Chapter 20 - 19: The Li Family’s Probe

Chapter 20: Chapter 19: The Li Family’s Probe

Situ Yiyun and Chen Heqing wanted to pretend they hadn’t seen or heard anything. However, since Lu Jing’an had done it so deliberately, it was impossible for them to feign ignorance.

The terrifying silence lasted only a moment.

SMASH!

Lu Jing’an suddenly snatched the Mutton Fat Jade Wine Cup from the table and, without even looking, hurled it fiercely to the ground! A crisp shatter erupted as porcelain shards mixed with leftover wine flew in all directions. A few drops even splashed onto the tip of Situ Yiyun’s polished leather shoes.

"What a bunch of ungrateful wretches," Lu Jing’an sneered.

Situ Yiyun and Chen Heqing stood off to the side, keeping quiet out of fear. They didn’t know if he was talking about them or the Lin Family.

The brief, deathly stillness was suffocating. Finally, Situ Yiyun could no longer bear it. His Adam’s apple bobbed. Forcing himself to step half a pace forward, he bowed extremely low while cupping his fists. His voice carried just the right amount of respect. "Please calm your anger, Young Master Lu. If there is any way I, Situ, can be of service, please just give the order!"

Chen Heqing awoke as if from a dream. He hurriedly stepped forward and offered an equally deep bow, his voice tight. "I am but a mere Martial Artist with no other skills, but I am entirely at your disposal, Young Master Lu. I will obey without a second word!"

Lu Jing’an acted as if he had just realized what was happening, his tone turning peaceful. "What do you mean, you two curators? I wasn’t targeting you just now.

"I was talking about those ungrateful wretches from the Lin Family. They have thrived over the years by relying on our Lu Family. Now that they’re done using us, they plan to just walk away. It’s simply blatant ingratitude."

Situ Yiyun and Chen Heqing echoed their agreement repeatedly.

Lu Jing’an then changed the subject, adding, "Although this matter has nothing to do with you two curators, I am still very moved by your earlier declarations of loyalty. On behalf of my father, I thank you both in advance."

Situ Yiyun and Chen Heqing could only continue to chime in with continuous agreement. "You flatter us, Young Master Lu! You flatter us too much!"

As for whether they felt bitter in their hearts, only they themselves knew.

Lu Jing’an winning over these two curators was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. He had already made up his mind when Chen Xuan brought them over. Lu Jing’an even felt that Chen Xuan bringing them here was an opportunity deliberately handed over by him and his father to recruit them. After all, these two men were not yet worthy of Lu Huaiqian personally stepping in to win them over.

Since the people from the Xiaoshan Li Family had arrived, the waters of Yin Mountain County could no longer remain calm. Whether the Lu Family would sit firmly on the fishing platform or have their stage overturned and be reduced to mere spectators would entirely depend on everyone’s methods.

Right now, Yin Mountain County appeared to be solely dominated by the Lu Family, but in reality, undercurrents were surging. Otherwise, no one would have dared to target him, the Crown Prince of Yin Mountain County. Truth be told, the Lu Family’s foundation was still too shallow. By tying Situ Yiyun and Chen Heqing to the Lu Family’s chariot ahead of time, more than half of the Jianghu in Yin Mountain County was secured.

In the afternoon, the sparring continued.

The threat of the Li Family was like a prickle in his back; Lu Jing’an had to race against time to improve his strength. He naturally hoped he would never need to personally enter the fray to fight. But if the moment came when he was forced to strike, he had to possess the absolute power to control the situation.

After an afternoon of sparring, Lu Jing’an’s practical combat experience had clearly improved a lot. When seeing Situ Yiyun and the other man off, Lu Jing’an had someone prepare a hard-work fee of one thousand silver coins for each of them. With this, the bitterness vanished from both of their hearts, and they left completely satisfied.

Standing under the porch, Lu Jing’an watched their carriage depart. Just as he was about to turn around, the conversation between two idlers at the nearby alley entrance drifted into his ears with the wind.

