"Jiang Hong said he heard from the rchants in Lianxiang City that just when everyone outside was flocking to the Little Mountain Building, suddenly there was a family looking for soone, claiming their daughter had been lured away by the people from the Little Mountain Building. The family wasn’t happy about having her beco more beautiful and then becoming a concubine to a wealthy man."
Yan Daoxin’s tone beca more serious, losing so of the earlier frivolity: "The family chased to the Little Mountain Building to find her, but the people from the Little Mountain Building wouldn’t let them in. There were many protectors there, so they could only wait outside, hoping to find an opportunity to see their daughter.
They waited for many days, and they really did see their daughter going out with people from the Little Mountain Building. The girl indeed looked more stunning than before.
Her parents hurriedly rushed forward to stop her, asking her to go ho with them. However, the girl seed to have forgotten who her parents were, ignoring them completely, as if unaware of their presence."
Zhu Yu and Lu Qing exchanged a look, a hint of puzzlent in their eyes but not entirely surprised.
Having experienced the events at Situ Jing’s camp and the Immortal Castle, they were not unfamiliar with this kind of situation, as if soone had taken over a body.
And the mont they heard this detail, they imdiately understood why Yan Daoxin was so excited.
Yan Daoxin continued: "Maybe because the commotion they caused on the street attracted too much attention, the people from the Little Mountain Building didn’t ignore the family forever. An old lady ca out and politely invited the whole family into the Little Mountain Building, saying they would be properly settled, and they would show them how their daughter was taken care of inside.
The family, half-believing, was taken in.
After that... no one ever saw that family again..."
Yan Daoxin looked mysteriously at Lu Qing, then at Zhu Yu, nodding at them with a aningful expression.
"Did this incident not stir any waves in Lianxiang City?" Zhu Yu asked in confusion.
"Jiang Hong said, because many families previously benefited from the Little Mountain Building and stopped caring about their daughters’ whereabouts, when this family disappeared quietly, many people just assud they had taken a large sum of money, afraid of being robbed, and left in the night." Yan Daoxin said, "However, so didn’t believe it.
Jiang Hong said the shopkeeper of the spice shop where he delivered goods didn’t believe it. The shopkeeper thought the family might be locked up in the Little Mountain Building, and perhaps even lost their lives long ago.
The shopkeeper told Jiang Hong that he once saw a haggard white-haired female ghost crying at night in the Little Mountain Building, which terrified him, and he has since been convinced that the Little Mountain Building was suspicious and ominous.
However, that shopkeeper is an old drunkard, who busies himself in the shop by day, then goes to taverns to drink at night, often getting so drunk he stumbles while walking.
So, people don’t take his words very seriously."
"This is interesting." Lu Qing nodded after listening, "If that’s the case, let’s go to Lianxiang City to see what’s really going on."
When they were about to leave, the True Castle Master of the Immortal Castle, Jiang Hong, wanted to co out to see them off despite his condition, but Yan Daoxin refused with a stern face.
"If you want us to leave and then find you dead at the doorstep right after, then by all ans, see us off!" He fiercely told Jiang Hong, "Don’t exert yourself by going outside, rest more and recuperate.
The sturdy fellows who stayed in the castle and died from the poison have been buried by our people already, and a few survived with my help. They’ve agreed to stay and work for you, so you can rest peacefully for now."
Jiang Hong, in tears, repeatedly expressed his gratitude. Yan Daoxin didn’t say anything more to him and set off with Lu Qing and Zhu Yu towards Lianxiang City.
Five of them rode their horses at full gallop and managed to reach Lianxiang City before nightfall, entering the city before the gates closed.
Zhu Yu and the others all wore veiled hats, and once inside the city, they breathed a sigh of relief, slowing down their pace, while observing their surroundings along the main street.
Though Lianxiang City is quite a distance from the capital of Lan Country, it appeared to be bustling, with various taverns and restaurants, costic and textile shops lining both sides of the main street. There seed to be no curfew imposed here, and as darkness fell, shops on the road lit their lights. It was not an exaggeration to say the place was lively and boisterous.
"Jiang Hong ntioned," Yan Daoxin rode beside Lu Qing, speaking in a low voice, "that Lianxiang City is a hub for the purchase and sale of spices and dyes, so it’s bustling with activity.
Most of the city’s residents depend on the traveling rchants for their livelihood, and most of the surrounding land is owned by wealthy families in and around the city. So, while it appears very lively, in reality, most people in the city live modestly."
Lu Qing nodded slightly, and they continued forward.
In the middle of Lianxiang City, a river runs straight through, with a few arched stone bridges connecting the two banks.
On the other side of the river, there was an even more vibrant scene, with rows of small buildings along the riverbank, adorned with colorful lanterns that dazzled the eye.
In those small buildings, young won were lightly waving their fans, and the sound of their laughter drifted across the not-so-wide river, mixing with the scent of costics.
The five of them stopped at a bridge, and imdiately a young man dressed like a servant approached: "Are you gentlen rchants from out of town? It’s dark already, and you’re still carrying your bags. Have you not found a place to stay?"
"Young man, those over there...?" Zhu Yu asked the young man.
"Gentlen, over there, you can enjoy drinks and listen to songs, but if you want lodging... You gentlen, if you’re passing rchants, why not check out our inn?" The young man grinned sowhat ambiguously, gesturing hospitably towards an inn nearby.
Zhu Yu turned to look at Lu Qing, and Lu Qing nodded slightly.
Before Zhu Yu could speak again, the young man, having noticed, imdiately made a "please" gesture, leading the group’s horses toward the inn he ntioned.
The inn was just a few feet away from where they stood at the bridge, and it didn’t take long to reach. The small building was right by the river, a rather nice location.
Whether it was the season or not, there weren’t many rchants coming and going; the inn only had a few people sitting around drinking and chatting. The young man enthusiastically called the shopkeeper over to arrange rooms for them and then went to the kitchen to have hot water prepared for the guests to wash off the dust of the road.
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