Luring the Tiger Away from the Mountain

Luring the Tiger Away from the Mountain

"Miss, Lord Bai has gone far away."

Maid Xiao Tao reminded her softly, her gaze settling on her mistress with a knowing smile.

Ye Lingdang nodded blankly without saying a word. She only felt hollow inside, as though she had lost something.

Seeing her like this, Xiao Tao could not resist teasing her:

"Looks like Miss has really fallen for Lord Bai."

"It wouldn't actually be difficult. If Miss is willing, you could have Master go and propose the marriage."

Ye Lingdang tapped Xiao Tao on the head. She let out a soft sigh and said dejectedly:

"Lord Bai is a Dragon among men. At such a young age, he is already a Brigade Leader of the Imperial Guard, and his future is boundless. How could he possibly take a fancy to a merchant's daughter like me?"

Since ancient times, Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants had occupied clearly distinct social classes.

No matter how wealthy a merchant might be, in the eyes of officials, merchants were ultimately still the lowest class.

Though the Imperial Guard were Imperial cavalry whose reputation was often maligned, they were genuine Emperor's personal army, vested with the authority to patrol, investigate, and make arrests. Even ordinary officials had to give them considerable deference.

A figure like Bai Yan, young and accomplished with peerless strength, was destined to rise swiftly through the ranks.

In Yongtang City, who knew how many daughters of official families had their eyes on such a talented young man? There was no way it would be her turn, a merchant's daughter.

"Besides..."

Ye Lingdang gazed at the crescent moon in the sky, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible:

"He is an eagle soaring through the nine heavens, while I am a sparrow confined to a deep courtyard. We were never people traveling the same road."

Xiao Tao still wanted to say something, but she saw her mistress turn around and walk silently toward the room. She could only hurry after her and say no more.

Ye Youcai and his wife escorted Bai Yan and the others all the way to the entrance of the Ye residence. Along the way, the sounds of people offering their thanks never ceased.

When they were about to part, Ye Youcai suddenly waved toward the rear. The steward, who had been waiting inside the gate, immediately strode forward, holding a heavy red sandalwood box in both hands. Intricate entwined-lotus patterns were carved across its lid, making it clear at a glance that it was worth a fortune.

"It is only a trifling gift and hardly worthy of your regard. This is merely a token of this old man's goodwill. I hope Your Excellency will not refuse it."

Bai Yan gave a slight nod and said evenly, "Family Head Ye is too kind."

With that, he shot Ren Hong a glance. Ren Hong immediately understood, stepped forward to take the wooden box, and deftly tucked it into his travel bundle.

This was the Imperial Guard's unspoken rule, as well as an extra source of income.

If Bai Yan refused, it would instead seem out of place. Did every aspect of his brothers' casework, food, clothing, and expenses not cost money?

All his colleagues accepted such tokens of respect. If he alone acted lofty and refused them, he would only become ostracized and isolated over time.

Sometimes, going with the flow was an act of helplessness.

Besides, the Imperial Guard helped people avert calamities and kept them safe. Accepting this token of gratitude was perfectly reasonable.

In this High martial world, possessing excellent martial skills alone was far from enough. Pills, weapons, and cultivation arts all required silver to pave the way. Heroes being stumped by a single coin was something that happened all too often.

"Sir, the whole box is filled with banknotes. That old man Ye sure is generous!"

On the way back, Ren Hong opened the red sandalwood box. Inside was a stack of banknotes. He counted them twice in rapid succession, finding a total of fifty thousand taels of silver.

One had to know that as a Brigade Leader, Bai Yan's monthly salary was only thirty taels.

Fifty thousand taels was enough to support Bai Yan as a Brigade Leader for more than a hundred years without eating or drinking.

Bai Yan took the banknotes, drew one out, and handed it to Ren Hong.

"Share this money among the brothers."

"We all worked hard on this trip. It wasn't easy. Take it home and buy something for your families, or go to a restaurant and have a good meal."

"This... This is too embarrassing."

