"The salt fields?" Zu An frowned. Objectively speaking, it's normal for lenders to ask for collateral, and the salt fields are the most valuable asset the Chu family owns right now.
However, the fact that the Wei family raised this condition at such a sensitive time, and that they themselves have the background of the imperial palace, makes it hard not to speculate.
Perhaps the Wei family themselves realized this problem, which is why they set the interest rate so low; otherwise, the Chu family wouldn't have even considered it.
"What does Madam intend to do?" Zu'an asked.
Qin Wanru shook her head: "I haven't decided yet. I'll go back and discuss it with them."
After speaking, she rubbed her forehead wearily. It was clear that she had been working hard and hadn't had a proper rest since her husband's accident.
Zuan wisely stopped bothering her and stepped out of her carriage. His attention quickly returned to the box he had found at the Wei family's house. He took it out several times, but unfortunately, he couldn't break the seal on the outside.
After escorting Qin Wanru back to the Chu residence, Zu An was thinking about meeting Pei Mianman when he bumped into Old Man Mi.
Zu An was startled and hurriedly said, "Greetings, senior."
Old Man Mi frowned and pulled him aside: "Don't call me that in front of others in the future. I'm not used to being stared at."
“I’ve got it,” Zuan replied.
"I heard you just went to the Wei residence with your wife?" Old Man Mi stared intently at him, as if trying to see right through him.
Fortunately, Zu'an had already been through countless trials and tribulations, and his mentality was already extremely stable: "Yes, Madam wanted to borrow money from the Wei family, and she just came back from there."
"Did you run into that person you saw last time?" Old Man Mi asked anxiously.
"No, Madam is discussing matters with their patriarch, and I'm waiting on the side." Zu'an was curious as to why he was so wary of that person.
"That's good," Old Man Mi visibly relaxed. "By the way, did you find the box I told you about at the Wei family's place this time?"
Zuan shook his head: "No, didn't you say last time that we didn't need to look anymore?"
Old Man Mi frowned but didn't say anything.
At this moment, Zu'an felt a chill sweep over his body. It was likely that the other party was using their divine sense to probe his body.
Fortunately, he had placed the box inside the Glazed Pearl's internal space beforehand, otherwise it would definitely have been discovered by now. The restrictions on that box must contain something that could sense his mind.
After a while, Old Man Mi nodded: "Not bad, not bad. Old people's memories just don't go well, haha..."
After saying that, he picked up his small flower hoe and walked away shakily. From any angle, he looked like an old flower farmer.
Zu An walked around the mansion for a while, pretending to be looking for someone to discuss something. He figured that he wouldn't arouse Old Man Mi's suspicion, so he quietly slipped out of the Chu mansion.
He deliberately circled around several times along the way, making sure no one was following him, before finally arriving at the agreed-upon pavilion.
Looking at the familiar pavilion, Zu An couldn't help but feel a little emotional. He had met Shang Liuyu here last time, but he never expected to meet another woman here again.
"What are you saying?" A pleasant voice rang out, and Pei Mianman emerged from the shadows.
Zuan breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that you're alright. I was worried that you wouldn't be able to escape from that person."
Pei Mianman smiled and said, "Speaking of which, I have to thank you for that fire. Otherwise, even though I was well prepared, I almost got caught by that person."
She still feels lingering fear when she thinks about how terrifying that person was.
"It was just something I did on the spur of the moment; it's your skill that you managed to escape." Zuan chuckled.
Just then, he suddenly received a surge of anger points in his inbox.
Anger from Wei Dan +358!
Wei Dan? That must be the name of that mysterious master from the Wei family.
It seems that the anger was mostly due to the burning of the courtyard, but because the Wei family put out the fire in time, the damage to the courtyard was not significant.
I suppose they didn't notice the box had been replaced, otherwise their anger level would have been much higher.
"By the way, did you find the item?" Pei Mianman asked hurriedly.
Zuan took out the box: "This is all I found."
He was curious about what was inside the box, but unfortunately he couldn't open it. He thought that Pei Mianman was knowledgeable and experienced, so he wondered if she had any way to open or recognize the box.
"Huh?" Pei Mianman took it and looked at it over and over for a while.
Zuan said, "Be careful, there might be a seal."
Pei Mianman smiled slightly: "That's easy."
A small black flame flickered on her finger, and then she gently brushed her finger across the box. The flame immediately spread into a layer of flame, and the shimmering light around the box was quickly burned away.
"Alright!" Pei Mianman raised the corners of her lips, then reached out to open the box.
"Be careful!" Zu'an hurriedly stopped her. Even Old Man Mi wanted it, so he was worried that there might be some kind of trap inside.
Pei Mianman nodded, and the two of them retreated several meters. Then, Pei Mianman reached out and waved her hand, sending a gentle surge of energy through the box, as if an invisible hand had opened it.
After waiting for a while and seeing that no mechanism appeared, the two hurriedly went over.
The box's inner walls were lined with soft, silk-wrapped stuffing, and in the center was an object wrapped in a fine silk handkerchief, tied with several red threads.
Pei Mianman was immediately disappointed. Judging from its size and shape, it was clearly not the token she was looking for.
Zuan curiously untied the red thread, then carefully unfolded the handkerchief, finally pausing in surprise: "What is this?"
There was a dark, grimy thing wrapped in the middle of the handkerchief, which looked like a dried earthworm.
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