I’m Still Practicing Martial Arts, But How Did My Daughter Become an Immortal? – Chapter 5

Ch 5: Three Rounds of Wine, Scheming Yin and Yang, the Way of Heaven is Unpredictable Zhang Zifang.

Early morning, the sky was somewhat dim.

The pitter-patter of light rain stretched on endlessly, sprinkling on the earth, making everything damp.

Lin Tian cooked fish soup. Yesterday, he bought a few fish and dug a pit of moderate size in the courtyard, putting the fish inside to raise.

Lin Tian carried the hot soup back to the room. Nannan was already awake, but her expression seemed a bit off.

“Oh, my Grand-Aunt, don’t be angry. If you don’t want to practice, then don’t. It’s all Daddy’s fault. Okay, okay, come drink a bowl of hot soup.”

“Hmph! Won’t drink it.”

“You won’t drink it, huh? Then your daddy will drink it. After drinking, I’ll go buy sugar hawthorns, go buy osmanthus cake, go buy…”

This time, Nannan couldn’t hold back. She got up, picked up the bowl, and started drinking.

“Bad Daddy.”

Lin Tian laughed heartily. It’s still easy to coax children; they’re single-minded and easy to deceive.

“Daddy is going out to buy you sugar hawthorns. You stay obediently at home, you hear? If you have nothing to do, read a book.”

Lin Tian took out the books, all copied down from his memory over the past three years: Journey to the West, Water Margin, and some fairy tales for children.

“I don’t want to read. I want to eat sugar hawthorns. Daddy, buy them for me.”

“Buy, buy, buy, I’ll buy them for you.”

Lin Tian went out and headed to Listening Wind Pavilion to drink tea.

The storyteller was an old man with a long beard, tightly gripping a yellowed ancient book in his hand.

The cover boldly displayed four large characters: “Xi Ma’s Autobiography.”

Lin Tian suspected that the old man wrote it himself.

The old man cupped his fist at Lin Tian: “This esteemed spectator has come quite early. What would you like to hear?”

Lin Tian waved his hand: “Anything is fine.”

“Very well, please wait a moment, just waiting for a few more people.”

Then he called the waiter to bring tea.

Lin Tian sipped the tea on his own. Saying he was sipping tea was more like gulping it down in one go.

He wasn’t particular about drinking tea. After all, he hadn’t even had enough to eat for the past three years.

He was close to grabbing the teapot and pouring it directly into his mouth. Feeling it was a bit unrefined, he gave up.

Before long, people gradually arrived, some in groups of three or five, others traveling alone.

A man walked in, wearing a blue cloth long gown, a round hat on his head, and a thin rope tied around his waist, with a bulging wallet hanging from it. It was clear that he was from a wealthy family.

He came to Lin Tian and said in a calm tone, “This brother is alone? How about sharing a table?”

Lin Tian looked around. In a short while, all the seats were occupied.

“It’s fine. Just sit. This old man has some skill; it’s already full.”

The middle-aged man in the blue gown next to Lin Tian smiled upon hearing Lin Tian’s words.

“This brother probably doesn’t know, but whatever happens in Great Liang, whether it’s a sect martial arts competition or gang fights in various places, you can always hear the news you want to hear here. You can observe all the wonders of the world without leaving your house.”

Lin Tian had seen this person before. He seemed to be the shopkeeper of Zhang Family Grain Shop. If you were to say what was most profitable in the past three years, it would definitely be grain. No wonder he was dressed so brightly.

Saying this, the middle-aged man in the blue gown stopped talking to Lin Tian and shouted at the storyteller on the stage.

“Old Man Li, what are you going to talk about today? If you tell it well and make me happy, I’ll give you a big reward today.”

The others also chimed in: “See that, Old Man Li? Shopkeeper Zhang has spoken. You have to tell something impressive today.”

“That’s right.”

“Putting aside everything else, everyone has been happy recently because the Dragon King in the river has shown grace.”

“The fish, ah, are being caught boat after boat. We can’t even finish eating them all.”

“Hahaha!”

“Hahaha!”

Old Man Li on the stage cupped his hands: “Old Li thanks you all first. I’ve always been grateful for your care, allowing this old man to not starve to death.”

*Pa!*

He dramatically slapped the table in his hand, a bit of solemnity in his brow.

“Our Great Liang has been established for over four hundred and fifty years. Over these hundreds of years, many sects and organizations have emerged.”

“Of course, I’m only talking about those that appear in everyone’s sight. There are many that have never shown their faces, so I won’t record them.”

“If you were to say what’s most famous in these hundreds of years, it would be the Dao discussion conference on Tianmen Mountain.”

