"Besides, for a rchant, what’s more important than negotiation!" Zhu Wan’Er said softly, full of fighting spirit and confidence.
anwhile, Wu Liangchen and his companions had left Longxing Temple and returned to the bustling temple fair.
With an opera and a fireworks show scheduled for the evening, the streets only grew more crowded in the afternoon instead of thinning out.
The three of them wandered for a while longer before finding a place to rest their feet.
At this, Yang Lian’Er could finally hold it in no longer. "I think that Miss Zhu is quite taken with you," she said with a laugh. "Especially the way she looked at you when you were leaving. She could hardly tear her eyes away."
Wu Liangchen shook his head. "That was all an act. Only a fool would believe it."
Despite being called a fool, Yang Lian’Er was still astonished. "How can that be? I’m an actress myself. How could I not have noticed?"
"The two of you are different. You act on a stage; she acts off-stage."
"It’s hard for people like her to show real emotions. Even her everyday words and actions are a performance. An inexperienced person can’t tell what’s real from what’s fake."
Yang Lian’Er’s eyes widened. "But... isn’t that exhausting for her?"
As soone with profound operatic training and extensive stage experience, Yang Lian’Er knew exactly how exhausting it was to constantly wear a mask and perform in daily life.
"Exhausting? Maybe," Wu Liangchen said lightly. "But people like her are trained for it from a young age. They’re used to it by now."
Yang Lian’Er was amazed.
"Alright, let’s stop talking about her. I’ll take you two to look around so more. We’ll head ho after watching the opera and fireworks this evening," Wu Liangchen said, getting up.
"Alright!"
Just as Wu Liangchen was leading his two companions through the temple fair, two figures disembarked from an overseas passenger ship at the Huangpu Guard docks.
The pair consisted of an old man and a young boy. The old man looked to be in his sixties, his face covered in wrinkles and his features plain. Only his eyes, which occasionally flashed with a sharp glint, hinted that he was anything but ordinary.
Beside him was a child of eight or nine with a topknot and a runny nose. He’d wait until the snot was just about to drip into his mouth before giving a loud SNIFF.
To any onlooker, they were just an ordinary grandfather and grandson.
But once they left the docks, the old man lowered his voice and asked, "Big Brother, where are we going now?"
The child nodded slightly. "We’ll go to Yu Xiang Inn first and wait. Soone will contact us there."
"Yes."
The "grandfather and grandson" squeezed through the crowd, asking for directions until they arrived at the Yu Xiang Inn.
Soone had already booked a room for them. When they checked in, the nas they wrote down were Wangyue Xinyi and Wangyue Xiner, respectively.
The two strange nas made the clerk at the registration desk look them over several tis.
Finally, the old man nad Wangyue Xinyi frowned. "What? Has an inn as large as yours never hosted guests from the East Sea Country?"
"We’ve hosted guests from the East Sea Country before, of course, but nas like yours are quite rare," the clerk said with a smile.
"Hmph. Ignorant bumpkins," Wangyue Xinyi snorted, then led the child, Wangyue Xiner, away.
Once they were out of earshot, the clerk started whispering with his coworker.
"Hey, aren’t those people from the East Sea Country a handful? The grandfather’s na is Xinyi, and the grandson’s is Xiner. It’s like their nas an ’One’ and ’Two’. So what’s the dad’s na? Xin-one-point-five?"
His coworker laughed too.
"Aren’t all people from the East Sea Country like that? You even get nas like Jingshang Songxia."
Just as the two were whispering, Wangyue Xinyi, who had already walked so distance away, frowned slightly, a flash of killing intent in his eyes.
"Don’t be impulsive," the child-like Wangyue Xiner said calmly. "Wait until we’ve finished the job and gotten paid. Then you can deal with scum like that however you wish."
Hearing this, Wangyue Xinyi imdiately retracted his killing intent and lowered his head.
"Yes!"
Barely two hours after they had checked in, a black carriage pulled up to a side entrance of the Yu Xiang Inn. A figure alighted and quickly vanished through the door.
