Lian Taoze, standing nearby, was also taken aback.
He had never expected the usually composed Zhou Chen to suddenly say such a thing.
He hurriedly said in a grave voice, "Junior Martial Brother, wait! Junior Martial Brother Zhang may have only just broken through to the second rank, but you're no match for him! Don't act on impulse!"
As he spoke, Lian Taoze looked at Zhou Chen, only to find his expression calm, without any of the agitation he had expected.
But then Zhang Shaojiu looked at Lian Taoze, a mocking sneer suddenly curling his lips. "Senior Martial Brother, you've always been in charge of the martial hall's taisui meat business, haven't you? I remember Master Zheng saying that whoever is most capable should handle its sale."
In truth, Zhao Tianhong was the strongest among their Direct Disciples, but he was wholly focused on training in preparation for the upcoming Flesh-Cutting Tournament and had no time for such miscellaneous affairs.
Su Mengyao had no interest in getting involved, so Lian Taoze had competed with Shen Ao for the job. Shen Ao had lost to him, and the business had fallen to the Lian Household ever since.
"What do you mean?"
Anger surfaced in Lian Taoze's eyes as he stared at Zhang Shaojiu.
Zhang Shaojiu said unhurriedly, "Nothing much. Since breaking through to the second rank, my abilities have improved considerably, and I came specifically to seek some instruction from you, Senior Martial Brother. If you lose, how about handing the taisui meat business over to me?"
Everyone present was shaken by those words.
Anyone with eyes could see that, now that Zhang Shaojiu had broken through to the second rank, he wanted to snatch another mouthful of meat from Lian Taoze's jaws.
The Lian Household had already been teetering on