Chapter 121 I will consult the Princess immediately (29,000+ words)
When the manager of Mingzhu Fang heard Wei Lingshu say that he wanted to cut off Mei Liangyu's hands or gouge out his eyes, he couldn't help but curse inwardly. What would happen if he really did that?
Putting aside whether Mei Liangyu would obediently accept the punishment, given the relationship between the princess and Mei Liangyu, he wouldn't dare to make a move.
The manager of Mingzhufang was also considered one of Blackbeard's confidants. He worked for Blackbeard and knew that the princess was now the one they were loyal to.
The dealer, along with other guards, stopped the guests who wanted to grab the chips, signaling them to calm down.
“This guest is the one who cheated. Not only did he spout nonsense, but he also framed someone. He should be dealt with.” The manager of Mingzhu Fang waved his hand and ordered someone to pull Xiao Tu’s father to the back. In front of Wei Lingshu and the others, a guard chopped off both of his hands with a single stroke.
This attack was completely unexpected; no one anticipated it.
Little Tu's father knelt on the ground and screamed in agony, his piercing cries startling the guests who were grabbing chips in the chaos, and the noise gradually subsided.
The manager of Mingzhufang looked at the guests and said in a deep voice, "We only just found out that guests from the Tianhe Gang are coming tonight, so we have to close early today. Please settle your chips now and come back tomorrow."
As soon as he finished speaking, the casino's guards immediately took their positions and cleared a path for the guests to leave.
Seeing that he had closed the shop immediately, Wei Lingshu covered her mouth with the back of her hand and laughed, "Isn't there still one?"
She pointed her gaze at Mei Liangyu.
The manager of Mingzhu Fang said, "What does this guest's cheating have to do with him?"
Wei Lingshu shook her head gently and sighed, "I never expected that the people who cheated would be in cahoots with Mingzhu Fang. I wonder which of these customers are spies who collude with Mingzhu Fang to cheat and steal their money."
Her eyes were bright and moist, and she sighed softly, revealing a melancholy air. She looked pitifully at the guests, which aroused their sympathy, and they began to echo Wei Lingshu's words.
The guests shouted, "You have to give us an explanation! If you're all cheating together, who will dare to come here again?"
A member of the Tianhe Gang, mingling among the customers, followed Wei Lingshu's words, grabbed the person next to him, and asked aggressively, "You're the spy working with Mingzhu Fang, aren't you? You were the only one at this table who never lost, you're definitely cheating!"
"If you put it that way... I think that person before was also..."
"You also cheated to win, didn't you? Give me my money back!"
"Try pointing fingers at your father again and see what happens?"
The guests, who had been stunned by the hand-chopping incident, began to stir again, but this time it turned into suspicion and insults between the guests.
The manager of Mingzhufang, unwilling to complicate matters further, ordered the guards to take Mei Liangyu and Nian Qiuyan away first, and then go to stop the guests who were fighting.
The dealer stood on the table and shouted, "Everyone, calm down! Mingzhu Fang absolutely does not cooperate with our customers in cheating! Everything is fair and transparent!"
As Mei Liangyu and Nian Qiuyan walked through the crowd, someone suddenly broke through the guards, drew a dagger from their sleeve, and thrust it at Mei Liangyu with a sharp blade.
Wei Lingshu crushed a small, emerald-green insect between her fingers, and a large patch of green mist instantly spread out. The members of the Tianhe Gang, hidden in the crowd, acted simultaneously, slitting the throats of the Mingzhu Fang guards before they could react. The green mist dispersed, and screams rose and fell.
Amidst the panic and chaos, Mei Liangyu easily grabbed the man rushing towards her, twisted his wrist, and heard him groan in pain. Then, with a sidestep, she stabbed the man with the dagger in his hand backward, repelling the man who was attacking from behind.
Green mist rose from their feet, and Nian Qiuyan and Mei Liangyu simultaneously activated their golden protective auras.
The captured man swung his free left hand at Mei Liangyu, but Mei Liangyu kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying. Mei Liangyu grabbed the dagger he had taken from the enemy and flew towards the spot where Wei Lingshu had been standing.
As soon as the dagger flew out of his hand, amidst the heavy fog, the scarred man snatched the casino guard's longsword and slashed at Mei Liangyu and Nian Qiuyan, separating them with a single blow.
"Don't panic, everyone! Head towards the light, don't panic!" the dealer shouted, forming hand seals and unleashing the divination technique, Zhou Tian Huo. The blazing flames dispelled the fog and guided the guests to safety.
