Chapter 86 Mutual Recognition
The courtyard of the system home was built, and the frost and wind were blocked out. The two maids were shocked, Yang Wenguang was shocked, and Zhe Jizu's face, which was mature enough to be almost middle-aged, was full of emotion.
He is only twenty-six years old, but he looks like a middle-aged man in his forties.
The sandstorms in the northwest are unbearable, but what is even more unbearable is the tragic battlefield where life and death are fought.
Zhe Jizu closed his eyes and breathed for a while, then opened his eyes, looked at Lu Sen, and asked with a smile: "Brother-in-law, I want to bring a few children over here to sit for a while, is that okay?"
When asking the question, there was a hint of inferiority in Zhe Jizu's eyes.
Zhe Jizu was indeed in power, but facing a relative who came from the prosperous capital, who had a higher status than him, more knowledge than him, and was even suspected to be a real immortal, no matter how generous he was, he could not help but feel a little bit of such emotion when he thought that he had never even smelled the breath of Jiangnan Chunshi.
You know, he is actually only twenty-six years old.
When I was about fifteen, I lost my father.
When he was seventeen, almost all of his elders had died. The only one left, Uncle Zhe Qi, was seriously injured and could not lift a sword or a gun, so he had to be sent to Bianjing City to retire.
This generation of the Zhe family was supported by four young men who were less than 20 years old at the time.
If we count Zhe Sanlang who is far away in Bianjing City, there are at most five people.
Lu Sen keenly noticed the inferiority in Zhe Jizu's eyes. He didn't understand why Zhe Jizu would show such an emotion, but this didn't stop him from agreeing: "Of course... How about this, let's hold a banquet here in two hours. Yingzhi, you ask the chef at home to bring wine and meat, and I will be responsible for preparing green vegetables, fruits and sweet juice. Bring all the wives and children at home, and we will have a good time."
Hearing this, Zhe Jizu's eyes lit up: "That's fine. I heard that my brother-in-law has a magic skill that can hold everything. I have to see it for myself. But... I hope it won't cost my brother-in-law too much."
He had also heard rumors from Lu Sen's market that the cave technique could grow varieties of lettuce for immortals to eat, as well as several kinds of immortal fruits.
It’s just that spiritual energy is scarce in the human world and its output is limited.
"Let's just have some fun together. What's the point of talking about whether it costs money or not?" Lu Sen waved his hand and continued, "By the way, I'd like to trouble Ying Zhi to send some tables and chairs over. Otherwise, many people in this wooden building will have to stand."
"Okay." Zhe Jizu agreed happily: "Leave it to me. We don't have much else in the Zhe family, but we have enough mutton and wine."
Yang Wenguang seemed to want to say something at this moment, but he just moved his lips and said nothing.
Then Zhe Jizu turned to Yang Wenguang and said, "Zhongrong, come and help too."
"Okay." Yang Wenguang nodded: "Brother-in-law, we are going out and will come back later. You can rest for a while first."
"Okay."
After Yang Wenguang and Zhe Jizu left, Lu Sen went up to the fourth floor, found the room that looked the cleanest, tidied it up a little, took out the bedding that Yang Jinhua had prepared for him, spread it on the bed, and then lay down comfortably.
Indeed...the vegetables and fruits in the system home can restore vitality. Lu Sen is not physically tired, but he is still mentally exhausted.
After a comfortable sleep, when Lu Sen got up, it seemed still early.
After he walked around the building for a while, someone finally came to the door.
Yang Wenguang led more than twenty strong men and carried a lot of tables and chairs over. Behind them, there was a group of servants carrying heavy baskets.
Lu Sen set the home system here to 'open mode' and waited for Yang Wenguang to lead people in.
"Brother-in-law, have you had a rest?" After Yang Wenguang came in, he felt the warm air here, breathed a sigh of relief, and asked with a fist salute.
"I slept well."
"Should we start preparing the banquet?"
"Of course no problem." Lu Sen looked behind him and asked, "Who are the chefs?"
Yang Wenguang pointed at several middle-aged men following behind him. When they saw Lu Sen looking at them, they smiled foolishly and bowed repeatedly.
Lu Sen walked over, put bundles of vegetables in front of them, and put out a lot of fruits, and said, "Thank you for your help."
It is windy and dusty here in Gyeongju, and there are not many edible green vegetables even in summer and autumn. But in this cold weather, there are so many fresh green vegetables, and where did this handsome man in front of me get the lettuce?
Immortal magic?
Master Lu?
Lu Sen's name had already spread here a long time ago. When they saw this strange sight, they roughly understood who the person in front of them was.
At that moment, several chefs bowed their hands, and the leader said, "Master Lu, please rest assured that these immortal vegetables and fruits will be prepared clearly."
At this time, Yang Guang came over, pulled Lu Sen aside, and asked, "Brother-in-law, you gave too much. Just take some out and let us have a taste."
