"This Bai gives his greetings to Young Master Guan. I have disturbed you without considering the situation. I hope that Young Master Guan can forgive me." Bai Luochu slowly stood up from the seat and bowed to Guan Yue.
"Divine Physician Bai is too serious. n.o.body Guan is just a descendant in dire straits. It is truly an honor for me to be able to meet with the highly reputable Divine Physician Bai."
There was a trace of disdain in Guan Yue"s words. On the surface, he was flattering Bai Luochu, but in fact, he was silently criticizing Bai Luochu for being a lackey for the n.o.bles in the capital.
Bai Luochu naturally heard the hidden meaning behind Guan Yue"s words but she didn"t think much of it. She had endured the infamy and curses from plenty of people in her previous life and this additional one wouldn"t make a difference. However, this told her that Guan Yue was n.o.ble and virtuous. She should probably wear down his character a little.
"Young Master Guan is a person of virtue and as a commoner, I"m definitely unable to compare myself to you." Bai Luochu looked at Guan Yue"s arrogant expression as she continued, "But with the situation of the current Guan Clan, I am afraid that Young Master"s virtue wouldn"t be enough to support it."
Bai Luochu took a sip of tea as though she didn"t care and observed silently. When she saw that Guan Yue was seriously angered, she quickly added, "Why don"t Young Master Guan take a seat and taste some tea?"
Guan Yue sat down angrily and drank a mouthful of tea.
"This is aged Pu"er tea. When Pu"er tea is being brewed, it is just a cl.u.s.ter of black substance and it is hard for anyone to believe that the tea tastes good. After the brewing process, the tea is clear and limpid. It even has a rich and mellow taste. It is the same for humans and all things alike. Nothing can be judged by its cover.."
"What exactly do you want to say?!" Guan Yue was extremely frustrated and he snapped.
Bai Luochu couldn"t help but lament. Just like what she expected. A proud and arrogant young man wouldn"t know how to hide his feelings.
Bai Luochu didn"t answer Guan Yue and asked a question in response, "Does Young Master Guan believe that the aristocratic descendants that went before you had sufficient strength to cultivate in the Phoenix King Valley?"
"Of course they do. Even though those people relied on spirit medicine to achieve their cultivation, it isn"t easy to defeat the disciples!"
"Then what does Young Master Guan think of yourself?"
"I… I originally thought that my strength shouldn"t be that far off when compared to those aristocratic descendants. But after this, it seems like the disparity is pretty big." When Guan Yue said this, he felt rather distressed.
"Young Master Guan must not undervalue yourself. Why not take a look from this window and see if the disciple guarding the drum is different from the one when the aristocratic descendants attacked." Bai Luochu carried on tasting her tea as Guan Yue stood up to observe the situation on the stage.
A moment later, he opened his mouth and said, "The disciple on the stage… His movement skill seems to be..." Guan Yue wanted to say something but hesitated as though he couldn"t make up his mind.
"Young Master Guan"s thoughts aren"t wrong. The Phoenix King Valley separates their disciples and places them in the inner and outer valley. The ones facing the aristocratic descendants are all outer valley disciples. Be it their technique or movement skill, they are incomparable to those inner valley disciples. Those inner valley disciples are the ones all of you encountered."
"Unacceptable!" Guan Yue swung his sleeve and wanted to go and argue with the members of the Phoenix King Valley.
"My advice for Young Master Guan is to not be so rash. What use is there to speak without proof? If you are to expose this fact, the Phoenix King Valley and the capital"s aristocratic clans would be thoroughly discredited. Do you think you and your Guan Clan would receive any benefits?"
Guan Yue paused and s.h.i.+fted his gaze to Bai Luochu. At the start, he thought this person was just someone angling for fame. Right now, Bai Luochu seemed to have turned into someone worthy of his respect.
"Earlier on, n.o.body Guan was overly prideful and arrogant. This ignorant one wishes to receive Divine Physician Bai"s forgiveness."
Bai Luochu placed down her teacup and smiled. "Young Master doesn"t need to concern himself. I am not a person who fusses over minor matters and I am just a commoner. I am looking for Young Master because I wish to recruit you. If Young Master becomes my subordinate, I will be able to provide you all the resources you need. It will be in no way lesser than what the Phoenix King Valley provides. If Young Master requires my reputation to rescue the Guan Clan from a calamity, from what it seems, my Divine Physician Bai"s t.i.tle can be of some use."
"Why should I believe you?" Guan Yue was slightly moved but he was still unable to completely trust a person he had met for the first time.
"I have bad blood with the Phoenix King Valley and won"t rest till they are wiped out. Since they have misjudged a pearl to be the eye of a fish, there is no way I can allow such a talent to be buried under a boundless sea of people. As long as I can cause some trouble for the Phoenix King Valley, anything is worth a shot. Of course, Young Master Guan has the right to refuse. If Young Master Guan agrees, you can go to the Heaven Sign number one private room in the "Remote Paddy Inn". I will set up a feast tomorrow. Right now, there is another person who I wish to recruit. It"s best that Young Master Guan leaves now."
After Bai Luochu was done talking, she gestured and indicated for Guan Yue to leave.
For the rest of the day, Bai Lucohu would remain in this private room and meet with plenty of youths. Among them, there wasn"t another individual who had Guan Yue"s nasty temperament. There were a few of them who even expressed their willingness to follow Bai Luochu.
"Today"s harvest is actually rather significant. However, my stomach is starting to ache after drinking so much tea..." Bai Luochu rubbed her stomach and lamented.
"Mistress, is there a need to change the dish for the feast?" Ying Lan handed over a book after he spoke.
"That isn"t necessary, just do it as you see fit. I won"t worry about it when you"re in chargeI. It is already quite late and I should return to the residence soon. Otherwise, the First Prince might get suspicious." Bai Luochu headed back to the First Prince"s residence after leaving behind her last sentence.
The next day, early in the morning, Bai Luochu donned "Divine Physician Bai"s" attire and prepared to exit the residence.
When it was daybreak, Bai Luochu was already waiting at the Remote Paddy Inn.
"Mistress, do you think they will come?" Ying Lan looked rather concerned.
"It is up to them. I am just giving them an opportunity. If this recruitment isn"t successful, we will think of other methods. During these ten days, we have already taken the first step and established our information network in the capital city of the Cloud Water Nation. That is already good enough. We shouldn"t be too greedy." Bai Luochu wasn"t as anxious as before.
It was almost at the agreed time and those who expressed their willingness to follow her the day before had already arrived. One by one, people started to arrive with the exception of Guan Yue. Bai Luochu felt that she wouldn"t be able to recruit Guan Yue anymore and instructed Ying Lan to start the feast.
They were in the midst of a discussion on the allocation of tasks and when they mentioned about the allocation of jobs in the brothels, everyone went silent and no one spoke.
"Since everyone doesn"t wish to do it, why not let n.o.body Guan take this task."
"I thought you weren"t going to come."
"I have thought about it for a long time and I decided to trust you. I hope that you will be able to keep your promise." Guan Yue bowed and spoke politely.
"Of course. It is truly an honor for Young Master Guan to join the Palace of Brilliance Resurgence. Furthermore, you are volunteering to take on this task. It is truly a pleasant surprise for me."
Guan Yue merely bowed and took a seat. His a.s.sent officially made him Bai Luochu"s subordinate.