I became a prince in a martial arts world.

Wang Yu awkwardly pulled the oxcart back and looked at the people coming.

The newcomer appeared to be about twenty-three or twenty-four years old, dressed in a slightly disheveled long blue robe. He had a carefree and unrestrained expression on his face, but was trying to force a kind and harmless smile.

Seeing Wang Yu looking over, he hid the long sword behind him again.

This is a very interesting young man.

Wang Yu's eyes flashed, and he waved to the person who had come in, "Get in the car."

The young man smiled and quickly walked to the oxcart. He first bowed to Li Yunxiu and Ziling in the cart shed before jumping onto the oxcart and sitting next to Wang Yu.

"Thank you so much, brother!" the young man said to Wang Yu. "I flagged down three cars, and you were the only one who was willing to give me a ride."

Wang Yu glanced at the sword in the young man's hand. "It's understandable to be cautious when you're traveling."

This is a black-sheathed longsword. The cotton rope wrapped around the hilt has become shiny from being coiled, and there are many scratches on the leather scabbard, making it look very old.

The young man leaned casually against the edge of the bicycle shed, smiling as he asked, "Aren't you afraid, brother?"

"If you wanted to harm me, you either wouldn't have shown your sword, or you would have just drawn it." Wang Yu shook his head, then revealed a teasing smile, "Perhaps it would be safer for me to let you get in the car."

The young man chuckled, then raised the longsword in his hand and casually explained, "It was a gift from my sect; I can't just leave it lying around on the roadside."

Wang Yu said "I understand," and then asked, "We're going to Puning County in the west, is it on your way?"

"What a coincidence! I'm also going to Puning County." The young man nodded quickly.

"Then let's go that way." Wang Yu cracked his whip, urging the old ox to start moving again.

……

Spring is in full bloom, and even the afternoon sun shines brightly. A gentle breeze makes one feel comfortable and relaxed.

They were just strangers who met by chance, and Wang Yu and the young man didn't exchange names, just chatted casually.

Wang Yu knew that the young man was a local and had gone to Puning County to help a fellow disciple who had encountered trouble. The young man also knew that Wang Yu was from Pyeongjin Prefecture in Gyeonggi Province and had gone to the Northwest to attend his father's funeral.

Inside the shed, Zi Ling looked at Li Yunxiu with confusion, not understanding why Wang Yu would invite a stranger from the martial arts world onto the bus, but she dared not ask.

Knowing Zi Ling's doubts, Li Yunxiu smiled slightly, first pointing to the three of them and gesturing three, then pointing to the young man and gesturing four.

Zi Ling seemed to understand something, and then looked at Wang Yu with great admiration.

Three days had passed since they disguised themselves and went in stealthily. The assassins on the road must have already known the news. Apart from those who gave up, there must be others guarding the main roads leading to Longshan Prefecture.

Puning County, which lies ahead, is a key town on the road from Lujiaji, where Yan Lao died of poisoning, to Longshan Prefecture. It's possible that there are relentless assassins watching the travelers coming and going.

No matter how they disguised themselves, they were still a group of one man and two women, and the age difference wouldn't be too big. After all, even if Li Yunxiu could make the three of them look like old people, they wouldn't be able to imitate the appearance of being old and decrepit, and would easily give themselves away.

Therefore, Wang Yu invited one or two more people along the way, preferably locals, which would actually help them get away with it.

The only thing that made Li Yunxiu a little uneasy was that Wang Yu had invited a江湖人 (jianghu person, a person from the martial arts world), rather than an ordinary person like a peddler or craftsman as she had imagined.

Of course, even if they are not江湖人 (jianghu people), as the saying goes, it's the darkest place under the lamp. Perhaps local江湖人 are less likely to attract attention, but the premise is that they will not expose themselves in front of this local江湖人.

As the saying goes, nothing in the world is perfect; if you enjoy the benefits, you must also bear the drawbacks.

Li Yunxiu looked at the two people outside the car. One was witty and humorous, and the other was natural and unrestrained. Wang Yu talked about his experiences in Pingjin Prefecture in great detail. The young man, upon hearing that Wang Yu had not returned to his hometown for seven or eight years, also talked about the roads and customs of the Northwest.

Just then, a flag appeared on the roadside ahead, with the word "tea" written on it. It turned out to be a tea stall located on the left side of the road.

"Have you finished your water? Ask the owner for a bowl of tea and some more water," Wang Yu asked the people in the shed, then turned to the young man and said, "I'll buy you a bowl of hangover tea too."

The young man didn't stand on ceremony, saying, "Thank you, brother."

Wang Yu parked the oxcart next to the tea stall, took the leather bag handed to him by Li Yunxiu, got off the cart, and asked the tea stall owner for tea and water.

The young man did not get off the bus, but leaned against the edge of the shed, taking in all the customers in the teahouse with a quick glance.

Only half of the people were seated at the seven or eight tables. A few traveling merchants and peddlers sat at two other tables, all of them cautiously and nervously drinking their tea. They glanced at the oxcart and Wang Yu, who had gotten off to buy tea, with pity in their eyes.

At the other two tables sat several men with unfriendly faces. The leader, a burly man, had his chest exposed, and despite being in a tea stall, he had half a jar of wine in front of him.

Wang Yu entered the tea stall and asked the owner for four bowls of tea and a bag of water. He then took out his empty purse, counted out twelve copper coins, and handed them to the owner.

Seeing Wang Yu's empty purse, the men next to the burly man looked at him questioningly. The burly man snorted and pointed forward. Two of the men then got up and blocked Wang Yu's path, one in front and one behind.

"Brother, are you on your way?" the man in front asked.

