Eternal Swordmaster

Following the stone bridge, a servant led both him and An Ying to their respective rooms. After carefully instructing An Ying, Lin Xin entered his own courtyard.

In the oval-shaped courtyard, there was an artificial hill and stream, with everything one could wish for a time-honored estate. A young maid clad in a green dress approached, offering to help him take off the sword on his back.

"No need," Lin Xin shook his head, "you go and boil some water for my bath."

"Yes, young master," the maid replied and left the room. She had been taking care of Lin Xinru since she was small, so there was no sense of unfamiliarity.

Standing in the courtyard, Lin Xin surveyed his surroundings once over and then took a stool from the room to place beside the artificial hill, sitting down heavily.

This place was Lin Xinru's home, but not his, Lin Xin's home. Sitting here, his memory held a sense of familiarity, but at that moment it was filled with strangeness.

He watched the carp in the pond in front of him lazily swaying their heads and tails as they swam slowly, with a few green fallen leaves floating on the water's surface, the origin of which he couldn't tell.

Stretching out his hand, Lin Xin dipped his fingers into the pond water—an ice-cold chill, bone-penetrating. His fingers stirred the water, ripples radiating outward, frightening the carp into scurrying off to a farther corner.

Lin Xin shook his head and heard the distant sound of guests being welcomed outside. It seemed his younger brothers were accompanying his father, Lin Zhiwen, to greet the visitors. There was also the unceasing voice of the doorman acknowledging the guests, clearly indicating that many gifts had arrived.

"It's too boring to just sit here like this...." Lin Xin stood up, returned to his room, took the longsword on his back, and without unsheathing it, began to practice the Red Pine Sword Technique slowly. Mastering it as an instinct was going to take quite some time.

While practicing swordsmanship, Lin Xin was wrestling with his thoughts. This time, he had planned to purchase medicinal herbs and see if he could take care of the Long-Eared Tiger issue. However, the money required for the herbs was no small amount. To prepare a dose following the Return to Origin Pill recipe, at least a hundred taels of silver would be needed. The dojo had made a windfall the last time they fended off the Hengdao Sect, and after converting various seized swords to cash and accounting for living expenses up till now, there were about twenty-odd taels left. Far from enough.

"A hundred taels of silver.... Converted into present-day prices, that's over a hundred thousand...." Lin Xin's heart twisted further. Even though his family owned considerable land, such a sum wasn't easily obtained.

Outside, the dusky light of day gradually dimmed, and finally, the maid in the green dress came in with a basin of hot water. Accompanying her was a beautiful middle-aged woman.

"Xinru...." The woman, attired in a water-red dress and adorned with a golden phoenix hairpin, was clearly very pretty in her youth. However, her features now carried a subtle expression of sorrow, as if her brow was perpetually furrowed.

Lin Xin felt a headache coming on at the sight—this was his mother. No... the mother of the body he occupied... Zhao Yu Niang.

"You've grown thinner...." Lin Xinru's mother came over and gently touched Lin Xin's face.

"...." Where did you get the idea that I've lost weight....

In recent days, Lin Xin had distinctly felt he had gained a few pounds....

"This time when you're back, don't go back up the mountain," Zhao Yu Niang whispered. "The house has been unrestful lately, and we're stretched thin. There is chaos in the wilderness, too. I've heard that a notorious bandit has surfaced nearby, killing without blinking. Even the Government can't handle him. If you run into him, it would be troublesome."

"A notorious bandit?" Lin Xin immediately thought of his martial uncle Bo Yunzi, whose moves taught to them were utterly despicable and underhanded. If there was a bandit of great prowess nearby, it might just be this very uncle....

"Indeed, just a few days ago, a family in the eastern part of the city was slaughtered; from their eighty-year-old grandmother to the three-year-old child, none was spared, absolutely ruthless," Zhao Yu Niang said as she pulled Lin Xin into the room to sit down, while the maid, carrying hot water, dampened a towel to wipe Lin Xin's face.

"It's okay, we know martial arts, and we don't have much for a robber to take. That notorious bandit wouldn't start with us," Lin Xin replied offhandedly.

Even if there was something to steal, with martial uncle Bo Yunzi around, the average bandit wouldn't dare come near. Nowadays, anyone who can roam the lands of the vast south and north unscathed is both physically strong and highly skilled in martial arts—after all, the wilderness is full of fierce beasts and thieves. Travelling alone without harm speaks for itself.

Having chatted with his mother for a while, she directly inquired about An Ying, showing keen interest. However, by her tone, Lin Xin suspected she intended An Ying to be a concubine. He casually brushed off the topic and with difficulty eventually managed to send her away.

After the sun had set, Lin Xin took An Ying out for a stroll around the estate before heading towards the main courtyard—the Lantern Festival's feast was an occasion for family dining together.

Passing through a somewhat narrow courtyard, he joined the others as they entered the grand hall of the main courtyard.

Centered in the hall, resplendent with red lacquer, sizable enough to fit a basketball court, two rows of single tables had been arranged.

From eldest to youngest, from those of stature to the children, everyone took their seats.

Old Master Lin Zhiwen and Second Uncle Lin Zhiwu sat at the center, with Lin Xin's seat being the first on the left, and he went and sat down boldly.

Next was Lin Xinyue, the second eldest who managed one of the family shops in an outer city. She greeted Lin Xin with a bright smile as she took her seat.

The third eldest, with slightly dark skin and a robust figure, wore grey military attire that gave off a gallant air.

Lin Xinguang, the fourth eldest, sat with eyes slightly closed as if in meditation, already exuding the bearing of a County Magistrate before even assuming the post.

