Cloud Building's top courtesan was indeed the cream of the crop; as soon as she formally appeared, she attracted everyone's attention. The crowd below the stairs all turned to gaze at the woman descending gracefully. She was truly a breathtaking beauty, even though she appeared slightly disheveled from her injuries.

Wu Jinliang secretly clicked his tongue—no wonder she was so expensive.

Shi Chun thought she looked quite appealing, but his mind was busy figuring out how to move the goods.

Bian Weikang, however, looked as though his eyes were about to burst from his socket. He clenched his fists in grief and indignation toward Feng Chi, "Did you hit her or not?"

Feng Chi, shaking his handkerchief calmly, replied, "She wouldn't listen, and insisted on going with you. I did it for her own good. But now that it's all in the past, Mr. Bian, if you feel that the harm done is unsatisfactory, you can refuse her and I can refund your money."

"You…" Bian Weikang trembled with anger, but was helpless and turned around, pushing past the obstructing crowd and rushed to embrace Xiang Laner, weeping with joy.

The verification of the fifty thousand units of Sandalwood Gold continued—after all, it wasn't a small sum.

This is the hassle with using hard currency; originally, transactions didn't need to be this troublesome with gold notes matching the face value. However, the Demon Path repeatedly cheated on this matter, and even went as far as producing exact counterfeits en masse, casting great upheaval in the Cultivation World; thus, trading reverted to hard currency until a solution was found.

Of course, large sums could still be resolved through respective banks, but that wasn't the current approach.

Fortunately, Cloud Building, lavish with money as it was, had its own artifact for verifying currency—a device resembling a funnel, which quickened the process.

Having explained the situation, Bian Weikang brought Xiang Laner to Shi Chun's side.

Shi Chun, having been through various experiences, had a delicate sense for unusual reactions. He faintly sensed that while Xiang Laner thanked him, her glances carried deep scrutiny, which made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

However, glancing at his own shabby appearance, he quickly let it go.

Once the Sandalwood Gold was counted and confirmed correct, Shi Chun immediately stretched out his hand towards Feng Chi, "Where's Miss Xiang's deed of sale?"

If she wouldn't give it to him, preferring to hand it to either Xiang Laner or Bian Weikang, then he would mention the matter of the loan of fifty thousand gold and suggest temporarily holding the deed.

In any case, he was determined to secure the deed, not allowing his fifty thousand gold to vanish into thin air.

Fortunately, the reputation of Bowan Building was solid enough; amidst the watchful eyes with Bowan Building's people present, Feng Chi didn't overthink and reached into her sleeve to pull out the already prepared deed of sale.

Shi Chun grabbed it swiftly without even looking at it, then turned to Bian Weikang, "Do you have a place to stay?"

He wasn't the least bit worried about the authenticity of the deed; with so many witnesses around, it wouldn't make sense to forge it.

Still overwhelmed with emotions, Bian Weikang didn't think much and nodded repeatedly, "There is one."

Shi Chun said, "Let's go; I'll take you both there."

Bian Weikang nodded gratefully.

As the group turned to leave, Feng Chi called out, "Laner, are you really leaving just like that? Over these years, I haven't treated you badly, have I? You don't hold a grudge against me, do you?"

Xiang Laner stopped and turned, slightly bowing in respect without a word, giving the other party a mutually understood glance before resolutely following Bian Weikang, showing no signs of attachment to this place.

Bian Weikang was quite concerned about her, not wanting her to be ogled like a monkey, and so he took off his coat and draped it over her head.

As they pushed through the crowd, Shi Chun took advantage of the commotion to slip the deed of sale into Wu Jinliang's hands.

Wu Jinliang smoothly pocketed it, their coordinated act going unnoticed—a trick clearly not their first.

After they walked out from the crowd of onlookers, he spoke, "Chun Tian, this ragged look is too conspicuous. I'm going to buy some clothes. You tell me where you are, and I'll find you later."

Bian Weikang promptly pointed in a direction, "That way, to Wuyou Inn. Just report my name, and you'll find us."

"Got it." Wu Jinliang chuckled and grabbed Dong by the arm, dragging him away, "You know this place; lead the way."

Da Shitou felt something was amiss. Another hand clapped on his shoulder—it was Che Si, pulling him aside to ask what was happening.

He didn't ask much else, just inquired about the situation.

Da Shitou wasn't quite sure either; he was new at Bowan Building, had a lot to learn, and hadn't yet focused on matters of love and romance.

Later, they simply stopped a passerby who was also there for the spectacle, clarified what happened, and Che Si's face turned green with realization given Bian Weikang's circumstances—feeling the forty thousand gold was down the drain.

Che Si was deeply regretful for not clarifying the situation, having botched the task Miss Miao had assigned him. But who could have predicted such an outrageous act? Now asking the Cloud Building to refund the money seemed highly unlikely.

He had lost interest in following any further and urgently returned to inform Miss Miao, letting her decide for herself.

