Evening sunlight spilled across the vibrant street. The scene was still beautifully illuminated.

As the carriage and its escort made their way through the streets of Hangzhou, the sun cast its rays from the western sky. Here and there, pedestrians hurried along the roadside: martial artists with swords, wandering doctors with banners, farmers carrying shoulder poles, all with their heads bowed. Occasionally, they paused at street corners, waiting for the speeding carriages to pass.

The willow trees by the river had turned yellow, swaying in the wind. As sycamore leaves fluttered and danced over the eaves of the buildings, the boatmen in their black-awning boats punted with their poles, propelling their vessels swiftly along the city's canals.

Ning Yi watched the black boats for a while. One small boat traveled alongside the carriage for a time, but the carriage turned onto a stone bridge while the boat sailed under it, and the two parted ways at a canal intersection ahead.

The canals of Hangzhou crisscrossed the city. The route from Fine Willow Street to Four Seasons Manor, located in the city center, passed through relatively lively areas. Walls of various sizes, roofs of varying heights, and many shops now open for business gave the area a semblance of prosperity. Of course, more noticeable were the various soldiers. Since the fall of Hangzhou, rebel troops had poured into the city from all directions, some in large groups, others in twos and threes, some new recruits, others veterans, like currents swept along by a tide, converging into this sea.

After traveling a short distance down a street, one could see four or five groups of soldiers, either walking or sitting, before they were left behind by the carriage. Their uniforms were mismatched, their weapons incomplete, and their physical condition was generally poor. Some stopped at the roadside when they saw the carriage approaching, while others, heads held high and swords in hand, slowly walked past from the front, causing the carriage to pause. These soldiers often belonged to the more well-known rebel factions.

"Those are men from the Crescent Moon Army. Their general is called Wu Zhi. I've heard he has nearly two thousand men under his command, quite a force to be reckoned with."

As the carriage stopped, Lou Shuwan pointed and commented on the affiliations of the soldiers along the way, having already identified five or six groups. Today, she was dressed in white men's clothing to attend a poetry gathering, looking handsome and dashing. She waved a folding fan in her hand, recounting these details to Ning Yi as if they were family treasures, exuding a sense of command.

It was rare to find women with such capabilities in those days. Even those who could manage household affairs well often had their horizons limited to the small circle of their homes, but Lou Shuwan gave the impression of being magnanimous. In this era, women who aspired to great things often needed to maintain more schemes and barriers than the average person, but at this moment, she seemed to be telling Ning Yi everything she knew without reservation, answering every question like pouring out beans, adding a touch of intimacy and playfulness to her image as a strong woman. Even Ning Yi, who was extremely wary of interacting with others, couldn't help but feel a certain fondness for her.

"Miss Lou has certainly put in the effort to learn about these things."

"In the current situation in Hangzhou, one can't afford not to."

Lou Shuwan smiled, her lips curving into a crescent shape. In her interactions with Ning Yi, she didn't shy away from the differences between herself and most women, nor did she hide her ambition. Most men might want their women to be gentle and fragile, but that was for women at home. Her relationship with Ning Yi was different. Her independence might be more likely to arouse his interest.

When something continued for a long time, people always found various legitimate reasons for themselves. Lou Shuwan didn't feel that there was anything wrong with her falling for Ning Yi, she always felt that she was a hard-working person, and she didn't ask for much. She liked him because he was good enough. For this kind of capable man, perhaps independent women could arouse his desire to conquer him more. On the other hand, in Lou Shuwan's view, Ning Yi was talented and capable, but he was an adopted son-in-law. Even if Su Tan'er was respectful to him, there must still be many unpleasant things compared to ordinary men. Her image was similar to Su Tan'er's, but she could do things that Su Tan'er couldn't.

Some things were embarrassing to think about, but they were indeed hidden deep in her heart. In her opinion, Ning Yi could even regard her as a substitute for Su Tan'er, hold her in his hands, conquer and ravage her. He couldn't do these things to Su Tan'er, but she could maintain the image of a strong woman while being obedient to him, no matter what. If Ning Yi really did this, it would only make her feel his power.

Recently, she had been showing her original talents in front of Ning Yi with this mentality. For her, it was also very relaxing and pleasant. Of course, the result was a bit strange. She could tell that Ning Yi did have some appreciation for her, but there wasn't much else in that appreciation. He didn't have any prejudice against women like her, and he even had a calm recognition of her—the men she had met in the past, even if they could recognize her public appearances, would treat it as an incredible thing, but he seemed to be used to it. She didn't actually need this kind of recognition.

