Chapter 3: The Holy Maiden (Part 2)

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  Tears are useless to Zhu Yinglong, unlike other men. In his previous life, he was influenced by the dramas and thought that women were a source of trouble. He believed that whenever something was about to succeed, it would be ruined by a woman's hand. However, after being reborn in Zhen Wang Zhu Youjian's body, he saw that not all women were like that through his interactions with three queens, Tian Jiaxiao and Xiong Hu. In reality, men are the ones who are unfaithful, and when they don't have a woman they like, they become jealous of others' relationships and view women as a source of trouble. Zhu Yinglong used to think this way too, but after marrying three queens in this patriarchal society, his views on this matter faded. Nevertheless, he wouldn't be fond of women who cry, throw tantrums, or are overly dramatic, even if they were as beautiful as goddesses.

  "Are you going to take out the weapon on your body that can kill us, or do I have to search for it myself? It's best not to call for help, because before your people arrive, you might already be a cold corpse." Zhu Yinglong said icily, staring at Miss Yu.

  "Ying'er?" Shen Xi couldn't help but feel a little unbearable. He had never seen Zhu Yinglong treat a woman like this before, and it felt somewhat cruel.

  "Uncle, for a woman as vicious as a snake's scales, you absolutely cannot show mercy. Do you want to suffer the same loss again like back then?" Zhu Ying Long's heart was as hard as iron, and he had made up his mind not to let her off.

  Shen Xi could only turn around and say to Ru Ying: "Ru Ying niece, you'd better take out the weapons and other things on your body!"

  Under the eaves, who can't bow their heads? She had no choice but to pull out a dagger from her bosom and fling it to the ground, her eyes blazing with fury as she shouted at Zhu Yinglong: "You uncle and nephew would do well not to fall into my hands!"

  Zhu Yinglong didn't say a word, tore off a corner of his robe, went forward and grabbed Ruyin's pair, and tied them up without saying a word. Ruyin was pressed against the muzzle of the fire gun, unable to make a move, and trembled with fear, saying: "Miss has already thrown away the dagger hidden on her body as you said, what else do you want to do?"

  "In the world of rivers and lakes, one's body is not at liberty. This is your territory, we have to be careful." Zhu Yinglong replied calmly.

  Zhu Yinglong bound her hands, suddenly lifted the right sleeve of Ruyin, pointing at the sleeve arrow on her arm and asked coldly: "Miss Ruyin, what is this?"

  Shen Creek saw the cold light flashing arrowhead, suddenly had a feeling of being deceived. Just now he felt unbearable, fortunately Zhu Yinglong did not listen, otherwise how to die is unknown, his face also showed an angry expression, and below Zhu Yinglong's disposal of her he didn't plan to ask about it anymore.

  "How did you find out?" asked Yīn, suddenly stopping her crying and looking calm.

  "When the authorities are confused, the bystanders are clear. You just focused on my uncle and ignored that I'm also his nephew." Zhu Yinglong smiled as he took off the sleeve arrow and re-tied it to his own arm, didn't expect to have a small gain tonight, not a wasted trip after all.

  "What do you plan to do with me?" asked Ruoying.

  "Sorry, I need to search you!" Zhu Yinglong's smile was like the devil incarnate in Miss Ruyin's eyes now. She hated him so much that she wanted to chop him into pieces right now. Her face turned pale again and she shouted: "You bastard, if you dare touch a single hair on my head, I'll make your Shen family accompany me in death!"

  Zhu Yinglong's smile suddenly disappeared from his face, and his voice was like the cold wind in February, piercingly saying: "For our enemies, the current motto of the Shen family is that we will absolutely not let them have any chance to rise again!"

  "You..." Only now did Xu Ruyin realize that the person she had to deal with tonight was not Shen Jia's so-called master Shen Xi, but this demon-like young man in front of her, Shen Jia's future master candidate Shen Ying! She only now felt what it meant to be afraid. This was indeed a case of "evil people have evil people to grind", Zhu Yinglong had just used a small trick and let Xu Ruyin, the sacred lady of the White Lotus Sect, understand what fear was.

  Zhu Yinglong, of course, would not give up the search due to Xu Ruyin's hateful gaze, but instead carefully searched her entire body. Of course, he didn't check inside her underwear; he hadn't reached that level of shamelessness yet. He found a dagger, a silk handkerchief, some medicine bottles, and several Buddhist scriptures.

  Xu Ruyin saw that he was just conducting a thorough search, without any improper behavior, but her icy and elegant body had never been touched by a man in such an all-encompassing way before. Especially when he accidentally touched sensitive areas, she bit her lip tightly, her face flushing to the point of almost bleeding, feeling ashamed and humiliated, hating Zhu Yinglong to the bone.

  After searching his body, Zhu Yinglong smiled and asked Shen Xi: "Uncle, I haven't heard that you have such a beautiful niece. Can you introduce her to your nephew first?"

  "My surname is Xu, and my name is Ruying. Shen Da Gongzi, please remember that Miss will settle accounts with you sooner or later!" Xu Ruying gritted her silver teeth and said before Shen Xi could speak.

  Zhu Yinglong was startled, and he thought of a person who was famous in the history of the White Lotus Sect. He asked in surprise: "Is Miss Ruyin's father's name Hongru?"

  Xu Ruyin let out a cold hum, which was her way of answering his question, then turned her head away and ignored Zhu Yinglong.

  Zhu Yinglong finally understood that Xu Ruyin was actually the daughter of Xu Hongru, the leader of the White Lotus Rebellion in Shandong during the Tianqi era. The impact was immense, and the whole country was shaken. Later, he was defeated and killed in Beijing, and can be considered a hero of his time.

