Meeting

Chapter 33: Meeting

Lu Zhaojin naturally didn't agree immediately. "Who?"

Lu Wenxiu thought for a moment. "Perhaps a relative."

Lu Zhaojin's brow twitched slightly as he considered a possibility. "Someone from the Li family?"

Lu Wenxiu clapped his hands and laughed heartily. "I knew it! You're Lu Jinlin's son."

Lu Zhaojin looked at him, puzzled. "You know my father?"

Lu Wenxiu shook his head. "I've seen him and know of him, but I don't know him personally."

He continued, "But you can come with me to meet someone. She knows everything about your father."

Lu Zhaojin already knew his father's past, so he wasn't interested in Lu Wenxiu's last statement. However, he was quite curious about this person from the Li family and wanted to know why she wanted to see him.

So, after sheathing his sword, he let Lu Wenxiu lead the way.

Lu Zhaojin hadn't expected to return to the Brocade Merchant Guild.

Looking at the Brocade Tower, he thought of the graceful, middle-aged woman. Could it be that coincidental?

The maidservant led the way, with Lu Zhaojin and Lu Wenxiu following behind, arriving at the pavilion on the top floor.

A pleasant voice emanated from the pavilion. "Come in."

The maidservant ushered them inside, then closed the door and stood guard outside.

Lu Zhaojin saw the middle-aged woman again, unsure how to address her or how to react.

Li Xiufang was also taken aback when she saw Lu Zhaojin. Her gaze fell on Lu Wenxiu's weathered face, her eyes full of questions.

Lu Wenxiu shrugged. "I just felt it was unnecessary to follow him from the shadows. If there's something to say, it's better to say it face-to-face, to resolve issues more effectively."

He casually slung an arm around Lu Zhaojin's shoulders. "He's quite strong too. I can't even beat him. If I'm supposedly protecting him from the shadows, maybe he's the one protecting me."

Li Xiufang looked at Lu Zhaojin's face in surprise. This time, they were only a few steps apart, so she could see more clearly. "Those eyes... they really do resemble my sister's."

Lu Zhaojin frowned slightly. As his gaze met Li Xiufang's, he heard her words. His birth mother was her sister, which meant this woman was his aunt?

He couldn't bring himself to call her "aunt." They had never lived together. Even if his mother were present, he wouldn't have been able to say it.

It wasn't stubbornness, but the vast gap in time and the lack of maternal love since childhood. Perhaps, in his heart, only resentment remained?

Lu Zhaojin didn't know how his past self would have reacted, but the lingering obsession indicated that he no longer cared about acknowledging family.

Lu Jinlin also played a part in his past self becoming this way, failing to guide him properly.

All these matters vanished with the death of his past self.

Li Xiufang was cautious and didn't immediately believe Lu Zhaojin's identity. "Your father is Lu Jinlin?"

Lu Zhaojin nodded. "Yes."

There was no need to hide it. If Li Xiufang wanted to investigate, she could find out easily.

Li Xiufang didn't know how to face her nephew, whom she had never met. Her gaze shifted to Lu Wenxiu, sharp as a knife. If looks could kill, he would have been riddled with holes by now.

Clearly, she was blaming Lu Wenxiu for acting on his own.

However, Lu Wenxiu wasn't her servant, and she had no right to punish him.

Lu Zhaojin felt the atmosphere was awkward and wanted to leave for the Brothel District. He had important matters to attend to.

Before leaving, however, Lu Zhaojin asked Lu Wenxiu, "I've met the person. What now?"

Lu Wenxiu hadn't anticipated this situation and was momentarily speechless, only managing an awkward laugh.

Lu Zhaojin shook his head helplessly and turned to leave.

Lu Wenxiu didn't want to stay, especially with Li Xiufang staring at him with a hungry gaze. He felt a little unnerved. "Where are you going? I'll see you off."

Lu Zhaojin had seen several Brothel Districts while wandering the city during the day. "Spring Flower Pavilion."

A flicker of light flashed in Lu Wenxiu's eyes, and he couldn't hide his delight. "I didn't expect you to be a man of taste too, little brother. Let's go together, we can have a drink."

