The Real and Fake Lu Jin: A Scheme Within a Scheme

"I've been wronged! Terribly wronged!" Lu Jin's eyes burned with fury and humiliation.

"Someone set me up! Someone impersonated me!"

"Father, you have to believe me. I'm not interested in that kind of low-class flesh trade. Why would I spend a hundred thousand silver dollars on a woman?"

At the same time, Lu Jin raged inwardly: What godforsaken bastard dared impersonate me? If I catch him, I'll tear out his tendons, flay his skin, and throw him into a steel furnace to render him down!

His son's hysteria did not look feigned.

The anger in Lu Zongyuan's eyes eased a little, replaced by deep concern.

No one knew a son better than his father.

Lu Jin was a scoundrel, but he did not have the nerve to tell such an outrageous lie at home.

Besides, the boy was obsessed with the West. He liked Western women and had always sneered at the Great Xin Dynasty's traditional Courtesan Cultivators.

And Lu Jin had indeed gone out on an assignment last night.

Lu Zongyuan asked coldly, "You're saying you spent the whole night at the hotel?"

"Every word is true. Mr. Smith can vouch for me."

Seeing his father relent, Lu Jin tentatively tried to stand.

"Stay on your knees!" Lu Zongyuan barked.

"Yes." Lu Jin shuddered and remained kneeling.

"Tell me everything you know about the Western Archaeological Expedition, down to the last detail. Leave out a single word, and I'll break your legs."

Lu Jin did not dare delay. Kneeling on the floor, he spilled everything he had seen and heard last night like beans pouring from a bamboo tube.

"There were around fifty people in the expedition, carrying lots of Western geological survey equipment. Their leader was Master Leonard, a Westerner who has discovered ancient civilizations.

They stayed at the church for a long time last night, as though they were meeting someone. Then they set off overnight toward Blackwater Ancient Town."

After hearing him out, Lu Zongyuan paced the study with his brows tightly knit.

If Lu Jin was telling the truth, then the "Lu Jin" at Zither Strings House last night had definitely been an impostor.

The deception had been masterful.

It had fooled an old hand like Huang Silang, along with everyone else there.

This went beyond a simple disguise. The impostor had known Lu Jin's every mannerism inside out.

"Stay on your knees and think about what you've done."

With that, Lu Zongyuan hurried out of the study.

In the warm chamber deep within the Lu Family estate, Lu Changsheng reclined on the Rosewood Couch. Behind him, his strange, copper-coin-studded demon-tail braid writhed gently with each breath.

Lu Zongyuan entered and dropped to his knees before the Rosewood Couch. "Ancestor."

"Have you gotten to the bottom of it?" Lu Changsheng's eyes remained closed, his voice old and hoarse.

"I have."

Kneeling before the couch, Lu Zongyuan reported the deception at Zither Strings House and the Western Archaeological Expedition's movements in full.

Lu Changsheng's drooping eyelids did not lift when the report ended.

Only when Lu Zongyuan's legs were nearly numb from kneeling did Lu Changsheng finally speak. His aged, rasping voice carried a chill that made the heart tremble.

"Have you found out who impersonated young Lu Jin?"

"Not yet," Lu Zongyuan said, lowering his head. "The man was highly skilled. He copied not only Lu Jin's appearance but his expressions and tone to perfection.

Then he vanished without a trace. He may be a master of disguise, or... a practitioner of some obscure profession."

Lu Zongyuan gritted his teeth. "Someone disguised himself as Lu Jin to set a trap for the Lu Family. Those hundred thousand silver dollars are clearly an attempt to extort us."

He then added what he knew about the Western Archaeological Expedition.

"Those Westerners have gone to Blackwater Ancient Town. It seems that map did its job."

Instead of flying into a rage over the fake Lu Jin, Lu Changsheng remained unusually calm.

"Ancestor, if we pay those hundred thousand silver dollars, how can the Dragon Gate Escort Agency ever hold its head up in the martial world again? Won't we become easy marks for anyone to butcher?" Lu Zongyuan asked cautiously.

"We could publish a statement saying someone impersonated him. We could even report it to the authorities..."

"Fool!"

Lu Changsheng cut him off with a cold snort.

"Publish a statement? Report it to the authorities? Has the Lu Family not suffered enough humiliation for you?"

Lu Changsheng sat upright. His braid hung behind him, making a faint scraping sound.

"If you announce now that it was a fake, who will believe you?"

"Huang Silang of the Eight Gates Martial Hall was there. Hong Tianbao's people were there. Hundreds of people at Zither Strings House saw it."

"To call him a fake is to slap Zither Strings House in the face, and every witness along with it."

