The Martial Arts World is Full of Experts Chapter 4

17

Zhang Xiaoyuan shouldered his flower-patterned bundle once more, trailing behind his master and martial brothers as they descended the mountain together.

Below the mountain was the county town. With the day growing late, the streets were deserted, save for the night watchmen. She Shuyi found an inn, but only three rooms were available. They decided to share accommodations, with Master expressing a desire to play chess with Martial Uncle and insisting on staying together. The remaining three had to arrange their accommodations on their own.

Zhang Xiaoyuan thought, based on seniority, he should stay with Second Senior Brother, leaving the last room for Lu Zhaoming.

But Lu Zhaoming grabbed his arm and said, "I'll sleep with you."

Jiang Jianyu chuckled, nodded, and gave a knowing look.

Zhang Xiaoyuan felt there must be some undisclosed big secret.

Although he had known his eldest senior brother longer, Lu Zhaoming always maintained a serious demeanor. When alone with him, he felt a bit uneasy. In comparison, his second senior brother, who spoke with a smile, seemed more approachable.

However, Jiang Jianyu pushed him away and said, "I snore when I sleep. If you want to rest well, you better sleep with Eldest Senior Brother."

Zhang Xiaoyuan turned to look at Lu Zhaoming, as if seeking confirmation. Lu Zhaoming nodded slightly and added, "Louder than thunder."

Unable to resist, Zhang Xiaoyuan asked, "So, what about your usual..."

On the mountain, there were only two rooms – one for cooking and one for sleeping. If Jiang Jianyu snored loudly enough to shake the heavens, what were they supposed to do in their usual circumstances?

"Third Junior Brother, you don't know," Jiang Jianyu sighed, sounding aggrieved. "I usually sleep... on the kitchen stool."

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

The emperor's elder brother, sleeping on a kitchen stool.

Too tragic.

......

Zhang Xiaoyuan obediently followed Lu Zhaoming upstairs. The room was around the corner on the second floor. After traveling for so many days, he was exhausted, with eyes barely staying open. Despite the weariness, he felt filthy after the dusty journey. He requested an inn assistant to bring hot water and hurriedly bathed.

After a while, the inn assistant brought food. Lu Zhaoming stood outside the screen, calling him. Zhang Xiaoyuan, wrapped in his clothes, rushed out. Before he could reach for the chopsticks, he saw Lu Zhaoming slightly furrow his brow.

Although the expression on Lu Zhaoming's face wasn't too pronounced, it was enough to make Zhang Xiaoyuan nervously retract his hand, regretting his earlier action.

How could he forget the order of seniority again!

As the eldest disciple, Lu Zhaoming should be the first one to start eating.

With this thought, he felt even worse.

He... took a bath before Lu Zhaoming, would Eldest Senior Brother be displeased?

However, Lu Zhaoming merely reached out, pinching a strand of hair from his shoulder, twirling it in his fingers with a frown. "It's wet."

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "Huh?"

He had just taken a shower. Of course, his hair was wet.

As he was about to speak, Lu Zhaoming turned, pulled the white towel Zhang Xiaoyuan had used to dry his hair from the screen, and tossed it onto Zhang Xiaoyuan's head, startling him.

"Master said you recently recovered from an illness," Lu Zhaoming said expressionlessly, "Be careful not to catch a cold again."

His facial expression appeared distant, yet the words he spoke were deeply caring. Zhang Xiaoyuan stared at him, unmoving. He then proactively reached out, gently wiping Zhang Xiaoyuan's hair. Subsequently, his gaze lowered, noticing Xiaoyuan's loose collar. He furrowed his brows slightly, conscientiously tightening it and said, "Master asked me to take care of you, but you should also pay attention to yourself."

It took Zhang Xiaoyuan a while to come back to his senses. He nodded blankly, inexplicably feeling a bit embarrassed and warm. Quickly, he took over and started drying his hair. "Tha... thank you, Eldest Senior Brother!"

Growing up, aside from his mother, no one had ever done such a thing for him.

He discreetly stole a glance at Lu Zhaoming's face.

Lu Zhaoming, with an indifferent expression, ceased further words after seeing Zhang Xiaoyuan heed the advice. He sat down at the table, took a few bites of his meal, then set the chopsticks down. He looked up at Zhang Xiaoyuan and asked, "Aren't you eating?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan, still wearing the slightly damp white towel, hastily picked up his rice bowl, and nodded vigorously. "Yes! I'll eat now!"

