The confused fruit grew on the confused tree; beneath it stood Ning Caichen, just as confused!
As Ning Caichen stared at the familiar county town before him, the only thought in his mind was the line above: he was completely baffled!
After all, anyone who had been at Righteous Qi Manor hundreds of miles away one moment and found himself outside his hometown the next would have the same expression as Ning Caichen.
Especially since he'd flown back on the back of a gigantic immortal crane!
Of course, he had Hao Shuai to thank for all this.
After treating Ning Caichen to a feast, Hao Shuai stopped him just as he was about to leave. Then, while Ning Caichen stared in shock, he summoned Xuan Yu.
What happened next was simple.
Hao Shuai hauled the dazed Ning Caichen onto Xuan Yu's back. Xuan Yu only had to flap his wings a few times before they arrived outside Ning Caichen's hometown.
"Brother Ning, I'll leave you here. You can make your own way back into town." Hao Shuai roused Ning Caichen from his daze, then took out several hundred taels of silver and placed them in his hands. "With the way things are, don't even think about taking the imperial exams. Use this money to start a small business and live a peaceful life."
"Brother Hao, how could I accept your money?!" The upright and courteous Ning Caichen refused to take Hao Shuai's money, no matter what.
With no other choice, Hao Shuai stuffed the silver into Ning Caichen's bundle and insisted, "You can see that I'm no ordinary person. I don't need this bit of money."
After that, Hao Shuai couldn't be bothered to say another word. He turned and left.
But after taking just a few steps, Hao Shuai