Chapter 121 Guests
Seven days later.

Everyone in the Zhou family gathered together.

Little Dragon’s one-month-old birthday celebration.

On this day, everyone prepared a gift for it.

Zhou Qingshan prepared a jade pendant, which symbolizes health and peace.

In his spare time, Mo Yanqiu personally carved a sleek little wooden spear.

Zhao Shu, Zhou Hu and other seventeen people, some gave wooden shields, some gave cloth tigers, and some gave rulers...

Xiaoxiao prepared a pen.

Old Mo had high hopes for this little fellow who inherited his spiritual weapon, the 'Gongdan Bright Silver Spear'. Knowing that his daughter had prepared a small spear for him, he took the trouble to make a small wooden horse himself.

The ground was filled with all kinds of items.

Under the gaze of his family, Xiao Zilong looked around curiously, chose his mother's spear and held it tightly, then rode on the small wooden horse made by Mr. Mo.

"Okay, okay." Xiao Zilong's choice made Mo Lao smile with satisfaction. He stroked his beard lightly, his eyes full of expectation.

"Little Long inherited his mother's talent. He will definitely be a master of spearmanship in the future." Zhou Qingshan praised.

Mo Yanqiu always maintained her gentle and warm smile. Since the birth of Xiao Zilong, she looked more gentle.

She prepared a small wooden spear for her son, not because she expected him to fight in the battlefield in the future, but because she knew that martial arts was the foundation of life. As the eldest son of the family, Xiao Zilong was destined to shoulder the future of Shengfengling. Martial arts were not only a way to defend oneself, but also a power to protect happiness.

Mo Yanqiu does not intend to spoil his son. Even if his parents are not around in the future, Xiao Zilong must learn to be strong and face it independently.

……

……

"Master, the Lord of Daxing Township greets you."

The Thunder Knight reported outside the hospital.

Zhou Qingshan heard the sound in the backyard, put down his bow and arrow, and felt a little annoyed.

In one month, three waves of lords or spiritual weapon families have come to visit, and this is the fourth wave.

These are just the rural lords nearby. The other lords are far away and have a long way to go. They may still be on their way.

Ever since the news that Shengfeng Territory had a military commander spread by the Yunhe Chamber of Commerce and the lords, the matter has gradually fermented.

This attracted many rural spirit realm lords to want to make friends with him.

Of course, the most important thing is that Shengfeng Territory is no longer the barren spiritual realm it was before. After the annexation of Xigu Township, it began to produce spiritual fish. After the spiritual veins were upgraded, it was even able to grow top-level resources such as spiritual seeds.

Two major pillars that make others envious.

Even though they didn’t have enough silver to make the purchase, that didn’t stop them from establishing connections with prominent figures.

In fact, some lords, seeing that Zhou Qingshan was young, wanted to marry their daughters to him.

Zhou Qingshan's refusal was firm and clear. His attitude was resolute and left no room for maneuver.

When the marriage plan failed, the lord turned his attention to Zhou Zilong.

The Lingjing family has a large population, and compared with the Zhou family, they have a much richer number of descendants. The Zhou family only has five brothers, while the Lingjing family may have dozens of descendants.

On the Spirit Realm Island, there was a relative lack of entertainment activities, and the greatest pleasure was making babies at night. Due to the lack of effective contraceptive measures, the number of offspring in Spirit Realm families was often very large.

There is nothing that can be done about it. Even with all the medicines and careful care, the chances of a child dying are still very high, and at least half of them will not survive to adulthood.

Zhou Qingshan naturally would not make a decision about Zhou Zilong's future rashly.

"Hold on."

However, the lord of Daxing Township is also a soldier of the Black Dragon Army, and the lord came to visit him personally, so Zhou Qingshan couldn't refuse, so he had to reply to the Thunder Knight.

He immediately tidied himself up and left the inner courtyard.

As soon as I entered the lobby, I saw a middle-aged man in armor sitting on a chair drinking tea and waiting, and behind him stood a young woman with delicate looks and a slim figure.

Zhou Qingshan knew his intention as soon as he saw him, and couldn't help feeling a headache.

When he saw Zhou Qingshan enter the room, he immediately stood up, clasped his fists, and spoke briefly, "Daxing Township, Xi Jinzhong."

Zhou Qingshan sat on the main seat and responded, "I am Zhou Qingshan from Shengfeng Territory. I wonder what brings Lord Xi to my territory?"

