This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

Chen Miao pursed her lips, her eyes blinked and darted around, and she smiled.

"If you beg me, I'll tell you."

"Then you'd better not say anything. The door is over there. Please leave."

"You boring man! It's rare for such a beautiful woman like me to throw myself into your arms. Are you impotent?"

"Get lost! You're in just as much trouble as I am, you Dali spy. Do you know that if you get caught, you'll be in even worse shape than me?"

"Hmph, you clueless man. You know you'll never find a wife in Dali, right?"

Chen Miao snorted, then looked out the window. Although she was severely injured and unable to use her martial arts, her senses remained.

Xiao Xingchen seemed to sense something as well, and looked outside to see Daji strolling towards him.

"Your little lover is here, should I leave?"

Chen Miao continued teasingly, displaying a keen interest in watching the drama unfold.

Xiao Xingchen could only shake his head helplessly. The word "language" lit up in his mind, and he began to communicate with Daji.

"Someone couldn't find me, so they've set their sights on you. Right now, they're hunting down the mute girl."

Daji seemed not to hear, and stopped in a pavilion next to the window. She even leaned on the railing and began to watch the fish in the water, but her eyes glanced at Chen Miao.

"Those are none of my business, you'll handle them."

"Okay, I'm thinking of a way."

After a brief exchange, he looked at Chen Miao again, only to find her staring intently at Daji, seemingly lost in thought.

He walked up to Chen Miao, blocking her view.

"Hey, what's so interesting? Since you're here, you must have come with conditions, right? Hurry up and finish this quickly, otherwise it will arouse suspicion."

Chen Miao responded with an "oh," a look of confusion flashing across her face. She then noticed Xiao Xingchen's words and became anxious.

"You heartless man, is that how you see me? Forget about conditions, with our relationship, I will definitely do everything I can to help you if you are in trouble. Don't forget, it was my men who helped you hold off those barbarians at the city gate. Don't be ungrateful, learn to be grateful and repay kindness."

"Stop, we're not that close, hurry up and state your terms," ​​Xiao Xingchen quickly waved her hand, signaling her to stop pretending.

"Hehe, alright, since you're so eager to give me something in return, I can't be ungrateful, right? Simply put, your mute girl comes with me, and I'll guarantee her safety."

"The conditions!" Xiao Xingchen repeated.

"Attending my father's promotion banquet,"

"You've really got a good plan; you've lured me onto your pirate ship!"

Chen Miao shrugged helplessly, giving Xiao Xingchen a "I've got you figured out" look, which made Xiao Xingchen feel a little helpless. Seeing this, Chen Miao continued to explain.

"You need to understand one thing: what you did a few days ago would have wiped out anyone else. They only dared to arrest you because you have the title of a disciple of a Quasi-Sage. You need a powerful backer, but the Quasi-Sage and the Confucian Temple don't participate in the great struggle for power. You can't have that kind of backer."

"Also, don't think that young sword immortals are so precious. No, becoming a sword immortal is difficult, but there are quite a few, especially a young sword immortal who poses a potential threat and has no background. Many people can kill you in countless ways, and they can do it without anyone noticing."

"I'm telling you this to tell you that one person can't accomplish anything alone. You need connections, and the Second Saint can't provide those connections; only I can."

Surprisingly, Xiao Xingchen didn't refute. Under normal circumstances, he would have definitely retorted, but Chen Miao's words hit the nail on the head. This was also a problem he had been pondering these past few days. Although he knew quite a few people now, he couldn't leverage any of their influence.

The Fourth Prince's influence is absolutely unacceptable. Some have already begun to suspect he's an illegitimate child; getting entangled with him now would definitely arouse suspicion.

As for the eldest princess, that woman is incredibly scheming; I don't even want to have anything to do with her.

To put it bluntly, the Quasi-Sage has a considerable reputation and some strength, but he's not stupid. Would he just randomly pick a disciple with no background and open his heart to you? If the Quasi-Sage were to do that, Xiao Xingchen wouldn't dare accept him.