"Besides, don't you know how deep the waters run behind Zither Strings House? It exists because the Courtesan Cultivators, one of the Hundred Schools, made a compromise. Even the warlords show them some respect."

"If we refuse to pay and claim Zither Strings House cannot even recognize a man, how are they supposed to do business after that?"

"We must pay!"

Lu Changsheng picked up the Blood Ginseng tea beside him and took a sip, his tone as indifferent as if he were talking about ten copper coins.

"Ancestor, that's a hundred thousand silver dollars!" Lu Zongyuan's face twitched with pain at the thought. "We're the victims. Why should we swallow this injustice in silence?"

"Because the Lu Family is strong on the outside and hollow within!"

Lu Changsheng set his teacup down hard, his voice rising sharply.

He looked at Lu Zongyuan, disappointment and sorrow filling his eyes.

"I, Lu Changsheng, walked on thin ice my entire life to build the Dragon Gate Escort Agency. And you? How did I end up with such a useless lot of descendants?"

"To this day, in a Lu Family this large, there isn't a single Master Level expert besides this old man with one foot in the grave!"

"Do you know what that means?"

Lu Changsheng pointed out the window. "It means we're a slab of meat with no teeth to defend it.

The moment I die, or the outside world learns I'm failing, those wolves will swarm in and tear the Lu Family to pieces!"

Sweat covered Lu Zongyuan's brow. "Ancestor, we've failed you..."

"We'll pay the hundred thousand!" Lu Changsheng drew a deep breath and steadied himself. "And we won't just pay. We'll pay promptly and make sure everyone hears about it!"

"We must show the world that the Lu Family can produce a hundred thousand silver dollars and doesn't care about the expense!"

"We're flexing our muscles and buying peace!"

"Only then can we deter those petty villains and make them think the Lu Family's reserves are unfathomable, too formidable for them to act rashly!"

"As for young Lu Jin..." Disgust flashed in Lu Changsheng's eyes.

"The story is already out. Let him be 'Lu Ten Thousand.' At least he'll earn a reputation for lavish, romantic generosity. That's better than being called a fool who got played."

"Yes, Ancestor. Your wisdom is unmatched." The money pained Lu Zongyuan, but he understood this was their only option.

"One more thing."

Lu Changsheng lay back on the couch, his gaze turning dark.

"Whoever impersonated young Lu Jin is no ordinary man. Send people to find out who dared make trouble on the Lu Family's doorstep."

"And since the Western Archaeological Expedition has gone to Blackwater Ancient Town, send people to watch them. Keep track of their every move."

"If those foreign devils really dig up something extraordinary..."

Lu Changsheng paused, a cruel smile curling his lips.

"Then send them on their way. Don't let them leave alive with the treasure our ancestors left us."

Meanwhile, at the Shocking Heron Martial Hall.

After the Dragon Gate Escort Agency's people left, the hall returned to its usual bustle.

Students gathered in twos and threes to discuss what had just happened. The Lu Family's third young master, Lu Ten Thousand, was everyone's favorite topic.

In a corner, Li Xiang leaned against a stone lock and fixed Qin Zhong with a searching gaze.

Qin Zhong felt his skin crawl under that stare.

"Brother Li, why are you looking at me like that? That portrait earlier was excellent. It captured Young Master Lu's wretched look perfectly." Qin Zhong laughed awkwardly, trying to change the subject.

"Senior Brother Qin, let's not beat around the bush." Li Xiang moved closer and lowered his voice. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Tell you? About what?" Qin Zhong's smile stiffened. "You mean the Dragon Gate Escort Agency? Those bastards were just looking for trouble..."

"I'm not talking about the Dragon Gate Escort Agency."

Li Xiang interrupted him, lowering his voice further so only the two of them could hear.

"I'm talking about the man who impersonated Lu Jin at Zither Strings House last night."

"Impersonated him?" Qin Zhong played dumb. "Wasn't that Lu Jin himself? He matched the portrait, and the Dragon Gate Escort Agency admitted it."

"Senior Brother Qin, stop acting."

Li Xiang pointed at his own nose.

"When it comes to certain smells, my nose is sharper than a dog's."

"Yesterday, in the private room at Zither Strings House, I caught a scent the moment that 'Third Young Master Lu' walked in."

"It was masked by the heavy Western perfume and face powder on him, but the chill and earthy reek coming from deep within him could never be washed away."

Li Xiang stared Qin Zhong straight in the eyes. "It was exactly the same scent you carried when you came back from that 'private job' of yours after midnight."

"The smell of Earth Infusion. The smell of someone who had just crawled out of a Fresh Burial Pit."