The Unruly Immortals

As the two were conversing, a new disturbance came from the table.

With a "clatter", Li Huowang immediately propped up his head and looked toward the source of the noise.

He then saw Gouwa, carrying a lunch box and tiptoeing towards the outside.

"Brother Li, didn't you bring this back for us to eat?" Gouwa asked cautiously.

Li Huowang lay back down, a bitter smile appearing on his face. "Yes, it's only you guys now."

If there was anyone in the world he could truly trust, it was probably the brothers by his side, even if they weren't particularly useful.

Li Huowang used his hands to push up from the bed and sat up, the look of dejection on his face swept away.

"Gouwa, put the lunch box down and call Gao Zhijian over, let's eat together. Once we're done, we'll leave."

"Where to?"

"Home!"

A few days later, Li Huowang, Gouwa, Gao Zhijian, and Bai Lingmiao sat in the wagon, swaying from side to side with the bumps of the wheel.

Bai Lingmiao opened the curtain and warmly spoke to the coachman driving the horses: "Ah Da, thank you for giving us a lift. If we had to walk on our own two legs, it would take many days."

The old coachman, missing several teeth, opened his mouth and chuckled in response: "No trouble, it's on the way. However, missy, your home is quite remote. If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't even have known there's a village at the base of that mountain."

Gouwa instantly took offense to those words, "Remote? We paid our fare in advance! What, are you looking to hike up the price now?"

Chun Xiaoman across from him glared at Gouwa and said, "Shut your mouth! You talk too much; no one will think you're mute if you don't speak!"

Meanwhile, Gao Zhijian, huddled up, began to stammer as he tried to mediate the squabble.

Li Huowang, sitting on the inside, quietly watched the lively scene in the wagon. The atmosphere was noticeably more relaxed than before.

Since he had come to this world, Li Huo had rarely been seen.

A pair of soft arms wrapped around Li Huowang's hand, and with a smile she couldn't hide, Bai Lingmiao asked Li Huowang, "Brother Li, what are you thinking about right now?"

As they were about to arrive home, Bai Lingmiao radiated joy inside and out.

"I'm wondering... what Niuxin Mountain is like, not sure if we'll get accustomed to staying there; you know I'm not easy to get along with."

Li Huowang rolled up the bamboo curtain of the window with his hand and looked at all the lush greenery outside; the forest here was dense.

"We'll definitely get accustomed to it! Our village is full of nice people! Take my grandfather for example; he grows balsam pears. If passersby are thirsty, they can eat freely without charge. You're so nice; you'll definitely get along with him."

"And my parents, if anyone else in the village runs into trouble, they'll always help out with money and effort. And living with the village folks for so long, their faces haven't even turned red once!"

"That's right, and about my younger brother's generation, don't worry, they wouldn't dare to be presumptuous. If they give you any trouble, just tell me and I'll show them!"

Bai Lingmiao eagerly waved her pale fists in the air.

Seeing her endearing expression, Li Huowang smiled knowingly. It seemed she showed completely different faces in front of him and her family.

Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, Li Huowang gently shook his head, "I'm not worried, if they could raise someone like you, they can't be all that bad. By the way Miaomiao, I remember you used to wear a gold bracelet, your family must be quite wealthy, right?"

Bai Lingmiao gave a restrained smile, "It's nothing extravagant, just slightly better off than the average folk."

Li Huowang chuckled, thinking that the woman's family was wealthy and that from now on, he would be living with her family, essentially becoming a son-in-law who moved in with his wife's family.

"If I have to be a live-in son-in-law, so be it. No matter what that place is like, at least after wandering for so long, I can finally settle down." Li Huowang mused to himself.

Suddenly, Bai Lingmiao became excited, her white fingers pointing out of the carriage window. "Look, everyone! There! That's Niuxin Mountain!"

Li Huowang narrowed his eyes slightly, focusing on the distant mountain peak blanketed in green. "It's certainly big, but how does it resemble an ox heart at all?"

Li Huowang would soon forget this trivial question as he began to worry about the people from Lv's Troupe.

"They left early and should have already reached the foot of Niuxin Mountain by now. I hope nothing untoward has happened."

With this concern in mind, Li Huowang slowly approached the foot of Niuxin Mountain.

However, his worry didn't last long. When he saw Yang Xiaohai, barefooted, with a round-faced woman standing in a paddy field catching loaches, his concerns dissipated like smoke.

"Brother Li has returned! Brother Li has returned!"

Following Yang Xiaohai's excited shouting, people began to appear from the tiled village.

It had been almost half a month since they last saw each other. The reunion with Top Scholar Lv was very emotional, and he immediately grasped Li Huowang's hands.

"Taoist Master, you're finally back, I've been so anxious waiting for you."

"Band Leader Lv, you've had a hard time. Nothing went wrong on the road, did it?"

"Not at all, not at all, the number of people we had before is the same as we have now! Not one less!"

Then he proceeded to inquire warmly about Li Huowang's well-being, showing their close relationship.

"Let's go, don't stand here, we can talk inside." Li Huowang was just about to step forward towards the inside when Top Scholar Lv stopped him.

He first stole a glance at Bai Lingmiao, a look of difficulty crossing his face.

"Well, Taoist Master, there's no need to rush inside, there's something I need to talk to you about alone."

Li Huowang clearly didn't understand what the other person meant. "What's the matter, just say it. Why do we need to talk alone?"

He really couldn't guess what he could have to discuss with Top Scholar Lv that needed to be kept from the others.

"Ah... Taoist Master, look... There are some things that it's better to discuss in private."

Top Scholar Lv moved closer to Li Huowang, making faces and winking in Bai Lingmiao's direction.

Seeing this expression, Li Huowang's heart skipped a beat, and he glanced at Bai Lingmiao beside him.

"Band Leader Lv insists on talking to me alone, could it be that something major has happened to Miaomiao's hometown?"

Li Huowang figured out what Band Leader Lv was trying to convey, but unfortunately, Bai Lingmiao understood as well.

"Band Leader Lv, my family... What happened to my family?"

When she saw Top Scholar Lv evasively avoiding her gaze and the tears welling up on Bai Lingmiao's eyelashes.

"Father! Mother!" A tearful Bai Lingmiao pushed past the others and darted towards the village along the narrow path, with a concerned Li Huowang hastily following.

"Dad! Mom! Grandpa! Nannan is back! Where are you all?" Bai Lingmiao's cries echoed above the village.

Bai Lingmiao pushed open every door in the village in search of her family, but behind each one lay only disappointment.