Chapter 13

Dead?

Hearing this news, Li Yan was immediately somewhat stunned.

"Of course he's dead."

Li Gui cursed: "That dog Yuan Xizhong, he was older than me, and he suffered a body full of injuries when suppressing rebellions at the border."

"Ten years ago, I heard the news that the old dog was bedridden, suffering for three whole years before passing away, and when he died, he was so thin he was just a pile of bones. His children weren't promising either, committing grave crimes and being executed along with the whole family; he deserved this retribution!"

Is that so...

Li Yan scratched his head after listening, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

This feeling is like you're going to hack someone, but the other party has already been killed by a carriage.

Li Yan couldn't help but ask again: "At that time, what exactly happened?"

Grandfather Li Gui smoked his pipe and remained silent for a long time before saying: "Fine, so much time has passed, and I don't want to hold it in until I see the King of Hell."

"At that time, we had already entered the White Mountains and Black Waters; besides the rebel general Guo Mao in the north, who incited rebellion, several foreign tribes that followed the southern invasion were also crippled."

"Because the previous dynasty was flourishing and the Jin account Khanate was confronting each other from north to south, there were still quite a few Han villages in the north; Yuan Xizhong didn't know what kind of madness he had, burning all the villages along the way, not even sparing the old, weak, sick, and disabled Han people..."

"I and a few old buddies only raised objections at the time, and were publicly whipped ten times by him, and he even used sarcastic language..."

"If it were just this, it would be fine; war is cruel, and there isn't just one innocent person who died miserably, but a group of Jurchen royalty fled, yet he acted like a blind man, turning a blind eye..."

"Afterward, we informed General Zhang about this, but were blocked outside the camp, and Yuan Xizhong obstructed us again; he kept getting promoted, while we could only retire to the fields."

"Sigh, the imperial court is dark, the martial world is dangerous; what's wrong with being a peaceful farmer..."

So that's how it was.

Li Yan was thoughtful, always feeling something was wrong.

According to his grandfather, when Yuan Xizhong was suppressing the rebellion in the north, he was only a minor general, and his promotion and wealth were just later events.

The plaque bestowed by the imperial court, the sorcerer causing trouble, the precious Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coin...

These were things Yuan Xizhong simply couldn't do.

The person who cast the curse was likely someone else.

What kind of grudge would make them spend such a huge price?

"Grandpa, what about your old buddies?"

"In the first few years after returning home, there were occasional letters, but later the contact was broken; I'm afraid the old are old, the dead are dead, and there aren't many left..."

Speaking of this, the old man couldn't help but feel some emotion.

Looking into the distance, smoking his big tobacco pipe, he seemed to have fallen into memories again.

Li Yan didn't ask any more questions.

He could already be certain that there was another hidden story to this matter.

Of course, he wasn't prepared to tell his grandfather either.

The old man was advanced in age and in poor health; he had finally broken the curse and said goodbye to the past. If he knew his father's death was caused by someone else and was related to himself, he was afraid it would cause problems.

To put it bluntly, this world has demons and ghosts; if the old man died with a grievance, and couldn't be at peace after death, that would be his sin.

This kind of grudge, the younger generation will settle it!

After finding a topic to divert the matter, Li Yan returned to his room, casually stir-fried two small dishes, and drank two cups with his grandfather while eating steamed buns.

He looked indifferent, but in reality, he had already made up his mind.

The murderer who cast the curse would appear sooner or later, and he would definitely pay them back double.

But the most urgent thing now was to step into the Mystic Sect.

According to Du Daya, Sha Lifei knows these people.

But he wasn't in a hurry to find Sha Lifei either.

The reason is very simple: the summer harvest is approaching, and this guy will definitely come to the door...

……

Speaking of which, the Li family and Sha Lifei have some origins.

'Sha Lifei's' real name is Sha Guangsheng.

Old sayings go that walking in the martial world, one is for profit, and the other is for fame.

