The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

“Yes, yes, what the Second Miss says is right,” Jin Qiaoyu quickly echoed.

An Yuefeng frowned, glanced at An Mi, and then said, "Alright, we'll listen to Mi'er."

When An Yuefeng heard that An Mi had agreed to learn about the business from her, he was overjoyed. An Mi hadn't refused, which was great. As long as An Mi was by his side, he would have a way to help the An family overcome this current difficulty. At this moment, An Yuefeng couldn't wait to secretly plan how to make use of such a good pawn.

At this moment, he did not notice that the chess piece he was thinking about how to use had a deeper look in its eyes, as if it was guessing something. An Mi glanced at An Yuefeng a few times, then took her leave and returned to her servants' quarters.

Along the way, thinking about the unusual excitement in her father's eyes, An Mi realized something, and a coldness appeared in her eyes. Perhaps she had already guessed what her father was planning. Was he using her and the relationship between her and the King of Bohai that was rumored to be going on?

Ha! She'll make the most of her father!

"Young lady... it's been a long time." Just then, a voice suddenly rang out.

An Mi was slightly startled and subconsciously looked in the direction from which the sound came. In the darkness, a figure stood there, and her face was clearly visible in the moonlight. "It's you!"

"It's me!" The man's voice was not as gentle as Qinglan's, nor as deep as Baiyi's, nor as cold as Donglin Wang's, but it was still very pleasant to hear. It was a tone that was both strong and gentle. Just by listening to the voice, one could imagine the exquisite nature of its owner.

The man, dressed in black brocade, seemed to blend completely into the darkness, yet his presence was impossible to ignore. He walked step by step toward An Mi, a smile playing on his lips, his narrow, hawk-like eyes fixed on her, his emotions unreadable.

An Mi stood still, watching the other person approach, her brow furrowing slightly. "How did you know I lived here?"

As clever as An Mi was, she knew at a glance that this man had come for her. However, the fact that he was waiting for her here made her eyes flicker as she thought of their previous interactions. An Mi looked at her simple room in the servants' courtyard. She had only told him that she was the second young lady of the An family in Rong Jincheng. Even if he knew she was in the An family, he shouldn't have waited for her here so precisely.

An Mi glanced at the man; his breathing was uneven, indicating he had only recently arrived. Just now, all the servants were attending to him around the hall, so he couldn't ask anyone. Besides, if he had really found out through asking that he could wait for her here, he wouldn't have needed to hide so discreetly in the darkness.

An Mi's eyes deepened, and before the man could answer, she spoke again, "You've come here to demand something in return, haven't you?"

Not bad, that's the reward from that Gu worm!

The man in front of her... was the one who sold her the Gu worms. However, what he wanted was not money, but a condition: within her power, as long as she did not commit heinous crimes, murder, or arson, she would grant him any condition he requested!

A smile appeared in the man's long eyes, his gaze still fixed on An Mi. His refined voice rang out again, "The first question: the Gu worm I gave you that day was cultivated with my blood. I can naturally smell its scent."

An Mi frowned. The aura of Gu worms? But she had burned those Gu worms to ashes more than a month ago. This man… Thinking of the man's identity, An Mi's surprise and disbelief slowly disappeared. A Gu King should have such abilities; it was not surprising.

Just as she was thinking this, she heard a man's voice drift over, "The second question: I am indeed here to ask you to fulfill the promise you made that day."

Before he finished speaking, the man had already walked up to An Mi. An Mi looked up and met the man's eyes. "What does Young Master want An Mi to do?"

The man pondered for a moment, then smiled slightly, "Simple, all you need to do is... come with me!"

Anmi frowned. "Shall we go?"

This request was indeed unexpected. Where to? Anmi wanted to ask, but the next moment, she dismissed the thought, forced a smile, and said, "Okay!"

Even if she asked, this man might not tell her!

However, she knew that this trip was enough to offset the value of that Gu worm.

Seeing her calm and composed demeanor, the man's lips curled up again, and his admiration for her grew even stronger. An ordinary woman would probably not have the courage to agree so readily to go on a trip with a man she had only met once!

"Aren't you going to ask where we're going?" The man's eyes flickered, but then he heard An Mi speak, "From now on, we're even."

The man narrowed his hawk-like eyes but didn't answer. "Even if we owe each other nothing?" That was natural, but… thinking of something, the man slightly furrowed his brows, a strange glint flashing in his eyes. An Mi noticed the change in his expression, and her vigilance rose even higher. However, even though she was on guard, the next instant, the man raised his hand, and a strange fragrance wafted into her nostrils, followed by a wave of dizziness and confusion. "You…"

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you, I'll just... I'll just take you to see someone..." The man's pleasant voice rang in An Mi's ears. An Mi's body went limp and she fell down, but the man's promise made her feel at ease. For some reason, she actually thought that he wouldn't hurt her.

If this man, as the King of Gu, truly intended to harm her, he wouldn't have gone to such great lengths.

In the darkness, the man reached out and caught Anmi's fallen body, scooped her up in his arms, and disappeared back into the shadows.

The room was clean and elegant, with few items, but each one was exquisitely chosen.

Outside the room, a man dressed in black stood with his arms crossed over his chest, leaning against a pillar by the door. He exuded a lazy and sinister aura, glancing in a certain direction from time to time, as if waiting for someone to arrive.

Suddenly, a figure appeared in his line of sight. He was dressed in a blue robe, with a handsome face and a hint of gloom and displeasure between his brows.

The man's smile widened as he thought of something, but he maintained his languid and nonchalant demeanor.

The person who came saw the man outside his door and suddenly stopped, but after a moment, he started walking towards him again and stopped a few steps away from the man in black.

"What are you doing here?" His tone was not as gentle as usual, but rather carried a sharp edge that could not be ignored.

The man in black frowned, seemingly displeased with the other party's attitude. After a moment of silence, a smile appeared in his narrow eyes. "An uncle comes to visit his nephew, that's all."

The man in the blue robe, Qing Lan, frowned even more deeply and glared at the man in black. "Nalan Yu, don't forget where you are!"