When Meng Ran opened his eyes, it was already the middle of the day, he slowly stood up, looked at Li Haoran who woke him up on the side, and asked softly, "Senior, is there something wrong?"

Li Haoran said lightly: "Let's eat, you can rest for an hour after eating, and continue in the afternoon." ”

"Good. ”

Meng Ran didn't say much, just followed Li Haoran to the main courtyard.

In the afternoon, according to Li Haoran's instructions, Meng Ran first swung 2,000 knives, and then meditated and vomited.

After dinner, Meng Ran was kicked into the lake by Li Haoran and practiced knife skills underwater.

In this way, Meng Ran began to practice knives at dawn every day, began to meditate after sunrise, and went to the bottom of the lake to practice knives at night.

Ten days later, in the afternoon, two uninvited guests came to the gate of Meng's mansion, it was Zhou Xiaowu and the Taoist priest named Chunxue.

After the report was made, Meng Ran cleaned up slightly, and went to the hall to meet the guests.

After Zhou Xiaowu and Meng Ran greeted him, he asked with a smile, "How is Meng Gongzi doing lately?"

Meng Ran nodded and replied, "Thank you Brother Zhou for your arrangement, my little brother has been doing well recently." ”

Zhou Xiaowu's eyes were full of smiles, and he changed his slightly closer title, and asked cordially, "What is Brother Meng Xian busy with these days?"

Meng Ran smiled and said, "When you have nothing to do, read a book, and when you are bored, go to see the scenery of Nanhu, and the days are pleasant." ”

Zhou Xiaowu coughed lightly, and said with a slightly serious expression: "Does Brother Meng Xian know what happened outside?"

Meng Ran shook his head and asked, "What's the matter?"

Zhou Xiaowu pretended to smile mysteriously and said, "Why don't you guess Brother Meng Xian?"

Meng Ran thought for a while, and already had a general answer in his heart, and asked softly, "What Brother Zhou wants to talk about is the matter of the new town?"

Zhou Xiaowu folded the fan in his hand, pointed at Meng Ran gently, and said with a smile: "Brother Meng Xian is really well-informed. What I'm going to say is naturally the matter of the new town, but I didn't expect that in the end, the black pot was carried by Qingfengguan, which is really interesting. ”

Meng Ran smiled slightly, and said in a flat tone: "There is something more interesting, do you want to hear it, Brother Zhou?"

"Oh?" Zhou Xiaowu opened the folding fan, pretending to fan the wind twice, Xu felt a little cold, so he silently put it down, and asked in a deep voice: "What is the interesting thing that Brother Meng Xian said? You might as well say it and let me have fun." ”

Meng Ran said calmly: "When I passed by the new town, I saw the Lord of the Thousand Households. ”

Zhou Xiaowu was shocked, and involuntarily pinched the folding fan in his hand, almost breaking the fan bone made of white jade, he pretended to be impassive on his face, and said, "Oh? That's a bit of a coincidence." ”

Meng Ran, who had been staring at Zhou Xiaowu, smiled quietly, then changed to a heavy tone, and said in a deep voice: "Yes, I didn't expect that day's farewell would be a farewell." ”

Zhou Xiaowu said a few words of pity, his expression was a little shy, and he looked like he wanted to leave but couldn't say it.

However, Chunxue, who was sitting on the side, had some eyesight, and whispered to Zhou Xiaowu: "Childe, you have to go outside the city in a while, don't delay the time." ”

Zhou Xiaowu was stunned for a moment, and then said to Meng Ran: "Yes, I almost forgot, I still have important things to do, so I won't talk to Brother Meng Xian, I'll visit another day." ”

Meng Ran smiled and said, "Brother Zhou is busy with important things first, and we'll talk about it another day." ”

Zhou Xiaowu bowed slightly, and then left in a hurry with Chunxue.

Meng Ran looked at the figures of the two of them drifting apart, sneered, and went back to the backyard to practice knives.

After dinner, Meng Ran went to visit Geng Huyuan and told him what happened during the day, and after hearing this, Geng Huyuan frowned and asked, "How could the imperial court push the black cauldron on Qingfengguan's body, this is too reluctant, right?"

Meng Ran also smiled bitterly: "Who knows, I think I should not be able to find the real murderer, and then use this to challenge the Dao Sect and reduce their worldly power." ”

Geng Huyuan pondered for a while and said, "It's a pity that there is too little news to specifically understand the intentions of the imperial court. ”

Meng Ran didn't care too much, but comforted: "Uncle Geng, you don't care about that, just take care of your injuries." ”

Geng Huyuan didn't mention this matter again, but just chatted with Meng Ran about other things.

The beginning of the sword practice is the end of mid-July, which coincides with the summer heat.

After the summer heat, it is white dew, and after white dew, it is close to the Mid-Autumn Festival.

At this time, Meng Ran had already been able to run the true qi in his body for seven or eight Great Zhou Tian, as if he had entered the second grade of cultivation.

Li Haoran was very happy about Meng Ran's rapid progress, but he didn't appreciate it too much, after all, there are still many prodigies who are young and not necessarily good, he pressed the surprise in his heart, and warned earnestly: "Meng boy, although your talent is better than ordinary people, you must not be impatient and arrogant, you must work hard to achieve a higher realm." ”

Meng Ran nodded yes.

In the days that followed, Meng Ran's number of swings had changed from the original four thousand to 12,000, and each of the eight types of knives was 1,005.

On this day, it is the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Zhou Xiaowu brought a retinue with a face to visit Meng Ran, and the two sat down in the hall politely.

Meng Ran picked up the teacup, took a sip of tea, and asked, "Why does Brother Zhou have time to come and see me?"