The manager of Mingzhu Fang roared, "Take down the Tianhe Gang members who caused this disturbance! Don't let a single one escape!"
The crowd was in chaos, but fortunately, the staff at Mingzhufang reacted quickly, pointing out the escape routes of the guests and clearing the area in a short time.
Among the guests were many low-level sorcerers, but tonight's fight was clearly between the Tianhe Gang and Mingzhu Fang. Both sides were ruthless characters, and bloodshed was inevitable, so they dared not get involved and were busy escaping to watch the spectacle.
Nian Qiuyan covered her nose and said, "This fog is poisonous."
Mei Liangyu said, "Get out."
They couldn't take the route where the guests were leaving, as that would also lead to a fight.
The fog obscured the view, leaving only a vast expanse of green. Mei Liangyu heard a woman's soft laughter, and her eyes sparkled with tiny golden light.
The scarred man's figure silently advanced again in the mist. Mei Liangyu reacted quickly, recalling the dagger she had thrown earlier and grabbing it, blocking the opponent's urgent and heavy blow with her backhand.
The longsword slashed fiercely at the dagger, the two clashed briefly before the sword recoiled. The scarred man's figure flashed, disappearing back into the mist, but he gave his opponent no chance to catch his breath, launching another attack from behind.
Mei Liangyu turned around to intercept, the dagger blade slicing along the edge of the long sword to the very end with a piercing sound. The moment it jammed against the hilt, the scarred man vanished again.
After several such exchanges, the scarred man and Mei Liangyu attacked almost simultaneously, neutralizing each other's attacks.
The other party disappeared too quickly, and Mei Liangyu also felt the invisible resistance to his movements becoming more and more obvious. His eyes flickered slightly as he glanced at the ground.
The Nine Palaces Blade of Military Strange Tactics.
He was trapped in the scarred man's strange sword formation. Every time the scarred man disappeared, he would attack again from a different place, but Mei Liangyu's position remained unchanged, or rather, he was trapped in a fixed position and could not move.
The position of the central palace in the Nine Palaces is fixed.
Those trapped in this palace can only wait to die.
Mei Liangyu visualized his current position in his mind; out of the nine squares, he stood in the fifth central position.
The Nine Palaces system: 2 and 4 are the shoulders, 6 and 8 are the feet, 3 is on the left and 7 is on the right, 9 is on the head and 1 is on the feet.
He calmly observed the flow of the five elements' energy around him, while holding his breath to minimize the inhalation of the green poisonous fog that had already permeated Mingzhufang.
Mei Liangyu and the scarred man attacked simultaneously again, blocking the long knife that suddenly appeared from the left. This time, the scarred man did not disappear immediately, but gripped the knife with both hands and exerted force. The blade flashed with golden and blue lightning lines, which made Mei Liangyu's hands go numb.
Go east, to the left of the third palace, which is Zhen.
The scarred man disappeared again. Mei Liangyu glanced behind her and raised an eyebrow slightly. This time, the people from the Tianhe Gang were quite interesting.
Taixu Hall.
Today is the old master's birthday banquet. According to the old master's style, such things are not to be publicized. However, this year is special. It seems that the prominent gangs in the outer city of the academy have agreed to cause trouble during this period. They are fighting each other in a very embarrassing way, which has a great impact on the entire outer city of the academy.
Today, Master Taixu has decided to give everyone a chance to negotiate.
The banquet was set up in the open courtyard of the mansion, with round tables stacked on top of each other. The surrounding area was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, creating a festive and lively atmosphere. Members of each gang were waiting outside, while only their own gang leader or hall master, accompanied by one or two trusted confidants, entered the inner courtyard for the banquet.
The banquet was arranged with one table per group, so there was a huge banquet table, but only two or three people were seated.
The obsidian jade carvings create a round platform with a smooth and lustrous finish, giving it a grand appearance. There are three steps leading up to the second level of the platform, where the main table of Taixu Hall is located in the center, while the other tables are arranged around the inner edge, surrounding the main seat of Taixu Hall.
Everyone has arrived.
To Blackbeard's left is the Dragon Martial Gang, and to his right is the Heavenly Crane Gang. Looking this way across the Heavenly Crane Gang is the Ten Mountains Sect.
The one who spoke at this moment was the Master of Taixu Hall, who was sitting in the main seat in the middle.
