SWNOVELXO Chapter 1407: Cheating Another Person
Looking into Zhou Yiqiao's eyes, which were as dark as ink and did not reveal a single ray of light, Luo Qingwu shivered involuntarily.
She looked away in panic, forced herself to calm the fear from the depths of her soul, and asked cautiously.
"May I ask, Master Zhou, how many weaknesses of Lord Zhu do you have in your hands?"
Zhou Yiqiao put a piece of cake into his mouth and spoke in a pretentious manner.
"If you need it, you can have as much as you want."
After these words were spoken, the two of them fell into a long silence until Luo Qingwu's disguised subordinates outside the pleasure boat announced Zhu Changfu's arrival, ending the awkwardness.
Zhou Yiqiao and Luo Qingwu stood at the bow to greet them. Seeing Zhu Changfu with a gloomy face, Zhou Yiqiao smiled and bowed.
"I believe you are the prefect of Tiansheng Prefecture, Lord Zhu Changfu. I have long heard of your great name. It is my honor to meet you today."
Zhu Changfu glanced sinisterly at Zhou Yiqiao and Luo Qingwu and snorted coldly.
"Humph, I don't think this is a blessing."
"Zhou Yiqiao, what is your purpose that you dare to invite me here?"
As half of "their own", Luo Qingwu didn't want Zhu Changfu to make trouble here and let someone with ulterior motives see it, putting the two of them in a more passive situation.
So she quickly stepped forward, trying to ease the atmosphere.
"Master Zhu, Mr. Zhou's visit is not without purpose. He holds important information about some recent events in Tiansheng City. I hope Master Zhu can come in and chat."
Luo Qingwu said this, signaling Zhu Changfu with her eyes to follow her inside.
Zhu Changfu's trust in Luo Qingwu was obviously much higher than that in Zhou Yiqiao. Seeing this situation, he hesitated for a moment, then ignored Zhou Yiqiao and followed Luo Qingwu into the room.
Zhou Yiqiao chuckled, not caring at all, and walked straight to the table, picked up the exquisite teacup on the table, and drank tea leisurely.
As soon as Zhu Changfu sat down as arranged by Luo Qingwu, he couldn't wait to question Zhou Yiqiao.
"Zhou Yiqiao, what do you want from me today?"
"If it's nothing important, don't blame me for being rude to you!"
Zhou Yiqiao was not afraid at all. Under Zhu Changfu's angry gaze, he drank the spiritual tea in his hand and then suddenly spoke.
"In the third year of Ruiqi, Zhu Changfu was appointed as the prefect of Tiansheng Prefecture. Three months later, he colluded with the Tiansheng City Guard and monopolized most of the low-level elixir trade in the south of Tiansheng City."
"With this, the money you collect every day will be a hundred times more than the annual income of the pleasure boat under our feet."
As soon as these words were spoken, Zhu Changfu's face turned pale in an instant, and he slammed the table and shouted angrily.
"Zhou Yiqiao, how dare you slander me! I am an upright official, how can I allow you to frame me like this!"
However, Zhou Yiqiao pretended not to hear and continued talking to himself.
"In the sixteenth year of Ruiqi, Zhu Changfu again used the name of strengthening the formation to embezzle the spiritual stones allocated by the court, but in fact he used most of the money for personal luxury."
"In the southern part of Tiansheng City, the section of the city wall farthest from the Immortal Emperor Palace, there are still three formation nodes that have not been properly repaired. If an external enemy invades, the consequences will be disastrous."
"In the seventy-ninth year of Ruiqi, Zhu Changfu killed thirteen innocent people, including several children, just based on an unfounded accusation that he was a spy, just to refine an evil elixir called Gongshou Pills."
"There are also Ruiqi 143 years, Ruiqi 398 years, Ruiqi 880 years..."
Zhou Yiqiao seemed to be counting Zhu Changfu's sins one by one. Each year was followed by a shocking evil deed. Every word was like a hammer and every sentence was like a knife, striking Zhu Changfu's heart directly.
Luo Qingwu was terrified as she listened to this. Although she had heard about some of Zhu Changfu's illegal behaviors, she had never thought that they would be so serious and so unspeakable.
Zhu Changfu's face turned from blue to white, then from white to red, and finally became deathly gray. He pointed at Zhou Yiqiao with a trembling finger, and his voice was almost squeezed out from between his teeth.
"Where...where did you get this evidence? Don't slander me!"
Zhou Yiqiao suddenly stood up, leaned over and looked directly into Zhu Changfu's eyes, forcing Zhu Changfu to move back further until his back was pressed tightly against the back of the chair, with nowhere to retreat.
"Master Zhu, what this person said is the evidence."
Zhu Changfu was forced to meet Zhou Yiqiao's eyes, but he could only see the miserable appearance reflected in Zhou Yiqiao's pupils.
His face was pale, beads of sweat oozed out of his forehead, and his lips kept trembling. Although his cultivation was several levels higher than Zhou Yiqiao's, he could not muster the slightest thought of resisting.
"You...what do you want?"
Zhu Changfu's voice became hesitant because of despair.
