There were three people waiting for Zhao Haicheng in a private room, and when he came back, it was with a sullen face.

“Big Brother, why did you go alone?”

Zhao Haicheng did not answer.

Another said more insightfully: “There is a figure beside the Sea King who looks like that handsome young master. Big Brother, if you like him, just snatch him when this matter is over.”

Zhao Haicheng suddenly turned cold and said: “Remember, we are not bandits.”

The younger brother quickly apologized and said with a smile: “What I mean is that the young master is so handsome and elegant, and he should not be ruined by the Sea King. Now that he is stubbornly determined to make the wrong choice, you can only use extraordinary measures to persuade him. Since you like the man, let him see Big Brother’s glory!”

Zhao Haicheng abruptly looked at the younger brother who was speaking, his expression already quite unhappy.

The third person coughed and said: “Don’t speak nonsense. Big Brother respects that young master. By the way, Big Brother, there is only one person in their group that is certainly Yi Chuan. The other…..looks very tall. Is he another guard at his side, ah? Their actions tonight…..”

The first younger brother immediately said in a cold voice: “We can’t hesitate even if there is one more person. Our brother’s death cannot be in vain. Since it was Yi Chuan who did it, he must pay with his life. Moreover, something big is about to happen, and Yi Chuan can’t continue to be in the way. Without Yi Chuan, the Sea King will be easier to deal with in the future.”

“Actually, I’ve been thinking about what the Sea King said yesterday,” the third person said. “He said those people were here to silence someone. Could it be…..”

“What nonsense are you speaking? We must trust our own people.”

Zhao Haicheng stopped him with a deep voice: “There is no need to argue. Whether or not Yi Chuan is at fault, there are only benefits to getting rid of him. And I believe Song Xingmu solely trusts Yi Chuan with certain things.”

On the other side, Huo Fenglie and Yi Chuan stepped forward decisively to pull them apart.

Song Xingmu also accused them of breaking up a loving couple, and deliberately taunted Huo Fenglie: “Yo, I can understand Yi Chuan’s behavior, he’s jealous. But why are you so anxious?”

Other than Liu Zhenqing, Huo Fenglie didn’t have the patience to go along with other people teasing him, so he just ignored him with a stern expression.

Furious, Yi Chuan said: “Who’s jealous! Don’t drag me into it!”

“How is it, Er-gou?” Liu Zhenqing inquired about his progress.

Huo Fenglie shook his head. No sign of He Lan or Qin Yu had been found.

Liu Zhenqing asked again: “When you were just coming here, did you bump into…..”

“Yes, ah, we bumped into Zhao Haicheng,” Yi Chuan said. “Why did he come here, ah?”

Song Xingmu promptly said with a laugh: “Perhaps he accidentally saw us together, and thinking that the young master he tried so hard to persuade is still with me, he was so angry that he lost his mind. It seems Zhao Haicheng is truly interested in you.”

Liu Zhenqing instantly felt awkward. To be honest, he was a straight man, and it always felt weird to be liked by a man. Except for Er-gou, of course.

Huo Fenglie looked at Liu Zhenqing and said with a slight frown: “Don’t go alone later.”

“Don’t worry, he won’t take him away by force,” Song Xingmu said with a smile. “He still has a bottom line.”

Liu Zhenqing suddenly said: “The fact that he still has a bottom line is what’s strange.”

“How is it strange?” Huo Fenglie asked.

Liu Zhenqing analyzed: “Wasn’t the military official who died in the water prison one of his people? His man had just died, and he was so impulsive with his questioning, which shows that he still has some loyalty toward his people. In this case, how could he come here tonight just for some entertainment? He must have a purpose.” 

Upon hearing this, Song Xingmu couldn’t help but frown: “You have a point.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Yi Chuan said.

Song Xingmu felt inexplicably uneasy for a moment, and reflexively wanted to refuse.

However, Huo Fenglie said in advance: “No, we just walked around. There are many martial arts masters in Pingjin Square, so it is easy to attract attention.”

Yi Chuan scratched his head and looked toward Song Xingmu.

Song Xingmu was about to speak, but Huo Fenglie suddenly stopped him.

Because the auction had already started, Huo Fenglie and company hadn’t closed the door just after they came in. Most of the guests had already taken their seats, and nobody would be running around to disturb people in a private room watching the auction.

There were very few guests who arrived later, like now.

An attendant guided a guest past their door.

Huo Fenglie and Liu Zhenqing didn’t react, but Song Xingmu and Yi Chuan were stunned on the spot.

Yi Chuan almost instantly went to the side of the door, covertly observing which room the man went to.

Song Xingmu also frowned slightly.

“What is it?” Liu Zhenqing asked.

