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Chapter 76 The Silver Embroidered Messenger
Chapter 76 The Silver Embroidered Messenger
Upon hearing this, the portly man chuckled, but realized that this was not the place to talk.
"Yinxiu, let's go into town and talk slowly."
"Um."
The portly man gestured for the carriage to proceed, and it slowly joined the queue ahead.
This displeased many timber merchants, but they all shut their mouths after seeing the wealthy man's face.
"Who could possibly be someone that Chu Ya of the Pearl Pavilion would personally greet?" someone pondered.
Clearly, many businessmen and managers recognized the wealthy man's identity.
When the city gate official saw Chu Ya, his expression changed. Without saying a word, he immediately ordered the city guards to make way.
The carriage drove smoothly into Zifeng City.
Only after the carriage had completely disappeared from sight did the boy belatedly come to his senses.
He stacked the two bowls together, scratched his head, and looked somewhat annoyed.
"He...he hasn't paid yet?"
"What? You didn't pay?"
Just then, a familiar voice came from behind. Turning around, he saw his father.
What's that in your hand?
The boy was taken aback, and quickly spread his hands, scratching his head.
Two brand-new Tonghe coins lay quietly in my palm.
"Waiter, are you out of your mind? Isn't the money in your hand?"
Within Zifeng City, in a bustling area.
An antique-style six-story pavilion sits within.
The plaque hanging high reads in ancient characters with silver hooks and iron strokes: Pearl and Treasure Pavilion.
Martial artists dressed in clean, tight-fitting clothes, or elderly men with weathered faces, constantly came and went.
The pavilion has six floors, with three red pillars supporting the beams at the center. Each floor is connected by a long corridor and stairs.
Each room contains independent items, including divine weapons, elixirs, martial arts manuals, and ancient texts.
In less than three months since its opening, Zhuguang Pavilion has become famous throughout the city, attracting many martial artists and swordsmen from afar.
No matter which floor a visitor is on, they can see the eight large characters carved on the central pillar.
Everything in the land is contained within.
Inside the attic, the soundproofing between the rooms was good, but even so, one could still hear a lot of haggling.
At this moment, on the sixth floor.
Inside a quiet and elegant room.
Chu Ya gently poured a cup of flower tea and handed it to the young man sitting in the main seat, dressed in silver-white clothes with three cloud patterns on his cuffs.
"Zhou Yinxiu, you have come from afar, I have failed to entertain you properly," she said with a slight bow.
After taking the teacup, the man surnamed Zhou opened his mouth, took a sip, and then put it down.
"You're too kind, Pavilion Master Chu," the man surnamed Zhou said with a gentle smile.
"If there's nothing else, we can begin now."
After saying that, the man surnamed Zhou nodded again.
Chu Ya nodded and clapped his hands. An elderly accountant walked in, carrying a thick account book.
Chu Ya presented the accounts, and the accountant then withdrew.
The man surnamed Zhou turned to the first page, where the accounts were clearly recorded in terms of income and expenditure, with nothing unusual.
On the second page, the specific buyer and their affiliated faction were listed.
[Salt Gang - Chen Nangong, purchased a new box of Divine Bone Pills, suspected of breaking through to the Blood Burning stage]
The man examined the pages with great care, turning each page very slowly.
In the vast room, only the sound of rubbing paper could be heard.
Chu Ya sat down without disturbing them, but he had some doubts in his heart.
Although the Pearl Pavilion is a subordinate agency of the Embroidered Robe Bureau, it does not belong to any official rank.
Even if the branch leaders occasionally embezzled, the Embroidered Robe Division would turn a blind eye.
After all, the greatest function of the Pearl Pavilion is to collect intelligence.
Not to mention, this is a newly appointed Silver Embroidery Envoy. Zhou Yijun comes from a prominent family in the capital and is on good terms with several Gold Embroidery Envoys.
Why travel all the way to Yunzhou just to check the accounts?
"I've heard that a true dragon capable of summoning rain has appeared in Yunzhou. Are you aware of this?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Ya chuckled to himself.
"Zhou Yinxiu, is this what you came for?" Her tone was somewhat probing.
"Yes, but no."
Zhou Yijun took a sip of tea and said without looking up.
In the ledger, almost every other page contains intelligence information collected by the Pearl Pavilion.
Many of the names were written in large font, clearly indicating that they were notable experts and forces in Yunzhou.
"Zhou Yinxiu, I have personally investigated the matter of praying for rain in Yunzhou, and this matter is purely a misunderstanding."
"That man's real name is Huang Long. He knows some unorthodox and strange arts for praying for rain and blessings. It's nothing special."
Chu Ya explained with a smile.
"Oh, tell me more details." Zhou Yijun suddenly became interested.
"He was originally a down-on-his-luck Taoist priest who just happened to stumble into the plans of a powerful family."
Chu Ya did know the inside story of this matter. He had initially thought it was one of the palace masters of the Demon God Palace who had intervened, and he was quite startled.
After careful investigation, it was found that this was not the case at all.
"Speaking of which, this matter is also somewhat related to the Eastern Army," Chu Ya said after thinking for a moment.
Zhou Yijun raised her head, a rather interested smile flashing in her eyes.
"The Eastern Army has joined forces with the River Law Enforcement Bureau of Qingyan City to prepare to take over the river valley basin to supply their army with provisions."
"However, they were stopped by several major families in Qingyan City."
Chu Ya gave a detailed explanation.
"That's interesting."
Zhou Yijun smiled.
"By the way, Zhou Yinxiu, that Jade Belt Pond was the secluded training ground of the last White Fox Envoy of the previous dynasty."
Zhou Yijun showed no surprise after hearing this.
"Where is it now?"
