The Detestable Famous Hero

Lu Xiaofeng had learned a new word from Zhou Ming's novels: "speechless." He felt it suited his current state perfectly.

He was truly speechless right now.

"Are you serious?"

"Of course I'm joking."

Zhou Ming smiled. "Allow me to introduce them again: Chun Hua, Xia Feng, Qiu Yue, Dong Xue."

"Spring, summer, autumn, winter; wind, flowers, snow, moon... What fine names!"

Lu Xiaofeng had actually wanted to tease them a little, but considering the strength of those four maidservants, he ultimately changed his tone.

He turned back to the main matter. "You said you wanted to come with me, but you're taking a carriage? That won't do. It's far too slow. We should switch to a few fast horses and hurry to Baoding."

"That only proves you have a poor eye."

Zhou Ming said, "Both of my horses are Spirit Blood Divine Horses. As for the carriage behind them, I had Zhu Ting build it himself. It is full of mechanisms. Not only is it not slow, it is incredibly fast!"

Lu Xiaofeng took a closer look. Those two horses were indeed extraordinarily handsome, their bearing far beyond the ordinary. The carriage behind them also held hidden mysteries. He could not help sighing. "You're the real wealthy man here! Why write about Hua Manlou in your novels? Why not just write about yourself?"

In this world, there were many exotic beasts, such as Azure Apes, Black Tigers, Golden Rocs, and Jade Cranes. In Central Province, there were even frequent rumors of Fire Qilins appearing.

Catching exotic beasts and breeding them with ordinary animals produced beasts of mixed blood. They possessed extraordinary abilities, but were very rare, and thus immensely valuable.

As for Zhu Ting, he was the heir of the Lu Ban School. Known as the Master Craftsman, he was a renowned master of mechanisms in the capital and had grown up alongside Lu Xiaofeng.

It was said that when it came to mechanisms, there was nothing Zhu Ting could not do!

With these two horses and the carriage personally crafted by Zhu Ting, Lu Xiaofeng immediately believed that this carriage would be faster than a swift horse even while carrying all of them!

"Then take me along."

"That's no problem, but if you're riding in our carriage, then the driving..."

"I'll do it!"

"Good! Get in!"

Once aboard, Lu Xiaofeng discovered that Zhou Ming had not exaggerated in the slightest. The carriage was both fast and steady.

The speed was one thing, considering it was pulled by two mixed-blood horses.

But its stability was truly remarkable.

Not every stretch of the official road was smooth. Many places had been poorly maintained and were full of potholes. Yet when the carriage passed over those rough patches, they felt only the faintest trembling.

But when he recalled that this was a mechanism carriage made by Master Craftsman Zhu Ting, he stopped dwelling on it.

Inside the carriage, Qiu Yue asked curiously, "Why does Young Master dislike Li Xunhua so much?"

Zhou Ming snorted coldly. "I can't be bothered to explain. Let Lu Xiaofeng introduce him to you."

Lu Xiaofeng did not refuse. "To speak of Li Xunhuan, we must first speak of the Baoding Li Family. They are a prominent local clan, a scholarly household that has passed down both literature and martial arts through the generations. They are praised for having 'seven jinshi in one family, and three tanhua between father and sons.' The seven jinshi were Li Family ancestors, while the three tanhua were Li Xunhua, his elder brother, and his father."

Old Scholar Li was also an outstanding man in his day, but unfortunately, his obsession ran too deep. He himself had placed third in the imperial examinations, yet he was dissatisfied and wished to cultivate a top-ranked scholar. In the end, his eldest son also only became a tanhua, and his younger son, Li Xunhuan, likewise became a tanhua.

Father and sons alike could never attain the top rank. Old Scholar Li became despondent and died within a few years. Li Family's eldest brother, meanwhile, contracted a terminal illness and also died young.

Li Xunhua's mother had died early in his childhood. Then, with both his father and brother dead, he lost all desire to make his way in officialdom. He resigned from his post and returned to his hometown."

"Then how did he later become the famed Little Li Flying Dagger of the martial world?"

Lu Xiaofeng said, "The Li Family passed down both literature and martial arts. Li Xunhua studied texts and trained in martial arts from childhood. Later, after receiving instruction from an extraordinary man, he learned the flying dagger technique. After resigning from office, he made friends far and wide and inadvertently revealed his martial skill. To his surprise, it was tremendously powerful, and he gradually gained the name Little Li Flying Dagger.

"Unfortunately... once one enters the martial world, one can no longer act freely. A great reputation and many friends inevitably attract enemies. Once, Li Xunhuan was ambushed and nearly died. At the critical moment, Long Xiaoyun saved him. Afterward, the two swore brotherhood. Long Xiaoyun was somewhat older, so he naturally became the elder brother..."

At that moment, Zhou Ming sneered. "Li Xunhuan had a cousin with whom he was mutually in love, named Lin Shiyin. His sworn elder brother fell in love with Lin Shiyin the moment he saw her and could neither eat nor sleep afterward. When Li Xunhuan learned of this, he gave his own cousin to him. He even gave away his ancestral Li Garden as her dowry, while he himself traveled beyond the frontier and did not return for ten years!"

"What?!"

"Is his brain defective?"

The four maidservants were all shocked and furious.

