https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-257-Facing-Simon-Chuixue-Right-Off-the-Bat/12536425/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-259-The-Iron-Triangle-is-Complete/12536428/
Chapter 258: Acting and Pretenses
Chapter 258: Acting and Pretenses
The first case that Lu Xiaofeng took on was the "Golden Phoenix Dynasty Treasure Mystery".
He Xiu utilized Huo Tianqing and Shangguan Feiyan to eliminate the Great Golden Roc King and Shangguan Danfeng, then lured Lu Xiaofeng into taking out Yan Tieshan and Du Gu Yihe. Ultimately, by framing Huo Tianqing, he successfully achieved his objective of monopolizing all the wealth.
Indeed, my summary is always so insightful!
At this moment, from the fact that Huo Tianqing had already invited Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou, the plot had progressed to the middle stage.
Lu Xiaofeng agreed to the fake Great Golden Phoenix King's request for help, confirming that he was telling the truth. He also invited Xi Men Chuixue to join them, preparing to deal with Yan Tieshan, Du Gu Yihe, and He Xiu.
Their first stop was Yan Tieshan's Jeweled Pavilion!
...
Yan Tieshan was a wealthy magnate from Shanxi, and the reputation of the Jeweled Pavilion north of the Yellow River was no less than that of the Elegant Jade Pavilion in Jiangnan. Although one was gaudy and the other refined, the fact that they were mentioned in the same breath indicated their comparable wealth and influence.
The only difference was that Yan Tieshan dealt in jewelry, while the Elegant Jade Pavilion was famous for its jade, paintings, and calligraphy.
As the name suggested, the Jeweled Pavilion was a splendid and luxurious estate, featuring winding corridors, small bridges over flowing streams, ponds filled with fragrant lotuses, and elegant pavilions with green-tiled roofs and red pillars.
Before meeting Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou, Su Shaoying first encountered Huo Tianqing and Ma Xingkong.
Huo Tianqing, the manager of the Jeweled Pavilion, was the uncle master of Tianqin Gate's leader, Shanxi Yan, having pledged his loyalty to Yan Tieshan after his life was saved by the latter.
Ma Xingkong, the chief escort of the Shanxi United Escort Bureau, known as the "Cloud Dragon", had his skills diminished to half of what they used to be after being struck by Huo Tianqing's Palm of Split Void three years ago.
"Mr. Su," Huo Tianqing said with a hint of amusement in his eyes, though his face remained expressionless. He smiled and said, "Since Mr. Su also practices martial arts, I presume you've heard of Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou."
Seeing Huo Tianqing's gentle yet powerful demeanor, Su Shaoying returned the smile.
Who couldn't act?
"I have," Su Shaoying replied with a smile. "It is said that Lu Xiaofeng's two fingers can hold any weapon in the world, and although Hua Manlou is blind, he perceives more than a regular person. They are both renowned figures in the martial arts world."
At this time, he went by the name Su Shaojing, serving as the tutor of the Yan family.
This was arranged by his master, Du Gu Yihe. Yan Tieshan played along, and although his original self didn't understand the reason for this charade, he didn't probe further.
Now he realized that it was probably to avoid suspicion. They were now at the pinnacle of the Central Plains martial arts world and didn't want to expose their identities as members of the Golden Phoenix Dynasty, attracting unwanted attention.
After all, Yan Tieshan was based in Shanxi, while Du Gu Yihe was in Sichuan, and the two of them shouldn't have known or had any connection with each other.
However, after the deaths of his original self and Yan Tieshan, why did Du Gu Yihe openly show up at the Jeweled Pavilion?
Could it be that he knew the true culprit had already made a move, and it was pointless to keep up the pretense?
As Su Shaoying was deep in thought, he heard Ma Xingkong flattery laugh, "Hua Manlou is just a blind man, and as amazing as Lu Xiaofeng's fingers are, can he possibly stop Huo Manager's palm strike with just those two fingers?"
