113: Chapter 113 The Fifth Life, The Blazing Sun Illuminates the Martial Path (Sixty-One)

Chu Shi was slightly startled upon hearing this and turned his head toward the direction of the voice.

He saw Chen Lingxi sitting alone at a window seat in the cafeteria, holding a delicate little booklet in her hand.

She had clearly just sat down and was struggling to decide what to eat.

"What a coincidence, Senior Brother Chu, sit down quickly. Are you here to eat in the cafeteria too?"

Chu Shi walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

He then said, "Yes, I was sitting still for too long and felt like moving around. Why are you all alone? Where are Junior Brother Zhou and Junior Brother Li?"

Chen Lingxi pouted upon hearing this. "Them? Those two are quite boring. They are probably still in secluded cultivation right now. Ever since they heard there would be a sparring match after 8 o'clock that day, they couldn't wait to go back and enter secluded cultivation."

Afterward, she seemed to think of something, blinked teasingly, and said with a smile, "Senior Brother Chu, you must do your best, okay? That is your grand ceremony; you cannot be outdone by those two! You are my confidant, after all. I support you—go give those two blockheads a good beating!"

Having said that, Chen Lingxi clenched her delicate little fist and squeezed it hard, appearing as if she shared the same hatred for the enemy.

Seeing this, Chu Shi rubbed his brow, feeling somewhat speechless. Fine, fine, fine. You little girl, I'm afraid you've pegged me as a thug to knock some sense into your two blockhead senior brothers. You are really too naughty!

Afterward, he said, somewhat speechless yet with a firm and arrogant tone, "Rest assured, rest assured, I will definitely help with this. Within the same generation, I am invincible; it's a guaranteed win, okay? The grand ceremony in two days is my home turf. The protagonist will definitely be me, and no one can take that away. You just wait and go comfort your blockhead senior brothers."

Having said that, Chu Shi also raised an eyebrow with a teasing expression on his face.

"Oh my, Senior Brother Chu, what are you saying!" Chen Lingxi's little face turned inexplicably red, and she hurriedly pushed the menu in her hand toward Chu Shi.

"Come on, hurry, you are the host. I've been struggling for a long time and haven't decided what to eat. Please help me pick a few delicious signature dishes."

Having said that, she rested her chin on her hands and stared at Chu Shi with bright eyes, seemingly trying to change the subject.

Chu Shi felt somewhat helpless, so he had to skip the topic, reached out to take the menu, and began ordering.

While ordering, he said, "Then I'll order, but Junior Sister Chen, don't have too high expectations of me; I haven't been here many times either."

Having said that, he casually ordered a few signature dishes that he had found good when he ate with Wang Teng last time, and then handed the menu back to Chen Lingxi.

After she took it, she no longer hesitated, casually added a few elegant vegetable dishes and desserts, and then settled it.

Afterward, the two chatted while waiting for the food.

As they chatted, under Chu Shi's intentional guidance, the conversation shifted back to the Chen Family.

This really hit the spot for Chen Lingxi, and she shared information with Chu Shi with great enthusiasm.

However, after chatting for a long time without reaching what he really wanted to know, Chu Shi had no choice but to ask, "Junior Sister Chen, I heard a rumor before and am a bit curious. I wonder if you could tell me about it in detail."

"Ah, what rumor?" Chen Lingxi was in the middle of talking enthusiastically and was a bit annoyed at being interrupted, but she still asked curiously.

"It's that I heard decades ago, there was an upheaval in Huangyan Prefecture that seemed to be related to the Chen Family and the Tianhuang Princes Mansion."

"Hmm." Chen Lingxi looked troubled upon hearing this. After thinking for a moment, she still couldn't suppress her desire to share.

She looked left and right for a while, as if she had made up her mind, and said solemnly to Chu Shi, "Senior Brother Chu, if I tell you, you must not spread it, or I will definitely be punished."

Upon hearing this, Chu Shi immediately put on a firm expression and promised to keep it confidential.

Chen Lingxi finally breathed a sigh of relief, immediately leaned forward, and signaled for Chu Shi to lean in.

Then she spoke softly, with a hint of resentment in her tone, "This matter is indeed true. That event which swept through the entire Huangyan Prefecture was indeed related to the Tianhuang Princes Mansion and my Chen Family. However, it counts as a scandal for my Chen Family. Since you know much about our Chen Family's Chen Xuan, you should know that my Chen Family started from humble beginnings. At the very beginning, we were just a small, existing family. Later, under the radiance of Chen Xuan, we gradually improved and dominated the county town. It wasn't until Chen Xuan's younger brother, Chen Shi—who is my direct great-grandfather—succeeded as the family head that we became increasingly prosperous, eventually becoming the number one family in Yanbei Prefecture."

Speaking of this, she seemed to have suddenly discovered something and looked at Chu Shi with some confusion. "Eh? Senior Brother Chu, your name is so similar to my great-grandfather's!"

Chu Shi was startled in his heart upon hearing this, but his face remained calm. He waved his hand, indicating it was just a coincidence, and signaled for her to continue.

Chen Lingxi, having been interrupted, gave up on her somewhat inexplicable thoughts, mocked herself a little, and continued, "However, the heavens have unpredictable clouds, and there are always villains who cannot bear to see our Chen Family do well! At the critical moment when Chen Xuan was in secluded cultivation breaking through to the Silver Marrow Realm, my Chen Family was tragically wiped out. Fortunately, my great-grandfather, Chen Shi, had foresight and had dispersed several branches of our Chen Family's lineage in advance; my family was one of them."

She then continued, "Afterward, Chen Xuan came out of seclusion, slaughtered all the enemies, and led us to re-establish the Chen Family—the Huangyan Prefecture Chen Family!"

Speaking of this, she suddenly leaned down, with a hint of pride in her words, and then continued, "These are relatively public matters, and I assume you, Senior Brother Chu, should also know them. What comes next is the true secret; you must keep it confidential!"

Chen Lingxi was still a bit worried and urged Chu Shi again. Chu Shi felt somewhat helpless; this little girl was so long-winded! Finally, he solemnly promised once more.

Chen Lingxi was then satisfied and continued, "Decades ago, that major event in Huangyan Prefecture was the ascension of The New King, who swept through the entire prefecture. In this process, the Tianhuang Princes Mansion wiped out many families, including the Yanbei Prefecture Fang Family."

Speaking of the Fang Family, her words contained some sarcasm, and she seemed to be mocking them. "The Fang Family? The Yanbei Prefecture Fang Family?" Upon hearing this, Chu Shi put on a look of utter surprise, appearing as if he found it hard to believe.

"Yes, that's the Yanbei Prefecture Fang Family you are thinking of." Chen Lingxi seemed very satisfied with his expression and then explained, "This Fang Family is not simple. Back when our Chen Family was wiped out, the Fang Family head, Fang Xiaoru, rushed over immediately and busied himself with everything. We were truly grateful and felt he was worthy of the title 'Gentleman's Sword,' as he disregarded his own safety because of his sworn brotherhood with our family head, Chen Shi. Therefore, after Chen Xuan came out of seclusion, slaughtered the enemies, and rebuilt the Chen Family, we were incredibly grateful to the Fang Family and gave them many benefits. But who would have thought! You can know a person's face but not their heart. That old thing, Fang Xiaoru, is purely a hypocrite!"