Which Family's Heiress Are You?

Hearing this, the little kid sitting beside Lu Yang smiled with keen interest. "Is there a murder? Back in my hometown, I solved several baffling cases. I wonder if I can solve this one too." Considering that the issue might not be the feng shui of this cabin, but rather the feng shui of the entire flying boat, Lu Yang decided to disembark ahead of time and fly to the Sword Tower under his own power, writing off the rest of his ticket. However, a few unexpected incidents occurred en route—such as stumbling across a secret realm that opened only once every millennium, or running into a young lady from a prominent clan dissatisfied with an arranged marriage who dragged Lu Yang in as her shield. Because of these trivial matters, a journey that should have taken half a month ended up taking a full month of flying to reach the Sword Tower, arriving just in the nick of time. Feeling the thick humidity of Shuzhou, Lu Yang could not help but sigh with emotion. "Good thing I set out early, otherwise I wouldn't have made it in time for the Grand Sword Inquiry Ceremony." "...Is there any chance you wouldn't have run into any of that if you had set out a day later?" the Immortal Fairy could not resist asking. "Good point. A hundred years from now, when the Sword Tower hosts the Grand Sword Inquiry Ceremony again, I'll set out a day later." Lu Yang was rigorous in his methods. He knew that when conducting an experiment, one had to control variables and change only one condition at a time. The Grand Sword Inquiry Ceremony was a major celebration on the scale of the entire cultivation world, attracting many cultivators from beyond Great Xia. The Shuzhou authorities attached great importance to it; if they could take this opportunity to convince some sword cultivators to stay in Shuzhou, that would be ideal—a genuine, indisputable political accomplishment. Ever since flying cars had become popular, many sword cultivators had switched from flying on swords to flying in sword cars. After entering Shuzhou, Lu Yang saw many flying cars cruising alongside him. Many sword cultivators kept glancing sideways, even looking back two or three times as they flew past. After all, they had never seen anyone fly atop a Sword Cleansing Pool before. It was quite a novelty. Lu Yang did not mind the discourtesy of these sword cultivators. The patent rights to the flying car were in his hands, which meant all these sword cultivators had given him spirit stones—they were customers. Toward customers, Lu Yang had always maintained a hospitable attitude, as could be seen from his days running the barbecue shop. "Time for hot pot." Now that he had reached his destination, there was no need to hurry. One ought to settle down and savor the local delicacies; otherwise, wouldn't his trip to Shuzhou be in vain? This was a habit Lu Yang had picked up from Eldest Senior Sister. Hot pot shops were everywhere in Shuzhou. Every single one claimed to be authentic, boasted exceptional flavor, and was a time-honored brand with a stellar local reputation. Along hot pot street, the Try Again Barbecue Shop stood firm and resolute, ample proof of just how delicious the Barbarian clan recipe was when paired with Three Flavors True Fire and Pure Yang True Fire, allowing it to carve out a path even here. Tripe, yellow beef, filefish, duck blood, yuba... Small plates of ingredients piled high across the table. Lu Yang dropped them into the nine-grid pot according to his preferences, the spicy aroma greeting his nostrils. "Excuse me, seeing that you've ordered so much, will you be able to finish it all? Could I have some?" A woman dressed rather casually stood before Lu Yang's table. Her tone was hesitant, and she stared with longing eyes at the boiling hot pot. Lu Yang looked up and saw that the person speaking to him was an exceptionally gorgeous woman. Her looks were not in the least inferior to Junior Sister Tao's, and she had a superb figure, curvaceous and alluring. The only issue was that he did not recognize her. Lu Yang had initially wanted to say that he was a cultivator and could easily finish it all, but seeing her pitiful, begging expression, his heart softened, and the words on the tip of his tongue changed. "Go ahead and sit down to eat, then." Lu Yang waved to the waiter. "Waiter, another pair of chopsticks and another bowl of oil dip, please!" Lu Yang sighed inwardly with emotion. Thank goodness Old Meng had not come along; his luck was truly beginning to change. "Thank you, thank you so much!" the exquisite beauty thanked him repeatedly. "Which family's heiress are you, running away from home and forgetting to bring money?" Lu Yang asked with a chuckle. Although the woman appeared broke, her clothes were of extraordinary quality, clearly indicating a wealthy background. Eight or nine times out of ten, she was a young lady from some clan who had sneaked out and forgotten her purse. This was not the first time Lu Yang had encountered someone like this. Back on a flying boat, he had seen an heiress disguised as a little beggar, face covered in soot, sneaking aboard only to be caught by the chamber of commerce, until a kindhearted youth stepped in to pay her fare. Seeing that Lu Yang had misunderstood, the woman panicked and hurriedly explained, "Forgot to bring money? No, no, I just forgot that money was required out here. Where I come from, we don't use money at all." "Seems your family protected you quite well, never needing you to spend a coin in daily life," Lu Yang teased casually. "It's ready to eat." Upon hearing that it was ready, the woman imitated Lu Yang's movements, deftly picking up a slice of yellow beef speckled with chili flakes, dipping it into the oil saucer, and placing it in her mouth, her face blooming into an expression of sheer bliss. Lu Yang could not help but laugh. "Is it really that good? Haven't you ever had this before?" He admitted that Shuzhou hot pot was delicious, but surely it did not warrant such an exaggerated reaction. The woman blushed at Lu Yang's teasing and gave an embarrassed smile. "Truly, I've never eaten anything like this before." "I only came out to eat this. It's so delicious." The woman genuinely loved hot pot. The ecstasy on her face made Lu Yang wonder more than once whether the two of them were even eating the same thing. Passersby saw such a beauty dining so delightfully, a treat for the eyes, and could not help stepping into the restaurant, making the already bustling hot pot shop even more packed. The two of them devoured everything like a whirlwind, finally concluding with two bowls of ice jelly, thoroughly satisfied. "Waiter, the bill! And pack two blocks of hot pot base for me while you're at it." "What is hot pot base? Can you eat that too?" the woman asked, puzzled. Lu Yang shook his head with a smile. "You can't eat it directly. I'm buying two blocks to take back for my Eldest Senior Sister to taste." Eldest Senior Sister had a habit of sampling local specialties whenever she visited an unfamiliar place, and if feasible, bringing some back. "I'm heading to the Sword Tower shortly. What are you planning to do, Miss?" Lu Yang felt somewhat concerned about her. He did not know how her family had sheltered her, nor how she had managed to slip away. She seemed rather airheaded, lacked common sense entirely, and was extraordinarily gorgeous. Leaving her all by herself here—if something untoward were to happen to her, Lu Yang's conscience would weigh on him. The woman gave it some thought. She truly knew very little about the outside world, felt that Lu Yang was a good person, and had no pressing matters to attend to anyway. Why not follow him around and take the opportunity to learn about the outside world? "May I come with you?" the woman asked tentatively. "You may, but once the Grand Sword Inquiry Ceremony ends, I'll have to send you home." Lu Yang could not just let her follow him indefinitely. There was already an airheaded decorative fixture in his spiritual space; he could not afford to add another. "Then thank you, Fellow Daoist," the woman said earnestly. "By the way, after chatting for so long, I still don't know your name or what to call you. I'm Lu Yang." Lu Yang took the initiative to introduce himself. By now, his name was widely renowned; virtually no cultivator would fail to recognize it. The woman did not show the surprise or shock Lu Yang had anticipated, acting as though she had never heard the name before. She smiled sweetly and introduced herself: "So you are Fellow Daoist Lu Yang. My name is Yun Mengmeng." "Ah, so it's Miss Yun... Wait, what did you say your name was?"