The talkative Abbas had just jumped out, but before he could help his master, Gu Zhuting had grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to the side.
Gu Zhuting didn't seem to walk very fast, but with just a few twists of her waist, she had already appeared in front of Abdullah.
Abdullah was completely unaware of the impending disaster. He didn't know that his praises, which could make Western ladies feel smug, were already a great offense to the reserved Eastern ladies. And if he were to flirtatiously offend other Eastern ladies, they would probably call him a 'lecher', but this lady in front of him was someone who could take a life with just a raise of her hand.
As soon as Lady Gu appeared in front of him, Abdullah immediately placed his hand on his chest and gracefully performed a gentleman's salute. He courteously smiled and said, "Abdullah Shahman bin Aziz bin Hakam sends his regards to the beautiful lady. Can you bestow your name upon me?"
Gu Zhuting glared at him and lightly raised a hand. Her wrist was white and delicate, and her fingers were long and slender, like an elegant orchid. But by now, many people in Ba knew that although this Lady Gu didn't have the power to shatter rocks, her power was not inferior in the slightest.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for Abdullah to lie on the ground and retch while clutching his throat, or for his limbs to be dislocated and twisted as if he had polio. Then, he would be carried out by his subordinates, who were wrapped in long cloth, as if they were clothes.
But the newly appointed helmsman of the Shun School's Caoquan raised her slender hand, but only elegantly brushed the hair at the side of her temples, and lightly said: "Mr. Abdullah, our Middle Earth's customs are different from your West, your explicit words are impolite."
Gu Zhuting really intended to make a move and use this Arab merchant to establish her might. But when she raised her hand, she was pleasantly surprised to see Yang Fan. Yang Fan was leaning against a thick pillar in the back, smiling and shaking his head at her. Thus, the angry little wild cat retracted its sharp claws and used its soft flesh as a cushion to pounce at the person.
"Ah! I'm truly sorry. Although I've come to the East several times, I haven't had many opportunities to meet a free woman as beautiful as you. I should apologize to you. Beautiful lady, may I know your name? "
Gu Zhuting said indifferently, "In our Central Plains, a woman's name can't be easily revealed to outsiders. Just like how women in your country shouldn't unveil themselves in front of outsiders. "
A hint of surprise flitted through Yang Fan's eyes. Women of status in the Abbasid Caliphate had to cover their faces in front of outsiders. Yang Fan had heard from Xiaoman that there were Arabs doing business with the Yang Clan, but he hadn't expected Gu Zhuting to know of this custom.
After Gu Zhuting finished speaking, she glanced deeply at Yang Fan before turning around and leaving. It was obvious that Ah Lang didn't want to expose his identity. She was in the limelight now, so she couldn't reveal anything.
Abdullah didn't get Gu Zhuting's name, so he looked very depressed. He shook his head and said to Yang Fan, who had returned to his side: "Dear Mu, in your country, it is harder to win the favor of a lady than to hunt a cunning fox in the grassland."
Yang Fan smiled and said, "Mister Abdullah came to the Central Plains to do business. You shouldn't put the cart before the horse."
Abdullah said righteously, "What's the purpose of doing business? To make money! Then what's the purpose of making money? Mu, the principle is to enjoy oneself. If you don't figure this out, you're putting the cart before the horse. There's a proverb in my hometown: 'There are three great joys in life: eating fat meat, riding a fat horse, and marrying meat'. If a man blindly pursues money and neglects those beautiful women, what a sad thing it is! "
While the two were whispering, Gu Zhuting had already walked to Qiao Mu's side and stood behind him to the right. Qiao Mu said in a clear voice, "When the eight gangs merge into one, the population will increase. So many families, old and young, need to eat, and it will be even more difficult to eat. I think everyone knows this and is most worried about it.
Here, I can tell everyone that there's no need to worry at all. Our Shun Gate has obtained the assistance of a noble. Not only has he agreed to be our Shun Gate's Head of the River Estuary, he's even provided us with fifty of the newest large ships! "
As soon as he said this, the whole hall burst into an uproar. Not to mention the disciples standing below, even the leaders of the seven small gangs who had just joined were overjoyed. Before, they only knew that the Shun School must have a lot of power now. Otherwise, it would be impossible for them to recruit Lord Hei and Lord Yan of the Flood Dragon Cult. But they didn't expect that they could get 50 new ships right away!
Qiao Mu was also full of smiles. He pressed his hands down and said loudly, "Let's welcome Mr. Dugu!"
A Scribes in cyan stepped out of the crowd, cupped his hands to Qiao Mu, and said with a smile, "I'm Dugu Wentao. Greetings, Head!"
Qiao Mu said, "Mr. Dugu, from today on, you will be the branch leader of our Shun School."
Dugu Wentao bowed to the crowd and said with a smile, "I've already placed an order with the Yangzi Shipyard for 50 new ships. Next spring, brothers, you only need to rush to Yangzhou to receive the ships, and then load the grains and ship them."
"Greetings, Dugu Helmsman!"
The disciples below the steps said in unison, their blood boiling. Fifty new ships, and all of them were big ships, which immediately solved the problem that the Shun School had a large population, few ships, and insufficient shipping capacity after the merger. Moreover, the ships they used to use, some of which were sewn and patched, were from the last years of the Sui Dynasty, which should have been eliminated long ago. Now that they had new ships, the risk of sailing was much smaller. How could they not be ecstatic?
