Chapter 1592 – Later Years Hall
“Second Miss, the West Desolate is too excessive with their bullying!” Li Zicheng grunted and his face filled with fury. At this moment, Lord Chengtian was waiting outside for the Li Family of the Central Desolate to give an answer.
Of course, the reason why Li Zicheng was so panicky was because of the aggressive att.i.tude of the king in the palace.
Li Ge was dead!
However, he had clearly given Li Ge the holy medicine, the Nine Reversal Pill. He had also checked that his condition had stabilized. Most importantly, Li Zicheng had not seen the dead corpse of Li Ge.
Nonetheless, Li Ruhua had personally testified to this. Despite all his shock and confusion, he could only suppress it and keep it to himself. However, numerous flickers of sword flashes and b.l.o.o.d.y scenes were already etched into his mind.
The main family in the Central Desolate was not a single branch. After all, the family tree had many branches and leaves and there were a large number of descendants that were split into different factions. It was very natural for some to be close and others to be distant relatives. No one knew how many hidden dangers there were in this.
Regardless, there was no way to hide Li Ge’s death. If the main family wanted him to investigate this, he would do it. Otherwise, he would pretend to be deaf and blind, ignoring everything that happened.
As such, Li Zicheng was faking it when he threw a tantrum. His emotions kept his heart were real.
Li Ruhua glanced at him with a calm expression. She calmly said, “Inform Lord Chengtian that I will be waiting for a reply from the family clan. I will then enter the Imperial Palace and pay a visit to the West Desolate King.”
Although she said this without a change in her expression, there had been an invisible blade that cut off any relation and help she had from Li Zicheng’s family.
If he chose to say anything or make any other indications, the outcome of this incident would turn out completely different.
Everything in this world was dependent on choices; people were ignorant!
The completely una.s.suming Li Zicheng bowed and left. He sighed in relief as he went to inform Lord Chengtian, who was waiting outside. He had truly been worried that Li Ruhua would try to do something with him or directly drag him down and drown him in the sea.
Thankfully, she did not do this.
Half of the Li Family manor had been destroyed because of the chaos previously. The guest hall had been hurriedly cleaned for the visitor.
After Lord Chengtian heard Li Zicheng’s explanation, he frowned and stood up, “His Majesty is not in a good mood. I hope that you can urge them. I will take my leave first.”
Li Zicheng wore a solemn expression, “Farewell.”
Back then with the Great Vortex Array, Lord Chengtian gritted his teeth and was furious. It was almost unavoidable that he would be killed in revenge.
Lord Chengtian was expressionless but he laughed bitterly to himself. The king was still being mysterious with his actions. He unintentionally tied everyone to the same s.h.i.+p as him.
Thankfully, he was someone who the king single-handedly promoted. Both of them shared their weal and woes. Offending the Li Family…meant a volatile future, but this was not the time for him to think about it.
He hurried back to the palace to report this to the king. The king merely smirked coldly and snapped, “Continue to urge them!”
Lord Chengtian sensed the cold and hostile aura around the king and he could only sigh and say, “Yes, I will do so right now!”
He started sweating as he turned to go. It seems the king was truly angry this time.
As he expected, things were not as simple as they were on the surface.
The Li Family must have thoroughly enraged the king. Regardless of the fact that they were a great family in the Central Desolate Divine Area, they would have to pay a price.
Leaving and returning, Lord Chengtian’s arrival at the Li Family manor created a heavy atmosphere. The air was cold and Li Zicheng’s face was so dark, it was as though there was a dark cloud looming above his head.
The Old Ancestor of the Li Family often secluded himself to cultivate, and right now, he was truly getting annoyed. So what about the royalty? Even the imperial bloodline had to carry the ‘Li’ surname. Did the king forget whose credit it was that the imperial family could become royalty?
“Lord Chengtian, please return…” The moment he spoke, he was interrupted.
Li Zicheng turned and bowed, “Young Ancestor.”
Li Ruhua said, “Lord Chengtian, I will return with you to greet the king.”
“Thank you Miss Li for understanding. The king has waited for a while.” Lord Chengtian cupped his hands together and bowed. He was exceptionally respectfully to a third generation descendant of the Li Family.
Li Zicheng stepped forward but Li Ruhua merely waved her hand and stopped him, “You may stay here.”
“Yes.”
A horse carriage was already prepared when they stepped out of the manor. Li Ruhua pushed aside the doors and entered the carriage. She leaned against the comfortable sofa with a peaceful expression.
Opposite him, Chen Sanglue hesitated before saying, “Miss Li, why did you bring me along?”
Li Ruhua glanced at him, “Rest a.s.sured. Even if I am going to sell you, you are too insignificant, there is no need for me to take any action.”
Chen Sanglue was not offended and he simply replied, “I know, but that is why I do not understand.”
Li Ruhua waved her hand, “Just take it as you being my entertainment for this boring journey. I brought you along for casual conversation so that I will not be bored.”
Chen Sanglue suddenly came to a realization, “Miss Li, are you nervous?”
Li Ruhua stared at him with a calm expression, “You are smart…not bad. I am nervous indeed. Because I made a decision to do something when I enter the Imperial Palace. It will possibly decide my future.”
Chen Sanglue said, “If that is the case, your nervousness is only natural. Otherwise, it will be a disrespect to the decision you made.”
“What can I do for Miss Li? As long as you say it, I will agree.”
Li Ruhua smiled, “Chen Sanglue, were you always this smart? Or did you gain enlightenment after being hit?”