“That should be…..the governor.” Song Xingmu said softly: “That person looks like a peacemaker, but Yi Chuan followed him secretly, and he has close ties with my uncle.”

Sure enough, Yi Chuan soon returned: “He came looking for Zhao Haicheng.”

“Is it possible that the county governor is also involved?” Liu Zhenqing frowned.

Song Xingmu scoffed coldly, and heard Yi Chuan say: “No good, I need to go and listen. I’ll stay away from the main area. Now that Song Jing is out of the picture, they might be plotting something.”

When Yi Chuan finished speaking, he didn’t take action immediately. Instead, he looked toward Song Xingmu, as if waiting to be given an order.

Ultimately, Song Xingmu hesitated for a moment, then nodded and let Yi Chuan go. “Remember, keep your distance, and evacuate if anything happens.”

“Now that General Huo has come, do you think my martial arts skills are useless? I’m better than you now,” Yi Chuan said, dissatisfied.

Song Xingmu couldn’t help but poke at Yi Chuan. “But you are not as cautious as others. Go, and come back if you don’t hear anything of value when eavesdropping.”

Yi Chuan curled his lips resentfully, then left in a hurry.

However, looking at Yi Chuan’s departing figure, not only was Song Xingmu now feeling inexplicably uneasy, but even Liu Zhenqing felt that something was strange.

They discussed among themselves.

As a result, they didn’t know what items were being auctioned off below. Suddenly, there was a burst of exclamations, which seemed to set off a small surge in the auction.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I suppose there is no need to say more flattering words. Although the painting ‘The Goddess Marries’ is average in painting skills, the beauty in the painting has been judged by many painting experts to be the most beautiful woman in the world. However, no one knows who the woman in the painting is, hence the name. We just happened to acquire it. Since we already spent 5,000 taels on the purchase, the starting price is 6,000 taels!”

“Heavens, this is the highest price tonight.”

“This painting is worth it.”

“Who is the beauty in the painting? Who is it based on?”

“Weren’t you listening? Pingjin Square even went for a professional appraisal and couldn’t identify her.”

“It must be an immortal from the painter’s dreams. Otherwise, if there was such a stunning beauty in the world, how could nobody know about her?”

“Yes, ah, it can be seen that the wedding dress she’s wearing is clearly the standard in our region. We haven’t had a beauty of this level for hundreds of years, ah.”

“That’s right. It must be a goddess from a dream. I must get this painting!”

They saw a meter-long scroll depicting the top half of a bride in a red wedding dress and makeup. That woman was extremely beautiful, gorgeous but not vulgar, and charming but not seductive. The painting depicted her raising her hand to lift the red veil and look outside. A pair of peach blossom eyes seemed to look out from the scroll, shooting straight into everyone’s hearts. That expression was half angry and half happy, mesmerizing people. In addition, there were two moles near the tip of her left eye, red and black. After looking for a long time, one would feel overpowered by rapture.

The more people discussed, the more interested they became.

And at this time, in Zhao Haicheng’s room, the governor had arrived just as agreed. The group were putting up their guard when they were suddenly disturbed by the situation below.

The governor looked down, and his eyes lit up. He said in surprise: “What a beautiful woman.”

Zhao Haicheng was originally paying no attention to his surroundings. When he heard what the governor said, he glanced up. In the next moment, he stood and walked quickly to the door, as if he wanted a closer look.

But Yi Chuan, who was lying in the loft not far away, saw him acting strange. Looking over, his eyes opened wide in disbelief.

In Song Xingmu’s private room, Liu Zhenqing had already jumped up. Huo Fenglie stood almost at the same time with a look of astonishment on his face. Song Xingmu also froze while holding a teacup, then turned to look blankly at Liu Zhenqing as he said: “At that time…..who painted your portrait?”

Liu Zhenqing: I want to know too, ah!

What is ‘The Goddess Marries’ ? !

That was clearly the disguise he used when he and Song Xingmu pretended to be brides to capture Yi Chuan and the others. That was him in the painting!

It was completely presented with gender-changing makeup, and the painter also trended toward female looks. Ordinary people would not be able to tell that this painting was originally a man dressed as a woman, so people who hadn’t met Liu Zhenqing often wouldn’t recognize him. At most, they would think of those two moles as a coincidence, but those who were very familiar with Liu Zhenqing should still be able to tell that it was him.

Liu Zhenqing glanced at Huo Fenglie, because he and Song Xingmu had put on makeup in the Huo family courtyard at that time. There had also been a lot of people in the Huo family courtyard, and after so many years, he really didn’t know who painted it afterward.

