Sheng Fu

Chapter 1013 Cliffside Meeting
In the south, the weather is getting hotter and hotter; it is late spring and early summer is not far away.

Despite the uproar surrounding the new policies, there are still many anglers fishing along the banks of the Ruiyuan River.

It seems that for anglers, as long as their lives and livelihoods are not truly threatened, even if the sky falls, it has nothing to do with them.

Regarding the new policy, they would only say a few so-called fair words behind the scenes, and then nothing more would come of it; they were more concerned about where to go fishing.

The great river surged and rushed, its waves crashing against the shore, creating a tremendous roar.

The upper reaches of the Ruiyuan River, deep in the mountains and valleys.

On the cliff face, a long corridor hangs in mid-air, with rooms, stoves, tables and chairs, and all the necessary furnishings.

For anglers, this is undoubtedly an excellent spot.

Unfortunately, the cliffside corridor is too high above the river below, at least tens of meters away, so you would need a very long fishing line to fish in this half-suspended corridor.

At the end of the corridor, there is a tea table.

Xie Yiming, Chen Shouxin, Chu He, Grandpa Xu, and Zhu Xiong sat around a table.

Chen Dian, Zhu Hong, Chu Xin'er, and Xu Yuan stood behind their elders, taking care of serving tea and water, looking very obedient.

"It's been a long time since I've come to Ruiyuan River to listen to the tide. Logically speaking, autumn is the best time to listen to the tide, but this year the time for listening to the tide is a bit too early," Zhu Xiong said sarcastically.

The Zhu family was originally a low-ranking aristocratic family in the south, but because a prodigy named Qilinzi, who was ranked among the Five Wonders of Nanshan, appeared in the family, the family was promoted to a second-tier aristocratic family.

The strongest member of the family, at the early stage of the Lingxiao realm.

After the banquet where Zhu Hong visited eight times, Zhu Hong, like Huang Chun in the north, secluded himself to cultivate his spiritual practice and became detached from worldly affairs.

It takes a long time for a good seedling to grow into a towering tree.

The Zhu family naturally hoped that Zhu Hong could stay away from worldly disputes, focus on cultivating the Dao, and become a powerful figure as soon as possible.

Unlike the Chu family, at least Chu Xin'er was allowed to represent the family's reputation and make frequent outings to become a familiar face.

Xie Yiming naturally understood the implication in Zhu Xiong's words and said, "The current public opinion is even more turbulent than the waves of Ruiyuan River. Not long ago, Old Master Xu also encountered an unfortunate incident."

"The wind is also howling in the north. Even Huang Chun, who usually stays at home, has entered the Northern King's Mansion."

"The completion of the Northern Seven-Character Quatrain is truly a remarkable story."

"At least on this matter, the South cannot lose to the North."

"Harmony between the North and the South, and their convergence, is certainly my wish, but the South also has its own temperament."

"Don't you think so?"

Xie Yiming narrowed his eyes slightly, staring at the expressions of the people at the table.

Chu He remained calm and composed, while Zhu Xiong, the head of the family, clearly looked troubled.

Old Master Xu's eyes were unfathomable, and it was impossible to know what he was thinking. People of advanced age often have some strange and unusual ideas.

"Does it mean the north and south are echoing each other?" Chu He took a breath and clicked his tongue.

Xie Yiming nodded and said, "What else?"

In this situation, Xie Yiming felt an overwhelming longing for Zhuang Qin from back then.

If that child were still alive, he would likely be no less outstanding than any of the young talents in Fucheng.

In fact, Xie Yiming hated Jing Peiyao.

But there was no other way; it was the martial arts test at the Eight Visits Banquet, and no one could afford to lose.

With their strengths evenly matched, only a life-or-death struggle can determine a victor. Zhu Xiong said reluctantly, "Can our Zhu family stand aside from this matter?"

The so-called "staying out of it" means completely ignoring it.

They will not heed the call of those people from Nanling Academy, nor will they pay attention to Xie Yiming's attitude.

You'll never lose out by being a middleman.

Grandpa Xu smiled slightly and said, "It's understandable to be protective of your own, but if you're this protective, your little one will miss out on many magnificent sights, which is not good for his growth and cultivation."

"You must understand that this is an era of great strife, far from the peaceful times of the past."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiong paused, momentarily at a loss for words to answer Old Master Xu.

In terms of family strength, the Xu family and the Chen family are the most prominent.

Zhu Xiong was only able to sit at this table to discuss matters because Zhu Hong was one of the Five Masters; otherwise, Zhu Xiong would not have been qualified to sit at this table.

In fact, although Zhu Hong has been cultivating diligently over the years and has secretly gone to the Demon Realm battlefield to hone his skills, he now has reached the peak of the Breakthrough Realm and is quite powerful.

However, due to limited contact with people, both their social skills and insight have weakened considerably.

Moreover, Zhu Hong has also faced off against true masters over the years.

Even the one or two life-or-death situations he faced were barely overcome.

But there was no way around it. Zhu Hong might not be considered a rare young man in the South, but for the Zhu family, he was the hope of the family and the man who would carry on the family business in the future.

Standing behind her father, Zhu Hong's expression was slightly stiff. Xu Yuan, on the other hand, deliberately winked at Zhu Hong to comfort her. Zhu Hong lowered her head slightly, lost in thought.

When Chu He saw that Old Master Xu had said these words so casually, he immediately understood Old Master Xu's position.

"It's a good thing that young people can come together to build a career. There must be a reason for it. It's just that I have a daughter, so I should avoid anything violent as much as possible," Chu He said slowly.

Chu Xin'er's eyes immediately lit up, and she patted her father's shoulder vigorously, laughing, "Father is so sensible."

Chu Xin'er hit hard, and Chu He said with a wry smile, "I told you that you are a girl and should stay away from violent things, but you still used so much force. You really have no sense of propriety at all."

Upon hearing this, Chu Xin'er immediately stood with her hands behind her back, pretending to be nonchalant.

Then it was Chen Shouxin's turn to express his opinion.

Chen Shouxin stroked his beard and said in a sarcastic tone, "I'm different. My good younger brother is now a general in the Divine Realm. Although he is first-rate in military strategy, he can only fight some small-scale wars on the battlefield of the Divine Realm. He can be used as a general, but not as a marshal."

"The so-called top general in the South seems to become insignificant once he goes abroad."

“My younger brother often writes to me, so I have a fairly good understanding of the situation in the Divine Realm.”

"I don't think there's anything wrong with the new policy, especially in this day and age."

"In order to promote the new policies, I had Chen Dian resign from his position as the Prefect and Vice Minister of Dachun Prefecture. That shows my sincerity."

"Unlike some people, who are afraid of everything."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiong felt a burning pain on his face.

Xie Yiming also chimed in, "This matter is not mandatory; you can also stay out of it."

In just a few words, they managed to get Zhu Xiong on his feet.

Zhu Xiong was speechless again. However, Zhu Hong behind him could not hold back any longer and took the initiative to say, "I am willing to go out and live up to the name of the Five Greats."

Upon seeing this, Xie Yiming immediately laughed heartily and said, "Young people should be like this. They should always maintain their sharpness and edges, and never be worldly or pretend to be steady and reliable."

Just as Zhu Xiong was about to turn around and angrily berate his son, Xie Yiming secretly released a burst of true energy that landed on Zhu Xiong's shoulder.