The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 127 - 106: Fox Worshiping the Moon at the Desolate Tomb

Chapter 127: Chapter 106: Fox Worshiping the Moon at the Desolate Tomb

Li Yan possessed Divine Skills related to the sense of smell, which made him extremely sensitive to odors.

At the ceremony where Zhou Pan washed his hands of the underworld, Li Yan had a brief encounter with Han Kun and was introduced to him by Zhang Yuanshang, exchanging a few words.

Although they were not familiar with each other, the scent was already etched in his memory.

A thought crossed Li Yan’s mind, and he quickly stepped forward.

According to the intelligence, Lv San was also residing within the Cao Gang at Manchuan Pass. With his introduction, he might be able to find them quickly.

"Stop right there!"

Hearing the footsteps, two of Han Kun’s men immediately became alert, swiftly turned around, and blocked Li Yan’s path.

The temples of the two men bulged slightly, their eyes gleaming with sharpness, clearly indicating their skilled prowess.

Just as Han Kun turned around, Li Yan hurriedly greeted him with a salute, "Junior Li Yan, I am pleased to meet Gang Leader Han."

"Li Yan?"

Han Kun was initially startled, then quickly remembered and nodded slightly, "What a coincidence, are you also here to attend the ceremony at Manchuan Pass?"

Li Yan was surprised, "What ceremony?"

Han Kun smiled, "Every year on the seventh day of the tenth month, Manchuan Pass holds a ceremony to worship Marquis Zhuge. It’s also the time for a gathering of our Cao Gang brothers. Little Brother Li, what brings you to this place?"

At first, he didn’t really care.

The Cao Gang was not an ordinary guild. Not to mention Li Yan, who was just a rising junior from Xianyang, even Zhou Pan had to be very polite to him when they met.

For such a junior from the pugilistic world, a simple acknowledgment would suffice.

However, Han Kun suddenly recalled something.

Guan Wanche’s subtle maneuver at the ceremony where he declared leaving the underworld had not escaped his notice as an old pugilist.

And since Guan Wanche had joined the Captain Bureau and had also beheaded the Incense Master of the Maitreya Sect with Li Yan at Chaotic Burial Mound, it was something he had to consider more seriously.

As the Cao Gang lived off the waterways, it was necessary to maintain good relations with the court, so Han Kun’s tone was somewhat more courteous when speaking to Li Yan.

"I’ve come to Manchuan Pass to..."

Li Yan was about to speak when Han Kun gestured with his hand, "No rush, this place is too crowded. I’m just about to meet an old acquaintance, where it’s quieter. We’ll talk when we get there."

"Thank you, senior."

With no other choice, Li Yan followed behind.

The group moved along, passed through Qin Street, then on to Chu Street, turning right after a few steps into an alley.

The alley was much quieter, and the residences all had high walls and large courtyards, with huge red lanterns hanging at the gates, looking quite festive.

"Gang Leader Han is here!"

Outside the second courtyard, two robust Protectors were standing guard alongside a young man in a white shirt. Upon seeing Han Kun, he immediately went forward, bowing and scraping, "Auntie Fang guessed you would come and has been waiting for a long time."

"Ha ha ha..."

Han Kun seemed to be in a good mood, "I was delayed a bit on the way."

Li Yan’s expression was a bit strange.

Even across the courtyard, he could smell the scent of makeup powder.

An old acquaintance? It was clearly an old flame.

Led by the doorkeeper, they circled around the screen wall and entered the courtyard, and indeed, it was a brothel—and not a cheap one at that.

The style of the building was interesting as well.

It seemed that due to its position connecting the north and the south, the residence combined the grandeur of northern mansions with the delicate elegance of southern courtyards.

The banquet was being set up in the main courtyard upon entry, with people filling up the side wings and main hall, all heads of the Carriage Shop, clinking their glasses and playing drinking games, their loud voices drowning out the songs of the girls nearby.

They went through a side door into the back yard, where the layout was even more complex, with corridors, arches, pebble-strewn pathways, and bamboo groves... separating the small courtyards, creating both privacy and an impression of more expansive space.

Although Han Kun appeared to be walking without pause, he was stealing glances at Li Yan from time to time. Seeing that his expression was as usual, neither servile nor overbearing, Han Kun inwardly nodded in approval.

The last time he had brought a young relative here, the young man had been gawking all over and even a little fearful.

No wonder he had made a name for himself at such a young age. This Qi Cultivation Technique alone was not something an ordinary youth could match.

Soon, they arrived at a quiet and elegant courtyard.

Inside the small pavilion in the courtyard, a banquet had already been prepared, with screens to block the wind and rows of lanterns, as gauze curtains fluttered in the night breeze.

In such an atmosphere, it would be fitting for a beautiful woman to play the pipa, yet there sat an old man, cradling a drum, holding wooden clappers, and singing by the pavilion’s side, "Of all under heaven~honorable and virtuous be few, in the Human World~how many such men can one accrue, at home you may think~pugilistic world is fine, but once abroad you realize~being a guest is hard to define..."

His voice carried a worn timbre, his face lined with the hardships of the years, and he spoke in the soft dialect of Wu.

Li Yan could only vaguely understand and knew this to be a drum book performance, probably singing some sort of moral narrative.

However, Han Kun’s frame stiffened, his eyes reddening slightly after a long pause, he sighed softly, "Qin Fang, you’ve put thought into this."

"Good you realize it."

A gentle voice sounded, and from the side room of the courtyard, a white-clothed woman slowly emerged, not tall and no longer young, but still in the prime of life, exuding a charm of her own.

Han Kun shook his head with a smile, "I haven’t heard the dialect of home in twenty years. Suddenly hearing it today brings up a lot of emotions, making me the joke in front of Qin Fang."

The woman also sighed, "When we fled our hometown, I was just a street singer and you just a boat hand. Who could have thought that you’d become the gang leader today?"

Impressive!

Li Yan kept his expression steady, but internally he praised.

He didn’t know the true relationship between the two, but he could guess.

Even if this woman was an old flame, Han Kun spent most of his time in Xianyang and couldn’t come often, so their relationship was inevitably strained.

A song in the dialect of home, a memory from the past, was enough to soften the heart.

Any matters to be discussed would then become much easier to approach.

Han Kun was an old pro at this game, and he could tell the woman’s motives. He smiled faintly and changed the subject, "Qin Fang, let me introduce to you. This young man is an emerging talent from Xianyang, his surname is Li and his name Yan..."

"I know."

The woman smiled behind her fan, "When there’s no tiger in the mountains, the monkey may claim to be king. But even a roaring cub can scatter a monkey nest; you sure carried yourself with aplomb atop Niuback Ridge."