Walnut used me to boost her sales performance.

"When the sun comes out, I bask in the sun; when the moon comes out, I bask in the moonlight."

Hu Tao sang a song and stretched.

I need to go see Grandma Ping to perform a ritual tomorrow, so I need to rest well today.

......

The moon slowly moved to the center and then slowly sank down.

The Northern Bank remained as quiet as ever.

The gatekeeper stood dutifully in front of the gate, watching for any movement around him.

Despite being the largest bank in Liyue Harbor, the Northern Bank does not belong to Liyue.

It belongs to the ninth seat of the executive officer of the Winter Solstice Kingdom, the "Foolish Clan," the "Rich Man."

The fact that this executive was able to establish such a large bank in Liyue as a foreigner speaks volumes about his abilities.

However, recently, Ye Lan, an intelligence agent belonging to Ningguang of Tianquan Star, has learned some of his secrets.

It turns out that this famous Winterborn Executor is not a Winterborn, but a native of Liyue.

As for why he became the executive officer of the violent organization "Fools" in the Winter Solstice Kingdom, that remains unknown.

Chapter 83 Clash

At this moment, the "rich man" dressed in a black cloak was sitting in the Northern Bank, playing with a jade bracelet in his hand.

He wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, with two metal chains adorned with gemstones connecting the edges of the glasses. His slightly long hair was tied into a side ponytail, casually to one side. He looked refined and elegant, and you would never guess that he was the powerful CEO [rich man] who dominated the business world.

He opened his usually squinted eyes slightly and looked at the bracelet in his hand.

These were the spoils of war he had seized after clashing with Ningguang's subordinate.

"What good will knowing my identity do? That information itself isn't very valuable..."

He casually tossed the bracelet onto the table and walked to the window.

The cool moonlight shone on his face as he looked down at Liyue Harbor, his narrowed eyes concealing unreadable emotions.

"Contracts have more than one use..."

He murmured softly, but his words were quickly carried away by the wind.

.....

Inside a hidden cave in Tianheng Mountain.

Several shirtless men were carrying goods one by one.

This cave is quite large, dry inside, and naturally secluded by bushes and vines, making it an ideal choice for storing goods.

Some high-priced goods transported from the winter will be stored here first, and then hidden among those goods with low tariffs.

Then, with the help of their people planted in the Thousand Rock Army, they bypassed the meticulous screening and infiltrated Liyue Harbor.

This way, the originally high tariffs will only require a small portion, greatly reducing costs.

This hidden trade route is in the hands of the rich man, the executive officer of the Fools.

Right now, these Fools are moving goods that were taken from Liyue Harbor and are destined for Winter.

This shipment is quite valuable, and one of the items is a gift that a wealthy man meticulously prepared to present to the Queen of Winter.

Such a place naturally has many guards.

A well-equipped group of Fool soldiers were scattered throughout the cave, patrolling vigilantly.

A young man driving the carriage sat listlessly, yawning and looking rather drowsy.

Under the cover of yawning, he discreetly observed the defenses inside.

It's clear that the rich man attaches great importance to this place, as he has arranged a whole team of fools.

Moreover, these Fools soldiers are well-equipped, disciplined, and their attributes complement each other, making them quite difficult for ordinary people to defeat.

Not only is this group of fools a threat, but the people carrying the goods are also a threat.

In the Kingdom of Winter, everyone is a soldier. These people can take up arms when necessary, and their combat strength is considerable.

Torches burned inside the cave, and the smoke from the burning firewood drifted into the air.

One of the fools carrying the live animals yawned, his arm went sore, and the box he was carrying fell to the ground with a loud thud.

This commotion immediately attracted everyone's attention.

"what happened?"

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't hold on tight for a moment..." The soldier was apologizing when he heard a few small whooshing sounds. All the torches in the cave went out, and it was instantly pitch black.

"What's going on?!"

"Danger!"

The soldiers immediately realized something was wrong and gripped their weapons tightly.

However, the drowsy feeling grew stronger and stronger, to the point that it was impossible to keep my eyes open.

Not only that, they also felt soreness in their arms and weakness throughout their bodies.

"The smoke is poisonous! Hold your breath!"

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, the Fools immediately decided to gather together, with the Rock Guerrilla, who controlled the rock element, setting up a shield.

The person in the carriage had vanished without a trace. He had shed his disguise and revealed his true identity, none other than Ye Lan, the intelligence officer under Ning Guang!

She is not only skilled in intelligence work, but also quite capable in combat.

Invisible threads wrapped around her fingers as she swiftly moved through a dark cave, the threads constantly entangled everyone she passed.

After confirming that everyone was entangled, she made a hand seal, and the thin threads tightened forcefully, causing screams to erupt one after another in the dark cave.

However, this alone would certainly not be enough to subdue a group of fool soldiers.

Rock sent out a shield to protect his comrades.

The musketeer guerrillas, clad in thick armor, fired fire elemental bullets that struck the pile of dry grass in the cave, quickly igniting a fire that restored light to the cave.

Once their vision returned and they could see that the enemy was only one person, the Fools soldiers attacked all at once!

Although they had inhaled a lot of poison gas and were feeling drowsy and weak, these were not insurmountable problems due to their long-term training; however, their combat effectiveness would be greatly reduced.

The heavy guard with the water cannon leaped and landed in front of Ye Lan, water bubbles popping from the cannon as he aimed at her.

