After crossing, I surrounded the capital from the countryside

As the demolition teams arrived at their destinations one after another, the noise on the street gradually became noisy, with bursts of banging and collapsing sounds coming one after another.

Some of them wielded stone hammers to hit the walls, some held iron bars to pry and dig at the floor, and others pulled ropes to help remove the wooden boards on the roof. Each worker worked with all his strength, and although their actions were different, their goal was the same - to remove all the things that the overlord didn't need.

The sounds of banging, prying and collapsing intertwined to form a strange melody.

Residents on both sides of the street leaned out and watched curiously.

An old man, with his hands behind his back, walked to the side of the street. He squinted his eyes and watched the busy figures of the Xiaoyao Sect, with a puzzled expression on his face. He turned to his neighbor and asked, "Old Liu, what do you think will be built after these shops are demolished?"

Old Liu shook his head and shrugged, saying, "Who knows? But judging from the situation, the new store should be quite big."

Next to them, several young girls gathered together and excitedly discussed: "I'm so excited. I wonder what the new store will look like."

There were occasional discussions among the crowd, and generally speaking, they were all surprised that such a large area of ​​shops was demolished.

At this time, a person walked out from the crowd.

His face, which usually looked like a shrunken orange peel, was now wrinkled like a squashed persimmon. His eyes were small and cunning, flashing with a sinister light, as if ready to shoot a sharp arrow at any time.

Shopkeeper Zhao walked to the center of the crowd, his eyes swept across the shops that were being demolished, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth. That smile was like a sharp knife, cutting through the tranquility around him.

His voice was as sharp as a piece of iron scratching on glass, extremely piercing: "Hey, is this the store that Mei Niang's current boss bought?"

"What? That girl thinks she is the God of Wealth and plans to tear down all these shabby shops and rebuild them? She really has so much money to burn! She doesn't even consider her own weight and dares to do such a thing."

"Oh, by the way, isn't there Mei Niang?"

"Ah~ But I have to say it, Mei Niang is indeed in that line of work, she earns a lot... hehe"

His words were full of sarcasm and ridicule, and every word was like a thorn, piercing deeply into Mei Niang's heart.

He deliberately raised his voice so that everyone around him could hear what he said, as if this could prove Xu Qingqing's stupidity.

His eyes scanned the crowd, as if looking for Xu Qingqing's figure, wanting to see her reaction with his own eyes.

Upstairs in Chunxiang Tower, Mei Niang stood in front of the window, her face as pale as paper. She clenched her hands, her nails digging deeply into her palms, as if she wanted to dispel the anger and humiliation in her heart.

There was a bitter smile on the corner of her mouth. She knew that Manager Zhao had always been dissatisfied with her because she refused to be his concubine, and he was notoriously mean to her, but she didn't expect that he would use this to mock Xu Qingqing so unscrupulously.

After all, Xu Qingqing was Mei Niang's current boss and her lifeline. Shopkeeper Zhao's words, insulting Xu Qingqing in her name, made her feel inexplicably heartbroken.

Xu Qingqing reached out and patted Mei Niang's arm. Mei Niang felt Xu Qingqing's comfort, took a deep breath, and tried to calm her emotions.

She knew that she couldn't be defeated by Manager Zhao's words, and she couldn't let Xu Qingqing down.

Mei Niang walked down the stairs gently. Although her steps were calm, each step revealed firmness and determination. She walked in front of Shopkeeper Zhao, her eyes were like torches, and she met his harsh gaze directly.

Shopkeeper Zhao was originally prepared to continue his sarcastic remarks, but when he saw Mei Niang's attitude, he was stunned for a moment, and the harsh sneer on the corner of his mouth subsided a little.

But he still sneered at Mei Niang with disdain.

Mei Niang was not flustered by the other party's sneer, nor did she choose to endure it in silence. Instead, she straightened her back, looked directly at Manager Zhao, and spoke in a clear and powerful voice.

"Manager Zhao, your words really opened my eyes." Mei Niang spoke slowly, revealing a hint of sarcasm in her tone, "Do you think you can show your nobility by using my past identity to humiliate me? How ridiculous."

Shopkeeper Zhao was stunned by Mei Niang's rebuttal. He didn't expect Mei Niang to fight back so directly. He widened his eyes, trying to find a trace of fear or anger on Mei Niang's face, but Mei Niang's expression was unusually calm, as if she was talking about something that had nothing to do with her.

"Manager Zhao, although I was born in a brothel, I have never felt inferior to others." Mei Niang continued, "I support myself with my own hands and have never done anything that is against the law. But you are here using my past as an excuse to insult me ​​wantonly. You are truly despised by others."

As Shopkeeper Zhao listened to Mei Niang's words, the smile on his face gradually froze, and his original smugness was replaced by shock and anger.

He widened his eyes, trying to find a trace of fear or anger on Mei Niang's face, but all he saw was the determined eyes and unwavering expression.

Mei Niang did not give Shopkeeper Zhao time to respond and continued, "Shopkeeper Zhao, you keep saying that I have a bad background, but do you know that the real lowliness is not the background, but the filth of the soul. You use such words to hurt me, which only proves how despicable you are."

Your words are like a sharp sword, piercing my heart. But I will not give in. I will straighten my spine and face it bravely. Because I know that true dignity is not given by others, but by one's own perseverance. "

When Shopkeeper Zhao heard this, his face turned pale and he could feel people around him pointing and whispering at him.

He glared at Mei Niang and wanted to refute, but his mouth seemed to be sealed and he couldn't utter a word.

"But Shopkeeper Zhao is right about one thing, that is, my current employer is very rich!"

Mei Niang thought of Xu Qingqing, and her face finally became less serious: "Besides, our boss is not like you, Manager Zhao, who is so brainless!"

"She is not only rich, but also a visionary! She can see the development potential of these shops after reconstruction, and she can see the value of each of us! She is willing to invest money and work hard, instead of being complacent like Shopkeeper Zhao!"

Mei Niang's words surprised Manager Zhao. He didn't expect Mei Niang to defend Xu Qingqing so much and speak so convincingly.

But he found something to mock her, so he sneered: "Humph, that sounds nice. Do you think you can accomplish something with just a few words? How naive!"

Hearing this, Xu Qingqing in Chunxiang Tower smiled slightly.