Pay the Balance First!

"Lord Liang should know what happened yesterday."

Scarlet Scale had no intention of joking with Liang Qu and got straight to the point.

"You mean the snake meat feast held by the River Conservancy Office, where everyone gets a share?" Liang Qu scoffed. "I tried it, and it tasted so-so, tough and dry. Only those soldiers and river officials like to eat it."

"You!"

Azure Viper was furious, but was stopped by Yellow Scale and Orange Scale and forcibly dragged away.

"Let me go! Let me go..."

The serpent's roar faded into the distance.

Liang Qu ignored it.

Scarlet Scale did not apologize. "Will the White Ape still arrive tonight as agreed?"

Liang Qu sneered at the giant snake, "Guess?"

Dead silence.

After a while.

"Azure Viper has spoken rudely and offended many people. I apologize on its behalf. Lord Liang, please be magnanimous." A Fluorescent Azure Lotus emerged from the tail of the Scarlet Scale Serpent.

Liang Qu accepted the lotus flower, held the cup-shaped flower disc in his hand, and said slowly, "The White Ape left me a message saying that there are Snake Demon lurking near Pingyang Prefecture, so it's not safe. The meeting is temporarily canceled, and we'll discuss it another day."

Scarlet Scale suppressed his anxiety. "When is 'another day'?"

"I don't know." Liang Qu leaned against the partition, his hand on his knee, tapping with his index finger. "Ten days or half a month, maybe longer. Whenever the White Ape feels safe, it will show itself."

Ten days or half a month? The Scarlet Scale ignited an unnamed fire.

"It's been too long!"

"Jiu?" Liang Qu suddenly stood up, looking down at Scarlet Scale angrily, "You know about Jiu? I don't know what's going on with that Purple Snake, but you've already alerted it! You've made me very nervous. The White Ape didn't suspect me because I'm close to it! And now you're telling me about Jiu?"

Liang Qu flew into a rage, taking the initiative and looking as if he wanted to jump onto the snake's face and stomp on it a few times.

In an instant, it suppressed the fire of the Scarlet Scale.

Upon closer reflection, the other party has indeed suffered losses, and if not handled properly, they could inadvertently attract the attention of the White Ape.

Scarlet Scale felt stifled.

The appearance of the Purple Scale caught all the snakes off guard.

It never expected that Lord Jiao had waited two months, would send a snake to urge them at this crucial moment, and that the White Ape would discover it.

But it's too late now.

"Half a month is far too long. I earnestly hope that Lord Liang can find a way to arrange another meeting within five days! There will be no unexpected incidents or troubles! We will capture the White Ape in one fell swoop!"

Scarlet Scale spoke up as guarantor.

In any case, the Flood Dragon had already sent a snake to urge them on, and it was killed by the White Ape.

The messenger's round trip takes time. By the time Lord Jiao realizes something is wrong, he can send out the giant snake. There will be a few days of buffer time in between.

Five days is roughly the limit of this buffer period.

As long as you kill the White Ape and bring the monkey head back, the death of Purple Scale and the loss of resources will all become irrelevant!

"I can't help you!" Liang Qu coldly replied. "Snake Demon has appeared near the shore. If I urgently summon the White Ape, and you fail, I will have no way to turn things around!"

"Absolutely impossible!"

Scarlet Scale swore an oath to vouch for him.

Liang Qu was completely unresponsive to reason.

"If it really doesn't work... please name your price, sir!" Left with no other choice, Scarlet Scale raised the price again, "How much do you want? Are you willing to take the risk?"

Liang Qu felt a surge of joy.

It's finally here!

After all that dawdling, isn't this all? As Scarlet Scale previously said, there would be a generous reward after the deed is done.

This means the Snake Demon still has something to squeeze out of her! This final payment.

Liang Qu needs to be completed ahead of schedule!

Unfortunately, one absolutely cannot raise prices by oneself, nor can one even cancel the transaction.

Otherwise, the other party will definitely suspect that it was a setup.

On the contrary, if the transaction is not canceled but only postponed, Scarlet Scale will not only not suspect anything, but will also be pressured by Flood Dragon to raise the price! Little did he know that Liang Qu was seeing through everything.

The Flood Dragon's favor was taken away, so it was bound to be angry. It was perfectly normal for it to send a snake to urge the Scarlet Scale of Pingyang Prefecture to hurry up.

Unfortunately, he was the only one in the entire Great Marsh who could receive this encrypted message!

Liang Qu stood up straight and spread his five fingers.

"Five bottles of Vein Marrow Jade Liquid! Ten Golden Gong Fish! Twenty Lotus Flowers! One Hundred Lotus Seeds!"

"It's impossible!"

Scarlet Scale's eyes turned red.

