Chapter Thirty-Six: Hypocrisy

Ji Cang’s voice was not loud, especially when mixed among all the booming voices in the room, and was almost drowned out. Yet as soon as he spoke, the crowd fell silent.

A hush descended upon the private room, followed by a mad scramble toward the tiny window—

“Let me see who has such courage!”

“So the boss has a fiancée! Let me get a good look at our future sister-in-law!”

“Wow, even someone as oblivious to romance as the boss has a wife now. Yet here we are, all these considerate, outstanding men, still single. Where is the justice in that?”

The men in the army, especially those in command, all spoke in loud voices. In the midst of roaring artillery, they had to shout to ensure their orders were heard and followed, and over time, every one of them developed a booming voice.

This group of men—

“I remember someone once said, to see the one you love find happiness is the greatest happiness of all. Manzi, I sincerely hope you can be happy! I... give... up...” It took all of Gao Haoyu’s strength to utter those last few words, his heart aching so badly he could barely breathe.

With the experience of tall Cheng and Chen Wu, even among all the gathered geniuses of Wuguo, Hua Fang was a rare elite, a true prodigy among prodigies.

Ji Jingxi, feeling a little embarrassed, rubbed the tip of his nose. “I was thinking of arranging the outer room... You’ve come at just the right time. Have a look.”

“...Those two are both from the south?” Otherwise, they couldn’t have so easily gotten hold of Jiuhua White Dew, such a famous tea from Jiangnan.

Could it be the aftereffect of losing the Jiuli Lamp? The thought struck him with sudden alarm, and he hurried to pick her up.

The old man selling wontons noticed the eerie chill that night and, for once, thought of closing up early. As he was trembling his way to fetch water to extinguish his stove, he caught sight of two figures in white approaching slowly through the swirling night mist. Their garments fluttered in the cold wind, white as if transparent, like wraiths drifting through the night.

Madam Xiao gazed at him with a look of confusion, prompting Director Zhang to wipe his face awkwardly, plant a gentle kiss on his grandson, and quietly slip out the door.

The ominous feeling, unfortunately, came true. After delivering the emperor’s message, Huang Xi did not leave; he clearly intended to escort her personally. The shadow guards watched her like tigers eyeing their prey—one wrong move and they would seize her at once.

From the first to the third ring of the Bloodmark Star Halo, Xu Wen sped through them with practiced ease. Upon reaching the fourth ring, he slowed his pace in search of a hundred high-level demon puppets. As soon as he had slain them all, he was immediately transported to the fifth ring.

Fu Xuan recognized him too—though many years had passed and both had grown and changed in appearance with age, their features and contours remained the same, and their bearing... had not changed at all.

Lin Bixiao’s simple movement provoked a variety of reactions from those present. Du Caiwei, who had been terribly anxious, suddenly felt much calmer.

“The Jin family? This is just business competition—there’s no need to go this far, is there?” Mo Ke frowned. The two sides were merely business rivals; there was no call for such life-and-death measures. Besides, this wasn’t even a business tactic. If the Jin family dared to treat Luo Wanmei like this, weren’t they afraid she might retaliate in kind?

Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Worried it might be her mother or Wen Shaoqian calling, she quickly wiped her hands and fished out her phone.

As long as there was a chance to win, as long as the peace of the days before the apocalypse could be restored, what did it matter to endure pain? That was what the Black Emperor had taught her.

I placed breakfast casually on the dining table and sat down to talk with Kele. Liang Jing came out dressed, glanced at me, said nothing, walked straight over, and sat beside me to eat.

Although Bi Qianmo was not home at the moment, she dared not be certain that Bi Qianmo would let Sun off once he learned of this.

I gripped the knife tightly and slipped into the shadows. That’s when I saw an archer, bow in hand, retreating step by step in my direction.

“A criminal minister greets Your Majesty. Please forgive me for not performing the proper courtesies.” It was just as well; it forced him to tear his gaze from his family’s faces. Yang Qing struggled to restrain the tears of emotion welling up inside.

“There are still too few wool shops in Liangdu. With Mr. Mo’s potential, if you continue to hone your skills, achieving the level of a stone-gambling master would not be difficult. By then, whether you gamble on stones for yourself or serve as a consultant for my Luo family, it would be a win-win situation.” Seeing Mo Ke’s reluctance, Luo Wanmei spoke again.