The winter in Nanyang Basin is much colder than that in Shanghai, and the ditches and rivers along the way are already frozen.
Zhu Tong didn't put on any extra clothes when he went out this time. The first thing he felt after getting off the car was the cold.
The taxi drove away. It was the darkest time before dawn and the temperature was also the lowest.
Zhu Tong took a look at the sleeping small village of Liujiaying; the lights in Shifosi Town were dim in the distance.
The old liar said that he must rush to the Zhao River outside Liujiaying Village before dawn. Only at this moment and in this place can Mrs. Yu be found.
Zhao River, the taxi just crossed a bridge. Zhu Tong felt that the river was not very wide. He stepped on the winter wheat fields and walked to the river step by step. He was sure that Zhao River was really a small river; the surface of the river was already frozen.
, the thick ice reflects the distant lights.
After Zhu Tong inspected the area with a radius of half a kilometer, he sat down on the wheat field in despair, picked up a bunch of wheat seedlings with his right hand, kneaded it and stuffed it into his mouth.
The Zhao River turns here, and the river bend is wider than elsewhere. There is a small forest on the bank. It is dark and there are no ghosts. Where can there be a jade lady? The old liar will not retaliate against himself for driving him out of Zhumen, lying to himself.
Let's go to the river and drink the cool breeze?
Maybe it was too cold today and Mrs. Yu didn't come out? This is the only way to comfort myself.
Zhu Tong simply meditates and practices, calmly sinking into the realm of Pengma to recuperate his body and mind.
The vast starry sky gradually embraced everything about Zhu Tong, and everything in his body became light and weightless. Even the Butterfly God was moved by such freedom, and danced lively with Zhu Tong's thoughts.
It was the first time for him to be so close to the power of nature and so harmonious with the Butterfly God. Zhu Tong experienced this strange feeling and was ecstatic for a moment.
Taoist Bamboo once said that Zhu Tong should find an opportunity to retreat for a few days; but he never took this sentence to heart. Now that he has the time to experience it carefully, he realizes that meditating in the city is incomparable to practicing in the wilderness.
; In the past, Zhu Tong did not have such an experience.
Where there are many people, spiritual energy is weak. Master Zhu Huang also said this. It was only when the little liar meditated and rested by the Zhao River that he realized the true meaning of his uncle's words.
People can calm down, but their hearts cannot really calm down.
Several car horns were heard in the distance, and the silence was broken. Zhu Tong was only silent for a moment in the realm of Peng Ma, and his heart began to be confused again.
If he is really deceived by the old liar again this time, Zhu Tong can only admit that he is unlucky. Who allowed him to commit evil in his previous life and become a disciple of this master?
However, if you think about it, it doesn't look like a scam. The old liar also gave himself a jade pendant, saying that Mrs. Jade would help him when she saw the jade pendant.
Zhu Tong was thinking wildly when a slight "click" sounded thirty meters away, which was the sound of the ice breaking.
On the ice of the Zhao River, three graceful figures appeared out of the sky; it cannot be said that they were out of the sky, they came out of... the river.
In the cold winter, three women emerged from the frozen river. I couldn't bear the thought of it. Goosebumps immediately appeared on Zhu Tong's body.
"Who are you? Why are you here?"
As soon as the little liar stood up, a woman appeared in front of him. She was made of light silk, with a convex figure and a gauze mask. She held a piece of ice in her left hand and a jade knife in her right hand.
"Zhu Tong, a disciple of the Zhu family, would like to see Mrs. Yu." The little liar typed out a message from Jianghu and revealed his identity.
"You are the lone wolf with a thousand faces. Who asked you to come to see Madam Jade?"
"Old liar."
"Who is the old liar?"
The other party didn't seem to know the celebrity, so Zhu Tong could only give his name: "Zhu Lan."
"Hmph! It turns out that you are his apprentice, and you are not a good person after all. No wonder you are being chased, look at the knife!"
Zhu Tong was shivering when he glanced at the sword, and with a chill, the opponent's jade sword came right in front of him.
"Wait a minute, I'm really here to see Mrs. Yu." Zhu Tong didn't expect that the other party would make a move after saying only three words, and he hurriedly avoided it.
Beside the Zhao River, the thin jade knife shone coldly in the darkness, and each knife greeted Zhu Tong's eyes. The blade rose and fell, constantly exuding a trace of cold air: "This is the combined ice knife technique, as long as you can use this girl's knife
If I insist on ten moves, I will take you to see Mrs. Yu."
The little liar dodged three moves, but couldn't help but feel angry. He turned out a golden needle on his fingertips and shouted: "Young girl is so reckless, I must offend you."
Compared to his stance, Zhu Tong was now as light as a butterfly, dodging back and forth in the opponent's blade. Every time he got away when the Zhuoyu knife was even the slightest distance from the tip of his nose, the female swordsman was so angry that her breathing became rapid, and she swung the Zhuoyu knife even faster.
