Evergreen Immortal..

Chapter 274 Being on an equal footing
"Ling Luo is dead?"

Cao Wei looked at the corpse that Li Rui brought back in great surprise.

But the corpse cannot be faked.

He had led the An Ning Guard to fight against the Man Gu City many times, and of course he had seen Ling Luo, so he was more sure.

Almost at first glance, he recognized that the person Li Rui brought back to An Ningwei was Madam Ling Luo, the lord of Man Gu City.

"Master Li, how did you do it?"

Cao Wei looked at Li Rui in shock.

the day before yesterday.

Li Rui came to him and said that he was going to send Jiang Linxian off. At that time, he was still wondering why he had to ask for leave to send someone off. Then he brought back Madam Ling Luo's body.

Full of question marks.

What's happening here?
Ling Luo was notoriously cunning. He had already escaped when Mangu City was breached, but was unexpectedly killed by Li Rui.

Of course, Cao Wei guessed that it was Jiang Linxian who did it, but Li Rui probably made a great contribution as well.

But no matter what, as long as Ling Luo can be killed, we are friends.

Cao Wei looked at Li Rui deeply, then laughed out loud: "Good, very good, Brother Li has made a great contribution by killing Ling Luo, which is a blessing for Annan Town."

Ling Luo not only instigated monsters to attack the city, but also caused great loss of face for An Ningwei.

When I was in Wu Kingdom.

He and Lei Yong had suffered many losses at the hands of Ling Luo, and they had long wished to chop off Ling Luo's head.

His attitude seemed to put himself on the same level as Li Rui.

In the past, this would have been simply impossible.

A higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking official. Cao Wei came from the Ministry of War, so he attached great importance to rules and hierarchies. His subordinates were his subordinates, and even his most trusted Feng Yu was the same. If Feng Yu dared to overstep the line, he would be punished.

In front of subordinates, the boss is the boss, and there should be no confusion between the superiors and the subordinates.

Today, he actually called Li Rui "brother" for the first time, which caught Li Rui off guard.

"Master Cao is so complimentary."

Li Rui smiled and waved his hand.

Cao Wei laughed even louder: "Brother Li, there is no need to be polite. I am not as old as you, but you respect me and just call me brother."

Li Rui had no choice but to say, "Brother Cao, please report the matter of silk to Lord Xue."

Cao Wei's attitude changed so much.

One reason is Li Rui's strength. The news that Li Rui killed two fifth-rank warriors alone has spread a long time ago. Cao Wei knows that he is not as strong as Li Rui. As an officer, strength is the foundation. Cao Wei certainly won't continue to show off his power in front of someone who is stronger than himself.

The second reason is that with Xue Gui and Jiang Linxian, Li Rui has found himself two powerful backers, and their relationship is very good. His relationship is much more stable than that with the fifth prince.

The combination of the two naturally made Cao Wei extra polite to Li Rui.

Although Jiang Linxian has not resigned from his post as a military officer in Anning Guard, he has already gone north to Beijing, so promotion is only a matter of time.

Then the position of An Ningwei military officer became vacant.

According to gossip, the person joining the army is most likely Li Rui.

Li Rui is different from Jiang Linxian. He is no longer the same person who he was when he just left the capital.

There's no need to make things too awkward.

The struggles at the top are their own business, and the people below should still do what they are supposed to do. This is the long-term way forward.

Cao Wei also understood that making enemies casually was not a good habit.

"Brother Cao, what should we do with Madam Ling Luo?"

Cao Wei's face turned cold:
"Of course, it was hung on the city wall to vent the people's anger."

"This is the mayor of Mangu City. The mastermind behind the chaos is actually a woman."

"Damn it, Lord Li is so powerful."

"Well done! Such a villain should be whipped!"

"Don't say that, don't say that, she is really beautiful."

"You, stop licking your mouth, it's already cold."

Thousands of people gathered at the foot of Qinghe City.

They were all common people who had come to watch the excitement after hearing the news. The impact of the chaos had not yet passed, and the people of Qinghe would love to eat the flesh and drink the blood of the woman who started the chaos.

Too many people died in Qinghe that night.

How many husbands, wives, sons, fathers and mothers could not survive and were eventually killed in the sea of ​​fire or in the mouths of monsters. All the hatred finally focused on Madam Ling Luo.

Now that Madam Ling Luo is dead, the pleasure transformed from hatred has fallen on the head of Captain Li of An Ning Guard.

For a time, Li Rui's prestige reached its peak.

Nowadays in Qinghe, everyone would say Li Rui is loyal and righteous when he is mentioned.

He even surpassed the Lieutenant General Cao Wei.

Cao Wei had no complaints about this.

"So cruel, so cruel."

