My spirit appeared on the road to exile, and I was treated as an ancestor.

Chapter 82 Meeting an Old Friend on the Lantern Festival
Lu Zhou and Lu Xingyao were puzzled by Lu Qing's reaction. Shouldn't they be happy about such a divine object?

Gu Xingzhao also looked at Lu Qing, and had some guesses in his mind. After all, the main use of kerosene in ancient times was as a weapon for fighting. The old man probably thought of this.

Lu Qing said in a deep voice, "The world is in turmoil right now. If this item falls into the wrong hands and is used as a weapon, have you considered the consequences?"

Prince Su is ambitious, and war is inevitable. If he obtains this item, it will bring disaster to the people of the world.

After thinking it over, Lu Zhou felt a chill of fear and hurriedly urged his son to put the things away.

Lu Xingyao felt that casualties were normal in war. This thing was powerful, but as long as it didn't fall into the hands of someone with bad intentions, even if it was used as a weapon, it would still be used to defend against foreign enemies. Wasn't that a good thing?

If the dog emperor doesn't let them off the hook in the future, having this item in hand, they might be able to make a use of it.
Seeing his grandfather's worry, Lu Xingyao didn't voice his thoughts, but simply put away the kerosene.

Gu Xingzhao knew that the old man was wholeheartedly devoted to the people and had always opposed the war, but some things cannot be resolved by opposition alone. In this situation, war was unavoidable.

Lu Qing gave his son and eldest grandson a few more instructions before walking back with his cane, no longer thinking about what had just happened.

He Zhen used the money left by Gu Xingzhao to rent a house in the capital and hired back the guards and old women from the former Liu family.

She had a large room cleaned out specifically for Gu Xingzhao's use.

She and her child lived in a slightly smaller house next door.

Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival, and Gu Xingzhao sent over all the fireworks and taught He Zhen in detail how to use them. She found that He Zhen was really smart and could understand everything very quickly.

I have a pretty good eye for people!
He Zhen brought the shopkeeper from the Xu family who was in charge of the parade, and secretly transported away the fireworks they were going to use, just waiting to set them off when the Xu family's parade took place the next night!
After the Lu family's incident, the Xu family, who were related by marriage, also suffered setbacks in their business. Their decision to cooperate with He Zhen was partly a gamble, as they believed that if the portrait was so exquisite, the actual product would surely be just as good.

On the day of the Lantern Festival, Gu Xingzhao made preparations in advance, wanting to give the Lu and Liu families a surprise.

To make sure Lu Qing and the others took it to heart, she spoke in a more serious tone, "Lu Qing, don't let anyone read tonight. Have everyone go into their own tents at night, especially Lu Yang and Xu Shi. Just leave one or two people outside to take turns keeping watch. I have something important to say, and remember to call the Liu family along."

Hearing the unprecedented seriousness in his ancestor's tone, Lu Qing wondered what had happened and felt uneasy. Could it be that someone in the family had done something wrong and the ancestors were holding him accountable?

He dared not delay and quickly relayed his ancestor's words to his grandson, instructing him to pass them on one by one.

Gu Xingzhao originally intended to give them a surprise, but it turned out to be a shock.

When the words reached the ears of the Lu family members, their hearts began to pound with unease. They couldn't help but guess that the ancestor had summoned all the adults because something big must have happened!
They began to rack their brains trying to recall if they had said or done anything wrong.
Could it be that my ancestors found out about me stealing the heat packs?

Or did the ancestors find out that we were secretly discussing whether our ancestors were male or female?

Could our ancestors have unleashed divine punishment in their rage?
The Liu family knew nothing about it, but seeing the Lu family's nervousness, they became nervous as well.

This feeling of unease and tension lingered until nightfall. The thirty-odd people went into their tents, while those with guilty consciences volunteered to stand guard outside.

Lu Yang also wanted to stay outside and guard the place. Although being favored by the ancestors was something to be happy about, it was best not to be struck by lightning a second time.
Lu Qing ordered his men to drag his second son into the tent and keep a close watch on him. He now strongly suspected that his second son had caused some trouble, otherwise why would the ancestors have specifically instructed that his second son's family be present?

Lu Youtang looked confused. "Mother, am I not practicing calligraphy tonight?"

Mrs. Xu was also nervous. She patted her daughter's head and said, "Let's not practice calligraphy tonight. Let's get some rest."

Lu Yang was on the verge of a breakdown. "My dear daughter, why are you still practicing calligraphy? Our family is about to face a major disaster!"
When Gu Xingzhao turned on the projector, he saw that everyone in the tent looked like they were facing imminent disaster and were about to die. He was completely bewildered: "???" What's going on?

Gu Xingzhao immediately asked Lu Qing, "Lu Qing, what happened? Why does everyone look so gloomy?"

Hearing his ancestor's voice, Lu Qing dared not be negligent: "Replying to my ancestor, everyone is waiting for you."

How could he dare to tell the truth? Did he want the ancestors to know that everyone was afraid of being struck by lightning?

Gu Xingzhao then turned on the projection function for each tent, projecting the scene of the capital city at this moment into the tents, wanting them to also experience the lively atmosphere of the capital.

The moment the projection started, the tent in front of them disappeared, replaced by a sea of ​​people, some carrying lanterns, others walking in groups, their ears filled with laughter and chatter, as they found themselves in a bustling street.

Everyone was shocked, exclaiming, "!!!"

"What...what is this?"

Just moments before, hearts were filled with anxiety, and before anyone could even breathe a sigh of relief, someone recognized everything before them and exclaimed, "It's the capital! It's the capital!"

Our ancestors brought the scenery of the capital city to them, just like they showed them the snow on New Year's Eve last time!
Some people even recognized them, exclaiming, "It's my cousin and his wife!"

"Look, isn't that Aunt Wei who cooks for us in the kitchen?!"

Lu Qing's heart was pounding, and his hands were trembling with excitement. The ancestors had gathered everyone together so that they could also experience the lively atmosphere of the Lantern Festival with the people in the capital.

Gu Xingzhao also sat down next to the old man, and seeing everyone's happy faces, she felt happy too.

However, this is just the beginning.

The floats of various businesses began to parade through the streets, creating an extremely extravagant spectacle. Some businesses even hired famous courtesans from the capital to perform on their floats and scatter flowers, causing a sensation among the surrounding people, who flocked to follow the floats!

When the Xu family's float came out, Lu Youtang's eyes lit up, and she exclaimed in surprise, "Mother! Mother! It's my maternal grandfather and grandmother!"

All eyes turned to the Xu family's float. Although the Xu family's float was quite nice, it lagged far behind the other families who had performers.

But no one cared about any of that; all they cared about were their relatives and friends far away in Beijing.

Upon seeing her parents, Xu felt they had aged considerably. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she tugged at her husband's sleeve to wipe them away.

Lu Yang was overjoyed; his wife had taken the initiative to tug at his sleeve!

He thanked his ancestors in his heart no less than a hundred times.

At this moment, Lu Qing finally understood why the ancestor had specifically instructed that the second son's family be present. He couldn't help but sigh that the ancestor had treated the Lu family with indescribable kindness.

Suddenly, the Liu family members also became excited, pointing at the people on the Xu family's bridal car and shouting at Liu Xiangbai, "It's the young mistress!"

"Young master, look! It's our young mistress!"

(End of this chapter)