Volume Two: Winds Rise in Anxi Prefecture Chapter 162: Adults Do Not Hold Grudges Against Little Puppies

Although the process had its twists and turns, the matter was finally settled.

Gazing in the direction where Lu Jiuzhang had left, Zhao Yuru sat on the edge of the bed, his image lingering continuously in her mind.

She looked down at the men's clothing she was wearing. For some reason, clothes that she had once loved so dearly now stirred a faint sense of weariness within her.

Stepping barefoot onto the floor, Zhao Yuru rummaged through the bottom of a chest and pulled out a wrinkled dress, slipping it onto her body.

She also tried to coil her hair into a bun like other women did.

However, she had far too few cosmetics and ornaments for styling, and she always felt something was missing.

Putting on a pair of shoes and wearing the dress, Zhao Yuru walked out of the room.

There were quite a few servants coming and going outside the door, and it was not long before one of them noticed Zhao Yuru's attire.

Even in the wrinkled dress, in the eyes of these servants, Manager Zhao looked as beautiful as a celestial maiden.

"Gulp..."

A servant swallowed hard.

"What are you all staring at? Don't you have work to do?"

Zhao Yuru said coldly.

Right, she still had that ice-cold temper. The servants hurriedly lowered their heads and scurried off to attend to their duties.

...

In the courtyard, Lu Jiuzhang had gone out at noon and did not return until dusk.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, the large black dog trotted over.

During the day when Lu Jiuzhang left, there hadn't been a sign of the big black dog, but now it had reappeared. Who knew where it had been hanging out? Could it have gone looking for a female dog?

"Master Jiu, something's off about you."

As it approached Lu Jiuzhang, the large black dog suddenly said, "You smell like a woman. Did you go fooling around in some pleasure quarter?"

Before Lu Jiuzhang could answer, the big black dog continued, "If you ask me, it's fine that you didn't take me along, and this divine beast won't say much about it. But who goes carousing in a pleasure quarter in broad daylight anywhere in Anxi Prefecture?"

"You go under the cover of night, listen to tunes at a brothel, accompanied by fine wine and beautiful women—how wonderful is that?"

Lu Jiuzhang struck the big black dog's back with a fist.

"Bang!"

With a loud crash,

the large black dog was sent flying several yards away.

Yet it seemed completely unharmed, trotting back over once more and saying indignantly, "Master Jiu, I only said a couple of things. Did you have to resort to violence?"

Lu Jiuzhang was astonished. How long had it been? The big black dog's defense had grown stronger once again.

If he didn't use the Frost-Sky Blade, Lu Jiuzhang reckoned he still wouldn't be able to pierce its defense at this moment.

"You're the one who talks too much. I was busy with proper business this afternoon and didn't go to any pleasure quarters," Lu Jiuzhang explained.

"You didn't?" The big black dog sniffed again. "It seems you really didn't; you don't carry the heavy scent of rouge and powder. But a woman's scent is definitely there—my nose never lies."

"Could you have hooked up with some respectable woman?" the big black dog asked.

"Your tongue is getting a bit too long," Lu Jiuzhang said with a dark face. He drew the Frost-Sky Blade from his waist and laid it against the big black dog's neck. "My fists might not break through your defense, but this blade just might. Would you care to try?"

"Don't, don't! People will die... No, dogs will die."

The large black dog backed away repeatedly, a ingratiating smile plastered across its canine face. "Master Jiu, it's my fault, it's all my fault. A magnanimous man doesn't remember the faults of a petty dog."

Hearing the plea for mercy, Lu Jiuzhang finally lowered the blade in his hand.

"What were you up to at noon?" Lu Jiuzhang asked. "You didn't go out to frolic with female dogs, did you?"

"Of course not! Master Jiu, you're smearing this dog's innocence out of thin air. You still haven't cleared up the woman's scent on yourself, so how can you pin that on me?" the big black dog complained indignantly. "Didn't you tell me to tail that bandit leader and find out who he was meeting with?"

