Guanyun Pavilion!

Li Guanqi raised a hand to dismiss all the dancing girls, sending spirit stones floating before each of them. The women's gazes practically melted at the sight... After all, generous guests like this were few and far between. With most patrons, they rarely even finished a single dance before being interrupted... Qianqiusui rested both hands on the strings, bringing the melodious notes to an abrupt halt. She rose slowly, gathering up her long skirt to reveal a pair of jade-like bare feet. Crossing the floor, she sat down directly opposite Li Guanqi, right beside the dead-drunk Sun Zhen. By sheer happenstance, the red hem draped back beneath her, exposing half of a calf as fair and smooth as mutton-fat jade. Qianqiusui eased back her sleeves and poured a cup of wine for Li Guanqi, then filled one for herself. Raising her cup, she used a slender jade finger to brush a stray lock of hair behind her ear, revealing her breathtaking countenance. Casting a languid, sultry glance at Li Guanqi, she lifted the cup and murmured in an ethereal, melodious voice, "This cup, Qianqiusui toasts to you." Li Guanqi raised his own cup and chuckled. "Drink if you want to drink, but don't look at me like that. Otherwise, I might misunderstand and think you have designs on me." Though he joked, the lake of Li Guanqi's heart remained utterly placid. His heart already belonged to someone else—the one person he could never stop thinking about. Qianqiusui smiled faintly, as refreshing as a gentle spring breeze. Leaning forward slightly, she tilted her gaze upward to look up at him. Toying with the wine cup in her left hand, she murmured softly, "And what if it's no misunderstanding?" The corner of Li Guanqi's mouth twitched. He had not expected this woman's charms to be so deeply honed! If not for the progress he had made tempering his heart in the mortal realm, he likely would have crumbled before such seductive looks and gestures. Li Guanqi looked at her and said softly, "I'd advise you that it had better be a misunderstanding. My Dao companion is the Saintess of the Shenbao Domain, Meng Wanshu. She doesn't have the best temper..." Qianqiusui's breath hitched. Annoyed, she set down her cup and pouted in exasperation. "Boring! You don't have a romantic bone in your body!" A flash of light gleamed in her hand, producing an ornate pipe. After lighting it, she puffed out a wisp of azure smoke, instantly restoring her usual aloof, frigid demeanor. Seeing this, Li Guanqi could not help laughing. "That's more like it. Now that's the Qianqiusui I used to know." A glint surfaced in the woman's eyes, and she asked softly, "So you finally admit it?" Li Guanqi propped his hands behind him and looked up at the ceiling. "There's nothing to admit or deny. Right now, I just want to be Li Wuji so that fewer people keep their eyes fixed on me." Looking back down at Qianqiusui's voluptuous chest, he smiled. "Truth be told, I'm very grateful to you for what happened back then." Whether intentionally or not, Qianqiusui crossed her arms over her chest, accentuating her proud, stunning figure even further. A playful smile touched the corner of her lips as she looked at him and said, "Back then... I didn't really help you at all... The Cao clan's power was not something I could afford to cross." Li Guanqi cut her off. "No. Sometimes... simply refraining from kicking someone when they're down is rare enough. In the future, if you ever need pills, you can contact Sun Miao." With that, Li Guanqi handed over one of his jade slips. Qianqiusui's eyes lit up. Sun Miao, the premier alchemist of the entire Qingyun Continent! A Peak Fifth Rank master! There were even rumors that Sun Miao had entered closed-door seclusion a year ago, likely attempting to break through to the Void Refining Realm. Once a figure like that reached the Void Refining Realm, becoming a Sixth Rank alchemist was practically guaranteed. Countless people desperately sought the slightest connection with the Great Xia Sword Sect, and as for that alchemist, people would beat each other half to death just to beg for a single pill! She had tried contacting the Great Xia Sword Sect in the past, only to be rejected without exception. She never imagined that something she had once dared not even dream of attaining could now be hers with just a single word from the man before her... "Life really is full of the unexpected," Qianqiusui sighed, a flicker of mischief dancing in her beautiful eyes. "Well... does it look good?" Li Guanqi curled his lip and replied with complete candor, "It looks good." "Then do you want to..." "No." "Uh... why?" "Tsk, you still don't understand men. There's a world of difference between sheer and semi-sheer! Forget it, you wouldn't understand even if I explained. No wonder you still retain your primordial yin." "You!! You bastard!" "Hahahahaha!" Looking at the drunken Sun Zhen, Li Guanqi smiled, got to his feet, and said, "I'm getting ready to leave." Qianqiusui paused mid-motion with her pipe. Remaining seated, she asked softly, "Not returning to the Great Xia Domain?" Li Guanqi stretched his limbs, dispersing the lingering alcohol from his body with a faint smile. "Not for now. The sect doesn't need me fretting over it right now, and Wanshu hasn't emerged from seclusion yet, so I don't feel like heading to the Shenbao Domain either. This Luoxia Domain... I'd like to wander around and see more of it." A trace of regret flashed in the depths of Qianqiusui's eyes. It seemed she ultimately lacked such fortune. Standing up, she smiled and said, "In the future, if you ever need Yunding, just say the word!" Li Guanqi pondered for a moment, then spoke softly. "Right, once you begin cooperating with the Great Xia Sword Sect, you're bound to flourish. If there's anything you ever need, you can look for Tang Ru!" Qianqiusui looked stunned. "Tang Ru, the son of the Master of the Treasure Pavilion in the Great Xia Domain?" Li Guanqi frowned slightly. He had assumed many people in the Great Xia Domain knew about his ties with Tang Ru. From the looks of it... that fatty hadn't mentioned their relationship to others. "That dead fatty." "That's right, him. Also... I think Yunding ought to cultivate its own intelligence network." Qianqiusui fixed her gaze on Li Guanqi and nodded firmly. "Understood! But what if others try to suppress me?" The corner of Li Guanqi's mouth curved slightly. "Since I'm telling you this, what do you think? If anyone does, let me know." Li Guanqi departed, leaving Qianqiusui sitting alone by the table, drinking in solitude. A tumult of conflicting emotions welled within her heart. She ran her fingers through her hair, letting the updo tumble freely down her shoulders. Exhaling a wisp of azure smoke, her eyes glinted faintly. She retrieved a jade slip and whispered into it, "Starting today, look for orphans to undergo secret training. Devote forty percent of the auction house's profits to this! Establish an intelligence organization and name it... 'Guanyun Pavilion!'" Having issued the orders, Qianqiusui took the wine jug in hand and walked over to the window alone. She suddenly felt a pang of regret for not exerting herself a bit more back then. But regret was useless now. Standing by the window, the woman stroked her cheek and scoffed at herself softly, "I really have grown old. I don't even have this much charm left anymore." Thinking back to those earlier years, she had recognized even then that Li Guanqi was no ordinary man. It was just that back then, the true dragon had yet to raise its head... Stepping out of the tavern, Li Guanqi wore a faint smirk, finding recent events quite amusing. Stroking his chin, he shifted his body and appeared outside the city's Treasure Pavilion. He felt he still needed to disguise his eyes; otherwise, people would always manage to connect the dots to who he was.