That is, to make a name for oneself.

But fame is something given by others; for example, Li Yan's father, Li Hu, got the name 'Sick Tiger', meaning he is inconspicuous at ordinary times, but once he shows his power, he is like a fierce tiger descending the mountain, fierce and domineering.

And the name 'Sha Lifei' was given by himself.

It looks majestic, but those who know the business treat him as a joke.

However, this person is very smooth, accustomed to seeing the wind and steering the rudder, looking at people to serve dishes, and is familiar with the rules of the martial world, so he didn't suffer any major losses.

Gradually, 'Sha Lifei' really became his name, and many people even forgot his real name...

The profession of a swordsman is not about hacking people all day long.

Walking in the martial world, making a name for oneself, and earning a living are all very important.

Although the business of putting one's head on the waistband of one's pants makes money, it's not always available, after all, it's not a chaotic world now.

And only if the name is loud will people hire you.

Famous swordsmen who dominate a region are all supported by people.

But those young, inexperienced kids, or old swordsmen who can't make it, have to think of some ways; they can't just starve to death.

Their way out usually has three paths.

One is to follow famous swordsmen, escorting darts, guarding gang venues, or selling salt privately.

Two is to become bandits; several famous greenwood heroes in the Guanzhong region were once swordsmen, or didn't want to earn hard money, or didn't want to live under others, preferring to use the blade in their hands to grab food.

Three is the lone ranger, doing whatever they can before becoming famous.

For example, his father, every year during the wheat harvest season, would organize wheat harvesters from nearby villages to go out to work.

This is also an old rule.

Almost every wheat harvester group has a swordsman as the leader, who can not only get fat jobs but also not fear those landlords turning their backs.

Of course, they will also take a cut.

To put it plainly, it's a bit like a contractor.

After his father Li Hu became famous, he still did this job.

According to him, he didn't care about this bit of money, mainly wanting to protect his fellow villagers, get a good name, and not be gossiped about.

Even later, he just helped pick up jobs and didn't charge any money at all.

After his father died, the wheat harvesters from several villages lost their leader. Just at this time, Sha Lifei came to the door.

Besides family martial arts, his father also learned blade techniques from a famous old swordsman, and Sha Lifei was also one of the disciples at that time, so they could be considered fellow disciples.

Only later, both sides took different paths.

His father made a name for himself.

Sha Lifei, however, still wandered in various villages in Guanzhong, relying on a bit of fame to earn money from the hands of ordinary people, not daring to get close to Changancheng at all.

Leading wheat harvesters is also a piece of meat, so he naturally didn't want to let it go.

As for visiting every year, it's a rule of the martial world.

Every time you arrive at a place, you have to visit the wharf, explaining that you are making a living on someone else's territory, and besides, having occupied the benefits of fellow disciples, you have to give some filial piety every year.

With Sha Lifei's oily and smooth personality, how could he leave any handle for others.

Of course, every time he came, he just brought some pastries, dealing with it perfunctorily.

!.

Calculating the time, he should be coming soon...

…………

The next day, a rider came from the official road, kicking up dust.

The horse was a yellow-maned horse, looking old but knowing the way.

Sitting on it was a man in gray cloth clothes and black pants, with a tall figure, double blades at his waist, a face full of flesh, and a face full of whiskers, looking quite brave.

The most attractive thing was his bald head.

Oily and shiny, reflecting light under the sun.

"It's Sha Lifei!"

"It's Sha Lifei!"

Several naughty children at the entrance of Li Family Fort shouted loudly when they saw him.

If nothing else, Sha Lifei's appearance was quite good.

At least in the eyes of these children, he was a hero walking in the martial world, so they all cheered with red faces.

In their eyes, this is what a hero walking in the martial world looks like.

Li Yan in the village is also a swordsman, but he is more handsome than the young masters and white-faced scholars in the plays, and also tricky and difficult to deal with, not a hero at all.

