Your Ninth Royal Highness, Please Change Your Clothes

Lying between Fengcheng city and Wu Yue island is the Shenxian river. The river is known as the Shenxian River because, every May, the river surges towards the bridge connecting Fengcheng City and Wu Yue Island, flooding it as if driven by a supernatural entity. And it will not retreat until June. So all the people who want to go to the island can only take a boat from the ferry.

When Ah Fu heard this for the first time, his face turned pale with fright. He tugged at the corner of Wen Chan’s robe, and his voice was extremely low, “Young master, can we not take a boat?”

Wen Chan raised his eyebrows slightly and asked back, “Not taking a boat? Then are you going to swim over or are you going to buy an old water buffalo to carry you over there?”

Ah Fu became speechless for a while and seemed to think that neither of these two methods was feasible.

“Then how about you find a rope to tie your body and then tie your body to the back end of the ship. So that you can cross the river without having to take a boat. Isn’t that great?” Wen Chan said again.

“Then won’t I drown?” Ah Fu immediately shook his head like a rattle, “No, no.”

“In that case, you’d better take the boat obediently.” Wen Chan pressed his shoulder sympathetically and comforted him, “It’s okay. Just bear with it.”

On seeing that his master was so worried, Ah Fu couldn’t help being a little moved, “Young Master, you are so kind to Ah Fu……”

“Oh, by the way, Qinqi, don’t give Ah Fu today’s lunch. So as to avoid him vomiting in the boat and causing inconvenience to others.” After speaking, Wen Chan seemed to hear Ah Fu talking. So he turned his head doubtfully and asked, “Ah Fu, what were you talking about just now?”

“Young master, Ah Fu didn’t say anything.” Ah Fu forced out a smile that was even uglier than crying, pretending to be strong.

Wen Chan and his party had been staying in Fengcheng for two days and finally waited till the ferry set sail. The original time was shenshi1, but Wen Chan was worried that there would be too many people. If they could not get on the boat, they would have to wait for three more days. So he decided to rush over early after eating lunch to occupy a seat.

Sure enough, Wen Chan’s thought was not wrong. Even though they went there ahead of the schedule, there were still a lot of people gathered at the ferry crossing, and there was a queue at the entrance that was not yet open. Fortunately, there were two boats, so the queue was not very long. Wen Chen noticed that the few people next to him seemed to want to go by boat too. He reacted extremely quickly and made the people stand at the back of the line. The people who were left behind were allowed a beat down and could only stand after Qin Qi.

It was noontime, with a scorching hot sun, and there was no shade. After just standing there for a while, Wen Chan started sweating from the heat. He took his small fan and fanned it calmly, showing more patience than ordinary people for this long wait.

There were many people who were not as calm as he was, and they complained impatiently continuously.

Seeing that the sky was getting hotter and hotter, Ah Fu became afraid that Wen Chan would burn out. So he said to Qin Qi, who was behind him, “I’m going to buy the young master a cup of iced pickled plum2 to relieve the heat. You look after my position.”

Qin Qi nodded in response.

The hawker who sells iced pickled plums was very good at doing his business. He had especially set up his stall here, and the business was doing just great at this time. Ah Fu’s small body was jumping around. He pushed his way through the crowd with such great effort that his face was almost distorted. Then he handed the hand holding the copper coin in front of the vendor, and yelled with a hideous expression, “Boss! A glass of iced pickled plum! Fast!”

As soon as the hawker looked up, he saw Ah Fu’s face, in which the mouth had been crooked by the squeezing of the crowd, and he couldn’t help being startled. He quickly received the copper coin and gave him a cup. After receiving it, Ah Fu was afraid of being squeezed and spilling it. So he stood on tiptoe, raised the cup high, and strived to withdraw from the crowd.

After withdrawing from the crowd with great difficulty, he carefully took the cup down and took a look, and his nose suddenly became crooked with anger3! Some unknown tall person had drunk most of the iced pickled plum in his cup, leaving only a bit at the bottom.

Ah Fu spurted out a mouthful of old blood and scolded a few words. But his surroundings were filled with yelling and tongue-lashing. So nobody cared about his sound, which melted into it. As there was no other way, he could only pour out the remaining bit of iced pickled plum and wipe the corners of the cup with his sleeve. And then he held two copper coins and rushed into the crowd again.

Wen Chan was provoked to laughter by him being like this, and he laughed out loud. His handsome, smiling face became dazzling with his smile, which attracted many people’s attention.

This time, Ah Fu learned to be smart. After he got the new iced pickled plum, he didn’t hold it high. Instead, he used his other hand to cover the cup and protect the iced pickled plum inside it, while butting the people around him and successfully bringing out the iced pickled plum.

After he came out of the pressing business, he was sweating profusely, and he couldn’t wait to deliver the iced pickled plum to Wen Chan without stopping.

Who would have thought that before he could approach, a figure would suddenly rush in front of Ah Fu, squeeze into the place where Ah Fu was standing in line, and halt there.

Wen Chan was taken aback for a moment. Then he turned his head and saw that it was a man with a big and thick belly. He had thick eyebrows and a large beard. He raised his eyebrows and stared at him. He looked like a wicked man, with whom you stand no-nonsense.

