Shangguan Hongqin looked at Liu Ruyan and smiled slightly, and hurriedly beckoned him to take a seat in the hall.

This is the lobby of the front hall of Hongqin Ju, and it is also the living room where the host receives guests. The huge living room is decorated with simple and elegant, and there is a pair of wild cursive calligraphy of dragon flying and phoenix dancing on the wall of the main hall. On the three walls of the east, west and north are hung with three pairs of ink and blue dyed by smoke waves, and the techniques are exquisite and eclectic. On the left wall hangs a three-foot-long sword, the scabbard is golden, and the dragon and phoenix are carved on it. On the south front wall hangs the sub-horizontal axis, on the book: "Haoran Righteousness" four red cursive fonts, the pen walks the dragon and snake, swaying elegantly, the momentum is like a rainbow.

Liu Ruyan unloaded the long sword and burden on his back, and the servant standing on the side walked over and took it with both hands, and placed it on the weapon rack in the inner room.

Xu Feng, the owner of Hongqin House, sat upright on the main seat, always with a kind and kind smile on his face, and he stretched out his hand to invite the guests to sit down. Then he turned his head and ordered the servant to serve tea to the guests.

Xu Feng looked at Liu Ruyan with a smile, stroked his beard, and said, "Nephew Liu Xian, I've worked hard for you all the way!" He paused, hesitated a little and said, "Lingshi has been in good health recently?"

Liu Ruyan raised his eyebrows lightly, respectfully hugged his fists, bowed his head slightly, and said: "Uncle Xu Hongfu, the family teacher is still in good health, and the family teacher also asked the juniors to say hello to you!", he then sighed lightly, "The juniors are quick to whip up their horses along the way, and when they pass through the Black Valley, they were accidentally attacked by mountain bandits, but fortunately, there is no danger." At this time, Xu Feng saw that he had gauze wrapped around his arm, revealing a red wound slightly. He then frowned and asked with concern, "Nephew Liu Xian, why is your arm injured?"

Liu Ruyan's eyebrows raised slightly, and he smiled slightly: "Uncle Xu's Hongfu, the junior only suffered a little skin injury, and it is not a big problem! Thank you Uncle for your concern." ”

At this time, three servants came up with tea and placed it in front of Xu Feng, Shangguan Hongqin and Liu Ruyan respectively. Subsequently, they dispersed.

The three of them picked up their teacups and took a sip of tea. Shangguan Hongqin smiled and said, "Nephew Liu Xian, this journey must have suffered a lot, it's really hard for you!" she said with a generous demeanor and concern.

Liu Ruyan bowed slightly, and said calmly: "Thank you for your concern! It's not hard, it's just that there was a little mistake on the road." Speaking of this, there was a slight look of embarrassment on his face.

Shangguan Hongqin frowned slightly puzzled: "Oh, what went wrong?"

Liu Ruyan replied: "Don't dare to hide it from my uncle, when the junior passed by the immortal residence post road, he was careless for a while, and actually took the wrong fork" He lowered his head in shame, "The junior should have taken the path of Feixian Pass, but he walked into the fork in the road leading to the Black Valley in a daze. Alas, yes, there was a delay of some hours along the way. ”

When Xu Feng and Shangguan Hongqin heard this, the two of them glanced at each other, and then opened their mouths and laughed.

The two suddenly smiled like this, and Liu Ruyan felt even more embarrassed, her face turned red, and a touch of warmth rose. At this moment, he couldn't wait to find a crack in the ground to drill into.

Actually, there was no need to say such a thing, but when the second elder asked, he unconsciously told the truth. What he didn't expect was that he would make such a low-level mistake, and he felt very embarrassed in his heart, and sat there stunned, chattering, not knowing what to say.

By this time, the sky had gradually darkened, and the lanterns in the courtyard had gradually been lit, and in an instant, the whole manor was brightly lit. Under the deep night, the red piano is even more quiet and beautiful, dazzling.

On the dark sky, the starlight rose, and a miserable white moon hung on the peak of the bright moon, revealing a faint quiet and peaceful.

