Chapter Twenty-Four: Rivals Meet
Murong Hanchan and her companions crossed the shallow river and arrived at the town of Heba. The first place they encountered was a small millet tavern. Although the tavern was small, it was located at a crossroads and did quite good business.
Murong Hanchan glanced around and saw six old-fashioned tables under the wooden shed in front of the tavern. At this moment, there were already more than ten customers.
Already parched, she suddenly became excited and boldly asked, "Are you thirsty? Why don't we have a bowl of millet wine before we go!"
Upon hearing this, Chunxiang immediately said to Xie Yunfeng, "Brother Xie! I think we should leave first! You said that the scenery at Xiyu Manor is beautiful, and I'm really looking forward to seeing it soon."
Xie Yunfeng smiled and said, "Alright! Junior Sister, we'll take our leave now. You can stay and enjoy your drink!" With that, the two rode away.
Murong Hanchan pouted angrily and muttered, "This senior brother has completely changed since he met Chunxiang! Humph~"
Yin Xiaosheng jokingly replied, "Senior Brother and Miss Chunxiang are a perfect match, a case of love at first sight and regret for not meeting sooner!"
Seeing the two leave, Yi Mingzhao rode forward and said to Murong Hanchan, "Miss Murong, Young Master Xie and his companion have gone ahead. Without my guidance, they might not be able to enter Xiyu Manor. I must go with them. When you arrive, just give me your names, and the manor will certainly not make things difficult for you." After saying this, he also spurred his horse to catch up with Xie Yunfeng.
Murong Hanchan was furious: "Ugh! You're all bullying me now!"
Yin Xiaosheng laughed and said, "Junior Sister, don't you still have me? I'll drink with you!"
Murong Hanchan looked at Yin Xiaosheng and said leisurely, "Second Senior Brother, I know I've been in a bad mood lately, but you don't have to hate me so much!"
Yin Xiaosheng dismounted and said, "Junior Sister, what are you thinking? Senior Brother doesn't care about you because he knows you'll be fine! How could we dislike you!"
Murong Hanchan dismounted and smiled, "Alright! I'll try my best to cheer myself up." As she spoke, the two found a table and sat down. A waiter hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Would you two like wine or rice wine?"
Yin Xiaosheng said, "Give me a bowl of rice wine! Junior Sister, what about you?"
Murong Hanchan: "I want a jar of wine!"
The waiter exclaimed, "A whole jar?! Miss, did I hear that right?"
Murong Hanchan lifted her left foot, placed it on the stool, and roared, "That's right! A jar of wine, order it quickly!"
The waiter looked at the pretty girl in front of him, whose temper was surprisingly fiery. She glared at him with her big eyes and rolled her eyes. Helpless, he scratched his head and hurriedly ran into the house to get some wine.
Just then, Yu Linglong and Qiu Xia arrived at the tavern one after the other, and the two found a table and sat down.
The waiter, carrying rice wine in his right hand and a wine jar in his left, hurried over to Yin Xiaosheng and put the rice wine down. Turning around, he still smiled and politely said to Murong Hanchan, "Miss! You're so beautiful, I didn't expect you to have such good wine!" As he spoke, he gently set the wine jar down.
Murong Hanchan glared at the waiter again, who looked completely bewildered. Then Murong Hanchan cursed, "That bastard, idiot, son of a bitch, that dog-egg Xiaoyao Lang! Where has he gone to die?"
Xiaoyao Lang, mounted on his horse, cried out: "Ah! Ah! ~ Ah!"
Ma Pingchuan: "Xiaoyao, you've caught a cold. Shouldn't you put on another layer?"
Xiaoyao Lang rubbed his chin and said, "I'm fine! Let's hurry up and get going!"
Hearing the continuous cursing, the waiter suddenly became enthusiastic again and said with a smile, "Miss, judging from how you're cursing this person, he must be your sweetheart!"
Upon hearing this, Murong Hanchan immediately glanced at her and asked, "How did you know?"
The waiter immediately said, "This egg is a treasure! A silly egg, isn't it just a silly treasure?" After saying that, he turned and walked over to Yu Linglong's table, and asked, "Would you two like to drink rice wine?"
Qiu Xia smiled and said, "A bowl of rice wine! Palace Master, what would you like to drink?"
Yu Linglong politely said to the waiter, "One bowl of wine!"
The waiter smiled and said, "Alright! Please wait a moment, I'll be right there!"
Qiu Xia smiled and said with a pout, "Palace Master! I didn't expect you to drink too!"
Yu Linglong said calmly, "Why can't I drink alcohol? It's just that I usually have no one to drink with!"
Qiu Xia exclaimed, pointing at Murong Hanchan, "I really didn't recognize her! Wow! Palace Master, look at her!"
Yu Linglong turned her head and saw Murong Hanchan supporting herself with both hands on a wine jar, pouring the wine into her mouth like spring water. Looking closely, she could also see a tear sliding down the corner of her eye.
Seeing this, Yin Xiaosheng said with concern, "Junior Sister, drink less, don't get drunk."
Murong Hanchan put down the wine jar and said, "It's good to be drunk. Drunkenness can dispel a thousand sorrows, and a drunken sleep can end all troubles. Humph!" After saying that, she picked up the wine jar again and drank it down.
At this moment, three middle-aged thugs at a nearby table exchanged glances and walked over to Murong Hanchan's side.
Seeing this, Yin Xiaosheng muttered to himself, "There are always some unlucky people who aren't afraid of death and cause trouble at times like this. Sigh..." He shook his head, picked up his rice wine, and moved to another table.
