Bandit Brother

Stepping out of the teahouse, it was nearly time to head to the banquet.

Crossing the small bridge ahead.

Chen Guan saw the entrance of Yanhe Pavilion.

Under the lanterns on both sides of the path ahead.

Chen Guan spotted the waiter who had delivered the invitation earlier.

Beside him stood an elderly man with graying hair.

Looking closer, his left cheek was sunken.

His appearance and age were remarkably similar to the description of the Yanhe Pavilion proprietor his father had given him.

Most importantly, the arriving guests all addressed him as Shopkeeper.

Chen Guan possessed exceptional hearing and quickly confirmed that this was indeed the host of the day.

Meanwhile, downstairs.

Bandit Brother had just ushered in another guest when his gaze shifted, and upon seeing Chen Guan walking down from the bridge in the distance, he immediately led the waiter to meet him.

Chen Guan's appearance was quite striking in the crowd.

Even as Bandit Brother made his way over, several people greeted Chen Guan along the path.

Both Bandit Brother and Chen Guan could be considered the current celebrities of the town.

Wherever they went, they were met with greetings.

"Young Hero Chen! Young Hero Chen! Please forgive this old man for failing to welcome you sooner!"

As the distance closed.

Bandit Brother began cupping his hands in a salute from afar.

He was currently seeking a favor from Chen Guan, and he even feared this young expert.

"Shopkeeper Sun." Chen Guan returned the salute, maintaining proper etiquette.

But as his gaze swept over, he noticed something off about the shopkeeper's sunken cheek.

It would twitch involuntarily, looking rather unsettling.

This was a lingering effect from when Bandit Brother had his teeth smashed, which had damaged a nerve.

"Honored guest, please! A private room upstairs has been specially reserved for you, Young Hero!"

Bandit Brother, accustomed to his facial defect, acted as if nothing were wrong and obsequiously invited Chen Guan into the restaurant.

Chen Guan followed the host's lead.

Tap, tap—

Walking into this luxurious ancient restaurant, which rivaled those seen in television dramas.

Chen Guan took a brief look around, smelling the aroma of food, and seeing merchants, young masters, and misses dining in the main hall, as well as neatly dressed martial artists.

Looking at their refined attire.

This Yanhe Pavilion truly lived up to its reputation.

Although the prices were much higher, the decor was excellent and the location was prime.

From the western windows, one could see the beautiful scenery of the river, and there were insect-repellent sachets hanging by the windows to keep mosquitoes and flies out of the restaurant.

In particular, the aroma of the food here was streets ahead of his family's cook.

No wonder business was booming; they had truly maxed out the atmosphere, decor, and food quality.

By comparison, the price, which was fifty percent higher than an ordinary restaurant, didn't seem so expensive after all.

Lost in thought.

As Chen Guan followed the shopkeeper upstairs, he felt that this shopkeeper was no ordinary man.

However, for some reason.

He found himself disliking the man, even feeling a sense of repulsion.

Chen Guan didn't know where this feeling came from, only that something felt very wrong.

This intuition made Chen Guan subconsciously want to avoid dealing with him.

This resulted in a situation.

Bandit Brother had been happily leading the young hero to the private room, obsequiously pouring wine for Chen Guan and ordering the kitchen to serve the dishes.

Yet, Chen Guan only chatted half-heartedly, appearing uninterested.

This left Bandit Brother completely baffled.

Strange! Did I offend this kid somewhere?

Bandit Brother was bewildered, pondering that he had already fulfilled all the courtesies expected of a host.

And so.

He wondered again, could it be that Chen Guan was simply cold by nature?

Or perhaps, was it because of the Bamboo Swordsman that there was a rift between them?

Thinking of this, Bandit Brother glanced at the silently eating Chen Guan, feeling quite angry inside.

"Damn your mother, Bamboo Swordsman! You died, and that's that. Not only did I lose the money I spent on you, but now, because of your death, I've offended my new hired hand? You truly deserved to die! Brother Bamboo! You really deserved to die!"

After venting his resentment, Bandit Brother looked at Chen Guan once more.

Now that the man had been invited, he at least needed to make some conversation.

However, Chen Guan's silence made him hesitant to speak; he only dared to pour drinks, not daring to explain the matter of the Bamboo Swordsman.

