Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 440 The Sect Leader is Getting Married (5,000)
It was dusk.

The sun was setting.

A cold wind rustled the pine needles, causing them to sway. Snowflakes drifted down from the sky like a white ribbon. The Haixi Grassland was indeed quite cold; even in April, the snow hadn't completely melted. No one knew how long this would continue.

But at this very moment, the vast Anchegu tribe was engulfed in an unusual heat.

Zhang Yaohui clearly heard rapid breathing, and looking around, he saw pairs of scarlet eyes illuminated by the setting sun.

It resembled some kind of wild beast.

He could see the greed and madness in these people's eyes.

Zhang Yaohui, though only Zhang Ci's illegitimate son, was the most intelligent of Zhang Ci's many children. This trip was dangerous, and originally, Zhang Yaohui didn't need to go personally. However, Zhang Yaohui had his own perspective. In his eyes, this was both a danger and an opportunity. If he handled this matter well, he would at least gain recognition and prestige from Song Yan.

He couldn't be a businessman forever. Although the Zhang family was wealthy, he was an illegitimate son and wouldn't inherit much. With this merit, if he were to later pledge allegiance to the Marquis, he might be able to secure a decent position. Of course, Zhang Yaohui's ambitions extended far beyond simply becoming a minor official…

Even if something unexpected happens and they are buried in the snow, it would still be a favor to the Zhang family. Even if the Zhang family didn't say anything, Song Yan would naturally take good care of them.

Either way, you won't lose out.

Their gazes swept over the barbarians ahead, and greed and madness seemed to transform into something akin to a malevolent aura, rushing towards them. The invisible pressure made everyone in the caravan tense up.

Zhang Yaohui secretly made a gesture with one hand behind his back, and some of the caravan guards reached into their sleeves and grabbed tinderboxes. If things went wrong, they would quickly set the grain on fire. At the same time, there were also wagons carrying weapons.

Zhang Yaohui pursed his lips, stepped forward, spread his arms, and forced a slightly exaggerated smile through his chapped lips beneath his animal-skin hat: "Extremely fierce, do you want this batch of goods?"

Anche Gujiliehan Sarilang's body trembled violently as he finally snapped out of his excitement.

This caravan actually had the ability to obtain standard weapons from the Ningguo army; they truly had connections everywhere. Although Sarilang was irritable and greedy, he was also intelligent. He knew that these desperate criminals all had unique methods, and if Anchegu tried to rob them, they would likely end up with nothing—no food, no weapons.

These are iron weapons.

The forging technique for Anche bones was extremely backward.

Months ago, in the conflict with Wanyan Guangzhi, if Anchegu had had so many iron weapons, perhaps the casualties wouldn't have been so heavy.

The entire Anchegu tribe once numbered 120,000. After that battle, less than 60,000 remain. One can imagine how brutal that conflict was. The corpses are still piled up in the ravine behind Anchegu, which has been almost completely filled in.

Taking a deep breath, Sarilang waved his hand, and the restless tribesmen behind him gradually quieted down. It was clear that Sarilang had a lot of prestige in Anchegu. "Of course we want them." Sarilang pursed his lips, controlling the greed in his eyes: "I'm very curious, where did Mr. Zhang get these weapons? If I'm not mistaken, these should be standard weapons of the Ning Kingdom army, right?"

Look at that blade, how sturdy it is.

Look at that spearhead, how sharp it is!
Compared to that, the weapons that the Anchegu tribe has always used are simply garbage.

He would pay any price to obtain such high-quality weapons. Of course, if Sarilang knew that these weapons were just defective products returned by Pingyang City, trash that even the local guards wouldn't want, one wonders what his reaction would be.

Sarilang was quite clever; he knew that what the two were saying was extremely important and not suitable for too many people to know. Before Zhang Yaohui could answer, he waved his hand, and the Anchegu tribesmen who had gathered nearby, though reluctant, gradually withdrew. They then invited Zhang Yaohui into the tribe and into the royal tent.

