About five minutes later, a man in his fifties came downstairs. The two subordinates immediately stood at attention and bowed respectfully.
"Fourth Master."
Yue Hai's expression froze. Weren't they here to see the family head? Why was it Fourth Master?
Li Chonglou, however, had anticipated this. He stood up with Yue Hai and looked at the man.
Yu Family's Fourth Master was a man who appeared slightly stern. Although he looked over fifty, he had no white hair, only wrinkles on his face that young people lacked.
Although Yu Guanghua had a poker face, he always exuded an aura of unyielding authority. However, Yue Hai felt no internal energy from him, making him unable to understand the attitude of those experts towards him.
Experts who had already reached a certain realm, even when taking on bodyguard jobs, wouldn't be overly enthusiastic towards their employers. After all, their strength was evident, and it was mostly a financial partnership.
Unless, like Tianmei in Meicheng, there were special historical reasons.
Thinking of this, Yue Hai suddenly had an idea: could these experts also have been cultivated by the Yu family since childhood?
What he didn't know was that his guess was accurate. As one of the eight major families in Shangjing, they would not be able to establish a foothold in this place teeming with experts without their own methods.
As for Li Chonglou, he was already accustomed to such matters. Therefore, even though he felt the other party was just an ordinary person, he still maintained proper etiquette.
Of course, that was all.
After Fourth Master came down, he merely glanced at the two of them before sitting down on the sofa. Then, he beckoned them over and said calmly, "Sit down, don't be polite."
This demeanor clearly showed that he had seen his fair share of storms, and it also exuded pressure.
Knowing that they were experts, he still appeared calm and composed, which undoubtedly conveyed the message that they posed no threat to him!
However, Li Chonglou didn't mind and smiled slightly, continuing to sit.
"I heard Xiao Qiu say you are also martial artists? May I ask whose lineage you follow?"
He immediately started probing their backgrounds. Li Chonglou instantly understood his intention and couldn't help but smile faintly, "We don't follow anyone. We are merely trying to establish ourselves in Shangjing. If you really want to know, we only have some ties with the General Bureau."
These were true words, but Li Chonglou was thinking of Old Tie and the members of the Divine Envoy organization. Otherwise, he wouldn't even want to involve the General Bureau.
Fourth Master Yu's expression turned solemn. In Shangjing, the General Bureau was like a landlord, and apart from external forces, few locals dared to be impudent and openly oppose the General Bureau.
However, his brow furrowed slightly because the underlying meaning of Li Chonglou's words was: I already have a patron, so save your efforts to win me over!
Fourth Master Yu fell silent for a long time.
"May I ask if your visit to see the family head is for personal reasons or..."
Li Chonglou smiled faintly, "Fourth Master, please don't misunderstand. Our visit to the Yu family this time is primarily for personal reasons. We want to see your family head to discuss some private matters."
"Oh, what is it? If it's very important, I can mention it to the family head first."
If it was truly important, it was obvious he was trying to pry. Li Chonglou didn't fall for it and shook his head, "It might not be that important, that's something I'll know only after I speak to your family head."
Fourth Master's brow immediately furrowed.
"You can only tell the family head?"
Li Chonglou nodded.
Fourth Master suddenly smiled, "Since that's the case, let's wait for Xiao Qiu's news. It's been a while since I've seen the family head anyway. If the family head is free, I'll accompany you."
Li Chonglou just smiled and nodded, saying nothing more.
However, Fourth Master was not yet willing to give up and continued, "By the way, do you have any free agents available for hire, young man?"
"Free agents available for hire? Fourth Master, are you looking to hire someone?"
"Yes, if you have resources, you can introduce them to me. Money is not an issue, at least not below the usual price."
Fourth Master couldn't help but sigh at this point.
If it weren't for the incident in Shangjing and the establishment of some freelancer organization, which caused most free agents to either temporarily suspend business or join this organization.
It made it difficult for him to find external help through legitimate channels now.
There weren't many free agents in Shangjing to begin with, and many were originally fixed cooperative partners of families. The kind he wanted to hire were free agents similar to Chen Pao.
Li Chonglou thought for a moment and didn't immediately refuse, only nodding and saying, "I'll help Fourth Master ask around later. My family has also hired a few, but I haven't looked into this area."
Fourth Master's face immediately lit up. He had heard about Li Chonglou's strength from Ning Qiu. At least, that Lü Jiang was not his match. The resources possessed by such a person would naturally not be simple. If he could really hire one or two capable assistants.
Just thinking about it brought a smile to Fourth Master's face, and he became more enthusiastic, actively engaging the two in conversation.
However, most of it was still probing, such as his specific relationship with the General Bureau. But Li Chonglou had seen many grand occasions and handled it with relative ease.
About ten minutes later, seeing that Li Chonglou was unyielding, Fourth Master gave up his thoughts and left with an excuse.
Another ten minutes passed before Ning Qiu returned to the hall.
"My apologies to you both. The family head is currently busy and cannot see guests for the time being."
Li Chonglou frowned slightly and said, "Then when will he be free?"
Ning Qiu said calmly, "I'm not very sure about that. Actually, if you really want to see the family head, there are other ways."
As Ning Qiu said this, he suddenly gave a look to the two subordinates, who wisely withdrew.
Li Chonglou narrowed his eyes and looked at Ning Qiu.
"Actually, none of us are subordinates of the family head. If you really want to see him, you can request an audience under the pretense of joining the Yu family's free agents. I believe the family head will definitely see you."
Li Chonglou was stunned and instinctively asked, "Then can't Brother Qiu help me inform him?"
Ning Qiu shook his head, "I told you I'm not a subordinate of the family head. I only associate with Fourth Master, so there are things I cannot do."
Li Chonglou stared at him. Ning Qiu's expression was calm, not showing any signs of guilt.
"It seems your Yu family is indeed complicated now."
Li Chonglou sighed. He understood now that even those loyal to Fourth Master were not entirely loyal to him. Only they themselves could truly understand the relationships within.
Ning Qiu understood Li Chonglou's meaning and didn't respond.
Li Chonglou stood up, "Then I'll ask Brother Qiu for guidance."
Ning Qiu then said calmly, "Go to the security post outside and say what I just told you. They will inform the family head."
"The security post?"
Ning Qiu nodded, "Yes, it's the place you passed when you entered. Those are still the family head's people."