Clients from Chu Kingdom
Duan Baiyue said: “Let’s go to the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.”
Sikong Rui said: “Hey, do you really not want to go and meet the Princess of Goryeo first?”
“What you just said makes some sense, but is also a bit unfounded.” Duan Baiyue said, “According to Jin Shu’s temper, if she had been wronged after getting married, she would have returned to Goryeo in anger. Now that she has been living in the Baixiang Kingdom, her life is going well. Since her life is going well, why would she take the initiative to bring up the past events to her husband and bring trouble to herself?”
Sikong Rui clicked his tongue: “I couldn’t tell that you know this princess of Goryeo quite well.”
“It’s just so so.” Duan Baiyue’s attitude was kind, “Of course it’s not as good as Brother Sikong’s understanding of Miss Nie.”
Sikong Rui’s smile froze instantly.
“Let’s go.” Duan Baiyue turned around and left the calligraphy and painting shop, “We will go to the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.”
Just as the passerby said just now, if Jianmen1 does not do business, the other escort agencies will get a big advantage due to their martial arts skills, and the Golden Elephant Escort Agency is no exception. There were so many people coming and going through their agency that their threshold was almost flattened.
“Greetings to two guests.” A man with the appearance of a steward happened to send another group of people out. When he saw Duan Baiyue and Sikong Rui looking past, he quickly smiled and greeted him in a slightly stiff Chinese, “Are the young masters looking for business?”
Sikong Rui smiled and said, “Exactly.”
“Please come in quickly.” The steward smiled brightly and let the two people in. “Looking at your clothes, you two must be from Dachu, right?”
“My ancestral home is in Dachu, but I have been living in Wangxi Reef these years.” Sikong Rui said, “I wonder if you, sir, have heard of it?”
“Of course, Wangxi Reef is also a good place.” The steward ordered his servants to serve tea and said with a smile, “Distinguished guests, please sit down for a while, and I will call the master over.”
Sikong Rui nodded and watched him go out. Soon after, footsteps were heard outside the door, and a burly middle-aged man pushed the door open and came in, bending down to salute respectfully.
“This is my master.” The steward said from behind.
“Greetings.” Duan Baiyue and Sikong Rui also stood up, “I don’t know what to call you?”
“My master’s name is Kun Da,” the steward said. “He doesn’t understand Chinese, but he likes to do business with people from Chu. He says that guests from a big place are generous and upright.”
“Thank you, thank you.” Sikong Rui said, “I just saw people coming and going from this agency. I am flattered that Master Kun Da bothered to come to receive us in person.”
Kun Da motioned for the two of them to sit down, and then said something to the steward.
The steward said: “My master is saying that we don’t know what kind of deal you two want to make.”
Sikong Rui said: “I want to hire ten killers.”
The steward looked embarrassed and translated to Kun Da in a low voice.
Kun Da frowned and shook his head again and again.
Sure enough, after a while, the steward said: “I’m really sorry, all the killer jobs have been stopped now, and we won’t do it anytime this year. Only bodyguards and martial arts instructors can be hired.”
Duan Baiyue said: “We can pay a big price.”
Kun Da still shook his head: “I won’t do it no matter how much the price is. Please don’t make it difficult for us.”
“How can it be difficult?” Sikong Rui said, “The killing trade of Baixiang Kingdom has long been famous. We also made a special trip to come here by boat for this purpose. Now the owner says that he would not accept the business, making our trip in vain. If you insist on saying it is difficult, it’s the owner who is making things difficult for us.”
“This…” The butler was at a loss for words, discussed with Kun Da in a low voice, and insisted, “We business people pay attention to reputation, and feel sorry for causing valuable guests to have come for nothing, but there is really nothing we can do about it.”
Sikong Rui said: “Whats the reason?”
The steward said: “Someone broke the rules of the business. In order not to get into trouble, we have to do this temporarily.”
Sikong Rui said: “Who?”
The steward said: “This is a dispute between the many escort agencies in Baixiang Kingdom. It is better for the guests not to press for further questioning. If you really want to find a killer, you may ask other agencies. But the two distinguished guests seem to be in urgent need, so I will still say this, its better to go to Dachu to look for a killer, you shouldn’t waste time in Baixiang Kingdom. In the short term, I’m afraid no one will dare to take the killer’s business anymore.”
