Don't Ask Where People Go After Time Travel

Chapter 1889 Suffocation
"Xie Chen, it's been a long time." Hong Tai hugged the plum sword to his chest, trying to cover the plum branch on the hilt, but it was no different from trying to hide something obvious.

“If the chief intends to give her the sword, perhaps we should abandon the idea.” Xie Chen glanced at the sword Hong Tai was hiding in his robes and asked, “Why abandon it?”

“If Mei Jian isn’t in her hands, she might still have room to argue with Zhao Zhao.” Xie Chen said casually, but Hong Tai’s expression turned cold. “Is that interesting? Xiahou Yun Zhao was after her from the start. Whether Mei Jian is in her hands or not, Xiahou Yun Zhao will never let her go.”

Xie Chen curled his lips into a half-smile, "Since the boss already knows, why bother making a wasted trip?"

"What did she do to offend you two so much that you want to kill her?" Hong Tai's hand rested on the hilt of his sword, as if he were about to strike at any moment.

“Boss, compared to her situation,” Xie Chen said seriously, his smile fading, “you should think about yourself.”

“Xie Chen, I have thoroughly offended the Xiahou family.” Hong Tai raised an eyebrow. “That has nothing to do with you, Xie.”

"The Xiahou family may be irrelevant to me." Xie Chen drew his sword. "But Zhaozhao is relevant to me."

"Xie Chen, you are no match for me." Hong Tai spat. "I don't mind taking another life, but I don't want to see Xiahou Yunzhao go crazy."

He wanted Xie Chen to back down, but unexpectedly Xiahou Zhang stepped forward and said, "Boss, do you think the Xiahou family has no one left?"

"You?" Hong Tai remained noncommittal, then changed the subject, saying, "Li Shengxuan sent you here, which shows his thoughtfulness. I just don't know if his intentions are for Prince Yucheng or for her?"

Before he could finish speaking, Xiahou Zhang's expression changed slightly, and he became intrigued. "If it's for the sake of Prince Yucheng, you should be inside the hall right now. If it's for her, you should be chasing after Xiahou Yunzhao. In any case, you shouldn't stay here."

Xiahou Zhang's face turned pale, while Hong Tai's brows relaxed, and he smiled, "You can only choose one: Li Shengxuan or the Xiahou family."

As if his deepest concerns had been exposed, Xiahou Zhang's face turned pale and then flushed, his lips moved but he couldn't utter a sound.

Until Xie Chen's voice rang out, "Lord Xiahou, you are acting on official business, while I am acting out of personal grudges."

The words were concise and to the point, a clear and obvious hint. Upon hearing this, Xiahou Zhang gritted his teeth, turned around, and went back into the hall.

Hong Tai watched Xiahou Zhang's retreating figure and chuckled to himself, but his words were filled with gritted teeth, "As expected, Li Shengxuan never had any feelings for her."

"Your Majesty is the ruler of the Great Capital." Xie Chen pointed his sword at Hong Tai without flinching. "Xie Chen, I never thought that someone who has always stood by Xiahou Yunzhao's side would say such a thing."

"All the way through?" Xie Chen was momentarily distracted. Even so, he dared not say that he hadn't felt a moment of regret.

Too lazy to argue with Xie Chen, Hong Tai took the opportunity to flick out the powder hidden in his sleeve. While Xie Chen retreated, Hong Tai disappeared without a trace in a few leaps.

At this moment, Hong Tai had only one thought in his mind—to find Fang Zilan.

Regardless of who she is, what her status is, or whether her so-called friends are genuine or not, he just wants to tell her that she is not alone. He is willing to walk this path with her to the very end.

Let alone the Xiahou family, even if it meant going against the entire world to take Li Shengxuan's head, he would do it without hesitation.

“These three slips of paper are exactly the same in size, material, and weight, without any difference,” Fang Lihui explained. “I will put them in a black box, where Miss Zhen will randomly select one, and then you distinguished guests will make your bids.”

Another worker carried the black box to the center and showed it to everyone, turning it over and over to make sure there were no problems. Only then did Fang Lihui put the three slips of paper inside.

“Distinguished guests who are willing to make a bid can have the lanterns in front of the private room lit, write down their bid on a piece of paper, and hand it to the waiter.” Fang Lihui said as he took the black box from the waiter, “The lanterns and paper and ink in the private rooms are different and are only used to distinguish you distinguished guests, so there is no need to worry about it.”

Fang Zilan offered a helping hand and continued, "As with other transactions, the highest bidder wins. The person who writes the highest number on the paper will receive a brocade pouch with the exchange terms written on it. Once you confirm that the terms are acceptable, you can trade with me."

She winked at the shopkeeper, who then said, "If any of you distinguished guests have any objections, you may raise them now. Once the transaction begins, you may not leave until the transaction is completed, regardless of whether you have made a bid or not."

These words caused an uproar among the room. Immediately, someone asked, "Miss Zhen, since you have conditions for exchange, why do you need us to make an offer? Why don't you just say what you want?"

"This transaction has already set a threshold. All of you distinguished guests have been able to enter based on your own abilities, so money is not the only condition." Fang Zilan said with an air of authority without anger, "When you bid, the amount written on the paper is only a reference, indicating how much you are willing to pay for this transaction."

After she finished speaking, the murmurs subsided, but the next question was still raised, "Miss Zhen, Young Master Fang, this transaction is a blind move, and it carries risks..."

“Distinguished guest,” Fang Lihui interrupted the question without hesitation, and said seriously, “There were instructions regarding blind entry before entry, and entry was only permitted with consent. Your presence here means that you are aware of and accept blind entry.”

His implication was clear: by repeatedly emphasizing the rules before and after entering the venue, he was implying a huge risk. If one couldn't accept the rules, they shouldn't have entered in the first place; if they accepted them and had already entered, the rules should no longer be a problem.

He just hadn't expected that Fang Zilan would instruct the shopkeeper to add another rule: no one was allowed to leave before the transaction was completed. That way, no matter what happened tonight, no one outside would know.

For some reason, Fang Lihui felt uneasy. He looked at Fang Zilan and heard her say, "The blind date format is indeed novel. I understand that none of you distinguished guests want to be the first to try it."

Upon hearing this, Fang Lihui was taken aback. Before he could say anything to cooperate with Fang Zilan, she continued, "Therefore, I can reveal a little more information, which I hope will be helpful to our distinguished guests."

She curled her lips into a smile. "These three pieces of information from tonight's transaction are intricately connected. Each one is incredibly close to the truth, however..."

Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted, "Miss Zhen, aren't you forcing us to buy all three pieces of information?"

"Whether you buy information, whether you buy one, two, or even three, is your choice." Fang Zilan's smile faded, and she said coldly, "What I mean is, even if you piece them together, it may not be the truth."

Everyone was completely confused, and Fang Lihui also looked puzzled, wondering what Fang Zilan was really up to.