He was dressed in luxurious gold robes, his hair was a mix of black and white, and his face was solemn. He calmly swept his gaze over the people present and said in a low voice, "I have invited you all here today to ask you to give me face and let the unrest of the past few days be quelled, to turn hostility into friendship, so as to prevent the outer city from becoming more and more chaotic and the losses from increasing."
"I will naturally give you face, sir." The girl in the white dress sitting at the table of the Li Huo Sect politely finished speaking the first half of her speech to the Tai Xu Hall Master, but her voice immediately turned cold. "But the young master of Xingyue Island poisoned and killed six people from my Li Huo Sect. There is only one way to settle this debt in blood."
At the table on Star Moon Island, the man who had just picked up his wine glass to drink said angrily, "Your Li Huo Sect makes such unverified claims so credible! You've ruined our young master's reputation! I think it's your Li Huo Sect's internal strife that's trying to pin the blame for these six deaths on our young master!"
Blackbeard grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and started cracking them open. These groups had already gone through one round of arguing, and after the Taixu Hall Master called for a stop, they started another round of mutual mockery. It was thanks to their constant bickering that Blackbeard didn't find it boring.
The Li Huo Sect and Xing Yue Island exchanged barbs, while the Tai Xu Hall Master frowned, glancing to the other side before addressing the Shi Shan Sect: "The Shi Shan Sect and the Long Wu Gang are vying for control of the gambling den and commercial building."
Before he could finish speaking, the members of the Ten Mountains Sect slammed their fists on the table and stood up angrily, saying, "Old man, our territory was all taken over by our own brothers. Many of the shops have belonged to the Ten Mountains Sect for over a hundred years. Everyone knows that!"
"But the Dragon Martial Gang is pretending to be blind to what is common knowledge and trying to snatch it from us. Those are all the properties left by our ancestors. If we just hand them over like this, where will the face of our Ten Mountains Sect be? If our ancestors in heaven knew this, they would be so angry that they would crawl out of the ground!"
"Then let them crawl out." The Dragon Martial Gang member held his teacup and said coldly, "It was yours a hundred years ago. Aren't you afraid of your tongue slipping out when you say such nonsense? You Ten Mountains Sect are bandits by origin. Everything you have is obtained by killing, burning, and stealing. Now that the land deed is in our hands, according to the rules, it is our Dragon Martial Gang's land."
The Ten Mountains Sect members slammed their fists on the table in anger: "Bullshit land deeds! The person has been dead for eight hundred years, where did you get a land deed? Digging up a dead person from the ground and stamping it with a seal, only your Dragon Martial Gang would do something so absurd. Who would recognize such a land deed?"
Blackbeard cracked sunflower seeds as he listened to their back-and-forth arguing. At first, the Master of Taixu Hall called out a couple of times, but seeing that everyone was engrossed in their own argument and ignoring him, his brows furrowed even more tightly.
He also said to his confidant Wei Liu, who was sitting next to him and also eating sunflower seeds, "The old man probably won't last long before he leaves the table. It seems that today's peace talks will not be able to take place."
Wei Liu nodded, cracked open a sunflower seed shell and said, "Whether it's the Li Huo Sect, Xing Yue Island, or the Shi Shan Sect and Long Wu Gang, none of them are easy to mess with. It feels like they're determined to fight to the death, and Tai Xu Hall can't persuade them."
The verbal battle between the Ten Mountains Sect and the Dragon Martial Gang escalated, with both sides slamming their fists on the table and arguing until their faces were red and their necks were thick. Just when it seemed like a fight was about to break out, the Heavenly Crane Gang, who had been silent all along, took the initiative to draw their swords. The crisp sound of the swords being drawn startled everyone, who looked up alertly.
Blackbeard and Wei Liu were also quite surprised. They had just brought the sunflower seeds to their mouths, but before they could even crack them open, they both turned their heads to look at the Tianhe Gang at the next table.
The one who drew his sword was Qu Zhenghao, the leader of the Tianhe Gang. He had only taken office two days ago, but he had already been operating in the outer city for more than ten years and had a great reputation.
The man was tall and robust, his clothes embroidered with auspicious cloud and crane patterns. He looked extremely refined, which was completely contrary to the murderous intent he exuded.
Qu Zhenghao wore a half-eye patch on his fierce face, covering his left eye. There was also a lingering knife scar on his right eye, running along his brow bone, across his eyelid, and down to his cheekbone.
The slash was swift and brutal, and he couldn't dodge it in time, which is why such a deep scar was left.
Qu Zhenghao drew his sword, stood up, looked down at the blade, and said slowly, "While you are arguing over these trivial matters, Mingzhu Fang will take in more and more customers, opening at night and during the day, without stopping all day long."
