Chapter 29 - 4: Hand Over Ye Zhaozhao

Being stared at by Lin Qingling, Manager Qiu broke out in a cold sweat. He wiped his forehead and waved his hands frantically. "No, no, that’s not it. I..."

"Manager Qiu, why are you afraid of her?" Master Lingxu suddenly interjected. "The Spiritual Artifact Pavilion has been operating in our marketplace for a century, and its reputation is there for all to see! Is there a single disciple of our Sword Sect who hasn’t bought something from the Spiritual Artifact Pavilion? I can’t speak for others, but I, for one, have great faith in your character."

"The very fact that Manager Qiu has come to us proves that there is indeed something wrong with Li Shuang’s character."

Master Lingxu looked at Lin Qingling with unconcealed glee. "Peak Master Lin, I told you so. You misjudged her!"

He was the one who had chosen to cast Li Shuang aside.

’Only by proving that Li Shuang is truly a despicable wretch can he show everyone that his judgment, the judgment of Master Lingxu, has never been wrong.’

"Is that so?" Lin Qingling said, her cold gaze fixed on Manager Qiu. The treasured sword at her waist seemed ready to leap from its scabbard at any moment.

"Peak Master Lin," Master Lingxu said mockingly, "are you planning to defend her no matter what?"

Lin Qingling replied coldly, "I don’t believe Li Shuang has done anything wrong!"

"If she’d done nothing wrong, would Manager Qiu have come all this way to find us?" Master Lingxu raised an eyebrow, his tone self-righteous.

As soon as he finished speaking, Manager Qiu finally found his chance. Wiping away his cold sweat, he said, "No, no, that’s not it. I’m not here to see Fairy Li."

As he spoke, he shot Li Shuang an almost fawning glance. "In this matter, I was the one blinded by greed. I was the one who was in the wrong first. The Clear Heart Jade Pendant is what Fairy Li rightfully deserved. She was not only blameless, but she also delivered a much-needed wake-up call that brought me to my senses."

Just a moment ago, Lin Qingling had looked ready to kill.

Upon hearing his words, she blinked, and the treasured sword that was about to be drawn stilled.

Li Shuang watched Manager Qiu, surprised.

’He’s not here for me?’

Her eyes flickered.

’It’s strange.’

’The last time we met in the marketplace, this Manager Qiu showed obvious malice toward me.’

’I took a Clear Heart Jade Pendant from him, causing a huge loss for the Spiritual Artifact Pavilion. And now that we meet again, his malice toward me has actually lessened?’

"Manager Qiu," Master Lingxu said, eyeing him suspiciously. "You weren’t intimidated by Peak Master Lin, were you? Don’t be afraid of her. As long as you are in the right, everyone in the Sword Sect will stand behind you and see that justice is done!"

Manager Qiu glanced at Master Lingxu and asked, "In that case, you, Master Lingxu, will surely be the first to see justice done for me, correct?"

Master Lingxu nodded. "But of course."

Manager Qiu nodded and said without a moment’s hesitation, "If that’s the case, then please have your young disciple, Master Lingxu, give us a proper explanation!"

Manager Qiu’s icy gaze shot directly toward Ye Zhaozhao.

Ye Zhaozhao’s body trembled, and a flustered panic appeared in her eyes.

Li Shuang was also stunned.

’Ye Zhaozhao?’

’Manager Qiu is actually here for Ye Zhaozhao.’

Remembering the figure on the second floor, Li Shuang fell into thought.

"I... I don’t even know you. What kind of explanation could I give?" Ye Zhaozhao’s voice was weak, lacking any conviction.

Master Lingxu frowned. "Manager Qiu! Zhaozhao hasn’t been to the marketplace at all recently. Why are you bringing her up? Li Shuang used to be my Senior Disciple. Are you sure you haven’t mistaken them for each other?"

Master Lingxu was still determined to steer the blame toward Li Shuang.

