Chapter 97: Senior Brother, I Have a Niece
It seemed that because the corner of his eye was twitching so much, Pei Lianxue, walking beside Ye Anping, momentarily thought he was about to make a move. Without a word, she drew her sword.
But upon hearing her senior brother address this man as “Brother Liang,” she hesitated about whether to take action.
“Husband, do you know him?” She asked.
“Yes,” Ye Anping nodded, smiling as he introduced, “Madam, this is Liang Zhu. We became sworn brothers when I was at Xuanxing Sect.”
?
Pei Lianxue’s eyebrows twisted slightly, her head tilted, feeling that her senior brother’s words sounded like a joke, but not entirely.
Liang Zhu assessed the hand holding the sword, frowned, sighed lightly, and said, cupping his hands, “I heard Young Master Ye mention it before. Now that I see it, my sister is indeed extraordinary, with an ethereal demeanour and a sharp sword technique.”
Brother and sister… Pei Lianxue’s eyes lit up instantly at the title. This title sounded quite good…
After a moment of hesitation, she looked at Ye Anping and asked, “Hmm… do you want to chop him?”
“Not for the time being.”
“Oh…”
For the time being… Liang Zhu twitched the corner of his mouth slightly, then sighed and said, “Sixth brother, I’ll leave in a while. I won’t disturb you.”
“In a bit?”
Why leave later?
In fact, when Ye Anping first saw Liang Zhu, he was a bit puzzled. After all, he felt that Liang Zhu should have run away immediately rather than waiting here…
Was there a reason?
After hesitating for a while, he saw a pavilion by the pond and invited, “Brother Liang to sit for a while. Let’s have a chat. It won’t cause any trouble.”
“Nagging? After chatting with you, will I not be able to leave?”
“That’s up to you.”
Ye Anping smiled slightly and led Pei Lianxue towards the pavilion.
Liang Zhu initially didn’t want to follow. He didn’t want to get involved in the affairs of the important figure behind Ye Anping. But seeing Ye Anping like this, he felt an inexplicable wariness, so he followed.
After he took a seat, Ye Anping called out, “Servants, bring us some tea and snacks.”
Two or three maids from Jiang Mansion responded, and soon they brought tea and cakes.
Ye Anping asked Pei Lianxue to start eating and then asked, “Brother Liang, did you sell that sword last time?”
“No.”
“Why not sell it? If you sell it, won’t you no longer have to worry about spiritual stones in the future?”
“Hehe.”
Liang Zhu rolled his eyes at him.
Talking about this matter, he was quite upset.
In the back mountains of Xuanxing Sect, he snatched the sword from Xiao Yunluo. At that time, Ye Anping told him it was worth ten thousand spirit stones, and he actually believed it. However, after investigating Ye Anping’s identity, he immediately sought advice from an acquaintance in the Seven Killing Sect.
Upon learning that the sword was crafted from a millennium of black stone, with a minimum value of a million spiritual stones, he was so frightened that he hastily buried the old sword cultivator on the spot.
In these four realms, anyone capable of using a millennium black stone to craft a sword was definitely someone he couldn’t afford to offend.
Seeing Liang Zhu’s dark expression, Ye Anping knew the topic had been discussed to death. Quickly changing the subject, he asked, “Forget it. Let’s talk about something else. How did Brother Liang end up in Duchun City?”
Liang Zhu’s expression grew even darker. “Thanks to you and the big shot behind you.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I came here to make a living,” Liang Zhu replied.
Ye Anping couldn’t help but smile, now understanding Liang Zhu’s experiences over the past few months. To put it in perspective, Liang Zhu had managed to ruin the “Fortune 500 company” he worked for in the last encounter at Xuanxing Sect. Left with no choice, he had to flee, submitting numerous resumes to other “companies.” Unfortunately, due to his previous company’s collapse, all his resumes went unanswered.
In desperation, he settled for a job as a “security guard” in a small company to make ends meet. It was indeed a compromise.
While Liang Zhu was a wandering cultivator, his strength, evident from the Seven-Star Suffocating Formation in the Xuanxing Sect’s back mountain, was comparable to some late-stage foundation-building disciples in prominent sects within the Zhouxing Territory.
“Becoming a guard for someone else? You willingly accepted that?” Ye Anping inquired.
Liang Zhu hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Well, it’s a last resort.”
After a brief pause, Ye Anping asked, “Brother Liang, let’s be honest with each other. Are you planning to help Hua Qinyu take control of the Dragon-Slaying Guild, then seize the opportunity to eliminate her and become the leader yourself?”
Liang Zhu remained silent, seemingly admitting to the accusation.
Ye Anping chuckled. Though Liang Zhu wasn’t initially part of his plan, encountering him here meant he had to take care of him. Now that he was the young master of the Dragon Slaying Club, he needed assistance with various matters.
“Brother Liang, since you’re making a living, how about I hire you?”
Liang Zhu smiled politely, declining. “Thank you for your kindness, sixth brother, but please allow me to decline.”
“Why?” Ye Anping asked.
Liang Zhu’s expression remained stoic. “I can’t risk my life for your spirit stones, Lao Liu.”
“Do you really distrust me, Sixth Brother?”
Liang Zhu raised an eyebrow as if to say, “You’re already half-triplets from different parents. Can I trust you?”
Ye Anping forced a smile, sighed, and said, “Brother Liang, don’t you want to know what I’m doing here?”
“No.”
“This time, I’m here for the Chilong Conference…”
“I said no!”
“In two months, Li Feng, the master of Chilong Mountain…”
As Ye Anping continued talking, Liang Zhu covered his ears and stood up, ready to leave.
Seeing his reluctance, Ye Anping decided not to push further. After all, forcing the situation wouldn’t be enjoyable. As Liang Zhu had just taken a few steps out of the pavilion, a call from a little girl suddenly came from the courtyard wall nearby.
“Stepfather!! I’m back!!”
Hearing this, Ye Anping looked over and saw a mischievous twelve or thirteen-year-old girl who decided to fly over the wall instead of using the door.
Upon seeing Ye Anping in the pavilion, the girl raised her eyebrows and ran inside without a word, aiming to grab some pastries from the table.
However, witnessing her actions, Liang Zhu swiftly returned to the pavilion, reached out, and grabbed her by the collar, lifting her.
“Huh! Stepfather!”
“I’ll go to the street to buy it for you later.”
With that, Liang Zhu intended to carry the girl away.
Seeing this, Ye Anping hesitated for a moment and quickly struck up a cheerful conversation,
“So, you’re Brother Liang’s adopted daughter? He mentioned you before, and now that I see you, my niece is truly lively and cute.”
“Niece!” The little girl was momentarily confused. “Who are you?”
“I’m your adoptive father’s sixth brother. You should call me uncle.”
Hearing this, Liang Zhu gritted his teeth, glared angrily at Ye Anping, and interrupted,
“How dare you involve her. Don’t blame me if…”
Ye Anping remained calm and quickly stopped his junior sister, who was about to step forward with a furrowed brow.
“Brother Liang, am I really that bad? I just want to feed her.”
With that, Ye Anping picked up a piece of rice cake from the table, flicked his finger, and sent it flying towards the girl held by Liang Zhu.
Watching the incoming rice cake, the girl deftly twisted her body, broke free from Liang Zhu’s grip, and, like a dog catching a frisbee, jumped up and grabbed the rice cake with precision.
