what if we fall out?"

Su Jiuniang shook her head and said: "That may be so, but the Yin family is very important to the Qingyu Sect. The spirit incense used in the Qingyu Sect's Divine Striking Art is all produced by the Yin family's secret techniques. Moreover, this spirit incense is indispensable for the spirit beasts I raise at Mount Shenwu. In the past two years, the Yin family has greatly reduced the supply of spirit incense to Mount Shenwu. If we fall out again and they cut off the spirit incense, it will be extremely troublesome."

Liu Xiaolou finally understood: "What a thief; this centipede wants to use this to pinch our Mount Shenwu and force you, Jiuniang, to obediently submit? He really has a good plan."

He then tried asking: "Does Jiuniang know the elders of the Qingyu Sect? Can we go through the Zhou family or someone like that to put in a good word? I remember you have a very good relationship with the Zhou family. Or what about Lord Lord Jingzhao? Does Jiuniang know Lord Lord Jingzhao? His words must carry weight."

Su Jiuniang said unpleasantly: "How can such things be spoken of? Besides, they are all from the same sect, and I am an outsider after all. As for the Lord Lord Jingzhao you mentioned, I don't know him well!"

Do you really not know him well, or are you pretending? Liu Xiaolou secretly slandered. He didn't know the ins and outs of this, so he set it aside and just said: "Since we don't want to fall out, but we want the Yin family to retreat in the face of difficulties? I'm afraid that won't be easy."

Su Jiuniang said: "So let's think of a way to lure Yin Wugong's concubine out."

Liu Xiaolou pondered: "Kidnap her? That's easy, but what should we do after kidnapping her?"

Su Jiuniang gave him a roll of her eyes: "Put away those shady tricks of yours from Mount Wulong. As long as we lure this outer residence concubine out, you and I just need to show our faces in front of her, and that should be enough."

Liu Xiaolou was very skeptical about this: "Is it useful?"

Su Jiuniang said: "It's useful, but we have to wait until evening."

"Why?"

"Because it's hard to see clearly in the evening."

"Hard to see clearly? Jiuniang, you don't mean to let the Yin concubine see me, do you?"

"Alright, hurry up and think about how to lure the person out."

"That's very easy."

"Tell me."

"Set a fire."

Su Jiuniang frowned: "I already said, don't do these shady tricks!"

Liu Xiaolou explained: "After setting the fire, we pretend to pass by, and then put out the fire, wouldn't that work?"

Su Jiuniang still shook her head: "No, that's too low!"

Liu Xiaolou was helpless: "Then does Jiuniang have any other good ideas?"

Su Jiuniang pondered intently: "Let me think again."

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