“That’s it.” Sikong Rui glanced at Duan Baiyue, saw him nodding slightly, and said, “Then I won’t bother you today and take my leave.”
“Farewell.” The steward bowed and Kun Da also stood up and personally escorted the two of them out of the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.
“Looking at this situation, I guess that many of the martial arts agencies in the Baixiang Kingdom hate Jianmen to death.” Sikong Rui said, “This leopard is ambitious and bold, and dares to assassinate the emperor of Dachu, which has brought down the entire industry.”
Duan Baiyue said: “Let’s go back to the inn and ask that little girl what she knows.”
“Aren’t you afraid of her lying now?” Sikong Rui asked.
“She had just arrived here last night. Anyone would be nervous. Naturally, I shouldn’t ask too many questions. But now that she has rested all night, and Yao’er has been with her for a day, she should have let go of her grudges.” Duan Baiyue bought a bag on the street snack, “Do you know how many girls in Dali City like Yao’er?”
Sikong Rui said: “It’s a pity that I don’t have a niece.” Otherwise, I could have married her to him.
Duan Baiyue glanced at him: “Next time you have a chance, you can go and meet Master Liu Dajiong from the Great Chu Household Department.”
Sikong Rui was puzzled: “Why?”
Duan Baiyue said: “It looks like he comes from the same family as you.”
Sikong Rui looked confused.
Duan Baiyue had already returned to the inn with snacks.
Duan Yao was chatting with Huang Li. When he saw the two coming back, he stood up to say hello.
“I brought some snacks.” Duan Baiyue put the paper bag in his hand on the table, “I don’t know if Miss likes it.”
“Thank you, young master.” As expected, Huang Li looked much more relaxed.
“We went to Jianmen today.” Duan Baiyue said, “But the door was closed. It said it has been closed for more than ten days.”
“You masters want to do business with Jianmen?” Huang Li asked.
Duan Baiyue said: “Miss, don’t be nervous. Since I have brought you back to the inn, I will naturally not hand you over again. Otherwise, I’ll be asking for trouble.”
“Tell me, why does Jianmen have to close its doors?” Sikong Rui handed her a cup of tea.
“It has been about ten days.” Huang Li said, “Business was going well before, but suddenly one day the boss became furious. Everyone in the house was extremely nervous. There was a hushed rumour that the second young master was taking over. He got orders he shouldn’t have taken and provoked people he couldn’t afford to offend. In order to avoid trouble, they not only refused future deals behind closed doors, but also interrogated everyone in the house and ordered them not to talk nonsense outside. Originally, there was a lot of commotion. The fourth aunt was pregnant with Liujia and was due to give birth next month, so she was frightened and had a miscarriage. The old lady even suffered from heartache and lay in bed unable to get up. Some people saw ghosts. The eldest grandmother invited a mage to check and he said that there is an evil star in the house. They will encounter bad luck one after another, so it is best to have a happy event as soon as possible.”
“So Bao Dadu wants to marry you?” Sikong Rui asked.
Huang Li nodded: “Originally I was just a maid serving food, and the master didn’t like me. But in desperation, he couldn’t find another girl. He wanted to hold a wedding, and I was the only one in Jianmen who was unmarried.”
Sikong Rui shook his head, that explains.
“Who taught you martial arts?” Duan Baiyue asked.
“Jianmen is a martial art sect, and everyone in it knows how to practice it.” Huang Li said, “I was not qualified to learn it at first, but an old escort leader saw that I was smart, so he liked to teach me a few moves, and I learned some. He also taught me Chinese since he was from Chu kingdom.”
“Don’t you want to be get married?” Sikong Rui joked.
Huang Li immediately shook her head: “After I found out their plan, I wanted to run away, but I knew I couldn’t, so…”
“So you gave me a flower, and when you saw that I seemed to be a talkative person and that I was carrying a sword, you immediately packed your bags and came here by yourself?” Duan Yao asked.
Huang Li blushed and looked at him with watery eyes. At that time, she was so anxious that she couldn’t think of any other ideas.
Duan Yao immediately patted his chest: “Fortunately, my wife doesn’t know.”
Sikong Rui laughed. Was he was addicted to pretending to have a wife?