Manager Qiu looked at Ye Zhaozhao, a cold, sinister smile touching his lips. "Absolutely not. A few years ago, a Loose Cultivator who said her surname was Ye came to the Spirit Treasure Pavilion. She proposed a partnership. She would be responsible for the ideas, we would be responsible for the execution, and she would receive a percentage of the Spirit Stones we earned."

"And she did come up with quite a few ideas. The Double Eleven event five years ago, the red envelope Spirit Stone giveaway four years ago... those were all her creations! I admit, the Spiritual Artifact Pavilion’s revenue has certainly grown over the past few years, and I always gave her the agreed-upon share."

As Manager Qiu spoke, the expressions on the faces of the crowd shifted.

Meng Yifei couldn’t help but steal a few more glances at Ye Zhaozhao. The Spiritual Artifact Pavilion had been constantly rolling out novel promotions over the last few years, and he had even marveled at how creative and imaginative business had become.

’To think, all those ideas came from Ye Zhaozhao?’

"If what you say is true, my disciple helped you increase your revenue. Isn’t that a great help to you? So why do you look like you’re here to condemn her? What is the meaning of this?!" Master Lingxu was completely bewildered.

Manager Qiu gritted his teeth. "Ye Zhaozhao’s ideas were indeed good for stimulating sales. But she also personally instructed me in some shady, under-the-table practices. For example, during a ’buy one, get one free’ promotion, the ’free’ bottle of Elixir Pills would contain pills with only half the potency. For the Double Eleven event, we would slowly raise prices for a month beforehand, only to suddenly drop them on the day of the sale... Thanks to schemes like these, our revenue went up, but the Spiritual Artifact Pavilion’s century-old reputation has been plummeting for the last five years!"

Master Lingxu frowned. "Don’t you dare make such baseless accusations! Zhaozhao would never suggest such a thing! I think it’s you who got greedy, made a series of foolish decisions, and now you’re trying to pin the blame on her."

Manager Qiu sneered. "I am indeed gravely at fault. I have already admitted as much to Honored Hong! The Spirit Treasure Pavilion will deal with me internally. But does she, Ye Zhaozhao, think she can just get away with it?"

Manager Qiu stared at Ye Zhaozhao, his eyes cloying and cold, like those of a viper.

"Setting aside past matters for a moment, just four hours ago, Ye Zhaozhao came to see me again! She’s the one who gave me the idea for the ’blind box,’ and this time, she didn’t ask for any cut of the profits!"

Chang Le’an couldn’t hold back any longer. He stepped in front of Ye Zhaozhao. "My junior sister gives you an idea for free, and you’re still not satisfied?"

Manager Qiu said coldly, "But she had one condition! I was to set a trap to take every last Spirit Stone from this Fairy Li!"

At his words, the crowd gasped, and all eyes turned to Li Shuang.

Li Shuang wasn’t surprised. The moment she saw that figure on the second floor, she’d had her suspicions.

Manager Qiu was simply confirming them.

"Nonsense!" Chang Le’an trembled with rage. "Zhaozhao has been on Lingxu Peak this whole time, taking care of Second Senior Brother! How could she possibly have been in the marketplace to see you four hours ago?! Tell me, did Li Shuang bribe you to come here and spread these vicious lies?"

Sheng Yuan glanced at the trembling Ye Zhaozhao and pressed his lips together.

’He didn’t want to believe Zhaozhao could do something like this.’

’But...’

’If Ye Zhaozhao had really never left his side, there’s no way Second Junior Brother’s Heart Fire could have raged to that degree!’

「Four hours ago.」

’Wasn’t that right after they had left Lingxu Peak?’

’Their junior sister had promised to take good care of Shen Yue. Had she really turned around and headed for the marketplace the moment they were gone?’

Sheng Yuan felt a sharp pang in his heart.

’It can’t be.’

’It’s absolutely impossible!’