Chapter 10

The waiter did not delay in serving the wine, and four fine jars arrived in a moment. Although they were much smaller than the original ten jars, their appearance was much better.

Shen Lian did not wait for the man in the green robe to ask, and said on his own:

"In late spring, the third month, sheep are happy and grass grows tall.

In the cold and freezing weather, who feeds the wolves?

People pity the sheep, but the wolves are alone in their melancholy.

The will of heaven is hard to fathom, and the world is as cold as frost!"

Shen Lian spoke very slowly, while the man in the green robe drank very quickly.

When Shen Lian said, "In late spring, the third month, sheep are happy and grass grows tall," the man in the green robe finished the first jar of wine.

When he said, "In the cold and freezing weather, who feeds the wolves?" the man in the green robe almost finished the second jar of wine at the same time.

Shen Lian intentionally sped up his speech when he said, "People pity the sheep, but the wolves are alone in their melancholy," but he still did not finish before the man in the green robe finished the third jar of wine, and once again, the words ended as the wine was drained.

When it came to the last line, "The will of heaven is hard to fathom, and the world is as cold as frost," Shen Lian could have spoken faster to make things difficult for the man in the green robe, but he slowed down, speaking each word deliberately.

The man in the green robe drank mouthful by mouthful.

By the time Shen Lian finished, the man in the green robe had just drained the four jars of fine wine.

Even if there were not a thousand cups, there were still hundreds of cups in those four jars. The wine was of excellent quality and strong, and even a seasoned drinker would be drunk after four jars.

But the man in the green robe did not change his expression; his eyes remained clear, like bright stars in the night sky.

The man in the green robe said, "Good boy, you invited me to a meal without judging me by worldly standards. Although I admire your boldness, I do not owe you any favors. You should know that in this vast Qingzhou Prefecture, there is no one worthy of inviting me to a meal."

Shen Lian remained silent, waiting for the man in the green robe to continue, but he thought to himself: This person is indeed very arrogant. If he did not have extraordinary skills, he would not have survived this long.

The man in the green robe continued, "You said, 'People pity the sheep, but the wolves are alone in their melancholy,' which really resonates with me, but I still do not owe you any favors."

Shen Lian smiled and said, "I guess I slowed down my speech for the last two lines so you didn't have to drink so quickly. For that, you should thank me."

"That's true. Although I am a ruthless killer, these are not flaws. The only flaw is my arrogance. This wine is excellent, with a long-lasting strength. If I had hurried to drink the last jar, it would have disrupted my internal energy. Normally, it wouldn't matter, but today, some scoundrels are after me, and I have to take my new servant out. I cannot afford to be careless."

Shen Lian said calmly, "What if I had spoken the last two lines very quickly?"

"I would still have been able to force the wine down my throat using my internal energy before you finished, but after that, I would have to take your head."

His words were decisive, and he glanced at the two Shen family guards who had followed him, treating them like grass, showing no respect.

The two guards stood up from the table, saying, "If you dare to touch a single hair of our young master, we guarantee you won't leave this inn alive."

They could not bear to remain silent. Their duty was to protect Shen Lian's safety. If Shen Lao Ye found out that someone had spoken so arrogantly and they had not reacted, they would be seen as useless.

Even if Shen Lian blamed them, they had to make this person understand the consequences.

As they spoke, they stepped forward, one on the left and one on the right, their fists moving with a powerful sound.

Anyone who practices boxing knows that "a thousand gold cannot buy a sound."

The sound of a fist is not the sound of the wind, but the sound of bone vibration. At this moment, all the strength was concentrated in one punch, powerful and fast, making it hard to defend against, indicating that the person had reached a high level in external martial arts.

Shen Lian was not a martial artist, but his eyesight was sharp.

The two guards' punches integrated their strength to a great extent. They were strong and muscular, and their stances were very stable, like drawing a bow and releasing an arrow.

One punch aimed at the man in the green robe's ribs, the other at his shoulder.

Their movements were well-coordinated, without any confusion.

It was clear that they often practiced together and had good teamwork, showing no disorder in combat.

The man in the green robe smiled mockingly, unhurriedly extending his right hand from left to right, grabbing the fist aimed at his shoulder, and effortlessly pulling it down. A crisp sound was heard.

It was the sound of the two guards' fists colliding, breaking their hand bones.

Then the man in the green robe gently pushed, and the two guards flew like cotton, smashing through several tables and chairs, scaring the other guests in the hall into silence.

The two guards were clearly dead.

Shen Lian's eyelids twitched. Despite his composure, he was shaken by the sudden and brutal display of force.

The man in the green robe, as if swatting two flies, did not care, and picked up his chopsticks to take another bite of food.

The innkeeper and the waiter were already hugging each other, trembling with fear.

Shen Lian stared straight at the man in the green robe, saying nothing.

The man in the green robe put down his chopsticks, facing Shen Lian's gaze calmly, and said, "When the master is humiliated, the servant dies. They died for a good cause. Your family, being wealthy, will not lack the funds for their burial. So you should think about it more positively."

"Every life is precious. How can I think about it positively? You treat human lives like grass, but I value them greatly, whether they are others' lives or my own. Most people only have one life."

"So what will you do?"

"You owe me a favor, right?"

"Yes."

"Pay it back." Shen Lian said only three words, but they were as firm as a rock, unshakable.

The man in the green robe's eyes flared, like a sharp blade, trying to cut Shen Lian to pieces.

Shen Lian was fearless, his mind calm and his spirit steady.

Doing this was not to his advantage, but he still did it.

He could have refused the benefits promised by the old man of the Shen family, just to avoid being a tool.

He could also stand up for the two lowly guards, just to show that he was still a human being, not a cold, lifeless stone.

The man in the green robe remembered his dead master, who once told him, "There are always people in this world who do not have overwhelming strength or absolute reason, but they have an extremely powerful spirit. They are the ones who create miracles."

He asked his dead master if he was such a person.

His master said he was not, so he could not create miracles and would never find the door to immortality.

Shen Lian was very calm. This calmness was not feigned but came from the stability of his soul.

Even though the man in the green robe felt that his strength far exceeded Shen Lian's, and killing him would be as easy as crushing an ant, he could not ignore Shen Lian's calm eyes and the fact that he did not know what Shen Lian relied on to dare to act this way, just based on that intangible spirit.

But the man in the green robe was right about one thing: "My ruthless killing and ten evils are not flaws, but my arrogance is a flaw."

Therefore, the man in the green robe did not say more, but slapped his chest, a trickle of blood appearing at the corner of his mouth. He did not wipe it away and said calmly, "Now I have repaid your favor."

PS: Thank you to "Yitang Shuihuo" for the tip.

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