Han Jiuqiu’s whole body tensed with anger. He thought to himself: I’ve already lowered my guard and offered a firm price, but this fat man still dares to haggle? If word gets out, it will completely humiliate the kidnappers of the Northern Dynasty! How will I explain this to Qiu Fuchun when I go back?

  With that thought, he gritted his teeth and refused to budge, his tone firm with no room for negotiation: "No way! I said a firm price, and there’s no haggling. Not a single coin less!"

  But the fat lord wasn’t the least bit annoyed. He still wore a warm smile on his face, bowed his head again, and started clicking the abacus furiously. His fingers fluttered, making crisp sounds as the golden beads collided. He muttered to himself, as if carefully counting his family’s assets or figuring out something.

  For a moment, the only sound in the courtyard was the clacking of the abacus. One insisted on a firm price, refusing to give in; the other insisted on a discount, refusing to compromise. They were at a stalemate, yet there was no hint of hostility between them.

  In the end, the fat lord looked as if he had exhausted all his strength. He wore a tragic expression one moment, as if he had made a great sacrifice; a resolute look the next, as if his bottom line could not be broken; and then a look of righteous anger, complaining about the hardships of supporting his family and the difficulties of his clan. His rich and sincere expressions actually moved Han Jiuqiu, who was already a bit soft-hearted.

  Watching him, Han Jiuqiu’s stubbornness gradually faded. He finally softened and gave in: "Fine, fine! I’m really afraid of you! As I said, we’ll settle for 20% off my firm price! Not a single coin less, and that’s final!"

  "A happy deal! A happy deal!" As soon as he heard this, the fat lord’s face lit up with joy. The tragedy, resolve, and anger on his face disappeared without a trace, replaced by full joy and pride. He quickly cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for your kindness, brave one! Thank you for your kindness!"

  "Now that we’ve agreed on the price, shouldn’t you show me some tokens or evidence? I need to verify them to make sure my daughter is safe and sound, so I can feel at ease preparing the money." The fat lord rubbed his hands together, his eyes full of anticipation, his tone even more respectful.

  "Naturally." Hearing this, Han Jiuqiu finally regained some of his professionalism as a kidnapper. He straightened his back, pulled out the prepared token and letter from his arms, and handed them over, putting on a tough face to hide his embarrassment.

  The light was dim at night. The fat lord squinted, holding the token and letter, and stared at them for a long time, but he couldn’t make out the words on the letter. He had to weigh the token in his hand and rubbed it carefully to confirm it was his daughter’s belongings. Then he nodded in satisfaction, his smile growing wider.

  He looked up at Han Jiuqiu and asked sincerely: "When do you plan to make the transaction? I’ll give you three days to prepare the money—is that okay? Will three days be enough?"

  Han Jiuqiu sneered, his face full of disdain, his tone deliberately arrogant: "Why do you need three days to prepare such a small amount of money? With the He family’s wealth, you can get it right away! Could it be that you’re deliberately stalling for time, trying to play some tricks?"

  As soon as he finished speaking, Han Jiuqiu felt a sweet taste in his throat, and a wave of fishy sweetness surged up. He suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, then quickly lowered his head, pretending to spit, and wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve to cover up his gaffe.

  He sighed silently in his heart: Merchants in the Southern Dynasty are really rich! They can take out a huge ransom casually and haggle without changing their expressions. Even high-ranking officials in the Northern Dynasty may not have such confidence.

  Looking at the colorful lights in the courtyard and listening to the melodious music in his ears, a sense of melancholy and envy welled up in his heart—what if he was lucky enough to be born in the Southern Dynasty? Or find a partner from the Southern Dynasty, stay with her for a lifetime, and live such a wealthy life in peace and stability. It would be much more comfortable than fighting for power and high positions in the Northern Dynasty! What’s the use of power? In the end, it’s all to fill one’s own pockets and live a good life.

  An indescribable inferiority quietly crept into his heart. He finally had to admit that in the face of the golden wealth of the Southern Dynasty, his so-called "ambitions" seemed trivial and even ridiculous.

  "But... you might not have enough time to prepare the money." Han Jiuqiu calmed down, suppressed the fishy sweetness in his throat, and his tone returned to calm. "According to our rules, it’s cash on delivery. Please take good care of my ‘little girl’—don’t let anything go wrong."

  "Half a day! Half a day is enough!" The fat lord quickly said, fearing that Han Jiuqiu would go back on his word.

