Chapter 204: Sampling

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Song Daiyu invites Duke Lai to the Five Blessings Auction House.

Usually, it’d be the sort of invitation Duke Lai would scoff at. Song Daiyu is a young girl who has not even seen twenty springs while he is the ruler of Stone River City. It is not her place to decide where they should meet. Furthermore, the Five Blessings Auction House of Stone River City is still under construction. Hardly a place worthy of him.

However, for all that Duke Lai is one of the most influential men in the region and a cultivator who has reached the Heaven Realm, the Five Blessings Group is the Five Blessings Group. It does not matter that Song Daiyu is a young girl whose cultivation is far beneath his. What matters is that she is the representative of one of the largest merchant guilds on the continent.

It is in Duke Lai’s best interests to make a good impression.

He graciously accepts Miss Song’s invitation and arrives with a procession of servants and gifts. This proves to be a wise choice. Though the building is nominally under construction, the room in which the young Song Daiyu hosts the meeting has so much gold and precious gemstones it might as well be covered in them. It is a stark reminder of the people Duke Lai is dealing with.

“I must thank you, Duke Lai,” Song Daiyu tells him over dinner. “You grace this newly-built Five Blessings Auction House with your presence. With your reputation in the region, I am sure the other lords will soon be knocking at our door.”

She says it all with a graceful smile. One that must have been practiced for countless hours in front of a mirror until her tutors deemed it perfect. Though young, the girl holds herself with poise befitting someone several decades older. Duke Lai has no doubt the Song family must be exceedingly proud of her. In fact, Duke Lai will go as far as to say that if he had a daughter, he would wish for her to be like the girl before him.

Alas, Duke Lai has no interest in such things. The raising of children distracts one from higher pursuits. One who intends to achieve eternity does not need to leave behind a legacy through others.

He has reached the Heaven Realm.

He will soar higher still.

“There is no need for you to thank me, Miss Song,” he says. “The Five Blessings Group is known far and wide. Every lord in the region would have knocked on your door the moment you announced your first auction regardless of whether this Duke was here or not.”

“You flatter us, Duke Lai,” Miss Song says. “However, our long history has taught us that our reputation is often insufficient. A certain level of prejudice against outsiders is only natural, expected, and even wise in many cases. We have found that allying ourselves with an influential local goes a long way towards establishing real trust.”

“I am the influential local you have chosen for the Storm Dragon Empire, then?” Duke Lai asks before drinking from a golden goblet full of wine far richer than any in his stores. “I cannot complain, I suppose. Yet, I must ask, why did you not go to General Dan instead?”

“General Dan’s name is known and respected. I will not deny that,” Miss Song says. “However, he is a warrior, not a businessman. That is not the sort of man the Five Blessings Group can partner with. Duke Lai, who has guided his lands to prosperity, is a far more fitting partner for us.”

She does not say that, as a cultivator in the Emperor Realm, General Dan would be a far more difficult partner to handle. Such a thing would be in poor taste, but Duke Lai is not blind to the obvious. Rather than getting angry, Duke Lai merely takes the compliment in the spirit in which it was given.

“Besides,” Miss Song adds in a conspiratorial whisper, “If you do not mind me saying so, I believe General Dan was far too reckless in allowing the Eternal Flame Clan so much control over your trade.”

Duke Lai smiles. “Ah, on that, we certainly agree on. General Dan is a great man but not the best at business.”

In truth, Duke Lai understands why General Dan acted as he did. With the civil war raging across the country, the Eternal Flame Clan’s support was a source of stability too great to ignore. Back then, it was the logical choice.

Right now, it is little more than a shackle around their necks. Duke Lai might be working with Elder Fa, but there is a reason why he is also courting the Five Blessings Group. He does not intend to repeat General Dan’s mistakes. He will not be dependent on anyone. The Five Blessings Group and the Eternal Flame Clan are both just a means to an end.

He knows full well there are far greater powers out there.