Huo Fenglie was even more astonished, and said to Liu Zhenqing with a sullen expression: “I’m sorry, Qing-ge. I will tell Uncle Ding to investigate.”

Because the scene on the scroll happened just after putting on makeup, it must have been seen and painted in the Huo family courtyard.

“After so many years, it doesn’t matter. I supposed it was done incidentally by someone skilled at painting. I can only say that at least my name wasn’t added, otherwise I would have had another scandal.”

Liu Zhenqing was in a daze while looking at the portrait, and many memories from that year came to mind.

At that time, Liu Zhenqing had just put on makeup and was about to try on the veil. Li Xingruo to the side said with a dissatisfied look on her face: “Am I not a woman? Can’t you just let me go?”

Liu Zhenqing laughed and said: “You’re so rude that I fear you couldn’t do it. You’d just poison them to death or scare them away, so I’ll sacrifice myself.”

Li Xingruo mocked mercilessly: “I think you just want to wear women’s clothing. I’m embarrassed to say it, seeing how excited you are.”

Liu Zhenqing thought it was rather funny, but couldn’t admit it, so he lifted his veil and looked toward the door where Li Xingruo was sitting and said: “How can that be?”

There was already a circle of people standing outside the door watching the fun, and everyone was stunned when they saw such a scene.

The person guarding the door was Er-gou, who also stared at him blankly. 

Liu Zhenqing was rather proud when he saw everyone’s amazement. He stepped forward to tease Er-gou, saying: “Er-gou, look at Xiting-gege’s beautiful women’s clothes. You will also want to find a girl this beautiful in the future.”

After saying this, he walked around in front of Er-gou and gave him a wink.

Er-gou’s cheeks instantly turned red, and he stood uneasily with his head lowered.

Li Xingruo saw the dazed look on his face and couldn’t help but shake her head, saying: “Stop doing evil. If he looks at you like this too much, Er-gou will look down on other women and end up alone, ah! When the time comes, you will compensate him!”

“Tch, I just want to establish the correct sense of aesthetics for Er-gou so that he’s not as blind as gege when the time comes.”

Huo Feihan was organizing self-defense weapons for Liu Zhenqing nearby, and wore an innocent look upon hearing this.

Li Xingruo instantly flew into a rage. “You’re looking for a fight!”

Liu Zhenqing quickly ran away. The two Huo brothers stepped forward skillfully. One stopped Li Xingruo and the other stood in front of Liu Zhenqing until Song Xingmu surprised everyone when he packed up and came over.

However, everyone was in agreement that Liu Zhenqing was more beautiful than Song Xingmu. Song Xinmu held in his anger until they arrived on the pirate ship, where Yi Chuan’s family told him to choose a bride. Yi Chuan chose Song Xingmu at a glance, and was extremely firm. Song Xingmu stood with his head up high, absolutely elated.

So when he was pulled to worship and kissed with his veil lifted, he didn’t feel disgusted at all, but smug.

But Song Xingmu and Yi Chuan had to admit that Liu Zhenqing in women’s clothes was stunning.

Moreover, this “beauty” no longer existed in the world, and no one had the chance to see her, so it caused such a big reaction at the auction this time.

When he returned to his senses, he heard someone shout from below: “Two thousand taels!”

Liu Zhenqing was taken aback: “Wait, wasn’t it six thousand taels just now? Why is the price reduced?”

Although it was very embarrassing, it was even more embarrassing for it to be depreciated and sold. 

Song Xingmu rolled his eyes at Liu Zhenqing and said: “Because the unit of bidding is no longer silver, but gold.”

Shocked, Liu Zhenqing couldn’t help but say: “So I still have such a way to make money.”

“Riiiight, but you currently don’t exist anymore.”

“Jealous?” Liu Zhenqing said with a smile.

“It’s only that I wasn’t painted back then, or my price would be higher.” Song Xingmu began to grow petty again, and directly shouted a price: “Two thousand one!”

“What are you doing?” Liu Zhenqing asked.

“It’s better not to let your painting leak out,” Song Xingmu said with a smile.

As a result, Song Xingmu’s bid was quickly topped.

Song Xingmu was unresigned and continued to fight. After a few rounds, only he and one other person were left competing.

“Why does that sound like Zhao Haicheng’s voice to me, ah?” Song Xingmu smiled at Liu Zhenqing and said: “Is this considered a transference of love, or…..infatuation with the same person?”

The corners of Liu Zhenqing’s mouth twitched.

Zhao Haicheng raised the price again in the next second. 

But the people in that room were a little uneasy.

“Isn’t this too high? It’s already at three thousand six hundred taels of gold!” The governor said in shock: “Is Lieutenant General Zhao so wealthy?”

