Minglong

Chapter 307 Please watch the VCR
Hoof-tapping hoof-tapping...

With the Red Scale Guards leading the way, the four-horse carriage drove side by side through the bustling streets. The carriage doors and windows were tightly closed, making it much quieter than usual.

Inside the carriage, Zhao Ling, dressed in a warm yellow palace dress, sat in the main seat, her demeanor as serene and composed as ever, holding a wine cup and softly humming:
"Instead of saying 'thank you for your great favor,' couldn't you have been more tactful and said you needed to consider it? That way, I could have refused. Now that you've agreed, if I were to push and shove, wouldn't I be making both you and my father feel bad..."

Xie Jinhuan, dressed in a white robe, sat by the window and sighed softly:
"Last time we played Truth or Dare, I admitted to touching the guards and the divine gift, and His Highness didn't beat me up...wait, wait?"

Before she could finish speaking, the imposing princess, her face flushed, stood up, took the wine pot, walked over, and, rubbing the back of her head, began to offer a toast:
"I think you've been blinded by Father's praise, and you dare to mention anything. Come here, let me, the princess, clear your head..."

"Tons, tons, tons..."

Xie Jinhuan's face was framed by a chubby peacock-shaped object. To keep his head steady, he even leaned against it. Washing his face with milk had indeed sobered him up a bit, and now that he couldn't dodge, he could only slightly raise his hand to accept the reward. After being forced to drink half a pot of wine, he finally responded:

"It was my fault. This matter is entirely up to Your Highness to decide. In any case, no one can change your mind unless Your Highness agrees. If Your Highness agrees, I would rather die than comply..."

Zhao Ling, holding a wine jug, looked down at Xie Jinhuan, exuding an aura of queenly authority.

"You still intend to die rather than submit?"

"No, I was just saying it."

"Humph……"

After glancing at him briefly, Zhao Ling sat down beside him, crossed his legs, picked up the wine pot, and took a sip.
"This princess is no ordinary girl; I would not be easily seduced by male beauty. However, what Father said makes sense. In order to protect the Great Qian Dynasty, the emperor's right and left hands must be capable and close confidants. For the sake of the greater good, this princess can only compromise a bit. But don't take this as an excuse to become arrogant. If you dare to act as recklessly as you did last time when we were drinking, I won't just force you to drink more..."

Xie Jinhuan saw that his female boss was sitting close to him, so he naturally put his hand on his waist to prevent the landlady from losing her balance when the carriage swayed. However, he still disagreed with what she said and was just about to think of a response when the ghost appeared!

Ye Hongshang, who always loved watching the excitement, suddenly became possessed by a ghost and raised Xie Jinhuan's right hand.

Zhao Ling found that as soon as he sat down, this guy took the opportunity to put his arm around her waist. She was about to say something, but suddenly she felt dizzy and her mind was being bewitched.

Then Xie Jinhuan raised his hand, and a crystal ball illusion appeared in his palm.

The scene in the illusion was her, Mo Mo, and Xie Jinhuan drinking in the guest courtyard of Fengshan. Mo Mo, disheveled, sat in her lap feeding her milk wine, while she, slightly tipsy, joined in the fun. Her drunken words could be heard:
"Let me try it too..."

"Go away, he's not your lover..."

"Just because he's not my lover doesn't mean I can't feed him? He's so small, and you're already using this trick..."

"Who are you calling young?"

"Xie Jinhuan, am I older than her?"

"Uh, I can't tell either..."

"Can't you tell the difference? Then touch it with your hand, I'm definitely bigger than her..."

"Ling'er!"

Upon discovering that she was holding Xie Jinhuan's hand and measuring the size of the fat peacock, the food-protecting Momo immediately bristled and chased after her to hit her. She circled around Xie Jinhuan to dodge, and even managed to pinch Xie Jinhuan's chest a few times when she got a chance, which made Momo furious and helpless...

An eerie silence fell over the car.

