Chapter 152: Zhao Yunlu!

Zhao Changong looked expressionlessly at the three words Li Yuanjing had written, though his temples were visibly throbbing.

Clearly.

His inner state of mind was by no means as calm as he appeared on the surface.

After a moment.

Zhao Changong said in a deep voice:

"My good brother, what kind of person do you take your older brother for? We ten brothers of the Boshang Gang have deep roots here, and we only wish to secure a peaceful haven for ourselves and our subordinates. We have never once desired to become entangled in the chaotic struggles of the mortal world!"

"Since my good brother wants an answer, I, Zhao Changong, give you my guarantee right here: we ten brothers of the Boshang Gang have not the slightest connection with the White Lotus Sect!"

"Good!"

As soon as Zhao Changong finished speaking, Li Yuanjing clapped his hands repeatedly in praise:

"With those words from Elder Brother Zhao, younger brother can finally set his mind at ease! In return, I can also give Elder Brother Zhao a satisfactory explanation!"

"The recent upheaval in Fengcheng originated entirely from the White Lotus Sect! Although I can temporarily help Elder Brother Zhao resolve this matter, I am afraid there are some things you will have to explain personally to the young marquis."

Zhao Changong forced a smile:

"That is only right. When all is said and done, it is simply because I, Zhao, failed to properly discipline my subordinates and caused trouble for the young marquis. By the way, younger brother, what is this business you mentioned earlier?"

...

"Eldest Miss, I truly cannot understand what uncle is thinking! That smooth-faced scoundrel Li Yuanjing is clearly no good man. Why on earth won't uncle listen to us?"

While Li Yuanjing and Zhao Changong were deep in discussion.

Outside the grand assembly hall.

Xingcai swung her small saber repeatedly, hacking at the surrounding tree branches. When she looked toward the assembly hall, her eyes were still filled with an undiminishable hatred.

Zhao Yunlu was older than Xingcai and thought things through a bit more thoroughly. She sighed and said:

"Xingcai, calm down. Father must have his reasons for doing this. After all, in our stronghold, there are not just the two of us, but also numerous elderly folks, women, and children."

"This..."

Xingcai pressed her lips tightly together and fell silent.

Just as Zhao Yunlu had said.

If she only cared about her own selfish desires, where would she place the several thousand elderly, women, and children in the stronghold?

I'm afraid even if her father, Zhang Kewang, were still alive, he would give her a thorough scolding and paddle her backside.

It was just that...

The mere thought that Li Yuanjing was currently sitting inside the towering assembly hall, being treated as an honored guest by Zhao Changong, left an indescribable bitterness in Xingcai's heart.

Why...

Why is this world so unfair?

Good people die young, yet scoundrels like Li Yuanjing are able to live for a thousand years?

Just as the two young women were each lost in their own thoughts.

Inside the assembly hall.

A personal attendant suddenly hurried out to report:

"Eldest Miss, the chief requests your presence inside."

"Huh? Very well."

Zhao Yunlu snapped back to her senses, hurriedly cast a glance at Xingcai, and walked swiftly toward the assembly hall.

"Father, did you look for me?"

At this moment.

Li Yuanjing seemed to have finished discussing official business with Zhao Changong and was sipping tea with a smiling expression.

Seeing Zhao Yunlu approach, Zhao Changong hastily smiled and said:

"Younger brother, this is my daughter, Yunlu. She is even more familiar with the kiln works in Boshang than I am. If younger brother doesn't mind, I'll have her take you to tour the kiln works. What do you think?"

How could Li Yuanjing fail to understand the old fox's intentions at this point?

To curry favor with him, the man was practically willing to sell his own daughter.

Yet, this happened to suit Li Yuanjing's wishes perfectly!

Having such a charming young maiden by his side was, at the very least, much more pleasant than dealing with an old fox like Zhao Changong.

He smiled and said:

"Then I must thank Elder Brother Zhao."

Seeing Li Yuanjing agree, Zhao Changong's mood seemed to improve greatly. He hurriedly urged Zhao Yunlu:

"Yunlu, what are you standing there blankly for? Hurry up and get ready to escort Mr. Li to visit the kiln works in Boshang. Mr. Li's time is precious, so be sharp!"

"Ah? Yes..."

Zhao Yunlu bit down hard on her pearly white teeth.

Never had she imagined that her father would actually tell her to accompany such a despicable villain as Li Yuanjing, and the crucial part was that she had no way to refuse...

...

Zhao Yunlu was remarkably swift and resolute in her actions.

Before long.

She had tidied herself up and led a retinue of twenty or thirty men to escort Li Yuanjing out of the towering Bluestone Pass.

