Traveling back to the Northern Song Dynasty: Picking up a princess as my wife

Dao Ge smiled gently and looked at Li Zhen with a smug expression. "Mr. Li, I've carefully inspected this batch of goods. They're of excellent quality. You're truly an expert; your selection is impeccable. As for our accounts, don't you think it's time for us to settle things amicably?"

Upon hearing this, Li Zhen gently set aside his rifle, a hearty smile spreading across his face—a smile that held a touch of江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) and a carefree attitude. "Haha, Brother Dao, you're too kind. Our friendship needs no further explanation. As for the payment, I've already prepared it; it's currently safely tucked away in the back seat of Brother Long's imposing vehicle. You just need to send a trusted brother to collect it, and I guarantee you won't lose a single penny—it'll be a straightforward transaction!"

Xiao Long was a little incredulous upon hearing this, because when he picked them up in his car that morning, they hadn't brought anything with them. Now they were saying the money was in his car?

To verify its authenticity, Xiaolong went to the car to check and found a large suitcase on the back seat.

He carefully pulled open a corner and saw that it was filled with bulging Chinese coins.

Xiao Long dragged his heavy suitcase up to Dao Ge: "Boss, what he said is true, but we don't know when it was put up there."

After Xiaolong unzipped the zipper, he gently counted the banknotes inside. There were exactly two million four hundred thousand, the exact amount.

Li Zhen: "Don't worry, Brother Dao. This is cash I legally obtained through a friend. They're all non-consecutive numbers, so don't worry."

Brother Dao: "Hahaha... Boss Li, you're so generous! Where should I transport these weapons for you?"

Li Zhen smiled and said, "I saw a truck in your yard when I came. Could you help me load it up? As for transportation, don't worry about it; someone will take care of it later."

Everyone helped load the truck with questions in their hearts. Fang Zhen wanted to go with them, but Li Zhen kept him behind.

"Please wait a moment, I'll be back in half an hour."

After saying that, Li Zhen drove off, leaving the crowd standing there speculating. Especially Dao Ge, who knew the situation of those convoys in the area; no one dared to transport weapons so openly.

For safety's sake, Li Zhen stopped a little distance away from Brother Dao's manor. He touched the jade pendant around his neck and used his mind to transfer all the weapons into his spatial storage. Once inside, no one but Li Zhen could retrieve them.

The people in the manor waited for about ten minutes before Li Zhen drove back. Everyone looked into the car and saw that the wooden crates containing weapons were gone.

Xiao Long asked in confusion, "Boss Li, is the arms shipment finished already?"

After jumping out of the car, Li Zhen casually closed the door: "Not many. This is lucky. As long as I make the arrangements, someone will be responsible for the transportation."

Then Li Zhen approached Brother Dao and said with a smile, "Thank you for your trust, Brother Dao. Our cooperation this time has been very pleasant. However, as you know, there is a war situation in the north. Could you please see if you could bring over some more weapons, preferably mortars or armored vehicles? Money is not a problem."

Unexpectedly, Li Zhen had such a big appetite. But these days, who would turn down money? Brother Dao said he could give it a try and could contact him by phone once he was sure.

After finishing his business here, Li Zhen declined Brother Dao's hospitality and went directly to the nearest airport to buy a ticket and wait for his flight.

Li Zhen smiled and said to Xiao Long, who had come to see him off, "Brother Long, whenever you have time to visit Shandong Province, I'll make arrangements for you."

Xiao Long readily agreed, saying that he would definitely travel to Shandong Province once he had a girlfriend.

Xiao Long drove back to the manor only after seeing the two off at the airport.

Above the plane, Zhen asked in a low voice, "Old classmate, is the transportation route for those things safe? We absolutely can't have any problems."

Li Zhen patted Fang Zhen on the shoulder: "Don't worry about it. Didn't I say that we don't need to worry about the transportation issues?"

As the plane taxied rapidly, it soon soared into the sky and disappeared into the clouds.

Li Zhen leaned against the porthole, his gentle gaze piercing through the clouds and slowly falling on the distant and mysterious land of Yunnan and Guizhou. Ripples of emotion welled up in his heart, and he was filled with endless longing for a future reunion with this land.

He secretly pondered that if he could return to this place, it would not only be to recapture the shock and longing he felt upon first sight, but also to harbor a secret dream—to drive an indestructible armored vehicle through the turbulent world of the Song Dynasty, which would be incredibly heroic and unrestrained.

It was already evening when the plane landed. Cao Hua had been waiting at the airport in his car for a while. After picking up the two, they went straight to Li Zhen's house, and then Zhao Yingluo went to a restaurant.

Cao Hua's secretary was standing at the entrance of the restaurant waiting. As soon as the group got out of the car, she ran to Cao Hua.

"Brother Hua, the room is booked. We've reserved the most luxurious private room. We just haven't ordered the food yet, because I'm worried that the brothers might have different tastes."

Cao Hua's wicked hand encircled his secretary's slender waist as they walked, and he said, "Well done, I knew you were serious about your work."

The secretary, beaming with joy at the compliment, gave Cao Hua a sweet kiss, disregarding the presence of outsiders.

Fang Zhen, standing to the side, said somewhat jealously, "Cao Hua, when are you going to introduce me to a secretary? I'm still single."

The group arrived at the private room amidst laughter and chatter. The waiter quickly brought out the dishes they had ordered. Cao Hua, who had earned a considerable amount of commission from Li Zhen, generously brought over a case of Wuliangye liquor, saying that each person should have a bottle and they would drink until they were completely drunk that night.

During dinner, Li Zhen said that he came back this time thinking about getting married to Zhao Yingluo, and that a few people would inevitably have to help him.

Upon hearing this, Fang Zhen burst into tears again. This guy has a bad temper when he's drunk; he'll grab anyone he can and start crying.

"Good heavens, I, Fang Zhen, a model young man, am still single, while you guys who prioritize women over friendship are all in pairs. Heaven is so unfair!"

Finally, Cao Hua couldn't hold back any longer and immediately gave Fang Zhen a hard time.

"Shut up. If you keep making up stories about God like that, you'll be struck by lightning when it rains."

Unexpectedly, Fang Zhen, who was drunk, immediately shut his mouth upon hearing this and dared not make fun of God anymore.

After a hearty meal and drinks, Li Zhen and Zhao Yingluo drove home, leaving Cao Hua to take care of the drunk Fang Zhen. Later, Li Zhen heard that Cao Hua had taken Fang Zhen to the biggest entertainment venue in town that very night to sing karaoke, and had generously arranged for three "princesses" for him, nearly exhausting Fang Zhen that night.

The next morning, Li Zhen took Zhao Yingluo onto the highway. He had told his parents yesterday that he was going home today, and he also told them that he wanted to marry Zhao Yingluo.

When they got back to their front door, they saw several relatives and friends standing outside their gate, who must have been called over by their parents.

Knowing that this was her future daughter-in-law, Li Zhen's mother treated Zhao Yingluo even more warmly, which made Zhao Yingluo feel embarrassed.

Li Zhen's father, feigning composure, sat there and asked, "Are you sure?"

Li Zhen took out a cigarette and lit it for his father with great care: "Dad, I've made up my mind, I'll go for Yingluo."

"But what's the woman's opinion?"

Li Zhen: "Yingluo has no relatives in her hometown, so you could say she's an orphan."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhen's mother hugged Zhao Yingluo even tighter: "Good girl, this is your home from now on. Your father and I will treat you like our own daughter. If that brat Li Zhen dares to bully you, just tell me, and I'll have your father break his legs!"

After hearing this, Li Zhen looked down at his thigh.