"Little Jiu, have you found a stone similar to the one from yesterday?" Chen Mo asked as he looked at the mountain of stones piled up in the courtyard, and at Little Jiu who was sniffing around the stone pile.

Little Jiu rummaged through the stones with his paws and then came down from the stone mountain, shaking his head at Chen Mo.

Chen Mo also observed with the Ancient Heavy Pupils, but the True Qi consumption of the Ancient Heavy Pupils was too immense. Even for him, it could not be used for long periods, so he could only rely on Little Jiu.

At this moment, Liu Qi arrived with another cart of stones, bowing low to Chen Mo and saying, "S...Sir, this is the last cart."

To avoid Chen Mo’s anger, Liu Qi painfully brought a cart with jade as well. Though he didn’t know what Chen Mo was looking for, he hoped to spend money to avoid disaster.

Seeing Chen Mo nod, Liu Qi signaled his men to unload the stones from the cart.

Little Jiu searched again.

This time, he finally found a stone with Dragon Blood inside, and this stone was even larger than the three stones from yesterday combined, about the size of an adult’s head.

Viewing it with the Celestial Eye, there was still a crystal-clear luster inside.

Indicating there was jade.

Chen Mo picked it up for a careful examination and then asked Liu Qi, "Is this the only cart with jade stones?"

Liu Qi’s eyes flickered for a moment, and then he said, "Originally, it wasn’t just this cart, there were originally three carts."

"What do you mean?" Chen Mo frowned.

"Those three carts have already been opened, and the jade inside has been used to make Jade Bracelets, Jade Pendants, and various ornaments, which have already been sold in the shop. It has been over a month and a half..." Liu Qi said.

"One and a half months..." Chen Mo sighed. By this time, the jade was probably mostly sold, and even if there was Dragon Blood, it wouldn’t be much.

Chen Mo waved his hand, and Chun Lan came over.

"Take him to get the payment from the account," Chen Mo said.

Upon hearing this, Liu Qi was stunned. He had considered these stones brought to the Chen Mansion as water spilled away, never expecting any income.

He didn’t dare ask Chen Mo for money.

In these times, human life was cheap. If Chen Mo wanted to kill him, it would be as simple as crushing an ant, without any cost.

Now, hearing that Chen Mo would pay, Liu Qi’s expression was like a pie had fallen from the sky.

After regaining his composure, Liu Qi hurriedly said, "Sir, you must be joking. These are just some worthless stones. How could I dare take your money?"

Even if Chen Mo gave it, Liu Qi wouldn’t dare accept it.

Chen Mo didn’t say much either. Since he didn’t want it, he saved some money himself.

"Take him away."

"Yes."

...

After Liu Qi left, Chen Mo returned to his room and began to refine the stone using the Taiyi Divine Fire.

This time, Chen Mo extracted a drop of Dragon Blood the size of a soybean from the stone, and the energy contained within this drop was much greater than those three particles.

Moreover, Chen Mo felt that his Red Dragon Demon Arm seemed to resonate with it somehow.

He specially found a Jade Bottle to store it separately.

...

In the evening, Chen Mo attended a banquet at the Wu Mansion.

Wu Lu, Wu Chang’an, Wu Xin’Er, Elder He, and some Wu Family elders in the Capital were all present.

From Wu Lu’s words, the banquet was referred to as a family banquet, clearly treating Chen Mo as part of the Wu Family.

After the banquet started, Wu Lu even arranged for Wu Xin’Er to sit beside Chen Mo.

If Chen Mo observed correctly, the sandalwood incense lingering in the hall also had an aphrodisiac effect.

Chen Mo raised his wine glass to Wu Xin’Er and smiled, "This incense doesn’t seem to be ordinary incense, does it? Miss Xin’Er, do you want to marry me that much?"

"Bah." Wu Xin’Er, knowing what Chen Mo was referring to, blushed and spat at him.

"Haha, that’s okay then." Chen Mo extended his glass, clinking it with Wu Xin’Er’s. "Come, cheers."

Wu Xin’Er turned her head away and drank without looking at him.

Wu Lu, seeing this scene from above, thought they were getting along well, so he toasted Chen Mo from afar and said, "I hear Chen Vice Envoy is in his twenties yet not married?"

Chen Mo shook his head, "Though not married, I do have several concubines."

At this point, Chen Mo noticed Wu Xin’Er turning her head back, with a somewhat peculiar look in her eyes.

"Concubines are always just concubines..." Wu Lu said, taking a sip of wine, and continued, "A man always needs to take a wife." Then, without waiting for Chen Mo’s response, he said, "What does General Chen think of Xin’Er?"

"Not bad, virtuous and talented," Chen Mo said fairly objectively.

At this, he heard Wu Xin’Er let out a soft snort.

"Then I shall betroth Xin’Er to you. What do you think, General Chen?" Wu Lu put down his wine cup and said.

"Uncle..." Wu Xin’Er’s eyes widened, wasn’t it agreed that this wouldn’t be discussed tonight?

"Well, a man should marry when grown, and a woman should be wed. You’re not young anymore; it’s time to marry. General Chen is a rare suitor." Wu Lu said kindly to Wu Xin’Er.

"Father, I’m full, I’ll take my leave first," Wu Chang’an, unable to bear it any longer, was the first to leave.

He didn’t have much fondness for Chen Mo and naturally wasn’t willing for Chen Mo to become part of the Wu family.

Wu Lu frowned but did not reprimand Wu Chang’an on the spot. Instead, he asked Chen Mo again.

Chen Mo thought for a moment and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Sir Wu, but I already have someone in my heart, and Princess De Ning is my concubine. If I were to marry Miss Xin’Er, it would be disrespectful to Your Majesty, I hope Sir Wu understands."

After all, an empress of the nation was Chen Mo’s concubine; if Wu Xin’Er became his wife, it would be like telling the world that an empress was no match for a Wu family woman.

However, to the Wu family, they couldn’t care less about this; they just saw it as Chen Mo’s rejection.

The atmosphere in the room grew cold.

Wu Xin’Er’s expression wasn’t good either; she had been rejected again.

Wu Lu’s face stiffened slightly, but he didn’t express his emotions, and he continued with a smile, "General Chen, you are mistaken. The matter of Princess De Ning was granted by His Majesty, and very few know about it. General Chen shouldn’t worry."

"But my heart has already been given to someone else, and I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint Sir Wu’s kindness." Chen Mo refused again.

"Is it that General Chen doesn’t like Xin’Er?" Wu Lu assumed that Chen Mo’s "someone in his heart" was an excuse and suspected the Xiao Family was behind it.

"What are you saying, Sir Wu? Miss Xin’Er is young and beautiful, intelligent and capable. Which man in the world wouldn’t like that? It’s just that I’ve already promised someone else that I would marry her," Chen Mo said.

"Oh." Wu Lu showed interest, "May I ask which family lady is so fortunate to win General Chen’s affection?"