"I don't know. My men haven't sent any news yet. They might still be in the same place." Chu Ya shook his head.
With his keen mind, he naturally noticed that Zhou Yijun seemed to have some affection for Qingyan City, which made him even more confused.
Countless forces are now eyeing Qingyan City.
The actions of the major families in Qingyan City were tantamount to putting the Eastern Army on the brink of disaster.
The Embroidered Robe Bureau's relationship with the Ministry of War in the imperial court wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either.
If the Eastern Army cannot collect grain, internal turmoil is inevitable.
Instead of criticizing the various families in Qingyan City, Zhou Yijun seemed somewhat gloating...?
"Which of the companies in Qingyan City are leading the effort to undermine your strategy?"
"The Feng family of Yunzhou."
At this point, the ledger had been turned to the end, and the intelligence information was on the second page.
A long string of words came into view, and Zhou Yijun was slightly taken aback.
Not only were the words written in red ink, but they were also highlighted with a large square around them.
Compared to previous intelligence on forces or martial arts masters, this seems extremely unusual.
[Feng Xiu of the Feng family in Yunzhou has recently purchased ten martial arts manuals and several divine weapons and equipment. He is suspected to be a person of exceptional talent, presumably at the Blood Burning Realm.]
"Are you referring to feudalism?"
"Exactly."
"This person practiced martial arts for less than a month and then mastered the skills of opening up his muscles, bones and skin. He also has two experts at the Divine Gang Realm in his family. He was the one who orchestrated the whole thing in Qingyan City."
Zhou Yijun chuckled softly, glanced at the intelligence records in the ledger, and memorized them.
They did not delve into this topic further.
"He has some skill."
After closing the ledger, Zhou Yijun handed it to Chu Ya.
He said something that shocked him: "Burn them all."
"It burned?!"
Chu Ya's eyes widened, and then he realized that he seemed to have lost his composure.
Calming herself, she hesitated before asking, "Zhou Yinxiu, what do you mean by this?"
Zhou Yijun stood up, her gaze seemingly piercing through layers of buildings, and sighed softly.
"Over the years, it's not just the officials in the imperial court who have coveted the Kai Merchant Guild. If the Eastern Army can't collect enough grain, they will definitely target you."
After speaking, Chu Ya felt a chill run through his body, a coldness shooting straight to his head.
"After all, this trip to Qingzhou isn't something the Embroidered Uniform Guard should be concerned with."
The border region of Jinzhou.
The steep slopes and parched land stretched as far as the eye could see, and jagged boulders weathered by time were scattered along both sides of the official road.
It revealed grayish-white patterns, and the howling wind carried a low, rumbling sound.
On the pebble beach, around the scattered skeletons, a few hungry lone wolves roam, their keen sense of smell searching for food in the crevices of the rocks.
swoosh~
A field mouse suddenly darted across, and just as the wolf was about to pounce, its ears twitched slightly, and a loud noise came from afar.
In sight, a group of about a hundred people was slowly approaching.
Leading the way were two black-maned horses, each ridden by a martial artist dressed in tight-fitting clothes, with a broadsword hanging from their baggage.
The two men stared intently, their alert eyes constantly scanning their surroundings.
Even though the view was wide open, we dared not relax for a moment.
Greystone Beach is a well-known uninhabited area, stretching for dozens of miles.
An accident could happen at any time, leaving no room for the two of them to be careless.
After confirming the road conditions, the two rode back to the rear of the group.
There were more than a dozen horse-drawn carriages, piled high with goods, and several large wooden crates.
The guards on horseback were all burly men, each carrying a sword and a knife, looking quite formidable.
"The road is clear for two miles ahead," one of the warriors said respectfully as he approached the last carriage.
Inside the carriage, Zhou Gang lifted the curtain and said in a clenched tone, "Yes, investigate again, Chief Escort Wang. This shipment is extremely important. If it is lost, neither of us can afford the consequences."
"Be careful on the road ahead. Once you pass the Drunken Blood Pass, you'll be in Yunzhou territory. Don't be careless," Zhou Gang added.
"Yes."
After listening, Chief Escort Wang nodded, but he still had some doubts in his heart.
As the top martial arts instructor of Changyuan Escort Agency, he put in a lot of effort for this commission.
This batch of goods wasn't particularly secretive; it was just ordinary daily necessities, and by no means seemed particularly valuable.
However, since the host had spoken, he didn't think too much about it.
Those in their line of work are most averse to asking unnecessary questions, so he nodded.
He continued to lead his men to patrol the surrounding area.
"Brother Zhou, you really are cautious in everything you do."
Inside the carriage, Feng Ao glanced at Zhou Gang, then at a wooden box beside him, and shook his head with a smile.
"When you're out and about, it's always better to be safe than sorry. If we weren't short-handed, I wouldn't be hiring them."
Zhou Gang responded with a faint smile.
"You agree, right, Xiaoxiao?"
As he spoke, his gaze then fell upon another spirited woman in a blue robe beside him.
"Jinzhou is in turmoil, and people's hearts are unpredictable. Father did the right thing," Zhou Xiao said calmly.
"Sigh, I wonder how your husband is doing in Yunzhou. I heard that the summer irrigation has started, but has that beast in the pond come out yet?"
Zhou Gang lifted the carriage curtain again, looked outside, and sighed.
Upon hearing this, Feng Xiu couldn't help but chuckle.
Even though Zhou Xiao had practiced martial arts since childhood and had a more magnanimous personality than most women, her face was slightly flushed at this moment.
"Dad~~"
Zhou Xiao's pretty face turned cold.
Throughout the journey, Zhou Gang frequently mentioned the man he had never met, practically praising him to the skies.
Zhou Xiao couldn't help but feel a little curious about him.