The servants were already busy preparing the dinner party in the back kitchen. In the living room, the host and guest were still chatting with interest, except for a few maids standing aside and waiting at any time, but no one else appeared.

The three of them talked for a long time, but Liu Ruyan didn't see the shadow of Hua Mei, and he felt a little surprised in his heart, so he asked, "Uncle Xu, why didn't you see Hua Mei?" He was very puzzled.

Xu Feng was stunned when he heard this, and said with a smile: "Oh, the old man hasn't seen the flowers today, maybe he went to the Houshan Butterfly Garden with Yue'er to have fun!" He immediately glanced at the lady beside him, as if he was asking Shangguan Hongqin.

Shangguan Hongqin was also slightly stunned, and said with a smile: "Yes, I haven't seen them all day, where will these two sisters go?" Immediately, she called inside: "Cuilian?"

At this time, a maid dressed in green cloth came out of the room, bowed to Xu Feng and his wife, and said, "Madam, what do you command?"

Shangguan Hongqin asked, "Do you know where Miss and Miss Hua'er went?"

The maid lowered her head and said quietly: "Mrs. Hui, Miss Leng Yue and Miss Hua'er went to the butterfly garden in the back mountain early this morning to have fun, and they haven't come back yet." The maid whispered, as if she was afraid of being blamed.

Before Shangguan Hongqin could speak, Xu Feng suddenly glared, his face was slightly stunned, and he shouted, "What?

He stood up suddenly, frowned very seriously, and said, "This cold moon is becoming more and more disagreeable, taking my sister to mess around." It's really fun, and I don't care about anything. He paced back and forth in the living room, irritated.

Immediately, he turned his head to look at Liu Ruyan and put away his angry face, and said with a pleasant face: "Don't be surprised by the virtuous nephew, these sisters are all playful, so I will send someone to find them back." ”

At that moment, he instructed Cuilian to take a few family members to the back mountain to look for it.

Liu Ruyan frowned slightly, and said with his chin: "Why don't you go to the back mountain with them to look for it?" He couldn't help but stand up, feeling a little uneasy in his heart, and faintly worried.

Shangguan Hongqin comforted: "Don't panic, nephew, these two sisters often go to the back mountain garden to have fun together, and there should be nothing wrong." ”

Liu Ruyan sighed secretly in her heart, thinking that she would be able to see the long-separated sister Hua when she entered Hongqin Residence, but she didn't want to, but she didn't even see a figure. Now that it's getting late, what are they going to do? Why is it getting dark and not coming back?

He was wondering all the way, what kind of scene would it be like to see Sister Hua for the first time when he came here? He also imagined that Sister Hua would happily run to him when she saw him, and affectionately call him "brother", but now, it was a different scene, and he couldn't help but be a little disappointed in his heart.

At this time, Xu Feng stroked his beard, paced slowly, and said, "Don't worry, the virtuous nephew, this Houshan Butterfly Garden is your own garden, and there will be nothing wrong." Don't be impatient, please drink tea, you are not familiar with the terrain here, let them find it first!"

Liu Ruyan nodded yes, and thought to herself: I am new to the city, and it is really not appropriate to take the host, but it is rude to wander around the master's territory as a guest, so I still obey the uncle's arrangement, and wait here for the time being!

The three of them waited patiently while drinking tea in the living room.

About an hour later, Cuilian and a few family members hurriedly ran in. Panting in her mouth, Nuo Nuo said: "Master, master, it's not good," she looked at Xu Feng with some panic and said breathlessly: "Master, the slave maid and a group of people have carefully searched for it in the back mountain, but I haven't seen any trace of Miss and Miss Xihua." She frowned, and her voice trembled in such a hurry that she was afraid of being reproached by her master.

Hearing this, Xu Feng, Shangguan Hongqin, and Liu Ruyan suddenly got up from their seats. The three of them all immediately showed surprised expressions, this was obviously not the result they wanted.

Xu Feng's heart was shocked, but his face was calm, and then he instructed Cuilian: "You go and invite Steward Ma over!" He has always treated the subordinates in the family with respect and courtesy, even if he asks Steward Ma to come over, he will say the word "please", not the word "call". Based on this alone, it can also be seen that Xu Feng and Xu Daxia can have today's achievements and status, which is by no means accidental.

