Chapter 81: Tales of Lu Ruoxi II

"What happened?" Su Rong smirked triumphantly. "Boss Fang vastly underestimated us. Before his poisoned wine even touched our lips, Ruoxi smashed a heavy clay wine jug right over his bald head! While he was groaning on the floor, I kicked his bodyguards in the groin and threw blinding powder into their eyes. Then, instead of just running away..."

Su Rong paused for dramatic effect, her eyes dancing with mischievous delight.

"...Ruoxi looked at his open iron safe in the corner, looked at me, and said, ’Su Rong, it would be a shame to leave his hard-earned gold behind after such terrible service.’ So, we stripped Boss Fang down to his undergarments, tied him to a wooden pillar, looted every single spirit stone and silver coin from his safe, and casually walked out the back door into the night!"

Lu Feng stared at her for a second before letting out an outright laugh, the image of his usually reserved aunt tying up a perverted merchant and robbing him blind proving far too absurd to process.

"She actually looted him?" Lu Feng asked, amused.

"Down to his last copper coin!" Su Rong laughed heartily. "We bought three months’ worth of supplies and high-grade tea with his money! The next morning, Boss Fang was too embarrassed to even report the robbery to the city guards because word would spread that two young girls had beaten him senseless and left him tied up in his underwear!"

Lu Feng shook his head, smiling as he took another sip of his tea. "That certainly sounds like a memory worth holding onto."

"It truly was," Su Rong agreed softly, her laughing tone gradually settling back into a warm, genuine calm.

Lu Feng shook his head, smiling as he took another sip of his tea. "That certainly sounds like a memory worth holding onto."

"Oh, that wasn’t even the best part," Su Rong continued, her eyes bright with mischief as she refilled their tea cups. "A few months after the Boss Fang incident, we pulled off an even bigger scheme against a corrupt textile mogul named Merchant Zhao."

"Merchant Zhao?" Lu Feng asked, leaning back against his chair. "What did he do?"

"Zhao was notorious for buying raw silk from poor village weavers for pocket change, promising them future royalties, and then using forged contracts to claim they owed him debt instead," Su Rong explained, tapping her fingers against her porcelain cup. "He was a parasite. Ruoxi and I decided he needed to be taught a proper lesson. So, Ruoxi dressed up as a wealthy young heiress from a distant imperial province, while I acted as her stoic, high-born maid."

Lu Feng grinned slightly. "An heiress?"

"A ridiculously wealthy one!" Su Rong laughed. "Ruoxi walked into Zhao’s grand pavilion wearing borrowed silk robes, carrying a fake chest filled with lead weights covered in a thin layer of gold leaf. She told Zhao she was looking to purchase fifty crates of premium silk for an imperial wedding and offered to pay three times the market value in advance."

"Let me guess," Lu Feng remarked, his eyes gleaming with realization. "Merchant Zhao jumped at the offer without verifying the chest."

"Greed blinded him completely!" Su Rong clapped her hands together. "He practically drooled over the deal. He immediately signed a contract guaranteeing the delivery and paid Ruoxi a massive deposit in pure gold just to secure her exclusive business. We took his heavy deposit of fifty thousand gold coins, signed the fake documents, and told him we would return the next afternoon with the rest of the payment."

"And of course, you never returned," Lu Feng noted, amused.

"Of course we didn’t!" Su Rong smirked. "By the time Zhao realized the chest in his vault was filled with worthless lead rocks, Ruoxi and I had already distributed half the money back to the poor village weavers and kept the rest for our own shop funds."

Lu Feng raised an eyebrow, curious. "Did Merchant Zhao just accept the loss? A man like that wouldn’t let five hundred spirit stones go easily."

"Oh, he was furious!" Su Rong’s grin broadened. "He hired six ruthless mercenaries from the Black Shadow Hall to hunt us down. Within three days, they cornered Ruoxi and me in a dead-end alley near the city’s western gates. Zhao himself showed up, stepping out of his grand carriage, ranting about how he was going to have us beaten, crippled, and sold into slavery to recover his losses."

"How did you handle six mercenaries?" Lu Feng asked, his hand casually resting near his cup.