However, this calmness that had seen the storms of the world made her even more fascinated. She couldn't see through what this man was thinking, and she didn't know if there were any thoughts behind that gaze about how he wanted to treat her, but it was this incomprehensibility that made her feel more power. It didn't matter, anyway... things had just begun.

Of course, she wasn't an infatuated idiot, and she wasn't always thinking about these things in her heart. Only occasionally when she woke up in the middle of the night would she seriously think about these embarrassing thoughts. When she was on the road with Ning Yi at this time, she was just playing the role of a friend appropriately, chatting idly in the car.

On the way from Fine Willow Street to Four Seasons Manor, there were naturally quite a few people accompanying them. Ning Yi only had one follower, a soldier named Liu Jin from the Tyrant Saber Camp. He didn't have a high position and was young. Ning Yi took him along as a servant when he went out. Lou Shuwan had many people around her. Hangzhou was not peaceful these days, and she always had seven or eight maids and servants following her when she went out, as well as two green forest people who had taken refuge in the Lou family.

These two people, one male and one female. The man was a fierce-looking unordained monk in his forties or fifties, with two scars on his face. His weapon was an iron staff. Others called him Master Qin. Lou Shuwan said that this Master Qin was quite famous in the martial arts world, called Killer Tiger Monk Qin Gu Lai. The woman was a female chivalrous figure holding a sword, in her thirties. It was said that she had not yet married, but she was not good-looking. She had broad shoulders, round legs, thick arms, and a square face, looking righteous. It was perfect to be a bodyguard, and her nickname and name sounded nice.

When Ning Yi first met them, he introduced himself: "Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. My name is Ning Liheng, and I'm known in the Jianghu world as Blood Hand Human Butcher."

"...This is the Spirit Mountain Fairy, Wei Lingxue."

Ning Yi was stunned for a few seconds at the time, and later decided not to introduce himself with these people.

The Jianghu world was just a pastime and bad taste for Ning Yi, so naturally he wouldn't take it too seriously. The group passed through the market, and soon arrived at the location of the Four Seasons Manor. The Four Seasons Manor was located by the river, connected by three buildings in the vicinity, with a large courtyard in the back. This was originally one of the largest antique shops in Hangzhou, collecting various antiques and cultural relics, as well as contemporary calligraphy and paintings, and selling books and essays. Ning Yi had originally come here once or twice to read various legendary novels, but during the fall of the city, the Four Seasons Manor was looted. Later, it was bought by someone and turned into a restaurant. The name hasn't changed, and the boss's name is now Chen Bainian.

"The former owner of the Four Seasons Manor, Boss Guo, had some dealings with my Lou family. After the city was broken, I don't know where he went..." As the carriage approached, Lou Shuwan frowned as she looked at the building, but then she stretched it out again, and patted the folding fan: "Oh, that's Lou Jingzhi. The son of Chancellor Lou... Liheng should have met him, right?"

"No." Ning Yi thought for a while and smiled, "Should I have met him?"

"Not really." Lou Shuwan smiled, tilting her head, "Isn't the owner of the Tyrant Saber Camp where Liheng is now a woman? Although few people usually mention her, and some people think that the person in charge of the Tyrant Saber Camp is a man named Liu Dabiao, I heard that the female adult of the Tyrant Saber Camp is engaged to Chancellor Lou's son."

"Uh?" Unexpectedly, Ning Yi was slightly stunned to hear such a big gossip suddenly.

Lou Shuwan had a good impression of Ning Yi, so she roughly inquired about the situation of the Tyrant Saber Camp, and also asked about the approximate situation of the academy where Ning Yi was located. This was a valuable piece of information. According to others, Lou Jingzhi and the woman from the Tyrant Saber Camp had been engaged since childhood, and they also had the friendship of rebelling together. It was said that the backing of the Tyrant Saber Camp was Zuo Xiang Lou Minzhong, so the relationship between the two must be very good. Lou Jingzhi might often go to the Tyrant Saber Camp, and Liheng might naturally see him. But at this time, he smiled in his heart. Liheng was just a staff member, and he probably couldn't see these things. He thought too much... (To be continued.) Vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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