The big black dog lowered its voice. "And I actually saw it. The person he met with was a ninth-rank martial artist. That fellow was extremely cautious, and I almost got spotted, but who does this divine beast think it is?"

"Right at that critical moment, I hid right beside a female dog and put on a disguise to avoid his notice."

Lu Jiuzhang remarked, "So there were female dogs involved after all. You're just sophistocating."

"Master Jiu, you can't play it like that. Wasn't I just worried about being discovered by the other party?" the big black dog explained.

"Hahaha, I'm just teasing you. Let's talk business," Lu Jiuzhang said. "Where does that person live, and what do they look like?"

"He's staying at an inn about two hundred yards from here. As for what he looks like, even if you ask me to describe him, I can't, but if I see him again, I'll definitely recognize him," the big black dog said.

"I'll give you another task: find a way to keep an eye on that martial artist and see who else he meets with," Lu Jiuzhang instructed.

It was possible to use this method to thoroughly uncover the mastermind behind the scenes.

Even if they couldn't uncover the whole thing, there was a high chance they could catch a big fish.

"Rest assured, Master Jiu. When a task is placed in my hands, nothing ever goes wrong," the big black dog said confidently.

"All right, go ahead and investigate at your own pace. I've been tired all day, so I'm going back to get some rest."

Lu Jiuzhang rubbed his stomach. Actually, he wasn't really tired; it was mostly because he had eaten and drunk too much good food while being detained that afternoon, and his stomach was still feeling stuffed.

He would go back and lie down for a while to rest.

...

Once Lu Jiuzhang went into his room to rest, the big black dog quietly sauntered over to Bai Xiaosu's side.

"Little Sister Bai, Master Jiu went out to fool around," the big black dog gossiped.

"Fool around?" Bai Xiaosu didn't understand for a moment.

"It means engaging in improper activities with a woman," the big black dog explained.

"Oh, oh. With whom?" Bai Xiaosu asked.

"Hold on, Little Sister Bai, can't you show a look of surprise and curiosity? Your expression being so bland makes me lack any sense of achievement," the big black dog said, speechless.

"Who is it?" Bai Xiaosu asked, her eyes widening.

"I told you to look surprised and curious, not just goggle your eyes," the big black dog sighed inwardly. "Forget it, I'll just tell you straight. Didn't someone from the Thousand-Machinery Pavilion keep coming over the last couple of days? That woman dressed as a man—they seem to call her Manager Zhao."

"But I'm quite curious myself, since when did Master Jiu take a liking to that type?"

"If you ask me, Little Sister Chan'er is the ideal of the mortal world."

The big black dog smacked its lips. "If it weren't for her being saddled with a mother like that, I'd even want to urge Master Jiu to marry Chan'er."

"Little Sister Chan'er is the ideal of the mortal world, then what about me, Blackie?" Bai Xiaosu asked.

"You..."

The big black dog dismissed her with disdain. "You do have a pretty little face, but being pretty is useless these days. You need to know how to be frugal and manage a household, you need to know how to do laundry and cook, you need to..."

Upon hearing the words "cook," Bai Xiaosu felt a primal wave of fear.

Is being the ideal of the mortal world really this difficult?

You even have to cook!

"Master Jiu, I don't want to be the ideal of the mortal world anymore. It's too tiring. I'd rather just diligently cultivate the martial way," Bai Xiaosu shook her head and said.

"You have no ambition. What's so hard about cooking? I'm a divine beast; otherwise, I would have learned how to cook long ago," the big black dog criticized.

"Then Blackie, why don't you learn how to cook from now on? You can be the ideal of the mortal world instead?" Bai Xiaosu suggested.

"Pfft..."

The big black dog was almost so angry it spat a mouthful of old blood.

This Little Sister Bai could literally infuriate a person to death.