The two men climbed down the rope ladder. Just as they found the front desk manager and stumbled over their words about checking out, the manager looked behind them, bowing and nodding.
Hearing footsteps behind them, the two men turned around in unison. They saw the half demon attendant of the landlady walking towards them, swishing a tiger tail.
Judging by her smile and gaze, she seemed to be coming for them. The two men tensed up slightly.
Huniu walked up to them, glanced at their packed bags, and asked, “You have packed your bags. What is the meaning of this?”
Yu Qing forced a smile and said, “Something urgent has come up, and we must take our leave now. We will come back to thank the landlady for her generous hospitality when we have the chance.”
As he said this, he regretted it deeply. They had been at the inn for less than half a day, and a hundred thousand taels were already gone. He regretted having crooked thoughts and trying the pretty boy trick.
Now the pretty boy trick seemed to have worked, but he did not dare to play along anymore. What kind of situation was this?
Huniu curled her lips into a smile. She realised the landlady had predicted this perfectly. They were indeed trying to run. She stopped them without any courtesy, saying, “Put your urgent matters on hold for now. Come with me first.”
Her words were completely overbearing, leaving no room for negotiation. Yu Qing was speechless and had no excuse to refuse. He had to ask, “Where are we going?”
Huniu, who had already turned to leave, replied without looking back, “The landlady is looking for you.”
The two martial brothers looked at each other. Yu Qing quickly caught up with her and continued to probe, “What does the landlady want with us?”
Huniu replied casually, “How would I know? You will find out when you see her.”
The two grown men were truly afraid of delaying their escape, but they had no choice. They could only grit their teeth and follow her.
It was the rope ladder again. This time, it took them straight to the top floor of the inn. Huniu led them directly into a room.
As soon as they entered, they could smell a faint fragrance, along with a subtle scent of alcohol and powder. The perfectly balanced lighting created a romantic and tranquil atmosphere. The room was decorated with ultimate elegance, giving a pleasing sight the moment one stepped in. The two brothers could easily guess whose room it was.
Huniu led them to the terrace facing the Hundred Zhang Courtyard.
A graceful figure was half leaning on the railing. Her hair was let down, and she held a small wine pot to her lips. She was looking at the bustling crowd below. Whether she had seen enough or not was unknown, but she basically watched from here every day.
A breeze blew, and various coloured lanterns swayed in the Hundred Zhang Courtyard. It was a hazy charm, a prosperity struggling out of desire.
For the two brothers, who were standing at this angle for the first time, facing such a night view, they could only secretly sigh that it is truly good to be rich.
Huniu whispered a few words to Lian Yu. This made Lian Yu smile and turn around to look at the two men, asking, “Are you leaving Tianji Mountain?”
Yu Qing hurriedly said, “We have some urgent matters to attend to.”
Lian Yu raised the wine pot. Clear wine flowed from the curved spout into her mouth. The charm of this scene under the lighting left both brothers stunned. It was their first time seeing a woman who exuded such charm so freely.
After putting the pot down, Lian Yu wiped the wine drops from her lips with her fingertip and said, “Since you are in a hurry, I will keep it short. Do you want your Scorpion Gang to sign up for the Bronze Sparrow Martial Event and give it a try?”
The two brothers were taken aback. They did not expect her to bring this up.
Yu Qing chuckled and said, “The landlady flatters us. With our tiny Scorpion Gang, how would we dare to compete with those big gangs?”
Lian Yu raised her hand to brush her long hair and said, “Big gangs might not succeed if they do not use their strength well. Small gangs might succeed if they grasp the key points. If you are interested in Bronze Sparrow Lake, I might be able to lend you a hand.”
These words were direct enough, which was beyond the expectations of the two brothers.
This was originally their purpose for coming here. It was handed to them on a silver platter. Logically, they should have been overjoyed, but at this moment, they were filled with surprise and suspicion.
Yu Qing really wanted to ask her why she was taking the initiative to help them. Then he noticed the gaze of Lian Yu occasionally drifting towards Mu Aotie. He suddenly realised how stupid he was. Why ask? She was willing to help them naturally because of Mu Aotie.
If they took Bronze Sparrow Lake, would that not keep Mu Aotie here? If they did not leave Tianji Mountain, would they not have the opportunity for a romantic relationship?
He found the power of the pretty boy trick was beyond his imagination, but he still could not be happy. He was already scared enough. Staying behind for a romantic relationship was just asking for a miserable death.
He was about to politely decline her kindness, when Lian Yu took the initiative to ask, “Do you know why I am helping you?”
Of course they knew. Not only did Yu Qing know, but Mu Aotie had also realised it.
But they still had to play dumb. Yu Qing pretended to be confused and said, “We are indeed wondering. The landlady and we have just met. Why would you help us?”
Lian Yu took another sip of wine, turned her head to look at the bustling crowd in the Hundred Zhang Courtyard below, and said, “Relationships between people are really strange. Some people live together day and night but remain like strangers. Others meet only once and feel a destined connection.” Saying this, she slowly turned her head to look at Mu Aotie.
The meaning in her words was probably love at first sight.
Mu Aotie, a big man, was actually made to feel extremely uncomfortable by her gaze.
Lian Yu continued, “I have met someone destined before, and I thought about giving myself to him. Unfortunately, he was afraid of Nie Rifú. Actually, the rumours outside are not to be trusted. My relationship with Nie Rifú is not what you imagine.”
Yu Qing and Mu Aotie instantly widened their eyes, thinking she was going to say she was not actually the mistress of Nie Rifú.
Who knew Lian Yu had another explanation. “I am free. I do not need to be constrained by anyone on Tianji Mountain. I am not the exclusive woman of any man. I can leave whenever I want, and Nie Rifú will not stop me. If I find a man I like, Nie Rifú will only congratulate me.
