Inside the opened basket was hay for shock absorption, with two jars of wine nestled within.

Judging by the delivery method, one could tell the deliverer's circumstances weren't very good; otherwise, they wouldn't use such a primitive transport method. Putting it in a Qiankun Bag would be simple and convenient, protecting it against collisions.

Li Hongjiu brushed aside the hay, and as soon as he saw the wine jar style inside, his eyes lit up. The sauce-colored melon jar was elegantly balanced, possessing an unusual charm — people with discerning eyes could tell this was a vessel used by those with high aesthetic standards.

Even the closure was meticulous, sealed with Red Jade Mud Paste, its color having changed over considerable years.

Who could blame his master for being the Yanbao Sect Master? No matter how much he was disliked for his love of wine, he had still managed to mooch and taste good stuff, so his discerning ability in this aspect was there.

Impatiently, he grabbed a jar, directly smashed open the mud seal, and tore off the gold paper sealing. A rich yet non-overpowering fragrance instantly wafted out, making him close his eyes and shake his head involuntarily, before grabbing the bottom of the jar intending to gulp down a mouthful first.

Guang Haoyou, beside him, hurriedly sprang into action, wanting to ask if he was crazy — with no precautions, why would anyone accompany the message bearer here?

Quickly, he reached over, pressing down Li Hongjiu's crook of the arm, shaking his head at the bewildered gaze of Li Hongjiu and saying, "Uncle, whether it's from a genuine friend or a fake one, we still don't know. I should verify the wine for you."

Li Hongjiu understood his meaning and said, "The wine I've drunk over the years isn't for nothing; I can tell if there are impurities just by smelling it."

However, Guang Haoyou insisted, "Uncle, it's still better to verify."

Their attitude made the messenger on the side somewhat uneasy. He was just from an ordinary family, with a wife and kids. One day, someone suddenly came to the door, paid him a sum to deliver the item. Given the substantial payment, he thought he'd made a tidy sum, yet sensing the odd atmosphere, he realized it might be premature. If this involved some grudges and, by chance, the wine was truly poisoned, then he might have bitten off more than he could chew.

Li Hongjiu scratched his forehead with the letter in hand. He didn't understand — hadn't he made himself clear? He could distinguish poison, yet why did his words always fail to convince the sect members? Could he casually consume something poisonous?

Thankfully, he had become accustomed to it over the years. So he decided to deal with it.

With a pat on the wine jar, a crystal-clear droplet bounced out from the jar. Extending his hand, his forefinger caught it, and under a spell, the droplet quickly vaporized, dissipating at his fingertip into nothingness.

With his thumb rubbing the forefinger, he showed Guang Haoyou, "Look, there's no poison."

Finishing his sentence, he hugged the wine jar and gulped down a large mouthful.

"Hey, Uncle..." Guang Haoyou felt speechless, intending to stop him and ask, are you sure you won't clarify whose stuff it is before accepting it?

Having set the wine jar down, Li Hongjiu let out a long breath, smacking his lips, exclaiming, "Good wine!"

He then tilted his head and took a few more sips. Feeling indulgent for a moment, he again embraced the wine jar for a detailed examination, turning it around and murmuring, "I also sneaked a sip of the Jade Dew my master brought back from the Royal Court, yet how does this seem even tastier..."

Saying this, he handed the wine jar to Guang Haoyou, muttering about opening the letter, "How could someone who offers such good wine be forgotten..."

Hearing it's seemingly even better than the actual Jade Dew, Guang Haoyou became interested too, tentatively asking, "Uncle, can I have a taste too?"

Li Hongjiu swung his hand, allowing him to indulge, while simultaneously unfolding the letter to check.

The letter said: Mr. Li, wise one, I met with misfortune for misplaced trust; mistakenly divulged Master's scandal to someone. There are those with malicious intent wanting to expose it publicly, fearing disgrace. I specifically invite Mr. Li to lend a helping hand. Awaiting with fine wine on Western Ox Continent, old friend of Thunder Sword.

The letter made his brows and lips twitch occasionally.

"Surely good wine," moaned Guang Haoyou, holding the wine jar, yet seeing his uncle's seemingly unusual reaction, he immediately stepped close to take a peek at the letter's contents.

Unexpectedly, Li Hongjiu's reaction was prompt, directly folding the letter, clearly unwilling for others to see.

Guang Haoyou still couldn't resist asking, "Uncle, whose letter is it?"

Li Hongjiu snapped irritably, "None of your business, Go, escort the messenger down the mountain." With a chin lift, he gestured towards the messenger.

Fine, Guang Haoyou had no option but to return the wine jar to him, first signaling the messenger to follow him.

The messenger clasped his hands to bid farewell.

After watching the two leave, Li Hongjiu unfolded the letter again, reading it with a grimacing look.

Others wouldn't understand this letter, yet he immediately knew whose letter it was.

Who else could an old friend from Thunder Sword be, but that wily Shi Chun?

Others would find it hard to impersonate. Western Ox Continent is vast, spanning an entire continent, yet the letter didn't specify a meet-up location. However, he had a Mother-child Talisman connecting with Shi Chun, so upon reaching the continent, they could naturally contact each other.

