"The eldest young master...the eldest young master...?"
Ling Yao, who was wildly distracted while riding a horse, suddenly woke up from his thoughts and rubbed his temples with a headache:
"What's wrong?"
"Did you not get a good rest last night? Do you want the team to stop and rest for a while?"
The guard captain, Xu Tingxin, asked with concern.
Ling Yao is a legendary figure in the Ling family - a direct disciple of Changling Sword Sect, Pu Xiangjing in his early twenties, he created many "great achievements" for the Ling family in his youth, and now he has become a The powerful backer of the Ling family.
Perhaps to Xu Tingxin himself, Ling Yao's more and more exciting stories are not known to little people like them who can only guard the Ling family's three-acre land in this life;
Or perhaps, his more legendary achievements are not in the past and present, but in the not-too-distant future.
But for them, Ling Yao is enough to make them look up to the mountains, enough to be regarded as a dream and an idol that they pursue throughout their lives.
The rare return of this young master not only shocked those who were ready to take action, but also brought great encouragement to the entire Ling family.
I am so lucky to be able to compete with the young master Ling Xiao who is always the eldest brother, the eldest brother, the eldest brother, the eldest brother, the eldest brother, and the eldest brother in the world (?). I accompany this eldest young master to the battle line - this is a challenge for many Ling family heads. For the guards, it was a great honor - Xu Tingxin naturally did not dare to show any slightness, and even wanted to imprison this man.
Of course, not everyone in the Ling family pursues Ling Yao. There are also many people who hate this man, wait for his misfortune, and wish for his death.
As the captain of the guard this time, Xu Tingxin had to be on guard against these people with evil intentions.
And this time Ling Yao didn't know why he was late in returning to the Ling family. There happened to be a person like Ling Linhan in Hengnan. In addition, there were some rumors in the Ling family's territory recently, and Ling Yao happened to be holding the key. The archives office was on fire... It seemed like someone wanted to target Ling Yao.
So when it comes down to it, Ling Yao goes to the front line in person this time. Xu Ting is still a little worried about what kind of obstacles Hengnan's people will put in this man's way, forcing him to get angry and take action, or plotting against him to fail and make a fool of himself.
"No need, there isn't much distance left. Work harder and try to get everyone to settle down at the boundary of Hengnan before the sun sets."
Ling Yao waved his hand. Although Xu Tingxin has good intentions, he does not want to leave an image in front of the people in Hengnan as someone who is indolent, fun-loving, and not doing his job properly. (Although he himself really wants to make such a salted fish.)
Although he was fully prepared not to be disliked by others, those who criticized him relied on rumors and rumors that were embellished with writing.
He couldn't personally hand over the clues to these people.
"Yes! Everyone, keep up the speed! We'll be there in half an hour!"
Xu Tingxin also vaguely guessed what Ling Yao was thinking, and naturally passed on the order without saying a word.
Soldiers who can follow Ling Yao to the front line will naturally not complain about this. What's more, with Ling Yao's strength, if it wasn't to take care of their speed, why would he bother to suffer slowly on this road? So they all cheered up and continued on their way.
Ling Yao patted his forehead and finally became more awake.
Last night, when he was about to return the key to the archives office to Ling Weiran, the archives office suddenly caught fire, causing him to spend most of the night urgently dealing with related matters with Ling Weiran, until the sun was about to rise. After landing, I packed my luggage and set off with the large group.
What upset him most was not the sudden fire that disrupted his schedule, but more importantly the hidden problems behind the fire.
——The person behind the scenes is not only powerful and can hide it from everyone in the Ling family, but he no longer covers it up and is blatantly planning to deal with him.
He and the rest of the master's family are in the light, but the real enemy is in the dark, which inevitably makes people feel anxious.
As for Ling Linhan, the biggest beneficiary of his own reputation being persecuted, it is hard to say what his attitude towards himself and his family is at this moment.
If Ling Yao still had some confidence in a certain brat a few days ago, that was no longer the case now.
Although the relationship between the two of them has eased in Liuchuan, Ling Linhan is also on guard against the possible secret operations of Shenlong Academy. But after all, if you are in Liuchuan, you are in Liuchuan, and if you are in the Ling family, you are in the Ling family.
When he was in Liuchuan, Ling Linhan was "isolated" from the world. He could temporarily get rid of the brainwashing of Shenlong Academy and the hatred for his master's family in the atmosphere of the Hengnan branch, and let go of his "prejudices" to cooperate with himself.
