Heaven Dou City
Li Hanche felt that the entire city was somehow different.
It was not the city that had changed, but the way people looked at him.
Young women gathered along the streets in groups of two and three.
Some stood on tiptoe to peer toward the diplomatic convoy. Some blushed as they shoved their companions. The bolder ones waved handkerchiefs directly at him.
"Young Master Li! It's Young Master Li!"
"The Young Master Li who crushed the Soul Master Tournament all by himself!"
"He's even better-looking than the rumors say!"
Li Hanche rode on horseback, but inwardly, he was ranting wildly.
News traveled through Heaven Dou City way too fast. Where had they even heard that he had steamrolled the tournament?
Ning Rongrong rode her little horse beside him, her cheeks puffed up high.
Every time they passed a girl waving at him, she shot her a vicious glare.
What angered her even more was Su Nianxue.
Su Nianxue had somehow joined the diplomatic party.
At that moment, she walked on Li Hanche's other side, holding a bowl of osmanthus lotus seed soup. She tilted her head up and looked at him with those round black eyes.
"Brother Hanche, you haven't fully recovered yet. I had the cooks at home make lotus seed soup for you. It strengthens the spleen and nourishes the stomach. Try some. It isn't hot."
Ning Rongrong nearly twisted her reins apart.
Li Hanche took the lotus seed soup and drank two mouthfuls. He handed it back with a word of thanks, then dismounted.
The vast crowd gradually dispersed as he strode toward Dugu Bo.
Dugu Bo was pacing alone, wholly uninterested in the bustle of Heaven Dou City.
"Senior Dugu! Thank you for what you did at Spirit Hall earlier."
Dugu Bo stopped,