Inside a private room on the first floor of Baicao Hall.
Lin Baichuan waited for a full half-hour, and when he saw that the woman still hadn't arrived, he frowned slightly, growing impatient.
“Damn it, nothing’s going wrong, is it?!” Lin Baichuan cursed inwardly, “One thousand taels of gold, that’s not a small sum. Could it be that the woman took the money and ran off? After all, employees running off with customer payments wasn’t uncommon in my previous life…”
Lin Baichuan’s mind was racing with wild thoughts, and at the same time, he felt some regret. He shouldn't have acted so arrogantly just now; at the very least, he should have waited until he saw the xuanyang fruit before paying!
Creak… Bang…
Suddenly, just as Lin Baichuan was deep in thought, the door was pushed open. Following that, the woman, Yun Xi, walked in, her expression hurried, her eyes anxious, and there was even a clear palm print on her face, obviously from being slapped.
It seemed the person who struck her didn't hold back.
“Young Master… I am truly sorry, but the xuanyang fruit cannot be sold to you.” As soon as Yun Xi entered, she immediately bowed to Lin Baichuan, her face full of apology, saying, “It was my oversight. The xuanyang fruit has already been sold, but the information in the store hadn’t been updated yet, so I didn’t know…”
“Sold?”
Lin Baichuan’s eyebrows shot up instantly, and he let out a cold laugh, saying, “Is it truly sold, or are you just unwilling to sell it to me?”
“This…”
Yun Xi’s expression stiffened, looking a bit awkward.
“Yes, I’m not selling it to you. What are you going to do about it? Are you very unhappy?”
Just then, a chilling voice rang out. Outside the room, a young man entered with several guards. It was Lu Changkong.
Half an hour ago, Lu Changkong went to the third floor to ask the White-haired Old Man, Elder Yuan, for the xuanyang fruit. After Elder Yuan and Yun Xi objected, he became enraged. Not only did he scold Elder Yuan Ningdong, but he also slapped Yun Xi.
Later, he learned from Yun Xi that someone wanted to buy the xuanyang fruit. After having someone secretly observe, he discovered that the person buying the xuanyang fruit was actually Lin Baichuan, so he immediately brought his people down from the third floor.
“It’s you, Lu Changkong!”
Lin Baichuan looked at the approaching Lu Changkong, his pupils shrinking instantly, his gaze as cold as a blade. He said coldly, “What do you want to do here?”
“What do I want to do? I am the Young Master of Baicao Hall. I can come and go as I please. Is it bothering you?” Lu Changkong sneered, “Even if your Demon Suppression Division is overbearing, you don’t have the right to forbid someone from returning to their own home, do you?”
“You are the Young Master of Baicao Hall.”
Lin Baichuan’s brows furrowed slightly, and he couldn't help but curse Yang Zhan to high heaven in his heart. That guy only boasted to him about how amazing Baicao Hall was, but he never mentioned that it was the Lu family’s property. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come to Baicao Hall even if he was beaten to death!
Looking at the situation now, even a fool could guess that the xuanyang fruit must have been intercepted by Lu Changkong.
Lin Baichuan didn’t believe he could get the xuanyang fruit from Lu Changkong’s hands. He then said coldly, “In that case, Lin doesn’t want the xuanyang fruit. Please return my one thousand taels of gold!”
Since he didn’t buy the item, he naturally demanded his money back.
However, what Lin Baichuan found unbelievable was that as soon as he spoke, Lu Changkong immediately sneered, “Gold? What gold? Did you give us any gold? Young man… when speaking and doing business, you must have evidence. Do you have a receipt issued by my Baicao Hall?”
What…
As soon as Lu Changkong spoke, Lin Baichuan’s expression immediately turned grim. He never expected that Lu Changkong would be so shameless. Not only would he not sell him the xuanyang fruit, but now he also wanted to swallow his one thousand taels of gold payment.
He was truly treating him like a pushover.
In fact, Yun Xi was even more anxious than Lin Baichuan. Yun Xi already felt apologetic for breaking her word and making Lin Baichuan wait for so long. Now, seeing that her Young Master actually wanted to swallow Lin Baichuan’s one thousand taels of gold payment, her face changed dramatically. She immediately stepped forward and said in a deep voice, “Young Master, this Young Master did indeed pay a thousand taels of gold as payment…”
As she spoke, she looked towards the White-haired Old Man, Yuan Ningdong, who had come with Lu Changkong.
Yuan Ningdong also frowned slightly and immediately said in a deep voice, “Young Master, Yun Xi did indeed give me…”
“Indeed what?”
Lu Changkong swept a glance at Yuan Ningdong and said coldly, “If I say no, then it’s no. You two may not know him, but I know him very well. This person is Lin Baichuan, just a newly promoted Elementary Junior Demon Slayer Guard of the Demon Suppression Division. His monthly salary is only a mere thirty taels of silver.
Do you think he can afford one thousand taels of gold?”
Yuan Ningdong and Yun Xi’s expressions changed drastically. They knew that Lu Changkong was determined to embezzle Lin Baichuan’s one thousand taels of gold! But the problem was, if they allowed Lu Changkong to act so recklessly, the reputation of Baicao Hall would be completely ruined.
Swallowing a customer’s payment, what was the difference between that and a black market shop?
Yuan Ningdong and Yun Xi’s expressions flickered between dark and light, but no matter how displeased they were inwardly, they dared not say anything more at this moment. Lu Changkong was the Young Master of Baicao Hall, and the entire Baicao Hall belonged to the Lu family. They were, after all, merely servants of the Lu family.
Now, even a fool could see that Lu Changkong and Lin Baichuan had a grudge, and Lu Changkong clearly intended to retaliate against Lin Baichuan.
At this time, if they were to stand out and continue to speak for Lin Baichuan, it would be tantamount to opposing Lu Changkong, the Young Master. They knew all too well what fate awaited them if they offended Lu Changkong.
Immediately, after Yuan Ningdong and Yun Xi exchanged glances, they opened their mouths but ultimately said nothing.
As the saying goes, 'sacrifice a Fellow Daoist, not yourself.' They were not related to Lin Baichuan, so at this moment, they naturally didn't want to offend Lu Changkong, the Young Master, because of Lin Baichuan.
Lin Baichuan was extremely perceptive. Just by observing Yun Xi and Yuan Ningdong’s reactions, he immediately understood the crucial point, and his expression instantly turned as grim as water. He said coldly, “What, is Baicao Hall a black market shop? You actually want to embezzle a customer’s payment? Do you really think Lin is a soft persimmon to be easily squeezed?”
“How dare you! You dare to slander my Baicao Hall and damage its prestige! Do you really think that just because you wear the uniform of a Demon Slayer Guard, you can do whatever you want?”
Lu Changkong’s eyes were cold as he pointed at Lin Baichuan and angrily rebuked, “You, Lin, there’s more than just you as a Demon Slayer Guard in the Demon Suppression Division. My Lu family also has people in the Demon Suppression Division. Today, you actually dare to defame my Baicao Hall and ruin its reputation.
I will suppress you now, and then go to the Demon Suppression Division to get an explanation.
Let’s see if the Demon Slayer Guards of the Demon Suppression Division can wantonly defame others’ reputations…”
Boom!
As soon as his voice fell, Lu Changkong moved. With a flick of his finger, a sword light flashed, like a meteor, slashing directly towards Lin Baichuan.
It was his Spiritual Artifact-level longsword.
