In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 677 Observations (5)

"However, Old Li did not die."

Zheng Qiuyan paused for a moment, then continued, "Under Uncle Li's protection, Old Master Li successfully escaped the pursuit of powerful families in the capital and fled the city safely."

"And who is Uncle Li?"

Chen Dao asked, and it wasn't hard to tell from Zheng Qiuyan's words that the key to Li Mingyuan's escape from the capital lay with the man called Uncle Li.

"Uncle Li's real name is Li Qiao. He was a beggar that Old Li took in many years ago. He has been by Old Li's side all these years. They are not related by blood, but they are closer than blood relatives."

Zheng Qiuyan said, "Uncle Li is a rare martial arts prodigy. He has shown amazing talent in martial arts since childhood. Even without the help of any cultivation resources, Uncle Li's progress in martial arts is still rapid, and he is in no way inferior to the geniuses of those aristocratic families who do not lack resources. Now his martial arts realm is at the peak of martial artists in the Nine Provinces: First Grade!"

A first-grade warrior!

Chen Dao's pupils contracted slightly. Since it was impossible to confirm whether a realm above the first rank existed, the first rank martial artist was the highest peak of martial arts. In other words, Li Qiao, who was at the first rank, was already an invincible existence.

Such a martial artist has appeared in Chenjia Village...

Alarm bells rang in Chen Dao's mind instantly. If these people had any designs on Chenjia Village, the village would likely suffer heavy losses.

Upon realizing this, Chen Dao immediately summoned the Crimson Flame One and Crimson Flame Two, which were hovering in the air.

However, before he could speak, Zheng Qiuyan said first: "Young Master Chen, don't worry. With Elder Li and Uncle Li here, Li Gang will definitely not be able to hurt you in the slightest."

Upon hearing this, Chen Dao temporarily suppressed the urge to summon the village's strange beasts and asked in surprise, "You mean... Li Xiang and Li Qiao came to protect me?"

"Exactly."

"Why?"

Chen Dao asked, puzzled, "I've never met Li Mingyuan before, so why would he go to the trouble of coming all the way to Chenjia Village to protect me?"

"Perhaps Mr. Li saw some hope in you."

Zheng Qiuyan said meaningfully, "Old Li's greatest wish in his life was to ensure that all the people of Kyushu could have enough to eat, and you just happened to give him hope of realizing that wish."

"I see."

Chen Dao suddenly realized that, if nothing unexpected happened, Li Mingyuan must have learned about Chenjia Village's high-yield grain varieties from Zheng Qiuyan or Zheng Qing, which was why he was paying so much attention to him.

Realizing this, Chen Dao immediately relaxed. Since Li Mingyuan and his companion had come to protect him, the possibility of them harming Chenjia Village was unlikely, especially since...

Zheng Qiuyan has been here for some time now. If Li Mingyuan and his companion had done anything detrimental to Chenjia Village, someone should have informed them by now.

"Since Prime Minister Li came for me, why are you the only one who came to see me?"

Chen Dao asked, now that he was relaxed.

"As a newcomer, Mr. Li was naturally curious about Chenjia Village, so he planned to take a look around the village first."

"That's it!"

Chen Dao nodded, and after learning more about the Black-Clad Guards and Li Gang from Zheng Qiuyan, he invited Zheng Qiuyan to stay for dinner.

"Thank you, Young Master Chen, but no need. I have to go back and keep Old Master Li company."

Zheng Qiuyan declined Chen Dao's invitation and, after saying goodbye to Chen Dao, returned to Chencun Avenue to look for Li Mingyuan and the other person.

Chen Dao watched Zheng Qiuyan's departing figure, a thoughtful expression on his face.

The arrival of the Black-Clad Guards was not unexpected for Chen Dao. After all, they had killed a prince of the Xia Kingdom. No matter how incompetent the Xia Kingdom's royal family was, they could not turn a blind eye to it.

Chen Dao had no idea that the person who came would be the commander of the Black-Clad Guards, who was at the second rank.

"We need to find a way to kill the Black-Clad Guards on the road, preferably so they don't reach Chenjia Village."

Chen Dao muttered to himself, "Battles between high-level martial artists often have far-reaching consequences. If Li Gang and his group were to enter Chenjia Village and a battle were to break out there, it would inevitably cause a great deal of damage to the villagers and buildings in Chenjia Village."

Therefore, the best outcome for Chen Dao would be to eliminate the Black-Clad Guards outside of Chen Family Village.

As for whether he could deal with the Black-Clad Guards... Chen Dao wasn't worried about that. The strongest member of the Black-Clad Guards was only Li Gang, who was at the second rank.

At this time, Chenjia Village possessed four second-grade exotic beasts. With four second-grade exotic beasts, dealing with the Black-Clad Guards was not a problem at all.

"Brother Dao, dinner's ready."

Li Ping's voice came from inside the house, and Chen Dao quickly replied, "Coming!"

Soon, Chen Dao and his family sat down at the dining table to enjoy lunch.

Meanwhile, Li Mingyuan and Li Qiao also entered Chencun Restaurant.

The reason Chencun Restaurant was chosen was because Li Mingyuan and Li Qiao discovered that among the villagers who had finished work, the most people chose to dine there.

"Sir, would you like a meal or a room at the inn?"

As soon as the two entered the restaurant, a waiter immediately came up to them, asking with great enthusiasm what their purpose was.

"To have a bite to eat."

Li Mingyuan answered while looking at the people dining in the restaurant hall.

"If you'd like a quick bite, our restaurant offers both main dining area and private rooms. Would you two prefer to dine in the main dining area or upstairs?"

The waiter inquired and said that the dining areas of Chencun Restaurant were on the first and second floors. The first floor was an open space with a large number of tables.

The second floor is divided into private rooms, which offer a quieter dining environment, but are correspondingly more expensive.

Let's eat in the lobby.

Li Mingyuan replied without hesitation that he was a person who liked to enjoy being with the people. Even when he was an official in the past, he liked to go to places where there were many people, let alone now.

"to make."

The waiter quickly led Li Mingyuan and his companion to an empty table and then handed them a menu: "Gentlemen, this is our restaurant's menu. Please take a look and see what you would like to eat?"

Li Mingyuan took the menu and started browsing. There were quite a few dishes on the menu, both meat and vegetarian. However, most of the meat dishes were made from chicken and duck, and dishes like mutton and beef, which are commonly found in other restaurants, were not available.

In addition, Li Mingyuan noticed the prices marked on the menu and was somewhat surprised.

The prices on the menu were far too cheap. For example, half a poached chicken was only 120 coins, a price that was beyond Li Mingyuan's expectations.

You should know that Li Mingyuan had just come from Liangzhou, and the price of meat in Liangzhou... a single gray-feathered chicken would cost 500 coins, and that was the price of a live chicken.

The price will only increase after the live chicken is slaughtered and cooked into a dish.

In restaurants in Liangzhou, half a chicken could probably sell for over 500 coins!