Chapter 570

Tuo Ba Yu stretched, looked at Bai Xiaosheng before him, and softly laughed.

You and I have both dealt with Xiao Yin; this person is not easy to get along with.

Let me guess, Tuo Ba Yu said, smiling as he rubbed his forehead, you must have had a falling out with Prince Rui.

No wonder, having tasted the flavor of power, it's not something ordinary people can do to step down from that position.

After Tuo Ba Yu said all that, Bai Xiaosheng finally chuckled and slowly said, You're wrong; I only want a maid from the Rui Wangfu.

Tuo Ba Yu froze for a moment, incredulously staring at Bai Xiaosheng before him, feeling this person was crazy.

He had gone through great trouble to find him, win him over to jointly deal with Xiao Yin, only to find it was merely for a maid in the mansion?

Could this person be seriously ill?

Tuo Ba Yu looked at Bai Xiaosheng before him; his androgynous features bore a hint of alluring beauty, giving an unreal feeling.

Like a monster crawling out of a barbaric wilderness, his actions and demeanor differ from ordinary people.

Tuo Ba Yu collected himself, then suddenly burst out laughing, as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world.

Interesting, too interesting. Everyone says one would rage and lose his cap for a beauty, yet you would overturn the world for a worthless maid—I don't know what to say; I think you're a lunatic.

Bai Xiaosheng looked at Tuo Ba Yu before him: If I'm the madman, then you are the fool of this world.

Liking a married woman is one thing, but after painstakingly guarding someone's wife and child to an island in the East Sea Area, you ended up getting beaten, tail between your legs, fleeing in embarrassment—who's the stupid one?

Clatter!

Tuo Ba Yu slammed the teacup in his hand hard onto the ground, his eyes instantly turning colder, he stared fixedly at Bai Xiaosheng before him: Shut your mouth; dare say another word and I'll twist your neck!

The usually frail and otherworldly Bei Di little prince, at this moment his killing intent surged.

Bai Xiaosheng after all still flinched, shifting his body back to evade the killing intent rushing at him, slowly turning the ring on his thumb, he smiled and said: Don't get angry; we're all the same, merely trapped by love.

Tuo Ba Yu snorted coldly: Hmph, who's like you? A jianghu swindler!

Bai Xiaosheng's eye twitched, he gave an embarrassed laugh: Why speak so harshly? In the jianghu, who doesn't deceive? Forget it, I won't say more.

Bai Xiaosheng shifted his tone, looking at the stern-faced Tuo Ba Yu before him.

I've heard the Bei Di great king's health is poor lately; he was poisoned before and barely saved, now he's at the end of his tether.

What's the point of talking about a dying man? Tuo Ba Yu's face was full of coldness, without a trace of father-son feeling.

No wonder, when he was little his father threw him into Southern Qi as a hostage; after many years there, every insult he suffered in Southern Qi he kept in his heart.

Bai Xiaosheng paused: Earlier those Bei Di nobles suspected your elder brother Tuo Ba Heng of poisoning your father the king; Tuo Ba Heng also had some skill, actually suppressing the rebelling Bei Di nobles in a bloody fashion.

Bei Di may be a bloodbath, but it's lively; that lively scene is no less than our Southern Qi.

Tuo Ba Heng sees himself about to secure the Bei Di throne; aren't you anxious, Your Highness?

Tuo Ba Yu's brows knotted tightly; earlier his men had already entered the Bei Di palace, attempting several assassinations of Tuo Ba Heng.

Who would have thought this lad was like a startled bird, yet he even had several doubles, repeatedly allowing him to escape alive.

Now Tuo Ba Yu has contacted several Bei Di nobles, but those nobles remain undecided.

Tuo Ba Yu wants to march back to Bei Di, but he needs strong external support; relying solely on his Red Scorpion assassination organization won't suffice.

If it's about besieging cities and seizing territory, a large army is needed, and Tuo Ba Yu is weak in that regard.

What he lacks most now is an army; although some tribes support him, those nobles are still wavering.

Tuo Ba Yu now has no way out, unless some crucial turning point appears.

Thinking of this, Tuo Ba Yu's brows furrowed even tighter, his face growing somewhat gloomier.

He secretly built his own organization, but it ultimately couldn't see the light of day.

Returning to Bei Di as a former hostage, having lived many years in Southern Qi, the Bei Di nobles harbor suspicions about him.

Although those nobles dislike his royal elder brother, they don't think much of him either.

Bai Xiaosheng gave a light laugh, lifted his teacup, took a sip, then gently set it back on the table.

As for me, I have no special talent; I just sell news in the jianghu. This time I have a piece of information—I don't know if Your Highness is interested?

Tuo Ba Yu curled his lip in a sneer, and didn't reply.

Bai Xiaosheng knew he looked down on this jianghu person, and said lightly: In earlier years the Bei Di great king doted on your mother immensely; after all, Han women still hold some allure for the Bei Di great king.

Back then your mother consort was the Bei Di's first beauty, though her status and position were inferior, being originally a singer from Han lands, she couldn't grace any high table.

Your father king doted on your mother consort; during those days the Bei Di chief consort was left alone in an empty chamber day after day.

The chief consort came from an illustrious lineage; unable to bear such neglect, those days she grew close to a guard attending your father king.

It was then that the chief consort conceived a child, the Bei Di king's first son, Tuo Ba Heng.

Tuo Ba Yu suddenly rose to his feet, fixed his gaze on Bai Xiaosheng before him, his eyes flashing with a glint.

Say it again!

Bai Xiaosheng produced a folding fan, which snapped open with a swish, and he gently waved it.

Your Highness, you also know my rules as Bai Xiaosheng; my information doesn't come cheap.

Tuo Ba Yu urged: How much silver?

Bai Xiaosheng slowly rose, snapped his fan shut with a slap, and rested the handle on Tuo Ba Yu's shoulder: Silver—do you think I, after running Bai Xiao Men for so many years, still lack a single silver?

What do you want? Tuo Ba Yu knew Bai Xiaosheng wasn't one to spout nonsense; though this fellow's character wasn't great and his jianghu reputation unsavory, his information was always true.

If Tuo Ba Heng's biological father really was that guard, spreading this news would stir up the entire Bei Di dynasty, and the nobles supporting him would likely increase manifold.

Bai Xiaosheng smiled: All I want is a maid, the maid from the Rui Wangfu.

No matter whether you steal, snatch, or coerce her, I want that maid to willingly marry me.

Tuo Ba Yu snorted coldly: If I were to step in and bind that maid to send to your manor, that would be fine, but those four words "willingly" are the hardest to secure.

Heh, that's why I need you to step in.

Tuo Ba Yu laughed angrily: If you want the Rui Wangfu maid to willingly marry you, you must give her something to fear. Now she relies on Prince Rui and Princess Consort Rui; are you intending to threaten Prince Rui and Princess Consort Rui, forcing her to comply?

Smart! Bai Xiaosheng laughed.

Tuo Ba Yu's eyebrows knitted together: "You're really asking for death!"