The saintess is pregnant, what does that have to do with me, a spoiled brat?

Qian Dafu knelt on the ground, his fat body trembling like a leaf.

He looked at the guards groaning all over the ground, then at Xu Nuo's ambiguous smile, and only one thought remained in his mind.

The rumors are all nonsense!

Who says the heir of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion is just a good-for-nothing who only knows how to eat, drink, gamble, and whore? His skills and ruthlessness are more terrifying than those of a street thug!

"Young Master, I was wrong! I really didn't know it was your business!" Qian Dafu slapped himself while shrinking back. "You're so magnanimous, please just let me go!"

Xu Nuo, fanning herself with a folding fan, slowly walked up to him.

"Let you go?"

Xu Nuo looked down at him, her eyes as cold as ice.

"Yesterday you sent Scarface Liu to poison my shop and extort money from me, and today you've come with sticks to smash up the place. Manager Qian, you've got quite the combo going.

"I..." Qian Dafu's face turned pale, and he couldn't utter a single word.

"I'm a reasonable person." Xu Nuo snapped his folding fan shut and tapped Qian Dafu's chubby face. "You ruined my business and scared off my customers. You have to give me some explanation."

"Pay! I'll pay!" Qian Dafu cried, as if grasping at a straw, scrambling to pull out silver notes from his pocket. "I have three thousand taels here! Take it all! Consider it an apology to the young master!"

He didn't accept the promise.

He turned his head and glanced at the three-story, luxuriously decorated Drunken Immortal Pavilion across the street.

Three thousand taels? Are you trying to fob me off like a beggar?

Xu Nuo smiled a smile like that of a sixth brother.

"I think that building across the street is pretty good; it's in a good location and has a lot of space."

Qian Dafu suddenly looked up, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets: "Young Master! That's Zuixianlou! My life's work..."

"It's mine now."

Xu Nuo interrupted him, her tone leaving no room for negotiation.

"Either hand over the land deeds and house deeds of Zuixianlou. Or I'll break your limbs today and have the Shuntian Prefecture investigate the dirty deeds you've committed over the years."

Xu Nuo leaned down, her voice very low.

"Manager Qian, guess how many times you'd be killed in jail if all your despicable deeds were exposed?"

Qian Dafu froze, his face turning ashen.

He knew he'd kicked a hornet's nest today. No, he'd kicked a guillotine!

"I...I'll give..."

Qian Dafu collapsed to the ground, trembling as he pulled a stack of contracts stamped with red seals from his inner pocket.

Fatty Li reacted quickly, snatched it away, examined it closely, and his face turned bright red with excitement.

"Brother Xu! It really is the land deed for Zuixianlou!"

Xu Nuo nodded in satisfaction and waved.

"Take your men and get out."

Qian Dafu felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He scrambled to his feet, called to the few guards who were still able to move, and dragged the wounded men on the ground as they fled the crossroads in a disheveled state.

The surrounding crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted in cheers.

"Well played!"

"That Qian Dafu has been bullying and harassing the business with his Zuixianlou restaurant all this time; he's finally getting his comeuppance!"

Li Wanning squeezed to the front, holding half a bowl of beer in his hand, his eyes sparkling as he stared at Xu Nuo.

"Hey! Xu Nuo! What kind of kung fu were those moves you just made? They were amazing!"

She leaned closer, looking Xu Nuo up and down as if she had discovered some rare treasure.

"You're not a good-for-nothing at all; you've fooled everyone in the capital!"

Xu Nuo glanced at her.

"Girl, go home after you finish your drink, don't interfere with my business."

"You!" Li Wanning was speechless with anger.

The Ninth Princess, who is always fawned over wherever she goes, actually dared to kick her out!

"I'm not leaving!" Li Wanning tucked his folding fan into his waistband and pointed at the Drunken Immortal Restaurant across the street. "Now that you've got your hands on the Drunken Immortal Restaurant, what's next? Are you going to open a restaurant?"

Xu Nuo ignored her and turned to look at Fatty Li.

"Fatty, take a few quick-witted guys and clear the area across the street. Smash all those messy old signs for Zuixianlou."

Fatty Li rubbed his hands excitedly: "Brother Xu, are we really going to open a big restaurant?"

"The shop is too small; it can't seat so many people." Xu Nuo glanced at the long queue stretching to the street corner. "Renovate the first floor of Zuixianlou to sell milk tea and beer. Keep the second and third floors; I have other plans."

"Alright!" Fatty Li, along with several servants, rushed towards Zuixianlou in a flurry of activity.

