Deception and Scheming

"The Shop Manager is here. Stop talking."

Seeing the Shop Manager approach, one of the girls softly reminded the others. At her warning, they all stopped talking and turned to face the Shop Manager.

"Sister Wen," everyone called out in unison.

Yu Wen was, after all, the owner of this accessory shop and the direct superior of these salesgirls. The difference in their positions made it difficult for Yu Wen to truly mingle with those beneath her. There were some things the employees would not say to their owner.

"Actually, I don't like it when Chen Zihang comes here either." Yu Wen walked over to the counter and leaned against it, weariness visible on her face as she spoke in a low voice.

"Chen Zihang was lavish with his spending and brought the shop a substantial profit every time he came. But his personality was unpleasant, and not many shops in Anyang City liked him. Yet in our line of work, there are too many things we have no choice about. We can't afford to offend anyone, so we can only endure it." For the first time, Yu Wen revealed her true thoughts to the employees.

After hearing Yu Wen's words and giving them some thought, the employees gradually understood what she meant.

Nearly everyone in this shop was an elite, or else they would not have been able to sell the accessories. They were all quick-witted. What Yu Wen had said was actually quite simple, but since she had never mentioned it before, they had always assumed that whenever Yu Wen received Chen Zihang, she earned a huge profit.

Only today did they learn that Yu Wen had been shouldering the pressure alone all this time.

"Sister Wen, I'm sorry. I never understood you before, and I caused you quite a bit of trouble." After understanding Yu Wen's hardships, one employee suddenly apologized guiltily.

"Sister Wen, I was the one in the wrong that time with Young Master Liu. I got you scolded by the owner. Please accept my apology," another said.

"Sister Wen..."

The employees suddenly realized that Yu Wen had cleaned up so many of the messes they had made in the past. She had taken the blame from the owner because of them, yet they had once thought their plans to retaliate against Yu Wen had been such a success.

"You lot..." A look of exasperated amusement suddenly appeared on Yu Wen's face. She was astonished to discover that all the suffering she had endured in the past had been arranged by this troublesome group of employees.

It was such a small shop, yet every subordinate she had hired was a fox, each one more cunning than the last. In such a tiny store, Yu Wen suddenly felt as though she were caught in a palace struggle filled with deception and scheming.

As the shop owner, there had always been a faint barrier between her and her employees. But today, now that everything had been laid bare, that barrier seemed to vanish all at once.

"You really are a bunch of troublemakers. What am I supposed to say about you?" Yu Wen pointed at her employees and spoke helplessly.

"Alright, Sister Wen, don't be angry. It wouldn't be good if you made yourself sick. You're so magnanimous—just forgive us already." One employee hooked her arm around Yu Wen's and coquettishly pleaded.

"Forgive you? No way." Yu Wen put on a fierce expression and said to them, "After work tonight, Jade Boat House Grand Restaurant. Not one of you is getting away."

After Chen Cheng left the accessory shop, he ran into an acquaintance.

He was handsome, dressed in a deep blue scholar's robe, and held a folding fan in his hand, giving off an air of refined gentility.

"Young Master, over here."

Standing at the street corner, he waved at Chen Cheng from afar. Seeing the familiar face, Chen Cheng walked over.

"Brother Murong, it's been a long time." Chen Cheng greeted him with a smile.

Once Chen Cheng drew near, Murong Zhi caught sight of Yan Lingji's beauty up close and briefly lost himself. He had always loved beautiful women, but seeing Chen Cheng and Yan Lingji holding hands, he understood that their relationship was far from ordinary and did not dare entertain any hopes. He swept away the desire in his heart, regained his composure, and smiled at Chen Cheng.

"Young Master, it has indeed been many days since you last saw me, but I saw your brilliance on the Testing Platform yesterday very clearly."

Murong Zhi was a member of the Murong Family and also Chen Yuan's disciple. He had naturally been among those invited to the Chen Family's clan gathering. However, there had been many people there at the time, so Chen Cheng had not noticed him.

"There were too many people yesterday, and I failed to receive you properly. Please forgive me." Chen Cheng apologized in a very easygoing manner.

"What are you saying, Young Master? It was clearly I who failed to receive you properly." Hearing Chen Cheng's apology, Murong Zhi hurriedly replied.

After all, he was merely Chen Yuan's disciple, while Chen Cheng was Chen Yuan's biological son. Murong Zhi understood the difference in their status clearly. How could he dare accept Chen Cheng's apology? That would be improper.

"By the way, Young Master, I saw you enter Qingzhu Workshop earlier. I had intended to greet you, but then I saw Chen Zihang enter as well, so it wasn't convenient for me to approach you. Nothing happened between you two, did it?" Murong Zhi asked solemnly.

"Chen Zihang? You know him?" Chen Cheng asked in return.

"Of course I do." Murong Zhi nodded, his expression turning extremely grave when he spoke of Chen Zihang.

