Attending the Banquet

The crowd erupted in uproar!

Jian Shan and Duan Cui also swallowed hard—getting beaten up and receiving two thousand taels in medical fees!

If that were the case, getting beaten every day didn't seem so unacceptable, did it?

And on top of that, a Transformation Force martial artist had just been crippled by the Qian Family head?

That was a powerhouse comparable to a Dao Master of the second or third tier! A core pillar in any family.

The surrounding crowd buzzed with discussion.

"Just what position does this old man hold in the Sword Sect?"

"The Qian Family actually caved this hard?"

"Tch, of course they had to cave. No matter how big the Qian Family is, can it be bigger than the Sword Sect? If you ask me, this exalted one is at least an ancestor-level figure!"

Li Youde frowned inwardly at the crowd's belittling of the Qian Family, but soon his eyes darted, landing on the four straw bundles bristling with sugar hawthorns.

He tested the waters: "Exalted One, since this is your business, my Qian Family will buy all the remaining ones. We'll pay double per skewer! Spare you the hardship of wind and sun. What do you say..."

Jian Shan and Duan Cui exchanged a glance, feeling as if the other's eyes had lit up with golden light.

Double! That meant nearly two hundred skewers would fetch five or six thousand taels?

They were rich!

Yet Chen Xian took a sip of tea without even lifting his eyelids:

"Not selling. If I sold them all to you, how would the guests waiting here buy any?"

Chen Xian's tone was utterly unyielding.

The smile on Li Youde's face froze for half a moment, then he quickly nodded: "Yes, yes, yes. The exalted one's secret treasures must be left for those with fate."

Li Youde lost face, but the watching commoners only grew more fervent.

A Xuanyun Sword Sect exalted one's personally made delicacy!

Even if you had no ailments, buying one skewer to enshrine at home could probably extend your life!

"Give me five skewers!"

"Ten, I want ten!"

"Damn it, I didn't get any! Who'll sell me theirs? I'll pay triple!"

In an instant, the crowd surged to the stall, and the remaining sugar hawthorns were snatched up in a frenzy.

Jian Shan stared at the table piled with Dao Silver and banknotes he couldn't even collect in time, feeling dazed.

Were the people of Ask-Dao City this wealthy? Some hadn't even gotten their sugar hawthorns yet, and they didn't even want their money back!

Li Youde showed no sign of anger at being rebuffed. Instead, he leaned close to Chen Xian and lowered his voice, his tone sincere: "Exalted One, this humble one has reserved the finest private room at Ask-Heaven Pavilion tonight to properly apologize. What do you think..."

Chen Xian tapped the tea table with his fingertip, sneering inwardly.

He understood now—the Qian Family wanted to win him over, just like they had Deacon Huang.

But this might be an opportunity. To investigate the Qian Family's source of Shou'er Tea, he couldn't skip the banquet.

"Since the Qian Family head is so courteous, this old man would seem petty if he kept up his airs."

Chen Xian rose, brushing the dust from his robes. "This old man will be there on time tonight."

"Excellent! Then this humble one will immediately return to inform the family head. We will await your esteemed presence at the gate of Ask-Heaven Pavilion at the hour of the Rooster!"

Li Youde, having received a firm answer, let out a sigh of relief and withdrew swiftly with his men.

The crippled martial artists were dragged off in another direction by several burly men.

As family slaves, even if they trained to the level of Martial Grandmasters, they could be reduced to dead dogs at any moment.

No matter how fierce the house-bred Tibetan mastiff, it was still raised by men.

Qian Mansion, inner residence, private hall.

Li Youde kept his head low, reporting every detail of what had happened at West First Ward.

Behind the low table, Qian Family head Qian Yue held a cup of Shou'er Tea as red as blood. His ruddy, dignified face flickered with uncertainty in the swirling steam.

"You're saying that the sugar hawthorns that have taken the ward by storm, even helping martial artists break through bottlenecks, are backed by that Sword Sect's Chen, the Grand-Uncle Master?"

"Hmph, no wonder those two wastes couldn't pry the secret recipe from those men. So the old man was behind it."

Qian Yue set down the teacup, his fingertip lightly tracing the rim, a chill seeping into his gaze.

A few days ago, this very man had come to the Qian Family to break off the engagement, making him lose all face. And now he showed up again.

"Reporting to my lord, it's absolutely true. The two Xuanyun Sword Sect disciples treated him with utmost respect—there's no mistake!"