……

The backyard of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.

The night was dark.

Xu Nuo sat at the stone table, toying with a dragon-shaped jade pendant in his hand.

Inside the jade pendant, a faint blue dragon shadow could be seen moving about.

When he made his move at the crossroads today, he could clearly feel that the power of the Primordial Dragon Soul within him had grown even stronger.

"The power of the true dragon..."

Xu Nuo murmured to himself.

To fully activate the nine dragon patterns within this jade pendant, martial arts training alone is not enough; substantial financial and resource support is also required.

Acquiring Zuixianlou is only the first step.

The door opened softly.

Shen Qingyi, dressed in white, walked out of the house.

She wasn't wearing a veil, and her exquisitely beautiful face held a complex expression.

"I heard about what happened at the crossroads today."

Shen Qingyi walked to the opposite side of the stone table and sat down, looking directly at Xu Nuo.

"Qian Dafu has powerful connections within the inner city. You directly robbed his Drunken Immortal Restaurant; aren't you afraid of causing trouble?"

Xu Nuo put away the jade pendant and poured himself a cup of tea.

"Trouble? My Duke Zhenguo Mansion is the biggest trouble in the capital."

He looked up at Shen Qingyi.

"Besides, it's not my style to turn down easy money that's practically handed to me."

Shen Qingyi looked at the man in front of her.

Under the light, Xu Nuo's profile was clearly defined, and his eyes were clear and sharp. Where was there any trace of the absurd demeanor of the rumored playboy?

"Just how much strength are you hiding?" Shen Qingyi couldn't help but ask.

"My wife wants to know?" Xu Nuo leaned forward, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "Give me a kiss, and I'll tell you."

"boring."

Shen Qingyi turned her face away, but her ears turned slightly red.

She stood up to go back inside, but stopped after taking two steps.

"The Drunken Immortal Pavilion will reopen tomorrow, and there might be people causing trouble in the inner city. Be careful."

After saying that, she pushed open the door and went inside, leaving Xu Nuo with a cold and aloof back view.

Xu Nuo touched his chin.

This iceberg undercover agent has actually started to care about him?

interesting.

……

The next day at noon.

The crossroads were bustling with noise.

The original Zuixianlou restaurant now has a brand new golden signboard – "The Best Drink Under Heaven".

The lobby on the first floor has been completely opened up and filled with neat tables and chairs.

Three long lines formed in front of the counter for milk tea and iced beer. Fatty Li and his more than twenty newly hired employees were extremely busy.

"Two bowls of ice-cold beer, with lots of ice!"

"I want five bowls of bubble tea, to go!"

The lobby was filled with the aroma of wine and milk, as well as the lively chatter of the guests.

Xu Nuo sat by the window in a private room on the second floor, watching the bustling business below, slowly fanning himself with a folding fan.

At this rate, this one store alone could rake in tens of thousands of taels of silver a day.

Sudden.

The crowd at the entrance to the lobby on the first floor was roughly pushed aside.

Several burly men dressed in flying fish robes and wearing embroidered spring knives at their waists strode in.

The once noisy lobby instantly fell silent.

The guests' expressions changed upon seeing this outfit, and they instinctively stepped back.

The young man at the head of the group had a sinister face and sharp eyes, and held a long, black-sheathed sword in his hand.

He walked up to the counter and gave Fatty Li a cold look.

"Who is the shopkeeper?"

Fatty Li swallowed hard and stepped forward with a forced smile: "Sir, I'm just in charge of managing..."

Snapped!

The young man raised his hand and slapped Fatty Li across the face, sending him staggering back two steps, leaving a clear five-finger mark on his face.

"A lowly lackey like you dares to speak to me?"

The young man sneered and looked directly at Xu Nuo in the private room on the second floor.

"Xu Nuo, get down here."

Second floor window.

The smile on Xu Nuo's face slowly disappeared.

He closed the folding fan, stood up, and walked down the stairs step by step.

The entire hall was silent, and all eyes were on Xu Nuo.

Xu Nuo walked to the counter and glanced at Fatty Li's swollen cheeks.

"Are you alright?"

"Brother Xu, I'm fine..." Fatty Li covered his face and said in a low voice, "This man is Zhao Gang, the son of the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Qian Dafu used to pay protection money to him."

Xu Nuo nodded, turned around, and looked at Zhao Gang in front of her.

"The person who hit me?" Xu Nuo's voice was calm.

Zhao Gang arrogantly raised his chin and placed his hand on the hilt of his knife.