Xie Jinhuan covered her mouth with her hand, her shoulders twitching, but having received professional training, she would never laugh when she shouldn't...

Zhao Ling's eyes widened in surprise, her once elegant round face now contorted with embarrassment, and she nearly tore through her palace shoes with her toes.

"Uh... how come you know illusion magic? When did you learn it? This fabricated illusion looks just like the real thing..."

Xie Jinhuan doesn't know illusion magic at all; it's actually his ghost wife who's hallucinating the landlady, helping her recall who acted recklessly that day. This situation is slightly awkward.

"I know a little bit of everything, and I've only just started learning. Um... this isn't exactly making things up..."

Zhao Ling had completely blacked out that day, and vaguely remembered the gist of it, but certainly not in such detail. Now, seeing herself acting so drunk from a third-person perspective, she was so ashamed she wanted to slap herself to death. She forced herself to say:
“I am the eldest princess of the Great Qian Dynasty. How could I do such a disrespectful thing? You must have exaggerated it. You forgot all that. If outsiders saw this, they would surely believe it to be true.”

Xie Jinhuan nodded and said:

"I understand. I guess I misremembered. I did act recklessly that day."

With Xie Jinhuan holding such a damning handle over her, Zhao Ling couldn't maintain her landlady's imposing manner anymore. She was too embarrassed to dodge his arm around her waist. After taking a few sips of wine to calm her nerves, she changed the subject and said seriously:
"Regarding your reward, Father and Headmaster Lu have discussed it. The position of the person in charge of martial arts will definitely belong to you in the future, but you are still a bit lacking in experience, so Duan Yuechou of Fengshan Society will take over first. Once you reach the fifth realm and have a team, the position will be transferred to you."

"Furthermore, Wei Wuyi colluded with demonic cultivators to betray the sect. Snow Eagle Ridge will be shut down, and all previously granted lands and sect properties will be confiscated and turned over to the national treasury. The Crimson Scale Guards have already arrested those involved, while unrelated disciples have been dismissed. Wei Yin has confessed to the information he knew, stating that he had never committed any major crimes before. Although he is a half-demon, Ye Sheng advocates education for all, not judging people by their birth, but only by their actions. "The punishment for this is ten years of guarding the tombs of martyrs. The divine gift of the Supervisory Guard on his person is also a legacy asset of Snow Eagle Ridge, and will be confiscated and turned over to the national treasury according to law. This opportunity will be bestowed upon a meritorious person according to the rules. Currently, no one can compete with you, and it will definitely be awarded to you in the end..."

Xie Jinhuan was well-versed in the laws of the Great Qian Dynasty and actually knew the outcome, so he didn't discuss it further, only asking:

How is Wei Lu?

Wei Lu was the eldest grandson of Xueyingling and frequently traveled around the capital in previous years. Zhao Ling naturally recognized him and replied:
"Wei Lu was unaware of Wei Wuyi's affairs and suffered an undeserved calamity. He was so angry that he wanted to take a knife and kill his father. He used to be quite talented and upright, and was favored by the elders in the capital. After the incident, he did not run away but took the initiative to go to the Imperial Observatory to plead guilty and to plead for his master's wife and senior sister who were implicated."

"Master Lu and the Imperial Academy both felt sorry for Wei Lu's fate. In addition, Wei Lu had a good relationship with you, so they decided to let him move to Jingzhao Prefecture with his family and start his own household. This can be considered as ending his past friendship with Wei Wuyi."

Xie Jinhuan nodded slightly: "The court treats all rewards and punishments fairly, and I naturally follow the court's arrangements. Your Highness doesn't need to discuss these matters with me; just follow the rules."

After Zhao Ling said a few words, the man subtly pulled her close and made her lean against him. Noticing that Xie Jinhuan was still glancing at her wine flask, he took the flask and drank from it.
"Getting cocky now? Want to drink but can't you pour yourself? Do you really think I'm some kind of princess?"

