Unlimited employment

Chapter 206, Section 205: [Counter-Assassination]

Among the six departments of the Linqing branch of the Grand Canal Gang, the eldest son managed the Ministry of Rites, had the best relationship with the various levels of government offices related to the Grand Canal and the Yellow River, had friends all over the world, and was the most powerful.

The second young master controls the Ministry of Revenue, is wealthy and powerful, and is good at winning people's hearts. He is the most popular among the gang members.

The third young master was in charge of the Ministry of Works. Although he had some lucrative opportunities, he was excluded from the core affairs of the gang and was the most vulnerable.

Having pondered this intelligence, Chen Sheng made a clear decision and went to the third courtyard on the left, the courtyard with the Ministry of War sign hanging on it. He passed through several gates and finally came to an elegantly furnished study. He respectfully addressed a bald man who was painting in the study.

"Boss, something small happened last night."

There was a cunning and ruthless man named Du Yan who plotted against Tiger's wife, hoping to seize Tiger's wealth.

Yesterday, I went to pay my respects to Brother Tiger and happened to witness this scene, so I killed the lone swallow.

Upon hearing this, the man stopped writing, looked up at Chen Sheng, and said, "Tell me the details of this matter again."

Next, Chen Sheng gave a half-truthful account of what happened last night, adding some details to the woman's fabricated story.

They only said that the other party was after money and wanted to kill, without saying at all that the other party was an assassin and that the target was actually themselves.

Upon hearing Chen Sheng's words, the head of the Ministry of War shook his head regretfully.

"Beauty is often short-lived. Tiger's wife is quite beautiful. I was hoping to taste the life of this young widow and become her support for the rest of her life."

Pity!
"Fang Yuan, go to the Ministry of Revenue and get a dozen taels of silver to bury that beauty."

As he spoke, he picked up a pen and wrote a note on the table.

"Yes."

Chen Sheng bowed and accepted the order, picked up the slip of paper, and left to go to the Ministry of Revenue as instructed.

During the conversation, he had been observing the expression of the military commander but found nothing suspicious.

"It seems that he was unaware of, and did not participate in, the assassination attempt against me."

Come to think of it, it's not exactly something to be proud of, and the Third Young Master wouldn't want too many people to know the inside story.

After all, secrets don't stay hidden forever. If this gets back to the ears of the eldest and second young masters, it will cause him to lose everything.

However, the Grand Canal Gang is a place where secrets cannot be kept.

The news that Tiger's wife died, and that I was the one who relayed the information, will soon reach the ears of the Third Young Master.

Then we'll know whether he was the one who instigated it.

Chen Sheng took the note and left in a hurry, then began to leisurely arrange Tiger's funeral.

They were busy until evening before changing their clothes and using the [Disguise Gu] ability to change their appearance, and arrived at a brothel near Aotouji.

In the third-class private room on the first floor, which was barely separated by a screen, I ordered a girl who was of average appearance.

Looking at the bustling scene around him, he held the girl in his arms and asked.

"I've heard that all the girls in your family are from the same clan. Is that true?"

The girl picked up her wine cup, poured herself a cup of rice wine, and breathed out a mouthful of alcohol.

"I've lived in this brothel since I was a child. Many of my customers have watched me grow up. Do you think I'd lie to them?"
"Sir, you suddenly asked about this. Do you enjoy this kind of intimate atmosphere and wish to invite my mother along?"

The owner of this brothel was a legendary figure in Linqing.

In his early years, his family made a living by sea transport. They lived in Songjiang and were quite wealthy. He married eighteen beautiful wives and concubines.

But maritime transport is risky, and a sudden maritime disaster caused his family to fall into poverty.

After paying off the debts incurred from stockpiling goods, the family is out of money and can't support so many people. What will they do if they have no means of livelihood?
The boss was a clever man; he actually came to Linqing and opened a brothel, making himself and his dead father's wives and concubines sell themselves.

And sure enough, once the story got out, the brothel's business quickly took off, and it was booming.

In the following decade or so, the boss arranged for the male children born from the unplanned pregnancies of his wives and concubines to work as pimps in brothels, while the female children began to serve customers when they reached a certain age, which further boosted the business.

Even in the bustling city of Linqing, this brothel was extremely famous.

However, few people know that the story of wives and concubines entertaining customers was just a marketing gimmick.

Behind the scenes, this brothel also ran a business of assassination.

This place is the location of the contact the woman confessed to last night. Now that Chen Sheng has spread the news that he is not dead, he wants those who want to kill him to walk right into his trap.

……

Late at night, a special guest arrived at the top floor of the brothel.

The guest wearing a straw hat spoke in an unfriendly tone as soon as he entered.

"Boss, you took a full five thousand taels of silver from me and promised to do this job cleanly and beautifully."

And the result? The assassin you arranged is dead, while the person you were supposed to kill is still alive and well. You need to give me an explanation.

The brothel owner sat calmly in his armchair, taking a sip of tea.

"I was thinking of going to find you even though the guests didn't come."

Because the information you provided was flawed, one of my daughters was lost in the process. How will you compensate me for my loss?

The man in the straw hat snorted coldly.

"What a joke! Fang Yuan is just a pretty boy with decent martial arts skills, but he's greedy and lustful. What kind of ability could he possibly have?"

It's clearly your people's poor skills, yet you're blaming me? That's ridiculous.

The boss's attitude was also very firm.

"If Fang Yuan is truly a greedy person, the curse on my daughter will surely take his life."

Since he didn't die, he must not be lustful; it would have been more appropriate to assassinate him by poison.

It was the customer's mistake that led me to send the wrong person.

"Say nothing more. Go and kill him again. As long as you can get rid of him, I will forgive this mistake."

“No, five thousand taels is the cost of killing once. If we kill again, we’ll have to pay more.”

"I will only offer two thousand taels."

"Five thousand taels."

"Three thousand taels."

"Five thousand taels."

"At most three thousand taels."

"Alright, deal. This man killed my daughter, so he has become my enemy."

"For the sake of my deceased daughter, I can give the guest a discount."

The transaction was complete. The man in the straw hat slammed the silver notes on the table and turned to leave.

But when he pushed open the door, he saw that of the two attendants who had been guarding outside, only one remained standing there.

Where did Liu Gui go?

The attendant quickly explained.

"Liu Gui ate something bad tonight and went to the outhouse to poop."

"A lazy donkey will poop and pee more."

The man in the straw hat muttered something, and without waiting for Liu Gui, he went straight downstairs.

Pfft!

With a muffled thud, a reddish-white blade suddenly pierced through his left chest.

The knife piercing his heart caused all the life force of the man in the straw hat to pour out from the wound.

At that moment, all the martial arts he had cultivated over the years became meaningless. He felt a sudden darkness before his eyes and knew nothing more.

The henchman, dragging his corpse, leaped into the room and rushed towards the brothel owner, whose face had turned mad with shock…

(End of this chapter)