Chapter 955: Easy in Appearance, Difficult in Reality

That big wild boar? At the time, it and Boshan Jun were besieging Zhu Erniang, and its reckless, charging manner left a deep impression on He Lingchuan. He was overjoyed: "Good!"

"There are two old monsters near Butterfly Valley in Mou State. Their territory is too small, and they aren't comfortable living there, so I'll try inviting them too."

He Lingchuan clapped his hands: "That's my good Erniang!"

He immediately discussed the communication method with Zhu Erniang, then thought for a moment and gave the spider demon some reassurance: "Currently, Dragon Spine Island and Pansi Island are both no-fishing zones, and very few ships can pass through these waters. But your island will soon have produce, so I will order the dedicated ships entering and leaving Pansi Island to paint their keels with red lacquer as a mark. Once the Yin Serpent sees it underwater, it won't block them. This red lacquer mark is hidden underwater; unless they run aground for repairs, no one else will see it, and even if they do, they won't know what it means."

Zhu Danniang raised a claw: "This is good. The Beijia people can forget about getting close to Pansi Island while sailing ships without marks."

The big business of the day was finished, and the tide began to recede at the seaside. In the enclosures the spider demons had newly piled up, the flapping figures of fish began to be revealed.

Only when the great tide recedes can one see who has been left stranded, trapped in the death trap.

Zhu Erniang stood up, called for the little spiders to fetch a few one-meter-long, lively, jumping big fish, tied them by the gills with spider silk, and stuffed them to He Lingchuan:

"The wine is good; this is a return gift."

He Lingchuan took them readily: "When I've finished eating, I'll come back to get more."

The spider demon sisters accompanied He Lingchuan through the spider nest to return to the surface, then sent him to board the ship for the return voyage.

Zhu Danniang wanted to stay behind to eat with her sister.

Watching the small boat sail further and further away, Zhu Erniang still stood on the shore, lost in thought.

The little spiders around her were still busy. Since they were already here, they might as well move some sand and gravel back; it could adjust the breathability of the base grass and soil.

Zhu Danniang smiled: "I told you he was a good person, reliable."

"He might not necessarily be a good person." Zhu Erniang remembered He Lingchuan causing a scene in the Heavenly Palace to get her spider molt back, but she also remembered this brat had stabbed her once and stolen one of her spider molts! "But you're right, this guy is reliable."

Reliable is enough.

Who else would dare to withstand the pressure of Beijia to take her in?

Who would be willing to offend Beijia for her sake?

Not to mention that He Lingchuan himself had unspeakable secrets; shielding her would easily expose himself.

Now the spider demon sisters were bound together with him and these islands; they could only hope he would win, and only hope he could hold on until the end.

"I hope this is the last time I have to move."

The heavenly wind and sea waves remain unchanged for ten thousand years.

He Lingchuan sat alone at the bow of the boat again, feeling the sea breeze brush his face. After all, it was already autumn, and even the sunlight had grown lazy; the warmth was gone.

The Soul-Consuming Mirror asked him: "Listening to your analysis, it sounds like Beijia isn't that hard to deal with?"

"That was for the spider demon sisters to hear." He Lingchuan closed his eyes, "In reality, how could it be that simple?"

"…Ah? So it is very hard to deal with?"

"When has Beijia ever been easy to deal with? Not to mention that the one surnamed Yu is a subordinate of State Preceptor Shuangye. Sigh, we've dealt with State Preceptor Shuangye's subordinates before; do you think they're easy to handle?"

"Xi Yunhe?" The Soul-Consuming Mirror let out an 'aiya', "Annoying enough."

The Elixir of Immortality case that shook all of Beijia started because State Preceptor Shuangye's subordinate Xi Yunhe killed the Lingxu City messenger. The whole affair rolled like a snowball, getting bigger and bigger, and the truth was peeled away like an onion, layer by layer.

Yet in the end, even State Preceptor Qingyang was toppled, but the instigator Xi Yunhe remained at large.

If a subordinate is this formidable, what about State Preceptor Shuangye himself? "That was only State Preceptor Shuangye's subordinate." He Lingchuan shook his head, "If a subordinate can't get it done, do you think State Preceptor Shuangye will give up?"

"Uh, then what do we do?" The Soul-Consuming Mirror now felt the future was bleak after hearing He Lingchuan's words.

"We deal with it as it comes. Zhu Erniang is already here, and I invited her here with great effort; what good would it do me to scare her?" He Lingchuan said leisurely, "Besides, I just downplayed Beijia's influence on us earlier. As for how the spider demon sisters should respond, I wasn't wrong; they just need to handle ordinary matters with an ordinary heart. Zhu Erniang was scared witless by General Hong over a hundred years ago and still has psychological shadows regarding official forces. Once it discovers Beijia can't do anything to Pansi Island, it will naturally dare to act boldly."

"If Beijia exerts pressure on the Yangshan Islands—which it inevitably will—then I will naturally be the one to shoulder it; it has nothing to do with them."

When it comes to stress resistance, Zhu Erniang cannot be compared to him.

He dared to invite Zhu Erniang to the island because he had calculated this day would come.

"I think the one surnamed Yu will at least meet with me once."

The Soul-Consuming Mirror was startled: "You think he will come to launch a sneak attack?"

"That possibility cannot be ruled out, after all, we don't know his temperament." He Lingchuan wasn't too worried, "But it is more likely he will come to see me openly."

"Directly find you?"

"Mm, the cost of negotiation is the lowest." He Lingchuan said slowly, "Why would he waste effort dealing with me first when he has Beijia's golden signboard to use? Besides, looking at his previous methods of dealing with Zhu Erniang, they all involved inciting surrounding forces to act. In the Yangshan Islands, I have the greatest influence on Zhu Erniang; if he doesn't find me, who else can he find?"

"That's true." The mirror asked him, "Then what will you do?"

"Meet the moves as they come. In any case, it won't necessarily be us who suffer." He Lingchuan sighed, "The difficulty in dealing with Beijia lies in the future."

He had a clear understanding of his future relationship with Beijia.

"Therefore, rapidly improving the overall strength of Yangshan is important. Beijia is at war with Mou State, and the atmosphere is tense; the wild monsters in the surrounding areas are not having a good time. Look at how Zhu Erniang moved several times in Mou State and still couldn't gain a foothold; even a powerful monster like it finds it difficult, what about the others?"

"This is a good time for us to recruit more great monsters to settle in, and I think the possibility of success is actually not small."

￥￥￥￥￥

A few days later, the Qucheng County Magistrate requested an audience with Lu Qing'an.

Lu Qing'an had spent the night with his concubine, and the Qucheng County Magistrate waited until the sun was high before seeing the Young Master Lu walk out with a glowing face.

"Magistrate Liu, what is it? Is the grain transport not going smoothly?"

"The last batch of grain is also on its way, and everything is fine for now." The Qucheng County Magistrate said respectfully, "However, some news has come from the south, and this subordinate thought it best to report it to you."

Lu Qing'an yawned: "Speak."

"Do you still remember the Yangshan Islands that were sold not long ago?"

Lu Qing'an gave an 'en'. A wealthy young master surnamed He had come to them wanting to purchase the Yangshan Islands. He and his father were short on money, so they sold the islands, which were shrouded in Yin evil, for eighty thousand silver taels.

They had already peacefully exchanged this money for grain and sent it to Mou State.

As for what He Lingchuan did after obtaining the Yangshan Islands, Lu Qing'an felt a little guilty and hadn't asked anyone to inquire.

(End of chapter)