"Sigh, I'm serving our patrons, and I'm worried His Highness might get bored drinking alone. By the way, Duoduo is still in Northern Zhou, should I go and bring her back?"

"No need. That brat, as soon as she found out you were back, she ran back in the heavy snow. She set off a few days ago, with Yang Dabiao and the others following her. She'll be back on her own in a few days."

"That's good……"

"What's so good about it? You think I, the princess, don't know how to serve people and aren't as considerate as Duoduo?"

"How could that be? I was just worried that Your Highness would have no one to take care of your daily life."

"Tch..."

……

The two chatted idly for a short while before arriving outside the Princess's residence.

Zhao Ling was a little embarrassed by the replay of what had just happened, and felt even more awkward leaning against the man. Worried that her best friend would find out, she got up, straightened her palace dress, and bent down to leave the carriage.

Besides the princess's carriage, there was also the Lin family's carriage in the procession, but Lin Zisu was not among them. She had gone to the street to buy things as soon as she left the palace after seeing that her mother was not at home. Linghu Qingmo was worried that it would be unsafe for her to be alone, so he accompanied her.

Xie Jinhuan got out of the carriage and watched his patrons enter the mansion. He intended to look for the two of them, but before he had taken a few steps, he saw Momo, dressed in a white dress, and Zisu returning from the street with several purses in their hands. They were whispering to each other as they walked.
"Luckily, Sister Linghu was here, otherwise the proprietress definitely wouldn't have sold me this Phoenix Fairy Robe. She wouldn't have taken it out last time I went..."

Why won't I sell it to you?

"My aunt always dresses up beautifully, and she buys all her clothes there. She's afraid I'll go astray, so she spoke to the shop owner about it. Actually, I'm only two years younger than Sister Linghu. Some of the girls my age are already married... Hey? Xie Lang!"

Lin Zisu was looking at the underwear she had just bought when she noticed Xie Jinhuan appear in front of her. She quickly put it into her purse and hid it behind her waist, her delicate cheeks slightly flushed.

Linghu Qingmo quickly hid the items to prevent that lecherous man from seeing them and letting her wear and play with them.

"Why do you walk so quietly? You scared me to death..."

Xie Jinhuan found it somewhat amusing; since she was buying it anyway to wear in front of him, she didn't point it out directly.

"Super quality stuff, it's hard to even make a sound when you walk, what about coal balls?"

"It came back first, and it's unclear whether it's at the Princess's residence or the Lin family's."

Linghu Qingmo, fearing Xie Jinhuan would examine the items in her hands, placed her hands behind her waist and walked around him.

"I'll head back first. You escort Zisu back to her residence; she's prepared some pills for you. Go and take a look."

Hearing this, Lin Zisu perked up and pulled Xie Jinhuan by the sleeve, heading towards the carriage.
"Yes, the Zhengde Evil-Dispelling Pill is ready. Try it and see if it works. This time, I guarantee there will be no side effects..."

Xie Jinhuan was skeptical, but given his current condition, he might black out at any time without taking the medicine and would be unable to advance his cultivation level. So he didn't say much and went to the Lin residence with Zisu, discussing the matter of establishing a sect along the way.

Xie Jinhuan was a rogue cultivator and had little interest in becoming a sect leader, but if he wanted to take charge of martial arts, he couldn't be without a team under his command. He couldn't refuse this job, so he could actually use the intelligence-gathering pawns of the Blood Rain Pavilion.

As for the source of funding, it will definitely be imported medicinal herbs from Queyue Manor, and the Purple Perilla Immortal will research some formulas with wide sales and high profits, such as "Minor Power-Boosting Pills" and "Master Experience Pills"...

However, he might not have the energy to handle these matters, so he could only let Wanyi, who was good at managing the family business, run the business as the head wife.

Xie Jinhuan had originally planned to discuss it with Zisu and her daughter after returning home, but after driving the carriage away for a short while, Xie Jinhuan frowned slightly and looked back towards the direction of the Princess's residence...

(End of this chapter)