The Vein Marrow Jade Liquid is specifically for opening meridians. The Snake Clan has no need for these things at all; they are all accumulated from plundering merchant ships and paying tribute to smaller clans in the past.

Almost everything was brought out this time, so where are the five bottles? And the lotus flowers and Lotus Seeds that followed were even more outrageous.

"Let's not discuss this matter any further!"

"Three bottles! Only three bottles!"

Five bottles! It has to be five bottles!

Damn it!

Underwater.

The Azure Viper convulsed violently, scraping off a large number of scales.

Fine, white, thread-like growths beneath the skin covered and drew closer, causing the Azure Viper's aura to rise continuously! Yellow Scale and Orange Scale exchanged a glance, their scales itching all over their bodies, as if they were the ones undergoing the body-refining process.

Once Azure Viper had completely calmed down.

Scarlet Scale enter the water.

The three Snake Demon quickly surrounded them. "How did the talks go?"

Scarlet Scale sighed, "Yellow Scale, give all the things you brought out to that kid. There will be a second meeting in five days."

"Give it all?"

"Give it all."

Yellow Scale hesitated. "What if they deny it..."

"Probably not." Scarlet Scale paused for a moment. "The white White Ape did appear near the shore today, as you and I witnessed. It was just bad luck that it ran into Purple Scale, which startled the ape. But the other party has taken the money and is doing their job."

"I will obey Lord Chi."

Yellow Scale stopped struggling, his muscles tensed up, and he began to wriggle and undulate from his abdomen all the way to his neck. With a splash, he vomited out two treasure chests, and then curled up his tail to float to the surface.

Now.

The snakes gave away all the treasures they had brought out from the Dragon Palace.

"This kid has a huge appetite! He's not afraid of overeating! If he weren't working at the River Conservancy Office Bureau, even if he were Great Martial Master, I would still devour him alive!" Azure Viper kept spitting out his tongue.

All that money, put together, would be more than enough to bribe a Great Martial Master! Yet this brat, Wolf Smoke, has got him all in his hands! "Calm down!" Scarlet Scale's tail wrapped around Azure Viper's head, pulling him close. "No matter what, you mustn't make a move! This kid's life or death is irrelevant; the White Ape is the real issue!"

"Snort!"

On the boat.

Liang Qu opened the treasure chest.

Three bottles of Vein Marrow Jade Liquid, three red fish, three white fish, a Two Lives Flower plant of the same size, a portion of thousand-year-old Water Treasure Ginseng, three precious Treasure Lotus, and twenty Lotus Seeds.

The final payment was really generous!

Worried that Liang Qu wouldn't recognize its value, the Yellow Scale Great Snake offered a special explanation.

"The red, bristly Treasure Fish is called the Red Mane Lion Fish. Although it is not as delicious as the Golden Gong Fish, it is a valuable medicine for strengthening the body. In terms of its nutritional effects alone, it far surpasses the Golden Gong Fish."

The milky white fish with iridescent colors is called the Mermaid, but its effect is not as good as the Golden Gong Fish, let alone the Red Mane Lion Fish.

However, it has a remarkable effect on preserving youth, and humans often buy it at high prices. One piece is worth more than a thousand gold pieces, and it is priceless in the market.

"Lin Lord Crimson Scales specially selected the Red Mane Lion Fish and the Mermaid, both of which are of the finest quality. He will use them for his own advancement and also send them out to curry favor, ensuring your smooth career! As for Azure Viper's earlier disrespectful words, please don't take them to heart; it's always been simple -Mind's Eye and straightforward."

Liang Qu waved his hand.

Yellow Scale didn't say much and turned to leave.

The items were stuffed into the cabin.

Liang Qu rubbed his hands together, trying to suppress his excitement.

The treasures brought out by Scarlet Scale were truly carefully selected.

To help those in urgent need.

What a wonderful snake! Not only did it delay for five more days, but it also Treasure Plant so many Treasure Fish and plants that it couldn't possibly eat them all!

Awesome! Shang Rao Wharf.

As the boat docked, Liang Qu took off his straw hat and spotted Li LiBo resting and drinking tea in a teahouse.

Li LiBo also saw Liang Qu, spat out the tea leaves twice, and waved to him.

"Water Bro! The officials from the River Conservancy Office want to see you. I went to your house, but Chen Xiu told me you went to the Great Marsh, so I rushed here to wait for you. Hurry up and go to the Prefectural Office!"

Liang Qu tied the boat rope and stepped Shang An: "Is there any explanation?"

"I don't know, nobody told me. It seemed quite serious to me. A lot of river officials came out and called people, saying they were preparing to welcome some important figure. Could it be some high-ranking official like the governor coming?"

The governor is staying at my house...

Liang Qu roughly guessed who was coming.

"Okay, I understand!"