Chapter 674 - The Grand Wedding of the Tang Sect, Reunion with Tang Nian - Part 2

The night passed.

Early in the morning, Li Yuan was jolted awake to find Ah Ting lying next to him, her face just inches from his, staring.

Beneath the blankets, it was just a little girl and a baby boy.

Seeing him stir, Ah Ting rolled onto her side and shouted toward the door, “Big Sis! He’s awake!”

Liu Long returned from outside, her body still glistening faintly with sweat. She’d clearly just finished sword practice. Her pretty face was calm as she leaned over Li Yuan and dressed him in a small set of clothes she’d bought with a few copper coins in the village.

Then, with practiced hands, she picked him up and took him out for a morning pee.

For Li Yuan, this was a humiliating new experience. Never in any of his lives had he been so helplessly...managed.

Even in his last reincarnation, he’d been self-sufficient before anyone had to help with anything so personal.

But what could he do now?

Once the ordeal was over, she cleaned him up, wrapped him in an old-fashioned cloth diaper, and set him on her lap to feed him again.

After the meal, Liu Long smiled and turned toward the village woman nearby. Then, looking at Li Yuan, she said cheerfully, “I’m going to leave now, okay?”

With that, she started to hand him over.

The woman she addressed was the owner of the house, someone Liu Long had paid for a temporary stay.

But Li Yuan wasn’t having it. He latched onto Liu Long’s arm like a baby koala and refused to let go.

Her expression softened visibly.

Turning back to the woman, she said, “Never mind, Aunt Ma. Looks like this little one wants to come with me.”

Aunt Ma gave her a knowing look. “Madam Liu, it must be tough traveling alone. What about your husband?”

“My husband?” Liu Long paused. She didn’t have a husband in this life.

The one from her past life, though, that one still lingered in her thoughts.

Honestly, she didn’t even know if she would end up getting married again in this life. She never planned on seeking out a man, nor having a child again.

The thought passed like a fleeting shadow.

Aunt Ma noticed her silence and wisely didn’t press further.

Soon, Liu Long strapped Li Yuan to her back, took Ah Ting’s hand, and headed up the mountain path.

Li Yuan bounced gently on her shoulders, eyes wide open as he scanned everything around him.

He needed to figure out what era they were in, and more urgently, whether the supernatural had returned to this world.

By midday, they arrived at the gate of the Tang Sect.

All three looked up at the five towering towers that pierced the sky.

Li Yuan let out a quiet breath of relief.

At least

, he thought,

we’re not too far off course.

In the very next moment, Li Yuan saw one of the Tang Sect disciples standing guard fix a cold gaze on them. The disciple on the left barked, “Who goes there?”

Liu Long answered calmly, “Swift Sword, Liu Long.”

“Never heard of you,” the disciple replied with a dismissive snort. “Better turn around and go back down the mountain.”

“Three days ago, I sent a calling card requesting an audience. I’m here to see Grand Matron Tang,” Liu Long persisted.

The disciple gave a sidelong glance to his companion, who nodded and said, “I’ll go check.”

A short while later, he returned with narrowed eyes and a colder tone. “You did send a card, claiming to be an old acquaintance of the Madam. But it’s clear you were lying. These days, lying to a king might be forgiven, but using Grand Matron Tang’s name as a joke...”

His eyes swept over Liu Long, Ah Ting, and the baby in her arms. “You, and those two little ones, won’t make it out alive if you keep pushing your luck. My advice? Leave. Your card’s already been burned.”

“I really do need to speak with her,” Liu Long said firmly. “If Grand Matron Tang’s full name is Tang Nian, then yes, she is my old friend.”

Li Yuan quietly scanned the disciple’s status 5~6 and watched the exchange with growing exasperation.

Sure, mentioning that Grand Matron Tang’s real name was Tang Nian was a clever clue...but clearly, these gatekeeping disciples probably didn’t even know her real name.

And then, right on cue, he got proven wrong.

The disciple scoffed, “Everyone on the jianghu knows her real name is Tang Nian. Why state the obvious?”

He glared at Liu Long. “You’re not exactly famous in the martial world. If I let you through, that’s on me. I lose my post.”

Liu Long seemed to hesitate, her brows pinching together with reluctant defeat. She was about to turn back.

But Li Yuan had no intention of retreating. If he were just a normal baby, vulnerable and powerless, he might have kept his mouth shut and waited. But he wasn’t. He was only wearing the skin of a baby. So what if someone saw through it? So what if they found out? He wasn’t afraid.

They were already standing at the gates of the Tang Sect. He knew Grand Matron Tang’s real name was Tang Nian. Was he really supposed to keep pretending, lying low for years, waiting to grow up before knocking on this mountain gate again?

Wait too long, and things change.

He wasn’t hiding. Not anymore. Not even for a second.

Tang Nian was here. He had to see her.

He had too many questions.

And so, he started wriggling in Liu Long’s arms, slipping down from her back and landing on his feet.

Startled, Liu Long turned, but the baby was already toddling ahead of her. Then he grabbed a fistful of her dress and tried to tug her toward the gate.

“Huh??” Liu Long was startled.

The Tang Sect disciples was shocked too.

What in the world were they looking at?

In a soft, milky voice, Li Yuan declared, “Knows her. M-my mama knows her.”

Liu Long blinked. “You...can talk?”

Li Yuan looked up and added, “Go tell the Sect Master this line,

Though joy may bloom in brocade-clad cities, none compares to the comfort of returning home.

That was the secret code, his and Tang Eleven’s agreed-upon phrase.

The disciples were stunned into silence.

The one who’d been barking orders now just stared at Li Yuan, eyes wide, as if trying to figure out whether this child had even reached his one-month mark.

Liu Long, on the other hand, stood frozen for a beat. Her body tensed, her almond-shaped eyes narrowing, pupils shrinking slightly as she frowned at Li Yuan. But then she composed herself and said, voice steady, “Please. Deliver that message to your leader.”

Seeing the Tang Sect disciple still hesitating, Liu Long added coolly, “And if you let an important guest slip through the cracks, will you not be held accountable?”

Faced with such a strange and unpredictable situation, the disciple wavered, thought hard, then finally said, “Wait here.”

He turned and hurried off toward the high towers deeper within the sect.