He has told me more than once that it is impossible for us to become a real husband and wife. He told me to marry a suitable man when I find one and live a normal life. So, there is no jealousy as outsiders imagine. I am not as important to him as you think.”
As she said this, a hint of deep melancholy seemed to show in her own expression.
The two brothers were stunned into silence. They wanted to ask, is this true or false?
But thinking about it, this seemed to match the rumours. The rumours said this woman once caused a huge scene in Kuailei City, wanting to marry Nie Rifú, but Nie Rifú publicly said he would not marry her.
If this was true, would it not mean it was a false alarm? They did not need to run away at all, and the pretty boy trick could continue?
The eyes of the two men subconsciously met. The cold eyes of Mu Aotie dodged uncomfortably.
Lian Yu said, “I have always been bold in love and hate, without so many pretensions. I think you understand my meaning. The reason I say this is that I saw you leave in a hurry after the banquet. I was worried if my inappropriate words or actions had caused you trouble. If that is really the case, I just want to say it is really unnecessary. If Nie Rifú were truly a jealous person, I would not dare to do this myself.”
Hearing this, the stone in the hearts of the two brothers finally fell. Yes, if Nie Rifú really cared, how would this woman dare to openly flirt with other men?
While Yu Qing breathed a sigh of relief, he could not help but click his tongue in his heart. He found this keeping it short was actually quite long.
But he still shamelessly followed her words and changed the subject. “The landlady has misunderstood. We really did not expect our departure would make you think so much. We just heard there might be a way to make money somewhere, and we were in a hurry to find a financial path for the Scorpion Gang. But hearing the landlady say this, we actually do not want to leave. After all, we could not find a financial path as big as Bronze Sparrow Lake even if we looked. We earnestly request the help of the landlady.”
This was wanting to make money, but not wanting to admit they used the pretty boy trick. They wanted to hang a fig leaf, wanting to look like they earned the money while standing upright.
Of course, the main thing was fearing the face of Mu Aotie could not hold up, fearing the stubbornness of Mu Aotie would flare up again. They wanted to give Mu Aotie a fig leaf.
As expected, Mu Aotie, whose eyes showed slight discomfort, finally gritted his teeth and endured it.
Lian Yu and Huniu, knowing the intentions of the two men, felt nothing but contempt. They found the Scorpion Gang leader as sleazy as his little moustache. He was truly shameless.
Lian Yu did not rush to agree. She reached out and poured a cup of wine, walked gracefully two steps forward, and presented it to Mu Aotie with both hands. Looking deeply at him with sparkling eyes, she said, “Then stay?”
Everyone understood the meaning in her words. If you want my help, it depends on what our relationship is.
All eyes turned to Mu Aotie. Yu Qing was extremely anxious, knowing the success or failure of the matter depended on whether Mu Aotie took the cup. Worried the stubbornness of this guy would flare up again, he immediately coughed to remind him of the high stakes.
Fortunately, Mu Aotie still raised his hand. He grabbed the cup, tilted his head back, and drank it in one gulp. The movement was very clean and neat. However, undeniable embarrassment appeared on his face. He turned his head away, bowed with his hands cupped in shame, and said, “Thank you for the kindness of the landlady. Zhang will take his leave first!”
He put down the cup and immediately turned and left. He walked so fast, as if fleeing in panic. It was truly embarrassing. He really had no face to stay any longer.
Lian Yu could not help but laugh. She did not expect a big man to be shy. His look was truly not acted. This gave her a new understanding of Mu Aotie. She thought he was at least a man with a conscience. The truly shameless one was the little moustache next to him.
Yu Qing did not know what they were thinking of him. Instead, he scolded Mu Aotie, saying, “This guy, why did he just run off? He really does not understand any manners. Landlady, please do not take it to heart. I will talk to him later.”
The matter was clear, and the goal had been achieved. Lian Yu had nothing more to say to such a shameless villain. She directly ordered Huniu, “From now on, their food and lodging at Stone Heart Residence will be free. Arrange the best rooms for them.”
Huniu knew this was seeing them off. She nodded immediately and said, “Understood.” Then she gestured to Yu Qing, saying, “Leader Zhu, please follow me.”
Yu Qing did not want to leave in a hurry. He pulled the knot of the bag on his chest up and down with both hands, stared at Lian Yu hopefully, and asked eagerly, “Landlady, is our participation in the Bronze Sparrow Martial Event settled like this?”
This matter could not be casual. He needed a definite answer.
Seeing him like this, Lian Yu despised him even more. She did not even want to look at him directly. She turned around and leaned on the railing again, looking outside.
However, she did not make it too obvious. She still maintained a polite smile and said, “Does Leader Zhu think I am joking about arranging your food and lodging at Stone Heart Residence?”
Yu Qing thought it made sense. He immediately laughed and said, “Please rest assured, Landlady. We will follow your arrangements. I will arrange the registration for the Bronze Sparrow Martial Event as soon as possible.”
Lian Yu said with her back turned, “Good. I will not see you out.”
Huniu also gestured again, saying, “Leader Zhu, please.”
“Farewell, farewell.” Yu Qing was cheerful, bowing and looking back at every step. He finally left in a good mood.
Lian Yu drank alone on the terrace in a gloomy mood for a while before Huniu returned.
“Landlady, everything has been arranged as you said. That big guy was initially unwilling to move. It was the little moustache who forced him to change rooms.” After Huniu explained the general situation, she tried to ask, “Are we really going to help them get the exam questions for the Bronze Sparrow Martial Event?”
Lian Yu took a sip of wine and sneered, “Let us see if they can play the role of a shield when facing Liang Ban before we decide.”