"We didn’t need to fight them at all," Su Rong chuckled, leaning forward confidentially. "Just as the mercenaries drew their blades, I slowly pulled a silver medallion from my inner sleeve—a private token given to me by my mother’s side of the family—and tossed it right at Zhao’s feet. I told him very calmly, ’Merchant Zhao, if a single scratch appears on either of us, my brother, the City Lord, will have your entire business seized, your family arrested for treason, and your skin hung from the city gates by sunrise.’"

Lu Feng chuckled softly. "You revealed your connection to the City Lord?"

"It wasn’t even a lie, though I rarely ever used that connection back then because I wanted to build my own legacy," Su Rong admitted, shaking her head fondly. "You should have seen Zhao’s face, Lu Feng! The moment he recognized the City Lord’s private crest on that silver medallion, his knees buckled. He fell flat on his face right there in the dirt, slapping his own cheeks repeatedly and begging us for forgiveness! He even offered us another thousand gold coins on the spot just to ensure I wouldn’t mention his name to the City Lord."

"Did you take them?" Lu Feng asked, his lips curving into a wry smile.

"Naturally!" Su Rong laughed, her voice ringing delightfully through the private room. "Ruoxi took the purse, patted Zhao on his bald head, and told him to consider it a generous donation to our peace of mind. After that day, Zhao avoided us like the plague whenever he saw us walking down the street until he finally moved out of the city two years ago."

As her laughter slowly subsided, Su Rong took a deep breath, looking at Lu Feng with a soft, affectionate expression. "Ah, those were the days. Ruoxi was truly something special. Tell me, Lu Feng... how is she faring these days? Where is she residing now?"

Lu Feng’s eyes softened slightly as he recalled his brief encounter with his aunt before leaving the family estate.

"She is doing well, Senior Sister Su," Lu Feng answered quietly, his tone steady and respectful. "I saw her briefly before I left the main family grounds. She is currently married to a prominent, wealthy merchant hailing from Cloud Mist City. She resides there now, living a comfortable and secure life."

Su Rong’s eyes widened slightly in pleasant surprise. "Cloud Mist City? Married to a wealthy merchant?"

"Yes," Lu Feng nodded. "And knowing Aunt Ruoxi, she hasn’t lost an ounce of her sharp mind. Through her husband’s extensive trading network, she has been steadily expanding both her personal influence and commercial connections across the surrounding territories."

A heavy sigh of profound relief escaped Su Rong’s lips. She placed a hand over her chest, a genuine smile gracing her face. "To hear that she is safe, prosperous, and thriving... you have no idea what a heavy burden that lifts from my heart, Lu Feng. All these years, I worried that my rivals had done something terrible to her."

The conversation continued smoothly for nearly two hours. Su Rong shared story after story about their past escapades, describing the early days of Crimson Vale City’s commercial boom, the rising factions, and the hidden mechanics of the city’s underground networks. Lu Feng found himself thoroughly enjoying her company, appreciating not only her vast knowledge and sharp intellect, but also the genuine warmth she extended toward him as Ruoxi’s nephew.

However, as the sun reached its peak in the afternoon sky, Lu Feng knew he could not linger forever. He still had to manage his estate, oversee the captive intruders in his training hall, and prepare for his upcoming moves.

Lu Feng set his empty tea cup down on the wooden tray and folded his hands, offering a respectful bow.

"Senior Sister Su, I am deeply grateful for your warmth, your hospitality, and for sharing these memories with me today. However, I must call it a day. There are pressing matters at my estate that require my attention."

Su Rong nodded understandingly, though a hint of reluctance lingered in her eyes. "I understand, Lu Feng. You are a busy man now, and I won’t hold you back."

As Lu Feng began to rise from his seat, a thought crossed his mind, and he paused, his gaze fixing on Su Rong with a serious, inquiring look.

"Before I depart, Senior Sister Su," Lu Feng asked quietly, "as someone who understands the true depth of Crimson Vale City’s factions... is there anyone specific in this city I need to be particularly wary of?"

The moment the question left his lips, the warm, playful atmosphere in the private tea room vanished instantly.

Su Rong’s friendly expression froze. The lighthearted smile vanished from her lips, replaced by a dark, intense stillness. Her relaxed posture straightened into a rigid, imposing posture, and the playfulness completely left her her body, leaving behind the cold, formidable countenance of a woman who ruled over the city’s largest trade pavilion.