Chapter 96

It's just two days until the full moon night!

The sound of gongs and drums filled the air, and firecrackers exploded everywhere!

As the day of the duel approached, the capital city seemed to be shrouded in a thick layer of gloom. The heavy atmosphere was felt even by the common people. Perhaps it was too oppressive, and gradually, even the children lost their joyful laughter.

But early that morning, the deafening sound of firecrackers dispelled all the heaviness! Ling Xiao said, "To hell with the PM2.5!"

With music and fanfare, a long procession stretched from the palace gates all the way to Ling Lingfa's clinic, with flowers and firecrackers along the way! Ling Lingfa, dressed in a bright red brocade robe, rode a chestnut horse, waving and sending kisses to the neighbors on both sides of the street, which reminded Ling Xiao of Wei Xiaobao's triumphant return to his hometown!

When they arrived at the clinic, Shiniang stood at the door, staring blankly at Ling Lingfa. In a daze, she asked Ling Xiao beside her, "Am I dreaming? What kind of trick is your master pulling?"

Ling Xiao was startled and quickly took a few steps back, "If you doubt it, pinch yourself, but don't reach for me!"

Shiniang nodded and said, "You know to hide, so it must be real! But isn't your master exposing his identity as a member of the Dragon Protector clan?"

Ling Xiao looked at her deeply, impressed that she was still worried about his master's safety at such a time! Most women would probably be so infatuated seeing their lover ride a tall horse that they couldn't control themselves!

Ling Lingfa dismounted and stood beside Shiniang, the two of them gazing deeply into each other's eyes in silence!

"At this moment, shouldn't someone be shouting about marrying him?" Ling Xiao thought to himself.

"Imperial decree!"

In the festive atmosphere, the eunuch's treacherous voice seemed to have a touch of joy!

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees!..."

The imperial decree was long, but the main idea was that Shiniang had made great contributions to the country! Since neither Ling Lingfa nor Shiniang held official positions, they could not be granted titles, but gold and jewels were not lacking. Most importantly, the Emperor was granting them a marriage to honor their contributions! The long decree was mostly filled with random praise, and the handwriting suggested it might have been written by the Emperor himself!

"Is this what you've been doing behind my back these past few days?" Shiniang's tone was calm, so calm that both master and apprentice were startled, fearing what shocking words might come next!

The court band, which had been following the procession, also stopped playing, looking at Shiniang in confusion. Had their hard work not moved this woman?

The eunuch delivering the decree was frozen, unsure whether to hand it over or not. Even using the imperial decree to woo someone didn't work! This was unscientific!

"Ling Xiao can have the Emperor's blessing for marriage, and I'm happy for him! Although I'm envious, I've never asked you for anything! Because I knew it would be too dangerous for you!" Shiniang said, staring intently at Ling Lingfa's eyes. She was a smart woman and had figured everything out upon hearing about the marriage.

"I know, these years have been hard on you!" Ling Lingfa suddenly choked up.

"It has been hard. Every invention of yours has given me headaches, and every achievement has drained my savings!" Shiniang frowned, as if recalling the hardships of the past years.

"What kind of development is this? A criticism meeting?" Ling Xiao was in a mess!

"I know, your hands have become rougher, your clothes plainer, and the fabric poorer! I've seen all this, and I know!" She was already on the verge of tears.

"Great! Shiniang didn't get moved, but he's crying!" Ling Xiao sighed.

Shiniang slowly reached out her hand, and Ling Xiao was startled, thinking she might pinch his master's ear. Instead, she cupped Ling Lingfa's face and said, "Those strange inventions have made me more and more tired, but also more and more happy! I don't know when it started, but I feel like I'm the happiest woman in the world! All your inventions are for me. When I bend to sweep, you put a shovel on my shoes; when I'm choked by cooking fumes, you invent a range hood; when I wear poorer clothes, you wear even poorer ones! Even when we go to the palace, you wear that washed-out black coat!"

"That's the uniform of the Dragon Protector clan, okay!" Ling Xiao muttered to himself.

At such a moment, no amount of sweet talk would be too much, but as a man, he had to say that one thing!

"Wife, I love you!"

Shiniang couldn't hold back any longer, and her tears flowed freely! Her tear-streaked face was surprisingly beautiful!

Ling Lingfa was about to wipe away her joyful tears when Shiniang stunned him with a single sentence!

"Husband, let's go inside and have a baby!"

The bustling street suddenly fell silent, and everyone's mouths could have fit an ostrich egg!

"Is... is this too fast! How about we do it tonight..." Ling Lingfa said shyly.

"No! I want it now!" She said, pulling Ling Lingfa into the clinic!

Everyone looked at each other, wondering how the story would continue!

"Mr. Ling, what do you think..." The eunuch looked at the imperial decree, unsure what to do.

Ling Xiao sighed and gently closed the clinic door, taking the imperial decree. "Give it to me. The festivities are over, everyone can go home! After the full moon night, there will be more good news at my clinic. I hope everyone will come and celebrate! Thank you!"

He bowed and sent the procession away, then turned to look at the door. "If I go in now, will I see something that TV stations don't broadcast?" Although he was quite curious, he still headed back to the Drunken Moon Tower, thinking they should celebrate the good news.

...

It's just one day until the full moon night!

Yesterday's festivities were like the prelude to the main event!

Early in the morning, Ling Xiao came out of the Drunken Moon Tower. To avoid being a third wheel, he had been drinking with Lu Xiaofeng until late last night. Lu Xiaofeng seemed to be in another dead end, looking as wilted as a frost-bitten eggplant! While drinking, Ling Xiao had been considering whether to tell him the truth he had known for a long time. Would it be too much of a blow?