On the right were Second Uncle's sons and daughters, among whom Lin Xinyuan, who had met Lin Xin earlier, was seated. Some of them were married, while others were not yet wed.

An Ying and the other guests sat at the outer rows of seats, which appeared sparse in comparison.

In addition to the family's maids and servants, and all the young masters and young ladies gathered, there were a good thirty or forty people.

In the background, one could vaguely see the household protectors patrolling and changing guard.

Lin Xin sat in his chair, sipped the tea in front of him, and listened to Lin Zhiwen's pedantic summary of the year, inquiries about the state of each household, and a plethora of reports about big and small affairs, all of which made him drowsy.

After what seemed like an eternity, he suddenly caught the sound of an announcement.

"The Lantern Festival poetry composition begins now."

Then, looking up, he saw servants lined up with lanterns, starting with the youngest, Lin Xinguang.

With a smile, Lin Xinguang took the calligraphy brush, dipped it in ink, and quickly wrote a short poem on the lantern.

He read it aloud gently, immediately earning applause from everyone.

Then came the third eldest, who was a soldier. Surprisingly, he also came up with a decent poem about the Lantern Festival. Clearly, he had prepared in advance.

Next was the second eldest, Lin Xinyue.

"Streaming light, full moon, trees aglow with silvery flowers."

She didn't inscribe a poem, just uttered those two lines.

Then it was Lin Xin's turn. He was completely clueless about poetry and had no interest in it. Feeling quite accomplished just by recognizing all the characters in this place was already a big deal to him.

Now, looking at the inscriptions and holding a calligraphy brush, he thought for a long time, glancing around. He noticed the eyes of everyone gathering on him. An Ying was also standing behind him, tiptoeing to see, her face full of expectation.

In his head, there was a plethora of poems about the Lantern Festival. But the real issue wasn't that; the original handwriting of Lin Xinru was very beautiful, but since his arrival, he had never practiced or paid attention to it, and now he felt awkward even holding the brush. Still, he reluctantly held the calligraphy brush in the way he remembered from his memories.

After some thought, he simply drew a light circle on the lantern.

Hiss...

Instantly, there was a chorus of hisses from the surroundings.

Lin Zhiwen also shook his head, speechless. The fourth eldest, Lin Xinguang, sneered and turned his head away as if he couldn't be bothered to look at Lin Xin.

Then a bunch of children ran in, all being young masters and misses from the various branches of the family, forming a queue for their monetary gifts.

The fourth eldest, smiling, took some silver fragments from his purse and handed them out to the kids one by one.

On the side, the servants sang their acknowledgments.

"Fourth Master Lin Xinguang, one tael and five silver fragments for each child!"

"Truly worthy of the Fourth Master, the future County Prefect, always so generous," someone said aloud, laughing. The rest of the room also started laughing and beaming with joy.

The children's faces turned rosy with gratitude as they politely thanked him.

Lin Xinguang bowed to the people around him, said nothing, and after distributing the gifts, resumed his seat with a smile.

Then it was the third eldest, Lin Xinhu's turn, who casually tossed a handful of silver fragments.

"Third Master Lin Xinhu, one tael of broken silver for each child!" the servant announced cheerfully.

Following him was the second eldest, Lin Xinyue, who also grabbed a decent amount of broken silver from her purse and distributed it with a beaming smile.

It was also one tael and five fragments for each person.

Lin Xin was still waiting for the children to come to him for money, but unexpectedly, they retreated after reaching the second eldest, and the servant who sang the acknowledgments left too. It was clear that there had been no intention for him to give out gifts. After all, among the four siblings, he was the one without income and relied solely on family relief. It indeed wasn't suitable for him to give out monetary gifts.

But at this moment, as the eldest sat in his chair, he suddenly felt the eyes of everyone in the room upon him, heard some who were unclear about his situation asking questions, and even he, with his thick skin, felt a bit embarrassed for a moment.

Lin Xinguang, not far away, snorted coldly, glanced at him, and then shook his head and chatted with the third eldest, Lin Xinhu, next to him.

"Next, we will serve the Lantern Festival dumplings. The filling is made with a special ingredient from the Yun land by the sea…"

Whoosh...

Lin Zhiwen hadn't finished speaking when suddenly a cold gust of wind blew into the hall from outside. It was so cold that it made people shudder involuntarily.

The lanterns hanging on the columns of the rooms on both sides whooshed and went out at once.

Lin Zhiwen frowned, about to speak again.

"Someone has broken in!!" Suddenly, a servant outside shouted. However, the voice cut off abruptly, as if someone had forcibly grabbed their throat.

Instantly, there was some commotion inside the hall.

"Father, I will go out and check," Lin Xinhu stood and said loudly.

"Yes, be careful," Lin Zhiwen replied without any sign of surprise, he had apparently anticipated this. He ordered people to relight the lanterns.

Lin Xinhu, who had a military background, managed to find a sharp knife and carried it out of the hall, held upside down. Several curious adults followed him.

Lin Xin sat in his seat, his brow furrowed slightly. He had heard before that the Lin Family seemed to have run into some trouble, but he had not expected issues to arise now, especially on the Lantern Festival, when there were the most people around.

Looking back, he saw An Ying, who had somehow made her way behind him.

"That person is very powerful," An Ying whispered, her eyes shining.

Lin Xin nodded slightly.

Those lanterns that went out were no accident; they had clearly been extinguished by someone using Palm Wind, a feat of Palm Force he had only seen performed by his martial uncle, Bo Yunzi.