Luo Zhengnan looked just like an honest-to-goodness vegetable farr, lowering his head and saying, "I just ca to sell the vegetables I grew myself. Do I still have to pay rent?"
"If you don’t pay rent, why should we let you sell your vegetables here? All of us have paid the rent. If you co here and take our business, it’s like stealing our bread. This matter can’t just be dropped."
The crowd jostled and pushed, pressing Luo Zhengnan for answers. The surrounding Ho Cultivators couldn’t stand by and watch, so they all ca forward to reason on Luo Zhengnan’s behalf.
The matter escalated to the Fortress Lord. Li Banfeng had long wanted to deal with these unscrupulous rchants but had never found the right opportunity. Now the opportunity was pretty good, but Li Banfeng didn’t really want to et with outsiders, so he had Wu Yongchao step forward to settle the matter.
The thod of dealing with it was simple: henceforth, rchants doing business in Iron Gate Fort would no longer pay rent but would have to provide a security deposit. If any rchant was found selling inferior goods as fine ones, mixing in impurities, or arbitrarily raising prices, their security deposit would be forfeited, and they would be banned from setting foot in Iron Gate Fort ever again.
A few veteran rchants were dissatisfied and clamored to strike, but Li Banfeng paid them no heed. rchants are naturally driven by profit; if these ones left, others would co.
By the next day, these old rchants still hadn’t left; they were reluctant to give up this place. Quite a few new rchants showed up. Most were farrs from the surrounding areas who had long wanted to sell their wares in Iron Gate Fort but previously couldn’t afford the rent. With competition among them, rice sellers no longer dared to mix in sand, vegetable sellers avoided adding rotten leaves, and the prices of goods dropped considerably while purchasing prices rose slightly.
The lives of the Ho Cultivators improved. As Li Banfeng walked the streets, observing the bustling rchants, he was quite satisfied. Among them, there were acquaintances, strangers, and old acquaintances.
Strange, why were there old acquaintances?
Li Banfeng stared at a peddler selling sundries for a long ti and suddenly furrowed his brow. The man was around sixty years old, holding a Water Smoke Pot, with salt-and-pepper hair, and always wore a pleasant smile.
Sun Xiao’an! A close confidant of the Second Helmsman of the dicine King Hall, part of the Jiang Xiang Gang!
He had infiltrated the fortress!
Anxiety churned within Li Banfeng. Soone from the Jiang Xiang Gang has actually slipped in!
This man couldn’t stay.
The key question: Had he co alone, or was there a whole nest of them?
Li Banfeng prepared to notify the Ho Cultivators stationed in the boiler room to close the gates imdiately, ready for a crackdown.
Just then, Wu Yongchao approached and said to Li Banfeng, "Fortress Lord, two vegetable sellers are causing trouble. Could you co take a look?"
Under normal circumstances, Li Banfeng couldn’t care less about such trivial disputes. But now, with mbers of the Jiang Xiang Gang inside the fort, Li Banfeng had to be vigilant about any anomalies.
When he arrived, two won selling vegetables were fighting. Their baskets were overturned, their voices hoarse from shouting, and their faces scratched. Li Banfeng noticed nothing unusual about the two won; they seed no different from ordinary shrews.
However, he did observe a telltale sign from another old vegetable farr. It wasn’t so much that Li Banfeng detected it; rather, the man seed to be deliberately revealing it. That old vegetable farr was none other than Luo Zhengnan.
He smiled at Li Banfeng.
If he hadn’t deliberately exposed himself, Li Banfeng would have found it difficult to spot any issue with him. Now that he had deliberately exposed himself, it seed he wanted to speak with Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng tipped his hat down low and gave a slight nod toward him, leading him to a deserted house deep in the valley. The house had been vacated by a Ho Cultivator who had moved away, and its House Spirit had also been taken. It was no different from the hos of other Ho Cultivators. Li Banfeng nominally lived there but actually resided in his Portable Residence.