Blackbeard and Wei Liu exchanged a glance, wondering how this wind had blown onto them.
He slowly put down the melon seeds he had brought to his mouth and smiled, "These are only temporary. Once everyone has calmed down, the guests will naturally go home."
"The guests have gone home, but the money and profits lost during this period cannot be recovered." Qu Zhenghao walked slowly toward Blackbeard's table, carrying his knife. He spoke slowly as well. "Including the guests from my five families—Tianhe, Longwu, Shishan, Xingyue, and Lihuo—it's been two months, a total of sixty days. Manager Black, tell me, how much money has Mingzhufang Jiaxide Restaurant made during this period?"
Blackbeard said without changing his expression, "If Chief Tianhe is willing to work as an accountant at my West Germany Restaurant, I will naturally be happy to inform you."
Qu Zhenghao stood opposite Blackbeard, put one foot on the chair, leaned forward, placed his long sword on the table, held the hilt, and stared at Blackbeard with a cold gaze, saying, "Because of the infighting between these gangs, you've secretly swallowed up quite a bit of territory from other smaller gangs as well."
Wei Liu glanced coldly, about to get up, but was stopped by Blackbeard. He still smiled and said, "It's perfectly reasonable for someone to come to my door with a land deed asking me to take it over. But it seems like there's something wrong with it in Chief Qu's eyes?"
"They're coming to you with land deeds to take over? That's even more laughable than the Ten Mountains Sect's claim of a century-old industry." Qu Zhenghao laughed loudly. The Ten Mountains Sect was about to get angry when he turned around and said, "Even the Ten Mountains Sect only dares to say a century, but you have the nerve to say that someone came to you voluntarily. On the day the Nangong family landed in Taiyi, they even seized the land deeds for eight streets of commercial properties. You haven't forgotten that, have you?"
Blackbeard cracked sunflower seeds in front of Qu Zhenghao: "It's a matter of mutual consent, but Chief Qu seems to be fantasizing about something. The rule in the outer city is that whoever has the land deed owns the land and the building. Everyone follows the rules. Chief Qu, do you have some kind of dissatisfaction with my West Germany Restaurant?"
"Alright, follow the rules!" Qu Zhenghao waved his hand, signaling his subordinate to bring the items. The subordinate handed him the Listening Wind Ruler, which Qu Zhenghao then threw on the table. The Listening Wind Ruler was in a telepathic connection state, and everyone could hear the voice coming from the gambling house, starting with Little Tu's father identifying Mei Liangyu.
"...He told me to come to Mingzhu Fang tonight to cheat. He said it's a gambling den run by his junior sister's family, so I won't get caught if I cheat here!"
Wei Liu frowned slightly as he listened to the dark story.
"Mingzhu Fang's cheating techniques were exposed, but they're vehemently denying it! The poisonous insects used in the Zhongqing Gu were also drugged..."
"He's the senior apprentice of the owner of Mingzhu Fang... and he even said he'd share the money I won with my son!"
"...It was Mei Liangyu who made me do this!"
The manager of Mingzhu Ward coldly rebuked, "Nonsense!"
Then came the uproar from the guests in Mingzhufang over the deaths of the two poisonous insects. A barrage of questions and insults came from all sides, making it clear to everyone present.
Wei Liu immediately took out the Wind Listening Ruler and contacted the West German Restaurant to confirm the truth. After learning that it was true, he made a gesture to Blackbeard under the table.
It's certain that Qu Zhenghao is behind Blackbeard's actions, but for some reason, the princess's senior brother, Mei Liangyu, has also been implicated.
"You've been caught red-handed cheating at the gambling den. Manager, your appetite is far too big." Qu Zhenghao straightened up and looked down at him.
The people from the Ten Mountains Sect also said, "Not only were you caught cheating, but you also publicly protected the person who cheated. Your customers are all furious."
Longwu Gang member picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said calmly, "If we follow the rules, your Mingzhu Fang should close down."
The girl in the white dress from the Li Huo Sect also looked over: "Manager Hei, it's difficult for me to speak up for you today."
The people from Star Moon Island sneered, "The evidence is irrefutable, yet your Li Huo Sect chooses to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear."
Blackbeard looked up and scanned the room, only to find that those who had previously been at odds with him were now united against him. It was truly a case of the enemy of my enemy being my friend.
He asked Qu Zhenghao directly, "What do you want to do?"
