"Zhou Hu and Zhao Black Pillar, these two are beyond doubt."
"Next is Liu Quan. He was originally a Squad Leader, at the seventh layer of the Acquired Realm. His strength is considerable. Based on his abilities, if he wished, he could follow any Banner Commander and would be highly valued."
"Yet he specifically chose to follow me. He is either an informant sent by Centurion Wang."
"Or he has excellent foresight and believes following me offers a great future."
"Regardless of the possibility, I have accepted him."
"There is also Wei Xing. His name suggests he is skilled in punishment, and unexpectedly, when I asked, he truly was skilled in punishment. He even had several years of experience as a jailer interrogating criminals in the major prisons. He is a specialized talent."
"Furthermore, his Martial Dao Realm has reached the sixth layer of the Acquired Realm. His strength is good, and he is more than qualified to be a Squad Leader."
"Finally, there is Qian Sheng. Haha, how interesting. I've been investigating the case at the Grand Tutors Residence these past two days, and unexpectedly, another purchased official has joined the Embroidered Uniform Guard as a Squad Leader."
"However, this purchased Squad Leader of his is worse than I was back then. He is only at the third layer of the Acquired Realm—truly useless. Therefore, donating 1,000 taels to the Garrison wasn't enough; he donated a full 1,800 taels. Hahahaha..."
"A purchased Squad Leader coming under me, a Banner Commander, is truly coming home."
"Moreover, Qian Sheng is very sensible. Right away, he slipped me, his superior, 500 taels of silver as a tribute."
"Speaking of which, his family background is that of a wealthy merchant, so he must be very rich. With so much wealth, Martial Dao resources shouldn't be scarce, yet he is only at the third layer of the Acquired Realm. His Martial Dao talent is far worse than mine."
... Since all five Squad Leaders under him are in place, as the boss Banner Commander, he definitely has to take his subordinates out for team building.
It's scheduled for tonight.
No big deal, after drinking with Banner Chief Fang, he can rush to this event.
Two social engagements in one night—no problem.
He has five Squad Leaders, and those five Squad Leaders each have ten lieutenants. That means he currently has 55 people under him.
Excluding Zhao Black Pillar, who is still recovering from his injuries, the other 54 people can be taken to raid the Gao Residence tomorrow.
Awesome!
Night fell.
Lu Zhenghai arrived at the Tongle Tower. Banner Chief Fang and Chief Huang were both present, but Centurion Song was absent.
"Brother Lu, sit, sit, sit..." Chief Huang greeted him, "Heh heh, we get to benefit from your presence, Brother. It's not easy to get Banner Chief Fang to treat us."
After Lu Zhenghai sat down.
Fang Qian clapped his hands, and immediately, several attractive, well-figured young women gracefully walked in.
They were the equivalent of KTV hostesses.
Lu Zhenghai's eyes lit up. Far from being disdainful, he was actually quite excited.
Hahaha, I've finally reached the stage of visiting brothels to listen to music.
I knew it. Transmigrating to another world and having the identity of an Embroidered Uniform Guard—how could I miss out on visiting brothels to listen to music?
After Lu Zhenghai sat down, his hands were busy the entire time. He couldn't let Banner Chief Fang's money be spent in vain!
This is truly enjoyable!
Chief Huang was also having a great time.
Banner Chief Fang himself, however, seemed not to enjoy this feeling much; his hands were impeccably honest, and he just kept drinking.
Lu Zhenghai originally thought this dinner party would involve discussing something important, but unexpectedly, from beginning to end, it was purely about drinking, bragging, and strengthening their relationship.
The food was delicious, the wine was good, and the young women were of decent quality. An hour later, the drinking session was nearly over, but Lu Zhenghai still felt unsatisfied.
Unfortunately, these young women only accompanied them for eating and drinking, not for... If they wanted further company, they would need to spend a lot more money, and Fang Qian was not wealthy enough for that.
Even without the final luxurious service, this meal still cost Banner Chief Fang 15 taels of silver.
That's damn expensive!
Lu Zhenghai increasingly felt that if he wanted to live lavishly in the Great Yu Dynasty, making money was absolutely the highest priority!
Leaving the Tongle Tower, Lu Zhenghai went to the Yueke Tower.
The Yueke Tower's quality certainly couldn't compare to the Tongle Tower, nor did it offer high-class services like young women accompanying guests for eating and drinking.
But the wine and food were decent and plentiful.
Lu Zhenghai had Zhou Hu arrange five tables.
He drank with his subordinates until deep into the night, perhaps around midnight? Only then did a slightly tipsy Lu Zhenghai return to the Lu Residence.
