Zhao Huai had said that for no other reason than to test the guard again—to find out what connection this man had to Great Yan.
Sure enough, the guard beside him showed a contemplative expression and fell deep into thought.
He had clearly taken Zhao Huai's words to heart.
Yet Master Huang beside them gave a light chuckle, his face unconcerned.
"Shopkeeper, you are far too sentimental. In life, people meet wherever they go; when disaster strikes, each flies his own way."
"Of course, that is merely my view. Money can be made anywhere. So long as there is business, who cares who sits on the throne? Besides—"
Hearing Master Huang's words, the middle-aged guard's expression turned thoroughly disgusted and impatient, and he could not help speaking up.
"It is time to go, Master."
That interruption cut Master Huang off.
"Is there any place here for you to interrupt?"
Master Huang coldly rebuked him, clearly very displeased by his behavior.
He then glanced at the blazing sun overhead and realized it was already noon. It was indeed time to leave, so he put on a smiling face again and said to Zhao Huai,
"Come to think of it, it is time for lunch. I shall not disturb the shopkeeper any longer. This is no small sum of money, so just have one of your assistants deliver it to Lai Fu Inn."
"No problem."
Zhao Huai replied, watching the convoy gradually disappear into the distance.
At the same time, he saw that among the escorting group, that guard cast a distant glance back at him.
"Still not successful?"
On the street.
The carriage rolled onward, with the bodyguards following alongside.
Master Huang sat in the sedan chair, smoking his pipe as he coldly told the middle-aged guard beside him, "If you interrupt me again when I am speaking, I will dock an entire month of your wages."
"Yes."
The middle-aged guard answered expressionlessly.
Master Huang took a puff, finally managing to settle the stifled frustration in his heart. He said blandly, "Same old rule. We act tonight, after he delivers the money first."
The middle-aged guard asked in confusion, "Master Huang, have you not already sold the goods?"
"What do you know?!"
Master Huang flung his pipe and immediately erupted into curses.
"He took away my finest batch of goods—the Spirit Jade, the Treasure Cauldron, and all those other things he picked afterward! Do you want me to lose money?!"
"After all these years, have I ever taken a loss even once?"
Master Huang said smugly, "Those who want to buy but do not dare, or those who buy fakes, never mind them. But anyone who dares buy genuine goods—I frame them as remnants of the old dynasty, then make them return the relics. This trick has never failed."
"But this shopkeeper bought nothing but genuine goods!"
The middle-aged guard fell silent after hearing this.
Master Huang had made a fortune solely through this black-eats-black scheme, profiting from those who dared risk everything.
Nor did he fear anyone dragging him down with them. Who knew what sort of backing he had found, or which people in the capital he knew? He was not afraid of anyone coming to arrest him; even if they did, he would only be locked up for a few days.
The middle-aged guard said, "Master Huang, this man is different from the previous shopkeepers. He seems like a good man. Would killing him not harm the harmony of Heaven?"
Master Huang took a drag from his pipe and snorted coldly. "Good man or bad man, I do not care. Anyone who blocks my path to wealth is a dead man!"
"Do as you are told. Why do you have so much nonsense to spout?"
"Understood."
The middle-aged guard answered, a strange light flickering in his eyes.
At Huai Pawnshop.
A square rosewood table stood in the center, laden with steaming dishes.
"Husband, time to eat."
Yu Qinghan called toward the doorway.
"Oh, coming."
Zhao Huai stepped over the threshold. Seeing the table full of dishes, rich in color, aroma, and flavor, his appetite was instantly whetted.
Yu Qinghan placed a piece of meat into Zhao Huai's bowl, then smiled. "Husband, you have worked hard negotiating business."
Zhao Huai ate the meat and slowly nodded. "It was indeed not easy. That merchant is no good person at all—a downright crooked profiteer."
"Oh?"
"You do not know this, but that Night-Shining Pearl he gave you before was fake."
Yu Qinghan raised an eyebrow upon hearing that.
"Then we should settle the score with him. If he does not die, he should at least be skinned alive."
Zhao Huai thought Yu Qinghan meant reporting him to the authorities by "skinned alive," so he comforted her.
"Forget it. I also got quite a few bargains out of him."
Only then did Yu Qinghan's expression return to normal.
There was plenty of idle chatter at the dining table. Zhao Huai then remembered the assassins he had encountered earlier and casually asked, "By the way, dear, are you still in contact with your household?"
Yu Qinghan's expression tightened, and she repeatedly shook her head.
"No."
"I did not ask much back then, but what conflict did you have with your household that made you run away?" Zhao Huai had actually wanted to know this for a long time.
Yu Qinghan's reason at the time had been that she was weary of life on the battlefield, but he felt that was only part of it.
There had to be some other conflict between her and her family.
It had not been appropriate to ask too much when they first met, but now that they were married, it was only natural to understand each other more deeply.
Yu Qinghan sighed. "What other conflict could there be? I have two older brothers, and we fell out over dividing the family property. So I had a huge argument with my father, and he said he would never acknowledge me as his daughter again."
"And I got the freedom I wanted."
"Do you regret it?"
Yu Qinghan said firmly, "I do not. With Husband here, there is no need to return to that household. These past few days with Husband have been the happiest days I have had in all these years."
After hearing that, Zhao Huai took Yu Qinghan's jade-like hand in his and held it tightly, saying earnestly,
"Qing Han, I will treat you well."
Yu Qinghan softly murmured, "Mm," then said, "Husband, do you still remember that I said I would teach you cultivation?"
"I remember. What about it?" Zhao Huai asked.
Yu Qinghan smiled faintly. "I think we can begin over the next few nights. I have cultivation techniques that I brought from home. Husband can begin with Qi Refining and slowly build a foundation."
Looking at Yu Qinghan's smiling face, Zhao Huai felt moved. He had not expected her to treat him so well.
And yet he was still concealing his cultivation. What a sin.
How much virtue had he accumulated over several lifetimes to marry such a virtuous wife?
Fine. He could use this opportunity to gradually reveal his cultivation level, layer by layer.
Then he would be able to cultivate openly at home in the future.
"Sure, no problem. I will be relying entirely on you, dear."
Zhao Huai smiled slightly and agreed.
After they finished eating, Yu Qinghan impatiently pulled Zhao Huai into the rear courtyard to cultivate.
And truth be told, his wife's way of teaching was truly exceptional.
From theory to the basics, she had her own unique understanding of cultivation.
Yu Qinghan's talent was entirely different from Zhao Huai's. Unlike Zhao Huai, who could lie flat and rely on his Fate, she had truly cultivated her way up herself, scarcely using breakthrough pills at all.
Thus, her foundation was incomparably solid, and her combat strength far surpassed that of ordinary people.
"With this Qi Nourishment Art, Husband will soon be able to enter Qi Refining. For the Qi Refining First Layer, so long as you can draw Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi into your body and transform it into True Qi, it counts as success."
Yu Qinghan explained this to Zhao Huai with utmost seriousness.
It left Zhao Huai somewhat torn between laughter and tears, because this was all the most basic knowledge. Naturally, he already knew it.
But now, he still had to pretend to be a complete novice and nod along earnestly.
"So that is how it is?"
Zhao Huai felt the timing was about right, so he unsealed his cultivation, adjusted it to the Qi Refining First Layer, and pretended to ask.
Yu Qinghan's hand brushed over his dantian. Feeling the flow of True Qi and confirming that he was indeed at the Qi Refining First Layer, she said in surprise,
"You succeeded just like that? Wonderful!"
Zhao Huai's breakthrough gave her a great deal of confidence.
Before you continue