Yet Granny Jia felt she had never lived well in the Jia family and had always kept her family on her mind. Her elder brother had cherished her as his little sister and, when she had been at her most destitute, had often sent aid.
Granny Jia dared not forget such affection. Her brother's son—her nephew—was likewise someone she doted on and worried about. Prince Lu exploited this, having someone lure her nephew into gambling until he owed an enormous debt.
On one side was a master she had served for barely over a year, whose betrayal would bring nothing more than some trouble. On the other was blood kin who, if left unaided, might be hacked to death beneath a flurry of blades. Did she even need to choose?
"And the magical artifact? Is she willing to deliver it inside?" Prince Lu asked blandly. A servant who betrayed her master did not deserve to live; once the matter was done, she would be killed to offer an explanation to Prince Dai.
Steward Zhou hurriedly replied, "As the saying goes, once you sleep with someone once, there will be a tenth time and a hundredth. Granny Jia has already sold out her master, so taking one more step will not be difficult. She has agreed."
"Good." Prince Lu nodded. Though arranging and buying off Granny Jia had taken some effort, the results were good. The effort had not been wasted.
Prince Lu then looked toward the middle-aged man standing nearby. He wore no Daoist robe; his black hair was merely loosely combed, and because of the heat, he wore a broad robe of thin cloth. His features were refined, and he carried something of the immortal bearing and Daoist bones of a transcendent.
Even merely standing there, he easily brought