Chapter 355: Too Bad

Zu An explained, "Does Madam think Sang Qian will lead troops there?"

"Of course he..." Halfway through her sentence, Qin Wanru suddenly grasped the underlying meaning of his words. This batch of salt permits nominally belonged to the Chu and Wang families. If Sang Qian were to lead troops to round them up, the seized permits should, in theory, be returned to their original owners.

In that scenario, the Chu family would overcome this difficulty effortlessly. How could the Sang family possibly allow such a thing to happen?

But if they did nothing, the Sang family would worry that these salt permits might fall into the Chu family's hands, which they also wished to avoid.

This left only one possibility: they would feel most secure by keeping the salt permits for themselves. Since they couldn't openly deploy troops, they would likely discreetly choose trusted confidants to handle the matter in secret.

Qin Wanru couldn't help but glance at Zu An several times. Was this really the good-for-nothing hoodlum she remembered?

"Madam, why are you staring at me? Even though I'm handsome, I still get shy when looked at like that," Zu An said, "bashfully" touching his face.

Qin Wanru was speechless.

This guy was as annoying as ever!

Rage value from Qin Wanru: 123!

Worried he had truly angered her, Zu An quickly said, "Madam, please go inside and leave a message for Sang Qian. Otherwise, he probably won't know about these salt permits. My cultivation is too low; I'd be easily discovered if I went in."

Flattered by his words, Qin Wanru's expression softened considerably. She took the envelope, humming with a touch of smugness, "Watch me!"

With a swift movement, she vanished and found a secluded spot to sneak into the River Defense Camp's headquarters.

Her heart pounded. She had, in fact, done many adventurous things in her youth, but after becoming a duchess, she had grown accustomed to a life of ease, rarely needing to do things herself, and even neglecting her cultivation.

Now, covertly infiltrating the River Defense Camp, constantly fearing discovery, the thrill made her feel as if she had returned to her younger days.

Zu An waited outside. After approximately the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he finally saw Qin Wanru emerge.

He hurried forward. "How did it go? Did you manage to notify him?"

"Why wouldn't such a simple task succeed?" Qin Wanru scoffed, maintaining a calm facade while her heart raced. She had nearly been discovered several times inside, but fortunately, the soldiers at the River Defense Camp weren't particularly elite, or she might not have made it out.

Zu An couldn't help but give a thumbs-up. "Madam is truly impressive..."

As compliments flowed from him endlessly, Qin Wanru's face grew warm. "Alright, alright, where do we go next?"

"To the auction," Zu An said, pulling out an invitation card that Qiu Honglei had given him earlier.

Qin Wanru took it, turning it over several times, and couldn't help but ask, "Where did you get this?"

Zu An shook his head. "I have my own ways, of course, but I promised the person I wouldn't reveal their identity."

Seeing his response, Qin Wanru found it difficult to press further. She snorted, "Looks like you know quite a lot of people, don't you?"

Zu An chuckled. "What can I say? I just have a natural charisma that draws people in and makes friends."

Qin Wanru was speechless.

Why was this guy always so annoying?

The auction was being held in a secluded courtyard in the north of the city. However, tonight, the place was anything but quiet. From a distance, lights gleamed, and silhouettes of people moved within.

Qin Wanru was about to walk over, but Zu An quickly pulled her back.

"What are you doing?" Qin Wanru glanced at his hand on hers, a hint of displeasure in her voice.

"Madam, are you planning to just go in like that?" Zu An asked with a wry smile.

"Is there a problem?" Qin Wanru inquired, puzzled.

"Although you've changed your clothes, your appearance hasn't changed," Zu An explained, carefully choosing his words. "As the Duchess, you are the most famous person in Brightmoon City. And since you're so beautiful, even in simple clothes, you'll still be the center of attention in a crowd. What if someone recognizes you? Wouldn't that ruin our plan?"

Qin Wanru felt thoroughly pleased by his mix of subtle and overt flattery. Coupled with her genuine concern for the mission's success, she eagerly asked, "What should we do then?"

Zu An thought for a moment, then pulled a mask from his pocket and handed it to her. "Put this mask on. It can make you look like an ordinary person."

He had retrieved this from Chen Xuan's body last time. Chen Xuan had managed to evade the combined search efforts of the Chu family and Brightmoon City for so many years precisely by using these masks to constantly change his identity.

Qin Wanru took the cicada-wing thin mask, marveling, "Only the most skilled rune masters can create a mask like this! Where did you get it?"

Zu An shrugged. "As I said before, I have many friends."

This time, Qin Wanru said nothing, but truthfully, even she grew curious. Where did this guy get so many connections?

After all, even she and Chu Zhongtian might not be able to acquire an invitation to this auction, let alone such an exquisite mask.

As she placed the mask on her face, a cool sensation spread. Blue runic patterns shimmered faintly on its surface, then adjusted automatically to her facial contours, finally fitting snugly.

Qin Wanru quickly pulled out a mirror and, seeing the unfamiliar woman reflected there, was momentarily both startled and amazed.

Zu An, standing by, secretly grumbled to himself about how women always carried mirrors. He then said aloud, "My apologies, Madam, this appearance is a bit plain, but our main goal is to keep a low profile, so this is for the best."

He rather admired Chen Xuan's masks; they wouldn't make the wearer beautiful, but they wouldn't make them ugly either, as ugliness could also draw unwanted attention.

All the masks aimed for ordinariness, creating faces so common they'd be forgotten in a crowd.

Qin Wanru said coolly, "I don't care about such things."

With that, she took the lead and walked towards the auction.

Zu An quickly put on his own mask and hurried after her.

Qin Wanru couldn't help but glance at him several times, trying to memorize his new face, lest they get separated inside and she couldn't find him.

The two arrived outside the courtyard and were quickly stopped by guards.

Zu An calmly presented the invitation, and after a careful inspection by the gatekeepers, the two were allowed inside.

"The people behind this auction are not simple," Qin Wanru whispered. "Those guards at the entrance were at least Rank Four."

Zu An nodded gravely. "Indeed. We must be very careful, or we'll be in trouble if we're discovered."

Qin Wanru hummed in agreement, cautiously looking around.

Zu An subtly reminded her, "Madam, try to act natural. The way you're looking around, anyone would think you're here to cause trouble."

Qin Wanru's face flushed, but thankfully, the mask concealed it.

"By the way, Madam, you've been in Brightmoon City for so long; don't you know who's behind the black market here?" Zu An asked. He had been wondering which faction Qiu Honglei belonged to, but his knowledge of this world was too limited to make effective conjectures.

Qin Wanru shook her head. "I'm not sure. I initially thought it was the Plum Blossom Gang running things, but it doesn't seem to be them now."

In the eyes of high-ranking officials and nobles like them, places like the black market were disreputable. Furthermore, since the black market had always been relatively quiet and hadn't caused any major incidents, everyone just turned a blind eye, and no one paid much attention to it.

Just then, a lewd whistle suddenly came from behind, followed by the lecherous laughter of several men.

"Wow, that figure is absolutely amazing."

"I never expected to find such a stunner in a place like this."

"Come on, let's go take a look."

Soon, a few rough-looking men quickened their pace and circled around to stand in front of the pair.

"What a shame about that great figure; her face is goddamn ugly!"

Qin Wanru was speechless.