Chapter 235 I’ll be beaten to death if I don’t go back
Qi Huang recognized both groups of people. The first group was Duan Feng’s people, led by the guard named A Biao whom the old man had recommended to her before. As for the second group, she had no idea.
“Why are these guys still following me when I already refused Duan Feng? Could it be that the old man is worried about my safety?”
Qi Huang guessed this way because of her inherently kind nature, always thinking for the best.
“I don’t recognize the second group, and they’re acting so sneakily. Could they be the murderers who specialize in killing clients?”
Qi Huang deduced further.
“If that’s the case, then those murderers must have discovered the people Duan Feng sent to protect me in secret. This old man is truly doing more harm than good with his good intentions!”
Qi Huang felt very speechless. As the saying goes, “To catch a thief, catch the evidence; to catch an adulterer, catch them in the act.” You need evidence for everything. She couldn’t arrest the people in the back wave just based on suspicion alone. If those bad guys ran away after discovering someone was protecting her in secret, wouldn’t her plan be ruined?
Qi Huang was a bit worried, but after observing for a moment, she found that the “bad guys” in the last wave were quite dedicated. Knowing there was a group of people protecting her ahead, they still followed relentlessly.
“What dedicated bad guys with professional ethics!”
Qi Huang was truly impressed. She felt that if she became a bad person one day, she definitely wouldn’t have such professional ethics.
Thus, Qi Huang and Xia Wei chatted as they hurried out of the prefecture capital. The two groups followed closely behind. Since they were all warriors, they couldn’t use their spiritual sense to recognize each other, and the environment on the street caused severe interference. As a result, A Biao’s group had no idea they were being followed.
“Young master, where exactly is your home? If it’s too far, I suggest we stay in the prefecture capital tonight and set off tomorrow morning. Traveling at night is too dangerous. Even if no one wants to harm you, lonely souls and wandering ghosts in the wilderness are also very scary.”
Despite their bickering, Xia Wei remembered she was a bodyguard and made a sincere suggestion.
“What? Are you scared?”
Qi Huang teased.
“Scared? Little brother, you can insult me, but don’t insult my profession! I’m worried about you. When I came here, I promised the young lady that I would safely escort you home.”
Xia Wei retorted excitedly.
“Is that so? But what does that have to do with me? I must rush back tonight!”
Qi Huang said unmoved. She had sneaked out with Yaoyao’s ability to block spiritual senses and absolutely could not delay outside for too long.
“You’re rushing back tonight, so your home must be nearby?”
“Yes, it’s not far from the prefecture capital!”
“Then why did you tell the shopkeeper before that it was far away?”
“If I didn’t say that, would she have handed you over to me?”
“As expected, you’re a lecher! You started learning bad things at such a young age. Men are all the same!”
“What are you talking about? If men weren’t lecherous, women would be the ones at a disadvantage. What’s the use of being beautiful? Not even a single simp would be around!”
“I don’t need any simps! I’m going to enter the Dao through martial arts and shatter the void, woman!”
“A woman who can shatter the void would be scared of a few lonely souls and wandering ghosts?”
…
“Can you not be so stubborn? If you die, your Cat’s Eye Tears will truly become relics!”
Xia Wei suddenly remembered she was a bodyguard and quickly tried to rectify her mistake by continuing to persuade.
“If I don’t go back tonight, those Cat’s Eye Tears will truly become relics!”
Qi Huang replied solemnly.
“You have a disease where you’ll die if you don’t go back?”
Xia Wei asked curiously.
“No, no, no, I have a disease where I’ll be beaten to death if I don’t go back!”
Qi Huang said with a look of fear.
The two chatted as they exited the city gate. Xia Wei, being a bodyguard, naturally couldn’t overpower Qi Huang and could only follow behind with trepidation.
Those two groups also exited the prefecture capital one after another. A Biao and his group still hadn’t realized they were being followed.
…
At the same time, Liu Yingyue, fearing that any delay might lead to trouble, sent people to spread the news overnight that two bottles of Cat’s Eye Tears would be auctioned at the Juyin Auction House in three days, intending to build momentum.
“Manager Liu, why build momentum for only three days? Cat’s Eye Tears are such valuable items. I think it wouldn’t be too much to build momentum for ten days to half a month before the auction!”
Duan Feng immediately found Liu Yingyue and expressed his doubt.
“Uncle Duan, you know as well as I do that our clients often meet with accidents over the years. Three days is already the limit. If we don’t sell that batch of Cat’s Eye Tears as soon as possible, once the client has an accident, the auction will be completely aborted!”
A hint of confusion appeared on Liu Yingyue’s pretty face, and she patiently explained.