Huo Tianqing smiled faintly, appearing humble as he shook his head, but the confidence in his eyes was clear to see.
"I'll go welcome the guests at the main entrance. Please take your seats first," Huo Tianqing said.
...
Su Shaoying and Ma Xingkong headed towards the water pavilion in the center of the pond, and soon enough, their guests arrived.
On his right was a man with an elegant demeanor, his strides relaxed as if strolling through a garden.
These two were, of course, Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou.
Although this was Huo Tianqing's first time meeting Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou, he had a talent for making friends quickly, and so it seemed as if they were already old acquaintances.
"This is Master Su Shaojing, the tutor of the Yan family, and this is Ma Xingkong, the Cloud Dragon. I believe you two gentlemen are already familiar with each other," Huo Tianqing introduced.
Lu Xiaofeng had met Ma Xingkong before, but he was curious about Su Shaojing. "Why were you staring at me when I entered? Is there something on my face?"
Su Shaojing smiled harmlessly, "I've always heard that Lu Xiaofeng has four eyebrows, and I was curious. May I ask where your other two eyebrows are?"
Lu Xiaofeng's smile froze.
He had always been proud of his unique feature of having four eyebrows, but this time, in order to invite Xi Men Chuixue, he had no choice but to shave off the two that grew above his lips. The blue stubble had just started to grow back and didn't quite look like eyebrows yet.
Standing next to Lu Xiaofeng, Hua Manlou chuckled, and it seemed that not only was Huo Tianqing a likable person, but there was another interesting young man here as well.
"Please, take a seat," Huo Tianqing offered.
The servants then served tea.
"This is the pre-Qingming Longjing tea from this year, specially delivered from SuHang at great speed. Please have a taste and see if that tea merchant has been trying to pass off inferior tea as the real thing," Huo Tianqing said as he poured tea for everyone.
Ma Xingkong hurriedly knocked on the table with his finger and exclaimed, "If that tea merchant dared to send fake goods, I, Ma Xingkong, would lead a group to smash their signboard, even without Huo Manager's intervention!"
Su Shaojing lifted the cup to his nose, taking a slight sip, and immediately identified it as the new pre-Qingming Longjing produced this year.
There was no room for error, as both the Yihua Palace and the Jiang family estate had no shortage of such fine tea.
However, he didn't say anything, because Hua Manlou had already spoken up, "It is indeed the newly harvested pre-Qingming Longjing from this year, and it's the top-quality Longjing produced by the Yunwu Tea House."
Ma Xingkong couldn't help but ask, "How do you know?"
Hua Manlou replied calmly, "Because the Yunwu Tea House is my family's business."
Of course, he wouldn't let Ma Xingkong go and smash the signboard of his own family's business.
Ma Xingkong fell silent, as he was not deaf and had certainly heard of the famous Hua family, the largest landowners in the south. Naturally, he now knew that Hua Manlou was a member of that illustrious family.
"I've heard that the Yunwu Tea House only produces a few hundred pounds of top-quality Longjing each year, and only the nobility or wealthy merchants can afford it. Huo Manager, you truly have excellent taste. I, Ma, am honored to have the opportunity to drink such fine tea today," Ma Xingkong said.
With one sentence, he managed to flatter both Huo Tianqing and the Hua family.
"Longjing is the pinnacle of green tea, and the pre-Qingming variety is the best of Longjing," Su Shaojing smiled. "It's sweet and delicate, with a fragrant aroma. It goes through at least eighteen steps in the tea-making process, and each batch is carefully crafted by skilled artisans, ensuring that no more than an ounce is put into the pan at a time."
Hua Manlou's eyebrows lifted slightly, "I didn't expect Master Su to be an expert in tea as well."
Su Shaojing smiled gently, "When you drink a lot of tea, you tend to pick up on these things."
Who doesn't know how to put on an act?
(End of Chapter)
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