A mont later, soone knocked on the door of the room where the two were staying.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
After three, very rhythmic knocks, both Wangyue Xinyi and Xiner rose to their feet inside the room.
"Who is it?"
"An old friend from the East Sea!"
Only then did the pair open the door and admit the person waiting outside.
In the lamplight, the visitor’s face was finally clear. It was Mo Daoyuan, the forr strategist of the Beheading Gang, who had long since vanished without a trace, as if he had evaporated from the face of the earth.
He had lost all of his forr swagger. He looked utterly haggard, and his beard had even turned gray.
"Greetings, my lords!" Mo Daoyuan bowed deeply and respectfully to the two.
Wangyue Xinyi stepped aside, while Wangyue Xiner said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, "Mo-san, it’s been a long ti. How have you beco so haggard?"
Mo Daoyuan heaved a long sigh. "To be honest, I’ve had a run of bad luck. I had planned to take over Flower Square in the na of the Beheading Gang and serve the Monarch. But who could have expected so kid to pop out of nowhere and ruin my plans ti and ti again!"
By the end, Mo Daoyuan was grinding his teeth, his face filled with a bone-deep hatred.
Wangyue Xiner, however, didn’t buy this speech at all. "Heh, serving the Monarch... I’d believe those words from anyone else, but from you, Mo-san? I don’t believe it for a second."
"After all, you’ve been in Huangpu Guard for over ten years. If you wanted to serve, you would have done so long ago. Why wait until now?"
Mo Daoyuan’s face flushed with sha at his words, and he finally bowed his head.
"You are right to chastise , my lord. I had truly lost the heart of an East Sea Warrior. I deserve death!"
"Enough," Wangyue Xiner said lightly. "Whether you’ve lost your heart or not has nothing to do with us. We’re here for money. You pay, we kill for you. It’s that simple."
"Yes!" Mo Daoyuan hurriedly bowed. "I have the money ready," he said. "Here is a fifty percent deposit. You will receive the other half upon completion."
As he spoke, Mo Daoyuan handed over a bulging pouch. Wangyue Xiner glanced at the old man, who stepped forward and took it. He opened the pouch to find it full of shiny Eagle Yuan. After a quick count, he nodded at Wangyue Xiner.
Only then did Wangyue Xiner speak. "All right, talk. Who is this person? He must be difficult if you had to pay so much to bring us all the way from the East Sea Country."
"Yes!"
"The man’s na is Wu Liangchen. A year ago, he was just an ordinary carriage driver. Now, he’s a top-tier Martial Artist with the strength of at least the Third Realm. He also has so connection to the Heartless Dao of Great Yan."
"Oh? From an ordinary person to the Third Realm in just one year? Is that true?" Wangyue Xiner asked doubtfully.
"Every word is true!"
Mo Daoyuan then gave a detailed account of Wu Liangchen’s origins, placing special emphasis on his miraculous archery and his mastery of Qinggong and Body Technique.
After listening, Wangyue Xinyi and Xiner looked at each other and both started to laugh.
"And here I was, thinking he was so incredible powerhouse. Turns out that’s all he is. His archery might be a problem for you lot, but it poses no threat to us."
Mo Daoyuan was overjoyed. "That’s fantastic! If you can eliminate this scoundrel, I’m confident I can make a coback and seize Flower Square. When that happens, there will be another generous reward for you."
Wangyue Xiner gave a loud SNIFF, sucking back the snot that was about to drip past his lip. He waved a dismissive hand. "Unnecessary. As Warriors of the East Sea, we only take the agreed-upon price."
"Then when do you plan to make your move?" Mo Daoyuan asked cautiously, afraid of angering the pair again.
Back when he was still in the East Sea Country, this pair had already made a na for themselves as assassins of the highest caliber.
To assassinate Wu Liangchen, he had spent the very last of his fortune to hire them from the East Sea Country.
Wangyue Xiner glanced up at the pale moon outside the window. "What a beautiful moon," he said softly. "Perfect weather for a killing."
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