The amount Lu Sen took out was enough for twenty or thirty people to have a big meal.
"It's okay. I guess it's rare for you to have a banquet." Lu Sen said indifferently: "In that case, why not do it better."
Yang Wenguang stared at Lu Sen for a while, and seeing that he was not trying to save face, he said, "Okay, listen to you, brother-in-law, and let us warriors see the world."
Lu Sen smiled and took Yang Wenguang to the fourth floor. They sat by the window and looked outside.
The gray sky didn't allow for a long view, but Yang Wenguang still felt very comfortable this way: "In Qingzhou, no one is willing to sit by the window and look out at the distant view, because those who do so are fools, and their mouths will be full of dust in less than an incense stick of time. But my brother-in-law's cave mansion technique is worthy of its name, with inner and outer caves. Sitting here, I feel like I'm in a small courtyard in the south of the Yangtze River. It's really amazing. My mother's master, the Mother of Mount Li, may not have such a skill."
"Mother of Mount Li?" Lu Sen pondered for a moment and asked, "She sounds like a great person. Can you tell me about her deeds?"
"I don't know much, but I heard my mother casually mention it when I was young. My grandmother is already a thousand years old. She doesn't show herself in public. My mother became her apprentice before the portrait, and the voice came from behind the portrait."
I see!
Lu Sen probably knew what the 'Mother of Mount Li' was. It was probably just a 'title' that was passed down from generation to generation.
I lost interest immediately.
The two then started chatting about other things. After half an hour, they felt that everyone downstairs had almost finished their work, so they went downstairs together.
Downstairs, Lu Sen saw a large group of people standing, sitting, or playing in the yard.
They are all women, children, and young and strong people, there are no elderly people!
As soon as he came down, everyone stared at him.
Zhe Jimin immediately stepped forward, bringing a large group of people up with him to help introduce them.
In addition to Zhe Jizu, whom he already knew, Zhe Jixuan also came.
With them came their wives and children.
These people greeted Lu Sen one by one, and all of them affectionately called him brother-in-law or uncle.
While Lu Sen greeted them, he was also looking at this group of women and children.
Among the women, some are pretty and some are average looking, but they have one thing in common: none of them has fair skin and tender flesh.
Every woman's face had the color of wind and sand, and the big red spots on the cheeks that are common among women in plateau areas, and almost every woman here has it.
Moreover, they all have strong temperaments. When helping with the work, they can lift the square table made of solid wood, which weighs dozens of pounds, with just a little effort from their hands.
The children looked similar.
They all look like chubby and silly kids, and none of them looks like the golden boy or jade girl carved out of jade.
While Lu Sen, Zhe Jizu and others were chatting, the chefs brought the dishes.
A variety of meat and vegetable combinations, and a variety of fruits and dishes are presented on the plates.
There are also many special scene dishes carved out of fruit pulp, such as Meeting on the Broken Bridge, The Milky Way Falling from the Sky, Xizi Holding Her Heart and so on!
The people and scenery are all so beautifully carved that you can’t bear to eat them.
Lu Sen looked at the dishes and thought back to the chefs who had the temperament of old farmers from northern Shaanxi. He felt that his world views were showing signs of being shattered.
"My Lord, my Lord!" A boy with a pigtail pulled at Zhe Jizu's clothes. "It's fruit, isn't it?"
"That's right." Zhe Jizu smiled and said, "Uncle Lu Sen gave it to you. You must remember his kindness."
The little boy and a group of children nearby heard it, and they all held their fingers and looked eagerly at the dishes being served.
"If there are enough people, let's start." Lu Sen felt the anxiety of these children.
Zhe Jimin waved his hand and said, "All women and children should go to the second and third floors. By the way, Zun Dao should stay."
Then the women, children and young children went upstairs happily.
There was a young boy who looked to be about fifteen years old who stayed.
Only a large round table was left in the main hall on the first floor, where the men of the Zhe family, Yang Wenguang, and Lu Sen were sitting alone.
During meals, only men are qualified to sit in the main hall, while women and children sit in the side halls.
This is the rule at this time.
The table was filled with delicious food and drinks from the Zhe family.
Zhe Jimin patted the young man on the shoulder and said, "Zun Dao, pour a glass of wine for your uncle, and then toast him."
The young man did as he was told. When he held the bowl to clink glasses with Lu Sen, he placed his own bowl very low and drank it all in one gulp.
Lu Sen doesn't like drinking very much, but at this time, it would be unkind not to drink.
He drank it all in one gulp.
Yang Wenguang saw this scene from the side and seemed slightly surprised.
