Who would have thought? This guy looks so honest with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, yet he plays such dirty tricks... Zhuang Xun muttered to himself.
However, this Liu Ziyang was just a young master from a minor influential family. It was impossible for him to pull this off alone; others must be involved.
Let me guess...
Liang Shaohua? The two of them are close friends, and Liang Shaohua already has a track record. The probability is very high.
Chen Jinzhu? She's also quite a piece of work, so there's a good chance it's her too.
What about the other two of the Outer Court's Five Great Experts? Guichen doesn't have the brains for this, and as for Yu Xiao, I'm not familiar with him, though An Dafu said he's an Ascetic. Well, it's hard to say, as that kind of persona usually makes for the most ruthless mastermind.
...
After bidding farewell to Yan Pingsheng, Liu Ziyang left the martial academy and arrived outside a restaurant named Heavenly Guest.
This was the finest restaurant in the Mount Dazhou region; one could not dine here without a certain level of status.
After presenting his Heavenly Guest identity token, Liu Ziyang was led by a waiter into the grand, opulent restaurant and up to an elegant, antique-style private room on the third floor.
Many people were already seated inside the room, all wearing the disciple robes of the Wanxing Martial Academy.
“You're here,” Liang Shaohua, who was seated at the head of the table, murmured as he looked up at Liu Ziyang while leisurely pouring tea.
Liu Ziyang nodded and found an empty seat nearby. Smiling, he said, “Brother Liang, that new attendant of yours is truly extraordinary. He actually managed to eliminate three of the Five Great Experts.”
The corner of Liang Shaohua's mouth curled up as he leaned back. “It's merely a matter of knowing how to utilize people's talents.”
A youth with a scholarly aura sitting in the corner stood up and cupped his hands. “I am honored that Young Master Liu thinks so highly of this humble scholar.”
He then bowed to Liang Shaohua and said, “Since I have fulfilled the promise I made to Young Master Liang, I wonder if what Young Master Liang promised me...”
“Rest assured, I always reward merit. I will reserve one of the ten spots for the Upper Two Courts for you.”
“This humble scholar thanks Young Master Liang.”
“However...” Liang Shaohua shifted the topic. “It seems you haven't dealt with Ye Guichen yet, the one I wanted to get rid of most?”
“Please do not worry, Young Master Liang. Ye Guichen is nothing to fear.”
“Oh? You already have a plan? Do tell.”
“It is merely a matter of driving the tiger to swallow the wolf,” Xu Wenli said, his hands clasped behind his back, wearing a calm and effortless smile.
“Good. Then I shall await your good news.”
Liang Shaohua crossed his legs and casually toyed with his teacup. With an arrogant smile, he said, “Now that three of the Outer Court's Five Great Experts have been removed, Ye Guichen has one foot in the grave, Yu Xiao is my man, and half of the top one hundred on the Outer Court Disciple Ranking have been bought over by me... Ha, this promotion assessment is already in the palm of my hand.”
Xu Wenli cautioned, “Young Master Liang, there is still more than a month left before the promotion assessment. There are too many variables, and the dust has not yet settled. I believe we should not be careless.”
“Oh? Explain.”
“The first variable is the people. Aside from the Five Great Experts, quite a few others still pose a significant threat,” Xu Wenli said. “Take Yan Pingsheng, for instance, who is openly the fourth person to reach great perfection in his martial arts. If he breaks through to Nine Stones of strength within this month, the threat he poses will be no less than that of the Five Great Experts.”
“Yan Pingsheng?” Liang Shaohua paused his spinning of the teacup. “I recall... he is Senior Brother Bai's fellow townsman?”
He pondered for a moment before saying slowly, “I admire Senior Brother Bai.”
“Yes, exactly!” said Liu Yun, who was sitting next to Liang Shaohua, her face pure and charming. “Yan Pingsheng is connected to Senior Brother Bai. We must give him a spot. We can't afford to displease Senior Brother Bai.”
Liang Shaohua nodded and gestured to Xu Wenli. “Next.”
Xu Wenli frowned inwardly. With one more person sharing the spots, his own chances of securing one by the end would be even slimmer.
However, not daring to object to Liang Shaohua's decision, he continued:
“There is also Li Zigeng, who is under Miss Chen. At the coming-of-age ceremony of the Eldest Young Master Zhou, the palm technique he displayed had already reached the level of great accomplishment. Now that several months have passed, it is highly possible he has made further progress.”
“And Chen Qing'er, who is by Miss Chen's side, cannot be ignored either. Although she is only ranked twenty-third on the Outer Court Disciple Ranking, I believe her strength is at the absolute top tier just below the Five Great Experts, perhaps not even weaker than them. She only willingly hides her strength to act as a green leaf to make Miss Chen stand out.”
Liang Shaohua sneered, “Others may fear Chen Jinzhu's status as the Fifth Young Lady of the Chen family, but I do not. You may deal with those two without worry; you need not concern yourself with Chen Jinzhu.”
“With those words from Young Master Liang, I am at ease. I shall sweep away all obstacles for you,” Xu Wenli said. “The fourth is the young master of the Xia family, Xia Yiqiu. Although he doesn't have any top-tier experts under him, he has numbers. If left unchecked, he might interfere with your plan to control the promotion assessment.”
“Xia Yiqiu? Though he, Chen Jinzhu, and I are all from the seven great families, he is merely from a branch family. How dare he try to plant his own banner?” Liang Shaohua said indifferently. “Send word to him. Tell him to cooperate with me to deal with Chen Jinzhu, and I will give him a spot once it is done. He is a clever man; he will know what to do.”
Xu Wenli nodded and continued, “The fifth is...”
“No need,” Liang Shaohua interrupted.
Facing Xu Wenli's puzzled gaze, he said indifferently, “We must leave a few promotion spots for the mud-legged peasants at the bottom. If we go too far, the martial academy will step in.”
Xu Wenli said confidently, “Rest assured, Young Master Liang, I will not leave any evidence for the martial academy to find.”
“Enough.” Liang Shaohua shook his head and ignored him, turning to chat and drink with the others.
...
Outside the private room, a young man wearing a cast-iron conical hat and a blue-and-silver scholar-martial robe leaned against the door. With his arms crossed, he quietly listened to the conversation inside.
People bustled back and forth in the main hall downstairs, yet not a single person noticed him.
It really is Liang Shaohua. He really is everywhere. But at least he knows his limits and isn't too greedy.
Zhuang Xun leaped out of a nearby window, deciding not to get involved in this matter.
Since they had no intention of targeting him and were even going to make things convenient for him, why look for trouble by meddling?
Rate on N.U.
