Taiping Inn

After encountering this minor setback with Wei Zhen, Li Xuandu and his party did not stay in Guantao City for too long and set off for the capital city of Lanling Prefecture.

The closer they were to the capital city of Lanling Prefecture, the closer it was to the time for Li Xuandu and the Pei family to part.

All good things must come to an end. Li Xuandu had been traveling around the world and had seen many separations and deaths, so he did not have too many feelings about this. However, Pei Yu, the little guy, was reluctant to leave Li Xuandu and even thought about following Li Xuandu around the world, but was persuaded by Li Xuandu.

One evening, before arriving at Lanling Prefecture, Li Xuandu and the Pei family came to an inn in the wilderness.

This place was more than 30 miles away from the capital city of Lanling Prefecture and was the last inn on this official road. After all, in this year, and in Qizhou, bandits were rampant and wars were frequent. It was not something that ordinary people could do to open an inn outside the city. In other words, it is not an ordinary person who can open a shop in this place where there is no village or shop.

This lonely inn is plain and simple, even a little shabby, which is a world apart from the inn with a back garden in Linzaoguan. However, it is not small in scale, with a courtyard surrounded by earth walls, with both stables and carriages. The main building has two floors, which can accommodate hundreds of people if it is full.

Li Xuandu sat on the horse and looked up. A big flag was fluttering in the wind. Only four big characters were written on the wrinkled and shabby flag: "Taiping Inn".

Unexpectedly, but reasonable, only the Taiping Sect has such manpower and material resources to open so many Taiping Inns in the wilderness.

Li Xuandu was originally a little resistant to Taiping Inn, but now he is a little numb.

Since you are here, you should make the best of it.

After entering the inn, there was no shopkeeper, only the proprietress.

The proprietress is a middle-aged woman with a charming demeanor. According to Li Xuandu's old rules, she is more like an innkeeper than Mrs. Lu. She is warm and hospitable but respectful. If she were not in this inn in the wilderness, she would be like a good woman who is at ease taking care of her husband and children.

It's not that a good woman can't open a shop, but if she opens a shop in such a place, if she doesn't have some skills, she would have been eaten by all kinds of monsters and ghosts without leaving even a bone.

In addition to the proprietress, there is a cook and a female servant in the inn.

The cook is fat, strong and powerful, and doesn't care about the principle of "the body and hair are inherited from parents". He shaved his head, but maybe because the inn is too remote, the cook hasn't taken care of his head for some time, and a layer of green stubble has grown, which looks a bit funny.

The female servant was thin, with a pretty face, and was taciturn. She never left her broom and rag. She usually did whatever the boss lady told her to do. She was diligent and efficient, which made people like her.

After settling down in the inn, Li Xuandu did not come down to eat, but meditated in his room to regulate his breathing, and continued to "appease" the various strong dragons in his body in order to achieve balance.

The next morning, Li Xuandu woke up from meditation on time.

It happened that Pei Zhou heard the boss lady say that there was a small lake not far from the inn, which was quiet and elegant. The old man still couldn't get rid of the interest of the literati who liked to explore the mystery, so he took Li Xuandu to the small lake.

Li Xuandu naturally would not offend the old man's face. In the end, Pei Zhu and Pei Yu, brother and sister, went to the small lake together without letting any Pei family guards and followers follow.

In early spring, there was already a scene of grass growing and warblers flying.

However, at the end of last year and the beginning of this spring, the Qizhou government army and the Qingyang Sect fought fiercely, especially the bloody battle in Dongchang Prefecture, which made the spring breeze seem to carry a bloody smell that had not yet completely dissipated.

A group of four people walked along a path behind the inn towards the small lake in the slightly chilly spring breeze.

Because Pei Zhou was old and weak, he walked for more than half an hour before arriving at the small lake mentioned by the proprietress. It was connected to an unknown river. Because it was running water, the flowing water was not rotten, so the lake water was clear. Because the sun was just right, it actually showed a blue color. The lake surface had thawed, leaving only a little thin ice. The spring breeze blew, and the lake surface was wrinkled, sparkling in the sun.

In this green season when willow branches sprout, there should be many young men and women going out for fun, and children will also come to the wild to fly kites happily. However, after experiencing a series of natural disasters and man-made disasters, the whole Qizhou is silent. It cannot be said that every family is in mourning, and nine out of ten houses are empty, but it is also shrouded in a gloomy cloud.

The old man stood alone by the lake, looking at the lake, wondering what he was thinking.

Pei Yu was practicing the "Shenjingtong" that he had just begun to learn, constantly stepping on the pebbles by the lake, as if he wanted to walk on the water, but he didn't dare to try it rashly.

Li Xuandu sat alone on a big rock, looking at the lake, slowly comprehending the "Blue Sea Tide Moon Bright" in the "Thirteen Swords of Taiyin", but he just comprehended it, but didn't dare to practice it rashly, just like a swordsmith who only polished the sword blank and kept comparing on the sword blank, and never made the sword blank into a sword.

Pei Zhu came behind Li Xuandu and asked softly, "What is Mr. Li looking at?"

Li Xuandu collected his thoughts and replied, "Practicing sword."

"Practicing sword?" Pei Zhu was slightly surprised and said, "Can you practice sword while sitting? And why can't I see Mr. Li's sword?"

Li Xuandu smiled faintly and said, "Practicing swordsmanship is like a scholar's article. Although things are different, the principles are the same. Before writing, you must have a clear mind. The same is true for us to practice swordsmanship, if you just take it blindly. If you practice the sword hard, you know the truth but don’t know the reason. That means you have fallen into a inferior level and you will never be able to practice the best swordsmanship in your life.”

Pei Zhu subconsciously glanced at Pei Yu not far away. At this time, the young man had already stepped into the water with his feet. He didn't care about the coldness of the lake at all, but his face was full of excitement and excitement.

Li Xuandu also followed Pei Zhu's gaze and whispered: "Pei Yu's martial arts talent is excellent."

This is the truth, and it can even be regarded as praise.

After all, Li Xuandu is a top genius in the world. If he can praise the word "excellent" by him, it is conceivable that Pei Yu's qualifications must be extraordinary.

Pei Zhu turned her head and looked at Li Xuandu, and asked softly, "But, Mr. Li..."

Li Xuandu seemed to know what Pei Zhu was going to say, and waved his hand and said, "Whether practicing martial arts or refining qi, it is just a means, not an end. Some people use it to fight, kill, and some people use it to prolong their lives. It's like a knife. , can be used to cut vegetables or kill people. The merits and demerits are not the knife itself, but the person who uses the knife. I taught Pei Yu's martial arts, and Mr. Pei once again taught him the principles of being a human being. This is restricted by rules, which is equivalent to Add a scabbard to the knife. As for whether to use the knife, it is just a matter of Pei Yu's thought."

Pei Zhu nodded and finally stopped saying anything, but her eyes were dim.