However, the Anchegu tribe was currently impoverished and had nothing of value to offer to their guests, so Sarilang's expression was somewhat awkward.

Zhang Yaohui grinned, not caring about such a matter. On the contrary, he enjoyed dealing with such clever people, so he didn't hide anything: "Now that Pingyang City is guarded by the Marquis of Champion, with the Marquis watching, smuggling weapons or even any ironware is suicidal... As for me, I was able to transport these weapons out with the Marquis's approval."

There were certain things I should say, and I naturally consulted Song Yan about how to say them.

Champion!
Sarilang also knew about this person.

This man trampled the royal court, utterly humiliating the entire Jurchen people. In this respect, he was the Jurchen's greatest enemy.

However, it was also Song Yan who caused the Wuji tribe to suffer 20,000 to 30,000 casualties, and also killed Wanyan Guangzhi's younger brother, Wanyan Guanghan, forcing the allied forces to collapse and Wanyan Guangzhi to retreat. In the winter, due to Song Yan's sabotage, tens of thousands of people froze and starved to death, resulting in losses even more severe than those of Anchegu. In this respect, Song Yan can be considered Anchegu's benefactor!

Sarilang frowned: "I've also heard of the name of the Marquis of Champion."

"Several months ago, several Jurchen tribes were slaughtered and the royal court was burned to the ground. This was done by the Marquis. I've heard that the Marquis is very hostile to the Jurchens. Why would he send Mr. Zhang to deliver these weapons?"

Zhang Yaohui laughed heartily: "The Jurchens are indeed well-informed. You're right, my lord doesn't have a very good impression of the Jurchens. As for the reasons, you know them yourself."

Sarilang's expression grew increasingly awkward. This hatred was mostly due to the Jurchen army's southward invasion and massacre of Pingyang years ago.

Nine out of ten houses in Pingyang City were empty, and nearly half of the population had been massacred by Jurchen cavalry.

It's perfectly normal for the newly arrived marquis to feel disgusted with the woman.

In total, An Chegu also got a share of this.

At that time, everyone was only concerned with burning, killing, and looting. No one could have imagined that the newly appointed governor of Ningguo would be such a ruthless person. He slaughtered seven or eight tribes, and killed more than 100,000 Jurchens. In addition, there were those who froze and starved to death in the winter. The losses were probably even greater than those of Pingyang City.

“However, although my lord hates the Jurchens, the one he dislikes the most is Wanyan Guangzhi.” Zhang Yaohui smiled and continued, “On the one hand, it is because Wanyan Guangzhi is the Great Khan of the Great Jurchens, and it was Wanyan Guangzhi who organized the last attack on Pingyang.”

"On the other hand, there are some more personal love and hate stories."

Sarilang's eyes lit up; the words "love, hate, passion, and grudges" clearly piqued his interest: "Tell me more about it."

Zhang Yaohui chuckled: "Wanyan Guangzhi's future princess, Nahetuya, was captured by my lord. You know about this, right, Khan Jilie?"

Sarilang nodded hurriedly, his face beaming with joy: "Of course I know that."

Ever since he confronted Wanyan Guangzhi, he couldn't help but feel happy whenever he heard bad news about Wanyan Guangzhi.

“Miss Nahetuya is, after all, a princess of the Blackwater tribe. His Majesty the Emperor of Ningguo is magnanimous. Although the Jurchens are cruel, he would not place the blame on a woman. Therefore, he pardoned Miss Nahetuya’s sins and bestowed her upon the Marquis as a concubine.”

Sarilang couldn't help but cough, as if he had choked on his saliva.

Her expression became even stranger. Good heavens, a princess consort is actually going to become Song Yan's concubine?

What a humiliation this is!

Won't Wanyan Guangzhi be green with envy?
Thinking about it this way, I felt inexplicably excited.

