Chapter 75

PS: I humbly request your recommendations and votes. Thank you to all the brothers and sisters who have consistently supported Lord Hou. Taibao will work hard to write the story!

"Lord, you must not kill this man!" Li Er looked at Zhao Chen and said coldly, "If you kill him, even if you can escape the endless pursuit of those people, I will not let you off easily!"

"Why not?" Zhao Chen felt utterly bewildered and, upon hearing this, looked at Li Er in surprise and confusion.

Back then, when I first came out of the Qinling Mountains, you mistook me for a member of the Hidden Sect and ordered my head to be cut off without a second thought. Why should it be different for this scoundrel?

"Why not?" Li Er sighed deeply upon hearing this, looking at Zhao Chen with a helpless tone, "Because he is the Grand Elder of the Hidden Sect!"

"Just because that scoundrel..." Zhao Chen immediately reacted like a porcupine with its quills raised, shouting.

Unfortunately, he had only said half of his sentence when a sudden realization flashed in his mind. He opened his mouth wide, looking at Li Er in disbelief, and asked, "Grand Elder? Isn't he the scoundrel who tried to kill me last time?"

"No!" Li Er suppressed his anger, temporarily ignoring Zhao Chen's words, and said, "This Grand Elder has come to Chang'an specifically to visit you. What he wants, you will find out when you meet him!"

"I won't go!" Zhao Chen answered decisively, and as he spoke, he lifted his robe and sat down on the ground, saying, "I don't know anyone from the Hidden Sect. Why should I run to see him just because he wants to see me, just because he is the Grand Elder of the Hidden Sect?"

"As you wish!" Li Er, seeing Zhao Chen's attitude, immediately flared up and flung his sleeves, saying, "Even if you stay here, I will arrange for someone to take them to your residence!"

"Your Majesty, you are forcing me!" Zhao Chen immediately stood up from the ground, looking at Li Er and shouting, "I have already said that I have nothing to do with the Hidden Sect. Why are you forcing me to meet them?"

"This is the first time the Grand Elder of the Hidden Sect has appeared openly!" Li Er sighed deeply upon hearing this, looking at Zhao Chen with a burning gaze, "So, I also want to know why the Grand Elder has appeared this time!"

"That doesn't mean I should go and see him!" Zhao Chen lowered his head, still arguing with Li Er, "There are so many capable ministers and generals in the court. I think Yan Shigu would be a good choice!"

"The Grand Elder wants to see you!" Li Er took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and said patiently, "If it were anyone else, would I be arguing with you here?"

Then, it must be unavoidable!

Zhao Chen took a deep breath. Since Li Er had said this, if he continued to dawdle, he might really anger Li Er, and in the end, it would not be good for him.

After leaving the palace, he went to retrieve his crossbow but was informed by the eunuch that the crossbow had been temporarily sealed by His Majesty and would be returned after the matter was resolved.

Zhao Chen immediately sighed in sorrow and anger. Now, if that Grand Elder of the Hidden Sect tried to kill him without any reason, he wouldn't even have anything to defend himself.

He did not go to the Mingde Gate to welcome them, even though Li Er had intended for him to go personally. As soon as he left the palace, he returned to Xinghua Fang under the surprised gaze of the old eunuch.

Since they had come all the way to visit him, it was only proper to let them complete their formalities, right?

Li Er, who was watching from the palace through a telescope, saw Zhao Chen leave the palace and head leisurely to Xinghua Fang, and he was so angry that he clenched his teeth. However, he did not send anyone to forcibly bring Zhao Chen to the Mingde Gate.

As soon as Zhao Chen returned to his residence in Xinghua Fang, he immediately summoned Zhang Lu and temporarily dismissed everyone from the house. Zhao Chen estimated that even Lao Qin and Cheng Yaojin did not know about the Grand Elder of the Hidden Sect coming to Chang'an.

So, to be safe, he dismissed everyone from the house to prevent any leaks that might cause unnecessary trouble.

Zhang Lu, though unclear about what had happened, saw the master's gloomy face upon entering and did not dare to delay, immediately arranging for everyone to leave.

In the blink of an eye, the large residence was left with only Zhao Chen, sitting alone in the hall on a Taishi chair, his face gloomy.

While Zhao Chen was sitting alone at home, a sled pulled by an old ox slowly entered the Mingde Gate, and under the watchful eyes of the Tang soldiers, the sled headed towards Xinghua Fang.

