Mixing In

Chu Qing's attention was originally focused on Chu Yunfei's grand banquet.

If this "wandering physician" hadn't appeared, he would have only needed to send a message to Chu Yunfei.

But now that this variable had emerged, his objective had to change. As he was pondering this, he suddenly heard the news.

And this gossip had landed right on his doorstep.

"So, she said things like that?"

Chu Qing chuckled to himself, dumbfounded.

Miss Wu was named Wu Qianhuan, the only daughter of Wu Ganqi, the City Lord of Heavenly Dance City.

From childhood, she had been showered with affection, a proud daughter of heaven who was two years younger than young Chu Qing.

The friendship between the two of them could be traced back a very, very long time ago... back to when Wu Qianhuan, with her bare bottom and pigtails, chased him all over the streets, egging him on in his mischief.

This was commonly known as childhood sweethearts.

The Chu Family was the foremost family in Heavenly Dance City, and they often shared honor and disgrace with Wu Ganqi.

After all, in this Jianghu where people devoured each other without spitting out bones, how could Wu Ganqi withstand the storms from all directions without any other support?

Therefore, the two families had always been on good terms.

Wu Qianhuan was two years younger than Chu Qing. In his memory, the little girl was incredibly annoying.

When they were kids, she loved to run after him, doing whatever he did.

This made Chu Qing detest her, yet he couldn't shake off this clingy pest.

Later, when she started practicing martial arts, Chu Qing hated her even more.

Because her talent and comprehension were far superior to Chu Qing's. At first, he could still suppress her by virtue of practicing for two more years than she had, but later he couldn't. Children fighting didn't hold back, and Chu Qing was always beaten black and blue by her.

And then... the two families were betrothed.

This marriage, from the original owner's perspective, was not only incomprehensible but also a bolt from the blue.

However, the current Chu Qing understood that Chu Yunfei's actions had paved a broad and smooth road for Chu Qing's future.

Chu Tian could inherit everything from the Chu Family; his future was already set.

Chu Fan had joined the Taiyi Sect, and with his talent, there was naturally no need to worry about him... only the future of this son who was neither good at academics nor martial arts was worrying.

While Chu Yunfei was alive, he could remain a dissolute son in the Chu Family.

But once the family business was handed over to Chu Tian, what then?

Many things would change. Chu Tian would also get married. What would the relationship between siblings-in-law be like?

If they weren't close, and she constantly whispered in Chu Tian's ear, with the absence of their old father's restraint, even if Chu Tian loved his younger brother dearly, over time, grudges might still arise.

Once Chu Tian became disgusted with him, Chu Qing's good days would be completely over.

To prevent such a thing from happening, Chu Yunfei had sought another path for Chu Qing.

His willingness to shamelessly approach Wu Ganqi to propose was enough to show his deep intentions.

This move would not only strengthen the relationship between the two families but also, since Wu Qianhuan was Wu Ganqi's only daughter, after Wu Ganqi's passing, wouldn't the vast Heavenly Dance City all belong to Wu Qianhuan?

As her husband, even if Chu Qing was useless, his future wouldn't be too bad.

Moreover, Chu Qing still had the Chu Family behind him.

Even if Wu Qianhuan grew to dislike Chu Qing after marriage, she wouldn't dare to go too far.

In the future, there would still be some hope.

The original owner didn't understand these things, which is why he felt even more dejected, believing his father didn't understand his son's aspirations, and conceived the idea of running away from home.

Of course, how much of this was due to his worry about being constantly beaten by this bratty girl after marrying Wu Qianhuan is debatable.

In any case, things happened as they did.

It was just that he hadn't expected this matter to seem to have had a considerable impact on Wu Qianhuan.

She even said things like "the shame of the Chu Family, it must be remembered in the heart"...

"Could this little girl be faking it? Based on my memories of her, she's arrogant and proud, and wouldn't approve of this marriage either."

Chu Qing had already gathered the information he wanted and casually threw down the tea money.

After leaving the tea house, he put Wu Qianhuan's matter out of his mind.

He strolled along the main road, contemplating his plans in his heart, and bought a few fresh peaches from a roadside stall. He ate them as he pondered:

"If it's him, I can basically guess what he's going to do tomorrow.

"It's just that the Sin Mirror Platform failed this time. The next move will likely be even harder to guard against... Who is behind all this, wanting Chu Yunfei dead? Does this old man have any idea?

"It seems like there will be quite a few things to do tomorrow.

"Mm, many chefs and waiters from Zhiwei Tower and Cui Zhu Xuan will be helping in the Chu Family's kitchen tomorrow. The kitchen is close to the backyard, so perhaps I can take the opportunity to sneak in and do something."

With a plan in mind, his actions became increasingly unhurried.

He casually browsed a few shops, bought some things, and finally rented a room at the Eight Directions Inn.

That night passed without incident. Before dawn the next day, Chu Qing was already up.

He had also changed into a set of night-clothes.

Taking advantage of the pre-dawn light, he used the darkness as cover to move. In just a moment, he arrived at a small alley.

He could hear footsteps one after another, and a hurried voice said:

"Faster, faster! The Chu Family is holding a banquet today. By the time it's light, we'll have to serve a continuous feast.

The Chu Family is famous. If we do this job well, everyone will get a reward. We can't be late."

These people were from Zhiwei Tower.

And there were quite a few of them, including cooks and many waiters.

Behind the waiters were porters carrying shoulder poles.

Some of these porters carried firewood. The Chu Family was holding a feast that would last three days and three nights, so firewood was naturally essential.

Others carried wine. Zhiwei Tower's most famous fine wine was Immortal's Drunkenness.

It was a must-have for any banquet in Heavenly Dance City. The Chu Family had ordered a lot this time, so there were many porters.

This was exactly what Chu Qing had expected.

He quietly watched the group walk through the narrow alley. His body tilted, and he swoiled down from the wall like a swan in flight. With a sudden turn, he slowed his descent, rising more than half a foot in mid-air. He landed silently, stepping onto the ground and stopping precisely behind a porter.

He reached out and grabbed the porter's shoulder. Before the man could react, he pressed an acupoint, rendering him immobile, and dragged him into a side alley.

He carefully set down the shoulder pole and the Immortal's Drunkenness inside.

Chu Qing's movements were swift and exceptionally skilled. He quickly stripped the porter of his clothes and, in the blink of an eye, put them on himself.

Then, he bound the porter's hands behind his back and gagged his mouth.

The effect of the acupoint pressure would gradually fade. Once the Internal Energy dissipated, the pressure point would naturally release.

This was Chu Qing's additional precaution to prevent the porter from escaping too soon.

After securing the man, Chu Qing tucked two taels of Silver into the porter's waistband.

After all, he had taken the man's shoulder pole and clothes, and his livelihood for the day was ruined.

People still needed to eat, so he had to offer some compensation.

He put the money in his waistband to prevent anyone from finding it, getting greedy, and causing unnecessary trouble.

Having done all this, Chu Qing picked up the shoulder pole and ambled forward. He used his agility, silently catching up to the group ahead.

The entire process was as smooth as flowing water; not a single person noticed anything amiss.