Returning to the Lu Residence.
Lu Zhenghai, for once, did not go to Cultivate. As soon as he entered the bedroom, Snowball started meowing.
Lu Zhenghai held Snowball, washed up, and went to sleep.
He thought to himself, as a dignified Embroidered Uniform Guard Banner Commander, not having a personal Maidservant simply wouldn't do!
Putting aside everything else, close-quarters tasks like serving tea and passing water, plus warming the bed in winter, are essential, right?
This is ancient times. If you Transmigrated to ancient times and had the means, could you avoid corruption?
Lu Zhenghai inherently loved the whole feudal decadence system, provided that he was the beneficiary of that feudal decadence, hehe... "A personal Maidservant is essential. I must arrange for one within the next couple of days."
Lu Zhenghai had made his decision.
"Since there's no Maidservant to warm the bed tonight, Snowball will warm it. Hahaha..."
Lu Zhenghai hugged Snowball, using it as a pillow.
Honestly, Snowball is soft and warm. The experience of this little cat pillow is quite good.
Lu Zhenghai fell asleep.
Princess Mingzhu's Mansion.
Princess Mingzhu, wearing luxurious silk pajamas, was suffering from insomnia.
"Snowball, where are you?" Worry and longing filled Princess Mingzhu's beautiful eyes.
She had ordered the eunuchs, Maidservants, and servants of the Princess Residence to search the Imperial City for two full days, but they found nothing.
She knew in her heart that it was probably lost.
"Even if Snowball had died, there would be a body. Since it cannot be found at all, there is only one possibility: after it ran away, it was picked up by a kind person."
Princess Mingzhu muttered to herself, clenching her pearly teeth, and snorted, "Kind person, you better hope I don't find out who you are, or I will certainly make you pay!"
The next day.
Early in the morning, Lu Zhenghai had just woken up and was nearly startled.
Damn.
That rascal Snowball was actually squatting right on his chest, staring intently at him with a pair of blue eyes.
The moment he opened his eyes, he saw a pair of blue eyes, which gave him a slight fright.
"You damn thing, are you turning into a spirit? Scaring your father like that!" Lu Zhenghai swatted Snowball twice on its backside, then started kneading its chubby belly like a rubber ball. It was quite fun, hahaha...
After playing around with Snowball for a while, he got up, washed, and left for work.
Just outside the Lu Residence.
"Banner Commander, Sir!"
The simultaneous shout was incredibly loud.
All 54 people were present; not a single one was missing, except for Zhao Black Pillar, the Squad Leader.
"You came so early?" Lu Zhenghai was somewhat surprised.
"Heh heh heh, raiding the Gao Residence! We were too excited to sleep!" Zhou Hu chuckled.
"What are you laughing about? Let's go, we're heading to the Gao Residence now." Lu Zhenghai kicked Zhou Hu in the backside.
Just then.
[Intelligence Refresh]
[Ding, in Gao Shihan's bedroom, his bed is made of pure gold, covered and concealed by wooden panels on the exterior.]
Holy crap.
Lu Zhenghai was greatly startled, followed by immense joy.
This is incredible!
This raid on the Gao Residence is definitely going to be awesome!
I knew it. Gao Shihan sold military equipment, so he must have a lot of illicit silver on hand.
The 70,000 taels in the secret compartment were just an appetizer.
Lu Zhenghai definitely had to keep this golden bed for himself. After all, who would think a bed was made of pure gold? It's very secure; wouldn't it be a waste not to keep it?
"A bed made of gold must be worth at least 100,000 taels of silver, right?"
The more he thought about it, the more he drooled.
At this moment.
Gao Residence.
Gao Yunran's face was filled with desperate bitterness.
She looked much thinner than she had recently.
It wasn't just her; how many Gao family members in the entire Gao Residence had been able to eat properly these past few days?
The raid on the Gao Residence was imminent!
Gao Yunran was Gao Shihan's niece, the most direct descendant, and she couldn't escape death.
"Men are beheaded, women are sent to the Imperial Entertainment and Discipline Department."
Gao Yunran murmured to herself, her face growing paler and almost entirely devoid of color.
Gao Yunran was still a pure and innocent young woman. How could she go to such a place and endure such humiliation?
Just then, the Maidservant, Lily, suddenly pushed the door open: "Young Miss, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has arrived. They want all Gao family members to gather in the front hall."
"The damn lackeys are finally here, huh..." Gao Yunran sneered. "Let's go to the front hall!"
What if there's a turn of events? Regardless, let's go and see. At worst, I'll fight those damned lackeys.