Mozi couldn't help but admit that this second son was a clever man. He had just said those words about having acquaintances in Yunzhou, whether true or false, and actually didn't mean to investigate, but only wanted to bring out her selfish nature. So, he finally said, "You're right." Last time, Cen Er was present, if she had agreed, the silver would have belonged to the East House of Wang Qiulou. But today, there was only one person. Therefore, his next promise of benefits, as long as she was willing, could be pocketed by herself. And his following words further confirmed her conjecture.

  "I guarantee, no one will know it was you who said it. As for the authorities, don't worry that we'll go and inform on you. I'm not capable of crossing the river with a warrant, what does that mean, you should understand very well. Two hundred taels, to buy a word from you, and it won't harm you in the least. I see no reason for such a simple transaction to require hesitation." Suddenly Erlang's words became more numerous.

  "Who knows, maybe you're an official spy, pretending to cross the river but actually planning to rob our old nest." Espionage was not unfamiliar to Mozi. During exercises, this kind of infiltration tactic was not uncommon.

  Without waiting for Er Lang to speak, Zhong An chuckled and said, "Young brother, you still say you don't know?" Got caught red-handed.

  In this era without recording technology, Mozi was not afraid. "What if you know? You can't send me to the officials because of this. Once on trial, I'll deny it after all, and even if you all serve as witnesses, there's still a lack of physical evidence."

  "I swear on my grandfather's name that this matter will not involve the authorities." Er Lang's expression turned serious, his sword-like eyebrows furrowed into an even more solemn "川" shape.

  I swear on my own life—

  Purple ink is confused again. Who? Who vowed in her past? Why heartache? Why indignation? Why want to cry?

  "I never believe in oaths because oaths are made to be broken." A classic line from a thousand years later, she said it unconsciously, but it sounds so heavy.

  "What a guy!" The sturdy man, as hard as stone, burst out again. "Do you know who his grandfather is? Can he casually make an oath? Moreover, our iron-clad men are straightforward, what we say is what we mean. Besides, to smuggle goods, one needs to have some guts, not being timid and secretive like a woman. Let me tell you, what really takes courage is going into battle and killing the enemy. Dying, damn it, that's the most exhilarating thing."

  "Shi Kui!" Erlang called out the strong man's name, which sounded rather lacking in weight.

  But Shi Ke immediately fell silent.

  "So, what should we do to make you feel at ease?" Er Lang's gaze was fixed on each of Mozi's expressions.

  Mei Zi appeared unflappable, but was inwardly shaken by Shi Ke's words. What were the identities of these three people? Could it be that they were military personnel?

  "Little brother, I think you have some great knowledge. Whether we cross the river or not, I don't believe you can't be certain." The one speaking in a pleasant tone was the elegant and refined Zhong An.

  "What's the point of being certain anyway? I trust another person's judgment more than my own." They were really going to cross the river, but she had to verify, "Mortgage."

  "Mortgage?" Zhong An wanted her to explain more clearly. But before he could speak, he saw Er Lang take out something from his pocket and put it on the table. This thing made him stare with wide eyes.

  "Keep it safe, I'll come back for it later. But if there's even a hint of damage..." Erlang hummed coldly, "Believe me, your life won't be enough to make up for it."

  "How can this be used as collateral so casually?" Zhong An knew that their matter was urgent and there was no more time to waste, but...

  Shi Ke hummed a low growl, just like Zhong An, he knew the value of things and didn't agree to pawn it to that crafty fellow.

  "I've already made up my mind, there's no need for you two to say any more." However, this person's words were not something that could be easily refuted.

  Her purple eyes turned slightly to the left and right, taking in the abnormalities of both Zhong An and Shi Wei. What's different about them? From her perspective, it was just a piece of iron with a square shape, stuck to the table surface. It wasn't gold, silver, or jade, and its color was a dull red with black, as if it had rusted and become old and ugly.

  "May I take a closer look?" At first glance, it looked like recyclable trash, but who knows, maybe at second glance, she'd discover it was rare metal. She "asked shamelessly".

  The second son nodded.

  Mozi noticed that at this moment, his gaze was no longer on himself, but was staring at that thing. His angular and handsome face was exceptionally stern, originally leaning against the back of the chair, his shoulders open and wide, making her want to help him sing a heroic and majestic military song. What is this? Although that thing was taken out by him, why did it feel like he was being inspected by that thing instead?

  She leaned forward, pinched the iron piece with her fingers, and it was in her hand. She carefully looked at the front side and found that it wasn't a田 character, but rather an iron tally with four mouths, with thicker horizontal and vertical grooves in the middle. From afar, it looked old; up close, it looked even older, not only with black and red colors unevenly distributed, but also with irregular fine scratches, indicating that it had been collided many times. After examining the front side without reaching a valuable conclusion, she turned to look at the back side. Oh? The back side was more interesting, with four engraved characters——

  "Zhōng zhèng míng xīn?" She finished reciting and then laughed, "What is it, your family's motto or a treasured heirloom?"

  "You know and still laugh?" Shi Lei shouted as soon as he opened his mouth.

  "Who would have thought that Hu Biao could also get it right? If it's a family heirloom, shouldn't you treat it with more respect? Engraving it on jade or gold wouldn't be more dignified? You seem to enjoy spending money, your family shouldn't be so stingy with their ancestral teachings..."

  A flash of white light before his eyes, a sword left Muzi's neck half an inch, and in an instant, a chill swept over him.

  "Mind your tongue."

  Shi Ke's sword.

  The voice of Erlang.

  Mo Zi was motionless, his gaze flashing like two thin ice blades for an instant, but when it met the other person's eyes, it turned into a terrified and timid expression. "It...it was just a joke, don't take it seriously, can't I even control my own mouth?"

  The sword is so fast, much faster than Shimada's. Although I've never seen Xiaoyi use a sword, it's possible that even she can't beat this man named Shilei. With such terrifying skills, if she wants to offend someone, can they escape? The army's hand-to-hand combat training seems useless.

  It's really strange, what are the identities of these three people? The first one is the nephew of Wei Niangniang. Nephew also has a distinction between near and far. If it's not a nephew, but another kind of her guess, then no matter what, it's very likely to be someone from the imperial court. But just like she had been suspicious before, if they were officials, why would they sneak around after leaving the border, couldn't they just take an official document and enter Nan De with confidence? These people have secrets, and this secret...

  She could smell an unusual danger.

  "It's come to this, young man. I advise you to take the two hundred taels of silver. As the saying goes, 'yielding doesn't work, so use force.' You refuse our kindness, but we must insist." Zhong An chimed in with a smooth tone.

  "...Mozhi focused his gaze on the razor-sharp sword tip, and with a slight tremble, he raised his right index finger by a point."

  "I drink to show respect."

  Hearing one's own voice, as expected, humble and obedient.

  －－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－

  Just got off the plane, so it's a bit late.

  Still 60 minutes, then double update.

  Please give me more support.

  Mua mua!