Chapter Twenty-Four: Cherishing Each Other Like Brothers

  The man in black saw the three arrows coming in a row, his spiritual feet lightly tapped and quickly lifted, the three tiles instantly rose, spinning in mid-air, and in a flash of lightning, each one intercepted an incoming arrow.

  The crowd had never seen such a high level of footwork, and in their hearts they were secretly sighing in admiration, while also worrying for the sake of their own master. Just now Shi Jing had loosened his bowstring and called out "hit", but at this moment he was staring blankly as three arrows were about to fall empty.

  In everyone's eyes, those questions don't need to be asked of that guy anyway. Once he is tied up and a knife is placed on his neck, he will speak even if not asked. But now, if this face is lost, where can it be regained?

  But at this moment, Shi Jin still had a faint smile on his face, and his sharp eyes followed the second arrow flying towards the house.

  The man on the roof also sensed something was amiss at this time, but in the flash of lightning, he had no time to dodge and jump.

  The two arrow feathers on the left and right hit the tile and stopped, shooting onto the surface of the tile, and then fell to the ground. But the middle arrow was biased and didn't stop, passing through the tile, whizzing by, and tearing off a piece of fabric, revealing sparse body hair on the calf.

  The rascals in the courtyard saw it and immediately burst into applause. Seeing that the master of the house had such a trick, everyone suddenly felt that their faces were very bright and they couldn't help but raise their heads high, shouting loudly on the roof. In their hearts, they also admired Shi Jin, the master of the house, even more, almost to the point of worshiping him with all their might.

  At this moment, the man in black also secretly called out a good word. In order not to reveal this emotion and let the following minions see it, he bent down and touched his exposed calf, and amazingly, not a single scratch was made.

  He Qingxue finally stopped shouting, and the black-clothed man spoke up: "This time I barely lost with a clear conscience. What you asked just now, please say it again, I'll answer everything truthfully!"

  Shi Jin listened to the black-clad man's tone, which had changed from before. It was clear that he was showing respect for himself, and also, Shi Jin felt a sense of affection towards him in his heart. So, he respectfully said to the person on the roof: "Brother on the roof, please come down for now. If you're willing, change your clothes and we'll talk in the hall."

  The man in black had some suspicions in his heart, fearing it was a scam, being cheated by these people to come down and be tied up, not only unable to speak, but also afraid of losing his life.

  However, the black-clad man, through the hazy rain and smoke, gazed at Shi Jin's sincere face and couldn't help but weigh his thoughts back and forth.

  The host family was very generous from the start, and it's likely that they are good people. Moreover, every time an arrow comes, they make a sound to remind us, which shows that their style is upright and open-minded. The direction of the arrows all point to the edges of pants and clothes, with great skill, but without using technique to oppress others, truly having a heroic and chivalrous heart.

  Nowadays, the person who hurt him and damaged his hospital not only doesn't hold a grudge but also treats him as a guest. When handling affairs and treating others to this extent, it's not something that can be pretended. The relationship is handled so beautifully that even if it's a trap or a fall, there's nothing to say.

  In an instant, the man in black thought to himself and with both hands clasped together in a fist, he bowed and said: "Then I'll take my leave..." As he spoke, he removed his face mask, didn't walk down the wooden ladder, but instead crouched down and stretched out his arms, like a black eagle spreading its wings. With one leap and a pause, he silently landed on the ground.

  Everyone watched in awe as he demonstrated his superior lightness skill, and they couldn't help but feel astonished.

  Shi Jin walked forward, clasped his fists together in a salute and bowed slightly. He took a rough glance at the man and saw that he was somewhat slender and shorter than himself by about half a head. Figuring that his own clothes would fit him fairly well, he instructed the servant to fetch one of his thinner cotton robes for the "man in black" to change into.

  After Shi Jin dispersed the crowd, he went to the main hall to wait.

  The man in black was led by the servant into a side room. The young servants heated water, prepared towels, and waited on him to wipe his body clean, then changed into Shi Jing's clothes.

  That man got dressed and walked around the basement, wearing that cotton gown with large sleeves hanging down, the hem dragging on the ground for a good three feet. The sight was not only unrefined but also somewhat comical.

  But Shi Jin's treatment was already warm in his heart.

  At this moment, Shi Jin had already ordered the servants to light up all the lamps in the hall. Seeing the young servant bring that person in from outside the door, he took a glance and saw that the person's skin was fair, with a pair of extremely sharp eyes under his heroic eyebrows. His small nose and mouth matched his small face, which looked exactly like a doll's face.

  This made Shi Jin involuntarily think of a term called "Youth Genius".

  When that person entered the hall, Shi Jin hastily got up to welcome him and invited him to take a seat in the main hall. The host and guest sat down, and a young servant came forward with tea. They had just begun exchanging pleasantries.

  Shi Jin saw that the man looked somewhat constrained, so he spoke first: "My surname is Shi, and my given name is a single character 'Jin'. Because I am the eldest son of the family, I am also called Dalang by the people of Shi Family Village."

  That man raised an eyebrow and said with some embarrassment: "I am Shi Yan, the one who was nicknamed 'Drum on the Fleas' by others. Is this really the Shi Family Village?"

  Shi Jin looked at him with an unclear expression, so he nodded towards him and said: "It's the Shi family village that has been rumored to be in turmoil recently. Brother Ren probably also knows about the current situation, but I don't know what brought you to my village in the middle of the night."

  At the time, Shi Yan was drinking tea and only stopped when he heard Shi Jin ask. He said very sincerely: "It's a long story, but I had no choice and accidentally offended your village."

  Shi Jin listened, and his heart immediately stirred up a desire to know the military situation of the prefecture. He then asked Shi Yan: "Brother Ren, when you came, did you pass through Huayin County? Did you hear any rumors?"

  At that moment, Shi Jin's eyes sparkled with expectation, but he himself had not been able to enter the city and had not heard any news. He felt a little apologetic in his heart. Blinking his eyes, he put down the cup and plate on the table and said: "Alas... originally I was passing by the county town and wanted to go in to have a meal and stay at an inn. When I walked to the city gate, unexpectedly I was pushed out by the strictly guarding soldiers because my face was unfamiliar and I wasn't a local..."

  At this point, Shi Qian's face turned red with rage: "Those gate-keeping curs are really detestable. I couldn't enter the city and had to hurry on my way, but then 'the roof leaks when it rains' - disaster struck at home, and even my stomach wasn't cooperating, so I was truly famished and couldn't bear it. Just then I saw a manor house not far away, and...". At this point he became evasive and embarrassed.

  Shi Jin was a clever and resourceful person. After listening to him, he thought about how he had been struggling with himself on the roof for half a day, and his stomach must be growling with hunger. So he called the servant to quickly set up a table of wine and meat.

  Shi Qian watched as the young servant came and went, and before long, a table of wine and dishes was set up in the hall. As he looked on, memories involuntarily arose. Thinking back over the decades since childhood, it really wasn't a pleasant feeling. Ever since his parents passed away, there hadn't been a single day when he could eat a decent meal with peace of mind. Not to mention luxury, even the feeling of having a home was almost forgotten.

  Now living in exile, receiving such hospitality, countless heartaches surged up to my head, a pair of small eyes blinked and blinked, holding back and holding back, finally still falling tears.