"Hahaha..."

Hearing the children's cheers, Sha Lifei felt refreshed and laughed loudly.

He lifted the reins in his hand, the yellow-maned horse neighed, stood up, and then rushed into the village with a whistle, watching the children clapping repeatedly.

As the horse stepped over the yellow earth, two copper coins fell with a clatter.

A hearty voice was left in the air:

"Children, take it to buy candy."

After Sha Lifei entered the village, he first rode his horse around in a circle, the copper gong in his hand clanging, "Listen up, those who want to earn money, bring your tools tomorrow morning and follow me!"

The three-piece set for wheat harvesters going out: sickle, whetstone, and bedding.

This year, there is a shortage of manpower, and the landlords are willing to pay wages.

This news was already known to everyone, so those who wanted to earn money had already prepared their tools and dry rations.

They would go toward the Sanyuan and Xingping areas.

As long as they move fast, after finishing the work there and returning, they will just happen to be in time for their own wheat harvest.

Hearing Sha Lifei's voice, many people came out to ask.

"Hero Sha, how much will you pay this year?"

"Hero Sha, are there any already negotiated?"

Although being called 'Hero' made Sha Lifei feel comfortable, he still tightened his face, touched his bald head, and cursed:

"Why ask so much, follow me, Sha Lifei, and are you afraid you won't have meat to eat?"

After saying that, he jumped off the horse and threw the reins in his hand at will.

"Shuanzhu, help me feed the horse well."

After giving instructions, he took an oil-paper bag containing pastries from the saddle, hummed a little tune, and walked toward Li Yan's house.

Just as he arrived at the door, he bumped into the old man Li Gui, who was preparing to play chess.

Sha Lifei laughed and bowed: "Old Man Li, your health is good, I've come to see you, this is the Osmanthus Cake from Xiangyuan Tower in Changancheng, good stuff."

"Enough, don't come next year!"

Li Gui snorted, leaning on his cane, and left directly.

The old man looked down on this Sha Lifei, too oily and smooth, full of lies.

What Osmanthus Cake from Xiangyuan Tower...

When encountering such good things, Sha Lifei would fill his own stomach first, how could he be willing to give it to others? It was clearly bought casually in Lantian County, just fooling people.

Most importantly, this person coming to the door was just a process.

Just to make a name for himself, every time he made a big fuss.

Sha Lifei had a thick skin, and seeing the old man's appearance, he didn't care at all, laughed loudly, and carried the things into the door.

Li Yan was practicing martial arts, a 'Fierce Tiger Climbing the Wall', followed by a twist of his body, his left elbow raised, and then a 'Hidden Flower Under the Leaf'.

"Good!"

Sha Lifei shouted 'Good', a strange look flashing in his eyes.

He also practiced Red Fist, and having mixed in the martial world for many years, he also had a discerning eye.

Although in the Red Fist proverbs it says "Hands are two doors, all relying on legs to hit people", "Hands hit three points, legs hit seven points", but the hand technique is the key.

Therefore, supporting hands with cloud hands, hitting the world without an opponent.

This son of Sick Tiger Li, young as he is, has already grasped the essence, his gestures and movements whistling with fist wind, his tendons and bones exploding, already reaching the peak of 'Ming Jin'.

In the future, he will probably be fiercer than his father!

Sha Lifei already felt some regret in his heart, secretly calculating that when he comes to the door next year, he should bring some decent pastries.

If he continues to fool around, he might be a trouble in the future.

Thinking of this, he touched his bald head and laughed loudly, "Little Brother Yan, you're busy, I have other important matters, so I won't disturb you."

After saying that, he put down the things and was about to leave.

Only then did Li Yan open his mouth and smile:

"Uncle Sha, don't be in a hurry to leave, I want to ask you something."

This year, the opening of the book is too competitive; even if you are saving the book, please help click on the follow-up reading, thank you.

(End of chapter)