Chapter 465: Chapter 467: Stone Gambling
The coachman was about to scold when Feng Bailing saw the person and waved her hand, signaling the coachman to step aside.
The person advanced to where Feng Bailing was standing.
Under the dim street lamp, the man’s complexion seemed rather peculiar.
Feng Zhao’an.
It had been quite some time since Feng Bailing had last seen Feng Zhao’an, to the extent that she had almost forgotten about him.
Ever since the last confrontation between Feng Bailing and Dugu Wu, Dugu Wu had started to give Feng Zhao’an the cold shoulder.
Although Feng Zhao’an was still at the Ministry of Revenue, he had tried several times to make contact with Dugu Wu, but Dugu Wu ignored him completely.
Feng Zhao’an was a shrewd man and quickly guessed that Feng Bailing must have been behind this deterioration.
At the start of the Competition Among Ten Countries, Feng Zhao’an felt a secret joy, thinking he could use the opportunity to return to the ranks of Dugu Wu’s men, as Dugu Wu’s team was always short of people. But to his surprise, Dugu Wu still rejected him.
Only then did Feng Zhao’an realize how important Feng Bailing was in Dugu Wu’s heart.
Afterward, Feng Zhao’an sunk into dejection for several days until the people from the Crown Prince Mansion found him. Having been rejected by Dugu Wu, Feng Zhao’an, eager for a chance to distinguish himself in the Competition Among Ten Countries, chose to join the Crown Prince Mansion’s forces.
Even so, he still harbored a sliver of hope.
As long as he could make a significant impression in the Competition Among Ten Countries, Dugu Wu would definitely regret it, and he would certainly take him back.
Today he found out that Feng Bailing had arrived at the Princess’ Mansion and, as if possessed, he waited outside the Princess’ Mansion.
"Elder sister, why do you obstruct me from joining Prince Wu’s ranks? After all, I am your half-brother from the same father."
Feng Zhao’an’s gaze flickered; in front of Feng Bailing, he had always been respectful.
This was the first time he had dared to question Feng Bolin so presumptuously.
"I only have one brother, and that is Luochen."
Feng Bailing spoke with icy detachment, unable to feel any affection for Feng Zhao’an, and without turning back her head, she got into the horse carriage.
Every time she saw him, Feng Bailing would recall the despicable faces of the Feng Mansion’s family from that previous life.
A leopard cannot change its spots. Feng Zhanlian insulted her at Yuxiu Academy, causing Dugu Xiaojin to be locked up and confined - a matter she had not yet settled.
"You will suffer a terrible defeat."
Just as Feng Bailing turned to leave, Feng Zhao’an suddenly spoke, his words laced with both resentment and a sense of smugness, his eyes mockingly fixed on Feng Bailing.
Feng Bailing paused in her step.
"The Crown Prince Mansion will assist us with the Gathering Seal and will also provide us with various medicinals and equipment, with the sole purpose of crushing Prince Wu and his men underfoot."
As Feng Zhao’an spoke, his hand reached into his chest.
In his pocket, he still had a bottle of wine that the Crown Prince Mansion had distributed to them today, which could fortify the body and replenish blood and qi.
Furthermore, the Crown Prince Mansion had promised to supply them with equipment forged from Heavenly Stone.
Feng Bailing was somewhat taken aback; the Crown Prince Mansion really had invested a great deal this time, and she couldn’t help but glance back at Feng Zhao’an.
Could this guy have succeeded in the Gathering Seal, as well?
Wen Energy surged faintly on Feng Zhao’an’s forehead, indicating that even if he hadn’t succeeded in Gathering Seal, he was not far from achieving it.
After all, among the people of the Feng Mansion, Feng Zhao’an had the best talent and was previously the third-highest ranker in the Imperial Examination.
Gathering Seal... Feng Bailing thought of the painting she saw that day in the studio.
If Lady Dugu had medicinals, did it mean that there were others who also possessed such medicinals?
She even suspected that the Crown Prince Mansion had those medicinals.
"Then I shall look forward to it."
