Today's first update.

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  Where is everyone going?

  Mozhī was very interested in that place. Although Luozhou, as the richest state of Dazhou, had many people from Shangdu coming and going, opportunities to dine with people from Shangdu were not common, especially when she wanted to gather information. So, her eyes looked outside while her ears perked up, wanting to hear if there was any gossip about Jingwangfu.

  "You'll know when you get there." Mingming could have gone on and on, but Erlang ended it with just eight words.

  Purple eyes staring, unfortunately no one can see it.

  "How can I go? My mother won't let me." said Eleventh Miss with a huff.

  "It's not that I don't let you, Mother is worried that you're still young." Miss Liu's words were always just right, making her seem gentle and refined.

  "I'm almost thirteen years old, am I still young? My older sister got married at sixteen." Miss Eleven continued to pout.

  "I'm telling you, Eleventh Sister, you're not even thirteen yet and you're already thinking about getting married? Let's not talk about age, at least wait until your three older sisters get married before it's your turn. So if we go to the capital, Sixth Sister will go first. When she helps find a husband for you, then you can stay as long as you want." The smiling man seemed to be the oldest of the four siblings.

  "Third brother, don't talk nonsense, mother hasn't made a decision yet. And this is a family matter, don't take it outside." Sixth Miss's tone was somewhat embarrassed and annoyed.

  "What's the fear? Liu Mei is a stunning beauty, and even if she were to be called the number one beauty in Luozhou, she would live up to it. I think that only the son of the king and queen of Shangdu can match her." The third young master continued to pull people over to help him, "Second Brother, what do you think?"

  The second son did not make a sound.

  There might be an expression, but Mu Zi couldn't see it clearly.

  "Third Brother!" Miss Six was truly angry now. "If you continue to spout nonsense and ruin my reputation, I'll go back and tell Mother right away."

  Mozi didn't think much of Liu's conservatism, but when she heard that Liu was known as the number one beauty in Luozhou, she strongly disagreed. Previously, Mozi had taken a close look and thought that although Liu looked okay, she couldn't compare to Qiu San Niang, at most she was just a dignified and elegant lady from a good family, with a conservative and uninteresting personality. This might be because she followed an unconventional master and had an unconventional relationship herself, so her perspective was different from the masses.

  "Alright, alright, I won't say it anymore. I'm praising you, but you're still not pleased." The Third Master continued to smile.

  The door opened and the two men in white clothes brought up the dishes from just now.

  "Will the war in the north have an impact on Luozhou?" It was Zhong An's voice.

  "There wasn't before. But recently, the Pan County side has been quite unstable." You Qi Gongzi said, "Not only are there twice as many soldiers guarding the city as usual, but they are also more severe with passing merchants than before. They not only check the travel documents, but also interrogate and inspect goods. If anything is slightly off, they won't let people leave or enter. I later heard that it's because they're afraid of Da Qiu's spies sneaking into our Great Zhou through Nan De."

  "It's not just that we're afraid of the big demand having unusual movements. From Pan County to Chuanjiang, and then to the borders of Nande, the guards are also checking very strictly. I personally saw several carts of iron tools being refused entry because they were suspected of supplying them to Dagu. In the past, there was no need for a permit, just paying some silver would allow merchants to pass. Now, permits are required, and you even need to have a guarantor in Nande, it's simply frustrating. The Third Master said as much, his voice rising towards the end, "Father is considering whether to withdraw from the business in Nande, so as not to be affected by the war."

  "You don't have to worry too much. Nande and Dazhou have always been on good terms, now it's just a precaution against Daqiu's wild ambitions. And even if Daqiu can swallow the tiny country of Yulin, he wouldn't dare offend Dazhou."

  "That's natural, our Great Zhou has vast territory, strong army and horses, can conquer both land and water, what's to fear from the northern barbarians?" The Third Young Master has many shortcomings, but his pride as a Great Zhou person can be considered an advantage.