Zhe Jimin asked the young man to fill a bowl of rice wine for Lu Sen and himself, then he raised the wine and said, "Brother-in-law, Zun Dao is my eldest son, his real name is Zhe Kexing. I had planned to let him accompany the army in this attack on Xixia, but since you are here, I want to arrange him to be by your side and protect you. Although Zun Dao is still young, he is quite talented in martial arts, and his martial arts skills are almost as good as Zhong Rong."
Yang Wenguang laughed twice, feeling a little embarrassed.
The young man named Zun Dao smiled innocently, looking quite embarrassed.
Lu Sen was a little surprised: "Zun Dao should be only about sixteen years old, but his martial arts skills are already on par with Zhong Rong? He is a martial arts genius."
The expressions of the Zhe family and Yang Wenguang became increasingly strange, as if they were trying to hold back their laughter.
But the young man said, "Uncle, I am twelve years old."
Lu Sen was stunned. He was not surprised at the young man's talent for martial arts, as he could fight with a master like Yang Wenguang at the age of twelve. Nor was he surprised at the young man's mature appearance. Instead, he was astonished that the eldest son of the Zhe family, who was just over twelve years old, was going to the battlefield.
"Guangxiao, or Marshal Zhe, even if you have great confidence in your eldest son, isn't it a case of forcing him to grow too fast by sending him to the battlefield at the age of twelve?"
Seeing that Lu Sen was about to call him to task, Zhe Jimin suddenly smiled happily: "Brother-in-law really treats us as his own family. I know you are worried about Zun Dao, but all the children in the Zhe family have gone through this."
Lu Sen didn't say anything and continued to listen.
"I went to war with the army when I was ten years old. I wasn't on the front line at that time, but I followed my father in the big tent and watched how he arranged the troops." Zhe Jimin continued, "When I was twelve years old, my martial arts skills gradually improved, and I began to charge and kill the enemy with my father. When I was fifteen years old, my father died in the battle. If I hadn't had five years of experience in the battlefield and hadn't been familiar with the generals and able to command them, it would not have been so easy for my Zhe family to know the affairs of Qingzhou."
Zhe Jizu and Zhe Jixuan standing next to them both had bitter expressions on their faces.
They still remember that after their fathers and uncles died in the war, the Zhe family was in a gloomy mood and they, who were still young, almost collapsed.
Not only do he have to support the Zhe family, he also has to support the entire northwest front.
The pressure is so great that it can crush a person to death.
But in the end, they managed to get through it.
This is how they got here, so naturally their sons have to follow the same path.
Otherwise, if several of them died in the battle, and the younger generation had no experience in fighting in the desert, who would be able to protect them?
Lu Sen was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "Thank you very much for your protection, Zun Dao."
"It's my duty to protect our elders." Zun Dao clasped his hands together, still smiling naively.
As the two were talking, the noise upstairs gradually grew louder.
Mixed with the screams of young children.
"Mom, this little fruit man is delicious."
'Mother, this green bridge made of fruit pulp is sweet.'
'This water is so sweet.'
Listening to the laughter above, Zhe Jimin couldn't help but smile and said, "Let's start eating too. Let's have a toast first."
The wine bowls clinked lightly, and Lu Sen followed their lead and drank the yellow wine, which was not very strong.
As the food and wine went down their throats, the atmosphere among the group became more harmonious.
By late at night, the dishes on the table were almost finished. Zhe Jimin and others expressed their gratitude profusely and then left with their families.
Everyone was very full, especially the children, who had their stomachs full of fruit pulp and walked unsteadily with their bellies bulging.
Zhe Jimin walked in front, and Yang Wenguang followed beside him.
"Zhongrong, our brother-in-law is really good, really good." Zhe Jimin said with a smile: "I always worried that he was of noble status and didn't look down on us distant relatives in the mountains, but after this banquet, I feel that he is just like us, a sincere and kind person."
At this time, Yang Wenguang sighed, and then said: "I think that Guangxiao, you had a little suspicion of your brother-in-law before, but you fell into the trap."
"What does this mean?" Zhe Jimin asked curiously.
"My mother wrote to me a few days ago, asking me to find a way to help my brother-in-law stop drinking. She knows that we killers love to drink."
"Why? If a man doesn't drink, how can he still be called a man?" Zhe Jimin was puzzled.
Yang Wenguang continued, "My brother-in-law doesn't seem to drink. At the wedding banquet with my younger sister, they only served honey sweet juice, but no wine. Even after being married to him for so long, my younger sister has never seen him drink. My mother guessed that this was probably a taboo in his practice, and it was not convenient for him to drink. But tonight, he repeatedly clinked glasses with us and did not spoil the fun. If he didn't really treat us as family, how could he break the taboo like this."
Zhe Jimin was stunned. He couldn't help but turn around and look at the wooden building behind him, but it was already dark and he could only see a black shadow standing there in the distance.
After a while, he retracted his gaze and said softly, "In the future, as long as our Zhe family has something to eat, we will never let my brother-in-law suffer any grievances."