  The Ming dynasty was also founded by the Hongwu Emperor, who had borrowed the power of the White Lotus Society to seize the world. He was called "Xiaoming Wang" and after he established the country, he named it "Ming". Therefore, the Ming dynasty and the White Lotus Society can be said to be one family. However, the power of the White Lotus Society during the Ming dynasty was too great, which led to the court's vigilance and was banned as a heresy. Most of the followers were poor and came from the lower classes of society. The teachings of equality, mutual assistance, and pursuit of light were good, but the White Lotus Society had many followers during the Ming dynasty, mainly from the lower classes. Each faction implemented a patriarchal system, with a strict hierarchy and levels. The composition of the leaders was very complex, and their attitudes towards the Ming court were inconsistent. Some deceived believers to accumulate wealth; some wrote scriptures to curry favor with the upper class; some developed followers among eunuchs, officials, and wealthy families; while others combined with the lower classes to oppose the government and launch armed uprisings. Xu Hongru, the father of Xu Ruoyu, was one of the representative figures.

  "Ying'er, now revered as the White Lotus Holy Maiden by the White Lotus Sect in Shandong, what are we to do?" Shen Xi said with some anxiety.

  "Saintly Maiden?" Zhu Yinglong found it amusing, how this whatever broken sect's daughter also wanted to have a "Saintly Maiden" title, and actually thought she had entered the world of martial arts with flashing knives and swords!

  "Miss Xu, are you asking our Shen family for financial support?" Zhu Yinglong suddenly asked calmly.

  Xu Ruyin turned her head in surprise and stared at Zhu Yinglong, really doubting whether she had misheard, and asked in shock: "What do you want to do?"

  Zhu Yinglong walked over and untied her restraints, saying slowly: "How about we make a deal?"

  Xu Ruyin couldn't figure out why the other party suddenly let her go, was it because they were afraid of her White Lotus Sect's power or for some other reason. She stretched out her hand to move her wrist and asked: "What deal?"

  "If Miss Xu and your subordinates surrender to me from now on, I'll provide financial support for your development, but there's one condition: you must do as I say!" Zhu Yinglong had an idea. In any country, there are always two societies, light and dark. Although he was confident, if something went wrong at some point, he couldn't just sit back and wait to be captured. So, he needed a secret force in his hands. Xu Ruyin's appearance undoubtedly gave him a great opportunity, so he decided to subdue this White Lotus Holy Maiden, Xu Ruyin.

  "Shadow, you?" Shen Xi looked at Zhu Yinglong with tension. What he was doing was like plotting against a tiger for its skin, how could he not be worried?

  "Uncle, please calm down!" Zhu Yinglong stopped Shen Xi and continued.

  Xu Ruyin's situation was also very difficult. This White Lotus Holy Maiden was actually just a superficial glory, and the internal White Lotus Sect was also divided into various factions without a unified organization. Her father had only become the sect leader with the support of most of the followers back then, and in fact, he only had some influence in the Shandong area. If the White Lotus Sect were truly united, even if the imperial court was powerful, it would not be a match. It was precisely because they were like scattered sand, with different opinions, that they were defeated and killed. She struggled for three years, and on the ground of Shandong, the White Lotus Sect had already been dominated by Wang Sen and his son Wang Haoxian's Fragrant Incense Sect, followed by Xu Ruyin's White Lotus Holy Maiden. The Wang father and son had been plotting to annex her power, but her subordinates were mostly poor women and old men left behind by her father, and they did not have the strength to resist the Wang family. Moreover, she was not good at managing finances, and funds were tight, so she set her sights on Shen Creek.

  The Wang family, father and son, came to her door several times to propose a marriage alliance, attempting to control her power through marriage. The conditions they offered were very generous, promising that she and her followers would never have to worry about food, clothing, or shelter again. Many people in the cult also expressed support for this union, after all, they were of the same clan, and uniting their strength would make them even more powerful. However, Xu Ruoyun was well aware of what kind of people the Wang family father and son were - colluding with officials, oppressing the common people, and being the dregs of the White Lotus Sect. If she agreed to marry Wang Haoxian, not only would she be jumping into a fire pit, but also her sisters who followed her would have no good ending. Therefore, she was somewhat moved by Zhu Yinglong's conditions. For the future of her thousands of followers, what did her past humiliation count for? After some thought, she said: "Shen Gongzi, with your Shen family's power, it's probably not possible to make me, Xu Ruoyun, surrender. However, we can cooperate, and you, Shen Gongzi, can also get what you want."

  "Then may I ask, Miss Ruoyin, what can our Shen family gain from this?"

  Xu Ruyin was taken aback by the question, how did she know what the Shen family wanted? She couldn't say anything.

  Zhu Yinglong burst out laughing and said, "Since Miss Ruyi can't answer, why don't we just do what I said earlier? We'll stay at your manor tonight, and you can give us an answer tomorrow morning!"

  "You're not afraid..." Xu Ruyin's words were cut off as she suddenly felt something being pushed into her mouth, and it slid down her throat. She pointed at Zhu Yinglong in terror: "What did you make me eat?"

  Zhu Yinglong smiled slightly and said, "Nothing, it's just a kind of poison that our Shen family has exclusively made, no matter whether Miss Ruyin agrees to my proposal or not, as long as we leave Shandong, we will present the antidote."

  "How despicable!" Xu Ruyin said angrily.

  "How despicable!" Zhu Yinglong, who thought he was quite handsome, shrugged and said: "Compared to Miss Ruyin forcing Uncle and me to enter the mansion as guests, this is far worse!"

  Xu Ruyin only then realized what it meant to invite a wolf into one's home. She was so angry that she violently knocked over the incense burner on the table, and truly didn't know why this White Lotus Saintess was so irreverent towards the god she believed in!