“Still, I am glad you brought up the Eternal Flame Clan,” he says, holding his cup for one of the servants to refill it. “Do you recall the disciples of the Eternal Flame Clan I introduced you to?”

Miss Song’s eyebrows quirk in thought. “Ah, those two,” she says at last. A smile tugs at her lips. “The poor dears had no idea what they were doing. What of them?”

“Have you perhaps heard of them since then?” Duke Lai asks her.

Nothing important happens in Stone River City that he does not know about. Duke Lai often likes to think that. However, Qing Jin and the girl he brought with him have managed to elude his spies completely. If not for the giant eagle Qing Jin brought with him still circling the city until a day ago, Duke Lai would have thought they had left that very same day.

Young Yuan Tao was right to warn him about Qing Jin. Though he is still nothing but a young whelp, anyone who can hide his presence so easily cannot be underestimated.

“If Duke Lai does not know, how can we be expected to?” Miss Song asks him, shrugging her shoulders. “We are merchants, not spies.”

“So you say, but it is widely known the information network of the Five Blessings Group is without peer,” Duke Lai replies. “Merchants like to talk quite often, it seems.”

“Perhaps we do,” Miss Song admits. “However, our presence in this country is quite new. I am unsure if the rumors we have heard are fit to reach Duke Lai’s ears. I do not wish to bore him with the idle chatter of disgruntled merchants tired of waiting for all their permits to be approved. After all, it is already hard enough to enter the Storm Dragon Empire by land while avoiding Murong Bang’s territory. Having to wait for all the paperwork to be done on top of that is so very tedious.”

Ah, so that is how it is. Duke Lai smiles at the gall of the girl in front of him.

“I will see about speeding the approval of your permits. I would hardly like to make my good business partners wait,” Duke Lai says.

“How wonderful of Duke Lai,” Miss Song says, clasping her hands together. “Such kindness has helped clear my mind and helped me recall something I overheard the other day. It seems some of my men saw a Black-Winged Imperial Eagle flying east toward the Black Woods.”

Duke Lai frowns.

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He thought Qing Jin would return to the southern front or perhaps try to visit Rumbling Thunder City to speak to General Dan. However, the Black Woods lie to the east. If Qing Jin keeps heading in that direction, he will reach the border and General He’s armies.

Is Qing Jing trying to mislead any possible pursuers, or is there something he seeks there? Perhaps he intends to steal the supplies now that he knows he won’t sell them?

No matter, he cannot afford to ignore this information.

“I see. You have my thanks. I will make sure to use the information you have given me wisely, Miss Song,” Duke Lai says. “In fact, I am grateful enough to ignore your rudeness.”

Miss Song smiles without a shred of guilt. “Can you truly blame a merchant for trying to get a better deal?”

“That’s not what I am referring to when I speak of your rudeness,” Duke Lai says, enjoying how the smile falls off her face. “Did you think I would not notice as soon as I entered this room?”

He waves the goblet around.

“Did you think I would be distracted by your gold and your wine and your food? No, Miss Song. I noticed. An artifact in this room has been storing the Qi I emit passively.”

“Oh, my!” Miss Song looks away. “How embarrassing.”

Duke Lai raises an eyebrow. “That is hardly how I would describe the situation.”

“You misunderstand, Duke Lai,” Miss Song hurries to explain. “This was meant to be a surprise for you. As I am sure you have noticed, there are many barriers protecting this building, and their number will only increase once we finish construction. I wanted to surprise you by keying your Qi into the barrier. That way, you could come and go as you please without having to go through our security protocols. A border permit for a border permit, if you will.”

“I see.” Duke Lai rubs his chin. Her explanation sounds reasonable enough. “Perhaps my reaction was too hasty then.”

Miss Song shakes her head. “No, Duke Lai. It is I who erred. I can see easily how my actions might be misconstrued.”

“Indeed, I am truly touched by your gesture. All the same…”

Duke Lai waves a hand.

The apparatus gathering his Qi explodes.

“This duke does not enjoy having his Qi sampled.”