A Face-to-Face Ultimate Move, a Look of Regret

"Li Tanhua, I have long admired your name."

Zhou Ming stepped forward to pay his respects.

Naturally, Li Xunhuan did not know him. Long Xiaoyun introduced him from the side, "This is Zhou Ming, young hero and adopted son of the current Grand Chancellor."

Li Xunhuan's gaze shifted slightly. "A pleasure."

Zhou Ming said, "The name Little Li Flying Dagger is renowned throughout the martial world. But as for me, what I have heard more often is the saying, 'Seven jinshi in one family, three tanhua across father and sons.' I came this time hoping to pay respects to the Li family ancestors and partake of their scholarly aura.

"Li Tanhua, you have been beyond the frontier for ten years. Do you know where the Li Family Ancestral Hall is?"

The moment those words were spoken, the entire place fell silent.

The many martial artists immediately cast admiring looks his way.

As expected of the Grand Chancellor's adopted son—he was truly fearless!

Within the crowd, Lu Xiaofeng nearly ground his teeth to pieces.

He knew Zhou Ming disliked Li Xunhuan's conduct, but he had not expected Zhou Ming to show him so little courtesy.

Asking Li Xunhuan whether he knew where the Li Family Ancestral Hall was?

That was practically an ultimate move delivered straight to his face.

He was only one step away from slapping the words "forgetting one's ancestors" onto Li Xunhuan's forehead.

Tie Chuanjia was the first to react.

The Li family had shown him immense kindness. He regarded Li Xunhuan as his master and had served him faithfully for more than a decade without wavering. How could he tolerate someone humiliating Li Xunhuan before his very eyes?

At once, he clenched his iron fist. As true qi surged through him, his body swelled by a third, as though he had donned a layer of iron armor, and he glared furiously.

Yet Li Xunhuan raised a hand to stop him. "Xunhuan has been unfilial. I have not returned for ten years, so I truly do not know the current state of the ancestral hall."

"Haha..." Long Xiaoyun smoothed things over from the side. "You and I are sworn brothers. Your Li family ancestors are therefore my, Long Xiaoyun's, ancestors as well. During these ten years, it was only right that I fulfilled filial duties for my brother.

"Since Young Hero Zhou wishes to pay his respects, and today happens to be the day my brother has returned, why not first go to the ancestral hall and offer incense to the Li family ancestors?"

"Certainly."

Long Xiaoyun immediately took the lead, guiding the group toward the Li Family Ancestral Hall.

Lu Xiaofeng seized the chance to sidle up to Zhou Ming. "I'm begging you, all right? Can you stop pulling stunts like this?"

Zhou Ming curled his lip. "Fine."

Though Li Garden had been renamed Xingyun Manor, not much within it had actually changed.

The Li Family Ancestral Hall was still there, and its interior was neat and spotless. It was clear that its upkeep had never been neglected.

Seeing this, many martial artists praised it quietly.

There was even a trace of gratitude in Li Xunhuan's gaze when he looked at Long Xiaoyun.

In truth, no matter what Long Xiaoyun thought in his heart, he had done an impeccable job on the surface.

Everyone knew that everything he possessed had come from Li Xunhuan.

Thus, in everyone's eyes, he naturally became Li Xunhuan's good elder brother.

In every matter, great or small, he had not made the slightest mistake.

If Li Xunhuan had never returned and no further word of him had ever come, then Long Xiaoyun might have kept up this pretense for the rest of his life.

But Li Xunhuan had returned!

After paying respects to the Li family ancestors, Long Xiaoyun led everyone—Li Xunhuan in particular—on a tour of Xingyun Manor.

In the end, they arrived at a plum grove.

Deep amid the fragrance of plum blossoms, several exquisite buildings flickered in and out of sight.

This was Cold Fragrance Lodge, Li Xunhuan's former residence.

Not far from Cold Fragrance Lodge stood a small building where Lin Shiyin had once lived.

Back then, the two had been in love. Li Xunhuan would play the zither among the plum blossoms, and when he looked up, he could see her lovely silhouette in the small building nearby.

They looked at one another without speaking, their feelings hidden away in silence.

Sadly, too much had changed afterward.

After Li Xunhuan left, Lin Shiyin moved in here. But after marrying Long Xiaoyun, she moved away with him.

Later, she became sworn sisters with Lin Xian'er. When Lin Xian'er moved into Xingyun Manor, this became her residence.

As the familiar scent of plum blossoms reached his nose, Li Xunhuan's eyes could not help clouding over for an instant.

"Heh..."

Zhou Ming could not stand the sight of this. He turned and left, returning to the small courtyard where he was staying.