Li Banfeng usually didn’t bring any maids with him, and no tea had been prepared in the house. After they took their seats, the two went straight to the point.
Luo Zhengnan made no attempt to conceal his identity. "I am a Hall Master of the Jiang Xiang Gang, Luo Zhengnan by na."
Li Banfeng didn’t hide his identity either. "I am the Fortress Lord of Iron Gate Fort, and my na is Fortress Lord."
Luo Zhengnan nodded. Had it been anyone else, he would have found it ridiculous. But here in Iron Gate Fort, such an introduction wasn’t out of place. Everyone in Iron Gate Fort knew they had only one Fortress Lord, whose na was Fortress Lord.
Luo Zhengnan said, "Fortress Lord, I’ve co to your esteed domain for an item. I believe you know what it is even if I don’t ntion it."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "If you don’t tell , I really don’t know."
Luo Zhengnan put it in simpler terms, "This item looks like a Weapon, but in reality, it’s a Soul. I assu I’ve made myself clear, right?"
Li Banfeng shook his head again. "I still don’t understand."
Despite saying that, Li Banfeng had already thought of sothing—Old He’s House Spirit. House Spirits could possess physical objects. The item in question must be that.
Luo Zhengnan sighed. "Then I’ll be even more straightforward. I’m here for Zhao Xiaowan."
And who is Zhao Xiaowan? Li Banfeng’s mind churned. So the House Spirit was nad Zhao Xiaowan.
Luo Zhengnan smiled. "Zhao Xiaowan, the renowned general—you don’t know of her? If you continue to speak this way, it’s rather pointless. I know this item is valuable, and I also know you won’t part with it easily. I wouldn’t dare ask for it empty-handed. I’ve co to Iron Gate Fort intending to buy it."
Li Banfeng’s eyebrows twitched. "How much can you offer?"
"I won’t lie about the price. I’ll give you a firm figure: eight hundred thousand Ocean Dollars." Luo Zhengnan stated a genuine price imdiately. "With that amount, you could buy the Hundred Joy Gate in Greenwater City. This is no exaggeration; it was the price Lu Dongjun received when he sold Hundred Joy Gate to the Chu Family!"
Li Banfeng took a deep breath. "Eight hundred thousand Ocean Dollars! That’s more money than one could spend in several lifetis."
Luo Zhengnan nodded. "I’m just waiting for your word. I can have people bring the money tomorrow."
Li Banfeng sat silently for a mont, then asked another question, "What if I don’t want to sell? Are you going to rob ?"
Luo Zhengnan shook his head. "Honestly, I don’t have the courage for that."
Li Banfeng sneered, "You’ve already infiltrated the fortress, yet you claim you don’t have the courage?"
Luo Zhengnan’s expression turned serious. "If I truly possessed such courage, I certainly wouldn’t have allowed those two vegetable-selling won to cause trouble in your territory. I intentionally let their identities be exposed as a show of sincerity. I’ve only brought these two subordinates with , no one else. I genuinely wish to make a deal.
"If you don’t wish to sell to , that’s fine. I’ll simply leave. I certainly wouldn’t dare cause you any trouble.
"However, I must caution you. Today, I managed to infiltrate Iron Gate Fort; others can too. I dare not try to seize your property, but others might not be so hesitant.
"You may look down on the Jiang Xiang Gang, but if the Jiang Xiang Gang leaves, the Three Heroes Gang might co. If the Three Heroes Gang leaves, the Qingyun Society might follow.
"You might disregard all these Great Clan Gates, this motley crew. But if the major families like the Lu Family, He Family, Ma Family, or Chu Family arrive, the situation might not be so easy to handle.
"You’ve taken over Iron Gate Fort to provide a good life for these Ho Cultivators. But once news of this spreads, Iron Gate Fort could very well beco Blood Gate Fort.
"Fortress Lord, please consider this carefully."
Luo Zhengnan is quite shrewd, but in this situation, he’s not wrong.
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