Chapter 161: Senior brother, is it me, me, or me?

Dong, dong—

Boom, boom—

The morning bell rang and shattered the dawn, casting a pale light beyond the eastern mountains. Li Longling had been dealing with numerous documents and reports in the main hall of Chilong Mansion as usual. Fortunately, with the help of Xiao Yunluo, the repair work around Chilong Mansion was nearing completion.

The cultivators on the streets of Chilong Mansion no longer discussed the previous disaster of red snow, as if everyone had forgotten about it. They focused on their cultivation and leisure activities.

Li Longling even felt a force hidden in the shadows within Chilong Mansion, silently supporting her.

Famine, resource shortages, casualties, rebellions, plagues, miasma… Although these post-disaster events occurred, their impact was minimal.

Surprisingly, the various large and small chambers of commerce under Chilong Mansion played a crucial role. Chambers of commerce were the foundation for circulating spiritual stones and resources. Despite their constant internal conflicts, they united this time, actively helping Li Longling overcome the crisis. They sold medicines and food to mortals and young cultivators at affordable prices, provided low-cost assistance to the palace guards for ongoing repairs, helped rebuild the affected villages, and cultivated the spiritual fields again.

Li Longling found this situation genuinely perplexing. She couldn’t understand the motives behind the chambers of commerce’s actions.

What they were doing now was a loss-making business. Moreover, this was not an isolated case. Almost all chambers of commerce were involved.

Were they trying to please him?

But why?

What benefit did it bring them to please a new palace master like him, blind and not very high in cultivation?

Were they blind too?

Something seemed off, and Li Longling was filled with doubts. Using her fingers, she repeatedly read the document from the deputy minister of Chilong Mansion. She even thought she was hallucinating.

“Led by seven major chambers of commerce, including the “Dragon Slayer Guild,” “Furong Guild,” and “Tiannan Guild,” there are a total of 152 chambers of commerce. Twenty-one left Chilong Mansion, and the remaining chambers of commerce voluntarily contributed money to help rebuild seventeen villages and three capitals around Chilong Mansion. My subordinates suggest that the Lord of the Palace reward them to motivate the chambers of commerce.”

“It’s really strange…”

Li Longling muttered, stamped her jade seal on the document, and then turned to Xiao Yunluo, asking, “Senior Sister Xiao, do you have any reports regarding the chambers of commerce on your end?”

“Yeah, I read it, and I find it quite strange,” Xiao Yunluo said, pausing her pen and looking up. “I also had the palace guards inquire about it. A chamber of commerce called the Dragon Slaying Guild seems to be leading the others to stay. When Junior Sister Feng and I arrived earlier, we saw this Dragon Slaying Guild helping mortals in Duchun City.”

“That’s…,” Li Longling hesitated, “I guess I’ll have to visit the Dragon Slaying Guild and thank their leader personally. The man seems very cunning, I can’t see through him.”

Xiao Yunluo shrugged, “I feel the same. He’s probably a crafty old man. Gratitude is one thing, but these merchants are mostly opportunistic. Although they did some good this time, Junior Sister Li, remember, never let your guard down. We don’t know what schemes they might have in private.”

“Yeah,” Li Longling nodded, “I need to be cautious. What has Senior Sister Feng been up to these days?”

“She’s cheating at the casino.”

“Cheating!” Li Longling exclaimed.

“Yeah, every time she guesses the points inside the dice, never makes a mistake. Whether it’s Mahjong or flower tiles, she never loses. The day before yesterday, she won too much and got into a fight with the casino’s enforcers. She beat more than a dozen people, attracted the guards of Chilong Mansion, and I had to pull her out.”

“But the casino uses powerful anti-cheating measures, and they have spirit-sealing artifacts. How did Senior Sister Feng…”

“I asked her, and she claimed it was just luck, but I don’t believe it.”

“…”

Xiao Yunluo rolled her eyes and complained, “Simply unbelievable. Knowing that we’re overwhelmed with work, she still causes trouble outside. Can’t she be a bit more restrained?”

Li Longling had initially thought of Senior Sister Feng as an elegant and cheerful sister, but now it seemed that the “elegance” had disappeared, leaving only the “cheerful.” As a disciple of a major sect, she shouldn’t be frequenting places like the gambling hall, where worldly temptations prevailed.

After a pause, Li Longling defended, “Well, it’s a carefree life, like a carefree immortal.”

When they reached this point in their conversation, Ling’er’s voice came from outside, “Miss, the leader of the Dragon-Slaying Guild requests an audience.”

“Hmm!” Li Longling turned towards the door and asked, “Dragon-Slaying Guild? What’s the matter?”

Ling’er hesitated momentarily and whispered, “He said he has a way to cure Miss’s blindness.”

“Cure my eyes!” Li Longling’s eyebrows furrowed instantly. She naturally thought it was a scam, but she didn’t express skepticism. She only confirmed, “Did he say that himself?”

“Yes… Earlier, this servant also inquired, and it seems there’s a hidden cultivator in Chilong Valley who can cure your eyes.”

“Hidden cultivator…”

The more Li Longling heard, the more she felt it was a trickster from the martial world. But considering the Dragon Slaying Guild’s merits during the recent turmoil, after hesitating for a moment, she said, “Did he come alone?”

“Yes, and he brought a girl who is the guild leader’s wife.”

“Let them in.”

Li Longling pursed her lips, straightened her chest, and raised her head, adopting an expression befitting the master of Chilong Mansion. She sat upright, and Xiao Yunluo, beside her, also displayed curiosity about the leader of the Dragon-Slaying Guild, looking towards the door.

“Junior Sister Li, what kind of person do you think he will be?” Xiao Yunluo inquired.

“Hmm… I think it should be…” Li Longling began to express her thoughts when, from outside, the familiar voice of Ye Anping, dressed in a black brocade robe, interrupted them.

“It’s me.”

?

Upon hearing this familiar voice, Xiao Yunluo immediately recoiled her neck. A few days ago, scenes from the spiritual spring in the back mountain resurfaced in her mind like mushrooms after rain, and she blushed instantly.

“Ye Ye Ye…”

“Ye!” Li Longling was bewildered, “Could it be… Senior Ye?!”

“Yes,” Ye Anping replied coldly.

Li Longling immediately raised her hand to adjust her ear and hair, a hint of embarrassment on her face. However, she quickly realized and shook her head, asking, “But… aren’t you a disciple of the Xuanxing Sect?”

“It’s me.”

“Ye Ye Ye…”

“Senior Sister Xiao said that you are the young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect again.”

“Also me.”

“The leader of the Dragon-Slaying Guild…”

“Still me.”

“The younger brother of Young Master Shadow Moon Sword…”

Ye Anping hesitated momentarily and replied, “It’s not me for now.”

?

What did it mean ‘not for the time being’… Li Longling tilted her head but finally heard a “No.”

After being stunned, she asked again, “That Ye…?”

“Senior is fine.”

“Huh – Senior Ye, why are you here today…”

“To treat your eyes.”

…