Une jeunesse errante

Chapitre 45

Master, wake up! Why are you sleeping like this? You're embarrassing the Fox King! Master, wake up!

Kiyomi Tsuki raised her hand and swatted at the mosquito, "Don't make a sound. I want more." She smacked her lips, savoring the taste, and said, "So delicious!"

Lu Qingcheng gently patted Qing Jianyue's face and said with a smile, "Jianyue, wake up. If you want to eat fish, open your eyes. If you close your eyes, you'll eat it up your nose."

Kiyoshi slowly opened his dark eyes, his gaze unfocused, his face blank and idiotic. Even so, he was still able to respond to Lu Qingcheng's words, "I didn't eat it in my nose, I ate it in my ear."

Lu Qingcheng laughed loudly.

Qing Jianyue gradually regained his senses, and his eyes brightened instantly. The white fox was overjoyed; its master had woken up. It immediately snuggled into its master's arms and meowed. Qing Jianyue sat up, reached out and hugged the white fox, staring curiously at Lu Qingcheng, who was squatting beside him laughing, and behind them, Wang Jie, who was bent over laughing, and two personal attendants.

What's so funny?

Zhang Zhichun's voice rang out from outside, "Lord, the Third Lord has returned. He requests to see you and is currently waiting in the living room."

The Ancient Pine Forest incident shocked the entire Lu Family Fortress. Lu Qingcheng was seriously injured and on the verge of death. As for the mastermind behind the incident, Lu Qingfeng, he had been imprisoned by Cai Bo'an, the chief law enforcement officer, and was awaiting punishment. Although the higher-ups strictly forbade the information from leaking out, the news was still spreading like wildfire throughout Lu Family Fortress, and everyone was on edge. If it weren't for Cai Bo'an, Lin Feng, and Bai Yiting keeping things under control, Lu Family Fortress would probably have been in complete chaos long ago.

Liu Xicheng paced restlessly in the living room. Since returning with the Third Lord, he had been bombarded with these alarming stories from the moment he entered the castle. What was he to do?

"Third Lord, you're surrounded by powerful enemies outside, and you haven't even dealt with them yet. Your home is already in complete chaos. What do you think this is? What exactly are the Grand Enforcer and Lord Lin doing?"

Lei Yongxiang sat upright in the rattan chair, holding a fragrant tea sachet, and said calmly, "Please be patient."

"Calm down, calm down. If we fight like this, we'll only lose, we'll never win," Liu Xicheng roared.

Lei Yongxiang ignored him, looking around the living room filled with green plants and exquisite stones, and praised, "I never expected the lord of the fortress to be such a refined person."

Liu Xicheng said irritably, "Third Lord, you should make a decision."

"Brother Yongxiang is back." A deep, melodious baritone voice, carrying boundless authority, drifted in from the courtyard. Lei Yongxiang hurriedly put down the sachet in his hand. As he stood up, Lu Qingcheng, dressed in a long black robe with a black gemstone headband, walked in with an air of nonchalance. "I figured you should be here soon."

Liu Xicheng stared in astonishment, his mouth agape, unable to utter a sound.

After Lei Yongxiang bowed respectfully, his bright eyes lingered on Lu Qingcheng's face for a moment before he said, "The fortress lord's injuries have not yet fully healed, please take good care of yourself."

Lu Qingcheng smiled and said, "Brother Yongxiang, you're too kind. My injury is nothing. Come, sit down and let's talk."

With a wave of his hand, Lu Qingcheng sat down in the main seat. Lei Yongxiang waited for him to sit down before taking his seat on the left, and frowned, saying, "Liu Xicheng, what are you standing there for? Why don't you pay your respects to the Lord of the Fortress?"

Liu Xicheng hurriedly greeted him, and said blankly, "Lord of the Fortress, you don't look like someone who has been seriously injured and is about to get cocky."

"Bastard!" Lei Yongxiang cursed angrily.

Liu Xicheng was so frightened that he staggered.

Next, Lei Yongxiang began to give a detailed report on the situation at the front. The Sky Eagle Sect's wolfish ambition to swallow up Lu Family Fort was obvious. The enemy was not only powerful but also had strong backing, and with Bu Zhou's actions, Lu Family Fort was constantly on the defensive. Due to its own weakness and internal discord, Lu Qingcheng did not act rashly. In response to the enemy's strategy of gradually undermining their strength, he ordered Lei Yongxiang and others to feign weakness and appear cowardly and incompetent, gradually instilling arrogance, contempt, and complacency in the enemy.