The sled was crudely made, as if it had been hastily put together from a few pieces of wood, looking like it could fall apart at any moment.

On the sled lay an old man with white hair and beard, his face covered in wrinkles and age spots, his cloudy eyes revealing the weight of years.

"When I came here years ago, there were no such walls!" The old man, at this moment, poked his head out from under the thick tiger skin, looking at the majestic walls receding in his line of sight, seemingly reminiscing about the past, and sighed with a hint of nostalgia.

"Ancestor, you are talking about the previous dynasty, right?" There were seven or eight strong men following the old man's sled, one of whom was always by the old man's side. Hearing the old man's words, he grinned and asked.

The old man, upon hearing this, suddenly smiled silently and then sighed mysteriously, saying, "What a pity!"

The strong man did not know what the old man was lamenting, but seeing the old man's low spirits, he changed the subject, "Ancestor, that boy didn't come to welcome you even though he knew you were coming! Should I teach him a lesson when we meet?"

"Probably not a good idea!" The old man looked very serious, explaining, "Last time, that Lu family boy went to kill him without any restraint. Fortunately, he was protected by his chainmail, and he is still angry with us."

"Then I'll listen to you, Ancestor, and not teach him a lesson this time!" The strong man readily agreed, smiling and echoing the old man's words. The old man, hearing this, immediately opened his toothless mouth and laughed silently.

The group chatted as they walked, and before long, they arrived at Zhao Chen's residence in Xinghua Fang, stopping at the gate.

Earlier, when Zhao Chen had Zhang Lu leave, he had also instructed him to leave the gate wide open.

When the old man and his group arrived at the gate of Zhao Chen's residence, they saw the gate wide open. Looking through the open gate, they saw a young man of about fifteen or sixteen sitting in the hall opposite the gate, his face gloomy, as if someone owed him a gambling debt.

Seeing the arrival of the group, Zhao Chen, who was sitting in the hall, couldn't help but sigh, hesitated for a moment, and then got up to greet them.

The guest is the guest, whether good or bad, the host should not fail to welcome them, especially since this old man was no ordinary person, even Li Er had to be cautious.

Didn't he notice the few extra people around Xinghua Fang? Others might not recognize them, but Zhao Chen did. They were all palace eunuchs, each one terrifyingly powerful.

"Hello, young friend!" As soon as he stepped out of the gate, the old man on the sled smiled at Zhao Chen and spoke first.

"Hello, old man!" Zhao Chen mimicked the old man's words, smiling somewhat勉强地开口：“这么冷的天，老头你不好好待在家里，跑来长安做什么？咱俩也不熟！”

一旁的壮汉听到赵谌这么称呼老者，脸颊的肌肉立刻使劲抖动起来，这还是他第一次听到有人敢对老祖无礼，若不是当着老祖的面，他此时早就动手了。

赵谌看都不看旁边壮汉，一看就知道是个跟屁虫一样的小喽啰，大人物在这里说话，有你小喽啰什么事，真不懂规矩。

“行将就木，老朽想趁着还能看看的时候，多看看这外面的世界！”老者闻言，张嘴笑了一声，像是在说一件微不足道的事一般，语气平平淡淡地说道。

赵谌听到老者这话，神情顿时微微一愣，再看旁边的壮汉等人，一个个都紧咬着牙关，目中有掩饰不住的悲凉之意。

赵谌心里顿时叹了口气，先前还准备见面大发脾气，好好骂一顿呢！

无缘无故的找上门，弄的他现在一下子变得很被动，这事儿搁谁谁不生气！

可此刻听到老者这话，再一看看老者一副垂垂老矣的样子，徒劳的张了张嘴，只好退后一步，示意老者等人进屋。

老者见状，无声地一笑，目光望向一旁的壮汉，然后，在赵谌惊讶的目光下，就见刚刚还对他怒目相向的壮汉，忽然间走向老者，轻手轻脚地去掉老者身上的虎皮，将老者拦腰抱起，目光望向赵谌，示意赵谌在前引路。

“倒叫小友见笑了！”大概是看出赵谌惊讶的目光，老者瘦小的身子缩在壮汉怀里，对着赵谌说道：“老朽这双腿当年出了点意外，如今只能赖着别人了！”

“老头说的哪里话！”赵谌闻言，赶紧收起惊讶的目光，接过老者的话茬说道：“这乃天灾人祸，只有无知的人才会取笑！你老觉得小子像那种人吗？”