Several of his subordinates began to sweat. How could they be so wealthy? They didn’t know what had possessed their boss. Although it was beautiful, it was not desperately so. But to be honest, they also felt that the person in the portrait looked familiar. Was she really a goddess from a dream?”

Zhao Haicheng was still waiting for Song Xingmu to bid, knowing that it was certainly him who was competing for this portrait.

But in the next second, a low, chilly voice sounded.

“Five thousand taels!”

These words came out soon after! In an instant, everyone exclaimed, and even the Pingjin Square people were a little discomfited. Five thousand taels of gold was truly an unprecedented price.

The Pingjin Square people couldn’t help but look around, trying to determine who the guest was. As soon as they saw that it came from the direction of Song Xingmu’s private room, they believed that the other party was not speaking in vain.

They immediately double-checked to see if anyone was still bidding, but such a price should have frightened most of them. Nobody followed the bid, all of them talking about which nobleman was so ostentatious.

Right then in the private room, Liu Zhenqing had grabbed Huo Fenglie’s ear and was scolding him angrily: “Are you crazy? You prodigal son, five thousand taels of gold, ah! Just let Pingjin Square have it, it’s still my portrait, you, you, you…..”

He felt that someone had stolen his portrait, and felt aggrieved to have to spend money to buy it back.

Huo Fenglie remained calm and silent, allowing Liu Zhenqing to pull his ear.

“How can you have so much money? Don’t you just have two taels left on you…..”

“There is some in another courtyard. I’ll have Uncle Ding deliver it,” Huo Fenglie said.

Liu Zhenqing drew in a sharp breath and said: “You fool, that’s too much money!”

“Hey, hey, you didn’t stop me when I called out the price, ah,” Song Xingmu said with instant resentfulness.

“How can it be the same?” Liu Zhenqing said reflexively.

Song Xingmu cursed internally. Even before marriage, he knew that his friend was being snatched by the Huo family.

“I also planned to stop you when the time came, but I just wanted to cheat Zhao Haicheng out of money,” Liu Zhenqing complained.

When people from Pingjin Square came to collect the money, Huo Fenglie directly handed over his wallet. He gave part of it, and would pay the rest when he collected the goods. This was also a method of transaction, even if a deposit was collected.

Liu Zhenqing was extremely distressed when he saw the money being taken away. “In fact, I originally wanted to have Er-gou steal it after Zhao Haicheng bought it.”

Huo Fenglie…..

Song Xingmu patted his head and said cheekily: “Right, ah, this is our style. I was foolish too.”

Huo Fenglie didn’t respond at all. How could that painting be given to others? Even if it was bought in name only, he couldn’t bear it.

Seeing Huo Fenglie’s unrepentant appearance, Liu Zhenqing felt a little dissatisfied. But what was really on his mind was that Er-gou really liked the way he looked in the past.

Song Xingmu smiled with a provocation: “But it can be considered that General Huo spent a lot of money on a beauty. It’s a story that captures the imagination! But you have no money now. If you come across something you like later, you can ask me to buy it for you.”

Liu Zhenqing became even more unhappy. “I wasn’t here to buy anything anyway!”

Huo Fenglie knew that Liu Zhenqing was displeased and didn’t dare to get into more trouble. He could only say: “I’ll go look around again.”

Just as Liu Zhenqing was about to nod, he heard that slaves were being sold below

Song Xingmu said nonchalantly: “Wa, what’s happening tonight? There are actually beauties among these slaves? They also have good physiques. How about buying them?”

Huo Fenglie, who had stood up, looked down with Liu Zhenqing. Both of them were stunned.

“He Lan, Qin Yu!” Liu Zhenqing said in shock.

Huo Fenglie wore a grave expression: “Those chains shouldn’t hold them. They’ve been poisoned.”

“Hey, hey, you’re saying there are people from the Jinyiwei and Dongchang below?” Song Xingmu said in bewilderment.

Ten people could be seen sitting slumped on the stage below, and two of them turned out to be He Lan and Qin Yu! They were powerless, bound by chains, and were being auctioned off with the other slaves.

“As you can see, there are very good ones among these slaves. Everyone must seize this opportunity. As a rule, they are all pirates we received from the sea, and after buying, you are free to decide what to do with them! If you fear that the other party will resist, our medications can be purchased for continued control. Okay, for the first one, the starting price is one hundred taels.”

Liu Zhenqing turned to look at Huo Fenglie in astonishment and said: “What do we do? I don’t know if it’s a trap or…..”

“Buy them first.”

Liu Zhenqing narrowed his eyes. “You still have money?”

Huo Fenglie finally choked.

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Chapter Eighty-Five << Table of Contents >> Chapter Eighty-Seven