Feng Bailing pulled down the carriage curtain, blocking the sight of Feng Zhao’an.
The horse carriage clattered forward, and Feng Zhao’an disappeared into the night.
Early the next morning, as dawn was just breaking,
Feng Bailing was rudely awakened by a commotion outside.
It was Hong Xuan from the Feng Bailing Gobi making a fuss.
"Lu Yin, you must lend me some silver. I already have the Yin Yang Armor but it’s not enough. I want to get a dagger made from Heavenly Stone."
"Getting your hands on Heavenly Stone is not that easy."
Lu Yin grumbled.
He had only just returned a short while ago, and yet early in the morning, his junior sister dragged him out of bed. He was still a bit groggy from waking up.
"Don’t think I don’t know that there will be Heavenly Stone at the Underworld Market auction. Besides, I heard you can even choose stones at a discount. Lend me a hundred thousand taels, I’ll buy a piece, and who knows, I might get a big chunk."
Hearing about the Heavenly Stone, Feng Bailing became fully alert.
She glanced at the bracelet on her hand; the flying needles within this serpent-shaped bracelet were made from Heavenly Stone, capable of cutting gold and jade. The only pity was that there was a limited quantity, and the needles had limited uses.
However, she hadn’t expected that Heavenly Stone would be on sale at this Underworld Market auction.
"Don’t even talk about a hundred thousand taels, I don’t even have fifty thousand taels."
No sooner had Lu Yin finished speaking than he let out a scream.
"If you don’t lend me the money, I’ll make sure you can’t sleep or eat well."
Hong Xuan grasped Lu Yin’s hair, posing like a quarreling shrew.
Feng Bailing walked out with a smile.
"If she doesn’t lend you any, I will."
Hong Xuan, seeing Feng Bailing, was somewhat embarrassed. She’d had some issues with Feng Bailing in the past, and although their relationship had eased somewhat due to Feng Luochen, the thought of borrowing directly from Feng Bailing was still somewhat hard for Hong Xuan to accept.
"Maybe I should just borrow from Dugu instead."
Hong Xuan muttered to herself.
"Dugu Wu deals in usury, you know."
Feng Bailing teased.
Hong Xuan’s face changed.
"What nonsense are you saying so early in the morning?"
Dugu Wu walked out of his study, and seeing him, Feng Bailing thought of the VIP card worth five million taels.
"Dugu Wu, I want to sell a piece of Heavenly Stone. Lend me ten thousand taels. I’ll pay back the principal, and for the interest, you can ask my senior brother. He inherited Poison Dragon Villa and must have plenty of money on hand."
Hong Xuan nudged her lips towards Lu Yin, thinking of him as a miser unwilling to part with even a feather, determined to make him cough up some money.
Lu Yin howled in despair.
"Granny, do you think Poison Dragon Villa is worth a lot? Ever since our master passed away, he left us with a huge debt. All of my savings over these years have been spent filling those debts."
Lu Yin also realized he had jumped into a pit of fire only after taking over Poison Dragon Villa.
Hong Haoran was purely into research; all these years, he had spent a huge amount of money researching various poisons and poisonous herbs. These poisons couldn’t be sold casually either, leading to a significant deficit in Poison Dragon Villa’s accounts.
Moreover, the brothers and sisters from Poison Dragon Villa were all spendthrifts, putting a hefty dent in the villa’s finances with the monthly salary provided to them each year.
Originally, Lu Yin could also get a decent dividend from Dugu Wu, but with the closure of Chuyue Tower and Emperor Yongye stifling Dugu Wu’s businesses in Great Chu all around, they couldn’t raise silver from their overseas assets either, at least not anytime soon.
Lu Yin dreamt of striking it rich so Poison Dragon Villa wouldn’t go bankrupt.
"It is indeed possible to buy Heavenly Stone on the Underworld Market."
Dugu Wu confirmed the news, but immediately after, his tone shifted.
"A hundred thousand taels on a gamble for Heavenly Stone will just be raw ore, and there’s no guarantee you’ll extract Heavenly Iron from it, unless, of course, your luck is against the heavens."