Xi Jinzhong smiled slightly and replied, "Wei Shijiang and I are close friends."

Zhou Qingshan's expression suddenly turned serious.

As the lord of the rural spiritual realm, the Wei family's territory is located at the other end of Daze Town, a hundred miles away.

The reason why Zhou Qingshan attaches so much importance to him is that Wei Shijiang is his father's superior.

On a foggy battlefield, due to limited vision, soldiers usually fight in groups of three or fifteen, with the team leader being at least at the samurai level.

A warrior who does not wield a "spiritual weapon" is naturally not enough to attract Zhou Qingshan's attention.

What really mattered to Zhou Qingshan was Wei Shijiang's identity - his mother's biological father, and his grandfather.

The two families often kept in touch through the Chamber of Commerce through correspondence, and occasionally asked the Chamber of Commerce to deliver some gifts and specialties from the spiritual realm.

After my mother passed away, the two families’ correspondence decreased, but their contact was never interrupted.

Xi Jinzhong continued, "I also have a selfish motive for this trip. I hope to discuss this with Lord Zhou."

Zhou Qingshan nodded slightly, motioning Xi Jinzhong to continue.

Xi Jinzhong continued, "I have a daughter named Xi Yao, who has been smart and talented since she was young. I, Guan Qingshan, am also a young talent. If we can get married, the Xi family is willing to give thirty taels of silver as a dowry."

Xi Jinzhong wanted the status of his wife, and wanted the two families to be intermarried for generations, so that he could obtain the blood of the Zhou family. If the blood of the Zhou family was broken, the children of the Xi family would be qualified to inherit the spiritual weapons before the martial arts hall.

At the same time, a disciple of the Xi family will be asked to change his surname to Zhou to continue the bloodline.

This is another kind of insurance, not putting all your eggs in one basket.

Zhou Qingshan's heart moved, and he understood Xi Jinzhong's intention.

Marriage is a common way of forming alliances among nobles, and marrying into the family of a military commander will also gain the glory of his prosperity for a hundred years.

Legally, a lord can only have three wives and four concubines, which means seven persons with identities officially recognized by Black Cloud City.

But now that Zhou Qingshan is the head of the family, he has already passed the difficult period and does not need to marry anyone for a mere thirty taels of silver.

I was about to politely refuse.

"Qingshan, you have grown up so much. I still remember when you were a child in Shengfeng Territory, you were still a baby in swaddling clothes."

At this moment, a loud greeting suddenly came from outside the door.

Zhou Qingshan looked in the direction of the voice.

A burly middle-aged man in armor, led by the family guards, strode into the lobby with a smile on his face.

"Meet Grandpa."

Zhou Qingshan was slightly startled, looked carefully, then quickly stood up and bowed respectfully.

This person is Wei Shijiang, who was a warrior thirty years ago. He is still as charming and elegant as ever, with sharp eyes and vigorous spirit.

Wei Shijiang waved his hand.

Xi Jinzhong also stood up and greeted respectfully: "Brother Wei."

Wei Shijiang looked at Xi Jinzhong in surprise, then understood his intention after a brief thought, and then laughed out loud: "Hahaha, Brother Xi, are you here to propose marriage?"

Facing Wei Shijiang's loud laughter, Xi Jinzhong showed an awkward but polite smile on his face. He nodded and admitted, "That's right. I came here for this reason."

Zhou Qingshan was standing aside and immediately realized that Wei Shijiang came with the same purpose.

as predicted.

With a smile on his face, Wei Shijiang turned to Zhou Qingshan and saw that he had a ruddy complexion and a strong body. It was obvious that he had fully recovered thanks to the nourishment of the spiritual seed.

His eyes lit up, and his tone was somewhat serious: "Qingshan, our two families are already related. Now your elder brother has no news at all, and you are the only adult male in the family. You shoulder the future of the family, and you need to consider expanding and continuing the family bloodline."

Zhou Qingshan didn't say anything and remained silent for a while.

Since the eldest brother became an immigrant warrior, Wei Shijiang did arrange a woman from the Wei family as his fiancée, but before their wedding took place, the eldest brother disappeared.

Wei Shijiang continued, "The Wei family has a daughter, who is sixteen years old, with a dignified appearance and both talent and virtue. She can be a good match."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wei Shijiang gently moved aside to make way for the girl behind him.

The girl had a beautiful face and a gentle temperament. She walked forward gracefully and gave Zhou Qingshan a standard salute. Then she raised her head, looked at him with clear eyes, and greeted him with a smile:
"My younger sister Wei Hongzhu greets my cousin Qingshan."