He feared that the more he tried to explain, the worse it would get—the more he said, the more he would err.

Bandit Brother was a veteran of the underworld, possessing the knack of "speaking human words to humans, and staying silent before ghosts."

In his eyes, the cold-blooded Chen Guan was a "ghost" capable of taking his life at any moment.

But in reality, Chen Guan did not want to leave the man hanging.

His original intention was to build a connection, but for some reason, he just felt awkward.

What on earth is going on?

Chen Guan couldn't figure it out, and the more he thought, the less he understood.

Gradually, his brows furrowed, his conflicted expression showing on his face.

"Is something wrong, Young Hero Chen?"

Seeing the troubled look on Chen Guan's face, Bandit Brother pondered for a long time before daring to ask out of curiosity, "Is my hospitality lacking? Or does Young Hero Chen have somewhere else to be?"

Since it was their first meeting, Bandit Brother felt it would be normal if the guest wanted to leave early.

We haven't said much during this meal, and trying to keep him here is useless... A twisted melon is never sweet...

Having been in business for so many years, Bandit Brother was well-acquainted with the temperaments of various people.

Someone like Young Hero Chen, who would ransack a house without a second thought, had a personality like a rock washed by a waterfall for decades—hard, cold, and smooth.

He felt he needed to use a gentle approach to slowly warm Young Hero Chen's icy heart.

"There are some matters to attend to." Hearing the proprietor bring it up, Chen Guan went along with it.

He didn't know why.

Even after spending an hour together, eating and drinking, and seeing that the man seemed sincere in wanting to befriend him, Chen Guan still felt uncomfortable.

Perhaps it's because Iron Fan warned me beforehand that he might be a bandit? That made me instinctively wary of him...

Chen Guan pondered, feeling that this might be part of the reason.

Thinking of this, Chen Guan felt quite speechless.

It really is as the saying goes: once the seed of doubt is planted, it will slowly sprout, and the more you think about it, the more you feel this person is problematic.

A few minutes later.

Below the restaurant.

"Take care, Young Hero."

Bandit Brother bid farewell to Chen Guan with a laugh, watching him walk away into the crowd.

Occasionally, he could hear greetings and exclamations coming from the direction of Chen Guan.

"A seventeen-year-old at the Great Success of the Houtian realm—he certainly has a presence!"

Bandit Brother felt a twinge of jealousy, envious of Chen Guan's strength and his youth.

"Proprietor?" The waiter stepped closer to Bandit Brother, following his gaze toward the direction Chen Guan had left. "Is this young hero... easier to control than the Bamboo Swordsman?"

"Not easy to control." Bandit Brother's face twitched unnaturally. "This kid may look young, but for some reason, he always gives me the feeling of a veteran of the underworld. His age and his experience don't match at all; he seems incredibly seasoned."

No matter how I flattered him, he remained a stagnant pool, unmoved by favor or humiliation.

Bandit Brother said, rubbing his sunken left cheek, "But at his age, to have such a state of mind.

Strange, it's rather strange.

After some time, I'll test him to see what his background really is. Why is he so eerie?"

"That shopkeeper is nine times out of ten not right!"

On the way back to the Zhao Family.

Chen Guan felt more and more that the shopkeeper was off.

Coupled with the grudges of the Bamboo Swordsman and the words of the Iron Fan.

This matter had to be investigated clearly.

To see where the problem lay.

And where his own uneasy feeling was coming from.

But if he asked the shopkeeper to his face, the man might not necessarily tell the truth.

Even if he did speak, it might just be the flattery he wanted to hear.

Thus.

Three days later.

Deep in the night.

The minor arts of the pugilistic world, the Bone-Shrinking Technique, was originally just a small trick to alter one's physique.

When performed with ten years of spiritual cultivation, the effect was even better.

Dressed in night-traveling gear, the six-foot-three Chen Guan prepared to launch a sudden midnight ambush on the shopkeeper of the Yanhe Pavilion.

"By posing as a notorious bandit and interrogating him through a robbery, it might just have some miraculous effect."

Reflecting the hazy, starry night.

Chen Guan leaped lightly, landing on a courtyard wall five meters away, then vaulted again, skimming over rows of houses like a dragonfly touching water, scaling eaves and walking on walls.