Moreover, whether that scoundrel even had a master was questionable; just that background feared what devil's reputation, yet he had indeed committed acts exposing master's privacy. So, the implication of mistakenly divulging Master's scandal in the letter isn't difficult to understand.

A guilty conscience easily grasps the meaning.

Thus, the letter's intent was plainly clear, back-and-forth — if you don't come, then your scandal will be exposed.

How could he conveniently let fellow disciples see this kind of letter? If the sect got involved, it would be hard to explain.

He furrowed his brow with confusion as he slowly sat on the stone steps in front of the door, holding the letter and pondering repeatedly. What on earth is that scoundrel trying to achieve with this?

This kind of scandal would impact him, but given his background, mere words without solid evidence wouldn't fundamentally harm him.

Of course, if the scandal broke out, it would be troublesome, as his master had indeed committed it with clear evidence, making it awkward upon verification.

He also knew that even if this matter arose, his master wouldn't really do anything to him, but it would certainly be awkward when meeting his master in the future.

In the end, he saw through it, not fearing such scandals much. If he did, he wouldn't have let things slip out in the first place.

The person attempting to blackmail him should also know that this wouldn't get them anything substantial.

What worried him was if he decided not to keep the appointment, whether that scoundrel would genuinely make a fuss. If so, things would escalate, and revealing his master's private matters would be minor compared to exposing the destruction of various factions' magical treasures by tens of thousands of thunderbolts, which would indeed trouble the sect.

Holding the letter, his head tilted repeatedly in puzzlement over what exactly that scoundrel wanted from him.

Thinking about it, it was certainly not a good thing. Did inviting him for a drink require such a threat?

Moreover, he heard that that fellow had been reclusively cultivating over by the East Victory Royal City. When did he head over to the Western Ox Continent? He had only heard of that place, never gone there.

Smelling the aroma of wine, he grabbed the jar and drank several more gulps, smacking his lips and shaking his head appreciatively, "This is indeed good wine!" Then he muttered, "There's more than enough, is it real? Where did that fellow get such good stuff? Collecting some ingredients for this fine brew is no easy task, let alone when it's a century-old vintage..."

Suddenly, with a flick of his hand, the letter caught fire and burned into flying ashes.

Putting other things aside for now, he hugged the wine jar to indulge himself first...

The next day, after notifying the sect, Li Hongjiu disguised himself and descended the mountain, saying he wanted to travel for a bit.

The sect wanted to assign him two disciples to accompany him, but he refused, saying he didn't need anyone to serve him.

Sect Master Qu Wuming still questioned him about the matter of the messenger and the wine. Apparently, Guang Haoyou had reported it.

But Li Hongjiu lied his way past it, knowing that mentioning Shi Chun would complicate matters, anything related to the fifth-grade immobilization charm his master had repeatedly warned him about.

He didn't understand how Shi Chun had ended up living like that, whether he was truly clever or just pretending to be, placing himself amid dangers for fame and fortune.

Qu Wuming wasn't worried that this disciple would cause trouble after descending the mountain. As someone who wouldn't bother handling matters unless pushed, he only advised him to be cautious, disguising him before stealing down the mountain, and even minimizing awareness inside the sect.

"Obvious threats are easy to dodge, hidden ones hard to guard against," meaning.

Calling Li Hongjiu lazy was fair, but saying he lacked brains was incorrect. After descending, he first traversed to the East Victory Royal City via the Xun Gate, wandered around, then used the mother-child talisman to contact Shi Chun; confirming no reply, he detoured to the Western Ox King City.

While wandering the two locations, he inquired about the situation over in Juku State, checking if anything had happened.

No choice, knowing Shi Chun's tendencies, that scoundrel often stirred things up significantly.

This was why he was truly on guard against Shi Chun; though the fine brew was tempting, he feared being dragged in.

As for whether Shi Chun would plot against him, he wasn't worried, despite the threats in the letter.

However, with his street-level inquiries, he couldn't find anything, any affairs involving political influence had tightly controlled information dissemination.

So, on a windy day, he stepped out from the Xun Gate upon reaching Juku State.

Leaving the Xun Gate, he sensed something off; people queued up waiting to exit were being meticulously checked one by one.

Walking to a nearby shop, he inquired of the owner, "Excuse me, is leaving Juku State always checked this strictly?"

The shopkeeper shook his head, "No idea why. It suddenly started strict checks some time ago, impacting our business."

Li Hongjiu glanced again at the examinations near the exit, murmuring to himself, couldn't be related to that scoundrel, could it be just a coincidence?

After thanking the shopkeeper, he stepped away a bit to finally take out the mother-child talisman to contact Shi Chun, sending an enthusiastic message: Brother, missed you; I'm here.

True to his expectations, the mother-child talisman swiftly returned Shi Chun's enthusiastic reply; Brother Jiu, been eagerly waiting for you, loads of good wine await, come to Yao Mountain City quickly.

Loads of good wine? Li Hongjiu was indeed tempted but cautiously asked: No traps waiting for me, right?

Shi Chun replied: No traps, only fine wine and beautiful ladies, come promptly.

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