Chapter 77

The steward lowered his head, not daring to look Su Yan in the eye, his voice filled with self-reproach and panic:

"Yes... yes, Eldest Miss..."

"Yesterday afternoon, when our caravan passed by the foot of Black Pine Mountain, a group of mountain bandits suddenly rushed out... a dark mass of them, at least a hundred people!"

He swallowed his saliva, his voice becoming increasingly strained:

"We have dealt with those bandits from Black Wind Stronghold before, and every time we paid money for peace, and nothing ever went wrong... but this time, those bandits just turned their backs on us!"

"They started without a word, and as soon as they came up, they injured Zhao Gang, the captain of our guard. Captain Zhao is a Transformation of Force martial artist, but in front of that so-called 'Bao Shanxiong,' he didn't even last ten moves..."

"With the only Transformation of Force martial artist injured, our guards were even less of a match..."

The steward's voice grew softer and softer, finally becoming almost inaudible:

"The goods... were all robbed, and the people were all detained..."

Su Yan's body swayed slightly, and she held onto the table beside her to steady herself.

On that pretty face, after the color faded, a flush of abnormal redness surged, a trace of anger and anxiety intertwined.

This batch of goods was the biggest deal she had handled since taking over the family business.

If it could be sold smoothly, the Su family's foundation in the prefecture city would be considered barely stabilized.

But now...

The huge blow left the young girl, who had only recently reached the Hidden Force realm, speechless for a moment, her rosy lips trembling slightly.

Su Chen, standing to the side, patted the girl's shoulder gently, his voice trying to remain steady: "Xiao Yan, don't panic; Black Wind Stronghold has always focused on seeking wealth, so things might not be that bad."

He turned to the steward and asked in a deep voice: "How much ransom do they want!"

The steward swallowed hard, his voice trembling: "Those heaven-killing bandits, th... they said they want a ransom of three hundred thousand taels..."

"Three hundred thousand taels?"

Hearing this outrageous number, both Su Chen and Su Yan's pupils shrank sharply.

Su Chen's complexion turned as ugly as his daughter's in an instant.

When they moved from Anxi County to the prefecture city in a hurry, they had already abandoned quite a lot of family wealth.

After arriving in the prefecture city, they spent money like water to open up new trade routes.

Now, most of their funds were tied up in that batch of goods; where could they possibly find three hundred thousand taels of silver?

"Are those heaven-killing bandits really crazy for money!!!"

Su Chen's eyes turned red, unable to hold back his anger, and he slammed his palm onto the table.

The atmosphere in the hall became even more oppressive, almost making it hard to breathe.

Su Yan's delicate body trembled with anger, but in this moment of despair, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

She looked up abruptly, biting her silver teeth:

"Father, do you think it's possible that the Sun family is playing tricks..."

Su Chen frowned: "The Sun family?"

Su Yan took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down, and analyzed:

"Our caravan has been traveling that route for a long time, and we have dealt with Black Wind Stronghold quite a bit; it has always been a matter of paying money to settle things."

"Why would Black Wind Stronghold suddenly turn their backs on us this time!"

She paused, a cold light flashing in her eyes:

"I have always heard that the Sun family has dealings with all sorts of people..."

Su Chen's complexion became even uglier.

He said in a deep voice, "You mean the Sun family is retaliating against us?!"

The Sun family is considered a near-medium-sized family in the prefecture city, with strength even greater than the previous Ding family, having eight Transformation of Force experts as retainers.

A few days ago, Sun Yu, the second young master of the Sun family who only knew how to eat, drink, and play, accidentally saw Su Yan on the street and had been pestering her like a plaster ever since.

However, he was sternly rejected by Su Yan every time.

At that time, he was so angry that he threatened Su Yan—"Little girl, if you don't marry me, the Su family can just wait to be finished!"

Thinking about it now, today's incident of Black Wind Stronghold robbing the goods was very likely the work of the Sun family.

Just then.

"Get out of my way! Whoever dares to stop me, this young master will blow his head off!"

An extremely arrogant voice came from outside the gate, piercing the deathly silence in the hall.

"Scoundrel! That second-generation ancestor Sun Yu is here!"

Su Yan and Su Chen looked at each other, a cold look flashing in their eyes simultaneously.

They walked quickly out of the hall, crossed the courtyard, and arrived at the gate.

They saw a man dressed in expensive, luxurious clothing, with fair skin and a slightly feminine appearance, being blocked outside the gate by the Su family guards; he was cursing and pushing those guards, looking extremely overbearing.

This person was none other than the second-generation ancestor of the Sun family, Sun Yu.

As soon as he saw Su Yan come out, Sun Yu's eyes lit up.

His lecherous eyes scanned Su Yan's graceful figure wantonly, and he couldn't help but lick his dry lips, his face filled with a disgusting smile:

"Haha, Beauty Su, I haven't seen you for a few days, I've missed you to death!"

He glanced at the guards blocking him and sneered:

"The lackeys in your house are not very obedient!"

"They even dare to block me, their future son-in-law!"

Su Yan's expression was as cold as frost, her voice filled with disgust: "Shut up, Sun Yu, the Su family doesn't welcome you, get out of here immediately!"

"Hahaha, let me get out?"

Sun Yu was not angry, but laughed even more happily.

He crossed his arms and looked at Su Yan leisurely, looking as punchable as possible:

"I heard that your Su family's goods and people were robbed by Black Wind Stronghold this time, and the losses are huge!"

He paused, a look of triumph flashing in his eyes:

"I came here specifically to help you, and you're telling me to get out?"

He made a show of turning around and walking toward the gate, saying sarcastically as he walked:

"Fine! Since you don't welcome me, I'll go back."

"It's just a pity for your Su family's goods and people... tsk tsk, three hundred thousand taels, and those unlucky ones who were detained, I wonder how long they can last in Black Wind Stronghold..."

Su Yan's anger could no longer be suppressed, her pretty face covered in frost, and she shouted sharply:

"You scoundrel! So it really was your Sun family colluding with Black Wind Stronghold!"

She clenched her fists, her delicate body trembling slightly, wishing she could beat this shameless person to death on the spot.

Sun Yu stopped and turned back, the smile on his face becoming even more punchable:

"Beauty Su, you can't just say things like that."

"Do you have evidence? If you don't have evidence, I can go to the prefecture government office and sue you!"

He licked his lips, his gaze turning around Su Yan again, and he smiled lecherously:

"However... if you are willing to marry me, we will be family, and I can help you go and plead with Black Wind Stronghold."

"Three hundred thousand taels? Maybe you won't even have to pay a single tael of silver, and both the people and goods will come back."

"Hehehe!!!"

He looked up and laughed, the laughter extremely harsh, echoing in front of the Su residence, as if he had already decided that Su Yan was his.

Su Yan took a deep breath, the frost on her pretty face instantly melting, replaced by a bright, almost blinding fake smile.

"Want to marry me?"

She chuckled, the laughter like silver bells, but carrying a bone-chilling coldness:

"You're not worthy!"

She took a step forward and looked down at Sun Yu.

"Sun Yu, I will reiterate this to you today!"

"Even if I were to marry a seventy-year-old man, I would never look at trash like you!"

"Get out——!!!"