Chapter 728: Preliminary News
Lin Ming could hardly not cooperate, being the businessman he was, and with his life in Jiang’s grasp. A wry smile later, he responded to Wei Jie, “Young master Wei, someone did buy a batch of slaves from the Myriad Domain, and those slaves are indeed from the Regal Pill Palace. However…”
“Just tell me directly what you wish to say, Brother Lin,” Wei Jie said.
“It was a boss of the Fish and Dragon District who did this business, but that boss is among the top ten slave traders in Veluriyam Capital. I am far inferior to him.”
“Who is it?” Wei Jie probed deeper.
“It’s the Myriad Puppet Pavilion.”
“The Myriad Puppet Pavilion?” Wei Jie stared at him blankly.
“Yes, the Myriad Puppet Pavilion. Their backer is House Sikou,” Lin Ming spoke plainly, not holding anything back.
“House Sikou?” Wei Jie’s expression immediately turned ugly. House Sikou was one of the few sworn enemies House Wei had in Veluriyam Capital.
Lin Ming smiled wryly, “Young master, let us stop here. I would ask that you please don’t sell me out in the future. I do not nearly have enough wealth to endure the Myriad Puppet Pavilion’s full strength.”
Wei Jie said seriously, “Don’t worry, Brother Lin. I am not a person who sells out my friends.”
Lin Ming waved his hands. This news wasn’t all that big of a secret. Almost all the bosses in their circle knew about this. He then looked at Jiang Chen with an imploring look in his eyes.
Jiang Chen smiled, “Boss Lin, your symptoms are not caused by an illness, poison, or evil aura.”
“What might be the cause then?” Lin Ming could not look any more gloomy.
“Where do you normally live?” Jiang Chen asked with a smile, “If I’m not mistaken, you rest with a pet beside you at night, right?”
“How… How do you know about this?” Boss Lin was shocked.
“I even know that your pet is probably something that looks like a cat. However, it isn’t actually a cat, but a variant species.”
“Ah? I’ve always thought that it was a cat. Is there something wrong with it? But I’ve invited those pill kings into my home, and they’ve inspected my cat too. They didn’t mention anything like this.”
“That’s because they’re ignorant,” Jiang Chen smiled faintly, “The cat isn’t carrying anything, so none of the pill kings you brought to your house would be able to notice anything wrong with it. The cat itself is perfectly fine too.”
“Then… what is the problem then?” Lin Ming lips were trembling with agitation. He could feel it, a thin, fragile strand of hope that the symptoms that had been plaguing him for all these years were finally going to be resolved today.
“It’s not even worth a mention once the truth is out, really. Go back and kill this cat. After that, I’ll write you a prescription that you should consume for a full month. Once you’ve taken the prescription for a month, you’ll be fully recovered.”
“Are you sure?” Lin Ming’s voice was a little shaky.
“What need do I have to lie to you?” Jiang Chen smiled faintly, “Bring me brush and paper.”
Lin Ming prepared the brush and paper himself before placing them respectfully in front of Jiang Chen. Jiang Chen didn’t dally, immediately writing out a prescription. “This is the prescription. Once you’ve obtained the necessary spirit herbs, you just need to boil them all together however you like. No technique is necessary. After that, simply drink your concoction.”
Lin Ming unconsciously accepted the prescription even as a feeling of disbelief jolted through his brain. He felt like he was in a dream. If Jiang Chen hadn’t so clearly described his everyday life, Lin Ming would’ve definitely thought him a liar trying to fob him off with excuses. However, his instincts told him that this was the right bet this time. Jiang Chen’s tone and expression didn’t belong to a liar at all. In fact, he could even see a certain something from his eyes that told him that Jiang Chen thought it beneath him to lie! For a moment, Lin Ming was overwhelmed by his emotions. He felt as if he had finally awakened from an everlasting nightmare.
“Go get your herbs. Later,” Jiang Chen could see how agitated Lin Ming was, but as a pill master, he had seen similar sights countless times during his past life. Wasn’t Lin Ming’s expression the same as Wei Jie’s subordinates when Jiang Chen had saved Wei Jie?
Lin Ming grabbed Wei Jie’s hands, “Young master Wei, I owe you a favor this time. Come to me if you have anything else that you need in the future. As long as it is within my power, I will do everything I can to fulfill it!”
He didn’t dare to grab Jiang Chen’s hands because he thought that this mysterious Zhen Shi was a little unfathomable. He didn’t dare to grab the pill king’s hands carelessly.
Wei Jie beamed at him, “You speak too heavily, Brother Lin. I’ve always liked making friends, so if you truly believe that I’m worthy of your friendship, then let us associate with each other much more in the future.”
“Of course, of course,” Lin Ming looked extremely excited.
Wei Jie patted his shoulders and said, “You are a lucky man, Brother Lin. Brother Zhen possesses an unfathomable depth in pill dao talent. He does not normally treat someone, but when he does, he never makes a mistake.”
“Definitely, definitely,” Lin Ming agreed with him strongly. There had been countless pill kings who’d investigated his symptoms, but none of them had been able to do anything about it. However, this Lord Zhen Shi had only taken a few casual glances to figure out everything about his symptoms. This absolutely wasn’t something any ordinary person could do.
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Inferior men and goods were always discarded in front of true value. Compared to Lord Zhen Shi, those pill kings he’d seen before were utter trash who didn’t deserve their reputation! Lin Ming felt like crying aloud as he walked Wei Jie and Jiang Chen out of the door. These symptoms had tormented him for far too long now. The prescription he was holding in his hands felt heavier than a million saint spirit stones.
“So what’s with his symptoms, Brother Jiang?” Wei Jie couldn’t help but ask after they left Lin Ming’s shop. He was just as curious as Lin Ming was.