Yang Yong has been grinning from ear to ear recently. When he went out to play mahjong, no one would accept his money even if he lost, just because he lived in Li Rui's house.

A gambler's ecstasy is almost equivalent to not losing.

"Old Li, why don't you come with me for a walk? You don't have to talk, just stand there."

Yang Yong begged desperately.

Li Rui decisively refused.

Reputation is a good thing, but it takes time to accumulate. Cao Wei didn't grab any of it; it all fell on him.

For an official, a good reputation is very important, but if he insists on standing out at this time, it would be stupid. Now he doesn't have to do anything, and that's enough.

There is no need to add fuel to the fire. If the fire burns too strongly, you will burn yourself to death.

Municipal Trade Bureau, Anningwei Administrative Office.

"Brother, the people from the three major sects are here."

Tan Hu walked in and said.

Ever since Li Rui killed two fifth-rank warriors, he simply called him "big brother".

Li Rui nodded: "Well, please come in."

Although Xue Gui has promised him the position of military officer, it is not yet the right time. Even if Jiang Linxian has given up the position of military officer, if he runs off and claims to be a military officer now, he would be a monkey in human clothing and would only be laughed at.

As long as the documents are not delivered, he will be the captain of the Ministry of Commerce.

The Captain's Mansion of the Ministry of Commerce is where he should be.

There can be no chaos.

After a while, the three of them walked into the gate of the Captain's Mansion.

Shi Zhou, Zhou Ting and Bai Jing looked at Li Rui who was sitting at the top. The scene was very similar to that a few days ago, except that the person had been replaced by Li Rui from County Magistrate Zhong Zheng, and they had also changed from hosts to guests.

All these changes are caused by strength.

They had already heard the news that Li Rui had killed two powerful fifth-rank warriors.

prior to.

That's because Li Rui is not as strong as them, and he is just a small sixth-rank captain, so they think he can be bullied.

But now, his strength alone is enough to crush the three of them.

They don't think they have the ability to fight two people at once and kill their opponents.

The rule of the underworld is that if you can't win, you have to be honest.

So when Li Rui invited them this time, the three of them came without thinking twice.

Although the three of them are elders of a large sect, the same old saying still applies: the sect is the sect, and oneself is oneself, and one cannot be too confused. If one forgets himself, one may lose his life.

"Master Li."

Shi Zhou was the first to clasp his fists and spoke with a smile.

He and Li Rui had the greatest grudge against each other, but at this moment they seemed as if they were old friends who had not seen each other for many years, and they were extremely cordial and familiar.

Zhou Ting and Bai Jing also had smiling faces.

Li Rui stood up and clasped his fists with a smile: "Three elders, please take a seat. Xiao Hai, serve tea."

He is not arrogant at all.

Just pretend that what happened that day never happened. If he was bossing the three people in the hall today, he would have just flipped the table that day. There was no need to go through so much trouble, but that was not his style.

Even when in power, you may bully others depending on the situation.

There is really no need to bully others just to vent your anger.

The three of them sat down and tea was served.

Li Rui then said with a smile: "The reason why I invited you three here today is to discuss the trade between our two countries."

After hearing this, Shi Zhou and the other two looked as if they had known this for a long time.

It's all about buying and selling.

But the situation is very different when they invite Li Rui and when Li Rui invites them.

Last time, it was just a private matter.

That's why they dragged in Zhong Zheng who was still alive at the time. And even if they did, Zhong Zheng didn't really dare to use his title as county magistrate to pressure Li Rui.

Why?

Wrong function.

A county magistrate, even if he is a county magistrate, is only responsible for matters in the city. He can be in charge of the affairs of the Municipal Trade Bureau, but if he interferes in too many matters, it will not only be Li Rui who will be unhappy, but also Yan Zhongxing and even the bigwigs in the Ministry of Revenue.

But Li Rui is different.

His original official position was the Commandant of Trade, in charge of trade between the two countries.

It was a fair and open decision to call Shi Zhou and the other two here, and no one could find fault with it.

Handle personal and official matters together.

Before Li Rui could continue, Zhou Ting spoke first: "Brother Li, if you have any requests, just make them. As long as I, Zhou Ting, can do it, I will do it. If you kill that slutty woman Ling Luo, I, Zhou Ting, will be convinced."

That night, Zhou Ting was punched. Although it was the burly man who hit him, he blamed it all on Madam Ling Luo.

Zhou Ting clearly distinguishes between gratitude and resentment.

Since Li Rui was the one who killed the man, the blame should naturally be placed on Li Rui.

As soon as these words came out.

Instead, Li Rui was speechless for a moment.

Shi Zhou and Bai Jing looked at each other and nodded: "That's the truth."

That day.

The eight elders from the eight major sects were blocked in the county government office by a woman named Ling Luo, and they could only swallow their anger.

At that time, I could only give in.

