Chapter 1365: Negotiation

“Master, it seems that Spirit has something else to report to you.”

Suddenly, Fang Ruliu spoke up again.

“Hmm? That’s quick.” Fang Zhiyong sounded puzzled. “Let him.”

A few breaths later, Spirit’s silhouette appeared in Fang Ruliu’s eyes once more.

“I greet you, master!”

Fang Zhiyong stared at Spirit. “You best have something important to say, Spirit. You know I don’t like wasting time.”

His voice was still gentle, but it was clear that it was tinged with displeasure.

“I would not dare.” Spirit bowed. “I came to report that Ye Qing has discovered me, master.”

“Is that so?” Fang Zhiyong did not react overly much. He simply said, “So long as he didn’t capture you, it’s fine. Simply continue spying on him once the coast is clear.”

This was not beyond his expectations. His opponent was Ye Qing after all. It was unlikely that his four intelligencers could elude detection forever.

That said, it was one thing to be discovered, and another to be discovered in such a short time. This could only mean that Spirit was less useful than he was led to believe.

And how should one dispose of a useless person? You throw them, of course.

In fact, if Spirit wasn’t at Luo Shui and carrying out a major duty right now, he did not mind handing him a severe punishment right now.

“I’m afraid that isn’t possible!” Spirit fell silent for a moment before confessing shamefully. “Ye Qing has already caught me.”

“Hmm?” This time, something cold flickered in Fang Zhiyong’s eyes. “Then you are truly useless. I should not need to tell you the fate of a useless person, do I?”

The fate of a useless person was to be thrown away. Fang Zhiyong was commanding him to commit true suicide.

“This subordinate deserves a million deaths,” Spirit dropped to his knees immediately and explained, “however, Ye Qing said that he wishes to speak with you about something. He said you will regret it forever if you refuse him.”

“An obvious lie.”

Fang Zhiyong wore a scornful expression as he acted to activate the Soul Devouring Mosquito in Spirit’s mind. However, Spirit’s voice suddenly changed before he could do so, “Earthly Sovereign Bell.”

The three words instantly caused Fang Zhiyong’s pupils to contract into pins.

“Don’t kill your man just yet, Grand Mentor Fang. Don’t you want to hear what I have to say?”

Spirit spoke up again, but it was clear that the speaker wasn’t Spirit. It was Ye Qing.

Anger and shock flitted across Fang Zhiyong’s expression, though he schooled his reactions the next instant. “Not bad. You actually managed to catch Spirit?!”

“Capturing him is the easy part. Finding him is the hard part,” Ye Qing replied smilingly.

It was the truth. To open a line of negotiation with Fang Zhiyong and Emperor Jing Run, Ye Qing must first find a way to contact the old fart as a matter of course. This meant that he needed to suss out the people spying on him and contact Fang Zhiyong through them.

That was why he went on a stroll yesterday. It was to draw out those who were spying on him.

It was quite the astonishing stroll, to be honest. In just a short time, he discovered that the entire Luo Shui was crawling with Fang Zhiyong’s spies and intelligencers.

Unfortunately, they were useless to him. The fact that he discovered them so easily meant that they were just small fries, and small fries could only contact their superiors at best. He needed someone who had a direct link to Fang Zhiyong and reported to him directly.

That task would take almost half the day. In the end, he succeeded in identifying Spirit and his location through his own spies.

𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

To Spirit’s credit, he was extremely cautious. He changed his location and donned a new disguise every half an hour.

Sometimes he was an old man, sometimes he was a child, sometimes he was someone’s husband, and sometimes he was someone’s wife.

Long story short, it had taken him a lot of effort to locate the guy.

In fact, if not for the fact that he knew who he was looking for, it would have been rather difficult to capture Spirit in such a short time.

The search was the hard part. The capture part was easy. Spirit might be a Great Trueman, but he was nothing before Ye Qing. Ye Qing had captured Spirit practically the second he appeared in front of him.

From the beginning until the end, Spirit had never made a single move. He never even managed to react right until the point he was immobilized.

After that, it was simply a matter of contacting Fang Zhiyong.

Fang Zhiyong did not deign to answer. He skipped right over the topic and asked, “You said you have something to speak with me, but I believe we have already finished our discussion yesterday. Do you have a change of heart?”

Ye Qing chuckled. “No, I did not have a change of heart. It’s just that a better idea occurred to me.”

“Idea?” Fang Zhiyong’s voice was scornful and full of ridicule. “Whatever your idea is, I don’t think you have the right to negotiate with me.”

“Is that so?” Ye Qing countered with a smile that didn’t reach the eye. “I think I do though.”

Fang Zhiyong shook his head. “No, you do not. I think you forgot that your friends’ families and your Stranger friends are all in my hands right now. At any moment, I can make them wish they were dead. So no, you do not. You would not dare.”

Ye Qing did not get angry despite Fang Zhiyong’s threat. He said calmly, “Let me put it this way. I will make sure you regret everything if you dare to hurt even a hair on their person.”

“Will you? I don’t believe you though.” A hint of disdain and coldness peeked out of Fang Zhiyong’s eyes. “Hmm, I remember that Fang Xiaoman’s wife had just given birth to a son. He is not even a year old yet. He is a cute and healthy little guy, though he likes to cry far too much.”

“How about this? I’ll cut off his tongue and send it to you. I hope you’ll like my gift.”

“Haha.” Ye Qing let out a bright laugh, though it sounded strangely piercing and discomforting to Fang Zhiyong.

So, Fang Zhiyong asked, “Why are you laughing?”

Ye Qing answered, “Because I felt like it.”

Fang Zhiyong’s eyebrows arched a little. It was a sign that he was growing impatient and angry. It usually also meant that someone was about to pay the price. “And why do you feel like laughing?”

Ye Qing chuckled. “Because you—oh, not just you, but the entire Fang Clan—will be accompanying the hostages to the grave if you hurt them.”

“Are you delirious?” Fang Zhiyong looked like he just heard a joke. “And who will bury us? You? You didn’t even dare to come to the imperial capital, and you’re saying that you’re going to bury me, much less the Fang Clan?”

“I never said that, and I do not have the power. But Emperor Jing Run can!” Ye Qing smiled brightly at Fang Zhiyong.

“His Holiness[1]?” Fang Zhiyong narrowed his eyes slightly. “And why would His Holiness want to kill me? Wipe out the fang Clan?”

Ye Qing teased, “Because you are ruining the important mission he entrusted you with, duh! Have you ever heard of a servant who escaped his master’s wrath after ruining an important mission?”

Fang Zhiyong’s pupils abruptly contracted into pins, and the handkerchief in his hands disintegrated into dust. His expression remained perfectly calm though. “Is that so? Tell me then. What is this mission His Holiness had entrusted to me, and how am I ruining it?”

“I know you heard me the first time, you old fart.”

Ye Qing abruptly raised his voice and declared dramatically, “I’m talking about the Earthly Sovereign Bell, of course!”

“If you dare to harm even a hair on the hostages’ person, then that’s it. I will make sure that you and Emperor Jing Run will never set eyes on the Earthly Sovereign Bell ever again.”

1. Bootlicking technique, this. ☜