Often those who can achieve great things are also good-natured, gentle and courteous, and approachable.

Cuilian answered, turned around and ran towards the villa where Steward Ma's residence in the backyard. Walk through a long corridor, turn a few corners, and go twenty meters further to the first room, which is the bedroom of the steward horse. She hurriedly came to the door of the housekeeper's room, the door was open, and the housekeeper was wearing a pair of glasses and was sitting at the desk to sort out the accounts. Cuilian gasped and said, "Steward Ma, it's not good, it's not good,"

The housekeeper was stunned when he heard this, looked at Cuilian and frowned, "Cuilian, what's wrong?" don't worry, speak slowly. ”

Cuilian slowed down and said anxiously: "Miss Leng Yue and Miss Xihua are gone, my lord invites you to come over." Cuilian's expression was very anxious.

The housekeeper was about fifty years old, of medium height, slightly chubby, with a short tail on his head, and a pair of big eyes that were deep. He wore a green cloth gown all year round, which had been washed and faded a little, but was always very neat.

He has been following Mr. Xu for more than 20 years. For more than 20 years, he has been loyal to the Xu family, and he will complete the errands assigned by the master, no matter how big or small, and conscientiously manage the entire Hongqin House in an orderly manner, and almost never make any major mistakes. The Xu family has always respected him very much.

As soon as he heard that the eldest lady and the girl were gone, he hurriedly got up from his seat, looking anxious, but instantly regained his calm, since he followed the old man Xu to the rivers and lakes, he has experienced hundreds of fierce battles, big and small, what kind of wind and waves have not been seen? Now that he is a housekeeper, his heart has become much calmer.

He hurriedly straightened his sleeves, and immediately walked briskly towards the living room with Cuilian.

At this time, there were two rows of family members standing at the gate of the meeting room, and there were more than a dozen people, all with serious expressions, each holding a bright willow leaf long knife in his hand. Liu Ruyan also stood aside, with a solemn expression. An ominous premonition suddenly rose in his heart: Miss Leng Yue and Hua Mei haven't come back so late, maybe they are in danger in the mountains, but I am afraid that they will be more than lucky! For now, we must find a way to find them as soon as possible!

Xu Feng stood in front of the door of the hall with a long body, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, and his expression was serious. Seeing Steward Ma hurrying over, he immediately showed his face, his eyes flashed, and he didn't speak. The housekeeper arrived in front of Xu Feng, bowed, bowed slightly, and said, "Ma Xiaoyun came to meet the master!

Xu Feng nodded, stroked his beard with his hand, and said, "Yes, I heard the servant say that I saw Leng Yue and Xihua go to the Houshan Butterfly Garden together this morning, but they haven't come back yet." He paced back and forth slowly, sighed, and said, "I have sent people to the back mountain to look for them just now, but I have not found any trace of them. There was a hint of worry in his eyes, but it was fleeting and unnoticeable.

Steward Ma frowned, looked at Xu Feng and muttered: "On weekdays, the two sisters often go to the back mountain to play, but they will come back early, but why are they ...... today" His eyes flickered, thinking: " As far as the old slave knows, they go to the back mountain, not just to have fun, most of the time is to find a herb called dendrobium orchid, I remember once, I heard the eldest lady say with my own ears, she often saw Mrs. Shangguan's lung disease, coughing badly, I heard that this kind of wild herb that grows in the deep mountains and jungles can cure Mrs. Shangguan's lung disease, so I often go to the back mountain to find. After that, a soft and loving look appeared in his eyes, I don't know whether it was approval or love?

He got acquainted with Xu Feng when he was a teenager, Xu Feng was a few years older than him, so he always respected Xu Feng as the eldest brother, and he was willing to be the younger brother.

At that time, Xu Feng was in his early twenties, in his prime, and he had already experienced more than ten sword competitions at a young age. He successively defeated the famous Taihang Sanjie in Taihang, Shanxi, and later participated in the annual "Nanyue Sword Meeting" in Nanyue Hengshan on the bank of Xiangshui, and defeated the "Phoenix Swordsman" Luo Yichuan in one fell swoop on the top of Hengshan Zhurong Peak, "Xiangfei Sword" Shangguan Die, and the big disciple of the Hengshan faction "Furong Yijian" Luo Feiyan.