Duan Baiyue said: “What is the origin of this leader Bao Dadu?”
“Origin?” Huang Li didn’t answer.
Sikong Rui said: “When did he come to the Baixiang Kingdom?”
“Its not that he came, he has been here for all the time.” Huang Li said, “Although his ancestral home is Chu, Master Bao has been here a generation ago and has always kept the Jianmen open.”
“That’s it…” Sikong Rui touched his chin and looked at Duan Baiyue. If his ancestors came here, it sounded like there was nothing wrong with it.
Duan Baiyue said: “Since you were the maid who served food, you should have seen many customers who came to discuss business.”
Huang Li nodded: “Well, I’m resourceful, so I always served the dishes.”
Duan Baiyue continued to ask: “Were there many guests from Chu kingdom?”
“A lot.” Huang Li said, “Especially in recent years.”
Duan Baiyue took out the portrait from his arms. It was a copy, with only one pair of eyes: “Do you have any impressions of this?”
Huang Li took it in her hands, looked at it, and said, “Yes.”
Sikong Rui tsked, there really is.
“Tell me about him.” Duan Baiyue said.
“But that guest’s eyes were not so kind.” Huang Li said, “There was a Da Chu guest, who came to see the Second Young Master. I remember very clearly that he came not long ago.”
“Why do you remember it clearly?” Duan Baiyue asked.
Huang Li said: “Firstly, this guest was good-looking, tall, handsome, and quite extravagant. He was completely different from ordinary merchants. At that time, many little sisters secretly looked at me. I was able to serve, and everyone made fun of me and envied me, but he was a bit fierce and looked a little scary.”
Duan Baiyue smiled: “What else?”
“Also, there are two young masters in the family. Normally the eldest young master receives the distinguished guests from Dachu, but this time it was handed over to the second young master. This was the first time.” Huang Li said, “That’s why I can remember it.”
Duan Baiyue asked: “The relationship between the two young masters is not good, right?”
Huang Li nodded: “It’s not good. They often quarrelled. The master prefers the eldest young master. Everyone in Jianmen knows it. So everyone was gossiping at that time why they would hand over such an important guest to the second young master this time.”
Clients from Chu Kingdom
Duan Baiyue said: “Let’s go to the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.”
Sikong Rui said: “Hey, do you really not want to go and meet the Princess of Goryeo first?”
“What you just said makes some sense, but is also a bit unfounded.” Duan Baiyue said, “According to Jin Shu’s temper, if she had been wronged after getting married, she would have returned to Goryeo in anger. Now that she has been living in the Baixiang Kingdom, her life is going well. Since her life is going well, why would she take the initiative to bring up the past events to her husband and bring trouble to herself?”
Sikong Rui clicked his tongue: “I couldn’t tell that you know this princess of Goryeo quite well.”
“It’s just so so.” Duan Baiyue’s attitude was kind, “Of course it’s not as good as Brother Sikong’s understanding of Miss Nie.”
Sikong Rui’s smile froze instantly.
“Let’s go.” Duan Baiyue turned around and left the calligraphy and painting shop, “We will go to the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.”
Just as the passerby said just now, if Jianmen1 does not do business, the other escort agencies will get a big advantage due to their martial arts skills, and the Golden Elephant Escort Agency is no exception. There were so many people coming and going through their agency that their threshold was almost flattened.
“Greetings to two guests.” A man with the appearance of a steward happened to send another group of people out. When he saw Duan Baiyue and Sikong Rui looking past, he quickly smiled and greeted him in a slightly stiff Chinese, “Are the young masters looking for business?”
Sikong Rui smiled and said, “Exactly.”
“Please come in quickly.” The steward smiled brightly and let the two people in. “Looking at your clothes, you two must be from Dachu, right?”
“My ancestral home is in Dachu, but I have been living in Wangxi Reef these years.” Sikong Rui said, “I wonder if you, sir, have heard of it?”
“Of course, Wangxi Reef is also a good place.” The steward ordered his servants to serve tea and said with a smile, “Distinguished guests, please sit down for a while, and I will call the master over.”
Sikong Rui nodded and watched him go out. Soon after, footsteps were heard outside the door, and a burly middle-aged man pushed the door open and came in, bending down to salute respectfully.
“This is my master.” The steward said from behind.