However, the opponent's body skills are also good. Although he is not as quick as the little liar, his sword skills are powerful; every time he cuts the sword, he is blocking Zhu Tong's golden needle. Moreover, he does not dare to make a serious move, as he has two companions
, smiling and sliding along the ice, holding a deadly jade knife in their hands.
One move after another, Zhu Tong had received at least twenty moves. The opponent had no intention of stopping, but a wisp of cold air entered the body with the Zhuoyu Sword, gradually invading the bone marrow, and the body became a little stiff.
The Butterfly God is a guy who is afraid of the cold. It is afraid of the cold air caused by the combined ice knife technique, so its wings flap more and more slowly.
This could not go on like this. Zhu Tong desperately needed warmth. He thought of the butterfly mask on his chest, the golden needle on his right hand, and wrote the word "phoenix" in front of him.
His mind was impure, his writing state was wrong, and the Phoenix mask only emitted a little warmth. Fortunately, the Pengma Skill he possessed was pure, and he could withstand the bone-chilling cold for the time being.
"Are you good at Kung Fu? How did you practice it?" The other party suddenly stopped with a smile, and stopped without any warning: "If we don't fight, I can't beat you."
Zhu Tong used the Peng Ma Gong for three weeks to dispel the coldness in his body: "The girl is merciful, I know it."
There were a few roosters crowing from Liujiaying, dogs began to bark, a light flashed at the end of the village, and voices rang out. Is this the reason why the other party stopped?
"I can still support ten moves."
"You are honest and don't look like a cunning person. I know that you are not using your real skills at all. Leave it to me. Brother Zhu, my name is Shi Chen. Wait a moment. Let's go change clothes. No peeking.
"
The dawn faded, a rising sun jumped out of the horizon, and a faint morning mist floated around Zhaohe River.
Shi Chen and his two companions walked out of the woods by the river. They were already wearing simple ordinary clothes, and their round faces were healthy and rosy. They looked like three farm girls wandering around in the morning. Only their hair was full.
The wet black hair showed that they were practicing some kind of strange kung fu in the frozen river just now.
"This is for you, keep it well and don't destroy it."
Shi Chen handed a cold object to Zhu Tong's hand. The little liar raised it up to his eyes and saw that it was a statue of himself. It was quite lifelike and lifelike; however, it was a statue carved from ice.
"Teach me how to preserve it?" Zhu Tong handed the ice sculpture back; they were now walking along the field paths, bypassing Liujiaying and heading towards the Stone Buddha Temple.
"I only let you keep it for half an hour. They say that the lone wolf with a thousand faces, Zhu Tong, is very witty. He doesn't even have this ability. I carved it very carefully. There is only one rule, it can't leave your hands."
It's up to you to decide whether your hand can do it or not. If it melts away when you get there, I won't take you to see Madam Jade."
Shi Chen threw the ice sculpture over again, raised his jade knife and pointed at the tall statue at the entrance of the stone Buddha town, and Youhu disappeared into her sleeve: "It'll be fine when you get there."
How can an ice sculpture be preserved in the palm of her hand? Zhu Tong knows that Shi Chen is joking, and she will definitely take her to see Mrs. Yu; but idleness is idleness, and she may need help from the other party later, and she can make her happy during this journey.
, there is always no harm in enhancing the friendship between both parties.
With the statue carved from ice resting on the palm of his left hand, Zhu Tong thought for a moment and meditated on the few words he had learned.
The word "spiritual" is useless. The morning sun shines on the ice sculpture, the color of the crystal water gradually thickens, and it slowly melts.
Qi! Zhu Tong twisted the golden needle with his right hand and drew the word "Qi" on the ice sculpture.
The heart of his left hand felt slightly numb, his breath surged up, and the ice sculpture floated.
"Hehe." Zhu Tong chuckled twice and tried his best to maintain this state.
"Sure enough." Shi Chen slowed down and looked up and down several times, with an expression of surprise on his face.
"It's amazing. Sister Chen has met her opponent this time."
Liu Chen's two companions were also making noises. They were only fifteen or sixteen years old, two or three years younger than Liu Chen. When they first left Zhaohe, the corners of their mouths were still black, but after a while they turned into a delicate bright red.
When Shifo Temple arrived, there were already early risers on the street. Shi Chen took the ice sculpture and stuffed it into his pocket, then led Zhu Tong around a few streets and stopped in front of a small building.
This street is full of small buildings like this, with three floors, and more or less stones are piled in front of the door. It can be seen that they are all workshops for carving jade. Zhu Tong followed Shi Chen and had already walked through three similar streets.
Street. The taxi driver said it right. Here, everyone is carving jade and playing with stones.
Walking into the small building, there is a store in front, with a counter displaying some jade articles such as bracelets, and a statue of Guan Gong, the God of Wealth, in the corner. It is no different from ordinary jade jewelry stores.
Shi Chen took Zhu Tong to the inner courtyard, ran up to the second floor and shouted, "Uncle, we have a guest. It's a pretty husband."
