Chapter 418 Affection
Frankly speaking, after Zhao Yushu traveled through time, he would occasionally dream of having a harem, but it was just a dream.
The girls around him are all excellent, whether it is the smart and decisive Lan Ling, or the strong-willed and ruthless Mo'er, or even those mortals, such as Miss Lu, a grain merchant from Nanyang, Ai Ci, a classmate he met once or twice in the academy, Gu Lao Da's sister-in-law, and Li Tong, who killed several cities out of love, these women are no worse than any man.
Zhao Yushu did not have the slightest intention of blasphemy, only respect.
Of course, there is also the girl in red riding on a horse in the distance, waving happily beside the man who is unforgettable at first sight.
Fang Sanniang.
Yang He, ah Yang He, you really are such a jerk. Why do I feel a little jealous?
Yang He became a little nervous the moment the team came into view. In the short period of time when the team approached, he had already adjusted his lapels six times, fixed his hair bun three times, and tightened his belt once.
The team stopped in front of the city gate, with Yang He in the lead. All the people who came to greet them raised their right hands horizontally to their hearts, then knelt on one knee with a shout.
Zhao Yushu suddenly felt uncomfortable. In front of the huge city gate, he was the only one standing alone in white clothes, looking very high-profile and dazzling.
Zhao Yushu scratched his head. Should I squat down?
"Zhao Yushu?"
A horse came up to him, and because he was following Yang He, Lao Zhao stood in the front row.
Looking up, I saw a man in red lowering his body slightly, and a silver-white mask appeared in front of me.
The mask was plain and covered the entire face, leaving only a pair of eye sockets.
And this only exposed eye reminded Zhao Yushu of someone.
Wei You opened his eyes.
Wei You's eyes are full of wisdom and depth.
"I've met the leader."
Zhao Yushu bowed and performed a junior’s greeting.
"Very good, everyone get up, Yang He, hold the horse for me, and go pay respect to the old helmsman first."
With a whoosh, all the believers stood up. Yang He's face flushed with excitement. He reached out to hold the horse and winked at Fang Sanniang who was behind the leader.
The leader hadn't been back for a long time. This year he went home for the New Year. People from all over Yuezhou crowded around him, cheering and shouting all the way. Zhao Yushu had seen such popularity in his previous life, but at that time the person in the middle of the road was not riding a horse, but driving the only Maybach in the country that belonged to all the people.
When they were almost at the clinic, Zhao Yushu found an opportunity to slip out of the team. The leader looked at him and said nothing.
"Why are you back?"
Lan Ling was sitting on the eaves with A Dong to watch. There were too many people on the street and they couldn't squeeze in.
"You are standing so high, aren't you afraid of being accused of being disrespectful to the leader?"
Zhao Yushu climbed over and sat aside.
“We don’t care about that.”
A-dong put his hands on his forehead and pointed at a few people he knew in the team and introduced them to Hei Lu in a chattering manner. Hei Lu could only say "um", "ah" and "oh".
"It's not a big deal. The highest place in Xijing is the Imperial Palace. Anyone who dares to stand higher will lose his head. Dongdu is similar. The highest place is that pillar that may fall down someday. No one lived there before and no one cared about it. Now it's probably been repaired by Li Jian. Oh, Li Jian has finally figured it out."
Lan Ling looked at him in surprise: "The Li family really has been cultivating for generations. Will the emperors of the two capitals become inner court officials by then?"
Zhao Yushu scratched his head. "It's very possible that the one in Xijing is the one. Emperor Taizong is ridiculously powerful, probably even more powerful than this old man. The legacy he left behind cannot be exhausted in four hundred years. I don't know about the one in Dongdu. But based on my understanding of the underworld, they will definitely not let go of the Li family, which can stably produce cultivators and even inner vision. Li Jian's father cooperated with the underworld before, and Li Huan is also cooperating with it now."
"You're thinking that Li Jian probably also cooperated, right?" Lan Ling said what he didn't say.
Zhao Yushu lowered his head: "If that happens, the first thing they will deal with is the academy."
"You have to trust the academy."
"I have always believed."
The team moved slowly but orderly towards the branch. Normally, the leader should have gone to worship the Red Lotus Holy Fire first, but he chose to mourn the old leader first. This made the leader less divine and more human.
At least judging from this action, the leader is pretty good.
"Let's go to the Holy Temple and wait."
Lan Ling stood up and observed the road conditions: "I heard from Sanniang that when the leader worships Honglian, it will be very scary."
"Scary?"
Zhao Yushu couldn't understand why Sanniang used this word, but speaking of Sanniang...
"Do you know that Yang and that boy are interested in Sanniang?"
Lan Ling was even more surprised to hear that Li Jian had come to his senses. As expected, for women, sisters' gossip was much more important than who the emperor was.
"Do you know that Sanniang is interested in you?" Lan Ling asked without hesitation.
Old Zhao blushed: "These are two different things."
"No, it's one thing for me, keep your head up."
Zhao Yushu raised his head with a wronged look.
"do you know?"
"Maybe, well, I should know a little bit."
"That is knowing, being hesitant, and then what, what about you?"
"I?"
"What do you think of Sanniang?"
Zhao Yushu's neck stiffened: "I only like one."
"Who?"
Damn! Zhao Yushu wondered why he had never learned to be shameless in his two lifetimes.
"I support Yang He."
Lan Ling laughed loudly, causing Hei Lu and A Dong to look over in confusion.
At the gate of the branch, the leader dismounted from his horse. The remaining two guardians did not go outside the city to greet him, but waited here.
The three of them saluted each other with their arms crossed. The leader put one hand on the shoulder of a guardian and patted him twice. Then he walked into the branch office first. The two guardians stood on his left and right, blocking everyone outside, including Yang He.
A moment later, a sad eulogy was heard from the branch helm. The believers outside all bowed their heads, closed their eyes, and prayed for the old helmsman along with the eulogy of the leader.
After a full stick of incense had passed, the sound gradually disappeared, the door of the branch was opened, two guardians walked in, and Yang He followed them in.
Four people came out carrying a thin coffin and turned towards the Holy Red Lotus Temple under solemn gaze.
Zhao Yushu and Lan Ling rushed over and just arrived in time for the old helmsman's funeral.
After entering the holy temple, the four men put down the coffin, leaving only the leader, and the others all retreated.
Zhao Yushu used his eyes to look inside the crowd.
The leader took off his red robe, leaving his upper body bare and his back covered with scars.
The high temperature of the red lotus caused the air to distort, making the leader's figure seem to be placed in another space.
Then he carried the coffin by himself, barefoot, and walked towards Honglian step by step.
The coffin burst into flames with a whoosh, and to Zhao Yushu's surprise, the leader's clothes also burst into flames.
He was not wearing any fire-proof treasure.
The flames spread all over his body. Even inside his body, the leader's skin was red. He seemed to be really fighting the high temperature with his body.
"Red Lotus Holy Fire, burn my remains!"
With a loud bang, a red lotus bloomed and a pillar of fire shot straight into the sky.
The old helmsman's body had long been burned, and the leader stood in the middle of the red lotus with his arms wide open.
"Bless my people!"