One Hour

"Fine, I'll step back, but you can't hurt Miss Li!"

Qin Da watched Li Qingyu's increasingly pale face in Gu Sheng's hands. He could only raise both hands and slowly retreat. Their best chance to rescue Miss Li had already been lost; the most important thing now was to ensure her safety.

Gu Sheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief when Qin Da retreated, but he did not relax his grip on Li Qingyu. At such a close distance, a martial artist could cross it in just a few strides. His opponent had the advantage in numbers, and one careless move could land him in trouble.

"Qingyu!"

Amid a cry, Lord Li entered the study surrounded by more than a dozen guards. Seeing his daughter nearly unable to breathe, his heart ached terribly.

"Hero, Li Manor will not act rashly. Please, don't hurt my daughter!"

Lord Li gestured for Qin Da and the other guards to retreat, giving Gu Sheng a safe distance.

"Lord Li! You seem like a reasonable man!"

Gu Sheng slowly loosened his right hand from Li Qingyu's throat, but he still kept his other arm around her. Under the murderous gazes of everyone from Li Manor, he brazenly held their young lady tightly. From a distance, the two looked just like lovers whispering intimately into each other's ears.

"Sir, Li Manor should have no grudge against you. Why did you kill my third brother and then take our young lady hostage?"

At Lord Li's signal, Qin Da was the first to demand an answer. These were the questions they most wanted clarified. Li Manor had been in the trading business for many years and naturally had enemies, but there were only a handful who would do something like this.

Moreover, this thief had come and gone freely through the heavily guarded Li Manor. If Qin Da had not stumbled upon Qin San's death this time, they might not have caught even the slightest trace of him.

They had initially assumed the man's martial arts were extraordinarily powerful, but after probing him, they discovered that his skills were not as impressive as expected. This left them puzzled. Could there be some hidden secret behind this? Could someone inside be colluding with him...?

"Heh."

Gu Sheng let out a cold laugh. "That Qin San broke his word and dared to stand me up. He brought his death upon himself. As for Miss Li, your brother here is a little short on cash lately, so I wanted to borrow some spending money from Lord Li..."

"Since you're here for money, everything can be discussed. Name your price. As long as it's something I can manage, we can make the trade tonight."

Lord Li truly regarded Li Qingyu as the apple of his eye. Without even thinking, he agreed at once.

"Certainly!"

Gu Sheng smiled. "However, I'm very dissatisfied with what happened just now. I'd like to ask everyone to leave for an hour so that both sides can calm down. That will make negotiations easier, won't it?"

"This..."

Lord Li hesitated. Who knew what might happen during that hour?

"It seems you're not very sincere!"

Gu Sheng brushed a hand over his waist, and the sharp blade of the Jade Chill Blade was already pressed against Li Qingyu's snow-white neck.

"Bastard! If you dare hurt Miss Li, don't even think you'll leave this place alive tonight!"

Several guards behind Lord Li shouted angrily, and the atmosphere instantly grew tense.

"Relax. I don't have the guts to kill her. But other things are another matter."

Gu Sheng moved the blade to Li Qingyu's pale little cheek. Wherever the edge passed, the fine hairs on her face were severed. "I can't kill her, but if a few cuts happen to appear on Miss Li's face, she probably won't be able to show it in public anymore, will she?"

"Stop! I agree, but you must not hurt Qingyu. Otherwise, even if you flee to the ends of the earth, I'll grind your bones to dust!"

Lord Li waved a hand to halt the agitated guards, then slowly withdrew from the room with them and closed the door.

Outside Li Manor's detached courtyard, Teng Qingshan had been keeping a close watch on the activity inside.

"What's this...?"

Suddenly, he noticed a large number of guards gathering. Among their shouts were words like "assassin" and "young lady."

My cousin's been discovered!

His heart sank. Concern for Gu Sheng won out. Ignoring the warning he had received, he vaulted over the wall and darted into Li Manor.

Inside the study of the small courtyard, Gu Sheng had been watching the surrounding movements carefully. Only after confirming that everyone near the study had withdrawn did he relax slightly. He sheathed the Jade Chill Blade and carried Li Qingyu to the side of the somewhat dilapidated desk.

"Hmm? Why is your face so red?"

Gu Sheng turned his gaze back to the troublesome young lady and found her looking bashful and alluring. Following her gaze, he realized that his other hand seemed to be in a rather inappropriate place...

"Whew!"

Gu Sheng felt a fire burning in his heart. The completely helpless girl before him had suddenly become extremely alluring.

"No, no. Three years minimum, but it's a huge profit... Bah, bah, bah! It's punishable by death!"

Gu Sheng finally managed to suppress his own wandering hands. At that moment, Li Qingyu cautiously opened her eyes. After hearing what he had just said, her little face flushed bright red, and a trace of surprise flashed through her eyes.

Could this guy be one too...?

She had formed a vague suspicion. This kind of joke seemed to be something only people from the modern world would know. Aside from being a little impulsive with her earlier, he had not done anything else. Perhaps he was a good person.

Li Qingyu's guess was not without basis. Among the Reincarnators who had grown up in the peaceful modern world, how many were truly vicious criminals? Thinking back on Gu Sheng's contradictory behavior earlier, she had already reached her own conclusion.

"No. Her father's still outside. If things get too loud, it'll be hard to explain."

After finally convincing himself with that excuse, Gu Sheng reached out and brushed the back of Li Qingyu's neck.

"Mm!"

Li Qingyu felt a needle-like pain at the back of her neck, then realized that sensation had returned to her entire body. However, because Gu Sheng had treated her so roughly earlier, soreness, numbness, swelling, and pain surged through every part of her body at once. The young lady felt utterly miserable.

"Ah!"

Before Li Qingyu could recover, Gu Sheng had already pinched her cheeks and snarled, "Miss Li, would you care to tell this idiot how you managed to get the message out?"

"Ouch! It hurts, it hurts!"

Li Qingyu struggled to support herself so that her cheeks would feel a little better. Noticing Gu Sheng's fierce gaze, she pleaded pitifully, "Good brother, I know I was wrong, all right? Please let me off!"

"Tell me quickly. If you don't, I'll... heh heh heh!"

Gu Sheng remained unmoved and turned his head away, refusing to look into those limpid eyes. If he stared too long, he was afraid he would feel guilty and soften.

"Hmph. Fine, I'll tell you. Let go first!"

After moving around, the strength had returned to Li Qingyu's hands and feet. She grabbed Gu Sheng's hands to make herself more comfortable, then pouted. "It's nothing, really! I just don't like eating bird's nest, especially blood bird's nest. It's just bird spit—what's so good about eating that?

"Xiao Cui knows my habits. I told her a long time ago that I don't like bird's nest..."