Although his face was covered, it was still possible to tell that Gu Yue was not very old. He frowned, clearly sensing that something was wrong with the other party's reaction: "Stop talking nonsense and write a note so I can notify the Chu family to collect the ransom."

Zuan shook his head: "I don't think it's wise of you to do this."

Gu Yue frowned: "Are you teaching me how to do things?"

Zu An smiled and said, "I'm just helping you analyze this matter. You see, even if I write a letter for help and you send someone to the Chu family, if the Chu family, a dignified ducal mansion, were to obediently hand over money to you, where would the Chu family's face be?"

"Moreover, everyone in Mingyue City knows that I, as the son-in-law, am not well-liked in the Chu family. They might just take advantage of the situation and let you kill me, using me as a tool to commit murder, while also pocketing my millions of taels of silver."

"That way, no one will blame the Chu family for being heartless; they will only accuse you of being ruthless."

The group exchanged bewildered glances, and finally Gu Yue asked blankly, "Then what do we do?"

“How about this, you come back to the Chu family with me, and I’ll withdraw the silver notes and give them to you,” Zu An said.

Gu Yueyi sneered, "Do you think I'm stupid? What if you don't come out after I go back to the Chu family with you?"

Zu An pointed to Qiu Honglei beside him: "Isn't she still here? With this hostage here, I will definitely come back to ransom her, so don't hurt her, otherwise I won't pay."

Seeing that everyone hesitated, he continued, "Although Miss Qiu is beautiful, there aren't enough for you all to share. I have several million taels of silver notes, enough for you to change brides every day. Wouldn't that be better?"

Gu Yueyi was somewhat undecided and subconsciously glanced at Qiu Honglei, who nodded imperceptibly.

He then said, "Fine, don't try anything funny, or we'll not only rape this woman, but also find every opportunity to kill you."

Zuan took in their exchange of glances: "Don't worry, I'm more afraid of dying than anyone else."

But in his heart he was wondering what Qiu Honglei was after. Was she also after my millions of taels of silver?

But being in a place like Shenxianju where information flows freely, she couldn't possibly not know that most of that silver was in the form of IOUs, and whether she could get it back was a question. What could she do with it?

"Alright, then let's go to the Chu residence!" Gu Yue waved her hand, signaling her men to row the boat towards the Chu family's location.

"Don't try anything funny." After doing all this, Gu Yueyi and his men came up behind the two of them, placing two gleaming knives against their necks.

Qiu Honglei said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I've caused you to lose so much money."

"I love power more than beauty. Money can be earned back, but once you're gone, it's truly gone." Zu An said this, but in his heart he sneered. After returning to the Chu family, I won't bother to come out and save you. Anyway, you're probably all in cahoots.

Then Yue Shan will lead a team to arrest these people and interrogate them thoroughly to find out what they are up to.

Well, I'll take Qiu Honglei back to my room and interrogate her myself then.

The reason why Zu'an is not acting now is mainly because Gu Yueyi's cultivation level is not low, and the fluctuation of his Yuan Qi seems to be at the fifth rank. Of course, he alone is not worth paying attention to.

But there was also Qiu Honglei beside her. Although this woman appeared to be gentle and weak on the surface, it was impossible to know her true strength after getting to know her.

The reason for this is either that her cultivation level is several levels higher than mine, or that she has a magical artifact to conceal her aura.

Regardless of the situation, he dared not be careless. After all, this wasn't a game where you could start over if you died.

Moreover, there is an empress sister. If she were to die as a result, it would be too much of a shame.

Qiu Honglei was unaware of his thoughts. When she heard him spend millions of taels of silver to save her without batting an eye, her expression became complicated.

With each of them preoccupied with their own thoughts, an eerie silence fell over the cabin.

The small boat sailed for a while, then suddenly it shook violently, as if it had hit something.

Then a boastful voice rang out from outside:

"Haha, we've finally found Autumn Maiden's flower boat!"

Gu Yueyi suddenly stood up: "What's the situation outside?"

But he was met with several muffled screams in response.

His expression changed, and he hurriedly grabbed the knife and ran out. But not long after he went out, he suddenly retreated back in a sorry state, like a cannonball.

The entire cabin was shattered by the powerful force of the energy, and only then could everyone see what was happening outside.

Several small boats surrounded their vessel in the center. One of the red-haired men stood arrogantly at the bow, looking down at Qiu Honglei as if she were his own trophy.

His gaze then fell on Zuan, and a cruel smile appeared on his lips.

---

The minor character Gu Yueyi in this book was provided by a reader named Tianchao Yemen. In fact, he had appeared in the story before, but he wasn't given a name at the time.