Su Yu also studied the man carefully. The man in cyan robes had a refined and scholarly air, and Su Yu could still see the handsomeness of his youth. His features did indeed bear some resemblance to his senior sister.
’Could this be my future brother-in-law?’
But what surprised Su Yu even more was Lin Yunshu’s aura. His Qi and Blood was potent yet contained, giving off the feeling of a sharp blade sheathed in gold. His Realm was incredibly high.
It seemed Lin Yunshu’s strength was far from ordinary.
"That I am, Brother Lin. I’ll be in your care."
Su Yu’s gaze was frank. He wasn’t fawning or sycophantic, nor was he the least bit timid. He accepted the address of "Younger Brother" with natural poise.
Seeing this, Lin Yunshu was slightly taken aback. A strange glint flashed in his eyes, and he immediately smiled in praise, "Younger Brother Su is neither servile nor overbearing. Truly a dragon among men. Please, have a seat!"
Though he praised him aloud, Lin Yunshu was secretly shaking his head.
’In his opinion, Su Yu’s current strength isn’t sufficient. To accept this connection so readily is the recklessness of youth. He’s not as composed as I was back in my day!’
’He doesn’t understand the need to be low-key. He’ll suffer for it out in the world. Oh well, for Wanzhu’s and Master Qin’s sake, it seems I, as his elder brother, will have to teach him a thing or two.’
At that moment, Lin Yunshu was internally mulling over how to be a proper life mentor. But if he knew that Su Yu had already broken through to the Muscle Forging Realm, his opinion would have changed in an instant.
"This is the Patriarch of the Xu Family, Xu Luan! Nicknamed ’Xu the Barbarian.’ He’s also the older brother of that little rascal, Xu Feng. Xu Feng’s nickname, Madman Xu, was probably influenced by this big brother of his."
Su Yu looked up at him. The man was incredibly tall, standing at two-point-two or two-point-three meters, and looked like an iron tower even while sitting in the Grandmaster’s Chair.
His build was as burly as a bear’s. The muscles on his arms, exposed by his short sleeves, were gnarled and knotted, so thick they were as wide as an ordinary woman’s waist! Even more striking was a deep scar that looked as if it reached the bone, running from the corner of his left eye all the way to his chin. Paired with his large, bell-like eyes, he looked utterly ferocious.
"Hahaha! Younger Brother Su!"
But contrary to his fierce appearance, when Xu Luan spoke, his voice held no malice at all. He slapped his thigh with a mighty THWACK, making the teacups jump. "I hear that little brat Xu Feng talking about you every single day! Now that I’ve met you, you’re my kind of person! If you have time later, you must come to the Xu Family estate. We’ll have a few good drinks!"
Su Yu took a liking to this kind of straightforward personality. He immediately smiled and cupped his fist. "Brother Xu, you’re too kind. I will definitely pay a visit in the future!"
"Xu the Barbarian, shoo, shoo. Get out of my way."
Just then, the last man pushed aside Xu Luan’s thick arm and stood up unhurriedly.
This man was a full head shorter than Xu Luan and wore a splendid blue robe with subtle patterns embroidered in gold and silver thread. He gently fanned himself with a high-quality white paper fan of Suzhou make. With a long, meticulously groomed beard under his chin, he looked every bit the part of a debonair rake who indulged in wine, women, and song.
"Old Ghost Qin, stop bad-mouthing me! I’ll introduce myself!"
The blue-robed man snapped his fan shut with a SHWAP, cupped his hands toward Su Yu, and gave a wink. "Younger Brother Su, this humble one is Jiang Yanchu, known to the world as ’Master Jiang the Playboy.’ I am the Patriarch of the Jiang Family!"
The moment Su Yu saw the man’s familiar style, the image of his Junior Brother Jiang Liuchuan popped into his head. He finally understood where Jiang Liuchuan had learned all his romantic theatrics.
"Brother Jiang, you are truly worthy of the title ’Master Jiang the Playboy.’ Such a dashing and elegant demeanor is truly admirable," Su Yu said with a smile.
"Hahaha! You have a good eye!"
Jiang Yanchu acted as if he’d found a kindred spirit. He laughed heartily, strode forward, and slung an arm around Su Yu’s shoulder. Pointing at the other two with disdain, he said, "Compared to these two boorish louts with no sense of fun, Younger Brother Su, you’re the one who truly gets me!"
"Brother Jiang, is Junior Brother Jiang Liuchuan also your younger brother?"