“All the famous ones in the world, whether they’re black or white, jointly put forth the two greatest peaks in the world, saying they’re Immortals wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”

“One is our Great Liang’s Star Constellation Pavilion Master. Three Rounds of Wine, Scheming Yin and Yang, the Way of Heaven is Unpredictable Zhang Zifang.”

“The second is the Heavenly Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain in Qi Kingdom. Seeking Longevity, Painting the Universe, the Dao is Profound and Mysterious Zhang Zhiling.”

“Both of them are from the Daoist…”

“Hey, Old Man Li, didn’t you say last time that the Buddhist Sect was also very powerful and could rival the Daoist Sect? How come the Buddhist Sect isn’t ranked this time?”

This person was a fish-selling shopkeeper, a very outgoing person, but extremely good to the villagers, taking any unsold dead fish to give away.

Old Man Li chuckled upon hearing these words.

“Today, we’re talking about the Daoist Sect. The Buddhist Sect is certainly powerful, but it’s not in our Eastern Region. Our Great Liang also doesn’t have top Buddhist forces entrenched here.”

“Speaking of which! Those two great experts on Tianmen Mountain, from literary to martial, Tianmen Mountain was flattened by half. The scene was as fierce as the heavens collapsing.”

………………………………

A group of bandits from Qingfeng Stronghold were fully armed and ready to go, riding tall horses.

Ma Rulong smiled as he looked at the three people in front of him: Bao Er, Li Wei, and Li Can.

“Second Brother, and two brothers, go early and return early. I’ll wait for your good news at the stronghold and slaughter a pig to celebrate when you return.”

“Eldest Brother, just watch. With the expert sent by the Marquis sitting guard, there’s absolutely no problem.” Bao Er was very confident. Counting himself, there were three Third Rank in the team. Looting Qingshui County was a piece of cake.

*Ta ta ta!* A group of bandits charged towards Qingshui County.

Ma Rulong greeted the people dispatched by the Marquis of Nantian: “Let’s continue drinking.”

The Marquis of Nantian dispatched thirteen experts, all uniformly Third Rank plus one Fourth Rank.

Three of them joined this operation, and the rest all rested in the stronghold.

Everyone’s face was filled with murderous intent. Zhan Rixing also made a plan and explained it clearly. After all, what good was there to rob from poor people?

Originally, they just wanted to rob casually, but who knew that when the Marquis’s people came, they directly demanded that they rob the Zhang Family Grain Shop.

Although it was just a branch, it was also the Zhang Family’s property. Although the Zhang Family wasn’t as rich as the Li Family in the imperial capital, they weren’t bad either, with businesses spread throughout Great Liang.

Zhan Rixing was a clever person. He vaguely sensed that the Marquis of Nantian and the Zhang Family of Beiliang City might not have reached an agreement. With this storm brewing, it seemed he had to prepare early.

He wasn’t about to tie himself to the bandits’ chariot.

……………………………………

Although Lin Tian enjoyed listening to it, he felt that this old man was blowing hot air. But thinking about it, how could he attract people if he didn’t exaggerate?

“Good.”

“Good.”

“Old Man Li, you told it well today. A reward.”

Copper coins were thrown onto the stage one after another. Old Man Li beamed with joy.

“Thank you for your appreciation, everyone. It’s not early today. There’s another session in the afternoon. Let’s talk about the famous sects of the world, the Tang Sect.”

…………………………

“Everyone, please drink tea. This old man needs to rest for a while. I’m old, and my breath is short.”

The teahouse was filled with laughter. Lin Tian symbolically gave two copper coins. It wouldn’t look good if he didn’t give anything. He enjoyed listening to it, so he should give the man something to eat.

*Ta ta ta!*

The sound of horses’ hooves thundered. The county town was bustling with noise. Some people looked at the mighty team, not understanding what was happening for a moment.

“What is that, an army?”

“Doesn’t look like it. Why does it look like bandits?”

Everyone stopped to watch, thinking something big was happening, and were extremely excited.

It wasn’t until the bandits got closer and closer that they saw clearly. Everyone was stunned.

Suddenly, someone exclaimed, “Not good, it’s bandits!”

“Run!”

A bandit wearing a face mask was the fastest, charging directly into the crowd.

An unlucky fellow didn’t manage to dodge and was knocked to the ground by the horse. The horse’s hoof stomped heavily on his head.

*Puchi!* Red and white matter splattered.

This completely terrified the surrounding people.

“Ahhhhh~”

“Murder! Run!”

The scene instantly became chaotic. Chickens flew and dogs jumped. Stalls were knocked over. Fruits and vegetables rolled all over the ground. The sounds of porcelain and pottery breaking rose and fell.

Some people were still unwilling to give up and tried to gather the scattered goods.

Unfortunately, the bandits didn’t give them a chance. Horses galloped past, and a saber flew horizontally, splitting their heads in two.