For a moment, there was a lot of discussion in the hall. The disciples who came to watch the ceremony looked at the scholar with the compound surname of Dugu, whom they had never seen before, and also whispered to each other to inquire about his background.
In fact, they had already expected that Miss Gu would be the helmsman of the Shun School. What they cared about was who was the helmsman of the Shun School. It was useless to only have dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of ships, and tens of thousands of brothers. They also needed the support of the Shun School.
Along the way from Yangzhou, they had to go through the Yangtze River, Bian River, Yellow River, Wei River, and many checkpoints, docks, and layers of gates. If they did not have a strong backer, the more ships they had, the more they would be exploited. By the time they arrived in Chang 'an, they would have worked for nothing, and they would not be able to maintain such a large gang.
Therefore, if they did not have a strong Shun School, they might as well get a few broken ships, and at least they could get enough food and clothing. The eight gangs merged into one, and they had a martial arts master like Miss Gu. In the end, whether the Shun School could stand firm or not was not the key. The key was whether they had a backer or not, and how strong their backer was. If they did not have a backer, they would collapse by themselves without the suppression of other gangs.
The major gangs were concerned about this, not only because they wanted to know whether the Shun School could stand firm, but also because they wanted to assess the strength of the Shun School and determine how they should treat them in the future.
It had been a long time since the Shun School had unified the Jianghu, and their current rallying power was not as strong as before. Nowadays, the leaders of the various gangs would not suppress the Shun School just because of their name. However, with the addition of a powerful gang, there would always be one more competitor. For this purpose, they would suppress them if they could.
In this way, they needed to understand what the Shun School's trump card was, and who was supporting them from behind. Now, the results were out. This person was called Dugu Wentao. Who was Dugu Wentao, and who was the person behind him?
Originally, no one knew Dugu Wentao. Although the Dugu family and the group of people on Ba's side were very close, they lived in two completely different worlds. Usually, they did not have any interaction with them. However, this time, the people in the gangs quickly thought of the Dugu family.
Perhaps the Dugu family was not the only one with the surname Dugu in Chang 'an City. However, the Shun School had no connections in the field of transportation, and could only follow behind the big gangs to pick up scraps. Now that the Shun School had just merged and gained a lot of manpower, they were confident that they could act as the Shun School's Shun School and ensure that the government would not take too much from them. Moreover, they could help them fight for business and provide 50 ships in one go. Who else but the Dugu family could do it?
In the crowd of spectators, people left in a hurry. They were all sent by various sects to inquire about the news. They had to report this matter to the Gang Master immediately. The Shun School was no longer a pushover, and they had to be careful with the Shun School.
These people left too early, so they did not see the next scene that was even more shocking.
Qiao Mu introduced the two helmsman of the Caoquan School and the Shun School's Shun School, and seven stewards to everyone. When he was making specific assignments after the expansion of the Shun School, a disciple suddenly rushed in breathlessly and shouted, "Sect Master, the Flood Dragon Society … the Flood Dragon Society is here!"
Qiao Mu was stunned and looked toward the door. Another disciple ran in from outside with a pale face and shouted, "Sect Master, Master Hei and Master Yan from the Flood Dragon Society led … led all the people of the Flood Dragon Society here!"
The gathering hall was in an uproar again. The Flood Dragon Society finally took action. Were they going to destroy the Shun School?
The people of the various gangs who had just joined the Shun School were in an uproar. They had unconsciously stepped back, lest they would be splashed with blood when the fight started … What if some ignorant people also thought that they were from the Shun School? Wouldn't they all die here?
Qiao Mu and the several leaders who had just joined the Shun School all knew about the deal between Li Hei, Yan Shiwei, and Miss Gu. Even so, they were still a little nervous when they heard that the Flood Dragon Society had come out in full force. They all looked at Gu Zhuting.
Gu Zhuting was now the helmsman of the Caoquan School of the Shun School. She would not decline her responsibility. She cupped her hands to Qiao Mu and said, "Sect Master, don't worry. I'll go and have a look!"
After saying that, Gu Zhuting walked out of the hall. One person, one sword!
On the long street, countless people came in a mighty array, crowding the whole long street. There were countless people watching on both sides of the street. The whole Ba was in an uproar, and even the roofs on both sides were full of people.
The Flood Dragon Society finally took action, and they turned out in full force. The Shun School had just merged with the other seven gangs, and there were more than 1,500 people in total. Together, they could be regarded as a medium-sized gang. 1,500 people versus 2,000 people. This was a fight for sure.
The three months of winter on Ba were the most leisurely three months of the year for the coachmen. The strong coachmen gambled, drank, and slept with women, but they still had too much energy to do. Just thinking about the big fight of thousands of people made people's blood boil. Before the two sides started fighting, they were already howling and shouting excitedly like wolves in the moon.
Gu Zhuting was dressed in white with a short sword at her waist. She stood on the long street, graceful and beautiful like a peony.
On the opposite side, 2,000 strong men gathered into a rolling torrent. Under the leadership of Li Hei and Yan Shiwei, they walked toward her!
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