After much thought, Chen Miao seemed to be the only viable option. Chen Miao belonged to Dali, which was leverage over him. He had also ventured into Cangshan and knew the secret of the Sword Immortal, further giving Chen Miao leverage over him. Having leverage in the other's hands was the basis for cooperation; for the sake of mutual benefit, they would stand firmly together.

In fact, even if Chen Miao hadn't come to see him today, he would have wanted to go see her anyway. Since Dali had set up a presence in Yong'an City of Daqian, they must have been planning this for a long time. There must be a large number of experts waiting in Yong'an, and both intelligence and manpower could bring him benefits.

"There's one last question. Chen Haoran is just a Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Just how capable are you all?"

This was Xiao Xingchen's last concern. Since they were choosing allies, they had to find capable ones. It would be absurd if their abilities turned out to be limited to someone like a mere Vice Minister of Revenue.

"Hehe, are you testing us? But I don't mind, you seem to have forgotten something."

"whats the matter?"

"The Chen family of Hanhai,"

Xiao Xingchen's eyes widened. Right, how could he have forgotten that? There weren't many people who could establish a foothold in Yong'an, and the Chen family happened to be one of them.

Seeing Xiao Xingchen's look of realization, Chen Miao smiled and then extended her right hand.

"It's a pleasure to cooperate with you. You don't need to worry about the mute girl. Solving her problem is my gift to you. As for the promotion banquet tomorrow, just come. I'll show you the weight and significance of the four characters 'Hanhai Chen Family' then."

With a "smack," Xiao Xingchen simply slapped her hand and quickly separated them, causing Chen Miao to grit her teeth immediately.

"They say women can change their minds faster than turning the pages of a book, but I think men are the same. They don't even dare to shake hands. Cowards."

"My wife is there. It's inappropriate for men and women to be intimate. We need to be mindful of the impact."

"Pah! You're all lust and no guts. I've seen plenty of men like you, the typical repressed pervert."

"Damn it, are you out of your mind? What do we have to do with this?"

"You're sick, I really am sick. What do I care if you live or die? If you piss me off, I'll go out and tell everyone that you know Xiao Jianxian's secret. Let's see who dies first."

Chen Miao stormed out, which made Xiao Xingchen's lips twitch. Why were all women like this, so heartless? All he did was not shake hands, why was she acting like this?

But then, seeing the direction Chen Miao went, Xiao Xingchen exclaimed "Damn it!" and chased after her. She actually went straight for Daji.

"Stop right there, we haven't finished talking yet,"

"Hmph, I don't want to talk about it anymore,"

Chen Miao quickly approached Daji, glanced down at the unbelievably beautiful woman, and upon closer inspection, even she seemed somewhat shorter than Daji.

But then her eyes widened in shock, for a small tiger had quietly peeked out from Daji's arms.

"White Tiger?"

Chen Miao was somewhat flustered; the little white tiger was actually in her arms.

Daji looked at her with a smile and made a gesture, as if to say, "What's wrong?"

When Chen Miao saw that Xiao Xingchen had also followed, she deliberately asked loudly,

"Sister, this jerk behind you is causing a lot of trouble. If you stay with him, it will bring you more problems. Would you be interested in living with me for a while? Of course, the man behind you can come see you anytime he has time. What do you think?"

"Don't listen to her, you stay here," Xiao Xingchen quickly stopped him. If Daji were taken away, he would be completely on the Chen family's pirate ship and there would be no way to get off.

The result was indeed Daji's nod in agreement.

"I'll go with her,"

"Huh?" Xiao Xingchen wondered if she had misheard.

The seal of the language character shines again.

"I'll go with her,"

"See? See? She's willing to come with me. You stinky man, you can live alone now."

Chen Miao was overjoyed; today's trip was definitely worthwhile.