It's easy to get drunk when you're depressed. By the time Hua Manlou helped Lu Xiaofeng away, Ling Xiao was still sober! With no choice, he had a young woman find a room for him to sleep in.

Stretching, he watched the men and women flying across the rooftops, speechless. This might be the time with the most martial artists in the capital. It was said that Uncle Gen, the gatekeeper, had collected more entry fees in the past few days than Chancellor Cai's annual salary!

"I wonder if Master and Shiniang are up yet. Forget it, I'd better not go and risk it." He slowly walked towards the palace gates, encountering at least ten times more martial artists than before! Fortunately, most of them were restrained; of course, those who weren't were thrown into the Six-Fan Gate's iron prison!

In this situation, not carrying a weapon when going out would be looked down upon. For example, yesterday, he saw Aunt Cai with a butcher's knife on her waist! Fortunately, it didn't have the words "National Hero" on it!

Where there are martial artists, there are always disputes. Perhaps to stand out, they are most skilled at causing trouble!

Don't think Ling Xiao, who also carried a sword, was immune. With his naturally pale face and weak aura, many people wanted to bully him to show off.

Like yesterday, a man who was two heads taller than Ling Xiao pretended to bump into him. But with the Bull Horn Divine Skill and Five Blessings Painting, Ling Xiao's body was so strong that even he wasn't sure how strong it was. So the man ended up falling and having his foot crushed by Ling Xiao.

Seeing the man crying, Ling Xiao awkwardly scratched his head and had no choice but to call a Six-Fan Gate constable to take him to the iron prison, charging him with making noise in public!

After that, no one tried to pick a fight with Ling Xiao, as everyone knew his connection to the Six-Fan Gate!

No one tried to pick a fight, but challenges came!

"Are you Ling Xiao?" The man was dressed in purple, handsome and tall, embodying the image of a young hero.

Ling Xiao looked around and pointed at himself, "If there's no one else here named Ling Xiao, then it must be me."

"Very good, according to rumors, you are the only young swordsman acknowledged by Ye Gucheng! I am Sima Ziyi, please guide me!" He said, drawing his sword.

"Damn, you're also talking about rumors! How can you believe such irresponsible gossip? Young man, I see you're also a practitioner, don't you have the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood?" Ling Xiao hurriedly said, knowing that if he started, there would be no end.

Sima Ziyi frowned, "Rumors often have some basis. You carry a long sword, so you must have unique insights into swordsmanship. Let's consider this a friendly match, I apologize in advance!" He had already drawn his sword halfway.

"Put it back!" Ling Xiao shouted, startling Sima Ziyi. He took off his sword and said, "Who says carrying a sword means you practice swordsmanship? I use it to peel apples!" He picked up an apple from a fruit stand, peeling it while singing, "You are my little, little apple, no matter how much I love you, it's never too much!..."

Sima Ziyi was so angry that his veins bulged, and he shouted, "You call yourself a swordsman! How can you treat your sword so carelessly? Ye Gucheng must be blind! I must fight you today!"

Ling Xiao, seeing him about to charge, quickly said, "We can fight, but there's something we need to agree on first."

"What is it?"

"If you challenge me, others will challenge me too. A series of challenges wouldn't be fair. So if you lose, you must accept challenges on my behalf. Only if you win can you fight me!" Ling Xiao thought of a way to shift the conflict.

Sima Ziyi thought for a moment, finding the logic, and nodded, "Alright! If they can't even defeat me, they don't deserve to challenge you! But I doubt you can win me!"

Ling Xiao calmly raised his sword, pointing it diagonally and shook his head, "I don't need to dodge or evade, one strike is enough!"

"Arrogant!" Sima Ziyi shouted, thrusting his sword!

The strike was fast! The crowd only saw a flash of light, and Sima Ziyi's sword was already at Ling Xiao's chest!

Ling Xiao remained calm, slowly lifting his sword as if lifting a curtain, revealing a beauty, a kingdom, the most beautiful scenery!

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing, fragments flying, Sima Ziyi looked at the broken sword on the ground, his face ashen.

"How can this be? I practiced over a hundred and thirty methods of drawing my sword, and one strike can pierce twelve coins! Why can't I even protect my own sword!"

"Knew you'd use a thrust, no sword intent, and you dare to clash with me?" Ling Xiao, hearing Sima Ziyi's disbelief, felt a headache. Practicing drawing a sword with over a hundred and thirty methods! Should he call him obsessed or foolish? If it weren't for his poor aim, he would have shot him!

Of course, such words would damage his image, so he had to maintain his cool.

He sighed and shook his head, "No matter how many methods, they are just forms. When you reach the realm of oneness with your sword, you'll realize that all methods are just about drawing the sword." This was a truism, but Ling Xiao knew that to deceive such a passionate youth, he needed vague words.

Sima Ziyi's spirit was lifted, and he seemed to understand, "Senior, are you saying I focus too much on techniques and forget the true essence of swordsmanship? I see! Thank you, Senior!"

"Is that what I meant? Fine, let's say it is!" Ling Xiao, full of question marks, nodded with a satisfied smile and walked towards the clinic. He decided not to come out until the day of the duel! Too many things were happening!

After this battle, more people challenged Sima Ziyi. Since Sima Ziyi's skills were not weak, he blocked many minor challenges for Ling Xiao! At the same time, a group of inexperienced martial artists spread rumors about Ling Xiao, making him seem almost legendary!