“不像是！”老头表现得很诚实，闻言后，还停顿了一下，像是在认真思考一样，片刻后，果断地摇了摇头，说道：“你若是那样的人，就不会去收留刘虎儿那样的孩子，也不会去救刘成那样的人！”

赵谌顿时再一次张大嘴，本就是一句打趣的话，用得着这么认真的判断？

这老头活的也太无趣了吧！难道隐门出来的人，都是这个德性？

翻页上AD开始

翻页上AD结束

---

"Hello, young friend!" As soon as he stepped out of the gate, the old man on the sled smiled at Zhao Chen and spoke first.

"Hello, old man!" Zhao Chen mimicked the old man's words, smiling somewhat勉强地开口：“这么冷的天，老头你不好好待在家里，跑来长安做什么？咱俩也不熟！”

一旁的壮汉听到赵谌这么称呼老者，脸颊的肌肉立刻使劲抖动起来，这还是他第一次听到有人敢对老祖无礼，若不是当着老祖的面，他此时早就动手了。

赵谌看都不看旁边壮汉，一看就知道是个跟屁虫一样的小喽啰，大人物在这里说话，有你小喽啰什么事，真不懂规矩。

“行将就木，老朽想趁着还能看看的时候，多看看这外面的世界！”老者闻言，张嘴笑了一声，像是在说一件微不足道的事一般，语气平平淡淡地说道。

赵谌听到老者这话，神情顿时微微一愣，再看旁边的壮汉等人，一个个都紧咬着牙关，目中有掩饰不住的悲凉之意。

赵谌心里顿时叹了口气，先前还准备见面大发脾气，好好骂一顿呢！

无缘无故的找上门，弄的他现在一下子变得很被动，这事儿搁谁谁不生气！

可此刻听到老者这话，再一看看老者一副垂垂老矣的样子，徒劳的张了张嘴，只好退后一步，示意老者等人进屋。

老者见状，无声地一笑，目光望向一旁的壮汉，然后，在赵谌惊讶的目光下，就见刚刚还对他怒目相向的壮汉，忽然间走向老者，轻手轻脚地去掉老者身上的虎皮，将老者拦腰抱起，目光望向赵谌，示意赵谌在前引路。

“倒叫小友见笑了！”大概是看出赵谌惊讶的目光，老者瘦小的身子缩在壮汉怀里，对着赵谌说道：“老朽这双腿当年出了点意外，如今只能赖着别人了！”

“老头说的哪里话！”赵谌闻言，赶紧收起惊讶的目光，接过老者的话茬说道：“这乃天灾人祸，只有无知的人才会取笑！你老觉得小子像那种人吗？”

“不像是！”老头表现得很诚实，闻言后，还停顿了一下，像是在认真思考一样，片刻后，果断地摇了摇头，说道：“你若是那样的人，就不会去收留刘虎儿那样的孩子，也不会去救刘成那样的人！”

赵谌顿时再一次张大嘴，本就是一句打趣的话，用得着这么认真的判断？

这老头活的也太无趣了吧！难道隐门出来的人，都是这个德性？

翻页上AD开始

翻页上AD结束

---

"Hello, young friend!" As soon as he stepped out of the gate, the old man on the sled smiled at Zhao Chen and spoke first.

"Hello, old man!" Zhao Chen mimicked the old man's words, smiling somewhat勉强地开口：“这么冷的天，老头你不好好待在家里，跑来长安做什么？咱俩也不熟！”

一旁的壮汉听到赵谌这么称呼老者，脸颊的肌肉立刻使劲抖动起来，这还是他第一次听到有人敢对老祖无礼，若不是当着老祖的面，他此时早就动手了。

赵谌看都不看旁边壮汉，一看就知道是个跟屁虫一样的小喽啰，大人物在这里说话，有你小喽啰什么事，真不懂规矩。

“行将就木，老朽想趁着还能看看的时候，多看看这外面的世界！”老者闻言，张嘴笑了一声，像是在说一件微不足道的事一般，语气平平淡淡地说道。

赵谌听到老者这话，神情顿时微微一愣，再看旁边的壮汉等人，一个个都紧咬着牙关，目中有掩饰不住的悲凉之意。

赵谌心里顿时叹了口气，先前还准备见面大发脾气，好好骂一顿呢！

无缘