"Brother, lend me some money." The man behind him looked Wang Yu up and down.

Wang Yu had already made the necessary preparations. In his empty purse, besides a few dozen copper coins, there was also half a tael of silver. This amount of money would neither arouse their greater greed nor be so little that it would anger them and force him to take action and expose himself.

But before Wang Yu could take out his money, the young man sitting in the car spoke up.

"You curly-haired dog, why aren't you bullying people in Puning County? What are you doing here in the suburbs?"

"Who dares to do this?!"

"Nonsense! My boss's nickname is Curly Bear!"

The burly man flew into a rage and abruptly looked up, but before he could speak, the men around him began shouting.

"Who are you? State your name!" the burly man asked the young man.

The young man didn't answer, but casually tossed his long sword, sheath and all, to a man who rushed a few steps toward him to show his loyalty to his boss, but didn't get too close.

The man took the longsword and looked at the young man with a bewildered expression.

The young man pointed at the curly-haired bear, and the man seemed to wake up from his dream. He grabbed the longsword and ran back to the big man, handing the longsword to his boss.

"Boss, what does he mean?"

"Why did I give you the sword? Are you scared out of your wits? Or are you surrendering?"

Curly-haired Bear took the longsword, his heart skipped a beat, and then he picked up the scabbard to examine it closely.

"This sword looks pretty old," one person said. "It's obviously a worthless piece of junk."

"But he must be a江湖人 (jianghu person, a person from the martial arts world), so why did he give us his handy tools?" another person asked, puzzled.

"There's a 'white' character engraved on the scabbard, but the scabbard is clearly black!" The third person, with sharp eyes, noticed the engraving on the scabbard. "Is this person blind?"

Upon hearing this, Curly Bear was struck dumb. He slapped the third person across the face, yelling, "You're the blind one! Your whole family is blind!"

The man covered his left cheek, looking at the curly-haired bear with a terrified expression, wondering what he had said wrong.

Then he saw his boss turn to look at the young man, his expression changing from shock and anger to a fawning smile in an instant. Holding the long sword in both hands, he ran out of the teahouse and came to the oxcart.

"I was blind and ignorant, unaware that it was the esteemed Young Sword Immortal Fang himself. Please forgive me!"

As he handed the long sword back to the young man, he also frantically winked at the two men blocking Wang Yu.

The two men were quick-witted, especially after hearing the words "Little Sword Immortal." They acted as if Wang Yu had three-foot-long nails stuck in his body, quickly retreating to the side, heads bowed and hands hanging down, as if they had become quiet, invisible figures.

Only the young man rolled his eyes, took the longsword handed to him, and corrected, "Not 'Little Sword Immortal,' but 'Sword in Wine'!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Young Master Fang is right!" Curly Bear nodded repeatedly, agreeing with whatever Fang said.

The young man pursed his lips and didn't emphasize it again, but asked Curly Bear again, "Didn't you usually run a gang in Puning County, collecting money on the spot? Why are you out here?"

Curly Bear revealed an ugly smile. "A few tough guys came to the county a while ago, and they also attracted the great heroes of the Taihua Sect and the high monks of the Great Vajra Temple. I really dared not stay in the county any longer, so I came out to find some peace and quiet."

"So you're out here bullying people?" The young man asked with a half-smile.

The curly-haired bear's smile was more like a grimace. "I'm just a nobody, trying to make some money and vent my frustrations. I wouldn't dare take anyone's life."

Seeing the young man's sidelong glance, the curly-haired bear immediately said, "I'll return all the money to them!"

The young man nodded. "I didn't question you about taking bribes and doing favors in the county, but if you continue doing this kind of thing after you leave, aren't you afraid of running into some tough guys who will take care of you?"

"No, no!" The curly-haired bear nodded repeatedly before respectfully asking, "What brings you here, sir? Is there anything I can do to serve you?"

"I'll go in for the same reason you came out," the young man replied.

"Uh..." The curly-haired bear looked troubled.

"Alright, you can stay outside for a few days." The young man waved his hand, then asked, "How did this matter attract the attention of the Great Vajra Temple? Who came?"

"I don't know either!" Curly Bear quickly shook his head, then said, "It's Master Hongzhao who's here."

The young man clicked his tongue twice, then waved and sent the curly-haired bear away.

At the same time, Wang Yu, carrying a leather bag full of water and followed by two men each carrying two bowls of tea, also came to the oxcart. He joked, "I didn't expect I had the ability to tell fortunes. Giving you a ride will really make me safer."

The young man smiled, took the tea, and drank it all in one gulp.

……

The oxcart was on the road again.

Wang Yu looked at the young man, "You're Fang Shaobai, the most powerful young swordsman of the Taihua Sect?"

He never expected that the person he picked up on the road to cover his tracks was actually the new generation's strongest Double Flower Red Stick promoted by the Taihua Sect.

"You've heard of me too?"

Fang Shaobai raised an eyebrow, not at all surprised. After all, the stories of the characters in the martial arts world were the subject of conversation for storytellers everywhere, and ordinary people were also very interested in the mysterious martial arts world.

Therefore, many skilled martial arts masters are also well-known among the people.

However, he then raised the gourd in his hand, "Little Sword Immortal is just flattering me to death, and I don't want the word 'little' in my name. I gave myself a nickname: Sword in Wine!"

As he spoke, Fang Shaobai opened the gourd lid and took a big sip.

The aroma of wine filled the air.

Wang Yu sniffed it, glanced at Fang Shaobai in surprise, and said incredulously, "A sword hidden in wine? A grown man, drinking fruit wine, and getting so drunk that he missed the appointed time?"