On the sword-fighting arena, he took a hasty glance, but later, due to Lu Zhaoming's cold aura, he didn't dare to scrutinize further. He hadn't noticed before, but his eldest senior brother was surprisingly handsome, Unlike Mei Leng'an, he wasn't full of charm. With his sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, he appeared to be a chivalrous swordsman.

He couldn't help but glance at Lu Zhaoming again, only to be caught by his piercing gaze. As their eyes met, Lu Zhaoming's expression turned icy. Zhang Xiaoyuan shrunk back, focusing on the rice grains in his bowl, too scared to look again.

18

There was only one bed in the room.

Zhang Xiaoyuan gazed at the narrow bed, seriously contemplating tonight's sleeping arrangement.

Even though he was slightly younger, he was only a half-head shorter than Lu Zhaoming. After all, they were two grown men. Could they really fit on such a small bed? Was it spacious enough for sleep?

Before Zhang Xiaoyuan could come up with an answer, Lu Zhaoming had already stacked the table and chairs behind him, creating enough space for half of his body. He draped his outer robe over the table, jumped onto the makeshift platform, and looked up at Zhang Xiaoyuan. "Sleep."

Zhang Xiaoyuan hesitated and asked, "Eldest Senior Brother, you... sleep here?"

"No speaking while sleeping." Lu Zhaoming extinguished the candle. "Sleep."

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

DING.

Startled, Zhang Xiaoyuan quickly opened his eyes, frantically searching for strange words floating in mid-air. Those words weren't above Lu Zhaoming's head but the inn's slightly opened window. Zhang Xiaoyuan's eyes widened as he saw several words slipping through the crack in the window frame.

「Hua Liuque, a wanted flower thief on the run from various provinces and prefectures. Highly skilled in martial arts, numerous romantic debts, ranked 196th in the martial arts world, with lightness skill that could rank in the top five in the martial arts world.」

Wait, these words can go through walls?!

Zhang Xiaoyuan felt a bit nervous. When he carefully listened, there was indeed a very faint sound outside the door.

He knew he was absolutely no match for this Hua Liuque. Being ranked 196th in the martial arts world was already impressive. He didn't even know if Lu Zhaoming could handle it. After careful consideration, he thought maybe he should wait for this person to pass by, then wake up She Shuyi and Wang Henian in the room at the other end of the corridor.

DING.

Once again, he watched as the string of words emerging from the window crack changed.

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

19

Zhang Xiaoyuan rapidly calculated in his mind.

What kind of life do you still want?! Charge ahead!!!

Excited, Zhang Xiaoyuan turned to wake up Lu Zhaoming, only to find that Lu Zhaoming was already awake.

Lu Zhaoming seemed to not understand.

Hua Liuque just passed by their window, the footsteps slightly distant. Lu Zhaoming immediately rushed to the window, looking outside through the crack.

His movements were nimble, making such a large motion without emitting any sound. Hua Liuque remained completely unaware. Concerned that Lu Zhaoming might let Hua Liuque escape, Zhang Xiaoyuan gestured more vigorously. However, just as he raised his hand, Lu Zhaoming suddenly leaped out of the window like a cat, banging the window frame. Zhang Xiaoyuan was startled and quickly grabbed the sword by the bedside, shouting, "Eldest Senior Brother! That's a fleeing silver—"

He ran to the window and saw a man in night attire startled, attempting to use lightness skill to climb along the corridor column onto the roof. It was only then that he realized he misspoke.

Lu Zhaoming's lightness skill was slightly inferior to Hua Liuque's. If Hua Liuque leaped onto the roof, he could escape smoothly. This one hundred gold coins must not be allowed to fly away. Zhang Xiaoyuan was extremely nervous, almost shouting, "He's Hua Liuque! With a bounty of hundred gold coins from the authorities!"

Zhang Xiaoyuan stared in disbelief.

Wasn't that the sword Master had given to Eldest Senior Brother?

Could Eldest Senior Brother really be so indifferent?!

Lu Zhaoming had landed beside Hua Liuque, looking down at him. Only now did he catch onto Zhang Xiaoyuan's earlier words. Frowning, he asked Zhang Xiaoyuan, "Who is Hua Liuque?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

Zhang Xiaoyuan couldn't help but recall the battle between Lu Zhaoming and the senior disciple of the Scattered Blossom Palace on the sword-fighting platform.

Lu Zhaoming kicked that disciple off the platform and claimed he had exercised restraint.

At that time, Zhang Xiaoyuan didn't believe Lu Zhaoming's words. Now it seemed—

Sorry, Eldest Senior Brother, I misunderstood you!

So, you were telling the truth!