Li Youde replied cautiously. "My lord, this Blood Sugar Hawthorn has gained great fame. In West First Ward, it's subtly overtaking our Shou'er Tea. If we let it develop unchecked, I fear..."

Qian Yue let out a cold laugh. "Just some medicinal snacks with a bit of effect. They can't shake Shou'er. The old immortals at the Mortal Elder Pavilion don't care for children's treats!"

He rose to his feet, pacing the hall, a calculating glint surfacing in his sinister gaze. "Still, those candied hawthorns are a fine moneymaker. If we can get our hands on the recipe, it'll let the Qian Family expand our business a bit more."

"Go to the treasury and withdraw five hundred thousand taels of Dao Silver. If that old codger can be won over, we'll buy the recipe from him on the spot."

Li Youde's heart jolted violently. Five hundred thousand taels of Dao Silver—that was nearly a full quarter's profit from all the Qian Family shops.

He swallowed hard and asked in a low voice, "Master, what if... what if that old fool doesn't know his place and insists on butting heads with us?"

Qian Yue's steps came to an abrupt halt. He turned his head, his eyes as sharp and cold as a blade's edge.

"Doesn't know his place?"

Qian Yue slowly spat out those four words, then made a chopping motion in the air with his right hand. "Then find a way to make sure the old bastard disappears from this world for good."

Li Youde's knees went weak with terror, nearly sending him collapsing to the floor. "Patriarch, Chen Xian is after all the Grand-Uncle of the Xuanyun Sword Sect, with an extremely high seniority. If he dies in Ask-Dao City and the Xuanyun Sword Sect launches a full investigation, I'm afraid we won't be able to cover it up!"

"Fool!"

Qian Yue snorted coldly, his eyes brimming with contempt. "Do you think I haven't looked into him? That old relic is nothing but a cripple whose cultivation has scattered to the winds. He's barely got the foundation of a Dao Disciple at the third tier."

"I reckon that in Lei Qingyang's eyes, this old fossil is just a living mascot, something to win people's goodwill."

After all, a useless old wreck at Dao Disciple third tier—could Lei Qingyang really be keeping him around as an ancestor to worship?

He walked up to Li Youde, patted him on the shoulder, and said in a sinister tone, "Youde, you've been with me long enough. You should know how to handle things clean and neat."

A cold sweat broke out on Li Youde's back.

"Go on. Make tonight's banquet lavish. Don't let our honored guest think we're looking down on him."

Qian Yue waved his hand, signaling Li Youde to withdraw.

Just then, the red jade token at his waist gave a faint tremor. He quickly dismissed everyone and slipped back behind the rockery in his private courtyard.

Crack!

A hidden door swung open.

Qian Yue darted inside. In the secret chamber this time, only a mass of blood-red mist writhed above the blood pool, vaguely condensing into the outline of a human figure.

"I pay my respects to the Envoy."

Qian Yue dropped to one knee, his demeanor utterly reverent.

"Qian Yue, you're moving too slowly. The Holy Sect has no use for incompetents."

An icy, rasping voice emerged from the blood-red mist.

Sweat beaded on Qian Yue's forehead as he quickly replied, "Envoy, forgive me. Tonight I have invited Chen Xian, the Grand-Uncle of the Xuanyun Sword Sect, to a banquet. Perhaps I can win this man over to our cause."

"Grand-Uncle... Chen Xian?"

The blood-red mist churned as if pondering the name. "Hmph, never heard of him. I'll have to look into it."

"Qian Yue, the Holy Sect can hardly wait to descend upon Ask-Dao City. You must hurry!"

With that, the blood mist dissipated, and the oppressive aura vanished completely.

"Yes! Your subordinate understands!"

As night fell, the most bustling establishment in Ask-Dao City, the Ask-Heaven Pavilion, was now festooned with lanterns and colorful decorations.

A row of thirty-six red silk lanterns, each as tall as a man, lined the street from the corner all the way to the tavern entrance, illuminating half the block as bright as day.

Qian Yue, the patriarch of the Qian Family, stood solemnly at the door, his brocade robes shimmering with a flowing luster under the lights.

Many passersby stopped to gawk, speculating about what kind of heavyweight could warrant such an extravagant display from the Qian Family patriarch.

Just then, from the street corner in the distance, three figures and one "beggar" strolled unhurriedly into everyone's line of sight.

Seeing this, Qian Yue's face instantly shifted into a warm, spring-like smile, and he strode forward to greet them.

"Your Eminence honors us with your presence! Qian has failed to welcome you from afar. Please, come in and take your seat at once!"