Miss Huang Rongyue

"Come on, hurry! We need to get to the assembly point."

Lu Li followed the others toward the square.

He had only ever been to two places in the Huang Family: the herb garden and the Fifth Young Master's residence.

As for everywhere else, he really hadn't had the chance to see it.

Artificial hills and streams, winding covered corridors, flowers carpeting the ground and their fragrance filling the air—it was truly extravagant.

"Gang life is nothing special. Unless you go straight for the bosses' homes, there's barely any money to be made. It can't compare with these great lineages."

"If a fight breaks out, could I pull the same trick as last time and fish in troubled waters?"

At the thought, Lu Li immediately shook his head, dismissing the idea.

On the surface, he was now a member of the Huang Family. There were far fewer opportunities to exploit, so fishing in troubled waters probably wouldn't work.

Lu Li felt a pang of regret. Just how many taels of silver would he be missing out on?

After buying the Purple Sun Pills, his silver had nearly run dry.

If Black Hawk hadn't helped him, he had no idea when Hu Niu would have gotten the breakthrough medicine she needed.

He was seriously short of money!

Lu Li's thoughts raced as he tried to figure out where he could make a killing.

A short while later, he followed the others to a square.

The square wasn't particularly large, but plenty of people had already gathered.

Standing right at the front was none other than the white-clad woman who had rescued Lu Li earlier that day!

Just as he'd guessed, she really was the Huang Family's young lady!

"Miss Huang Rongyue has traveled the martial world since she was a child. I didn't expect she'd been called back too. The Huang Family's situation must be dire."

Lu Li pondered this to himself.

He quickly looked away and didn't stare.

Following the crowd, he took his place at the back of the line.

As people entered through the gate in small groups, Huang Rongyue's gaze immediately settled on Lu Li.

A look of surprise crossed her face. She tilted her head and glared at him.

She hadn't expected that the man she'd casually rescued would turn out to be a Huang Family guard!

But what she found even more surprising was that, despite being a Huang Family guard, he'd stood there foolishly, not daring to act, when faced with a few worthless thugs.

She shook her head and sighed. The quality of this newly recruited guard was worrying.

A glimpse of one leaf revealed the whole autumn. The other new guards, like Li Qing, were probably no better.

"What's the point of sending people like them into a fight? To serve as cannon fodder?"

She rubbed her forehead and shook her head, worried about the likes of Lu Li. "Forget it. Put them in the rear."

"I heard these guards were only just selected. They still lack experience, so let them settle in a while longer."

"Ahem."

Huang Rongyue gave a light cough, and the crowd fell silent.

"You may not recognize me, so let me introduce myself. I'm Huang Rongyue, the Huang Family's eldest young lady."

"I'm sure you all know that the Huang Family is going to settle things with the Wang Family. So I hope we can stand together and weather this storm."

With that, she bowed deeply to everyone. "I, Huang Rongyue, thank you all in advance."

She introduced herself first. Her voice was crisp and pleasant, and paired with her stunning beauty, it immediately won people over.

Many guards fixed their eyes on her, unable to look away, their faces full of admiration.

Some of the younger men even flushed bright red, lowering their heads and not daring to look up.

Seeing her bow in thanks, the guards all hurried to return the gesture. "Please rest assured, Young Lady. We'll give it our all!"

She nodded, then turned her gaze toward Lu Li, Li Qing, and the others.

"Now, let me tell you where you'll be stationed."

She called out their names one by one and assigned their posts herself.

Many of the veteran guards were sent to the Outer City.

But to Lu Li's surprise, he was assigned to the Inner City, close to the Huang Family, at a nearby pharmacy.

The three with Li Qing were assigned there as well, alongside Lu Li.

The other newcomers were also sent to places near the Huang Family. It seemed they'd been given special consideration.

Naturally, this roused some people's displeasure.

One of them, a veteran guard with a fierce-looking face, stepped forward. It was none other than the man who'd taught Lu Li the rules last time.

He pointed at Lu Li and complained, "Young Lady, why does this kid get to be stationed near the Huang Family while we're sent to the Outer City?"

"I won't accept it. Why not draw lots? Or let that kid fight me. If I win, we can switch places."

Shameless! Picking on someone weaker than him!

Lu Li knitted his brows, his gaze turning unfriendly as he looked at the tall veteran guard.

Huang Rongyue narrowed her beautiful eyes.

The gentle air about her vanished in an instant, replaced by a formidable, razor-sharp authority.

She gave a cold laugh and said sternly, "Niu Kai, you've served my Huang Family for thirty years, and you're still fighting the youngsters for a better post. What use are you to my family?"

"My family has supported you for thirty years. In all that time, nothing major has ever happened, and we've never had to call on you."

"It seems we've made you far too comfortable."

Her gaze swept gently over Lu Li and the other newcomers. "How long have they been training in martial arts? Two months at most."

"Some of them may never even have killed a chicken. You want them to kill people?"

"Should I put them on the front lines as cannon fodder?"

"What do you take my Huang Family for?"

Huang Rongyue fixed her gaze on Niu Kai. Her eyes were cold, stabbing into him like knives, making his whole body prickle as if he were being stuck with needles.

Niu Kai pressed his lips together, his face full of defiance.

"You're free to disagree." Huang Rongyue paused, then moved with graceful steps to stand before Niu Kai. The temperature around him seemed to drop several degrees. "I'm the same age as Lu Li. Shall we have a little contest?"

As soon as Huang Rongyue said this, an invisible pressure surged outward in all directions.

A faint crimson glow appeared around her, giving off an overwhelming sense of oppression!

Niu Kai was so shocked his scalp went numb. "Young Lady, please don't be angry! I, Niu Kai, accept it. I really do!"

He hurriedly dropped to his knees and begged for mercy, kowtowing like a pestle pounding garlic.

He'd been unconvinced, but the moment he saw that faint Blood-Qi Wolf Smoke, he gave in.

If the young lady truly lost her temper, she could probably kill him with a single slap!

"I don't want to see veteran guards bullying newcomers again. This is the Huang Mansion, not some lawless gang," Huang Rongyue said coldly.

Lu Li took it all in, thoughtful.

Thinking of how Huang Rongyue had rescued him that morning and escorted him home, then seeing what had just happened, he couldn't help but feel that although she was beautiful and gentle-looking, she acted swiftly and decisively. No wonder she'd roamed the martial world since childhood.

Most importantly, she wasn't like the other Huang Family members, so high and mighty that they looked down on everyone.

And she seemed like a good person.

"I wonder if this is just a way to win people over, or if it's simply her nature."

"If it's truly her nature, that's really not easy." Lu Li's gaze swept over Huang Rongyue's curvaceous figure as he thought.

There weren't many good people in this world.

After Huang Rongyue finished giving her instructions, everyone began to disperse.

Lu Li and Li Qing's group stayed behind. Since she'd gone out of her way to look after them, they naturally had to thank her.

"Thank you, Young Lady!" Lu Li and the others bowed in gratitude.

Huang Rongyue gave a slight nod. Her beautiful eyes lingered on Lu Li, and she smiled faintly. "I didn't expect you to be a guard for the Huang Family."