Chapter 44: Chapter 44
By the time Li Suifeng returned to the docks, only a handful of Canal Gang brothers were on patrol.
“Boss Li!”
“Boss Li!”
They straightened at the sight of him.
“Mm. Carry on.”
He said nothing more, walking straight toward Lin Zhixu’s courtyard.
Every disciple on the dock watched with open envy.
They’d caught distant glimpses of Boss Li’s woman — an absolute vision. Even Yuan Hai’s breathless stories about the Lakeheart Pavilion’s headliners couldn’t compete.
Reaching the courtyard, Li Suifeng pushed Lin Zhixu’s door open without preamble.
“You—”
Willow, sleeping in the outer room, saw Li Suifeng and — without being told — scooped up her bedding and marched to the side room.
After these past few days, she’d learned the routine.
Even if she protested, her mistress would send her away regardless.
“At least she’s trainable.”
Li Suifeng smiled faintly and headed for the inner room.
Lin Zhixu lay in bed, only her head visible above the covers. Her hair was pinned up behind her, and her exquisite features — assembled just so — carried a natural thread of allure.
Her eyes were closed. But Li Suifeng, a peak sixth-rank martial artist, could tell immediately that she was faking sleep.
Why bother pretending?
Short of the final step, they’d done everything else.
Li Suifeng shed his outer robe and slipped under the covers.
A warm hand found its way beneath the quilt. As expected — this was a woman in full bloom. There was plenty to explore.
“Mmh…”
A muffled sound escaped Lin Zhixu’s lips. Her cheeks flushed, but she kept up the pretense of sleep.
Li Suifeng had no patience for games.
…
Half an hour passed.
One hour.
An hour and a half.
Willow sat on the bed in the side room, her expression hollow.
She’d spent years at her mistress’s side in the Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers. The Valley’s practitioners all cultivated seductive arts. In that environment, she’d acquired a fairly comprehensive education — including more than a few illustrated manuals.
She’d also overheard the Valley’s women discussing such matters at length.
The consensus was that the average encounter lasted about fifteen minutes.
Even a martial artist with superior stamina might go half an hour.
It had been an hour and a half.
…
Over the following days, Li Suifeng threw himself into branch business.
The Divine Fist Gate had essentially evacuated Nanyang. Their two river docks and various assets outside the city were ripe for the taking.
After two or three days of logistics, Li Suifeng began to appreciate just how difficult Liu Zhenhe’s position had been.
The Nanyang Branch was desperately short of talent.
Apart from himself, the only seventh-rank fighter was Qi Hu.
Given the state of their relationship, Qi Hu would never lift a finger for him.
And the flood of outsiders from Mingzhou continued to grow. Three or four named seventh-rank fighters had surfaced in the city.
Brawls were becoming daily occurrences.
The prefectural magistrate’s people and the rank-and-file Canal Gang brothers simply couldn’t cope.
“Time to recruit.”
Li Suifeng murmured.
He made his way to the blacksmith shop at the mouth of Luoshi Alley.
Crow might be just a Silver-Tier assassin, but he was a fifth-rank master who’d been based in Nanyang for years. He’d know which fighters were worth approaching.
Besides, it had been a while. Crow still hadn’t brought him any contracts.
He was eager to climb to Gold Tier. The Thirteen Fatal Swords were waiting.
“What are you doing here?”
The shop was empty of customers.
CLANG CLANG CLANG!
Crow was hammering away at a sword blank.
His shop was modest, crammed with farming tools — all solidly made. A few weapons lined the edges. Common blades for common jianghu drifters. Nothing that fetched real money.
“I need intelligence.”
Li Suifeng stepped inside. “I want to know which fighters currently in Nanyang are worth recruiting.”
“Oh?” Crow looked up, set the blank on the anvil, wiped his hands, and poured himself tea.
“You really do keep exceeding my expectations of what a seventh-rank fighter can do. Killing Ba Hu — even wounded, that’s impressive.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the Human Rankings add your name in the next day or two.”
He shook his head, took a long drink, and continued:
“You’re running the Nanyang Branch now, but the branch is riding entirely on your shoulders. You’re right that it’s too thin.”
“Nanyang doesn’t have many native fighters. Most of the good ones are already dead. But Mingzhou refugees include a few solid hands. Whether you can bend them to your will is up to you.”
He reached under the table and produced a thick sheaf of papers.
Li Suifeng took it and scanned the contents. Detailed profiles of jianghu wanderers — including when they’d arrived in Nanyang.
Every single one was eighth-rank or above.
“This intelligence is worth three thousand taels.”
“Since you’re one of ours — fifteen hundred.”
【Ding!】
【Task issued: Within three days, recruit two seventh-rank or higher fighters.】
【Reward: Great Vajra Palm (maxed).】
More blunt-force techniques. The system was clearly steering him toward the overwhelming-power build.
“Here.”
Li Suifeng pulled three five-hundred-tael banknotes from his sleeve.
This was branch money. He was acting on the branch’s behalf — why spend his own silver?
The Green Robe Tower’s intelligence network was genuinely impressive, though. Even minor eighth-rank fighters passing through Nanyang had been catalogued. The Tower’s web across Nanzhou ran deeper than he’d imagined.
Once he reached Gold Tier, he’d see if he could leverage that network for his own purposes.
“When do I get a contract?”
After Crow pocketed the silver, Li Suifeng asked.
“The current contracts all require leaving Nanyang. The local targets are small fish — not worth your time.” Crow shook his head. “I held off because you just took over the branch.”
“But if you’re itching for work, I’ve got three names.”
He produced a slip of paper.
Three names were written on it.
Golden Spear Song Ling. Tyrant Whip Mei Sanyuan. Death Gate Sword Guan San.
“All three are from Mingzhou,” Crow explained. “Song Ling may have already arrived in Nanyang, but I don’t have his exact location.”
“Once he reaches Nanyang, though, he’ll make noise. Guaranteed.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a flower thief.”
“Over a dozen incidents in Mingzhou. He even got his hands on a seventh-rank Red Lotus Sect woman.”
“Mingzhou is too hot for him now. If I were him, I’d come here. Nanyang has the weakest jianghu presence of any prefecture in Nanzhou.”