Little thing, trying this trick on her. Yi Qing had never been afraid of anyone.
When the Ghost Lord woke up again, it was already dusk. Xiao Jinghan was taking a stroll with Yi Qing in the martial arts training ground of the general's mansion. They were even talking about naming their child when a servant came to report that the Ghost Lord had woken up.
The Ghost Lord was extremely weak. As soon as he tried to circulate his inner energy, he felt as if his whole body was being bitten by insects and ants, and instantly broke out in a cold sweat.
"Madam." The servants in the room bowed.
Yi Qing waved her hand, signaling them to leave. "Ghost Lord, how do you feel?"
The Ghost Lord looked at Yi Qing in surprise.
"Don't be surprised. With that distinctive smell of yours, it's impossible not to recognize you." Yi Qing was proud. Everyone would get sick, and as long as they did, they would fall into her hands. Moreover, he had been poisoned by such a strange toxin. "You don't need to be so angry. You should be glad you met me. Otherwise, you'd be lying dead in the street by now."
The Ghost Lord ignored her.
"Was it Ping Xinian who told you to kill Qing'er?" Xiao Jinghan asked directly.
The Ghost Lord still didn't answer.
"How do you know about the purple glazed jade? What's your relationship with Jade Butterfly Mountain?" Yi Qing was quite curious about this.
The Ghost Lord still remained silent.
"Hey, did I make you mute?" Yi Qing inserted a silver needle. Even the Ghost Lord, who had been trained since childhood, let out a scream.
"Kill me or torture me as you please." The Ghost Lord stared at Yi Qing. This woman was so ruthless.
"Of course I can kill you, but do you just want the person who poisoned you to go scot - free?" Yi Qing twirled the silver needle around her finger.
Xiao Jinghan immediately confiscated it. It was too dangerous.
The Ghost Lord thought for a long time. "Jade Butterfly Mountain is on good terms with Prince Kelo. There are some things that Prince Kelo is not convenient to handle himself, and we of Ghost Floating Mountain do them. As for what those things are, I won't answer."
So they were really in cahoots, and they had been plotting for a long time.
"Was it your Ghost Floating Mountain that came after me in Li City a few years ago? Who paid you?" Xiao Jinghan cared a great deal about this.
"You're wrong. To be exact, it was a chase, not an assassination. The mission was to seriously injure you." The Ghost Lord couldn't help but smile when he thought of that mission.
Yi Qing thought the Ghost Lord's smile was strange. "What are you smiling at?"
The Ghost Lord didn't explain.
Yi Qing took out another silver needle, and the Ghost Lord flinched involuntarily. Where did this woman get so many silver needles?
"Speak." Yi Qing observed the Ghost Lord's reaction.
"We completed the mission that time, but the employer didn't get what they wanted." The Ghost Lord said briefly.
"The fact that the employer not getting what they wanted makes you happy means the employer must have offended you. Let's assume the employer was Ping Xinian. She wanted you to seriously injure Xiao Jinghan so she could play the part of the kind - hearted beauty. But she couldn't find Xiao Jinghan." Yi Qing analyzed.
She thought that Ping Xinian was definitely capable of such a thing, and she had stolen the chance from her.
The two of them suddenly thought of another thing.
Xiao Jinghan didn't meet Ping Xinian back then, but he lost the Iron - Blood Loyalty Token. It was very likely that Ping Xinian, who arrived later, picked it up. And since the token was heart - shaped, she probably just thought it was a trinket that Xiao Jinghan carried with him.
Later, by some strange coincidence, she learned about the Iron - Blood Loyalty Token and used it to cause damage to the Iron - Blood Army. This would likely lead Xiao Jinghan to come to Li City in person, which could explain why someone immediately took action as soon as they arrived in Li City.
On one hand, they had sent people to keep an eye on them for a long time. On the other hand, they had prepared manpower in Li City.
This woman was so calculating. If it weren't for the long - drawn - out plan going awry, she might really have succeeded.
"We need a bottle of the West - Bound Pill for Immortals now." Yi Qing said, grinding her teeth.
The Ghost Lord looked at the two of them. He never thought they could figure out the whole story so easily. He had really underestimated them before. It was normal for him to fall into their hands.
"I won't provide you with any evidence. We of Ghost Floating Mountain value our reputation above all else." The Ghost Lord stated his position.
Yi Qing looked at the Ghost Lord. "Do you want to live?"
The Ghost Lord looked at Yi Qing's expression. He knew she must have some trick up her sleeve. "Yes."
"If you want to live, stay here obediently and don't use any martial arts. But my medical fee is very high. And since the medicine for you is special and I'll have to make a trip myself, all those will be counted in the cost."
"How much?" The Ghost Lord thought Yi Qing was just going to make some demands, but it turned out to be about money.
"Six hundred thousand taels of silver." Yi Qing gestured.
"Thousands of taels can buy a life." The Ghost Lord thought Yi Qing was really asking for too much.
"Well, there's no way. It's up to you, Ghost Lord, to decide how much your life is worth." Yi Qing didn't care.
"Deal." The Ghost Lord immediately agreed.
"You're still the one who benefits. Just by threatening you, we'll get three hundred thousand taels of silver. I think I'll have to run myself ragged to cure you." Yi Qing comforted the Ghost Lord. "Settle the medical fee first."
"When will I get better?" The Ghost Lord gritted his teeth.
"I don't know. We have to go to the Southern Border. But don't worry, I treat all patients equally. During this period, we won't be responsible for your food and accommodation. The cost for that is separate. You can also choose not to come with us. Maybe I'll just forget about you someday."
The Ghost Lord took a deep breath. "How much?"
"A thousand taels a month." Yi Qing said this price was very reasonable.
After fleecing the Ghost Lord, Yi Qing and Xiao Jinghan returned to their room together.
Xiao Jinghan was silent for a long time. He carefully thought back to that incident. At that time, he never even gave Ping Xinian a second look, and he never thought a woman was capable of such things.
Now that he thought about it, there were some signs back then, but he just didn't think much of them.
"Calculated like this, Ping Xinian is actually our matchmaker." Yi Qing said playfully.
Xiao Jinghan put his arm around Yi Qing. "We had nothing to do with her before."
Yi Qing laughed. "Do you think about what Ping Xinian's expression will be if she knows the Ghost Lord is still alive?"
"The Ghost Lord is not easy to deal with, yet Ping Xinian managed to poison him with such a powerful toxin. It proves that this woman is extremely calculating."
Yi Qing felt a headache just thinking about it. Ping Xinian was really like an indestructible cockroach. Her ability to recover with silver was too strong.
"General." Lu Tianzuo bowed at the door.
"What is it?" Xiao Jinghan didn't let go of Yi Qing.
Lu Tianzuo entered the room as if he didn't see them. "The Qing family is willing to provide military rations worth one million taels, but they have a condition."
"What condition?" Xiao Jinghan knew there would surely be conditions when asking these people for help.
"If the Great Jin Dynasty opens border markets, they want the gemstone business to be given to their family." Lu Tianzuo said directly.
There were many jade and gemstones in the Northern Di region, which were very popular among the dignitaries of the Great Jin Dynasty. And the gemstone business was extremely profitable. Even without the border markets, many people were already trading in Li City.
"Okay." Xiao Jinghan readily agreed. As long as it didn't involve horses, salt, and iron, other businesses could be negotiated.
"And..." Lu Tianzuo stole a glance at Yi Qing.