Seeing this, a middle-aged thug, gripping his machete, laughed loudly, "Hahaha...! Look at this kid, he's got some sense! He ran away as soon as he saw us coming! Hahaha..."
"...Hahahahahaha!" The other two also burst into laughter.
The rogue then said, "Xiu Tian'er, this girl is drinking alone. Do you think we should keep her company?" As he spoke, he sat down on the stool to Murong Hanchan's left.
Then Xiutian smiled and said, "Brother Hu, what do you say?" After saying that, he sat down to Murong Hanchan's right.
Tiger laughed loudly, "Let's hear what Brother Xiao Yaolang has to say!" As he spoke, he pulled over the one named Xiao Yaolang.
Xiao Yaolang, thin as a rake, revealed a mouthful of black and yellow teeth and said, "In my opinion, not only should we accompany her, but we should accompany her properly!" After saying that, he actually hugged Murong Hanchan's slender waist from behind.
Upon hearing the name Xiaoyao Lang, Murong Hanchan immediately recalled the scene of Xiaoyao Lang embracing her while riding a horse. She slowly put down the wine jar in her hand, and tears welled in her eyes, yet another tear rolled down her cheek.
Murong Hanchan paid no attention to the pig's hands resting on her waist. She simply closed her eyes and coldly asked, "Your name is Xiaoyao Lang?"
Seeing this, Qiuxia said, "Palace Master, look, she's crying. Let's help her!"
From the moment she met Murong Hanchan, Yu Linglong sensed that she was no ordinary person, so she replied calmly, "Drink your wine."
After hearing this, Qiu Xia rolled her eyes helplessly and pouted.
Hearing the question, Xiao Yaolang quickly released his grip and replied, "Yes, my name is Xiao Yaolang!" After saying that, the group burst into laughter again.
Murong Hanchan turned her head sharply, staring at Xiao Yaolang. Xiao Yaolang immediately stopped laughing, because Murong Hanchan's gaze sent chills down his spine.
Murong Hanchan suddenly unleashed her true energy, her right hand already gripping the target. In an instant, she grabbed Xiao Yaolang's head, and with a scream, his head instantly froze into an ice sculpture.
Murong Hanchan was already furious and shouted, "You're not! You're not!"
With a shout of "No!", the ice-covered head instantly shattered. Upon seeing this, some of the drinkers fled three zhang away, while others hurriedly drew their swords to prove their prowess.
Xiu Tian and Tiger were terrified when they saw their companion's head vanish into ice in an instant. When they finally realized what was happening and tried to escape, Murong Hanchan wouldn't allow it. She turned her head, leaped into the air, and with a swift left hand strike, Xiu Tian's body was gone, leaving only bloodstains on the ground.
Those present were terrified upon seeing this, and the waiters and the shop owner could only hide inside the tavern and peek.
Murong Hanchan killed one man, then grabbed another by the shoulder with her right hand and threw him backward. Tiger Brother landed right on Murong Hanchan's wine table. The table collapsed, and Tiger Brother lay on the ground, his eyes fixed on his headless companion. He instantly turned pale and became extremely uneasy.
Murong Hanchan slowly walked towards him, only to see him trembling all over, staring at Murong Hanchan, and retreating step by step.
Murong Hanchan was still furious and shouted, "Die!" Then, she struck Tiger Brother on the ground with her right palm. Seeing this, Yu Linglong teleported between the two and blocked the fatal blow.
Seeing this, Murong Hanchan coldly and domineeringly said, "I don't want to kill any more innocent people, get out of the way!"
Yu Linglong replied calmly, "You've already killed two people, so let him go!"
Murong Hanchan coldly replied, "Let him go? Anyone I, Murong Hanchan, choose to kill must die!"
Having said that, he suddenly unleashed his ultimate move, the Frosty Qi Force. Seeing this, Yu Linglong dared not be careless and also channeled her Xuanhuang Qi Force to try and counter it.
Instantly, two powerful impacts caused the wooden shed to vanish in an instant, and the surrounding area was also completely destroyed. Everyone present, except for Yin Xiaosheng and Qiu Xia, was knocked down by the force.
After their ultimate move, both were inwardly impressed. Yu Linglong's veil flew off in the wind, and she hurriedly grabbed it with her left hand. Murong Hanchan had already conjured her sword. Seeing Tiger Brother get up and run away, she used her Ice Cicada Sword to strike him like a beam of light, passing by Yu Linglong. The sword struck, and Tiger Brother was dead.
Yu Linglong sighed helplessly, looking at the cold sword that Murong Hanchan had retrieved, and said, "Why didn't you stab me with this sword?"
Murong Hanchan coldly said, "You can try my next sword strike."
The atmosphere instantly became tense again. Their eyes met, one pair of beautiful eyes as cold as frost, the other as gentle as water. One face was like a peach blossom, the other like the morning glow. Both were at the Transcendent Realm, both possessed unparalleled beauty, but one exuded the aura of a king, the other revealed a transcendent and otherworldly charm.
Not wanting his junior sister to harm innocent people, Yin Xiaosheng hurriedly stepped forward to stop her, saying, "Junior sister, the person is already dead. Let's go. If we wait any longer, our senior brother and the others will worry!"
Upon hearing this, Murong Hanchan glanced at Yu Linglong again, then mounted her horse and rode away, with Yin Xiaosheng hurriedly spurring his horse to give chase.
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