It's so frustrating.

Even Shi Zhou, who was the most calm at the time, was extremely annoyed.

The news that Li Rui killed Ling Luo has spread.

Although Li Rui didn't kill Ling Luo because of them, as long as everyone's enemy is Ling Luo, then everyone is a friend.

Shi Zhou clasped his fists and said, "Brother Li, I was reckless before. I hope you can forgive me."

His attitude before and after is like two different people.

Before, Li Rui was just an ordinary minor official in his eyes. Even though he held an official position, he had the Shenbing Villa behind him, so he was not afraid at all.

If you are offended, you will be offended.

Besides, his feud with Li Rui was not mixed with any personal grudges. It was all for the purpose of completing the tasks assigned by the bigwigs in Shenbing Villa.

But these days are different.

Now Li Rui has not only become a fifth-rank official, but is also very likely to become a military officer of An Ning Guard.

With different identities, attitudes will naturally be different.

Not to mention that he truly admired Li Rui for being able to kill that woman, Ling Luo. Only those who had been an opponent of Ling Luo knew how powerful that woman was.

Have the means and the strength.

If he continues to fight to the death with such a person, he would be out of his mind.

And with the relationship with Tie Kuang, there is still a possibility for both parties to repair the relationship.

It's not shameful to give in.

Li Ruike has already climbed up the towering tree of Jiang Linxian. If he goes against her, Shenbing Villa may be fine, but he will most likely be in trouble.

Now is the best time to ease relations.

Shi Zhou: "Brother Li, the three of us will never interfere in the business of the Tiandi Alliance in the future, so you can rest assured."

Li Rui's mouth corners curled up slightly.

This is the effect you want.

If he had turned against the three people in front of him before, although the problem could be resolved in the end, he would inevitably have to fight, which would have added to the cause and effect.

As for mobilizing forces in the dark, there is no need for that.

There is no need to trouble Jiang Linxian for things that you can handle yourself. No matter how many favors you have, if you use them frequently, they will eventually be used up, so it is best to save them.

Originally, Li Rui was thinking of waiting for the right opportunity, but he didn't expect Ling Luo to attack the city alone, forcing him to expose his fifth-grade strength in advance.

With strength as support, attitude will certainly improve.

But if it is just showing the fifth rank, it is certainly not enough, but if it is added with Jiang Linxian, a land immortal, it will be completely enough.

More than enough.

Everyone in Qinghe knew that Jiang Linxian had always called him "brother". This was the first treatment Qinghe had ever received.

Touch Li Rui?
Are you trying to test the value of Brother Jiang Linxian?

So much so that Li Rui didn't even need to have a backup plan. He just had to call the person over, and then they would admit their mistake and apologize.

Isn't it better than fighting and killing?

Moreover, although Jiang Linxian's reputation was used, there was no need for him to take action himself. This is the correct way to use a backer.

Otherwise, if you have to ask for help in everything, even your backer will get tired of it one day.

The best thing to do is to take advantage of the situation and get things done without realizing it.

"Three brothers, what are you talking about?"

"Brother, I called you guys here to talk about business. Of course, we should make money together. I want to ask you when your people will arrive. It's almost time for us to set off."

Hearing Li Rui's words.

The three of them opened their mouths, not knowing what Li Rui meant for a moment.

It was Shi Zhou who spoke first: "Brother Li, the brothers are stupid, can you show me the way?"

Li Rui chuckled: "Of course it's the Golden Road. We'll split the profits 30% to 70%. Do you guys have any objections?"

Shi Zhou and the other two's eyes lit up.

They didn't expect that Li Rui was still willing to continue doing business.

Thirty-seven is fair.

At this time, Shi Zhou, Zhou Ting and Bai Jing looked at each other and said, "The business was opened by my brother, so I should get more. I think 40% to 60% is about right."

"Brother Zhou, Brother Bai, what do you think?"

Zhou Ting and Bai Jing nodded: "That makes sense."

See this.

Li Rui was happy. The three people in front of him were so aggressive a few days ago, but now they are so reasonable.

He no longer refused and reluctantly agreed: "40% is fine. You guys don't have to take extra care of me, your elder brother."

The matter was quickly settled.

The purpose is achieved.

With Tie Kuang gone, the weapons business will certainly not be able to continue, so Li Rui needs to expand the monster business even more. It will be difficult to expand relying on the Tiandi Alliance alone, so he needs to take advantage of the situation. Instead of waiting for several other big clans to rush in, it is better to lure Shi Zhou and the other two in advance.

In this way, external pressure can be much smaller.

The Tiandi Alliance alone cannot hold on.

As for the Holy Lord, he had a relationship with him by giving him money, but that was his last trump card and he could not use it casually.

That's fine now.

Everything fell into place.

(End of this chapter)