Xu Jiujiu watched Liu Lin leave the banquet hall, then withdrew her gaze.
She went to a corner of the banquet hall and quietly waited for Liu Lin to return.
Meanwhile, Liu Lin stepped out through the banquet hall's side door. The cool breeze outside swept away the smell of wine clinging to him from inside.
Liu Lin took a deep breath, clearing his head considerably.
"Why aren't you sitting inside with your fiancée?" A voice traveled from the Sea of Consciousness into Liu Lin's ears.
Hearing the woman's voice, Liu Lin explained, "Of course I came out to find someone. This is a good opportunity; otherwise, I wouldn't have an excuse to come here."
At that moment, inside Liu Lin's Sea of Consciousness, a golden-haired, red-eyed woman was reclining in a chair. She heard what Liu Lin said.
She asked him in confusion, "Who are you looking for?"
"When the steward brought him in earlier, I used the Eye of Destiny and saw someone with incredible fortune. I want to find him."
Hearing the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's question, Liu Lin came up with a reasonable excuse for going to find Huo Yuhao.
He wanted to take this opportunity to get to know Huo Yuhao, then help him a little so that he would work under him in the future.
After all, Huo Yuhao was extremely talented at researching Soul Tools. It would be such a waste not to make use of his abilities.
But if Huo Yuhao still became Tang San's lackey despite his intervention, then, well, he would have no choice but to suppress him.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion listened to Liu Lin and nodded.
"Then let's hurry. Once the banquet ends, we won't have any excuse to stay longer."
"Mm. Let's go."
Liu Lin nodded, left the banquet hall in the White Tiger Duke Mansion, and walked some distance through the grounds.
When he spotted a servant, Liu Lin stopped him and asked for directions to the place where the White Tiger Duke Mansion's concubines lived.
As a transmigrator, Liu Lin knew that Huo Yuhao and his mother lived there as the White Tiger Duke's concubine and illegitimate son, so he asked directly.
Seeing Liu Lin's fine clothes, the servant knew he must be an honored guest of the Duke's Mansion. Not daring to neglect him, he respectfully pointed out the way.
Liu Lin looked in the direction the servant had indicated and thanked him.
The servant was flustered when Liu Lin thanked him. He bowed respectfully and said, "It's my honor to serve you, my lord."
Seeing his reaction, Liu Lin waved a hand and left, heading in the direction the servant had pointed out.
Following the directions, Liu Lin found that the farther he walked, the more remote it became. The lights grew sparse, making the place feel desolate.
Just as Liu Lin arrived, he suddenly heard the sound of fists and feet landing on flesh from a corner of the side courtyard, along with several muffled groans and the curses of a few people.
Liu Lin couldn't help frowning. He took a couple of steps forward and saw several servants surrounding someone, beating and kicking him while cursing, "Who told you to steal food?" and the like.
Dai Huabin stood nearby with his arms crossed, watching the scene with excitement on his face.
At that moment, his expression was entirely different from the one he'd worn in the banquet hall.
He no longer looked gloomy and jealous. Instead, his face held a cruel, cathartic delight, as if the person beneath his feet were not a human being but merely an outlet for his frustration.
Liu Lin walked over. When Dai Huabin saw him, he froze for a moment, then waved for the servants to stop.
He even greeted Liu Lin, introduced himself, and explained that the illegitimate son had stolen food from the kitchen, so he was teaching him a lesson.
Dai Huabin said this in a casual tone, as if he were chatting about the fine weather.
"Viscount Liu, I'm Dai Huabin, the White Tiger Duke's second son," he said with a smile.
"I'm teaching him a lesson because he stole food from the banquet hall. I could beat a lowborn brat like him to death for that."
Hearing Dai Huabin's words, Liu Lin looked at the blue-haired boy pinned beneath the servants' feet.
He knew the boy before him was Huo Yuhao, and said, "Young Master Dai, isn't this a little too harsh? You've got several grown men beating a child who doesn't look older than six."
"Viscount Liu, it seems you want to meddle in other people's business." Dai Huabin's smile vanished at Liu Lin's words.
"Mm. You're beating him simply because your older brother has been making you feel inferior, so you want to vent your frustration here."
Dai Huabin's smile froze instantly, as if someone had thrown a basin of ice water in his face.
His expression turned dark, and his eyes filled with malice.
The next moment, he released his Martial Soul. The phantom of a White Tiger appeared behind him, and with a roar, it lunged at Liu Lin.
But with a newly awakened Martial Soul and a cultivation level below rank ten, how could he possibly be Liu Lin's match?
Liu Lin didn't even summon his Martial Soul. He raised a hand and slapped Dai Huabin across the face, sending him flying before he crashed heavily to the ground.
The servants hurriedly released Huo Yuhao and helped Dai Huabin up.
The men didn't know what to do. They had just heard Dai Huabin say the other man was a viscount. How could lowly servants like them afford to offend him?
Once the servants had helped him up, Dai Huabin clutched his swollen, reddened cheek and shot Liu Lin a venomous glare.
"Liu Lin, you're only ahead of me because you've cultivated for three more years. Just you wait. I'll definitely defeat you."
After throwing out a threat, he left with the servants, tail between his legs.
Liu Lin dusted off his hands, then turned to look at the blue-haired boy who had been beaten. The boy had already picked himself up off the ground.
He was crouching there, gathering the scattered food. After picking it up, he rubbed the dirt off a steamed bun against the hem of his clothes, then tucked it into his shirt. His movements were so practiced that he seemed to have done this countless times.
After picking up all the food from the ground, the boy looked up at Liu Lin, who had saved him.
Only then did Liu Lin get a clear look at him. The boy was six or seven years old and as skinny as a monkey, with not an ounce of flesh on his body.
His cheekbones jutted out sharply, and his dark blue hair was a tangled mess plastered to his forehead. He clearly hadn't had it groomed in a long time.
After packing away the food, the boy bowed respectfully to Liu Lin and thanked him.
Liu Lin helped the boy to his feet and shook his head. "It's fine. I just thought he went too far."
"Also, what's your name? Where's your mother? I'll take you to her."
Hearing Liu Lin's questions, the blue-haired boy shook his head and said, "My name is Dai Yuhao. My mother is in that house over there."
As he spoke, Huo Yuhao pointed toward a dilapidated house in the corner.
Hearing Huo Yuhao's name, Liu Lin nodded. He thought he might as well give his own name and make sure Huo Yuhao remembered him.
Just then, Huo Yuhao's voice interrupted Liu Lin's thoughts.
"Um, what's your name? Thank you for saving me today. I'll repay your kindness someday."