Zhou Xiaowu smiled slightly and said: "I've been busy all this time, and I hardly have time to stop and rest, so I haven't been able to visit my brother from time to time, don't blame my brother." ”

Meng Ran glanced at Zhou Xiaowu, slowly put down the teacup and said, "Seeing that Brother Zhou's complexion is indeed a little dark, I think it's been very hard lately." ”

Zhou Xiaowu looked down at the back of his hand, then looked at Meng Ran and asked, "Is there one?" ”

Meng Ran smiled and said, "It's good to be black, it's more manly." ”

Zhou Xiaowu laughed, "Brother Xian is just able to speak." I wonder what Brother Xian has been busy with lately?"

Meng Ran opened his hand very casually and said, "Look, I've been practicing swords lately. ”

Zhou Xiaowu looked at the old and new calluses on Meng Ran's palms and ten fingers, his heart was slightly solemn, but his face did not lose half of the smile, and praised: "Brother Xian is really diligent, but why do you have to practice knives?"

Meng Ran spread his hands and said helplessly: "Who asked me to pick up an unscrupulous master." ”

Zhou Xiaowu smiled, casually picked up the teacup next to him, and took a sip gently, so as to hide the coldness in his eyes.

At the same time, the old man with a yellow face sitting at Zhou Xiaowu's hand flashed a ray of essence in his eyes, and secretly mobilized the qi in his body to investigate the Meng Mansion.

After a while, his brow furrowed slightly, as if he had sensed something unbelievable, and his face was very ugly.

Meng Ran glanced at the old man with a smile, and then sat there with his eyebrows lowered again, waiting for Zhou Xiaowu to speak.

After Zhou Xiaowu put down the teacup, he looked at Meng Ran with a smile and asked, "Do you have any plans for tonight?"

Meng Ran shook his head and said, "It's nothing more than drinking tea and admiring the moon, listening to the wind and reading." ”

Zhou Xiaowu smiled: "Brother Xian is so interested. Set up a banquet for my brother tonight in the Zuihualou, and invite the virtuous brother to go to the moon and taste the wine, I wonder if the virtuous brother has free time?"

Meng Ran subconsciously wanted to refuse, but when he heard a cough that was not light or serious in his life, he changed his words and said, "I have time." ”

Zhou Xiaowu smiled, "Then we'll see you in the Drunken Flower Building at three o'clock, and if you don't get drunk at that time, you won't return." ”

"Okay, I'll be on time. ”

After Zhou Xiaowu heard Meng Ran's exact reply, he was about to say goodbye and leave, and Meng Ran sent him to the gate.

By the time Meng Ran returned to the hall, Li Haoran had already sat down there, holding a pomegranate in his hand, and was eating it with taste.

Meng Ran looked at Li Haoran with a strange expression and asked, "Senior, why did you ask me to promise Zhou Xiaowu?"

Li Haoran asked rhetorically, "Do you know where Zuihualou is?"

"I don't know. Meng Ran replied as a matter of course.

"Since you don't know what the Drunken Flower Building is, why do you refuse?" Li Haoran asked with a smirk.

Meng Ran almost fainted, "Does it matter? I just don't have time." ”

Li Haoran smiled, "Then you have time now." ”

Hearing Li Haoran's words, Meng Ran pursed his lips and asked, "What is the place of Drunken Flower Building?"

"You really don't know?"

"I really don't know. ”

The corners of Li Haoran's mouth curled slightly, and he said: "It is the largest gold cave in the city, a man's paradise, and there is no man in Jiaxing who does not know the drunken flower building." ”

Meng Ran was stunned for a moment, and then asked uncertainly, "Could it be the Qinglou?"

Li Haoran smiled, "You guessed right. ”

Meng Ran was a little dumbfounded and asked, "Why are you letting me go to the Qinglou?"

Li Haoran laughed and said, "Don't worry, I won't force you to break your child's body, I just go with you to take a look." ”

Meng Ran sighed and said, "It's not to see where to go, why do you have to go there." ”

Li Haoran didn't answer the question, turned around and went in the direction of the backyard.

......

It is said that after Zhou Xiaowu walked far away with the entourage, he asked in a low voice: "Senior Hu, what did you find out just now?"

The old man surnamed Hu thought for a while, and said slowly: "That Meng Gongzi only has a second-grade martial arts cultivation, but there is another unfathomable qi in the mansion, after my first temptation, I faintly noticed his location, and when I investigated for the second time, I couldn't feel his existence anymore." ”

Zhou Xiaowu pondered for a while, and asked in a deep voice, "What do you mean?"

Old man Hu said in a sullen voice: "The cultivation of that hidden master is higher than mine, but according to my judgment, the strong one is also limited, and at most it will not reach the eighth grade of cultivation." ”

Zhou Xiaowu thought for a while and asked, "You, Lao Lin and Chunxue, how sure are you?"

"Ninety and a half percent sure. ”

Zhou Xiaowu smiled coldly, and said in a cold tone: "That's good, let's test it another day, and if there is a chance, I will slaughter that person." ”

Old man Hu had a difficult face, and after thinking about it again, he said: "I'm afraid that those two won't help well, and when the time comes, it will be known by Lord Zhou, and it will be a little difficult to do." ”

Zhou Xiaowu's eyes were full of murderous aura, and he said coldly: "Then wait a little longer." You hurry up and give me a snare master, no matter what you did before, as long as you have the ability, my son will reuse it, as for the benefits, there will be no shortage of gold and silver treasure exercises. ”

Old man Hu's face was overjoyed, and he leaned over and said yes.