I Have a Date with a Thousand-year-old Female Corpse-Chapter 1870 - 1871: Worried About Eavesdroppers

Chapter 1870: Chapter 1871: Worried About Eavesdroppers
Little Liu wanted to rush forward but was stopped again by Ren Hongchang.
Cao Bao twitched his mouth, clasped his hands toward Ren Hongchang, and said with a smile, "No need to be nervous, everyone. Actually, I have come this time to discuss an important matter with all of you."
"To collaborate with us, General Cao, you surely must have some reason?" Yue Jin sneered.
Yu Jin also clasped his hands to Cao Bao and said in a rather mild tone, "General Cao, we don’t quite understand what you’re saying. Please clarify."
Cao Bao dared not be too presumptuous. Although he had significant influence in Xuzhou City, the Longmen Escort Agency was truly a den of wolves; not a single person here was easy to deal with.
Originally, Cao Bao didn’t want to come since he had a previous unpleasant encounter with the Longmen Escort Agency. One of his legitimate sons had been disrespectful to Ren Hongchang, now the head of the agency, and was crippled by her trusted aide. This led to a serious conflict between them. Although the Longmen Escort Agency eventually compromised, apologized, and compensated, during the conflict, despite having just a few hundred people, they managed to overpower Cao Bao’s two thousand family guard members, most of whom were severely injured and bedridden for a month or two.
However, the situation forced Cao Bao to come. Last night, Tao Qian summoned Liu Bei again, and they had a deep conversation that lasted the entire night. It’s evident to anyone who isn’t a fool that Tao Qian holds Liu Bei in high regard and even hinted a couple of days ago that he might abdicate the governorship of Xuzhou to Liu Bei.
Generally, this wouldn’t affect Cao Bao much. After all, he was deeply rooted in Xuzhou City, and even if Liu Bei became Governor, he would still have to be respectful to Cao Bao, as Cao Bao controlled a third of the troops in Xuzhou.
However, things didn’t turn out as Cao Bao expected. Although Liu Bei appeared to be very friendly and respectful on the surface, he was secretly investigating Cao Bao’s interests and even where he frequently visited. Initially, even though Cao Bao knew about these things, he thought Liu Bei was merely trying to curry favor with him.
Until the night before last, when he was in a concubine’s bedroom and faced an assassination attempt. Cao Bao ultimately escaped at the cost of the young concubine and dozens of guards.
Cao Bao didn’t have the slightest doubt about others; he directly pinned the mastermind of this assassination on Liu Bei.
Lacking evidence, he couldn’t confront or even kill Liu Bei openly. Moreover, with Liu Bei’s increasing infiltration in Xuzhou City and Tao Qian’s attitude toward Liu Bei, Cao Bao felt even more constrained, unable to express his anger.
For this reason, Cao Bao thought of the Longmen Escort Agency, as he knew from the beginning that they had grudges against Liu Bei, which seemed impossible to resolve.
Cao Bao likewise returned a salute to Yu Jin and smiled, "There are too many people here, and the place is too open. I fear there might be eavesdroppers."
"There’s no outsider here. Just speak up if you have something to say!" Possibly having followed you for a long time, Little Liu inherited your fiery temper; his words were filled with gunpowder.
"This..." Cao Bao appeared hesitant, his eyes fixed on the burly man in the center of the hall. Initially, he didn’t pay much attention, but when he looked closely, he took several steps back in shock and exclaimed, "Zhang Fei, why are you here!"
Faced with the varied gazes of everyone present, Zhang Fei maintained a lonely expression, as if disconnected from the world, indifferent to external affairs.
With Zhang Fei silent, Cao Bao too stared at him strangely. In his impression, Zhang Fei was a crude, irritable wild man who never regarded anyone or anything seriously. But the Zhang Fei before him was entirely different from the one he knew. Cao Bao even rubbed his eyes, uncertain if this was the same arrogant Zhang Fei under Liu Bei’s command.
"General Cao, are you mistaken? If he is Liu Bei’s sworn brother, how could he possibly save our Escape Chief?" Although Yu Jin hadn’t seen Zhang Fei before, he had some understanding of Zhang Fei’s bad temperament.
Cao Bao looked at Zhang Fei several more times. Seeing him remain the same, Cao Bao gave up and sighed, "Hmm, I must have mistaken him."
"Since that’s the case, go ahead and speak; we don’t have much leisure time to spend on small talk." Ren Hongchang spoke. Her temperament was entirely different from Zhao Yu, who was meticulous and kind, while she had a fiery temper and rarely bothered with details. Now that Zhao Yu wasn’t around, everything was up to her.
Cao Bao naturally understood the notorious temper of the Longmen Escort Agency. However, this was a matter of life and death for him, and he dared not speak casually in a public setting. After some thought, Cao Bao said to Ren Hongchang, "Lady Li, may I ask when General Li will arrive in Xuzhou?"
"General Li? Since when did I become a general?"
A voice that made everyone in the Longmen Escort Agency leap with joy suddenly came from outside the hall.
"Husband!"
As soon as they heard Ren Hongchang’s shout, everyone only saw a red blur. Ren Hongchang disappeared from her elevated position and quickly threw herself into the embrace of the newcomer outside the door.
Throughout the world, only you could make Ren Hongchang react this way. Holding her, you ignored everyone’s stares and kissed her passionately. With that, you gave a hefty smack on her voluptuous behind and chided with a laugh, "You cheeky girl, you almost bit my tongue off! Go, have the kitchen prepare two days’ worth of food for me."
Ren Hongchang left everything behind and rushed to the kitchen immediately. Her world now seemed to revolve solely around you, leaving everything else irrelevant.
In the hall, those present glanced at each other and smiled without saying a word.
"What are you all standing here for?"
You walked into the hall, intending to question Cao Bao, but your gaze fell on Zhang Fei’s numerous injuries first. In a few swift steps, you stood before Zhang Fei, staring intently with furrowed brows. Yet you didn’t ask any questions; instead, you observed Zhang Fei’s expression. After a moment, you suddenly shouted, a voice like a thunderclap that seemed to explode in everyone’s ears: "Good! Very good indeed! Liu Bei truly is a character, not only targeting my man but even killing his own sworn brother. Hmph, heh heh heh!"
"What!? Is he really Zhang Fei?" Cao Bao was astonished, not expecting such a drastic change in Zhang Fei.
"It’s that bastard again; I’ll lead my men and finish him off!" Little Liu was filled with rage, but under your fierce glare, all his anger dissipated, and he dared not make a sound, merely standing silently aside. No one else could precisely grasp Little Liu’s feelings; it wasn’t just him but your entire Personal Guard who walked on tiptoes around you.
You could guess it was Liu Bei; it was simple because Liu Bei was the only one with enough motive. He never thought Liu Bei would be so cruel, sacrificing even Zhang Fei to maintain his reputation.
"It seems this Liu Bei really isn’t a good person!"
Cao Bao’s words drew your attention, and you looked at him, clasping your hands inquiringly, "Pardon my rudeness, may I ask your name?"
"Not at all; I am Cao Bao."