“But if these Cat’s Eye Tears are sold too hastily, our auction house will suffer significant losses.”
Duan Feng questioned again. He needed to create enough time for his plan. After all, even if the client died, it would still take time for the authorities to get involved.
“It’s fine to lose a little. You also know the current situation of our Juyin Auction House. We can only go with the path of small profits but quick turnover!”
Liu Yingyue continued to explain.
“Ninth Miss, what if I don’t agree?”
Duan Feng was naturally not going to give up.
“Uncle Duan, I respect you because you are an elder in life. However, in the Juyin Auction House, I am the shopkeeper.”
Liu Yingyue reminded him sternly. After all, there had been too many cases in the past where clients met with accidents due to excessive build-up time. Therefore, she absolutely would not make the same mistake again this time.
“Alright, since you insist, I will report this matter truthfully to the elders of the clan!”
Duan Feng threatened.
“Uncle Duan, please do as you wish. That is your right!”
Liu Yingyue sneered. This Juyin Auction House belonged to the Liu family, not the Duan family. How could she, a Ninth Miss, be afraid of an outsider old servant?
…
Even at night, the news that the Juyin Auction House would be selling two bottles of Nine Nether Demonic Cat’s pure tears in three days spread like a flu.
“This Juyin Auction House is truly generous. They only sold one bottle of Nine Nether Demonic Cat’s pure tears tonight, and they still have more!”
“Yes, the Nine Nether Demonic Cat is almost extinct in the Cultivation World now. Let alone pure tears, even diluted Cat’s Eye Tears sold the day after tomorrow are hard to come by, regardless of price. I wonder where they got them!”
“Why do you care where they got them? This is undoubtedly great news for us cultivators! At least as long as we have money, it’s fine from now on.”
“Don’t celebrate too early. I heard that the Juyin Auction House has been unstable recently. Clients often die inexplicably, leading to many auctions being inexplicably aborted.”
“Why would the auction be aborted if the client has an accident?”
“You’re really a novice. If the client has an accident, wouldn’t the item become a relic? If they have relatives, it’s given to the relatives; if they don’t, it’s given to the Yamen. Who would dare to auction it directly? Unless they want to ruin their own reputation!”
“I see!”
“So, even if you have money now, it’s useless. Who knows if these Cat’s Eye Tears will become relics in three days? Such things happen frequently at the Juyin Auction House!”
…
That night, people in the streets and alleys of the prefecture capital began to discuss frantically. The vast majority of people believed that the two bottles of Cat’s Eye Tears would become relics within three days, and the so-called auction would surely be aborted. Therefore, the results of the momentum building were not as good as expected.
…
Qi Huang, of course, was unaware of all this. She simply held a torch and walked out of the prefecture capital with her little bodyguard.
“These are two Class A talismans. They should be able to ward off low-level lonely souls and wandering ghosts, but we still need to be careful!”
Xia Wei handed a talisman to Qi Huang and warned her.
“Is this talisman yours or from Liu Yingyue?”
Qi Huang asked curiously.
“It’s mine!”
Xia Wei replied without looking back.
“Spending money to work? You’re something else!”
Qi Huang almost burst out laughing, but seeing how dedicated this woman was, she couldn’t bear to refuse and tucked the talisman into her embrace.
The two soon entered the deep mountains and old forests. Xia Wei was like a startled bird, looking back repeatedly as she moved forward.
Qi Huang walked leisurely as if nothing had happened. What a joke! She, a cultivator whose spiritual sense had reached the Shentong Realm, could even enter and exit Pingshan Mass Grave seven times. Was she afraid of a few lonely souls and wandering ghosts?
Therefore, Qi Huang’s current focus was entirely on the two groups of people behind her. Finding out who the mole at the Juyin Auction House was remained the top priority.
At this very moment, A Biao’s group began to act. They took out masks and put them on, then drew their weapons and accelerated forward in pursuit.
“Strange, is there danger? Why didn’t I discover it?”
Qi Huang’s mind was filled with doubts. Her spiritual sense scanned the surrounding area for several miles without any blind spots, but let alone any human figures, she couldn’t even find a lonely soul or wandering ghost.
Just then, the people in the very back also drew their weapons and followed closely behind A Biao’s group. However, they did not wear masks and appeared to be upright and proper.
“What does this mean?”
Qi Huang was completely baffled.
To figure out the situation, Qi Huang deliberately slowed down her pace. Before long, A Biao’s group caught up.
“Who are you people?”
Xia Wei was startled and shielded Qi Huang behind her like a mother hen.
“Speak, where did you get your Cat’s Eye Tears?”
A Biao pointed his forty-meter long saber at Qi Huang’s nose and questioned her.
