Chapter 452: Soil and Roses

Everyone present was stunned by this.

Zong Wen saw the girl in the black dress who had been standing behind Chen Ling all along. Realizing something, he felt a surge of joy and immediately stood up. "Do as the Special Envoy says. Everyone, get out... Let's leave the Special Envoy some private space!"

As he spoke, Zong Wen urged the others to leave. He stood up from the sofa with a grin and gave Liu Qingyan a look.

"Liu Qingyan, serve the Special Envoy well... you understand?"

Liu Qingyan didn't seem to expect things to turn out this way. She stood there, lost and bewildered. Once everyone had left, the room fell completely silent.

Finally, it's quiet...

Chen Ling sat back down on the sofa, letting out a long sigh of relief.

This trip to the Huadu Conglomerate was much more exhausting than the one to the Beidou Conglomerate... He never expected that Zong Wen, an old man who looked to be in his sixties or seventies, would play such wild games in his own home. No wonder the small troupe under his banner in Liu Town had rotted to such a state.

Chen Ling needed space to examine the scrolls independently, but if he sent everyone away, it would be too suspicious. So, he had no choice but to keep Liu Qingyan as a cover.

After his last contact with Liu Qingyan, Chen Ling could tell that she wasn't truly loyal to Zong Wen and was easier to manipulate when necessary. Keeping her here meant she wouldn't secretly whisper to Zong Wen behind his back.

"Special Envoy..."

Chen Ling flipped through the scrolls in his hand and said flatly, "Find a place to sit. You don't have to do anything, just watch from the side."

"...Yes."

Liu Qingyan replied obediently and sat on the sofa opposite Chen Ling, quiet and reserved like a doll in a black dress.

Chen Ling flipped through the scrolls on the table one by one, tossing aside any that weren't portraits. Only when he found a portrait would he flip it over to check for the Plum Blossom 8 mark.

But the Huadu Conglomerate's collection was simply too large. He had been flipping for a long time, and there was still a pile in front of him, stacked as high as a small mountain.

Liu Qingyan, sitting opposite him, hesitated for a moment before poking her head out from the side of the pile and asking cautiously:

"Special Envoy, are you looking for something...? I can help you."

"No need."

Chen Ling responded coldly. Matters involving the Twilight Society's secrets could not possibly involve an outsider.

"...Okay." Liu Qingyan closed her mouth.

Chen Ling said while searching, "If Zong Wen asks later..."

"I'll say I've been serving you the whole time."

Liu Qingyan said softly.

Hearing this answer, Chen Ling looked up at her with some surprise.

"You kept only me behind, isn't it because you wanted me to cover for you?" Liu Qingyan pursed her lips. "If the Special Envoy had any interest in me, you would have..."

"You're very smart."

Chen Ling said calmly, "The Huadu Conglomerate is no good, and Zong Wen even less so. You should stay away from them."

"The Special Envoy is right." Liu Qingyan paused and said softly, "However, not everyone is the Special Envoy... People like us, born in dirty soil, have no right to choose our own lives."

Chen Ling's hand, which was flipping through the scrolls, paused slightly.

In his mind, he saw the image of the girl he had seen in Liu Town, like a swan trying to spread its wings and take flight, only to fall on the stage time and time again... and that helpless gaze, almost shattered under countless greedy eyes.

He was silent for a long time.

"No one's life is cheap... Even in the dirtiest soil, a brilliant rose can bloom."

As he finished speaking, the room fell into silence. Liu Qingyan stared at him blankly. After a long while, a faint smile appeared on the girl's otherwise perpetually gloomy face.

"Does the Special Envoy think I can become that rose?"

"To become a rose, you must first grow thorns to protect yourself." Chen Ling looked into her eyes. "You are already growing your own thorns... aren't you?"

Liu Qingyan had already awakened her Divine Path. Although Chen Ling didn't know what that power was, it was enough for Liu Qingyan to protect herself in this chaotic Red Dust.

"...Yes." Liu Qingyan nodded gently.

"Because I've seen the light, I'll try my best to grow... toward the direction of the light."

Chen Ling didn't continue the conversation. His gaze returned to the scrolls. After tossing aside a few more, the number of scrolls in front of him grew smaller... A rough glance showed there were only about twelve or thirteen left.

His heart slowly sank...

Is it not here at the Huadu Conglomerate either? Have I wasted another trip?

Chen Ling didn't want to believe it. He took out all the remaining portrait scrolls, lined them up on the table, and began to carefully observe the backs one by one.

Finally, when he flipped over the second-to-last scroll, his pupils, shimmering with a pale blue light, locked onto the top right corner... There, a mark, so faint it was almost imperceptible, was exposed to Chen Ling's eyes.

Plum Blossom 8.

Chen Ling's eyes lit up. He knew this trip hadn't been in vain after all.

He flipped the scroll over to look at the front. It was a painting of a lady with a sense of age. At first glance, there was nothing special about it, and with Chen Ling's limited knowledge of history and appreciation, he couldn't tell what the painting meant.

Regardless, the target had been found. Chen Ling rolled up the scroll, but didn't put it on himself, instead placing it back into the pile of scrolls to the side... and then began to flip through the final scroll.

Now that Liu Qingyan was right in front of him, Chen Ling naturally couldn't reveal his target. Even if he had seen the painting, he had to finish checking the rest... This wasn't because he was afraid Liu Qingyan would report him to Zong Wen, but because it concerned the Twilight Society, and it was better to be safe.

"Where's Zong Wen?"

"He should be waiting next door..."

"Go call him over." Chen Ling felt annoyed at the thought of having to deal with that old lecher again. "Tell him not to bring those messy 'collectibles'."

"Yes."

Liu Qingyan turned to walk out the door, then suddenly stopped and asked out of the blue, "Does the Special Envoy not like him?"

"I feel sick just looking at him." Chen Ling waved his hand. "Go on."

Hearing this answer, a faint glimmer flashed in Liu Qingyan's eyes. After a moment of silence, she pushed the door open and left.

Once Liu Qingyan left, Chen Ling was the only one left in the room. He took a note from his pocket, quickly wrote something down, tore it off, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it out the window.

A gust of wind rose from the ground just right, catching the note and carrying it like a paper crane, drifting lightly toward a certain direction...

"My mission is complete... Now, it's up to you guys." Chen Ling muttered to himself.