Zhou Qingshan responded with a gentle smile and nodded slightly, "Hello, cousin."

Wei Shijiang observed the expressions of the two people, and then asked: "How is it?"

Zhou Qingshan shook his head.

"Why not?" Wei Shijiang looked surprised and asked in confusion.

He knew that Zhou Qingshan had been weak since childhood, but this made him even more determined to nurture the next generation.

As for the rumors spread by those lords, he did not believe them because Lord Zhou had severely injured the monster with a silver arrow.

"Grandpa, marriage is a life-long event. I must discuss it with Yanqiu before making a decision." Zhou Qingshan emphasized.

means something.

After hearing this, Wei Shijiang pondered for a moment, his eyes revealed a trace of understanding and sympathy, and then he nodded slowly: "You are right, Qingshan. This matter does need to be carefully considered. You must discuss it with your wife and get her consent before telling me."

Commander of the army.

If Mo Yanqiu and Zhou Qingshan were not childhood sweethearts, Zhou Qingshan would not be worthy of her.

The woman is strong while the man is weak, and she is the pillar of the family.

Naturally, one needs to be extremely cautious when it comes to marrying a wife.

With this thought in mind, Wei Shijiang skipped this sensitive topic. He was not familiar with Mo Yanqiu's personality, and he did not want to force his wives and concubines on Zhou Qingshan, and then provoke the hatred of a military commander.

Xi Jinzhong stood aside, feeling disappointed knowing that the marriage was unlikely to succeed.

Upon hearing this, Wei Hongzhu lowered her head slightly. As the child of a lord, she had never had to worry about food and clothing since childhood, so naturally she had to fulfill her obligations.

She had no choice in the matter of marriage.

Either marry her to one of his retainers to win their hearts, or marry her to a guard with good talents to become his son-in-law and strengthen the family.

Of course, it would be best to marry a 'young' lord.

My cousin Zhou Qingshan's territory has two major resources, spiritual seeds and spiritual fish, which can quickly accumulate amazing wealth. Although the yard is shabby now, it will be replaced by a mansion in a few years. It can also be called a spiritual soldier family.

You can live a wealthy life that everyone in the Wei family envies.

Wei Hongzhu had to eliminate dozens of sisters to get this opportunity.

"We are not in a hurry to get married," Wei Shijiang said gently, "There is another matter today. The city lord has returned to repel the rabbit tribe. After a while, it will be the tribute banquet held every three years. It's a good opportunity for us to go together."

"A tribute banquet?"

Zhou Qingshan was stunned.

He had been so busy practicing martial arts during this period that he had forgotten about this matter.

He agreed immediately, and then the two began to develop a close relationship.

Most of the time, Wei Shijiang was talking about Zhou Dashi's deeds in the Black Dragon Army. Zhou Dashi had a good foundation, was born in a peasant family, and had a simple mind. He was one of the first new soldiers to break through the source blood and was assigned to Wei Shijiang. He still admired this young man Zhou Dashi.

If not for the loss of most of his source blood in the war, Zhou Dashi would have no hope in martial arts, and would choose to retire in the fiefdom of rural spiritual realm after the war. If he chose the reward of spiritual seeds, he would have a 30% chance of breaking through to the warrior level by staying in Black Cloud City.

Zhou Qingshan listened silently, mainly about the organization of the Black Dragon Army and their experience in fighting against various wild alien races.

Xi Jinzhong would occasionally interject a few words.

As it was getting evening, Zhou Qingshan sent people to prepare for the banquet.

Seeing that the marriage proposal failed, Xi Jinzhong took out the thirty taels of silver he had prepared long ago and bought spirit seeds and spirit fish from Zhou Qingshan.

Zhou Qingshan declined, saying that the spirit seeds would not mature until the second half of the year and the spirit fish were still seedlings.

In fact, the last time he shipped out, he shipped 5,000 spirit seeds and 100 spirit fish. Such an output is too exaggerated for a first-level medium-sized spirit vein. Two batches a year is the limit for him.

Xi Jinzhong still left thirty taels of silver, saying it was a deposit for the next batch of spirit seeds and spirit fish.

But how can there be such thing as a full deposit?
Zhou Qingshan thought about it and decided not to refuse.

Da da da.

Suddenly, there was a sound of horse hooves outside, and they stopped in the outer courtyard.