Li Xiufang heard this and looked at Lu Zhaojin with disappointment. She spoke sternly, "Neither of you are allowed to go."

Lu Wenxiu stopped in his tracks.

Lu Zhaojin, however, was unaffected and continued walking towards the door.

Seeing that Lu Zhaojin wasn't listening, Li Xiufang became annoyed. She reached out her right palm to grab Lu Zhaojin's shoulder, but as soon as her hand landed, she was repelled by a surge of powerful True Qi, forcing her back several steps.

Li Xiufang's face was filled with shock. She hadn't expected Lu Zhaojin to possess Late Seventh-Rank cultivation. Judging by the density of his True Qi, reaching the Late Seventh-Rank was imminent.

As Lu Zhaojin's elder, he wasn't obeying her, which also displeased Li Xiufang. However, he was her sister's son, and she couldn't let him go astray. She said coldly, "At your young age, how can you frequent the Brothel District? You should be focusing your energy on cultivation, not drinking."

Lu Zhaojin turned back to look at her, knowing she had misunderstood. "I don't drink."

Li Xiufang asked sternly, "Then why are you going to the Spring Flower Pavilion?"

Lu Zhaojin didn't hide it. "To find someone."

Li Xiufang looked into Lu Zhaojin's eyes. They were clear and innocent, with no evasiveness that suggested lying, but some people were very good at hiding things. "Looking for a woman?"

Lu Zhaojin felt this middle-aged woman was being unreasonable and didn't want to continue talking to her. He said nothing more and walked away.

Lu Wenxiu had originally planned to remain silent, as the atmosphere felt truly off. However, seeing Li Xiufang's beautiful face contorted with anger, she couldn't help but call out to Lu Zhaojin, "Who are you looking for? You can tell me."

He confidently patted his chest. "In Luoshui Commandery, when it comes to finding people, our Brocade Merchant Guild dares to claim first place, and no one dares to claim second."

Lu Zhaojin looked at him, not entirely convinced. "Is that so?"

Li Xiufang didn't really want to explain, but seeing Lu Zhaojin's disbelieving expression, she couldn't hold back. Frowning slightly, she said, "The Brocade Merchant Guild has branches all over Luoshui Commandery."

It was a simple statement.

Lu Zhaojin understood Li Xiufang's meaning.

The nature of this Brocade Merchant Guild was not as simple as just a merchant guild. Once it got going, Luoshui Commandery would hold no secrets from the Brocade Merchant Guild.

It was possible that they even dealt in information on the sly.

Lu Wenxiu suddenly added, "Not just in Luoshui Commandery. In fact, the Brocade Merchant Guild exists in Yanling Commandery, Danyun Commandery, and even the Imperial Capital, although their distribution isn't as widespread as in Luoshui Commandery."

Lu Zhaojin nodded, acknowledging some of the Li Family's strength and their impressive foresight in establishing such a far-reaching network. He wondered how the Imperial Dynasty viewed the Brocade Merchant Guild.

Lu Wenxiu continued, "So you can completely trust the Brocade Merchant Guild's capabilities. Just tell us the name and general characteristics of the person you're looking for. As long as they haven't died silently, our Brocade Merchant Guild can find them."

Seeing Lu Wenxiu's confidence, Lu Zhaojin told him the names and characteristics of Zhao Jinzhi and Zhao Nuanyu, then returned to the inn to await news from the Brocade Merchant Guild.

While Lu Zhaojin was meeting with Li Xiufang, the True Martial Division was in an uproar.

General Banner An was dead, killed by that young man. Zhao Rong and Probationary Centurion Chai, seeing the headless corpse, became even more convinced that he was the murderer of Zhao Huaishui. The evidence was obvious, and the perpetrator hadn't even tried to hide it.

Zhao Rong slammed his palm onto a nearby table, shattering it. His face was grim, and his voice was hoarse. "Good, very good. I've presided over the True Martial Division in Luoxia City for so many years, and I've never seen such a daring young man."