“It’s what it seems. The cat he raised isn’t a normal cat but a nether felidae. This animal cries softly during the four hours between 11pm and 3am and attracts much fiendish yin energy to itself. This energy is exactly what’s hurting Boss Lin. This fiendish yin energy isn’t visible in daylight, and it always reappears at night. As a result, he is tortured by that energy everyday. His symptoms are actually so serious that livor mortis has already appeared on his face.”
“Livor mortis?” Wei Jie felt his body grow cold when he heard this. “How could a living person possibly have livor mortis?”
“This fiendish yin energy comes from the underworld, so it contains the gas of the dead. This Boss Lin may be alive, but he may as well be one of the living dead the way he is right now. If I hadn’t appeared, he would be dead for sure in less than three years.”
“It’s that bad?” Wei Jie looked shocked.
“This is nothing compared to the Ninelaugh Golden Buddha Powder,” Jiang Chen smiled faintly. “He could live for ten years or less despite this fiendish yin energy from the underworld, but the Ninelaugh Golden Buddha Powder will kill you the moment you laughed nine times. I rather think that the person who’s trying to kill you is far crueler.”
Wei Jie’s expression turned serious as he sighed softly, “Brother Jiang, there are certain things that I have found hard to speak of with you, but I dare not conceal them any longer considering how honest you are with me…”
Jiang Chen waved his hand, “We will have the chance to talk about that once we return. Let us head to Myriad Puppet Pavilion first.”
Wei Jie smiled wryly, “Brother Jiang, we need to consider this at length. The Myriad Puppet Pavilion is not difficult to deal with, but if their backer is House Sikou, then this matter has just become quite the predicament.”
“Mm? Is House Sikou very powerful?”
“Not really. They’re a ninth rank aristocratic family just like us, and their standing in Veluriyam Capital is not bad either. What I mean by predicament isn’t their strength, but because they are one of our sworn enemies. To say our relationship is bad is just the tip of the iceberg!” Wei Jie knew that there was no concealing these details. There couldn’t be a bigger coincidence. It just had to be House Sikou! He looked a little embarrassed as he stared at Jiang Chen. It was obviously that he was feeling very apologetic for this outcome.
Jiang Chen considered this for a moment and nodded, “Alright, in that case why don’t you head back first while I go over and have a look myself?”
Wei Jie shook his head, “You came together with me, so the entire Fish and Dragon District probably knows about it by now. Even if you were to head in alone, the Myriad Puppet Pavilion wouldn’t show you the slightest cordiality.”
Jiang Chen thought through this and felt that Wei Jie’s words made a lot of sense. “In that case, let us leave first and find a place where I may switch my disguise before coming out again.”
The pair left the Fish and Dragon District. Very soon, a couple of spies sent news to the Myriad Puppet Pavilion and through them, House Sikou. “Young master Nan, House Wei’s Wei Jie showed up just now. He just left.”
“Oh? What was he here for?” The man known as young master Nan was a young man dressed in silver robes.
“I’m not sure, my lord. He took a spin around the slave market and stayed at Lin Ming’s shop for a moment, but left soon afterwards.”
“Summon Lin Ming,” Young master Nan gestured.
Lin Ming was soon in front of him. “Young master Nan,” Lin Ming neither acted too arrogant nor too humble. His attitude towards young master Nan was more or less the same as how he’d treated Wei Jie at the beginning.
“Boss Lin, did House Wei’s Wei Jie go to your shop just now?” Young master Nan asked indifferently. This young master Nan was a member of House Sikou. His full name was Sikou Nan.
Lin Ming knew that his meeting would not be concealed from the eyes of Fish and Dragon District, so he didn’t refute it, “Yes, young master Wei and another person came into my shop and stayed for a little while.”
“What was he doing?” Sikou Nan’s voice was indifferent and somewhat interrogative. He spoke as if he was naturally in a position of authority.
Lin Ming wasn’t naturally a bit unhappy to hear such a tone. The fact that he was able to establish himself in the Fish and Dragon District was proof that he wasn’t completely powerless. He wasn’t afraid of Wei Jie, so naturally he wasn’t afraid of this Sikou Nan either. He was irritated to hear Sikou Nan questioning him with such an impolite and arrogant tone. However, as a businessman he was well versed in hiding his emotions. “He came to my place seemingly wanting to buy a few slaves for himself. However, he left afterwards because we failed to come to an agreeable price,” Lin Ming told a random lie.
It wasn’t easy for Sikou Nan to differentiate if a lie like this was true or false. “Is that all? was there anything else?”
Lin Ming shook his head, “It’s not like I have a relationship with House Wei. What else do you think there might be, young master Nan?” Lin Ming’s tone wasn’t arrogant, but it wasn’t completely subservient either.
Sikou Nan asked a couple more questions, but failed to get anything out of Lin Ming. He waved him away and said, “Boss Lin, there are some people that you can’t do business with, such as House Wei. You understand what I mean, don’t you?”
Lin Ming smiled but said nothing. He turned around and left.
After Lin Ming had left, Sikou Nan sent for his subordinates, “Send out more eyes and keep a closer watch on House Wei. I want to be informed immediately if House Wei even steps foot in the Fish and Dragon District!”
Once they exited the Fish and Dragon District, Jiang Chen told Wei Jie to head back home first. Once Jiang Chen was alone, he slipped into a secluded corner and changed into a new outfit in a few breaths. He was just about to exit when a sudden voice rang out from behind, “Please wait a moment, my friend.”
Jiang Chen’s figure blurred as he turned around. He was just about to enter a defensive stance when the person giggled, “Relax, young master Jiang. It’s me.” Like a pure lotus in the breeze, Miss Huang’er appeared before him.