“Brother4, a person was standing here.” Wen Chen stepped back a little, his voice unruffled.

“Someone? Where? Why can’t I see them?” The thick eyebrows looked around. His voice was very loud, and he let everyone around him look over his loud voice. Then he lowered his eyes to look at Wen Chan with disdain, as if to say that you, a boy with a waist that is not as thick as my arms, do not know the immensity of heaven and earth5.

Wen Chan still adhered to the primary principle of exercising forbearance and didn’t want to go out and cause trouble. So he made a gesture to stop Qin Qi and Shu Hua who were about to move, and said to Ah Fu, “Come here and stand in front of me. ”

Ah Fu was originally very angry. But when he saw that the opponent was tall and looked fierce, he didn’t dare take the initiative to provoke him, so he bitterly walked towards Wen Chan, holding the iced pickled plum.

Originally, it was thought that if Wen Chan took the initiative to get out of the way, it could let the dispute, which had not yet started, settle. But unexpectedly, even before Ah Fu entered, the robust man stretched out his hand and pushed Ah Fu. This force wasn’t small, and he directly overthrew Ah Fu onto the ground. The iced pickled plum in his hand flew out and spilled all over the place.

The faces of Qin Qi and Shu Hua changed at the same time.

Ah Fu got up from the ground at lightning speed, and he was angry and distressed when he saw that the iced pickled plum in exchange for which he had been almost squeezed into a was spilled cleanly at the moment. He stared at the robust man as if he was about to rush up and bite him to death in the next moment.

“What are you staring at? Have you used enough of those eyes?” The strong man also took the lead in saying fiercely.

“Forget that you took my place. But throwing away my iced pickled plum is simply intolerable bullying.” Ah Fu furiously denounced.

“Ah, it’s him again.” Someone whispered in a low voice, and his voice came through vaguely.

“Who is this arrogant person? ”

“He is Hu Xuli, who has been quite famous in Jianghu recently. I heard that he hadn’t done a good thing and had been stealing and bullying all day. But his fists are strong enough to smash a big hole in an iron block. So no one dares to provoke him. ”

“In broad daylight6, this is really…”

“Forget about it, forget about it. Don’t say it.” When others talk about it, they all seem to be faintly scared.

This added fuel to Hu Xuli’s anger even more. He said tyrannically, “Who told you to cut in line under this uncle’s7 eyelids. ”

“I cut in line? The one who cut in line was obviously you! The place where you are standing is my place. Shameless! ” Ah Fu’s voice was sharp and shrewd, and it was somewhat ear-piercing.

Hu Xuli snorted, “Where did I cut in line? You left here before I came here. Now you want to come back again. How could this be a proper thing? If you little sissy keep on yelling and making noises in my ears, I will kill you! ”

Ah Fu hated being called a sissy by others the most. When he heard this, he became angry and his eyes turned red.

Just as he was about to rush up to fight Hu Xuli to show him whether he was male or not, Wen Chan’s clapping stopped his actions.

Wen Zen applauded three times without a not-so-loud sound, and said, “What brother said is very reasonable. But everybody is going to the Meeting of the Heroes. So if a dispute arises in the name of the queue, then it is inevitable that it will hurt the feelings of somebody. But I have a way that can satisfy both sides and resolve the grievances of both sides. Would the brothers like to hear it? ”

When Ah Fu saw Wen Chan speaking, he restrained his fury. He bent over, picked up the cup on the ground, and stood obediently beside Wen Chan.

Hu Xuli lowered his eyes and said disapprovingly, “By saying this, you made it look like I won’t listen even if you say it.”

Those who had heard of and seen Hu Xuli sighed silently, this man is famous for being unreasonable, and it’s useless to tell him anything.

Everyone thought that Wen chan would admit defeat. But they didn’t expect Wen Chan’s next sentence to be, “Brother, take this cup now and buy a new cup of iced pickled plum. And then obediently get lost to the end of the queue and stand there. Otherwise…”

His voice was neither slow nor fast, and it was as plain as water. But a rare show of a bit of coldness was revealed, “I will cut off your two fists that can smash a pit into an iron block. ”

Everyone thought that there was something wrong with their ears, and they couldn’t help sighing.

Qin Qi and Shu Hua revealed the daggers that were hidden inside their sleeves and put them in the palms of their hands, waiting for Wen Chan’s instructions.

Sure enough, Hu Xuli was really furious when he heard this. He thought to himself, “You small boy, dare to threaten and provoke me?” He raised his fist and said viciously, “I think you are courting death!”

He flexed his sturdy muscles tightly, his veins bursting out and putting his immense force on display. He was about to hammer down on Wen Chan.

It was only at the moment of falling that a stone flew from behind and hit right in the middle of Hu Xuli’s raised fist. And all of a sudden, he actually started howling in pain. He immediately let go of Wen Chan, clenched his fists, and turning around with glaring eyes, “Who doesn’t fear death and hit this father8?!”

Then a wood-green-colored silhouette came down like a flash and moved in front of Hu Xuli in a flash. He grabbed his right fist and twisted it backward, only to hear a crisp “click”.