Xia Feng said angrily, "He just handed over his family's ancestral estate like that? No wonder Young Master looks down on him so much. When he enters the underworld someday, how will he have the face to meet his ancestors?"

Dong Xue raised her willow brows. "And that Lin Shiyin—she was merely his cousin, not his concubine. What right did he have to hand her over like property?"

Qiu Yue snorted. "If I ever meet that man, I'll make sure he dies without an intact corpse!"

Lu Xiaofeng coughed twice. He wanted to say something, but ultimately swallowed all his words.

Zhou Ming said, "But speaking of which, Li Xunhuan spent ten years beyond the frontier. Even if he has returned, why would he become involved with the Plum Blossom Thief?"

Lu Xiaofeng said, "The Plum Blossom Thief appeared decades ago, then resurfaced in recent years, ravaging both the righteous and criminal factions. He committed dozens of crimes and aroused public outrage. But his martial strength was formidable. People could only see the corpses of those he killed, with five bloody dots left on their chests like plum blossoms. They guessed that concealed weapons were his specialty.

"Number One Beauty of the Martial World, Lin Xian'er, announced that whoever killed the Plum Blossom Thief would marry her. This stirred countless martial artists into action. Someone among them came up with a crooked scheme. Since the Plum Blossom Thief excelled at concealed weapons and especially liked attacking people's chests, wouldn't a suit of soft armor impervious to blades and spears, protecting the chest, directly block his concealed weapons?"

Xia Feng could not help shaking her head. "It truly is a crooked scheme. Hitting wherever one aims is basic skill for a concealed-weapon expert. What kind of expert would attack only one spot? The human body has more than one vital point!"

Lu Xiaofeng smiled. "You and I understand that reasoning, but plenty of people in this world do not. No one knows how many believed it. Just then, a treasure called the Golden Silk Armor appeared. It was said to be impervious to blades, spears, water, and fire, drawing the covetous eyes of countless people in the martial world. There was a saying: 'To break the Plum Blossom case, first seize the Golden Silk Armor.'"

Qiu Yue shook her head. "A treasure? Since ancient times, countless people have paid with their lives for treasures. The martial world truly has never changed."

Lu Xiaofeng said, "The appearance of the Golden Silk Armor triggered a struggle among countless people. Li Xunhuan, who had vanished for ten years, suddenly appeared and became entangled in that conflict. It was said that he ultimately obtained the Golden Silk Armor.

"Afterward, some people began spreading rumors that Li Xunhuan was actually the Plum Blossom Thief. After all, the Plum Blossom Thief, like Li Xunhuan, was an expert with concealed weapons. He had vanished for ten years, suddenly reappeared, and seized the Golden Silk Armor in order to prevent his ultimate technique from being countered!"

Xia Feng kept shaking her head. "What utterly illogical reasoning. Could it be that everyone in this world is missing part of their brain? Does anyone actually believe rumors like that?"

"Who could say otherwise..."

As someone long seasoned in the martial world, Lu Xiaofeng was already used to it.

Every so often, one or two rumors would pop up in the martial world. They were obviously impossible, yet great masses of people still believed them.

"But since I'm here, every mystery in this matter will be uncovered!"

As he spoke, Lu Xiaofeng opened the case file Zhou Ming had given him. After reading only a couple of lines, an astonished expression appeared on his face.

"The Plum Blossom Thief is already dead?"

"Of course."

Zhou Ming said, "To make any noise in the martial world, one must at least reach the Innate Realm. Martial cultivation is difficult. There are three Foundation Establishment stages, three Postnatal realms, and then three Innate realms. Several decades pass in a flash.

"When the Plum Blossom Thief became famous decades ago, he must have already been thirty or forty. Several more decades have now passed. Even if he is not dead, he should be seventy or eighty. Could he still return to the martial world and commit so many major crimes? Clearly, someone is using his name!"

Lu Xiaofeng flipped through the case file. "Then why has the martial world never heard of this?"

Zhou Ming thought, Of course not. I only made it up a few days ago.

"The Plum Blossom Thief committed so many major crimes, then suddenly disappeared. In truth, he had seized enough wealth and washed his hands of the trade. By the time Six Doors found him, he had already enjoyed decades of luxury and prosperity!

"Do you think they would have the nerve to publicize something like that? If I had not looked through the case files, I fear no one would know about it."

"That makes sense!"

Lu Xiaofeng nodded. "A great martial-world thief who committed countless major crimes washed his hands of the trade, enjoyed decades of luxury and prosperity, and was only then found by Six Doors. If that got out, Six Doors would lose all face. Why would they spread such an embarrassing matter?"

That meant the current Plum Blossom Thief in the martial world was someone using his name.

The rumor that Li Xunhuan was the Plum Blossom Thief was naturally entirely false as well.

Lu Xiaofeng knew that all kinds of absurd rumors occasionally appeared in the martial world, the sort that only idiots would believe.

But most people who roamed the martial world were not idiots and would not believe such rumors.

Yet rumors of this kind could still spread throughout the land.

In truth, someone was stirring things up behind the scenes.

Then who was secretly spreading this rumor now?

Several possibilities instantly surfaced in Lu Xiaofeng's mind, but he said nothing and kept them to himself.