In that Nanyue Sword Meeting, he only relied on a three-foot iron sword in his hand to defeat the three famous swordsmen in the martial arts back then, and he became famous for a while, and gradually emerged in the martial arts. Out of admiration for Xu Feng, he was willing to follow his eldest brother and roam the rivers and lakes with him, and the two formed a friendship of life and death.

Xu Feng saw that all the families had been gathered in the courtyard, he suddenly turned his head to look at Liu Ruyan who was standing aside, and then looked at Steward Ma, then walked forward and introduced to the two: "Nephew Liu Xian, Steward Ma, let me introduce you two," took Liu Ruyan's hand and walked to Steward Ma, smiled slightly, and said, "Nephew Liu Xian, this Ma Xiaoyun Horse Manager!" and turned to look at Steward Ma: "Steward Ma, this is Liu Ruyan Liu Shaoxia!"

Liu Ruyan bowed to the horse steward, and said, "The younger generation has seen the horse steward!"

The steward also returned the salute, looked at Liu Ruyan, and smiled: "It turned out to be Liu Shaoxia, fortunately!"

At this time, Xu Feng strode up to the front of the hall and said to everyone present: "Today, Leng Yue and Xihua disappeared in the butterfly garden in the back mountain, and now we are all going to look for them in two ways, the people on the left follow me to the direction of the Valley of Forgotten Worries, and the people on the right follow the steward to look for the butterfly garden, and they are bound to be found tonight." ”

Xu Feng gave an order, and the two teams of men and horses held torches and marched towards the back mountain in two directions. Liu Ruyan followed behind Xu Feng, and she was also worried and uneasy, just hoping to find the two of them as soon as possible and figure out where they had gone!

He never expected that when he first came to Hongqinju, Miss Leng Yue and Sister Hua disappeared inexplicably. He really couldn't understand what was going on, could it be that there was something strange about it, or was it just a fortuitous coincidence? He couldn't help but think about it in his heart, and only when he found them would the truth be revealed.

As soon as Shangguan Hongqin heard about it, her baby daughter disappeared with Xihua. Even if he was restless and anxious, he kept pacing back and forth in the hall, muttering about how Leng Yue and Xihua disappeared for no reason, where would they go?

It's a pity that she is a woman after all, and her daughter suddenly disappeared, so she is naturally more anxious than anyone else! She wanted to follow everyone to look for it, but when she was leaving, she was dissuaded by her husband Xu Feng.

Now it is getting late, and the terrain of the back mountain is complicated, and it is difficult to distinguish the road at night, for fear that she will follow, in case something happens on the road! Xu Feng comforted her and asked her to wait for news at home with peace of mind! Two maids were left in the living room to accompany her.

The group marched along the trail leading to the back mountain with torches. Xu Feng and Liu Ruyan led a dozen people to the mountain road on the left that led to the Valley of Forgotten Worries. Steward Ma and Cuilian led a dozen people to the plank road on the right that led to the butterfly garden.

The valley is located in a concave low-furrow area on the left side of the mountain behind Mingyue Peak, and the terrain is dangerous and complicated. The butterfly garden is located in a natural landscape garden on the right side of the mountain behind the bright moon peak, although the terrain is gentle, but the forest in the garden is numerous, the fork is vertical and horizontal, like a wide labyrinth, a little careless, it is easy to get lost. The two places close to form a circle, which converges in the middle. How easy is it to find two people in the dark of night?

The stars twinkled in the sky, and the silver-white moonlight shone on the bright moon peak, showing a quiet and bleak glow. An eerie atmosphere hung over the night.

The night is as cold as water, and the chill is getting thicker. The four fields in the back mountains are dark and quiet.

The two teams have arrived in their respective search areas.

The torches burned and hunted in the night wind, flickering with sparks that were extinguished. Dozens of torches lit up the dark mountains, and the shouts of the people resounded in the mountains.