“Greetings.” Duan Baiyue and Sikong Rui also stood up, “I don’t know what to call you?”
“My master’s name is Kun Da,” the steward said. “He doesn’t understand Chinese, but he likes to do business with people from Chu. He says that guests from a big place are generous and upright.”
“Thank you, thank you.” Sikong Rui said, “I just saw people coming and going from this agency. I am flattered that Master Kun Da bothered to come to receive us in person.”
Kun Da motioned for the two of them to sit down, and then said something to the steward.
The steward said: “My master is saying that we don’t know what kind of deal you two want to make.”
Sikong Rui said: “I want to hire ten killers.”
The steward looked embarrassed and translated to Kun Da in a low voice.
Kun Da frowned and shook his head again and again.
Sure enough, after a while, the steward said: “I’m really sorry, all the killer jobs have been stopped now, and we won’t do it anytime this year. Only bodyguards and martial arts instructors can be hired.”
Duan Baiyue said: “We can pay a big price.”
Kun Da still shook his head: “I won’t do it no matter how much the price is. Please don’t make it difficult for us.”
“How can it be difficult?” Sikong Rui said, “The killing trade of Baixiang Kingdom has long been famous. We also made a special trip to come here by boat for this purpose. Now the owner says that he would not accept the business, making our trip in vain. If you insist on saying it is difficult, it’s the owner who is making things difficult for us.”
“This…” The butler was at a loss for words, discussed with Kun Da in a low voice, and insisted, “We business people pay attention to reputation, and feel sorry for causing valuable guests to have come for nothing, but there is really nothing we can do about it.”
Sikong Rui said: “Whats the reason?”
The steward said: “Someone broke the rules of the business. In order not to get into trouble, we have to do this temporarily.”
Sikong Rui said: “Who?”
The steward said: “This is a dispute between the many escort agencies in Baixiang Kingdom. It is better for the guests not to press for further questioning. If you really want to find a killer, you may ask other agencies. But the two distinguished guests seem to be in urgent need, so I will still say this, its better to go to Dachu to look for a killer, you shouldn’t waste time in Baixiang Kingdom. In the short term, I’m afraid no one will dare to take the killer’s business anymore.”
“That’s it.” Sikong Rui glanced at Duan Baiyue, saw him nodding slightly, and said, “Then I won’t bother you today and take my leave.”
“Farewell.” The steward bowed and Kun Da also stood up and personally escorted the two of them out of the Golden Elephant Escort Agency.
“Looking at this situation, I guess that many of the martial arts agencies in the Baixiang Kingdom hate Jianmen to death.” Sikong Rui said, “This leopard is ambitious and bold, and dares to assassinate the emperor of Dachu, which has brought down the entire industry.”
Duan Baiyue said: “Let’s go back to the inn and ask that little girl what she knows.”
“Aren’t you afraid of her lying now?” Sikong Rui asked.
“She had just arrived here last night. Anyone would be nervous. Naturally, I shouldn’t ask too many questions. But now that she has rested all night, and Yao’er has been with her for a day, she should have let go of her grudges.” Duan Baiyue bought a bag on the street snack, “Do you know how many girls in Dali City like Yao’er?”
Sikong Rui said: “It’s a pity that I don’t have a niece.” Otherwise, I could have married her to him.
Duan Baiyue glanced at him: “Next time you have a chance, you can go and meet Master Liu Dajiong from the Great Chu Household Department.”
Sikong Rui was puzzled: “Why?”
Duan Baiyue said: “It looks like he comes from the same family as you.”
Sikong Rui looked confused.
Duan Baiyue had already returned to the inn with snacks.
Duan Yao was chatting with Huang Li. When he saw the two coming back, he stood up to say hello.
“I brought some snacks.” Duan Baiyue put the paper bag in his hand on the table, “I don’t know if Miss likes it.”
“Thank you, young master.” As expected, Huang Li looked much more relaxed.
“We went to Jianmen today.” Duan Baiyue said, “But the door was closed. It said it has been closed for more than ten days.”
“You masters want to do business with Jianmen?” Huang Li asked.
Duan Baiyue said: “Miss, don’t be nervous. Since I have brought you back to the inn, I will naturally not hand you over again. Otherwise, I’ll be asking for trouble.”