“My lord is broad-minded, kind and benevolent. He feels that no matter what, Wanyan Guangzhi is Miss Nahetuya’s former fiancé. Since they are getting married, it is only natural that Wanyan Guangzhi should be informed.”

"The Marquis is young and talented, handsome, and wealthy. He is more than a match for Miss Nakhtoya. As her soon-to-be ex-husband, if Wanyan Guangzhi truly loves Miss Nakhtoya, he should be happy to see that she has found a better match."

“My lord is kind-hearted. He sent an invitation to Wanyan Guangzhi to put his mind at ease.”

Squeak.

Just as he was about to spit out a mouthful of saliva, Sarilang forcibly swallowed it back down.

Good guy.

Don't bully people like this.

Even though he had a blood feud with Wanyan Guangzhi, Sarilang felt sorry for Wanyan Guangzhi after hearing these words.

God the fuck should be pleased.

My queen has been stolen! What's there to be happy about?

He's not the kind of pervert who likes to be cuckolded.

These people from the Central Plains are truly hypocritical. They've done such despicable things, yet they act like they're doing it for your own good.

However, it was Wanyan Guangzhi who was unlucky, which made him feel quite satisfied. "But who would have thought that Wanyan Guangzhi was so rude? The Marquis kindly invited him, and not only did he not appreciate it, he even flew into a rage." Zhang Yaohui's tone was a little annoyed: "He even insulted my Marquis in front of everyone. I heard that the insults he used were really nasty."

"That's not all. Wanyan Guangzhi even sent assassins to try and kill my lord. My lord was lucky and survived, but his brother Song Zhe fell victim to Wanyan Guangzhi's wickedness. One arrow..." Zhang Yaohui gestured to his crotch, "and both of his testicles were shattered into pieces."

hiss.

Sarilang shuddered, his face paled slightly, and his body involuntarily twisted, as if he felt a sharp pain in a certain place.

"Another arrow was fired, and then the flowers bloomed."

Sarilang sat up straight, his buttocks pressed tightly against the chair, as if afraid that someone would also hit him from behind.

"In the end, he died from the excruciating pain. He was the Marquis's own brother."

"The Marquis was furious and wept bitterly for three days and three nights."

Yes, I heard that after the Marquis found out about this, he couldn't stop talking for a whole month.

"It's just that the Marquis is busy with his wedding recently and can't get away for the time being."

Upon hearing this, Sarilang immediately understood that this was an attempt to use someone else to do his dirty work. He knew he would have to carefully consider the situation. But before he could speak, Zhang Yaohui continued, "Even the Khan of the Jurchens shouldn't think that the Marquis is using you… You should know the recent situation of the Jurchen tribes; how many tribes have been wiped out?"

Zhang Yaohui had clearly done his research and was very familiar with the situation of the Jurchens.

As expected, Sarilang's expression suddenly changed, and his eyes became serious.

"I'm not afraid to tell you, my lord has already received the news that Wanyan Guangzhi wants to unify the entire Jurchen tribe. He is not satisfied with being just a nominal Khan of the Great Jurchen. He wants to become the emperor of the entire Haixi grassland. All those who are unwilling to give up their tribal titles and unwilling to submit to the Wuji tribe will be the targets of Wanyan Guangzhi's elimination."

"When do you think it will be Anchegu's turn?"

“There’s another matter. Wanyan Guangzhi has colluded with a powerful family in Ningguo. They’re supplying him with tens of millions of catties of grain and countless weapons by sea. Guess whose neck these weapons will cut first?” Zhang Yaohui’s voice was sinister.

He simply wanted to sow discord between Anchegu and Wanyan Guangzhi, without even trying to hide it.

Moreover, there's no fear that Sarilang won't take the bait.

As expected, after hearing these words, Sarilang's face turned extremely gloomy, and his hands clenched tightly involuntarily.