  "Although Yuling is a small country, its territory has steep rivers and cliffs on three sides. How did Dasu break through the country, and to this day, no one knows the reason. This makes both our Zhou and South De anxious, because our borders are adjacent to Yuling's river, and Dasu can lead his army into Yuling, it's possible that we will soon be at war with their navy. As expected, the waterway near Luozhou has not been as smooth as before." A strange voice, loud and hoarse.

  Mozi knew he should be another person behind Erlang's back.

  "Hua Lao said it right. Except for our Qi Xian Gorge, the river surface to Qin Mu Ridge has been frequently lined up with warships from both countries, not allowing any civilian ships to pass through, fearing that Da Ju's ships would sneak in. The waterway is blocked, and the land route is difficult to travel, causing the prices of specialty products from both countries to rise several times. It's a pity that Wen Di's restrictions prevent us from making a big profit." San Gongzi sighed with regret.

  Suddenly a low laugh was heard in Mozi's ears. It was unknown who it was, but it seemed to be mocking someone's vulgarity. However, the one sitting closest to her behind the screen was Er Lang from that family.

  "So you're saying that it's completely impossible to enter South De from the water route?" Zhong An asked.

  "It should be impossible." The third young master replied quite affirmatively, "If I could travel by water, would I still be staying at home?"

  "That's not necessarily true." Qi Gongzi's voice became mysterious, "In the early years, I heard people mention that there were private ships passing through Jingyu Beach, and they didn't even need to spend money on customs duties. They specialized in buying and selling goods that were prohibited from trade between the two countries."

  "Preposterous! Utter nonsense! Fish drowning on the beach of a dried-up river. The place has steep cliffs on both sides, rapid currents, and rocks covering the riverbed, with no signs of human habitation for hundreds of miles." The Third Master retorted loudly.

  "So, that place is also called White Bone Beach. Few people get rich, but many die in shipwrecks and sink to the bottom, turning into fierce ghosts that won't let the living come ashore. The flesh and blood at the bottom of the river grow into ten miles of reeds with poisonous thorns; even if you can get close to the shore, you still can't find your way out of the reed marsh."

  Mozi was pouring tea when she heard Seventh Young Master speaking ominously, mentioning fierce ghosts and poisonous reeds. She spat out half a mouthful of tea. Fortunately, Eleventh Miss suddenly cried out in surprise, and it seemed no one had noticed her.

  "Brothers, you're so boring. Talking about war is already uninteresting, and yet you bring up such scary ghost stories. Stop it quickly, it's frightening people to the point of being terrified, Sixth Sister's face has turned white."

  Under Miss Eleven's firm opposition, the men stopped discussing current events and instead considered whether to find a few Ge Qiu who were good at singing and dancing.

  That side has not been settled yet, but this side is already open.

  "Mo Ge, sorry to keep you waiting." The real Er Lang, Cen's Er Lang came in, "A simple account can't be figured out, mysteriously short of 3,000 taels, and scared out a cold sweat."

  "Look at all these people behind the screen. After a moment of stunned silence, someone asked, "Mo Ge, you brought guests here, why did you order a bowl of Yang Chun noodles for yourself?"

  "Help you save a few taels of silver from that account."

  "Mo Ge also underestimated me. Three thousand taels of silver, I couldn't hide it even if I wanted to. One meal, and you're just in charge of calling for good wine and good dishes, are you afraid I won't be able to afford it?" Cen Er Lang handed over a stack of account books, "Since you've come, it saves me from having to make a trip. Help me take a look at whether the silver is in its place or not. Where's the three thousand taels?!"

  "I won't look. You can't even settle 3,000 taels, how dare you take charge of the account room? I've already told your father, today I'm not looking at the accounts." Mozi stood up and pulled Cen Erlang out while walking, "Let's talk as we walk."

  The door closed quietly.

  "It turned out to be someone from the Dong family of Wang Qiulou, no wonder one person occupied such a large private room, with an air of self-satisfaction." Zhong An said it was no wonder.

  "At most, he's just a housekeeper." The third young master thought he wasn't wrong in his judgment.

  That Second Lang glanced over faintly, the leisurely shadow behind the screen was no longer there, but the tea fragrance could still be smelled. A pair of ink jade eyes flashed and then hid.

  All is calm and peaceful.