Chapter 1131 - 1133: Mr. Niu makes a visit at this time_1
Before I knew it, the day had arrived for the opening of the Beauty Pavilion in the Capital City, and Bai Zhi had gone to the store early. She genuinely intended to lend a hand, but upon arrival, she was shocked. How could so many ladies from noble families have arrived this early?
She remembered the tall woman as the Prime Minister’s wife. She had never spoken to the woman but had seen her from a distance once and heard her addressed as such by the shopkeeper who welcomed guests. And wasn’t that older woman the General’s wife? Her husband had pointed her out to Bai Zhi before.
There were others whose faces Bai Zhi didn’t recognize, but from their attire and demeanor, she could guess their distinguished status. She had never expected such a gathering here. She had come early hoping to show her support, but it turned out that there was no need for her to worry—the Beauty Pavilion was bustling with great business.
Soon, someone brought over a flower basket with a message attached. It was a gift from Shen Lu, the owner who welcomed guests. This flower basket was actually one that Bai Ruozhu had given before. He had returned the gift according to Bai Ruozhu’s tastes.
Shen Lu sent over eight flower baskets, which were placed on both sides of the store’s door, showing extravagance. Many people thought that they had never seen flowers arranged in such a manner before, and for a long time afterward, it became trendy in the Capital City for shops to send flower baskets when they opened. Of course, that was a story for another time.
The opening day of the Beauty Pavilion was extraordinarily busy, so crowded that it was bordering on overwhelming. Reserved spots were given to familiar ladies such as Leng Wanhua and her daughter, Madame Bo, and to avoid disappointing other customers, each visitor received a small bottle of floral water.
"Ruozhu, I’m about to be swamped. You know what? We’ve filled all of our slots for the next seven days. We need to train more masseuses," Fang Guizhi said excitedly to Bai Ruozhu, holding up the reservation book.
Bai Ruozhu smiled and said, "Don’t worry, scarcity is what makes something precious. It’s enough as it is."
Fang Guizhi thought about it and quickly understood her meaning, nodding in agreement immediately.
While Bai Ruozhu was busy attending to customers in the store, Xiaosi suddenly came running over, his face etched with urgency as he said, "Sister, my master is in trouble. Please help me think of something."
Bai Ruozhu was taken aback and quickly pulled Xiaosi into the backyard of the store, asking, "What happened exactly? What’s happened to Elder Xuan Jizi?"
"I don’t know. He left early this morning; he has a special way of contacting me through our sect, and just now, he suddenly sent me a message telling me to run away, and then there was no further news. If my master wasn’t in trouble, he wouldn’t send that kind of message," Xiaosi said anxiously.
"Where did your master go this morning? What was he doing?" Bai Ruozhu also felt the urgency of the situation, even suspecting that Xiaosi might be in danger.
"I don’t know. Recently, he’s been very busy, only instructing me to practice my martial arts diligently and not to be playful. Sister, do you think my master might never come back?" Xiaosi was just a child after all. As he spoke, his eyes began to well up with tears. Other than his family, Xuan Jizi was the person he was closest to.
Bai Ruozhu tenderly touched Xiaosi’s head; despite his calm and indifferent appearance, Xiaosi was a child with deep emotions at heart.
"Don’t worry, I will arrange for someone to look into it right away, and I’ll have your brother-in-law help look for people as well," she said.
Xiaosi nodded in response, "Thank you, sister."
"Silly child, why be so formal with me? But for now, you need to come back home with me. Your master told you to hide, so it’s best to be cautious," Bai Ruozhu told him.
Xiaosi didn’t dare to wander around, fearful of causing more trouble for Bai Ruozhu. He obediently followed her back to the Bai Residence.
Bai Ruozhu sent Jianqi to the Commerce Association with a message, asking for help in searching for Elder Xuan Jizi’s whereabouts. She also sent Chen Feng to send a message to Jiang Yichun, who was attending the morning court, asking him to use the Gold Guards to locate Xuan Jizi.
By noon, messages had come back from both the Commerce Association and Jiang Yichun. Someone had last seen Elder Xuan Jizi leaving the Capital City through the West Gate, but nothing unusual had been observed. According to the timeline, it was about half to two hours before he sent the message to Xiaosi.
Afterward, the clues were all but lost. Jiang Yichun had already taken his subordinates and left the City to investigate. Bai Ruozhu, having heard this, decided to make a personal trip to see if he could uncover any traces.
...
Inside a dilapidated house, Elder Xuan Jizi, donned in a gray robe, lay unconscious on the ground, with spots of dried blood on his chest, indicating serious internal injuries from his pallor.
Just then, the door was pushed open, and a figure slipped in and pressed several points on Xuan Jizi’s body, finally stirring him to a groggy state of consciousness. When Xuan Jizi saw the person before him, his face turned even paler with anger.
"I advise you to hand over your little disciple willingly," the person said, "and save me the trouble of having to harm you personally."
Xuan Jizi snorted coldly and said irritably, "Even now, can you not say harm has been done? Having fallen into your trap because of my carelessness, I blame myself. But if you dare touch my disciple, I, Xuan Jizi, swear I won’t let you off for the rest of my life!"
"Ha ha, what if I kill you now? How exactly will you not let me off?" the person laughed heartily, with contempt in his laughter.
"You..." Xuan Jizi, furious, spat out another mouthful of blood, only for the person to reach out and touch him, causing his world to go dark once again.
The shadow stood up, saying to the unconscious Xuan Jizi, "Wait until I send you a ’gift,’ it will certainly be a surprise for you."
...
Outside the Bai Residence Gate, a woman suddenly appeared, dressed like a Village woman with a yellowish complexion and freckles on her cheeks.
"Young man, could you please deliver a message to the young master inside? His master asked me to bring him a letter," the woman said.
The guard at the gate initially didn’t want to pay attention to her, but found her somewhat familiar. Unable to place her, and fearing he might delay his master’s matter, he hastily went to inform Xiaosi.
Xiaosi, fearing a trap, considered Bai Ruozhu’s many guards and dark guards, deciding to take a look from a distance and retreat if something seemed amiss.
Thus, as he approached the Main Gate, he was shocked to find that the person looking in from outside was none other than Niu Cuicui—a sight he hadn’t seen for days!
When Bai Ruozhu had sent her away, it was said she was thrown out of the Capital. It was unexpected that she’d never left the Capital City, but why would she appear today of all days?
Seeing Xiaosi from afar, Niu Cuicui hurriedly waved at him with a smile. Noticing that Xiaosi refused to approach, she pulled out an Elder Badge from her sleeve and waved it towards him.
Xiaosi’s eyes widened; wasn’t that the Elder Badge his master never parted with? How did it end up in Niu Cuicui’s hands?
With a few leaps, he reached the Main Gate, snatched the Elder Badge from Niu Cuicui’s hand, and glared at her, demanding, "How do you have my master’s badge? Did you harm him?"
Niu Cuicui’s face showed distress as she replied, "Xiaosi, how can you think so poorly of mother? I have no Martial Arts, no money, no power, how could I harm your master?"
The word "mother" sounded particularly jarring, causing Xiaosi to step back half a step, "Then how did you come by my master’s Elder Badge?"