A strong smell of evil came towards them, and Xi Jinzhong and Wei Shijiang's hair stood on end. They looked at that place with solemn expressions, as if some ferocious beast was approaching.

Not long after, Zhou Hu came back holding a knife, dragging a human-faced beast that looked like a white tiger, and walked quickly into the outer courtyard lobby.

When he saw the people in the room, he was startled and realized they were guests.

"Master, there was a strange beast with a human face hovering outside the spiritual realm. It was killed on the spot. This is its corpse." Zhou Hu clasped his fists towards Zhou Qingshan.

Zhou Qingshan nodded, "Erhu, you've worked hard. I'll take care of it in the backyard."

If the guards hunt this inedible beast, they will bring it back to the yard immediately.

This is because as time goes by, the essence will gradually dissipate, and the longest time will not exceed one hour.

Zhou Hu clasped his fists towards Xi Jinzhong and Wei Shijiang, nodded, and then led the strange beast into the inner courtyard.

"Roe owl?"

Seeing the strange beast with a human face, Xi Jinzhong felt the murderous aura of Zhou Hu, and his eyebrows twitched slightly. He exclaimed: "What a tiger general!"

He is a warrior.

Moreover, she is a senior warrior who has trained his five internal organs and is very powerful. Looking at Zhou Hu, who has the most warriors, he can have such a prestige, which is comparable to the female general he met at the gate of the spiritual realm who can bring him a sense of crisis.

A first-level monster is already difficult to hunt, let alone the most cunning human-faced monster among them.

Wei Shijiang looked at Zhou Hu's back, with a touch of admiration in his eyes, "Really? Qingshan, is this the one you sent to the Martial Arts Hall? The Martial Arts Hall teacher actually made a mistake in his judgment, he has the talent of Xuan Iron."

"…Grandpa, you are overpraising me."

"Judging from his appearance, he is only about 20 years old. With his aura and spiritual seed, he will surely add a warrior to the territory in the future."

Wei Shijiang narrowed his eyes.

This warrior is already of top strength. There are only three or five people in the spiritual weapon family, including their retainers.

The Wei family only has two strong warriors.

The first is that if one does not improve one's martial arts skills, then one will regress. Maintaining warriors requires a large number of spirit seeds, and the Wei family's spirit seed resources can only support two warriors.

Secondly, if one wants to practice a skill to perfection, comprehend its true meaning, and reach the threshold of the mind, it is not an easy task.

Among his twenty-three sons, only one realized the true meaning at the age of twenty-eight. This shows how difficult it was.

If the spiritual soldier family is not strictly disciplined and has no baptism of war.

The family members are addicted to pleasure and are all good-for-nothings. Sometimes, no strong samurai will be born in a generation of the family, and they can only hope for the grandchildren.

Hearing this, Xi Jinzhong's heart moved, and he became thoughtful. He turned to ask Zhou Qingshan: "Mr. Zhou, may I know the name of that warrior?"

Zhou Qingshan replied, "His name is Zhou Hu. He is an orphan adopted by my father. He is already a warrior and is now the captain of my guard team."

"Is he married?" Xi Jinzhong asked.

"Ok?"

Zhou Qingshan was slightly surprised, but then he understood Xi Jinzhong's intention. He hesitated for a moment and replied, "Erhu was studying martial arts at the martial arts hall before, and he is still unmarried."

Among the farmers recruited after the territory was established, there were many single women. However, Zhou Hu was busy with affairs and had heavy responsibilities, so he had never married.

Zhou Qingshan was seventeen years old when his son Long was born. Zhou Hu was even older than him, so considering this important life event, he also had to consider having a little Hu.

I heard that Zhou Qingshan had no intention of refusing.

Xi Jinzhong then turned to Xi Yao beside him and asked softly, "Yao'er, what is your impression of Zhou Hu?"

Xi Yao's cheeks flushed. She lowered her head slightly and expressed her feelings clearly in a low voice: "My daughter is very satisfied."

Zhou Hu's momentum is much greater than Zhou Qingshan's.

Because Zhou Qingshan practiced the magical power of the Six-Wa Gourd, he was good at restraining his aura, so in the eyes of outsiders, apart from his gentle temperament, he seemed to be nothing special and his presence was relatively weak.

In this world where martial arts are respected, the strength of a warrior is the standard for measuring everything. Once a warrior breaks through to the warrior realm and is registered in Black Cloud City, he will automatically obtain the glorious noble title of "Warrior".