Hu Xuli screamed out in a blood-curdling screech, and the person who came took advantage of this to push him down. HuXuli couldn’t stand the pain and lowered his body. Finally, he bent his knees and knelt on the ground, quickly admitting his defeat, “Chivalrous hero, please spare my life! Chivalrous hero, please spare my life!”

Wen Chan was very surprised. He looked at the person who came and saw that it was a handsome young man.

His eyebrows were thick and his eyes were black. His face was icy, and his head was inlaid with a silver silk crown of emerald stone. His long hair was falling down. He was dressed in a wood-green colored, long dress. On his waist were a silver-white belt and a jade pendant with brown and yellow tassels hanging from the side. He was holding a sword in his left hand and the wrist of Hu Xuli in his right hand, easily restraining him.

“Ah, he is from the Songhua Sect! ” There was an exclamation in his ear. Wen Chan moved his ears secretly and looked at the person in front of him seamlessly.

“Senior brother, this person dared to bully others mercilessly in broad daylight. So it’s better to cripple his hand and let him remember it for a long time!” Behind him was a young woman. Her dress was almost the same as that of the man. Except that her beautiful hair was tied into a bun. She wore a jasper hairpin, and her jade pendant hung down long, making a dazzling sound as she walked around.

When Hu Xuli heard this, he yelled loudly, “Isn’t your Songhua Sect a prestigious and upright sect?! How can you do such a low-class and nasty thing? What bad things have I done that you want to cut off my hands? Come on–come and see… ah–! ”

His spiteful and roguish act of being dumb was completely useless. Before he finished shouting, the young man twisted Hu Xuli’s right hand powerfully, completely dislocating the bones. He said indifferently, “If I see you being so arrogant one more time, I will definitely cripple the remaining three limbs of yours.”

Hu Xuli’s body was no longer restrained. He clutched his right arm and screamed loudly. He was about to shout out for everybody to hear. But then, when he turned his head and saw the person who had crippled his right hand, he immediately became alarmed and closed his mouth. He repeatedly took a few steps back, fighting back the pain, and then actually ran away with one’s tail between one’s legs, saying nothing.

The people who were watching the excitement have become bold now. They spurned and criticised Hu Xuli, who fled. All of their chests were filled with righteous indignation9.

Regarding the sudden act of righteousness and bravery, Wen Chan gladly accepted the kindness of others and cupped his hands in obeisance to the young master. He said, “Many thanks to brother for saving us with your righteousness. Myself Wen Chan. Can I ask for the brother’s name?”

“Myself, Fang Han.” The original coldness in his face dissolved and a smile appeared on the handsome face, which looked much gentler.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the name came out, there was chaos all around. And it was noisier than when they were watching the excitement.

“Wow, I didn’t expect that this was the person who came from the time Songhua Sect was the chief disciple of the sect master. It’s going to be a good show this time!”

“You still don’t know it?! All major sects have already discussed sending only the younger generations to participate in this year’s Meeting of the Heroes. You can’t see much of the older generations of the previous years this time. ”

“Wouldn’t that be much more exciting than in the previous years! ”

Wen Chan also had some impressions of this “Songhua Sect” in everyone’s mouth. The coachman mentioned it to him about a month ago. It seemed that it was indeed a prestigious big sect.

The girl next to Fang Han was much livelier. She took the initiative to announce her full name with a smile. “My name is Fang Xue, Young Master Wen. Next time you meet this kind of person, don’t talk nonsense with him. First, knock off his two sharp teeth before asking about the crime.”

This was indeed similar to Liang Yanbei’s way of doing things, differing only in small points…… Wen Chen put on a look as if he was educated by the advice, “Thank you, young lady. Wen Chan will certainly remember it. ”

“Senior brother, martial uncle asked me to call you guys back.” A voice interrupted the conversation between the three of them. From not far away, came a young man in identical clothes, but the crown on his head was not inlaid with emerald stones.

After Fang Han listened to what she said, he slightly nodded his head. Soon after, he said goodbye to Wen Chan and led his junior sister to the back of the queue, along with the younger man.

Even after the three of them left, the discussion still didn’t subside. It lasted a long time. Ah Fu held the cup with an unhappy face and said to Wen Chan, “Young Master, it’s better that I buy you a cup again. ”

“Forget about it. The ferry will open in a while, so don’t go buying it.” Wen Chan glanced at the iced pickled plum that was about to be dried by the sun, and lightly patted Ah Fu on the shoulder, “Go and line up properly.”

Qin Qi and Shu Shu had already put the daggers back in their sleeves and gave Ah Fu a place to stand. Qin Qi said, “Don’t be upset. Next time I see that rascal again, I will definitely cut off one of his fists and let him apologise to you.”

Ah Fu shook his head and went back to stand in his original place, “It’s too bloody. Don’t do that. ”

Qin Qi didn’t say anything more. But after a while, Ah Fu turned his head and said to him, “Otherwise, just let him buy ten cups of iced pickled plum; and kneel down and kowtow to me to apologise. ”

Wen Chan felt amused when he heard it and said in his heart that Ah Fu had a deep obsession with that bowl of overturned iced pickled plum.