The little girl had a piece of rice cake in her mouth, took a couple of chews, and then swallowed with a gulp. After licking her lips, she glanced at the red bean paste cake on the table in front of Ye Anping, preparing to reach for it. However, as she took a step forward, her shoulder was firmly grabbed by Zhuang Hu.

Zhuang Hu glared at her with anger and scolded, “Atin!!”

“Ah…” The little girl was startled by his voice, her neck shrunk, and she immediately lowered her head.

Just as Zhuang Hu was about to continue scolding her, Ye Anping quickly spoke up, “Big Brother Zhuang, just let her have some. Do you really think I would poison the pastries?”

“…Hard to say,” Zhuang Hu glanced at him.

Ye Anping was somewhat speechless, sighed, and took the lead. He picked up a piece of rice cake from the plate and put it in his mouth, chewed for a moment, and then continued, “Big Brother Zhuang, if you want to leave, I won’t stop you, but there’s no need to be in such a hurry. I’m not going to harm anyone.”

Seeing that he had also eaten a piece of rice cake, Zhuang Hu was slightly relieved, but only slightly.

However, he didn’t pay any attention to Ye Anping and said to the little girl, “Atin, we’re leaving soon, not staying here.”

“Huh?” The little girl was puzzled, raised her head to look at Zhuang Hu, pouted, and seemed reluctant as she asked, “Father, are we leaving again?”

“Well…”

“But didn’t you say before that we could stay in this city for a long time? We’ve only been here for a little over ten days… Atin doesn’t want to leave, there’s no food on the road, and I can’t sleep…”

Zhuang Hu’s face was filled with helplessness, not knowing what to say.

Ye Anping heard the words of the little girl and instantly understood that this father and daughter had probably been living a life on the run for the past few days. It made sense, considering that the headquarters of the Seven Killers Sect had been cleared out by the Profound Star Sect, and the names of the disciples had been exposed. Major sects in the Western Regions were undoubtedly still hunting down escaped Seven Killers cultivators.

Zhuang Hu must have been living in constant fear for the past few months, never daring to stay in one place for more than two days. When he arrived at the Chi Dragon Mansion, he likely thought it would be safe, but he didn’t expect to run into Ye Anping.

“Ah…” Ye Anping sighed and said, “Big Brother Zhuang, how about staying? Leaving aside your situation, she’s still young, following you around like this not only prevents her from cultivating but also disrupts her daily rest.”

Of course, Zhuang Hu understood this reasoning. After some consideration, he looked at his daughter, who was looking up at him, and finally shook his head in resignation. He led her back to the pavilion.

“Atin, take your time with the food.”

“Mm.”

The little girl nodded, then looked hopefully at Ye Anping and Pei Lengxue. When she saw Ye Anping nod, she reached out and took some pastries from the table.

Zhuang Hu looked at Ye Anping and said, “Can we talk privately?”

“Yes.”

Ye Anping nodded, asked Pei Lengxue to stay with the little girl, and walked with Zhuang Hu out of the pavilion to the edge of the pond.

When they were far enough away from the pavilion that their conversation couldn’t be heard inside, Zhuang Hu stopped and turned around.

“Do you want to hire me?”

“Yes, but it’s not a requirement.”

“I can agree to it.” Zhuang Hu paused for a moment, then raised a serious finger. “I have one condition: no matter what you want me to do, it must not involve Atin.”

“Is that her name?”

“Her full name is Zhuang Atin. She has been with me for ten years.”

Ye Anping glanced at Zhuang Atin, who was eating her pastries with small bites, furrowing his brow slightly. He asked, “You used to work for the Seven Killers Sect and still dared to adopt a young girl?”

“She has no connection to the Seven Killers Sect and doesn’t know I was a cultivator of the Seven Killers Sect. Please don’t tell her about my past.”

“I see…”

Zhuang Hu sighed and circled back to the topic. “Let’s talk about the business. What do you want me to do?”

“Well, I just want you to help me manage the miscellaneous affairs of the Dragon-Slaying Society. You’ll have access to the accounts, and if there are any discrepancies, you can discuss them with the Branch Masters. It’s essentially a role similar to a deputy young master.”

“Just that?”

Ye Anping nodded. “Just that. As for compensation, how much did Hua Qinyu pay you before? I’ll give you double, and it includes room and board.”

“If it’s just that…” Zhuang Hu hesitated for a moment and then nodded, agreeing, “Well, it sounds like a good job.”

“By the way, there’s something I need to trouble Big Brother Zhuang with,” Ye Anping continued.

“Yes, go ahead.”

“In the neighboring village or town, find five or six people who look a bit unkempt, aged around sixteen or seventeen. Have them impersonate Jiang Yu. After a few days, send one of them to the Jiang Residence, claiming that Jiang Yu encountered a highway robbery on his way back, and his personal belongings were stolen. The previous person who came back as the Dragon-Slaying Society’s young master was a fake, and these newcomers are the real Jiang Yu.”

Zhuang Hu was puzzled and remained stunned for quite some time, not understanding the purpose of this action.

“Why?” he asked.

“Canceling out the negatives,” Ye Anping shrugged slightly, explaining, “I am the fake Dragon-Slaying Society’s young master, so if we introduce another fake one, then I become the real one.”

Zhuang Hu pondered for a while before finally grasping the idea. He asked, “So, you robbed the real Dragon-Slaying Society’s young master but didn’t kill him?”

“Yes, that young master is a disciple of Immortal Yunshi, and if I killed him, it would cause more trouble. There’s a saying: ‘Leave a way out when you do things, so you can meet again in the future.'”

Zhuang Hu sighed. “I see.”

Ye Anping added, “On a side note, the second thing is that Big Brother Zhuang, you should have connections in Du Chun City’s black market. In the name of the Dragon-Slaying Society, try to purchase as many Startle Soul Pills as possible from the black market. After the Chi Dragon Conference opens, let members of the Dragon-Slaying Society set up stalls to sell them.”

“Startle Soul Pills?” Zhuang Hu furrowed his brows, looking puzzled. Startle Soul Pills were not something commonly kept in households. They were used to block spiritual intrusions and were mainly carried by cultivators who frequently dealt with miasma. However, Startle Soul Pills were not as easy to store as Gathering Spirit Pills, as they would expire if left in a storage pouch for more than a month. Moreover, the Western Region was different from the Eastern Region, lacking demonic cultivators and miasmic areas. From a business perspective, selling Startle Soul Pills at the Chi Dragon Conference would likely lead to losses.

But…

The idea came from Ye Anping, so Zhuang Hu dared not dismiss it outright. Thinking about the purpose of Startle Soul Pills, his eyes suddenly widened, and he looked at Ye Anping in disbelief, questioning, “Could it be that there are demonic cultivators infiltrating?”

“I didn’t say that,” Ye Anping raised an eyebrow, smiling as he countered, “Where would demonic cultivators come from in the Western Region?”