But once he leaves Liuchuan - especially after returning to the Ling family, the pressure from both sides will appear again, causing Ling Linhan's mentality to undergo new changes.
Extreme emotions like love and hate are always difficult to let go of.
In addition, he was obviously plotted this time, and Ling Linhan would probably doubt him if he received the news. It would be even harder to figure out how things would develop.
There was too much thinking, and for a salty fish who didn't like to use his brain and stayed up all night, it was really hard to resist sleepiness on the way, and that's when the scene just happened.
But when he really arrived at the border of Hengnan, he would have to be more energetic again.
After all, it will be the same as the front line against the demons, a "battlefield" full of variables and dangers.
…
Seeing that the sky was turning dark, the group of people guarding the Hengnan boundary monument gradually began to become commotion.
"Didn't you say you would come tonight? Where is the person? Why haven't you arrived yet?"
"You shouldn't lie to us and make our trip in vain, right?! It's really not a good thing!"
"It's not impossible. After all, the master...hasn't he been thinking of ways to mess with our Hengnan lineage for so many years..."
"Hey, stop complaining. Let outsiders hear it and report it to the master's family. Aren't we the ones who will be unlucky in the end?"
"What are you afraid of! Now we have Brother Han supporting us, right! Who the hell is the eldest young master of the Ling family..."
"do not talk."
Ling Linhan, who was standing at the front, suddenly interrupted the person who was complaining.
"What time is it? Be patient."
"That's it. As for your patience, Brother Dong...chi—"
Ling Feiyu, who was standing aside, immediately echoed the words and sneered faintly,
"No matter how much you look down on others, you can't afford to offend that young master. Don't talk nonsense and cause trouble for Brother Han!"
"Hey! Aren't you just taking advantage of the fact that you and Brother Han have known each other for a long time? And you're rubbing noses with each other? Are you qualified to talk about me?!"
Ling Yuandong glared at Ling Feiyu with a look of disdain.
Although they are all Ling Linhan's die-hard supporters in Hengnan, their respective ideas and concepts are very different, and there are often sparks of disharmony between them, which makes them very unhappy.
But these people do have their own skills, and each plays an extremely important role in the war against the demons. Ling Linhan was able to gain recognition from others so quickly and win repeated victories in resistance battles, which was inseparable from their trust and help.
Ling Linhan needs them, and they support Ling Linhan. Therefore, Ling Linhan often turned a blind eye to some of their extreme remarks and let them go about their business.
But on one point, these people's views are surprisingly consistent:
Support Ling Linhan to overthrow the current head of the family and become the new head of the Ling family, allowing the Hengnan lineage to become the master.
It's expected and reasonable. But for Ling Linhan, he actually had no such idea - whether it was to overthrow the master's family, become the head of the family, or let Hengnan flourish.
This was once a lifelong pursuit instilled in him by his grandfather. As time went by and he continued to grow and improve, he added more ideals and goals to himself, but these three points were always listed in the list of "goals".
But ever since he escaped from Shenlong Academy and caught a glimpse of the real world, he began to doubt more than just the people around him?
He began to question himself, why should he inherit his father's legacy and serve as the "head" of the Ling family, which he had no interest in or ability to undertake?
Why should Hengnan people stand up and make the decision, so that these people who have hurt him can be honored because of him?
Even more, why do you want to extend the hatred of the previous generation to yourself, believe in their half-truths and half-truths to create conflicts, and treat all unrelated family members like Ling Yao as your enemies?
Such rebellious thoughts of "no filial piety" and "no ambition" were a kind of betrayal for him in the past. But as he examined himself again and again, he continued to deepen his doubts.
So why exactly?
But he didn't dare to show anything in front of these people. Because it was precisely because of these targets that he suspected that these people gathered around him, became his friends, and provided him with so much help.
He didn't want to disappoint his relatives and friends, and he couldn't bear the consequences of the collapse of the resistance front after these people dispersed.
Even if he has entered the Pure Realm now, he still cannot stop the invasion of the demons alone. This forced him to "bow" to these thoughts and maintain the "silence" he could only maintain.
But can he really remain "silent"?
"There are figures over there! Are they coming?"
The little Ling Rui standing in front asked excitedly.
"Tsk, it seems to be them indeed. The horseman in front is the eldest young master of the Ling family, right?"