Such an identity has a high status in society, second only to the lord. No matter where you go, you will be respected, and if you are a retainer, you will become a core figure.

Zhou Qingshan observed Xi Yao's demeanor and had a good first impression of her. He did not intend to hastily decide on their marriage, but proposed:

"At tonight's banquet, let the two young men have a chance to interact with each other."

Xi Jinzhong nodded in agreement: "Okay."

Wei Shijiang was a step behind in speaking, so he could only say jokingly, "You're really quick, kid."

The three chatted for a while, and then Zhou Qingshan found an excuse, got up and went into the inner courtyard to sacrifice the human-faced beast.

When I came out, the dinner had already begun.

They were all ordinary family banquets, and the main dish was a bowl of spirit fish soup used to entertain Wei Shijiang.

But even so, it is a delicacy for a few people. It is different from the boiled dishes outside. Although there are only a few seasonings, it is enough for people to taste the perfect fusion of color, aroma and taste.

Ladies from well-off families like Xi Yao and Wei Hongzhu couldn't help but take a few more bites, with satisfied looks on their faces.

At the banquet.

Xi Jinzhong tasted the spirit fish soup and praised it highly: "Qingshan, this spirit fish soup is really delicious. Even in our Wei family, it is rare to taste such a delicacy."

Wei Shijiang also nodded and praised: "It's really good. And this 'fried meat', this kind of craftsmanship and spices, I'm afraid it's hard to find a rival in the whole Black Cloud City."

Zhou Qingshan smiled and responded, "Grandpa likes it. I'll have someone prepare some spices for you and Lord Xi to take back and enjoy."

"That's great."

Wei Shijiang and Xi Jinzhong said in unison.

The atmosphere at the banquet was warm and harmonious, and everyone was chatting while eating.

Zhou Qingshan observed the interaction between Xi Yao and Zhou Hu from time to time. The two seemed to be having a good conversation, which made him nod secretly in his heart.

……

……

The party dispersed.

Arrange guards to take Xi Jinzhong and Wei Shijiang downstairs to rest.

In the inner courtyard.

Gao Feixue, Xiaoxiao, Mo Yanqiu and Zhou Qingshan rarely get together.

The main thing is that Gao Feixue is finally relieved now.

Before, he was stationed in the barracks every night, and he could not take off his armor. At the slightest sign of trouble, he had to get up and investigate the situation.

Now there are seven more inbound warriors in the family, equipped with exotic beast leather and scale armor, and each holding a precious weapon.

The third son and Xie Meng even had the precious armor captured by the Red Scarf. Each of them led ten guards to take turns on duty, and the time they had to practice martial arts was greatly increased.

Gao Feixue's pressure was greatly reduced. Apart from occasionally going to the barracks for training, he stayed in the backyard and practiced martial arts with Mo Yanqiu.

The three of them are blessed with the bond [Soul Lotus], and practicing martial arts together will bring out more inspiration.

Mo Yanqiu gently put Xiao Zilong to sleep before quietly leaving the room. When she saw Zhou Qingshan, she asked directly:
"Husband, what do you think of your cousin?"

Zhou Qingshan was overwhelmed for a moment, he sat up straight and said: "Not very familiar."

Mo Yanqiu looked around, his eyes lingered on Gao Feixue and Xiao Xiao for a moment, then he said seriously:

"What Grandpa said at the banquet makes a lot of sense."

Mo Yanqiu paused for a moment, then said seriously: "But my husband, you have to promise me one thing, the title of wife must be reserved for Feixue and Xiaoxiao."

Once the chess pieces on the Yunding chessboard are bound, they cannot be unbound, which means that Gao Feixue and Xiaoxiao cannot marry other people.

Their fate is closely linked to the Zhou family.

Zhou Qingshan knew Mo Yanqiu's thoughts very well, and responded seriously: "Yanqiu, I understand your considerations. Feixue and Xiaoxiao have contributed to our family, and I will give them the respect and status they deserve."

After a moment's thought, Zhou Qingshan made a promise:
"I will arrange it and have the family make the corresponding preparations. After we return from the banquet in Black Cloud City with Grandpa, we will officially marry Feixue and Xiaoxiao."

Hearing this, Gao Feixue looked at Zhou Qingshan with her beautiful eyes, and the corners of her mouth unconsciously rose, revealing a faint smile.

Xiaoxiao is very open-minded about this. She doesn't care too much about status. As long as she can be with Zhou Qingshan, she feels satisfied and happy.

(End of this chapter)