Qu Zhenghao said loudly, "Everyone has suffered heavy losses in terms of manpower and money over the past two months, but only your Xide Restaurant is living a life of luxury and making a fortune. However, all of this is obtained by skinning and bleeding everyone dry."
Blackbeard stared at the man standing opposite him, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "Since today's peace talks are hosted by Taixu Hall, let's discuss how to quell these disputes. All you need to do is have your West Germany Restaurant hand over the territory it has occupied in the past two months, and give back all the profits Mingzhu Fang has made in the past two months."
So today's peace talks banquet is actually about his West German restaurant!
Blackbeard sneered inwardly. This was what it meant to have a big appetite. He wanted all the money that Mingzhu Workshop had earned in two months right off the bat. Wasn't he afraid of stuffing himself to death?
"Old man, you also agree to this unreasonable demand?" Blackbeard looked at the Taixu Hall Master sitting in the main seat in the middle.
Before the Taixu Hall Master could speak, Qu Zhenghao said, "This is just to ask you to return what you took from everyone these past two months. If you are unwilling, then according to the rules, the Mingzhu Fang cheating incident that happened today will mean that the outer city will no longer have a place called Mingzhu Fang by tomorrow morning."
At that time, these companies will join forces to make Mingzhufang disappear.
Blackbeard ignored him, his gaze fixed on the Master of Taixu Hall, awaiting his reply.
The Taixu Hall Master's brows had been furrowed since the beginning. Facing Blackbeard's question, he said in a deep voice, "Mingzhu Fang broke the rules first. Their cheating techniques were exposed in public..."
Blackbeard said, "That's Mei Liangyu, the eldest disciple of the Sage Changgen."
The Master of Taixu Hall remained calm and said, “Even Saint Changgen has no right to interfere in the business affairs of the outer city, even if it is his disciple. But the rules of Taiyi are the rules. If even saints do not abide by these rules, Taiyi will fall into chaos. Saint Changgen obviously understands this principle better than we do.”
Blackbeard's eyes darkened. He had wondered where the Tianhe Gang got the audacity to directly ask the Nangong family for money, but it turned out they had already made arrangements with everyone else beforehand.
This isn't asking, it's outright robbery.
Blackbeard slowly stood up, coldly scanning everyone present before finally fixing his gaze on Qu Zhenghao. He sneered, "Do you think I can decide to give Mingzhu Fang two months' worth of profits? If you're not afraid of retaliation from the Nangong family, you might as well let me send a message to Qingyang and wait for the Prince's reply."
Qu Zhenghao picked up the long sword on the table, pointed the tip at the Listening Wind Ruler that was tossed on the table, and smiled provocatively: "Why bother sending a letter back to Qingyang? As far as I know, isn't the heir of the Qingyang Prince's Mansion in Taiyi right now?"
Choose the softest persimmons to squeeze.
Qu Zhenghao knew that the heir of the Nangong family, Nangong Sui, was a little princess who had little offensive power, no talent for cultivation, and was often called stupid.
He had only been in Taiyi for a short time when he was assassinated and almost lost his life. Apart from Blackbeard and his crew, he was a useless piece of trash who had no ability to protect himself.
Qu Zhenghao didn't know why that remarkable Prince Nangong would choose a good-for-nothing as his successor, but at this moment, the more useless the successor was, the more advantageous it would be for him.
A little girl who has never experienced hardship would be unable to handle the situation at hand and would definitely be frightened into agreeing immediately.
Compared to the young princess who couldn't cause any trouble, Qu Zhenghao was more wary of the young man surnamed Gu. As for the third young master of the Nangong family, although he had never been seen to manage the business affairs of the outer city and only knew how to enjoy himself, his cultivation was not bad and he had some real strength. It was better not to drag him into these matters for the time being.
Qu Zhenghao continued, "The princess is the heir handpicked by the prince. Her will is naturally the will of the Nangong family. Even if the prince, who is far away in Qingyang, asks about it later, you can say that it was Princess Nangong's decision. Manager Hei, you can get away unscathed in the end, can't you?"
To escape unscathed?
Blackbeard sneered inwardly. Wei Liu blocked his way, his eyes scanning the surroundings as he calculated the possibility of breaking out from here. If a fight broke out, even the people from Taixu Hall might stop him.
If a fight breaks out, these people will have even more reason to destroy Mingzhufang.
“Alright.” Blackbeard took out the Wind-Listening Ruler and said in a deep voice, “I will ask the princess for her permission to see if she agrees.”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com