Xia Feng served him a cup of hot tea and asked, "Young Master, do you still dislike that Li Xunhuan?"

"Indeed." Zhou Ming said, "But I deliberately provoked him, and he remained calm and detached, as though he cared about nothing. That only made it boring."

Dong Xue said coldly, "Since Young Master cannot stand him, why not let us act and kill him outright? No matter how capable he is, how could he withstand all of us joining forces?"

Zhou Ming smiled. "You, always talking about killing and fighting. Only the living can create endless drama. Even enemies are no exception. I have no intention of killing him. I only want to see regret on his face. If you kill him, how could a dead man's head possibly show such a vivid expression?"

Qiu Yue said, "Young Master wants to see him regret it? I fear that will not be easy. He could hand over even his former beloved to another man, give away his family estate, and even leave the Central Plains for ten years without returning.

"Perhaps there is already nothing left in this man's heart that he cares about. How could someone like that be made to regret anything?"

At her words, Zhou Ming's eyes lit up. He said delightedly, "Good Yue'er, you have reminded me!"

Qiu Yue froze. "Young Master, could it be that Li Xunhuan truly has someone he cares about?"

After pondering for a moment, Xia Feng said, "Could it be... Lin Shiyin?"

Zhou Ming nodded. "Exactly!"

The one Li Xunhuan had loved most in his life was Lin Shiyin.

During his ten years beyond the frontier, he had worried over her constantly.

He often used the little knife in his hand to carve Lin Shiyin's face into wood, gazing upon the carving to think of her.

With martial cultivation at the Innate Perfected Realm, how could ordinary illness ever cling to him?

Yet his entire body carried the air of sickness, as though he had long been plagued by disease.

It was worry that had made him ill.

No matter how high one's cultivation, it was useless against an illness of the heart!

At this, Qiu Yue's face filled with question marks. She clearly could not understand.

"The person he cares about is Lin Shiyin? But why? If he cared about her so much, why did he hand her over to someone else?"

Zhou Ming said, "Stop thinking about it. People like him do not think the way normal people do. It is right that you cannot understand. If one day you do understand, that will mean there is something wrong with your head too."

"Young Master is right."

Zhou Ming laughed heartily, then began considering how he could use Lin Shiyin to make Li Xunhuan reveal regret on his face.

Li Xunhuan's will was firm. Ordinary matters would likely be unable to shake his heart at all.

It would be best to use something ruthless.

At the same time, Li Xunhuan was sharp-minded and skilled at observing details.

If he made up a lie and Li Xunhuan saw through it, it would have no effect.

As the saying went, lies did not hurt people; the truth was the sharp knife.

The best method was to use truth to fabricate a falsehood—nine parts truth, one part lie.

Fortunately, through memories of his past life, he knew a great deal of information that ordinary people knew nothing about. He truly had no shortage of material to build a fabrication from.

Moreover, Li Xunhuan had been away for ten years and knew little of the changes that had occurred during that time.

Therefore, Zhou Ming did not actually need to make it ninety percent true. Even seventy percent, or perhaps sixty percent truth, would be enough to deceive him.

But he had to act quickly.

The longer he waited, the more Li Xunhuan would learn about present-day affairs, and the harder he would be to deceive.

The day after Li Xunhuan returned.

Night fell.

Lin Xian'er had made ample preparations and finally relaxed a little.

Previously, because she had been too confident, she had exposed her true face before Li Xunhuan. Now that Li Xunhuan had come to Xingyun Manor, she was naturally terrified, afraid that he would expose her.

Although Li Xunhuan had not done so, Lin Xian'er obviously would not entrust her fate to another person's mercy.

Thus, she had made thorough preparations, enough to ensure that whatever Li Xunhuan said then would be useless!

At present, the many martial artists had gathered here to eliminate the Plum Blossom Thief. Yet the claim that Li Xunhuan was the Plum Blossom Thief was merely a rumor, so no one had taken action for the time being.

But they would not wait for long.

When that time came, all her many preparations would finally come into use.

Just then, a figure passed before Lin Xian'er.

Lin Xian'er looked and saw that it was one of the four maidservants by Zhou Ming's side.

I nearly forgot about him!

Because of Li Xunhuan, Lin Xian'er had been so overwhelmed these past two days that she had overlooked this young master of extraordinarily noble status.

But it was not too late to remember him now.

At this hour... it was just right!

Lin Xian'er tidied up her appearance and headed toward the courtyard where Zhou Ming lived.

When she arrived, she saw that Zhou Ming was not alone in the courtyard. Lu Xiaofeng and the four maidservants were there as well.

Just as she was about to enter, she heard Lu Xiaofeng say in astonishment from within the courtyard, "What? You already know who the Plum Blossom Thief is?"