Da Shitou was also very suspicious, why was the Master so confident that Bian Weikang could pay back double the money?

He was secretly relieved that he hadn't taken the risk, yet puzzled, as the Master was not one to throw so much money around without understanding the situation.

The crowd watching the excitement had dispersed. Feng Chi, standing on the steps, had not gone inside for a long time. There were hardly any customers in the midday heat, and she kept watching the departing figures.

Despite the unexpected setbacks, the plot to tightly trap Bian Weikang with a tragic play had been dismantled before it could even unfold, but the main direction hadn't changed.

She beckoned to her subordinate, a pockmarked, numb-faced attendant came to her side, and she whispered instructions, "Find out his background, see where he comes from."

The attendant left without a word.

Regarding his own background, Shi Chun had not concealed much during the journey's casual conversations. When Bian Weikang and Xiang Laner asked, he revealed that he had just been released from the Land of Exile.

It wasn't that he wanted to be honest but aware that he couldn't hide it, knowing that Wukang Mountain would probably not easily accept someone with an unclear background.

The surprised couple instinctively turned back to look at Da Shitou following behind, clearly puzzled. Since when had someone from the Land of Exile become so upscale, able to have company from the Bowan Building?

Bian Weikang was somewhat better as he had seen Shi Chun's recklessness earlier, either shouting about killing people or smashing the Cloud Building.

Xiang Laner, however, found it hard to believe. How could this gentle and polite-looking person be from such a rude place?

Shi Chun noticed their confusion and explained, "Didn't you see he's also quite dark-skinned? He got out just a month or two before us. We used to scramble for food together, he was lucky to have entered the Bowan Building, knew we got out, and came to catch up."

The couple then somewhat believed him, but still curious, how could someone from the Land of Exile have such grandeur and capacity?

Wuyou Inn was a good place, a high-end inn set on a cliffside, offering a great view of the canyon. Bian Weikang usually stayed here, as Feng Chi put it, sponsored by Xiang Laner.

On the winding stone steps, just arriving at the entrance of Wuyou Inn, Wu Jinliang rushed in rapidly, followed closely by Dong.

At this moment, Wu Jinliang seemed like a different person, having bought a snowy white outfit that really suited his bushy eyebrows and large eyes, contrasting with his dark skin, which could make anyone recognize the refreshing shock, especially while carrying a large black sword.

Preposterously, Wu Jinliang happily asked everyone, "How's this outfit I picked?"

"Not bad at all, brother has a good taste," Bian Weikang complimented genuinely and couldn't help but exchange a look with Xiang Laner. With such aesthetics, they were convinced that he was indeed a brave man from the Land of Exile.

"What do you think, how's the outfit?" Wu Jinliang continued circling Shi Chun and, while avoiding others' gaze, stuffed a folded piece of paper into Shi Chun's ragged clothes.

He had purchased only one outfit; he was in a rush and didn't know the size of Shi Chun's clothes from their time at the Land of Exile.

"The outfit's nice, the man not so much," Shi Chun casually commented.

Afterward, it was about finishing what he started and seeing it through to the end.

Upon entering Wuyou Inn, at the door of Bian Weikang's room, Shi Chun stopped, unwilling to go further, indicating his dirty clothes, and self-mockingly said, "We're dirty, better not go in."

"You're not dirty at all," Bian Weikang hurriedly indicated otherwise, eagerly inviting him in, "Brother Shi…"

Every time he addressed him thus, he paused momentarily, still somewhat unaccustomed, finding this brother's surname truly remarkable—that being polite could take advantage of anyone.

Shi Chun seriously raised his hand to stop him, "Just recognizing the place is enough, we won't disturb your loving time. We still have to visit some friends. See you later. Oh…" He seemed to remember something and pulled out the indenture contract from his body.

He opened it on the spot, ignoring the fresh ink and numerous bright red fingerprints, and looked directly at the contents about borrowing money for his father's medical treatment, selling himself for thirty years. As long as he was not dead or disabled, he had to obey during the indenture period, and the terms could be transferred, etc.

He couldn't help but look towards Xiang Laner, "So, it was to treat your father that you sold yourself to the Cloud Building!"

Xiang Laner nodded sadly.

Shi Chun then looked at the indenture and said, "Thirty years, almost ten years left…" Ripping the contract into shreds, turning it into a ball, not even letting the others see, he used magic to crush it completely and tossed it away, dusting off his hands, "There, Miss Xiang, you're free from now on."

Dong beside them twitched as he watched; he had personally seen Wu Jinliang forge the indenture, and it was so obviously fake, with Wu Jinliang's own sloppy handwriting and his fingerprints, a forgery so blatant that no one outside of Life Prison could have done such a rough job.

If this indenture could have been real, he would have gouged his own eyes out.

With his knowledge of these two men, it was clear they were up to no good.

He thought it over and could only see one possibility: they were overtly generous, and once the other party could not repay the money, they would use the indenture to threaten.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.