"Look at the Li Family’s extravagance! Two whole trucks of betrothal gifts. Silks, Void World goods, and wooden chests packed to the brim. They’re dazzling under the sun!"

"Isn’t that the truth? It’s the most lavish display Yin Mountain County has ever seen! Miss Lin is truly blessed to be given such face, tsk, tsk..."

Lu Jing’an turned to the attendants beside him and ordered, "Grab those two and beat them up. Make it a miserable beating, then throw them at the entrance of the Lin Family’s home."

"Yes, Young Master."

The servants did not question Lu Jing’an’s orders in the slightest and immediately led men over to grab them.

The two passersby panicked when they were suddenly seized. Pale with shock, they shouted loudly, "On what grounds are you arresting us? We were just passing by! Which law of the land did we break?"

Hearing this, Lu Jing’an slowly turned around. Unhurriedly, he took out a gleaming golden Void World pocket watch from his inner coat pocket. The chain swayed lightly at his fingertips. With a cold gaze and a flick of his wrist, the watch traced a short arc.

TAP!

The pocket watch landed Precisely in the open coat pocket of one of the men.

"You two stole my pocket watch. You can beat them now," Lu Jing’an stated.

The two men instantly turned ashen, their souls fleeing in terror. They had indeed accepted money to wait here and intentionally say those things for Lu Jing’an to hear, wanting to cause him grief. The person who paid them had solemnly promised that Young Master Lu, mindful of his status, would never resort to violence. But right now, Lu Jing’an truly intended to beat them to death.

"Young Master Lu, Young Master Lu, we know we were wrong! We were possessed by greed! We shouldn’t have taken someone else’s money to deliberately disgust you! Please let the two of us go, Young Master Lu!"

Lu Jing’an, however, couldn’t be bothered to listen anymore. As if merely brushing an insignificant speck of dust off his sleeve, he turned and walked straight back into the mansion, leaving the shrill cries for mercy behind him. For such sneaking scoundrels who only dared to provoke with words, a severe beating was the most direct and effective lesson.

Naturally, someone reported Lu Jing’an’s actions to Lu Huaiqian, but Lu Huaiqian made no comment on the matter.

The two men ordered to be beaten by Lu Jing’an suffered for half an hour at the hands of the Lu Family’s Nursing Home. It wasn’t until they were beaten black and blue, barely recognizable as human, that they were tossed like torn sacks in front of the imposing gates of the Lin Mansion.

The Lu Family’s stance truly gave Lin Shouxin a terrible fright. Because of this incident, Lin Shouxin hastily sought out the principal person sent by the Li Family. The man dispatched to deliver the betrothal gifts and take charge was a strategist under the Li Family, equivalent to the role of a Master. Many of the Li Family’s affairs were masterminded by this Master. Sending this Master this time was proof enough of how much importance the Li Family placed on the marriage alliance.

Of course, what they valued was definitely not the Lin Family, but the Lu Family. This time, the Li Family wanted to use this marriage alliance to break the Lu Family’s spine. They aimed to make the Lu Family completely lose its prestige and utterly lose the ability to compete for the position of bureau chief. At the same time, this would lay the groundwork for the Li Family to turn around and swallow the Lu Family after securing the bureau chief position themselves.

Inside the wing room, after listening to what Lin Shouxin had to say, Li Jinglin was not the least bit anxious. Instead, he chuckled softly. "It’s a good thing the Lu Family beat them. I’m not afraid of the Lu Family hitting people; I was only afraid they would bide their time and swallow their anger. Now that the Lu Family has made a move, it shows they are burning with fury. Right now, the Lu Family can only use such methods to demonstrate their authority."

Hearing Li Jinglin’s words, Lin Shouxin felt it made sense, but what if the Lu Family was truly driven to desperation? If they directly attacked the Lin Family, his family would be the ones to suffer the pain.

Li Jinglin seemed to see through Lin Shouxin’s inner worries. "Rest easy, Master Lin." Setting down his teacup lid, his voice was steady, carrying the composure of someone in complete control of the situation. "For now, just let the Lu Family cause a fuss. The higher they jump and the bigger the scene they make, the harder they will lose face in the future."