“Tell me, why does Jianmen have to close its doors?” Sikong Rui handed her a cup of tea.
“It has been about ten days.” Huang Li said, “Business was going well before, but suddenly one day the boss became furious. Everyone in the house was extremely nervous. There was a hushed rumour that the second young master was taking over. He got orders he shouldn’t have taken and provoked people he couldn’t afford to offend. In order to avoid trouble, they not only refused future deals behind closed doors, but also interrogated everyone in the house and ordered them not to talk nonsense outside. Originally, there was a lot of commotion. The fourth aunt was pregnant with Liujia and was due to give birth next month, so she was frightened and had a miscarriage. The old lady even suffered from heartache and lay in bed unable to get up. Some people saw ghosts. The eldest grandmother invited a mage to check and he said that there is an evil star in the house. They will encounter bad luck one after another, so it is best to have a happy event as soon as possible.”
“So Bao Dadu wants to marry you?” Sikong Rui asked.
Huang Li nodded: “Originally I was just a maid serving food, and the master didn’t like me. But in desperation, he couldn’t find another girl. He wanted to hold a wedding, and I was the only one in Jianmen who was unmarried.”
Sikong Rui shook his head, that explains.
“Who taught you martial arts?” Duan Baiyue asked.
“Jianmen is a martial art sect, and everyone in it knows how to practice it.” Huang Li said, “I was not qualified to learn it at first, but an old escort leader saw that I was smart, so he liked to teach me a few moves, and I learned some. He also taught me Chinese since he was from Chu kingdom.”
“Don’t you want to be get married?” Sikong Rui joked.
Huang Li immediately shook her head: “After I found out their plan, I wanted to run away, but I knew I couldn’t, so…”
“So you gave me a flower, and when you saw that I seemed to be a talkative person and that I was carrying a sword, you immediately packed your bags and came here by yourself?” Duan Yao asked.
Huang Li blushed and looked at him with watery eyes. At that time, she was so anxious that she couldn’t think of any other ideas.
Duan Yao immediately patted his chest: “Fortunately, my wife doesn’t know.”
Sikong Rui laughed. Was he was addicted to pretending to have a wife?
Duan Baiyue said: “What is the origin of this leader Bao Dadu?”
“Origin?” Huang Li didn’t answer.
Sikong Rui said: “When did he come to the Baixiang Kingdom?”
“Its not that he came, he has been here for all the time.” Huang Li said, “Although his ancestral home is Chu, Master Bao has been here a generation ago and has always kept the Jianmen open.”
“That’s it…” Sikong Rui touched his chin and looked at Duan Baiyue. If his ancestors came here, it sounded like there was nothing wrong with it.
Duan Baiyue said: “Since you were the maid who served food, you should have seen many customers who came to discuss business.”
Huang Li nodded: “Well, I’m resourceful, so I always served the dishes.”
Duan Baiyue continued to ask: “Were there many guests from Chu kingdom?”
“A lot.” Huang Li said, “Especially in recent years.”
Duan Baiyue took out the portrait from his arms. It was a copy, with only one pair of eyes: “Do you have any impressions of this?”
Huang Li took it in her hands, looked at it, and said, “Yes.”
Sikong Rui tsked, there really is.
“Tell me about him.” Duan Baiyue said.
“But that guest’s eyes were not so kind.” Huang Li said, “There was a Da Chu guest, who came to see the Second Young Master. I remember very clearly that he came not long ago.”
“Why do you remember it clearly?” Duan Baiyue asked.
Huang Li said: “Firstly, this guest was good-looking, tall, handsome, and quite extravagant. He was completely different from ordinary merchants. At that time, many little sisters secretly looked at me. I was able to serve, and everyone made fun of me and envied me, but he was a bit fierce and looked a little scary.”
Duan Baiyue smiled: “What else?”
“Also, there are two young masters in the family. Normally the eldest young master receives the distinguished guests from Dachu, but this time it was handed over to the second young master. This was the first time.” Huang Li said, “That’s why I can remember it.”
Duan Baiyue asked: “The relationship between the two young masters is not good, right?”
Huang Li nodded: “It’s not good. They often quarrelled. The master prefers the eldest young master. Everyone in Jianmen knows it. So everyone was gossiping at that time why they would hand over such an important guest to the second young master this time.”
