Chapter 338: Likely Just Hungry

Dong~ Dong~ Dong!

A series of urgent knocks abruptly interrupted the heated atmosphere inside the private room.

Everyone turned toward the door as a guard outside announced, “General, someone is requesting to see you. He claims to be acquainted with the Fifth Prince!”

At those words, the people inside instinctively exchanged glances. The Great Wu officials, in particular, felt a subconscious sense of unease at the mere mention of the Fifth Prince.

General Zhong waved his hand and said, “Let him in.”

“Yes, sir!” The guard stepped inside, presenting a blood jade pendant with both hands before continuing, “General, this is the token provided by the visitor outside. It appears to be the Fifth Prince’s personal jade pendant, but I cannot confirm it. Please examine it carefully.”

The white-haired old general immediately stood up. In just a few quick steps, he reached the guard, took the blood jade, and carefully rubbed and inspected it in his hands.

After a moment, General Zhong spoke with a serious expression.

“It is indeed the Fifth Prince’s personal token…”

Clatter!

Minister Ma and all the officials in official robes instantly rose to their feet.

The bureaucrats simply stood and looked toward Minister Ma, while the latter narrowed his eyes and muttered, “Why would the Fifth Prince send someone here at this time?”

“Could he have regained power and returned to court?”

“That shouldn’t be the case… We would have heard news of it by now.”

General Zhong said in a deep voice, “Regardless of the circumstances, we shouldn’t keep the Fifth Prince’s envoy waiting outside for too long.”

“Shall we invite him in first?”

Minister Ma nodded. “Yes, bring him in.”

The guard bowed and quickly withdrew. Moments later, a white-robed scholar entered the room.

Minister Ma stepped forward and cupped his hands. “Ma Lilu, Minister of Justice, greets you, sir!”

General Zhong followed suit with a fist salute. “Zhong Yun, General of the Northern Garrison, greets you, sir!”

Seeing such courtesy, Gu Ning’an responded with a polite smile. “Gu Ning’an.”

Hearing the name, the Great Wu officials present racked their brains, trying to match “Gu Ning’an” to any known dignitary within the empire. However, after much thought, none of them could associate the name with any prominent figure in Great Wu.

“Mr. Gu, please, have a seat.”

Minister Ma warmly invited Gu Ning’an to sit, then proceeded to introduce the various guests in the room.

When the introductions reached Mi Youfu, Gu Ning’an took an extra glance at him, noticing that this uniquely named cultivator was, in fact, a rat demon in human form.

“Mr. Gu, try this wine—it’s exceptionally smooth and mellow.” As he spoke, Minister Ma picked up a wine jug, intending to pour a cup for Gu Ning’an.

To his surprise, Gu Ning’an simply reached out and covered the jade-green cup in front of him with his hand.

“There’s no need,” he said calmly. “I do not wish to drink at the moment.”

“Ah…” Minister Ma’s hand froze mid-air. After a brief pause, he withdrew and sat back down. However, as he did so, the smile on his face gradually faded.

After all, this unexpected guest didn’t seem to have come with good intentions.

“Mr. Gu, may I ask the purpose of your visit?”

“Did the Fifth Prince send you to deliver some kind of message?” General Zhong asked with a lighthearted smile, stroking his beard.

Gu Ning’an shook his head and chuckled.

“You all must have misunderstood. I merely had some brief dealings with the Fifth Prince in the past. I was not sent by anyone.”

“I simply came by out of curiosity.”

Simply came to take a look?

Minister Ma and General Zhong exchanged glances.

It was clear that neither of them believed a word of it.

At the same time, Mi Youfu carefully examined Gu Ning’an before transmitting a message to the two officials:

[My lords, this Mr. Gu is an ordinary person.]

Hearing this, the two high-ranking officials couldn’t help but have a glint of surprise in their eyes.

To them, this unexpected visitor exuded an air of refined elegance and remained unfazed by their official titles.

Would an ordinary mortal dare to cross the vast desert and step into this perilous ancient demon city?

Clearly, this man had a level of confidence that they couldn’t see.

And considering the blood jade pendant, they were certain that his confidence stemmed from none other than the Fifth Prince…

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Minister Ma happened to catch sight of a Blaze Bug resting on Gu Ning’an’s shoulder, twisting and turning as it curiously observed its surroundings.

A Blaze Bug?

Owning one was not unusual, but for a mortal, paying the spiritual energy fee required to keep it alive would be impossible.

This could only mean one thing: Gu Ning’an was escorted here by cultivators.

And if the escorts were from the Fifth Prince, then they were undoubtedly demon cultivators!

Having deduced this much, Minister Ma’s lips curled into a fox-like smile.

“Mr. Gu, since you’ve had dealings with the Fifth Prince, that makes us all on the same side.”

“As this is our first meeting, I must offer a token of goodwill.”

As soon as Minister Ma finished speaking, the guards outside pushed open the door. Several of them entered, each carrying wooden chests, which they placed beside Gu Ning’an before unlocking them.

Inside the chests, fist-sized gold ingots were neatly stacked in perfect rows. A rough estimate suggested that each chest contained at least a hundred taels of gold.

And there were five identical chests.

Minister Ma gestured toward the gold with a smile.

“Please, Mr. Gu, accept this gift.”

Gu Ning’an merely cast a glance at the gold before turning to the small creature on his shoulder.

“Doubao, with this much gold, how many people in Eternal Slumber City could be fed, and for how long?”

“I don’t eat, but I’d say… a lot of people for a very, very long time. With all the refugees in Eternal Slumber City, even if they ate three meals a day, it still wouldn’t run out,” Doubao replied earnestly.

Gu Ning’an chuckled.

“If this much gold were in Great Wu, it could probably keep tens of thousands of refugees alive for at least half a month.”

Doubao sighed.

“I once heard a refugee cry out in despair—‘The grand mansions reek of meat and wine, while bones of the frozen dead lie along the roads.’”

“Sir, does that saying still apply now?”

Gu Ning’an nodded with a smile.

“Of course. It couldn’t be more fitting.”

From the moment Gu Ning’an stepped into this private room, the atmosphere had been tense.

Now, after that one line—‘The grand mansions reek of meat and wine, while bones of the frozen dead lie along the roads’—

The demon cultivators at the side seemed unbothered, but the officials—especially the two high-ranking ones—visibly paled.

That saying, spoken in this moment, was nothing less than a direct jab at them.

“Minister Ma, I need to step out to the latrine. Care to join me?” General Zhong stood up, his smile polite but clearly forced.

Minister Ma immediately rose as well.

“Yes, I believe I shall. Let’s go.”

With that, the two high-ranking officials left.

The other officials hurriedly followed suit, some pretending to have stomach aches, others grabbing the person beside them to leave together.

Seeing this, Doubao tilted its head in confusion.

“Sir, why are they all going to the latrine together?”

“And why so many at once?”

Gu Ning’an replied with a faint smile.

“Likely just hungry…”