Zhou Yiqiao slowly straightened up, a cold smile on his lips.
He walked slowly to the window, looking at the sparkling water outside the houseboat, his tone calm.
"I know that most of the wealth you collected was given to the person behind the scenes. It was because of that person's guarantee that you were able to act so recklessly."
"I just want to tell you today that as long as we are willing, even the so-called high and mighty beings in your eyes cannot protect you."
"You...what do you want to do..."
"What...do you want?"
Zhu Changfu guessed a possibility from Zhou Yiqiao's answer. Suddenly, he was drained of all his strength and collapsed to the ground, repeating in a trembling voice.
Zhou Yiqiao turned around, his eyes were cold and deep, as if they could penetrate Zhu Changfu's soul.
He approached slowly, and every step seemed to step on Zhu Changfu's heart, making his breathing increasingly difficult.
"My request is very simple. Either you return all the money you have plundered from the people since you became the prefect of Tiansheng Prefecture, or from now on, you become Zhou's most loyal old dog."
Zhu Changfu widened his eyes and looked at Zhou Yiqiao who was approaching step by step with disbelief, and a faint whimpering sound came from his throat, like a trapped beast forced into a desperate situation.
Just as Zhou Yiqiao said, although he had amassed a lot of wealth over the years by virtue of his position as the prefect of Tiansheng Prefecture, in order to ensure his personal safety, he gave most of it to the person behind him, and he did not have many resources left.
Not to mention that for a half-step fusion cultivator like him, even if he does not seek to make progress every day, the spiritual objects needed to maintain his cultivation alone are a considerable expense.
Zhou Yiqiao looked at Zhu Changfu's terrified expression and a sarcastic smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
He slowly stopped, less than a centimeter in front of Zhu Changfu, but did not actually touch him, as if he was enjoying this feeling of psychological oppression.
"Master Zhu, you should understand that your next choice will determine your future."
"Should I continue to sink into the abyss of greed and fear, or choose a path that may save my life?"
Zhu Changfu's throat rolled with difficulty. He tried to speak, but found that his voice was so weak that it was almost inaudible.
"I... the person behind me, you can't afford to offend..."
Seeing that Zhu Changfu was still stubborn, Zhou Yiqiao's face suddenly turned gloomy.
He slammed the table and shouted at Zhu Changfu in an almost growling voice.
"Daxuantian will always be the Daxuantian of the Luo family! You said that Zhou, the person behind you, Zhu Changfu, cannot afford to offend. Then, can you afford to offend the person behind Zhou, the person behind you?"
"You are just a half-step fusion cultivator, a chess piece in the hands of others. Do you really think you can turn the tide and control the life and death of others?"
Zhu Changfu was so frightened by Zhou Yiqiao's angry rebuke that his whole body trembled, and a look of fear and despair flashed in his eyes.
He knew very well that he had reached a dead end today, and no matter which path he chose, he would face unpredictable consequences.
When Zhou Yiqiao saw Zhu Changfu's expression changing, he already had a plan in mind.
He slowly retracted his angry expression and regained his calm and composed look, as if the thundering rage just now was just an illusion.
"Master Zhu, you actually have a third option."
When Zhu Changfu heard this, a glimmer flashed in his eyes, and he asked anxiously, like a drowning man grabbing a straw.
"Which way?"
A hint of triumphant smile flashed in Zhou Yiqiao's eyes. He coughed lightly and spoke slowly.
"You can continue to do your shameful deeds, or you can continue to work for the so-called backer behind you."
"But at the same time, no matter what method you use, you must give me a 'tribute' of one hundred immortal crystals every month to buy your life."
Hearing this, Zhu Changfu's originally pale face suddenly turned into one of joy.
He thought that Zhou Yiqiao went through so much trouble just to blackmail him.
Although one hundred immortal crystals was a considerable sum for him, this price was insignificant compared to the loss of his life and the secrets behind it being revealed.
"Okay! I promise you! One hundred immortal crystals per month. I, Zhu Changfu, will keep my word!"
Zhu Changfu agreed almost impatiently, fearing that Zhou Yiqiao would go back on his word.
Zhou Yiqiao nodded, then glanced at Luo Qingwu, who was standing beside him with her head lowered and her presence minimized as much as possible, and "requested" in the gentlest voice.
"It is not my position to do such things so blatantly. From now on, I will have to trouble Miss Luo and the Luo family to help with the immortal crystals that Lord Zhu sends every month."
Luo Qingwu was now very frightened of Zhou Yiqiao's gentle expression. She shrank back unconsciously, but soon realized that this was a "task" given to her by Zhou Yiqiao, an opportunity that might allow her to leave a good impression in Zhou Yiqiao's heart.
So, she suppressed the uneasiness in her heart, forced a smile, and spoke in a voice as thin as a mosquito but firm.
"Don't worry, Lord Zhou. I will do my best to ensure the safe delivery of the immortal crystals every month."
Zhou Yiqiao nodded with satisfaction and turned his gaze to Zhu Changfu again.
"Very good, next Master Zhu just needs to release his spiritual sense and let Zhou leave the spiritual sense imprint, and then you can leave."