  Han Jiuqiu patted his chest and agreed boldly: "Good! Half a day it is! After lunch tomorrow, we’ll do cash on delivery. I won’t delay for a moment—you’ll definitely see your daughter then!"

  "Really?" The fat lord was stunned, his face showing surprise and a hint of worry. "Then including tonight and last night, it’s less than three nights total. Can you... can you do it? Won’t there be any mistakes?"

  "Don’t worry, it’s settled! I keep my word!" Han Jiuqiu waved his hand, his tone firm, but his heart was already in chaos.

  "That’s it, I take my leave!"

  As soon as he finished speaking, Han Jiuqiu did a backflip, showing off his coolest flying technique. His robe fluttered, and his posture was graceful and unrestrained, trying to put on a sleek and neat kidnapper demeanor. But unfortunately, it was a dark and windy night, and the light in the courtyard was dim. No audience could see his elegant appearance, and he couldn’t see the way he came, let alone the direction of the cave.

  Last night, he had casually found a cave to stay in, and he hadn’t paid attention to the road signs when he went out today. Now it was another moonlit and dark night—how could he find Qiu Fuchun and Miss He? Pisha City was huge, and the crowd was vast. He couldn’t even tell the direction, which was harder than climbing to the sky.

  Helpless, he had to sneak back into the He Mansion again, thinking that he would look carefully after dawn. Maybe he could see the terrain clearly, find his way back, and find Qiu Fuchun.

  What’s more, the characters in Pisha City were twisted and weird, hard to recognize. He often couldn’t remember which city gate he had walked through; besides, the city was round, with crisscrossing streets and alleys, making it impossible to tell east from west. It was even harder to find the cave by himself.

  Forget it, there’s no use thinking too much. Why bother with directions? First, I’ll have a drink to calm my nerves and relieve the panic and irritability in my heart.

  Han Jiuqiu quietly sat back in his empty seat at the feast. He saw that the bowls and chopsticks in front of him were all silver, exquisite and luxurious, and the wine glass was filled with amber-colored fine wine, fragrant. He picked up the wine glass and took a sip, but suddenly remembered that he was still wearing his "Ghost Face Sheng" mask. He quickly took off the mask secretly, threw it under the table, and stepped on it to hide it, for fear of being discovered.

  Just then, the music at the feast suddenly stopped. From the depths of the lights, a fat middle-aged man walked quickly over—it was the He Lord who had negotiated the ransom with him earlier. At this moment, he was covered in sweat, his clothes soaked through, obviously having run back in a hurry. He was holding a brocade bag tightly in his hand, his face full of joy and eagerness.

  "Celebrate with me, everyone! Celebrate with me!" Lord He held up the brocade bag in his hand and shouted loudly to everyone, his face glowing with excitement. "A friend from the road came to negotiate just now, and he also brought my daughter’s token—look!"

  As he spoke, he excitedly opened the brocade bag and revealed the token inside—it was the one Han Jiuqiu had given him earlier. Seeing this, everyone stood up and cupped their hands to congratulate him: "Congratulations, Lord He! Congratulations on retrieving your beloved daughter! Celebrate with you!"

  But among the crowd, two thin, sharp-faced old men showed obvious envy on their faces, but their mouths were full of disdain. They even quietly spat on the ground and muttered in low voices.

  "What a show-off! It’s just retrieving his daughter, so vulgar!"

  "Lucky him, the He family hit the ‘double jackpot’! Unlike our useless daughter—she’s been married for so long, and we haven’t even seen a sign of her. What a waste of raising her!"

  Han Jiuqiu was confused, full of doubts in his heart—what was a "double jackpot"? What was a "useless daughter"? And the things they muttered later, like "failed to borrow seed" and "no movement", made him even more confused. He couldn’t understand what these words meant at all.

  Suddenly, it was like a bolt of lightning struck him. He froze in place, his mind roaring, and suddenly understood all the strangeness!

  Why was Miss He so proactive last night—taking off her clothes and seducing him, without any timidity or resistance of a hostage? It turned out that this was not an accident at all, but an unspoken rule in the Southern Dynasty! It was a trap they had long planned, waiting for him and Qiu Fuchun to take the bait!

  How sinister! Han Jiuqiu trembled with anger, feeling both angry and regretful. He regretted being so slow-witted, only realizing the truth now, and regretted falling into their trap so easily.