Turning the Tables

Shen Jingchuan recalled a master of lying who had two tricks up his sleeve.

First, start by laughing loudly; this will both intimidate the other person and give you time to improvise your own explanation. Second, among ten lies, you must include at least one or two undeniable truths.

Do it this way.

Having made up his mind, he suddenly laughed heartily, his voice not loud, but revealing a sense of openness:

"I thought it was something very important. May I ask True Person, Master, what rule have I broken by selling pills in our market? Or are the pills I'm selling fake?"

True Person Moxuan didn't reply, but merely glanced at Wang Cheng'an.

Wang Cheng'an understood immediately, stepped forward, and said:

"Young Friend Shen, we have examined the pills you are selling, and they are indeed genuine; in fact, their quality is quite good. The buying and selling of pills is a perfectly normal business in the market, and there is absolutely no problem with it."

He changed the subject:

"The problem is, why are you only selling top-grade pills and talismans? That's understandable, but why are you then buying up large quantities of mid-grade pills and talismans? And why are you buying them separately, with different types offered to each seller? We've reviewed it all and found that what you're buying and selling is just the same few varieties over and over again."

"I thought it was something else."

Shen Jingchuan raised an eyebrow, his expression remaining completely composed:

"Didn't Steward Wang notice that all the pills I sell are the most commonly used ones? The ones I bought are the same, all the most commonly used ones. These are the ones with the largest usage and are the easiest to sell, so I specifically chose to make them. What's so strange about that?"

He remained calm and unhurried, explaining each point one by one:

"As for what you said, selling high-quality goods and buying mid-quality goods, the categories are roughly the same—that makes it even easier to explain."

Shen Jingchuan shrugged:

"I'm just trying to make money. I buy and sell for Spirit Stones. My Shen Household refines high-grade pills and talismans, and I sell them for money. Is that wrong? I buy mid-grade pills and talismans and then transport them to other markets to sell, making a profit from the price difference. Is that wrong?"

"And speaking of why the product categories are all the same--"

He looked at Wang Cheng'an, his expression self-righteous:

"Just because these are the most commonly used and best-selling."

Wang Cheng'an glanced at True Person Moxuan, True Person gave him a knowing look. Wang Cheng'an understood immediately and decided to be direct:

"Young Friend Shen, it's probably not that simple, is it? You bought those mid-grade pills one by one at retail price. How do you make a profit by simply reselling them to other places and deducting travel expenses?"

This question hit the nail on the head.

Shen Jingchuan remained calm and countered with a question:

"Then tell me, Steward Wang, what else could I be after? This is the secret to my Shen Household's business, a trade secret. I can't just reveal it all to outsiders, can I?"

He paused:

"Besides, besides reselling it for profit, tell me, what other use would I have for it?"

Wang Cheng'an stared at him for two breaths, then decided to break through the last layer of pretense:

"Then I'll be frank. We suspect that you, or your Shen Household, possess a method—capable of directly upgrading low-grade pills and talismans to high-grade ones."

They've arrived.

Shen Jingchuan sneered inwardly; so they'd come full circle. He laughed again, his gaze sweeping over Wang Cheng'an as if he were a fool, before turning to look at Master True Person Moxuan in the main seat:

"So, after all this fuss, the two of you invited me here just to ask this ridiculous question?"

The old man and the young man remained silent, just watching him and waiting for him to continue.

Shen Jingchuan chuckled again, shaking his head as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world:

"You guys are really making me laugh. In the entire cultivation world, who among you has ever heard of such an ability? Is this a myth or a legend? Even if it's a myth or a legend, they wouldn't dare to make it up like this."

"Let's put aside whether that's even possible," he changed the subject, "Even if it were true, what kind of Lineage would our Shen Household have to be?"

He spoke casually, but deliberately slowed his tone:

"To be honest, our Shen Household patriarch is only a Nascent Soul cultivator; our ancestors rarely show themselves, so I don't know their cultivation levels."

He said this on purpose. He wanted to first reveal that his family had Nascent Soul cultivator to intimidate the other party and prevent them from trying to suppress him with their cultivation levels, just because one of them was a Golden Core cultivator and the other a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

(Of course, he didn't dare to make it too exaggerated, also because he didn't know if the Nascent Soul Spirit Transformation.)

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, True Person Moxuan's eyes flickered slightly.

"For Lineage like ours to truly possess such heaven-defying abilities..."

Shen Jingchuan shrugged. "There are far more than just Nascent Soul cultivators in our family. Your guesses are laughable."

At this point, another thought quickly crossed his mind.

We can't keep passively responding to his questions like this. The more detailed his answers are, the more flaws he'll find out sooner or later, and it'll never end.

Afraid? What does he have to be afraid of? If things really come to a head, he can simply reveal his trump card on the spot and leave. Can a Golden Core cultivator and a Foundation Establishment stop him?

Of course, it's best to avoid taking that step if possible.

But he was confident he could take this gamble—betting that they couldn't fathom the Shen Household's true strength, betting that they wouldn't dare easily turn against a scion of a powerful Lineage with Nascent Soul cultivator as their backer.

Especially in situations like these, it's crucial not to show weakness.

These thoughts flashed through his mind, and his expression suddenly hardened.

He turned his head and looked straight at Wang Cheng'an:

"One more thing, Steward Wang. How the Shen Household conducts business is none of your business, is it?"

Wang Cheng'an was taken aback.

Shen Jingchuan then turned his gaze to True Person Moxuan, his tone softening slightly, yet remaining neither humble nor arrogant:

"I have been so polite and attentive to you both until now because I respect you as a Golden Core cultivator."

He looked at Wang Cheng'an again, his voice turning colder:

"Our Shen Household will continue to do business in Spirit Creek Market, so I have always treated you with respect and conducted business with courtesy, giving you a great deal of profit. But this does not mean that our Shen Household is someone to be bullied."

"To be honest, in the Shen Household, I'm just a distant, insignificant member of a minor branch with no status, which is why I'm out here doing business."

"But even though it's a branch of the family, it's not something you, a small market town, a so-called Golden Core True Person, or a Foundation Establishment cultivator, can question as you please."

"I'll leave it at that: I'll answer if I want to; if I don't, I'm not going to bother with me. Do you two have anything else? If not—I'm leaving."