Ren Hong made a token show of politeness with his mouth, but his hand swiftly snatched the thousand-tael banknote.

His speed at grabbing money was much faster than when he drew his saber.

The strongmen behind him stared at the banknote in Ren Hong's hand, their eyes burning with excitement.

Divided among them, that thousand taels would give each man at least several dozen taels—enough to equal more than half a year of their salaries.

From beginning to end, Bai Yan had handled this entire mission alone. Bai Yan himself had also captured the Flower Thief.

As for them, they had merely stood guard and kept watch. They had done practically nothing.

Even if Bai Yan had swallowed the entire fifty thousand taels himself, they would have had no grounds to say anything.

Yet Bai Yan had shared a thousand taels with them.

Where could they find a superior this generous?

Compared with those superiors who only knew how to squeeze their subordinates dry and eat their fill alone, Bai Yan was goodness itself.

After this incident, his subordinates were thoroughly convinced by Bai Yan, and their loyalty surged upward.

If they encountered a battle or bloody clash at this moment, Bai Yan would only need to give the order, and they would absolutely charge forward and risk their lives without a second word.

Bai Yan paid no attention to his subordinates' heated gazes. Instead, he focused his mind on the system panel.

After the Flower Thief had been captured, the system still had not indicated that the mission was complete, which left Bai Yan puzzled.

Did it only count after the criminal was escorted back to the Pacification Bureau?

He pondered this secretly, then shook his head again.

No, that's not right. The system's mission clearly said that life or death did not matter. It never mentioned sending him back to the Pacification Bureau.

Could it be...

Bai Yan suddenly recalled the details about the Flower Thief recorded in the case file.

The Flower Thief's frequency of committing crimes was bizarrely abnormal.

He struck once every three days without fail.

On the first day, he sent flowers to his target. On the third night, he committed the crime, then immediately selected his next target and rushed off without pause, leaving almost no time to catch his breath.

Even a lust-crazed glutton for women could not withstand such a relentless cycle.

Such a dense frequency of crimes was entirely illogical.

Moreover, the Flower Thief seemed not merely to violate women but also to be extremely brutal, taking pleasure in killing. That clearly did not fit the usual style of a Flower Thief.

This gave Bai Yan a vague feeling that the Flower Thief seemed to have some other unspeakable purpose, while flower theft was merely something he did along the way...

The thoughts in Bai Yan's mind gradually converged. Then, a flash of inspiration struck him, and a terrible notion rose with a chill.

He flashed to the Flower Thief's side, tore open the clothing over his chest, and saw a conspicuous blue lotus tattoo.

"Damn!"

Before his voice had even faded, a faint layer of electric light had already spread across his body.

His maxed-out Lightning-Fast Movement Steps instantly surged to its utmost limit. His entire person transformed into a dazzling bolt of lightning and shot toward the Ye residence.

The speed was unimaginably fast. A streak of silver-white lightning flashed across the street, leaving behind a string of tiny crackles before vanishing into the distant darkness in the blink of an eye.

Ren Hong and the others had not yet reacted when their vision blurred. Bai Yan, who had been standing ahead of them, had already disappeared.

"Sir, what happened?"

Ren Hong and Li Kaiyao exchanged a glance, their faces blank with bewilderment. The strongmen behind them stared at one another as well. None of them could explain what had happened to make their Brigade Leader so anxious.

Just then, the Flower Thief, who had not spoken a word until now, suddenly let out a burst of maniacal laughter and shouted hoarsely:

"Hahahaha... You only realized it now? Too late! Far too late!"

"Cough, cough, cough."

"What a pity. I haven't even had my fun with that top-notch beauty yet."

He laughed too forcefully, aggravating his internal injuries. He suddenly coughed up a large mouthful of blood, and his face turned several shades paler.

Ren Hong and Li Kaiyao were shaken to the core by his words. Only now did they understand—the Flower Thief actually had an accomplice!

The two exchanged a glance, both faces filled with shock, and shouted sternly:

"Quick! Back to the Ye residence!"