"Younger brother?"
Hearing this, Jiang Yanchu’s eyes went wide as saucers. "Impossible!" he bellowed. "I’m his damn father!"
"Hahahaha..."
At the side, Lin Yunshu and Xu Luan pointed at Jiang Yanchu and burst into unrestrained, uproarious laughter. The atmosphere in the tea room instantly became incredibly jovial.
Qin Fangqiong also stroked his beard with a smile and explained, "Su Yu, this fellow Jiang Yanchu was quite the romantic in his youth. He had a dalliance in his teens and fathered Jiang Liuchuan extremely early, so he’s not taking advantage of you."
The introductions over, everyone sat down again. Qin Fangqiong’s smile vanished as he returned to the head seat.
"Su Yu, these three are all influential figures in Black Stone City, but they are also our own people. If you need anything in private, there’s no need to be formal with them."
Qin Fangqiong looked at Su Yu, a nostalgic look in his eyes. "When I first came to establish myself in Black Stone City, these three were just little snot-nosed brats, following me around all day to learn how to throw a punch. Now, decades have passed in a flash, and they’ve all become Muscle Forging Realm Perfection masters, capable of holding their own."
Hearing this, Su Yu had a moment of sudden realization.
’No wonder the White Ape Martial Arts Hall, which usually keeps such a low profile, is able to maintain such a close alliance with the Lin, Jiang, and Xu families.’
’Besides the ties forged through Senior Sister Lin Wanzhu and Senior Brother Xu Feng, it turned out these three Patriarchs had all received guidance in the Martial Arts from Master Qin in their youth, making them his nominal disciples, in a sense.’
"Alright, that’s enough idle chatter. It’s time to discuss serious business."
Qin Fangqiong’s expression suddenly darkened, and a dangerous, cold glint flashed in his murky eyes.
Lin Yunshu, Xu Luan, and Jiang Yanchu all let their smiles fade, sitting up straight with grave expressions.
"The three of them came to see me together today for one reason: the joint caravan our families sent to Linyuan City."
Qin Fangqiong took a deep breath, his gaze fixed on Su Yu. "This morning, a message arrived by carrier pigeon. The caravan... is in trouble!"
Hearing this, Su Yu’s pupils contracted slightly.
When his senior sister had mentioned the caravan losing contact, he’d had a bad feeling. Now, the other shoe had finally dropped.
"What’s the situation, Master?" Su Yu asked, his expression as dark as still water.
"The letter states that Xu Feng and the others led the caravan without any issues for the first half of the journey. They handled things smoothly in Linyuan City and successfully completed all the trade-offs, making a hefty profit."
"But on the return trip, not long after leaving Linyuan City’s territory, they were ambushed while passing through a narrow gorge called Tiger Leap Valley! Not only were our goods taken, but also tens of thousands in silver notes. They were robbed completely clean!"
"Fortunately, Xu Feng saw that the situation was hopeless and didn’t force a fight to the death. Although some of his men were injured, their lives were spared."
"Two other caravans traveling with them were also robbed. For the past few days, Xu Feng and his men have been in Linyuan City, trying everything they can to negotiate with the bandits. They’re willing to pay a ransom to get the goods back, but they haven’t been able to reach an agreement."
Su Yu nodded, calmly cutting to the core of the issue. "Have we figured out who these bandits are? What’s the strength of their leaders?"
"We have. They’re a cancer that’s been festering on the outskirts of Linyuan City for years, a group called the Wind Evil Stronghold!"
Lin Yunshu took over, his brows tightly furrowed as he explained, "The Wind Evil Stronghold is extremely powerful. Their Great Chief, Feng Han, is a genuine Muscle Forging Realm Perfection expert! Their Second Chief, Feng Dakui, is at the middle stage of the Muscle Forging Realm. And the Third Chief, Feng Yuncheng, is a skilled fighter at the initial stage of the Muscle Forging Realm!"
"On top of that, the stronghold has at least five or six hundred fierce bandits who live by the sword, including many desperados in the Skin Tempering and Flesh Refining Realms! If they weren’t so strong, they wouldn’t have been able to remain entrenched outside Linyuan City for so many years. Even the local City Lord’s Mansion turns a blind eye to them and has never been able to wipe them out."
"Master, Big Brother, I’m afraid this matter won’t be resolved as easily as we might think."