"Miss, Miss Xihua, where are you?" shouted the servants of the house, holding torches aloft. The shouts came and went, filled with eagerness and anxiety.

"Miss Leng Yue, Sister Hua, where are you?" Liu Ruyan raised the torch above her head, opened her voice and called out loudly over and over again.

"Miss Leng Yue, Sister Hua, where are you?" he walked around the Valley of Forgotten Worries, carefully looking around, not missing every little corner.

Behind the crumbling rocks, in the deep bushes, in the dense woods, and even in the huge crevices that have broken off the cliff sides...... As long as it is possible to hide people, he will never let it go.

Xu Feng took five or six family members to all the caves in the Valley of Forgotten Worries to look for them. He thinks the most likely place for them to appear is in the cave. He has lived on this Mingyue Peak for decades, and knows every mountain, stone, grass and tree here, he avoids those obvious areas, and focuses on the dozens of caves scattered throughout the canyon, he thinks in his heart: these caves, there are a large number of forks, longitudinal and horizontal, and the terrain is complex.

If the two of them wandered around the cave and got lost, or entered a deeper place, it would be difficult to find out. Or, in an even more dangerous situation, you will be held hostage by some other force, and you may be imprisoned in a cave...... Until they are discovered, all speculations and assumptions are possible.

He didn't think much about it now, just a carpet search of cave after cave, not missing a single blind spot. Try to find them as soon as possible. Every second longer they are in danger.

"Leng Yue, Xihua, where are you, are you there......?"

Xu Feng and his family called over and over again, looking for ......

Liu Ruyan searched some hidden conventional places in the valley, and then turned to the edge of the cliff on the side of the valley to search, after he searched to no avail, he suddenly had an idea, realized, whether they have the possibility of falling off the cliff, just now in the courtyard, listen to the horse steward said, the two of them often come to the back mountain, in addition to having fun, there is also the purpose of picking herbs, maybe they found the herbs they were looking for on the edge of the cliff, and accidentally fell down the cliff when they wanted to pick...... If that's the case, then they'll be more than lucky!

Although the cliff of this back mountain is not as steep and dangerous as the front mountain, it is not less than dozens of zhang deep. Once you fall, you will either die or be injured! Either way, the consequences will be unimaginable.

The night is getting deeper and deeper, and the cold dew is getting heavier and heavier. He was tired from a day's climb today, and now he felt even more tired after running around. But for the sake of the safety of the two sisters, he couldn't care so much.

Over there, the horse steward and the team led by Cuilian also searched around as best they could, brandishing torches, tearing open their voices and calling the names of the sisters one after another, and the people were already shouting hoarsely, their mouths were dry, and the shouts echoed in the garden in the night, but they could not hear even the slightest response.

After searching for a long time, everyone was already exhausted. How could these two people, who were obviously jumping around, disappear out of thin air for no reason? Everyone had a big question in their hearts? Everyone couldn't figure out what was going on anyway? What happened during the day they came to the back mountain? Could it be that they were really in danger, and everyone couldn't help but have a hint of foreboding in their hearts!

The two teams searched until midnight, but still found nothing. After several arrows rose in the sky overhead, everyone met at the Mingyue Xuan in the middle of the back mountain according to the prior agreement.

Dozens of torches gathered together again, shining in front of the bright moon Xuan, as bright as day.

Xu Feng said to everyone with tiredness and frustration: "After searching for half the night, everyone has worked hard, and the old man is here to thank you." It's the fourth watch in the middle of the night, although I haven't found Leng Yue and Xihua, it's just that I'll make plans tomorrow morning, let's go back and rest!"

He forcibly suppressed the uneasy emotions in his heart, generously spoke to everyone, and then led everyone home. He was already old, he was already fifty-eight years old this year, and after searching in the mountains for half the night, he was already physically and mentally exhausted, and after thinking about it for a long time, he decided to think about it in the long term tomorrow and formulate a careful plan.

Perhaps tomorrow they will appear!, he tried his best to restrain his grief and insecurity, and persuaded himself to think of the good side of the incident.

At this moment, the stars in the sky have gradually disappeared, and the moonlight has dimmed, floating in a black cloud!

Everyone is looking forward to a miracle tomorrow!