"He is the Chen Family's most outstanding genius, exceptionally gifted and in control of Wind and Thunder Power. His combat strength is extraordinary. Among everyone I know, his cultivation has progressed the fastest. His talent may very well make him the Chen Family's third Dou Emperor, perhaps even a Dou Zong. Several Chen Family elders hold him in high regard, and Teacher praises him greatly as well. In a private conversation, Teacher once mentioned that he intended to make him the Chen Family's heir."

"Thanks to his exceptional talent, Chen Zihang has gained the support of many people in the Chen Family. He has also earned remarkable military achievements, and quite a few officers in the army intend to support him. Moreover, his identity seems somewhat unusual. Although Teacher has not taken him as a disciple, he treats him like a son, while Chen Zihang has always regarded himself as the Chen Family's heir."

"Young Master, you should understand how great an impact your appearance will have on him. Your prestige may be far inferior to Chen Zihang's, but the Chen Family's two Dou Emperors are both your close relatives. On that point alone, you hold a greater advantage than he does."

"And at yesterday's clan gathering, you displayed the result of advancing four stages of Dou Qi in ten days. Your talent has surpassed Chen Zihang's as well. He will surely bear a grudge against you, so you should be careful." Murong Zhi warned.

Although Chen Cheng heard Murong Zhi lavishly praise Chen Zihang, he did not take it too seriously.

Murong Zhi had always given Chen Cheng the impression of someone calm and composed, indifferent to worldly matters. Yet when speaking of Chen Zihang now, Chen Cheng could clearly see the deep apprehension in Murong Zhi's expression.

"I checked Chen Zihang's cultivation earlier. An 8-Star Great Dou Shi—higher than yours?" Chen Cheng looked directly at Murong Zhi and asked.

Murong Zhi was twenty years old, a Three-Star Great Dou Shi.

Chen Zihang was twenty years old, an 8-Star Great Dou Shi.

On the surface, the gap did not seem that great. A difference of five stars could be made up for with a high-level Dou Technique.

"Higher? Of course he's higher. My cultivation might be considered decent in the eyes of ordinary people, but in Chen Zihang's eyes, I'm not even qualified to carry his shoes." Murong Zhi spoke with great apprehension.

Murong Zhi's attention had been entirely on Chen Zihang. Thus, he overlooked the glaring inconsistency that Chen Cheng, with only Dou Qi Fourth Stage cultivation, had been able to see through Chen Zihang's cultivation.

"Cultivation doesn't prove anything. You have no idea how terrifying Chen Zihang's combat strength is. Even if there were ten more people like me, we still wouldn't be enough for him to fight, and that's only under normal conditions. Chen Zihang under normal conditions is already formidable, but in thunderstorm weather, the weather enhances him, and his combat strength increases severalfold.

"Young Master, you don't know Chen Zihang's greatest battle record. Once, during a thunderstorm, he was besieged by three Dou Wang experts. In the end, he killed one, severely wounded another, and injured the last one as well. Moreover, the severely wounded one died from his injuries three days later. At that time, Chen Zihang had only just advanced to Great Dou Shi. He was injured too, and it took him a full three months to recover.

"Afterward, Teacher personally acted, wiped out the families of those three Dou Wangs, and suppressed the matter. I only learned of such a secret because Teacher happened to mention it once.

"Fortunately, Chen Zihang's body has certain limitations, making it difficult to find a suitable Cultivation Method for him. He is currently cultivating only a Yellow Rank Cultivation Method, which is why his cultivation has advanced so slowly. If he finds a Cultivation Method suited to him, he could become a true Dou Emperor in a very short time." When speaking of Chen Zihang's abilities, Murong Zhi did not hesitate to belittle himself in order to elevate Chen Zihang.

Only someone who had truly suffered a crushing defeat could possess such an understanding.

"So that's how it is. Then it really is worth paying attention to." Chen Cheng perked up.

Anyone Murong Zhi held in such high regard could not be all talk.

Murong Zhi's talent was extremely high. His talent level was probably one tier below Nalan Yanran's, but several tiers above Mu Zhan's.

"Young Master, your appearance will definitely make Chen Zihang resent you. You must be careful of him," Murong Zhi reminded him when he saw that Chen Cheng still did not take Chen Zihang seriously.

Chen Cheng did not respond to Murong Zhi. He merely looked at him, a meaningful smile on his face.

Seeing Chen Cheng like this, Murong Zhi thought he might have said something wrong. Confused, he tried hard to recall what he had just said, only to find that everything had been factual and reasonable. There was nothing wrong with his words. Yet Chen Cheng's gaze truly left him baffled.

"Chen Zihang intends to compete for the Family Head Position. What about you?" After a while, Chen Cheng shook his head and asked Murong Zhi with a smile.

Having said that, Chen Cheng had no interest in hearing Murong Zhi's answer. He took Yan Lingji's hand and left.

Only Murong Zhi remained behind, standing there in a daze with a puzzled expression.