Zhu Tong looked around, but there was nothing special. The few jade articles placed in the room did not seem to be of any high quality. The material did not look like good jade.
"Look at the tea. Make two cups of my Yunwushan Maofeng and bring it to you as soon as possible."
There was a sound of kicking upstairs, and a thin old man came down the stairs. He was wearing single clothes, with two beards on his upper lip, his pale face was full of wind and frost, his eyes were piercing, and he looked very energetic.
"Are you Zhu Tong?"
"Exactly."
"The old liar is your master."
"yes."
The old man asked a few words and sat down on the sofa next to Zhu Tong.
"What's going on here?"
Shi Chen brought two cups of hot tea and winked at Zhu Tong before going upstairs.
"Junior has something to do, please ask Mrs. Yu for help."
Zhu Tong took out the morning glory jade fan pendant given by the old liar and handed it over.
The old man took it and looked over it over and over, with a strange expression on his face like an old liar; he then raised the teacup and let Zhu Tong take a sip.
"Unfortunately, she is not here. She has traveled far away. If you want to see her, please come back after the Chinese New Year."
"Senior, don't lie to others." Zhu Tong stood up and bowed to salute: "Zhu Tong, a disciple of Zhu Clan, has met Senior Madam Yu."
The old man waved his hands repeatedly: "You can't do this. You can't mess with the rules. You are now the head of the Zhu Sect. How can I, a bad old man, accept such a gift? I can't do it." But he didn't stand up.
As soon as he entered the door, Zhu Tong was looking for traces of Shen Shixuan, but he couldn't find anything. After seeing the old man, he became even more confused. It wasn't until Shi Chen blinked that he suddenly realized: the old liar didn't tell the truth, and the so-called Mrs. Jade was nothing.
It's just a code name. The head of Shenshixuan, regardless of gender, should be called Mrs. Yu.
"Shen Shixuan regards jade as his god and respects jade as a gentleman. Of course you are the jade lady who serves the jade god. Is the senior right?" However, he was not 100% sure whether this judgment was correct.
"Haha, if the old liar's vision is as good as yours, you won't be fair to me. Please sit down, sit down." Mrs. Yu smiled and pulled Zhu Tong to sit down and looked at him for a moment: "Yes, you have good vision. You are
It’s a good piece of material and worth carving.”
Zhu Tong was made uncomfortable by the look in Mrs. Yu's eyes, and felt even more uncomfortable when he heard his words: "Senior...?" But in his heart, he felt that there was something wrong with his judgment just now. Mrs. Yu was too happy.
"Call me Mrs. Jade."
"Yes, Mrs. Yu."
Zhu Tong was not used to calling an old man Madam, but it still meant Madam Jade, which meant nobility.
"Why didn't your master come?"
"Master is no longer the leader of the Zhu Sect..."
Zhu Tong tells the story again. This is what the old liar told him. Let Zhu Tong make him as unlucky as possible.
As expected, Mrs. Yu became happier the more she listened: "Haha, you kicked the old liar out of the Zhu family? Well done, well done, he will be where he is today? Haha, Zhu Tong, just because you have this knowledge and this courage,
I will help you no matter what."
Zhu Tong felt dumbfounded. Just now, Madam Yu said that it was fair for the old liar to lose to him. Listening to this, it must be Madam Yu who suffered the loss.
"Girls, are the food ready? Put it on the table quickly; Brother Zhu and I will drink several times."
There was a response from upstairs, Shi Chen took the lead, and three girls came down carrying dishes and bowls. In just a moment, a few side dishes were ready.
What are the rules of Shenshixuan? If you invite people to drink early in the morning, you don't ask whether the guests are tired, need a rest or not. Also, what does Mrs. Yu's seniority say about calling yourself a brother?
"Drink." Madam Jade took out two white jade cups. The jade cups were warm and moist, and after drinking the wine, they had a jade aroma.
Only then did Zhu Tong realize how powerful Shen Shixuan was.
He had seen a similar jade cup in an antique shop in Shanghai. The jade quality and jade quality were similar, and the asking price was several hundred thousand.
The Butterfly God is addicted to alcohol. Zhu Tong's current drinking capacity is beyond the reach of ordinary people. From the first glass of wine, he can't help but make the Butterfly God excited. He drinks a kilogram of high-alcohol wine.
After practicing and absorbing it, Zhu Tong felt nothing at all.
"It's no longer possible. I'm old and can't drink anymore. If I drink anymore, things will be delayed."
Mrs. Yu held the cup, and within half an hour, the two of them had finished a jar of privately brewed spirits.
"Zhu Tong, what's the matter with coming here to my God's Stone Pavilion?"
"Senior, please use your magic to carve jade. I need this..." Zhu Tong took out the paper and explained his request while writing the picture: "The price is not an issue."
After hearing this, Mrs. Yu suddenly changed her color, and raised her glass as if she was greatly insulted: "You want me to make a fake jade? No, Shenshixuan is not your Zhumen. I have never lied to others, and I will never do it for you."