Zhang Yaohui smiled, stood up, walked behind Sarilang, and patted him on the shoulder: "Jili Khan, what are you still hesitating about? Confucius once said, 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'"

"For Lord Yu and you, Wanyan Guangzhi is our common enemy. Sooner or later you will have to face Wanyan Guangzhi. Now that my lord is providing weapons, isn't that a good thing?"

"Of course, I can also tell you some better news. My lord said that the weapons and food that have been transported this time... will all be given away for free as long as you can bring enough heads from the Wuji tribe."

"A head of a Wuji tribesman is worth a hundred catties of grain, or a weapon."

"Think about it, if you had enough iron weapons, wouldn't hunting be much easier? If you had enough food, wouldn't so many innocent people not die in the winter?"

Zhang Yaohui's voice, like the whispers of a devil, echoed in Sarilang's ears.

Echoing.

It was like a giant whirlpool, dragging Sarilang down with it.

Scenes from the past flashed through his mind: his brothers who died innocently because their weapons were inferior to Wanyan Guangzhi's during the battle; his clansmen who starved to death due to lack of food and clothing in the dead of winter...

If there were enough weapons... if there were enough food...

Sarilang's face twitched and spasmed continuously. After a few seconds, he could no longer control himself and suddenly raised his hand, slamming it heavily on the table: "Damn it, I'll take this deal."

Zhang Yaohui's expression flashed by in an instant; he knew that the most crucial part of this mission was already accomplished.

He patted Sarilang on the shoulder again: "My lord also said that the Jurchens are currently divided, which is not good. They do need a king... However, if there must be a Jurchen king, he hopes that this king..."

"It's you."

boom!
Click.

Sarilang's body seemed to have been struck by lightning, and he froze on the spot.

He then began to breathe rapidly, and a near-mad greed flashed in his eyes.

The Jurchen King!!!
"Please inform the Marquis that if he is willing to help me become the King of the Jurchens, Sarilang is willing to swear that he will follow the Marquis's lead for the rest of his life!"

Zhang Yaohui's smile deepened.

Be greedy.

Let the killing begin.

A good Jurchen is one who is hopelessly mired in battle.

……

The 15th.

Early April.

Chu State.

Among the four states in the Central Plains, the State of Chu undoubtedly had the strongest military strength.

This can be seen from the customs of the Chu people. Even in the capital of Chu, one can often see people with long swords hanging from their waists passing by.

Even in the Jade Garden, there are no shortage of chivalrous heroes from the martial arts world.

Yes, that's right. There was also a Qunyuyuan in the State of Chu. As a high-end club, it did quite well.

Opposite to Qunyu Garden is a place called Su Nu Ge.

Unlike the Jade Garden, the Plain Maiden Pavilion was much more elegant. Although it offered music, fine wine, and fragrant tea, and even dances by young women, it never engaged in prostitution. Therefore, compared to the Jade Garden, the Plain Maiden Pavilion's business was much more subdued. Of course, those who occasionally visited the Plain Maiden Pavilion were all wealthy and noble. The money earned from entertaining a single guest was roughly enough to cover the Plain Maiden Pavilion's expenses for a month.

Occasionally, wealthy and powerful families of the Chu Kingdom, and even members of the royal family, would invite renowned musicians from the Su Nu Pavilion to perform in their residences, and the rewards were always substantial.

Night falls.

The gates of Su Nu Pavilion were already closed.

The orange candlelight flickered, illuminating faces that were beautiful, elegant, refined, or gentle.

After a busy day, four or five women were resting in the Su Nu Pavilion. Unlike when the guests were present during the day, they were not so elegant. Some were sitting, some were lying down, and some were resting their heads on another girl's lap. They were quite casual.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, followed by a bang as the door was pushed open. A girl of about fourteen or fifteen years old ran in, holding a letter and chattering away.

"Something's wrong, senior sisters!"

"The sect leader is getting married!"

(End of this chapter)