Lin Wanzhu’s pretty face was grave. She stood up and walked to a map. "According to our intelligence, the other two caravans that were robbed at the same time were not weak! One of them was even a major local merchant house from Linyuan City, and its Guard Commander was also a Muscle Forging Realm expert. But even they were robbed clean. And after all this time, even a local power like them hasn’t been able to figure out a solution!"
"Wanzhu is right. This matter is indeed extremely troublesome."
Lin Yunshu sighed and added helplessly, "Just based on the Wind Evil Stronghold’s known strength, you couldn’t take them down without at least two or three Muscle Forging Realm Perfection masters working in concert! Besides, those bandits have spent years in the mountains and are extremely cunning. Even if the three of us old-timers went all out, if they just refuse to fight us head-on and disappear into the mountains, it would be a wasted trip."
"The most crucial thing is that the three of us can’t leave right now!" Jiang Yanchu put away his fan, his expression so dark it looked like it could drip water. "The Black Lotus Sect’s vanguard is pointed directly at Cangya Pass. Here in Black Stone City, the mood is tense, and undercurrents are surging. At such a sensitive time, when riots could break out at any moment, we are the pillars of our respective families. If we leave Black Stone City and something happens, it’ll be a disaster."
"What’s the damn use of saying all this! If we don’t send someone, how is this going to get solved?"
Xu Luan, having the shortest temper, slammed his hand down and shattered the tea table beside him, roaring:
"Son of a bitch! I had that brat Xu Feng take a full thirty thousand taels of silver’s worth of goods! And they just vanished for no reason? The Xu Family is going to have a rough second half of the year!"
"Xu the Barbarian, stop your shouting! My Jiang Family also lost over thirty thousand taels. I’m even more pissed off than you are!" Jiang Yanchu countered, exasperated.
"It’s not just you two. The Lin Family, Younger Brother Su, and the Martial Arts Hall... the goods from all five of us were together, with a total value approaching one hundred thousand taels of silver! Whose losses aren’t heavy? Is arguing going to bring the goods back?"
Xu Luan plopped back into his chair, grabbing his hair in frustration. "Damn it all! If I’d known this would happen, I should have led the escort myself!"
"That’s enough. Everyone calm down. Let this old man say a few words."
Qin Fangqiong raised a hand at the right moment, quelling their agitation. His old eyes narrowed. "You three couldn’t leave, and Wanzhu hadn’t yet broken through to Muscle Forging. Having Xu Feng lead the caravan was the optimal solution at the time. What’s more..."
Qin Fangqiong paused, his tone becoming profound. "Our families have used this trade route for over a decade without incident. But this time, when we gathered such a huge amount of goods, something happened. Do you really think that’s just a coincidence?"
"Even if you had sent a Muscle Forging Realm expert back then, if the caravan was meant to be hit, it would have been hit regardless."
As soon as he said this, the expressions of the three Patriarchs changed.
"But there’s no use talking about that now. The pressing matter is how to resolve this predicament. Who is going to resolve it?" Qin Fangqiong threw out the most critical question.
"Master! Let me go!"
Lin Wanzhu stepped forward without hesitation, her cold, beautiful face filled with resolve. "Among our families, besides you and my big brother and the others who cannot leave their posts, my martial strength is the greatest. It’s most appropriate for me to go!"
"You have so much on your plate at the Public Security Bureau, and the front line just suffered a defeat. How can you get away?" Lin Yunshu frowned.
"The losses this time are too heavy. It won’t be difficult for me to explain the situation and request a leave of absence from Commander Li at the Public Security Bureau."
Lin Wanzhu bit her red lip. Though her tone was firm, it was laced with a deep sense of powerlessness. "The difficult part is getting the goods back safely. The Wind Evil Stronghold is too powerful. I can’t possibly seize the goods back by force on my own..."
She took a deep breath and made a difficult decision:
"Outlaw factions like the Wind Evil Stronghold, who make a living by robbing people, are mostly in it for the money. They’ll follow the code of the greenwood. If all else fails, I’ll go and negotiate with them! If I can bring back even some of the goods, it’s better than losing everything."
Everyone fell silent. Although they knew this was the best way, their hearts still ached at the thought.
This was a loss of tens of thousands of taels!
Heavy sighs echoed in the room.
In this extremely oppressive atmosphere,
Su Yu, who had been sitting quietly in the lowest seat and listening to the conversation, slowly set down his teacup.
"Master. Senior Sister."
"Leave this matter to me."