Chen Sanglue pondered it before saying, “I was probably smart all along.”
Li Ruhua’s smile turned brighter and she closed her eyes as she leaned against the sofa, “I have a minor headache. Ma.s.sage my head for me.”
Chen Sanglue did not hesitate as he stood up and walked beside her. He sat down and stretched out his fingers, pressing them to her scalp.
There was silence in the horse carriage and they reached the Imperial Palace a short while later. Li Ruhua’s eyes opened and she pushed open the door and stepped out.
Chen Sanglue followed behind her.
Lord Chengtian led the way. It was a direct path to a royal garden called Secluded Pavilion in the Imperial Palace. There were a wide variety of plants in the garden and many were competing against each other to bloom flowers. There were also fake mountains and ridges built around the garden, giving the entire area a royal vibe.
Beneath an octagon-shaped pavilion, the name of the garden, Secluded Pavilion, was inscribed on a plaque.
The person who wrote the words had been extremely rough. The words looked like they had been splattered as ink across the plaque, but it gave a n.o.ble and fierce aura.
Even though the entire garden had l.u.s.trous flowers blooming, it couldn’t hide the icy cold aura that drifted in the air along with the flowery scent.
It was not strong but it pierced through bones!
The West Desolate King looked like a middle-aged man who was slightly plump but had fair skin. He sat below the pavilion and casually flipped through a book.
Lord Chengtian stopped a distance away from him and bowed, “Your Majesty, Miss Li has arrived.”
Without lifting his head, the king waved his hand.
Lord Chengtian turned and said, “Miss Li, His Majesty invites you over.”
She glanced at Chen Sanglue beside her. His face was pale and he was trying his best not to show fear.
Li Ruhua calmly said, “Stay here and don’t stray away. I will come for you later.”
Chen Sanglue bowed and he bade farewell to Li Ruhua as she walked towards the pavilion.
Lord Chengtian’s expression did not change and he gestured, “Follow me.”
He turned and left while wearing a cold smile on his face.
Chen Yuanshen of Seascape City was an intelligent man who sat in high ranks all his life. Now that he was old, he came up with all sorts of schemes. As Lord Chengtian expected, there was something wrong back then already.
The Li Family from the Central Desolate was a powerful family. However, the king was determined and he even severed the Origin Sword Dao of the third generation disciple from the Li Family. What else would he be fearful of? Chen Yuanshen had no way out after this move.
Li Ruhua entered the shelter of the pavilion. She bowed, “Third generation disciple of the Li Family in the Central Desolate, Li Ruhua. Greetings to Your Majesty.”
The king lifted his head and he smiled, “Li Ruhua, you don’t need to be so respectful. I pressed you because I was uneasy. I wanted you to come here to explain some things.”
His fingers drummed against the table. A few servants by the side and a eunuch a distance away lowered their heads and walked away.
Li Ruhua lifted her head and smiled, “I am here to give you an explanation. Please speak.”
The king smiled, “There is no rush. The imperial chef took the effort to make some cakes. Miss Li, you may help yourself to them and see how they taste compared to those of the Central Desolate. Are they of the same quality?”
Li Ruhua bowed, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
She reached forward and placed a piece in her mouth. As she chewed, the smile on her face was as refres.h.i.+ng as the spring breeze. “The taste is excellent. It is soft, fragrant, and sweet. The imperial chef in the palace is outstanding.”
The king smiled brightly, “Since you are satisfied, I will have to reward him. However, according to what I know, there was a Later Years Hall in the Central Desolate years ago. They make the best desserts in the Great Desolate Area. However, for some reason, they suddenly stopped pa.s.sing down their techniques. Not even the scattered descendants had the chance to fully learn the techniques from Later Years Hall.
“Miss Li lives in the Central Desolate and has a high status. I wonder if you have eaten the desserts from Later Years Hall; I would be interested to hear your review.”
Li Ruhua smiled and ate another bite of the dessert in her hands. She slowly savored the piece. The king was not in a hurry either and he picked up his tea cup and sipped it. His attention was directed to a blooming flower outside the pavilion.
It was as red as fire and it was fiery!
There was silence in the pavilion. Although Li Ruhua smiled, she sighed internally. She finally realized why the West Desolate King did not hesitate to take action and shatter Li Ge’s Great Dao back then.
Later Years Hall in the Central Desolate Divine Area was truly like a miracle back then. The small pastry shop with its outstanding recipes started opening branches in a thousand cities in the Central Desolate Area. It was the leader of dessert shops in the world.
However, it was only later when one of the five great families in the Central Desolate suddenly erupted with good luck and fortune that people realized that Later Years Hall was actually their business all along. The pastry shop was a shop, but it was also a place to gather intelligence. It was where secret spies and criminals helped that family to do a lot of things in the dark.
The family managed to defeat many compet.i.tors in a single shot and this was to the credit of Later Years Hall!
Under normal circ.u.mstances, Later Years Hall would vanish after it was exposed and it would become a notorious name along with the family.
However, things did not proceed smoothly and there were mishaps along the way. They were kicked out of the five great families and they fell into a miserable state.
Later Years Hall was swept away and many secret spies were killed during that operation. This incident resulted in the deaths of over a million people and it was almost like a mid-scale war against the Barbarian Clan.
Among them were naturally innocent people, but there was no mercy and no one was spared…revenge was always cruel and bloodthirsty.
The sudden mention of Later Years Hall by the king was merely a pa.s.sing note.
He had crushed Li Ge’s Sword Dao to show his cruel and determined warning!