115: Chapter 0115 Life and Death Moment

"Diplomat Zhong Lang, I naturally understand that the things General Lin gave us are far from being as valuable as he claimed."

"But the issue is... the Zhenbei Army is indeed our safest trading partner."

"If we give iron ore to Prince Qing or the Northern Barbarians, it will become the spears and sharp blades used to massacre our clansmen."

"Come winter, the mined iron ore will be useless, while our people suffer from hunger and cold."

Princess Meng Xi took a sip of tea, a playful look appearing at the corner of her mouth:

"In fact... we aren't the only ones who need this kimchi and honeycomb coal; the Northern Barbarians should also need them quite badly, right?"

Zhong Lang's eyes lit up upon hearing this: "You mean... we resell them to the Northern Barbarians?"

"Exactly. I plan to first import a small batch of kimchi and honeycomb coal to see how the sales go among the Northern Barbarians."

"If we can exchange these things for cattle, sheep, and horses from the Northern Barbarians, won't they become valuable?"

Zhong Lang laughed loudly: "I see! Because of their blood feud with the Zhenbei Army, the Northern Barbarians would never do business with them. We can act as the middlemen!"

"Princess! You truly are the Great King's cleverest child; this old official admires you immensely!"

Princess Meng Xi gave a self-deprecating smile, "Me, clever? Forget it..."

She toyed with the teacup in her hand, a hint of daze in her large eyes.

"Diplomat Zhong Lang, you don't think General Lin failed to think of this layer, do you?"

"He wants to trade with the Northern Barbarians but finds it inconvenient to step onto the field directly, so... he's just using our hands."

Zhong Lang was stunned, feeling a wave of lingering fear as he recalled Lin Xiao's inscrutable behavior earlier that day.

So... Lin Xiao had calculated all of this long ago?

Meanwhile.

At the bath in the General's Mansion.

Lin Xiao was soaking in the bath with Xiao Qingxuan.

"Husband, that kimchi is just made from leftover old vegetables, and the honeycomb coal is seventy percent yellow clay."

"Is it... too harsh to use such cheap things to exchange for their high-quality iron ore?"

Xiao Qingxuan was somewhat speechless after hearing the conditions the man had proposed.

If she were Princess Meng Xi and saw those massive vats of endless kimchi and the production process of the honeycomb coal, she would probably cough up blood from anger!

"Wife, you're overthinking it. In business, you just need to cater to their needs."

"No matter how good Western Qiang's iron ore is, they still need to eat; they can't eat iron."

Lin Xiao smiled: "Besides... I had them stay for a few more days precisely to stall them. If it doesn't work out, we can negotiate further, right?"

Xiao Qingxuan nodded: "True. At worst, we can just give them more honeycomb coal and kimchi; they're not worth much anyway."

Just as the two finished discussing official business and were about to talk about more private matters...

A maid ran in to report that the Registrar Su Chang requested an audience.

Lin Xiao was a bit surprised. This fat man rarely took the initiative to visit, so there must be something urgent.

Dressing in casual clothes, Lin Xiao went to the living room alone and met the worried-looking Su Chang.

"Lord Su, what happened?"

As soon as Su Chang saw Lin Xiao, he immediately approached and said with a serious expression, "General Lin, quickly mobilize the elites from the military camp!"

"What, has Prince Bai deployed his troops?"

Lin Xiao was puzzled; the scouts hadn't sent any word. It would be impossible for the White Kings Army to move without a sound.

"If only it were the White Kings Army!"

Su Chang said anxiously, "The news I received tonight is that two days ago, the third-in-command of the Yanyu Pavilion, the Faceless Boy, accepted a 'sure-kill order'!"

"Yanyu Pavilion? You mean... that assassin organization?"

Lin Xiao had heard a bit about it, as Leng Bingyan would occasionally tell him about matters of the martial world.

"Yes. There are many assassin organizations in the martial world, and Yanyu Pavilion is currently the largest, having existed for over thirty years!"

"The first-in-command, the 'Master of Yanyu Pavilion,' is extremely mysterious; no one knows their true identity."

"As for the Faceless Boy, he is an expert in disguise. Few have seen his true face, and he is the third-in-command!"

Su Chang said solemnly, "Yanyu Pavilion accepts two types of contracts. An 'Assassination Order' means they will only try once; if it fails, they give up and return the deposit."

"But a 'sure-kill order' means a fight to the death! The assassin will hunt the target to the ends of the earth until the target is dead or the assassin perishes!"

"Since its founding, Yanyu Pavilion has accepted very few sure-kill orders because the price is extremely high, and the assassins don't want to take the risk."

"However, of those who have accepted a 'sure-kill order,' rarely has any failed. The Faceless Boy... in over twenty years, has not failed once!"

As Su Chang reached this point, the way he looked at Lin Xiao was as if the man already had one foot in the grave...

Lin Xiao felt a bit of a chill in his heart. Not failing once in over twenty years!?

"Is this Faceless Boy... truly that powerful?"

"It is said... his strength reached the realm of a 'Martial Arts Grandmaster' long ago!"

Su Chang sighed, "The General might not be aware, but a Martial Arts Grandmaster is equivalent to the sect leaders of great factions like the Sword Forest or Blade Mountain."

"Except for those few 'Great Grandmasters' on the Tianwu Continent who are as elusive as divine dragons, it is difficult to kill them even with thousands of troops!"

As soon as Lin Xiao heard it was a Martial Arts Grandmaster, he immediately stopped panicking.

Good, good, he had already advanced!

"Lord Su, your news is quite well-informed. Could it be... you also have informants inside the Yanyu Pavilion?" Lin Xiao said with a smile.

"General Lin, please stop trying to fish for information from me. If anything happens to you, I... my daughter..."

Su Chang was at his wit's end. His daughter was obsessed; every day, the only topic she talked about in front of him was Lin Xiao.

Although Lin Xiao's martial arts were high, Su Chang didn't truly believe a young man in his early twenties could really reach the realm of a Martial Arts Grandmaster.

Of course, he hadn't seen Lin Xiao fight up close, so he didn't know much.

Besides, assassination wasn't a duel. The Faceless Boy was an expert in disguise, making him impossible to guard against!

"Lord Su, I've troubled you. A parent's heart is truly pitiable."

Lin Xiao now understood why Su Chang had come in person to inform him.

If Su Wansha found out about this news, the girl would surely lose her appetite and sleep, living in fear every day.

"General Lin, to tell you the truth, I really regret not taking my wife and daughter away sooner... but since things have come to this, you must not be careless!"

Su Chang pleaded, "Keep more people by your side, or spend money to hire some experts from the martial world. We cannot afford any accidents!"

In fact, he even thought about asking Ding Cuihua to come out of retirement; a Sword Master was at the level of a Martial Arts Grandmaster.

But the old lady had been away from the martial world for many years, and it was truly difficult to disturb her.

Lin Xiao put on a deep expression, pondered for a moment, and said, "Lord Su, blessings are not disasters, and disasters cannot be avoided!"

"Since we have reached a moment of life and death, can you promise this General one thing?"

Su Chang frowned, "What thing?"

"If I can survive the Faceless Boy, you and your wife should betroth Wansha to me. I will not treat her poorly!"

Lin Xiao's tone was sincere, his eyes carrying a hint of the generosity and tragedy of facing death.