Leaning forward slightly, he lowered his voice and dropped a bombshell. "I won’t hide it from you, Master Lin. In two days, I will release word that our Eldest Young Master Li will personally come to Yin Mountain County to receive the bride."

"Wh-what?!" Lin Shouxin abruptly widened his Big Eyes, so agitated he became incoherent. "Eldest Young Master Li... is coming to receive the bride in person? This, this... how is my lowly daughter worthy of such an honor!"

Seeing Lin Shouxin in this state, Li Jinglin couldn’t help but despise his naive, inexperienced demeanor. Eldest Young Master Li coming in person was naturally not for a mere Lin Qingyi, but to personally suppress the Lu Family. Once this news was released, the more stubborn the Lu Family acted now, the more ridiculous and wretched they would appear before the grand momentum of Eldest Young Master Li’s arrival. Unless the Lu Family truly wanted an endless, to-the-death feud with the Li Family, they would never dare to do anything more excessive to the Lin Family right under Eldest Young Master Li’s nose. Did they really dare to hand the Li Family a corpse? If that happened, it would indeed become a fight to the death.

After receiving Li Jinglin’s affirmative reply, the last shreds of worry vanished from Lin Shouxin’s heart. As long as Eldest Young Master Li came in person, the Lu Family definitely wouldn’t dare do anything to the Lin Family. Lin Shouxin finally took his leave and departed from Li Jinglin’s room.

Not long after Lin Shouxin left, another person silently slipped into Li Jinglin’s room. This man had a gaunt figure with ears slightly larger than normal. A sharp gleam lay hidden in his eyes; he was one of the Cultivators Li Jinglin had brought from Xiao Mountain—a Ting Xiu skilled in eavesdropping and scouting.

The Ting Xiu approached Li Jinglin and spoke respectfully, "Housekeeper Li, there is a powerful Martial Cultivator of unknown strength inside the Lu Family Mansion. I had just attempted to eavesdrop when the other party discovered me. I was locked onto instantly. If I hadn’t retreated quickly, I’m afraid I would have been exposed."

Hearing his subordinate Ting Xiu’s words, Li Jinglin didn’t feel the slightest bit surprised. It was obviously impossible for the Lu Family to rise to power in such a short time without the protection of a top expert. Li Jinglin hadn’t expected to actually overhear anything to begin with.

"Go get some rest, and don’t go near the Lu Family’s Old Mansion again. Stick to the original plan and gather crucial intelligence elsewhere that we’ll need for taking over Yin Mountain County in the future." Noticing the Ting Xiu hesitating to speak, Li Jinglin couldn’t help but ask, "Did something happen on Lawrence’s end?"

Seeing Li Jinglin ask, the Ting Xiu no longer hid it. "Lawrence went straight to the local pleasure house as soon as he arrived. He booked ten girls in one breath. Your subordinate is just worried he’s too conspicuous and will arouse the Lu Family’s suspicion."

Li Jinglin’s brows furrowed slightly at the Ting Xiu’s words. After pondering for a moment, he finally said, "Let him be. With his strength, unless that Martial Cultivator from the Lu Family strikes personally, no ordinary person can get close to him." Pausing for a second, Li Jinglin asked, "Is there anything else?"

The Ting Xiu shook his head and then left Li Jinglin’s room.

The room fell silent once again. Li Jinglin sipped his tea alone, gazing out the window at the deepening twilight over Yin Mountain County. His fingers tapped silently against the tabletop as he deduced the various possibilities of what would happen next in his mind.

About half an hour later, in a private room on the second floor of the Yuelai Restaurant—located two streets away from the Lin Mansion—the window facing the street was wide open. Lu Jing’an left a few Silver Coins on the table. Taking two ordinary-looking attendants with him, he descended the stairs at a leisurely pace, merging into the thinning crowd on the street as he headed toward the Lu Mansion.

Just moments ago, inside this restaurant, he had heard the news he wanted to hear and seen the person he wanted to see. On the chessboard, his opponent’s pieces had gradually fallen into place. Now, it was his turn to make a move.