Well, even the way you address people has become polite.
Speaking of which, Zhang Yun Feng has never eaten roe deer meat in his life, and he wants to try what it tastes like.
So he nodded and said, "Okay."
"This way, benefactor..."
Huo Xian Gu scurried ahead to lead the way.
A short while later, Zhang Yun Feng arrived at Huo Xian Gu's tent.
There were several people by the side of the tent, grilling meat.
It was half-cooked now, and the aroma of meat wafted everywhere.
"The head of the household has returned."
One of the women took two folding stools for them.
The two of them took the stools and sat by the bonfire.
"You all can step back, I have something to discuss with the benefactor." Huo Xian Gu waved at everyone.
Those people were discreet and returned to their respective tents.
After dismissing everyone, Huo Xian Gu personally grilled the meat.
While grilling, she chatted with Zhang Yun Feng.
"May I ask...has the benefactor settled down and started a family?"
"No." Zhang Yun Feng shook his head.
Huo Xian Gu was surprised.
After all, Zhang Yun Feng looked to be in his thirties or forties. At this age, he had not gotten married yet. Wasn't that too late?
People in this era got married and started a family early, at the age of 18, they had to consider getting married and starting a family.
Huo Xian Gu had also heard about Zhang's family, so she curiously asked, "Did you not find a suitable partner within the family?"
Speaking of getting married and starting a family, Zhang Yun Feng couldn't help but feel helpless.
To ensure the purity of the family bloodline, Zhang family's rules stipulated that they could only marry within the family, and were not allowed to marry outside the family.
No dating either!
When they reached the age of getting married and starting a family, the elders of the family would find suitable marriage partners for their children.
As a direct descendant, Zhang Yun Feng was arranged with a marriage partner when he turned eighteen, and there were several of them!
But unfortunately, these girls either died young, or died while on missions.
As a result, he has not been able to successfully marry and start a family.
It was really unlucky...
In the end, only one marriage partner remained.
She was a girl from a side branch of the family, named Zhang Hai Xing, a few years younger than him, now in her early thirties.
But this girl had a fiery temper. When she was 18 years old, she got into a conflict with the locals while on a mission and killed someone.
She was sentenced to 10 years, and hasn't come out yet.
Otherwise, Zhang Yun Feng would have married her long ago.
It has been two years since she was released. He will find her and get married as soon as possible.
"Sorry, I can't tell you about our family matters!" Zhang Yun Feng directly interrupted her.
He didn't want to reveal his family's secrets to outsiders.
"I'm sorry..." Huo Xian Gu said apologetically.
Zhang Yun Feng didn't pay any attention to her and just kept roasting the fire.
It wasn't that he wasn't interested in women, but he was bound by family rules and couldn't have feelings for women outside the family.
Otherwise, if it were to be passed on to the family, he would be criticized by the old guys in the family, and might even lose his position as head of the family!
Seeing that he no longer spoke, Huo Xian Gu couldn't help but feel disappointed.
"This guy, he doesn't know how to please a woman at all? Or is it that I'm not attractive enough?"
She was a great beauty, wherever she went, men would take the initiative to court her. Zhang Yun Feng was definitely the first man to ignore her!
Women love to compete and compare, and the more unattainable a man is, the more they want him!
Zhang Yun Feng's indifference made Huo Xian Gu very frustrated.
So she put aside her dignity and took the initiative to strike up a conversation.
"That... what are your plans next?"
"Do what I should do." Zhang Yun Feng said impassively.
Hearing this, Huo Xian Gu felt a little embarrassed.
However, she still pretended not to care and said, "That... I think your martial arts are very strong, can I learn from you?"
"Sorry, I have many things to do now, I'm not interested in taking on students!" Zhang Yun Feng refused without hesitation.
Now Huo Xian Gu didn't know what to say, the atmosphere suddenly became heavy.
Fortunately, the meat was cooked.
Huo Xian Gu took a carving knife and cut off a leg.
Then she sprinkled some cumin powder, fine salt, spices, and so on, and gently handed it to Zhang Yun Feng, "Here you go."
Zhang Yun Feng didn't stand on ceremony, took the golden, oily roe deer leg, and devoured it.
"Take your time, there's more..." Huo Xian Gu said gently.
The atmosphere became a little ambiguous.
Soon, the four or five pounds of roe deer leg was devoured by Zhang Yun Feng, he threw the bones aside.
Huo Xian Gu quickly took out a handkerchief and handed it to him.
Zhang Yun Feng took the handkerchief and wiped his mouth, then stood up and said, "I'm full, you can eat slowly."
"Here you go."
Then he returned the handkerchief to her, turned and left.
"You despicable fellow, can't you just chat with people for a while? Geez..." Huo Xian Gu muttered as she watched his departing figure.
The night passed without incident...
The next morning.
During breakfast, Zhang Da Fo Ye said to everyone,
"That cave is too dangerous, let's not go there for now, let's find something else first!"
Everyone naturally nodded in agreement.
Out of one hundred and eighty people who entered that cave, only twenty or thirty survived!
This was with masters present, otherwise, no one might have made it out. The danger was self-evident!
To prevent anyone from entering, Zhang Qi Shan arranged for people to carry bags of cement and seal the entrance of the cave, not allowing anyone to enter.
Then came a long period of busy work.
The Old Nine Gates searched all the caves on the surrounding mountains, and moved all the ancient books in the caves to the camp.
Some caves contained traps, or zombies, monsters and so on, which resulted in many deaths.
Almost every day, several people died from traps, or monster attacks, but the operation did not end.
The Old Nine Gates were very clever.
They assigned the most dangerous tasks to the traitors, while their own people supervised from behind, minimizing casualties.
Time flew by, three months had passed, and it was spring.
During these two months, except for a fixed group of people who went out to buy food and supplies, no one had left the valley.
March 1961.
One night in early March, the leaders of the Nine Gates, and Zhang Yun Feng gathered together to examine the contents of the ancient books that had been translated.
One of them, translated from the Warring States silk books, read:
【In the year of the Warring States, the 8th Duke of Lu died and was buried in a certain place. His military strategist, known as Iron Mask, usurped the Duke's tomb after his death.】
【This man named Iron Mask obtained a Ghost Seal, which could summon the Yin Soldiers of the Underworld, and was therefore highly valued by the Duke of Lu.】
【He was also proficient in the art of longevity, and tailored a golden thread jade garment for the Duke of Lu, which could allow him to live forever...】