Chapter 635: Detention

Gu Jiu Ling and Zuo Feichen's hands, clutching chopsticks, halted there with a swish; the door was pushed open from outside, and Zuo Feichen's hand slowly moved toward his waist.

He had hidden there an inconspicuous short dagger he had brought earlier, fastened to his belt; the mechanism was so exquisite that it could not be detected at all.

Gu Jiu Ling also drew the hidden weapon from her jade crown; just as the two were about to act, the door opened and Lord Zhang walked in.

The two released their grip and regained a hint of composure.

Gu Jiu Ling hurried to her feet, cupped her fists and saluted Lord Zhang, saying, "Uncle Zhang, you have returned?"

Zuo Feichen also stepped forward to greet Lord Zhang.

Lord Zhang had met the elder of the Duan clan some time ago, and now, returning, he did not know how the discussion had gone; but seeing Lord Zhang's expression was not pleasant, it must not be good news.

Lord Zhang's gaze at Gu Jiu Ling carried a hint of guilt; he sat down slowly, sighed, and said, "The Eight Great Families are ambitious; by trapping us grain merchants here they intend to cut off Prince Rui's army supplies."

"Now only we can solve Prince Rui's army‑supply problem; the others are too far away, willing in spirit but lacking the ability."

Gu Jiu Ling's mind instantly understood; she had long guessed the Eight Great Families would act this way.

The Eight Great Families are each no trifling lights; now that both sides are at a life‑or‑death standoff, they will employ any method.

This kind of undermining from beneath the cauldron is bound to be used by the Eight Great Families.

Gu Jiu Ling had previously followed Xiao Yin in Shang Jing, clashing with the Eight Great Families many times, and had long witnessed their filthy tactics.

Lord Zhang lifted his eyes and slowly looked at Gu Jiu Ling and Zuo Feichen; the guilt on his face deepened as he said, "This time I intended to repay Young Master Zuo for saving my life, but I have ended up implicating both of you."

"You previously brought over so much grain hoping to make a deal with me; now I'm afraid…"

Lord Zhang didn't know how to continue; Gu Jiu Ling quickly smiled, "You flatter me. This journey is also because my father sent me away from Jiangnan for experience. Receiving Uncle Zhang's kindness is my fate; there is no such thing as causing trouble."

"Uncle Zhang, those people just now called you away; what exactly happened?"

Lord Zhang inhaled, a flash of anger crossing his eyes, and said, "Those people actually want us grain merchants to write letters to our families, urging them to open the granaries and send food to Yingzhou; if we don't…"

Lord Zhang suddenly shivered, recalling the grain merchant who had just been beheaded before his eyes.

That merchant had this time tried to trade with Prince Rui, investing almost his entire fortune, and was decapitated after a single retort.

The blood splattered onto Lord Zhang's face; thinking of this, his complexion grew even paler, and his eyes reddened with anger.

He looked at Gu Jiu Ling and said, "The batch of grain you transported through Yanbei Pass also must be sent to Yingzhou; their men have been inspecting Yanbei Pass for a long time, and every amount of grain we have stored there is recorded in the accounts."

"I originally intended to fabricate a lie to take your portion away, but I didn't expect them to send people to audit, even preventing the common folk's food rations from being moved at all—truly heartless."

Gu Jiu Ling knit her brows; the Eight Great Families' actions were nothing but preparation to next capture Yanbei Pass. If the city's grain were all moved out early, the populace would panic, making the pass easy to seize.

If the Eight Great Families take Yanbei Pass, they will directly cut off the Azure Dragon Army's retreat route outside Hengzhou City, and then Xiao Yin will be trapped to death in the north of the Long Mountains.

The hellish ordeal of Qi Sha Gu will be endured by Xiao Yin once more.

Gu Jiu Ling's hands unconsciously clenched into fists, and her complexion turned a few shades of iron‑blue.

Lord Zhang thought she was pained about the batch of grain she brought to Yanbei Pass; he sighed, "Young nephew, you need not be sad. When we return alive this time, I will compensate your loss so you can report well to your father."

Gu Jiu Ling snapped back, laughing, "Uncle Zhang, you flatter me. After this calamity, you have lost everything; how could I demand compensation? It's not your fault."

"If anyone is to blame, blame my bad luck for getting involved. Fortunately our family still has silver; later I will follow Uncle Zhang and make a few more trades to earn it back. As the saying goes, recognizing the times makes one a hero; at least we still have a life left."

Uncle Zhang did not expect Gu Jiu Ling to speak that way, and he reassessed the prodigal young master a few times.

Before long, the other grain merchants also received threats from the Eight Great Families, being held here as hostages, forced to write letters to their families to dispatch grain from Yanbei Pass to Yingzhou immediately.

They also set a deadline; failure to deliver on time meant being dragged out and beheaded as a sacrifice to the flag.

Gu Jiu Ling, of course, sat with Lord Zhang on the first floor's main hall of the inn to write letters; whatever was written and how it was written had to pass the Eight Great Families' scrutiny.

After a short while, once the letters were finished, even if a hundred grain merchants were unwilling, they had to obediently hand the letters to the Eight Great Families, and each had to slip one or two tokens into the envelope; otherwise their relatives left in Yanbei Pass would not move the grain.

With everything prepared, just as the grain merchants breathed a slight sigh of relief, Elder Duan of the Duan clan slowly entered the inn, and everyone stood up tensely.

Since yesterday up to now, everyone has witnessed this old man's methods.

He appears smiling and pleasant, yet his hand is truly ruthless; he has already cut down five grain merchants.

Black hands! Black heart!

He now staggered in, draped in a dark‑colored fox‑fur great coat, his speech still a little breathless, but the way he looked at people made one feel a sick dread.

"Everyone, no need for formalities, please sit, please sit!" Elder Duan cheerfully gestured to the grain merchants around him.

The grain merchants cautiously sat down, smelling the scent of blood, finally becoming a bit more obedient.

"Servants! Bring tea! Bring up my prized fine Snow‑Mountain Silver Needle tea! Let you all have a taste."

Silver Needle tea is a fine thing, yet this time no one dared to lift it and drink; everyone just stood there.

Elder Duan, unperturbed, smiled lightly, "The letters you wrote are sincere and heartfelt; I am especially impressed. The Yingzhou soldiers and civilians thank you for your generosity."

Gu Jiu Ling couldn't help but want to curse, "Shameless!"

"But…" Elder Duan's expression cooled slightly as he said slowly, "Human hearts are hidden behind the belly; after all, this much grain is money! There's no guarantee that even if your relatives and friends receive the letters they will be willing to send it to Yingzhou; you may have to do it yourselves. Yet transporting grain is a hard journey, so we ask a young person among you to come and help move the grain to Yingzhou."

Elder Duan's words hung in the air; everyone was stunned for a moment, then their righteous anger flared.

This time everyone came with the younger members of their own clan; the Eight Great Families are holding the youngsters hostage to plot even greater gains.

Having already stripped them of a layer of skin, and it's still not over?

Elder Duan clinked his tea cup down, glared coldly around, and the grain merchants fell silent as crows.

Elder Duan smiled with satisfaction, raised his hand and pointed a circle that landed on Gu Jiu Ling, laughing, "Let the Zhang family send this young master then!"

Zuo Feichen's complexion changed dramatically.