Chapter 245: They Are All My Beloved Friends and Brothers!
The next day, Bai Ming received the news that the goods had arrived safely.
With a heart unburdened, she had already donned her frog hat and was sitting in the office, eagerly waiting for Young Master Sang to arrive.
She was prepared.
This time, Young Master Sang might demand a lion’s share and make her lose a fortune.
Meanwhile, Young Master Sang was also mentally ready.
Thus, she had imagined a thousand different arguments in her mind to counter any outrageous demands from him.
Then, at the moment her door swung open—
“Bai!!! Brother!!!”
A shrill wail echoed through the hallway and office.
After a moment of shock and confusion, Bai Ming saw Young Master Sang stumbling in, wailing like a banshee.
Without a word, he clung to her leg and began to cry.
“It’s horrific! Truly horrific!”
Sniffling and tearing up, he lamented as if he could hardly breathe, “It’s just too tragic!”
“Uh, Young Master Sang, calm down, what’s so tragic—”
“My colleagues, they’re in a terrible state!”
Young Master Sang cried like a heartbroken woman, “Those bastards from the Holy Kingdom are too much! Without any reason, they beat our shipping brothers and sisters to a pulp, leaving them injured and helpless!”
“But those are my dear colleagues! We work together every day, clock in and out, have team lunches—no different from brothers!”
“They valiantly defended Brother Bai’s goods, fighting bravely with all they had, sacrificing their lives and blood to protect what belongs to you.”
“But my beloved friends and brothers were beaten like this! The pain they feel strikes at my heart!”
Seeing Young Master Sang’s tearful expression, Bai Ming went silent.
… No.
Did you think I didn’t see the injury reports from my subordinates?
I remember a few of them were severely injured.
But it’s not as bad as you’re saying, right? Most of them should be just fine!
Although she knew he was putting on a show, to soothe Young Master Sang’s emotions, Bai Ming could only helplessly play along and said solemnly:
“Brother Sang, I know your side has worked hard this time. Thanks to you, the goods reached safely, and the Demon Cult should take great credit. Don’t worry, our Floating Splendor Commerce will definitely not shortchange our brothers. We’ll cover all medical expenses for the injured!”
“Really?” Young Master Sang peeked up at her.
“What kind of person do you think I, Bai Ming, am? Why would I break my promise?” Bai Ming laughed heartily.
Young Master Sang sneaked another glance at her and continued clinging to her leg, wailing.
“Oh, no! Just the medical expenses won’t be enough!”
Bai Ming: “…”
“Some injuries may seem easy to treat, but they’ve actually ruined my brothers’ happiness for life!”
“For example, my best friend had his leg broken by those Holy Kingdom bastards! He hasn’t even married yet! How will he have kids in the future?”
Bai Ming: “?”
Wasn’t the leg that got broken the calf of his left leg?!
Do men in the Demon Cult give birth with their calves?
“And then, my second-best friend, to protect the goods, had two of his fingers chopped off by a sword!”
Young Master Sang mournfully exclaimed, “Those fingers were his most important lovers!”
Bai Ming: “??”
“After losing his beloved, my brother almost committed suicide on the spot, searching for death. We nearly had to fight to stop him from ending it all.” Young Master Sang continued to cry, “But he lost his beloved, and the psychological trauma he’ll bear for the rest of his life will be tremendous!”
“Thinking about how he’ll be left alone for the rest of his days, having no one to distract him from loneliness, just makes me… Ugh…”
… No.
Didn’t your brother just get the finger reattached after the fight?
Are you making excuses on the fly here?
Bai Ming twitched at the corner of her mouth but could only comfort him gently: “You brothers have worked hard. We won’t shortchange you. Every injured brother will receive a compensation package from Floating Splendor Commerce. We’ll be generous!”
Young Master Sang peered at her again.
“And my third-best brother twisted his ankle—”
“Money!”
“My fourth-best brother got an ingrown toenail—”
“Money, money!”
“My um, I don’t know how many brothers got carsick and threw up on the way—”
“Money…” Bai Ming nearly ground her teeth to dust.
The earlier excuses, while lacking, at least had some coherence. Young Master Sang at least knew how to pick an excuse.
But now things were getting ridiculous.
Listening to those IQ-insulting reasons, Bai Ming truly had no patience left and waved her hand grandly: “Let’s add an extra hundred thousand spirit stones bonus to each brother!”
Only then did Young Master Sang wipe his face with his sleeve, wrapping up his act.
His expression switched from woeful to victorious in an instant, seamlessly.
Bai Ming let out a sigh of relief and said, “Are you satisfied now, Brother Sang? Since you’re satisfied, let’s continue discussing—”
“Wait!”
Seeing Young Master Sang interrupt again, Bai Ming’s heart skipped a beat as she couldn’t help but ask, “You want more money?”
“Brother Bai understands that although this trip successfully delivered goods for Floating Splendor Commerce, we in the Demon Cult didn’t gain any benefit and actually suffered quite a loss.”
Young Master Sang’s expression suddenly grew serious as he softly continued, “Obviously, the Holy Kingdom’s stance is firmer than we anticipated.”
“We’re still new on the scene and don’t have the strength to withstand such challenges, so we must act cautiously. Otherwise, with one small mistake, our tiny vessel could be capsized by a behemoth like the Holy Kingdom.”
“So…”
“I ask Brother Bai to be honest with us and inform us of the reasons for the enmity between the commerce and the Holy Kingdom, so we have a better understanding.”
Young Master Sang bowed slowly.
Bai Ming fell silent, hesitating for a long while before gently sighing.
“To be honest with you, Brother Sang…”
“It’s not exactly enmity.”
“It’s just… our commerce has been pretty unlucky, caught in the crossfire and treated as target practice.”
Young Master Sang listened quietly.
“You should know, the Holy Kingdom has kept to itself for many years, never revealing itself in the immortal cultivation world.”
“And the sudden resurgence of their influence recently… is due to the ascension of the new emperor.”
“And it’s not like before.”
“The new emperor of the Holy Kingdom is a woman.” Bai Ming’s gaze turned serious.
“For our commerce, navigating among countless forces in the immortal cultivation world, the most crucial thing is intelligence.”
“Our Shadow Pavilion handles information flow throughout the entire immortal cultivation world.”
“Before this new emperor ascended, we got the news through Shadow Pavilion. We intended to seize the opportunity to curry favor with the Holy Kingdom, so I personally led the team to attend the emperor’s ascension ceremony.”
“That was my first time meeting that woman.”
As she said this, Bai Ming’s voice seemed to soften a bit.
It even carried a hint of fear.
“That woman who could instill such fear with just her gaze…”
“The current Empress, Huo Ningxue.”
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