Another advantage for Lujiabao is that Li Ying, the mastermind behind this conflict, has been replaced. Now, the commander-in-chief of the Sky Eagle Sect is Li Ying's elder brother, Li Hong, the sect's future successor. This arrogant and headstrong man, seeing his brother about to successfully destroy Lujiabao, naturally wants to seize the credit. The Sky Eagle Sect's hasty change of leadership is a cardinal sin in military strategy.

Lei Yongxiang seized upon this, ordering He Zhiqiang to feign an attack on his forces, misleading Li Hong into believing that He's troops were the main force of Lujiabao. Li Hong then launched a focused attack on He Zhiqiang. He Zhiqiang, naturally, was no match for him, leading his troops in circles, luring the enemy from one mountain to another. Meanwhile, Lei Yongxiang, Li Anguo, Liu Xicheng, and Du Fangwei had already laid a perfect trap, waiting for He Zhiqiang to lure the enemy in before trapping and beating him.

At this crucial moment, news of the ancient pine forest incident at Lu Family Fortress arrived. Initially, Lei Yongxiang was genuinely alarmed, but he quickly sensed something amiss. He handed over command to Li Anguo and led Liu Xicheng and a small group of men back to the fortress to investigate. Upon entering the fortress, although the ancient pine forest incident was widely publicized, discipline was strict, and no one dared to act rashly. Lin Feng was on high alert, and Lei Yongxiang knew that this must be a trap set by Lu Qingcheng to mislead the enemy.

Cai Bo'an, Lin Feng, and Bai Yiting were quickly summoned to the study for a meeting. Half an hour later, these key figures from Lu Family Fort emerged from the study.

Under the autumn sun, the tall ginkgo trees emitted a soft golden light. Suddenly, they saw Kiyomi Tsuki standing under one of the tall ginkgo trees, his handsome face tilted back, his eyes closed. They couldn't help but stop in their tracks, wondering what trick this guy was up to now.

Sunlight streamed onto his face, and the thin, lip-like ginkgo leaves occasionally brushed gently against his lips. His expression was focused and affectionate, yet possessed an inner peace and tranquility. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and smiled, a radiant smile that shone brightly in harmony with the soft golden light of the autumn sun and the ginkgo trees.

What a bright and radiant person he is!

Lu Qingcheng's bright, dark eyes shone in the sunlight, like a burning flame. A surge of heat coursed through her body; the feeling was intense and peculiar, and her heart pounded uncontrollably.

"Cousin, do you like seeing the moon?"

Unexpectedly, he recalled his conversation with Qingfeng that night.

What are you thinking?

"It's okay if you don't want to admit it. I've already made up my mind to pursue Mizuki."

"Nonsense. Jianyue is a boy."

“Cousin, why hide it? We both know the truth, don’t we? Actually, I’m just as curious as you about Jian Yue’s mysterious identity and the secrets hidden behind him. Of course, I also adore his lovely smile just like you.”

"You'd better not do anything reckless."

"Let's make a gentleman's agreement."

"agreement?"

"Don't worry, I won't be so rude as to ask you to give Jian Yue to me, because that wouldn't be fair to Jian Yue. We can pursue Jian Yue at the same time and see which one of us she falls in love with in the end."

Thinking of this, a strange and indescribable sense of frustration welled up in Lu Qingcheng's chest.

A white fox emerged from the woods, carrying a struggling, pitiful hen in its mouth, wagging its tail excitedly at its master. Kiyomi Tsuki bent down and patted its head. The fox opened its mouth, and the hen slipped away, flapping its wings and squealing desperately as it fled. Kiyomi Tsuki tapped the fox's head with her finger and began her family lecture. The white fox's large, snow-white tail swayed gently, as if to say: Master, I am a fox. It's perfectly normal for a fox to steal chickens.

"It's Kiyomizuki. I didn't expect her to become even more beautiful in just a few days. That smile just now was so cute. If she dressed up as a girl, she would definitely be as beautiful as an elf. Hehe, it would be so much fun to marry a girl like that."

Liu Xicheng was always outspoken. Before he could finish speaking, a palm strike came crashing down on his head. Liu Xicheng cried out in pain.

"Who was it? Who attacked me?"

He clutched his head, tears welling in his eyes, searching for his attacker with murderous intent. Unexpectedly, he was met with Lei Yongxiang's fierce, murderous gaze: "You big idiot."

Liu Xicheng was so frightened that his jaw started trembling.

Bai Yiting stole a glance at Lu Qingcheng's cold face, wanting to laugh but daring not to.