Ling Yuandong put his hands on the awning and took a look, and quickly saw the face of the visitor clearly.
"Hmph, she looks like a girl. Only women who have never seen the world like her."
Swish——
Before he could finish his words, the group of people standing guard in front of the boundary monument felt a blur in front of their eyes, as if a strong wind had passed by.
Only Ling Linhan's face turned slightly blue, and he immediately pulled out the white tiger-tooth dagger from his waist and blocked the black shadow.
Stab la la.
There was a heartbreaking sound of friction between gold and iron, and everyone turned their eyes away, only to see Ling Linhan's dagger holding a long sword shining with black iron.
And the man holding the sword is none other than Ling Yao, who was clearly far away just now!
The host's team in the distance seemed to be in a commotion over Ling Yao's sudden disappearance, and the people on Ling Linhan's side were afraid of Ling Yao's swift movements.
The sharp-eyed ones even discovered that after this short confrontation, among the long sword and dagger that were in contact with each other, the dagger alone was trembling slightly!
"You too...are too petty."
Ling Linhan gritted his teeth and said with some difficulty.
"Are you doing a sneak attack!! Is this the kind of person you are from the master's family?!"
Ling Yuandong, who had spoken ill of Ling Yao just now, was even more furious now, pointing at Ling Yao's nose and about to curse.
Ling Yao smiled slightly, then turned his sword around, brushed the blade of the short dagger with the sword spine of the Shadow Sword, and used the pressure to deflect Ling Linhan's wrist by three points:
"I just heard someone mention me and couldn't help but come over in advance to say hello. If he is really a little chicken, how can you still listen to him jumping around and screaming here?"
Then Ling Yao stepped slightly to the side, avoiding the possible trajectory of the dagger, but turned the sword back with a sword, deftly put it back into the scabbard on his back, and stood a few meters in front of Ling Linhan lightly. Landed. But when he turned his gaze, he looked at Ling Yuandong with a smile:
"I both look down on my master's family, but I also think that my master's family should be magnanimous... Can you unify your thoughts before speaking? Otherwise it's really easy to make people laugh."
"Besides, there's nothing wrong with being good-looking enough to please girls. If you have to do the opposite, do you still want to look good enough to please men? That wouldn't be good..."
Seeing Ling Yao put away the Shadow Sword, Ling Linhan also took back his dagger and stopped Ling Yuandong, whose face became increasingly ugly.
Just as Ling Yao didn't want to leave anything to be said for Heng Nan's family, he couldn't let the people on his side take the initiative to provoke the owner's family and cause disputes - especially at this stall where Ling Yao and the others had just arrived.
Although Ling Linhan is now suspicious of Ling Feiyu, it is obvious that Ling Feiyu has a strong ability to observe words and emotions. He immediately understood Ling Linhan's intention, and took the initiative to whisper a few words to Ling Yuandong, making Ling Yuandong say "hum", but he finally stopped trying to make things worse.
Ling Yao also watched with interest the rather subtle atmosphere among the large group of people in Hengnan - this was obviously a team that gathered for simple reasons and had not yet successfully integrated, and the relationship between the members was also relatively fragile. If they just get together to deal with the irrational demon soldiers, that's it. If someone is deliberately plotting, methods such as sowing discord are very effective.
But he had no obligation to remind Ling Linhan. Seeing the large army of the master's family in the distance finally rushing over, Ling Yao winked at Ling Linhan:
"Although I am very 'grateful' that you deigned to come to greet us, I also know that you are anxious to see what the master will do this time. However, I would like to trouble you all to stop staring at people and make arrangements for our people here. Residence.
"After all, it's business. It's better for us to find a time to sit down and talk about it, isn't it?"
==A little setting==
Why do I say that this dungeon of the Ling Family is very similar to "Palace Fighting" and "Searching for Heir"? You will understand with an analogy.
If the position of the head of the Ling family is compared to the throne, this story can be explained as the eldest son of the emperor with no ambition, a group of ignorant and extremely arrogant princes, and a man who was bullied miserably when he was a child and became invincible when he grew up. A story about a man who wanted to come back to take revenge on the royal family, but was instigated by his subordinates to murder the emperor's clan children at any time and compete for the throne.
Then our eldest son, the Xianyu Emperor, not only did not want to inherit the throne, but he was also always on guard against some idiot who might be provoked and chop the emperor with a knife in the court.
...It's terrible.