Xingcai cried and shouted, wanting to accompany Zhao Yunlu, but was ultimately blocked from following.

"Sir, are you alright?"

"Sir..."

The moment they saw Li Yuanjing emerge, Zhao Zengjin, Dong Peng, Ma Huan, and the others were overjoyed. They rushed forward anxiously to inspect Li Yuanjing from head to toe, terrified that he might have suffered even the slightest harm.

"I am quite fine."

"There is no need for everyone to worry."

Li Yuanjing smiled, waved his hand at the crowd, and introduced Zhao Yunlu to them:

"This is Miss Zhao Yunlu, the beloved daughter of Chief Zhao. She will be guiding us to Boshang."

"Greetings, Eldest Miss Zhao."

The group quickly bowed in salute to Zhao Yunlu.

By this time, Zhao Yunlu no longer dared to put on airs and hastily returned the bow with a well-behaved demeanor:

"You are all too polite, this young lady dares not accept such courtesy."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries and adjustments.

Zhao Yunlu gave the order to lower the several drawbridges outside Bluestone Pass. Li Yuanjing and his entourage stepped onto the drawbridges, bypassed the outer pass, and proceeded along the plank road beyond the bridges toward Boshang.

Walking along the plank road built right against the fortress walls, with bottomless abysses yawning beneath them, Li Yuanjing could not help but feel a wave of profound emotion welling up inside.

This fellow Zhao Changong harbors no small ambitions!

He actually managed to physically separate the fortress gate from the commercial trade route!

Especially since Zhao Changong's performance in this crisis differed little from what Li Yuanjing had anticipated, yet Li Yuanjing keenly sensed something amiss beneath the surface!

After all.

Having interacted personally with Zhao Changong, Li Yuanjing had gained some insight into the man's personality.

This was someone with an extremely strong desire for control!

In certain aspects, he was far more domineering than Li Yuanjing himself!

Yet.

How could such a domineering man have allowed his second-in-command Zhang Kewang, third-in-command Feng Da, seventh-in-command Zhao Baitiao, and others to be so easily manipulated by the White Lotus Sect?

"What is Mr. Li thinking about?"

Having bypassed the fortress gate and entered the steep slope of the old official road, Zhao Yunlu noticed that Li Yuanjing was still deep in thought, so she stepped forward with a smile and asked softly.

"Oh?"

"Nothing much."

Li Yuanjing smiled:

"I am merely awestruck by the scenery before us. Chief Zhao is truly a hero of our generation. And you, Miss Zhao, are by no means inferior—a true hero among women."

Zhao Yunlu's cheeks flushed slightly, revealing a trace of shyness, though she could not entirely suppress her smile.

Clearly.

In her usual daily life, she rarely encountered someone as glib-tongued as Li Yuanjing.

She hurriedly changed the subject and asked:

"Mr. Li, my father mentioned that you wish to inspect the kilns? I wonder what kind of porcelain you are looking for?"

Li Yuanjing actually wanted to continue teasing Zhao Yunlu, but he knew very well that since the meat was already in the bowl, there was no need to rush. He smiled and said:

"Fine porcelain. Exquisite porcelain. The higher the quality, the better! As long as the quality passes muster, I will take however many you have, Mr. Li! I must trouble Miss Zhao to put in some extra effort."

As he spoke.

Li Yuanjing fished out several silver banknotes and slipped them into Zhao Yunlu's small hand.

"This..."

Zhao Yunlu's pretty face turned instantly crimson. Her little hand didn't know whether to accept the banknotes or pull away.

Clearly.

She had never encountered such a situation before.

Who would have thought that Li Yuanjing would so directly stuff silver into her hand, and such a large sum at that—at least two hundred taels of silver banknotes...

"Ah."

Seeing Zhao Yunlu temporarily frozen in confusion, Li Yuanjing naturally chose not to pressure her. He cupped his fists with a smile and said:

"Miss Zhao, I will go ahead and take a look at the front. If Miss Zhao has any instructions, just send someone to notify me at any time."

Seeing Li Yuanjing quickly walk away and leave the space entirely to her, Zhao Yunlu hesitated for a moment before finally putting the banknotes away.

After all.

Regardless of her status as the eldest miss of Bluestone Pass, how much actual silver could she truly call her own?

Following that, her snow-white teeth could not help but bite down hard upon her tender red lips, her beautiful eyes fixing an increasingly complex gaze upon Li Yuanjing's retreating back.

It was only at this moment that she suddenly began to understand...

Why her father had been willing to negotiate with a man like Li Yuanjing.

Interacting closely with such a person not only lacked the annoyance she had anticipated, but instead... inexplicably gave rise to a lingering sense of hope...