The heavy guards with ice guns followed closely behind, their guns spewing out cold, icy mist.

If a person is hit by both attacks at the same time, they will be frozen instantly and temporarily lose the ability to resist.

Once they lose the power to resist, they will be at the mercy of others.

Ye Lan reacted quickly, dodging the water cannon attack with a side roll, and then kicked the water cannon.

The water gun heavy guard was already somewhat weak in his limbs, and when he was kicked like that, the water gun in his hand immediately turned around and was aimed at his own teammate.

The ice and water elements collided in the air, and the two were immediately affected by the overflowing cold, causing their limbs to stiffen.

The Wind Fist Forward charged forward, gathering wind element to pull the enemy towards him with the gusts of wind.

However, Yelan bent her knees and sprang into the air. The thin threads of water element bound the Gravity Warrior, and with a forceful swing, she slammed him into the Wind Fist Forward who was gathering Wind Fist energy.

The suction force of the gale, mixed with water and ice elements, spread out instantly, affecting those around it and slowing their movements.

All of this seems slow, but it actually happens in the blink of an eye.

With graceful movements, Ye Lan stepped on the head of the musketeer soldier and leaped into the air. Two thin steel wires shot out from her wrists, hooked onto the rocks in the cave, and then retracted, bringing her to the top of the cave.

She landed steadily on a rock, her clothes not a speck of dust on them.

For her, who was more skilled with a bow and arrow, occupying a high position meant that the battle was about to end.

A die rolled from her fingertips, and instantly a heavy rain began to fall in the cave.

The rain, completely controlled by the Eye of God, fell quickly and heavily.

The muskets that had been lit were soaked by the rain and went silent, and those who were disturbed by the relentless firing of the ice guns were frozen solid.

The flames on the hay died down, and the cave was plunged into darkness once more, with only the great hammer, imbued with lightning elemental energy, flashing with purple electric light.

A smile curved her lips as she drew back the bowstring.

This battle began unexpectedly and ended just as quickly.

When his men received the signal and came to clean up the battlefield, all the Fools were already lying on the ground unconscious.

Ye Lan opened the wooden box and took out a beautifully crafted cloak made of exceptional materials.

"Consider this cloak compensation for my [Mysterious Wristband]! Although the style is a bit lacking, the material is quite good..."

Chapter 84 The Immortals of Jade Capital Terrace

The next day, the sun rose in the east.

A thin layer of morning mist shrouded Yujingtai.

Grandma Ping suddenly appeared, walked to the pond, and took out fish food to feed the fish in the pond.

A smile appeared on her aged face as she watched the fish scrambling for food in the water.

No one knows when she appears or leaves each day, nor does anyone know where she lives or where her home is.

Whether it's the residents of Qianyan Army or Yujingtai, they can always see this old man.

She often watered the glass lilies on Yujingtai, carefully tending to the now nearly extinct flowers. She fed the fish in the water every day, smiling as she watched the big red koi grow rounder and rounder.

She has a smart and sensible little apprentice who is like a little adult, an older apprentice with extraordinary culinary skills, and a special relationship with Yanfei, a lawyer in Liyue. Apart from that, she is just an ordinary old woman.

But only a very few people know that he is an immortal.

The immortal's name is unknown, and his age is a mystery; he simply lives in Liyue Harbor disguised as an old man.

In my leisure time, I watch the lights of thousands of homes; when I feel like it, I stroll through the streets and alleys; occasionally, I go to the mountains to chat with one or two old friends; and when I am in a good mood, I give pointers to two or three younger generations.

The days passed both slowly and quickly, so much so that she herself didn't know how long she had been in Liyue Harbor.

Hu Tao brought Jiang Bai to Yujingtai, searching for Granny Ping.

Jiang Bai, standing behind her, acted as if he'd never seen the world before, looking around like a country bumpkin.

As the residence of the wealthy in Liyue Harbor, Yujing Terrace exudes a simple yet exquisite architectural style.

Whether it's the carved stone steps, the jade handrails on the stairs, or the intricate carvings in the pavilion, everything exudes the scent of money.

It truly lives up to its name as an affluent area.

Jiang Bai just looked around, broadening his horizons.

There was absolutely no touching or fiddling around, not even an attempt to remove a piece of flooring to sell for money.

Hu Tao quickly found Grandma Ping standing by the lake, shouted, and led Jiang Bai over.

"Grandma Ping!"

Grandma Ping looked up when she heard the sound, and a kind smile appeared on her face.

"Oh, it's walnuts. It seems we've found everything."

"Hehe, with me personally in charge, there's no way I won't find them all!"

"Grandma, have you eaten? I brought you some food!" Hu Tao took out a food box.

"Thank you so much..." Grandma Ping replied with a smile.

She looked at Jiang Bai behind Hu Tao, "And who is this?"

Hu Tao stood on tiptoe, patted Jiang Bai on the shoulder, and said in a way that she thought highly of the young man: "This is our funeral officiant at the Rebirth Hall, named Jiang Bai. I plan to have him do this 'Returning to Roots' project!"

"Hello, Grandma!" Jiang Bai bowed and greeted her, revealing a set of bright white teeth.

"He's a good young man!"

Grandma Ping poured the remaining fish food into the pond, then hunched over and walked to the table in the lakeside pavilion.

After chatting for a while and finishing breakfast, Grandma Ping took out a large teapot and, to the puzzled looks of the two, lifted the lid.