Chapter 4062 — Ning Xuefei Arrives

"Oh? No time like the present—this shopkeeper has nothing pressing anyway, so why don't we go unwind together?" Si Haixiao's interest was instantly piqued, and he made the suggestion on the spot.

"Splendid, splendid. You've come all this way to us, Shopkeeper Si, and we brothers have yet to properly welcome you. This time it's on us—consider it our formal welcome." The two nodded eagerly in agreement.

To them, Si Haixiao was a fine patron to have, precisely the sort of man worth currying favor with. If this was the indulgence he favored, so much the better.

A few spirit jades, no more, to draw close to a man of such standing—it was an opportunity not to be missed, a bargain of bargains.

In the days since arriving on North Island, Si Haixiao had been occupied clearing out the influence left behind by his predecessor Hong Zhong. Pent up for so long, he was at the point where his passions could hardly be contained. The three of them were of one mind in an instant and set out together straight away.

North Island had no female cultivators to speak of, but the place Nan Tianba and Nan Tianguan took Si Haixiao was a cultivator village of the largest scale in the vicinity of the Three-Tier Pavilion. Its people were ordinary folk, much like the secular world, and it possessed every sort of pleasure house—taverns, brothels, gambling dens, all complete.

Cultivators were people too, with the seven passions and six desires. Beyond their pure cultivation they still had needs of every kind, and when they craved indulgence they would often come to the cultivator villages. The Nan brothers, for their part, had long been regulars here.

The five Cloud-Tier Islands shared but one common currency: spirit jade. And since this was, after all, a village of ordinary folk, even the finest brothel was a trifling expense to lofty cultivators—not worth mentioning at all.

For a mere few spirit jades one could effortlessly enjoy the finest courtesan, peerless in both beauty and talent. She might be only a common woman, not a lofty female cultivator, but where quality fell short, quantity could make up the difference—more than enough to let Si Haixiao indulge himself to the full.

While Si Haixiao and the Nan brothers were living it up in the cultivator village, Shangguan Lan'er, currently confined to her home by her grandfather Shangguan Tianhua, had finally received the guest she had been waiting for: her dearest friend Ning Xuefei, who had traveled a thousand li from West Island.

The two girls, meeting at last, both cheered and capered with delight, lending the normally tranquil Hualan Residence a touch of bright and lively spring.

Ning Xuefei and Han Jingyi were the kind of inseparable friends who shared every thought because their interests and inclinations aligned; with Shangguan Lan'er, it was because their temperaments were so alike—almost everything in the world was a topic they had in common.

"Come on, come on, little Lan'er, quick, tell me about the attempted rape! Oh, and the kidnapping too—you didn't explain any of it properly in your letter!" Ning Xuefei's eyes sparkled with excitement.

Even easygoing, scatterbrained Shangguan Lan'er could not help but darken at these words. Speechless, she said, "Feifei, you came all this way just to pry into that? Weren't you supposed to be here to comfort me? Boo-hoo, I'm heartbroken!"

"Oh, of course I came to comfort you, little Lan'er! But something this entertaining—as your best friend, aren't you going to share it with me properly? I'm only showing concern for you!" Ning Xuefei's eyes darted about as she made her shameless excuse.

"Fine, fine. Every time you come at me under the pretext of comforting me, and every time you rub salt in the wound. I surrender—you win!" Shangguan Lan'er had no choice but to give in helplessly.

Though she deliberately wore a sullen expression, it lasted only a moment before she could hold back her laughter no longer, and the two of them dissolved giggling into a tangled heap.

Pestered thus by Ning Xuefei, Shangguan Lan'er went over everything that had happened of late, telling her the whole tale in careful detail.

Ning Xuefei listened with gasps and clicks of wonder—Shangguan Lan'er's letter had been nowhere near this detailed. Especially when she heard how Little Bai had taken a pair of giant shears and snipped off Xu Lingchong's manhood with a snip, the two girls doubled over with laughter, thumbs raised high, praising Little Curly Bear again and again for its brilliance and capability.

Of the two recent events Shangguan Lan'er had lived through herself—the attempted rape by Xu Lingchong and the kidnapping a few days ago—every central figure besides herself was the same man: Wei Zhao.

"How does the name Wei Zhao sound so familiar?" After hearing it all, Ning Xuefei could not help scratching her head. She racked her brains for a long while before suddenly slapping her forehead. "That's right—I heard that name back on West Island!"

"Really?" Shangguan Lan'er was dumbstruck. She was very fond of her young junior brother, but Wei Zhao was, after all, a newcomer. It would be one thing if he had a bit of a name around the Three-Tier Pavilion on North Island, but for even Ning Xuefei, far away on West Island, to have heard of him—that seemed impossible, didn't it?

"It's true! I told you in a letter before—I have a good friend from the secular world named Han Jingyi, and she talks about Wei Zhao all the time. Only whether this Wei Zhao is the same one you're talking about, I couldn't say." Ning Xuefei tilted her head to one side.

"Huh? I remember my junior brother came from the secular world too. The Wei Zhao your friend talks about—could it really be the same person?" The more Shangguan Lan'er thought about it, the more likely it seemed, and she proposed with keen interest, "Why don't we go find my junior brother right now and ask him!"

"Heh heh, aren't you under house arrest by your grandfather right now, little Lan'er? How could you go out?" Ning Xuefei laughed.

"If it were just me, Grandfather definitely wouldn't let me leave the house. But now that you're here, Feifei, as your host I have to show you a proper good time, don't I? He's sure to agree!" Shangguan Lan'er said with complete confidence. These past days cooped up at home had bored her half to death, and she was eager for an excuse to slip out and play.

"All right. But before we go find that Wei Zhao, I'd like to stop by the Hong Merchant Guild first," Ning Xuefei said.

"What are you going to the Hong Merchant Guild for? To buy things? Didn't you just go to the auction on Far North Island?" Shangguan Lan'er asked, puzzled.

"No, I'm going to the Hong Merchant Guild to find a young clerk!" The corners of Ning Xuefei's mouth curved up slightly, like a little cat.

"Find a young clerk?" Shangguan Lan'er was all the more baffled. She looked Ning Xuefei up and down and asked curiously, "Which young clerk are you looking for, Feifei? And what for?"

"I won't tell you just yet—wait until we find him!" Ning Xuefei said mysteriously. "You'll know when the time comes. He has all sorts of wonderful things in his hands!"

"Keeping me in suspense again. Fine, then—I'll go tell Grandfather right now and get him to let us out to the Hong Merchant Guild!" Shangguan Lan'er decided enthusiastically. R1152

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