Tang 771 saw that Lan Yu had changed his face in an instant, becoming an ordinary-looking, simple-minded middle-aged man, the kind you wouldn't find on the street.
"You can change your face?" Tang 77 was astonished.
Lan Yu grinned: "This is Fang Wenyuan's masterpiece, let's go!"
Upon reaching the city gate, the guards asked menacingly, "Who are you? Where are you from? What are you doing in Lanling?"
Lan Yu shielded Tang 77 behind her and bowed, saying, "Sir, this is my young master. His family has suffered a misfortune, and he has come to Lanling City to seek refuge with relatives."
The officer ripped the bundle off Lan Yu's body, rummaged through it, stuffed the few taels of silver inside into his pocket, and said impatiently, "Get lost!"
Tang 77 looked at the old servant who looked like he was about to cry and sighed, "Let's go, you can't fight city hall!"
Upon entering the city, Tang 77 exclaimed, "Brother Lan Yu is truly a master actor; I admire him greatly."
Lan Yu still had that simple, honest smile. If Tang 77 didn't know who he was, she would definitely think he was just that kind and honest.
Lan Yu led Tang 77 into a teahouse. He whispered a few words to the waiter, who then politely said to Tang 77, "Young master, this way please!"
They followed the waiter into a private room. The waiter gently pressed a carved piece on the wall, and the floorboards rose up, revealing a secret passage inside.
Lan Yu nodded slightly to Xiao 2, then led Tang 77 down the secret passage as if she knew the way well.
"Is this your secret base?" Tang 77 asked curiously.
Lan Yu said, "My mother is from Ziyun County, so I stayed there, but my people remained here."
As they spoke, Lan Yu led Tang 77 through a maze of secret passages, finally reaching the exit, which was a dense bamboo forest that completely blocked the way.
Beyond the bamboo grove was a neatly arranged courtyard, where a woman was washing clothes.
"Grandma, where is Uncle Liu? I'm from my hometown!" Lan Yu asked politely.
The old woman tapped a stone by the pond once, and a faint bell-like sound was heard.
A short while later, an 89-year-old boy ran over, panting, and said, "Grandma, I'm here!"
The kind old woman said, "Little Stone, take these two older brothers to Uncle Liu and tell him that someone from our hometown has come!"
The child then led Tang 77 and Lan Yu to find Uncle Liu. Tang 77 suddenly realized that poverty had limited his imagination. This was not a courtyard; it was Lan Yu's military camp.
The outermost circle is a courtyard, seemingly where ordinary families make a living. But in the inner circle, there are blacksmiths making weapons, researching various explosives, and gathering intelligence—it's bustling with activity.
"No wonder you led me directly into the city. It turns out your men were all hidden inside. Nine swords, you took an unconventional approach. I admire you." Tang 77 exclaimed sincerely.
Lan Yu's expression was as calm as the sea: "The most dangerous place is the safest place! Back then, Uncle Liu disguised a corpse as me, and Qin Xiao thought I was dead, so he lowered his guard, which allowed them to stay and slowly recuperate. It's just that with such a large population, the food supply took some effort."
Tang 77 felt somewhat guilty. Back then, when her family was bullied by that rich man, they even bribed the county magistrate. It was Lan Yu who asked Uncle Liu to step in and save her.
Tang 771 always thought that Lan Yu was a rich young master who had no worries about food and clothing, so he silently accepted the favor and never thought of looking for Lan Yu.
If I had met Lan Yuzai sooner, I could have helped him.
Uncle Liu's rough and loud voice pulled Tang 77 out of his thoughts: "Who are you two?" Uncle Liu obviously did not recognize them.
When Tang 77 saw General Liu, she was overjoyed and hurriedly ran over to him, saying in a coquettish tone, "Uncle Liu, it's me, 77!"
General Liu was taken aback. He looked Tang 77 up and down carefully and said with emotion, "So it's 77! What brings you here? It's been so many years. You've grown so tall, and you still look like a boy. If you were on the street, Uncle Liu wouldn't recognize you."
Tang 77 pointed at Lan Yu and said, "He brought me here!"
General Liu looked Lan Yu up and down, muttering to himself, "Judging from how he walked just now, he seems to be a trained fighter with considerable martial arts skills, but I have no recollection of him at all."
This isn't a key location; you can't get in without the password. So, he said warily, "May I ask your esteemed name, sir?"
Seeing that General Liu couldn't even recognize his own master, Tang 77 was overjoyed.
Tang 77 laughed so hard he almost fell over, while General Liu looked completely bewildered: "77, what are you laughing at? This isn't a place anyone can just walk into!"
Tang 77 stopped laughing and said, "Uncle Liu, take a good look at who he is!"
Lan Yu patiently waited for Tang 77 to finish his antics before removing Fang Wenyuan's human skin mask and revealing his true face.
Upon seeing that it was Lan Yu, General Liu quickly gave a dignified military salute and said, "Lord of the City, you have finally arrived. This humble general pays his respects to the Lord of the City."
Everyone around knelt down in unison to pay their respects to Lan Yu: "Welcome, City Lord! Long live the City Lord!"
Looking at their devout eyes, Tang 77 finally confirmed that the information she had gathered was entirely true: Lan Yu was a benevolent ruler, not as tyrannical as he appeared.
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