Chapter 3762 — The Bully

Still, since he claimed to be from the Soaring Heaven Pavilion, he surely had some backing—perhaps a second-generation cultivator from one of North Island's bigwigs, one who simply had not been seen about much before?

Hong Zhong made a few quiet guesses, then asked without betraying a thing: "Then may I ask what brings Your Excellency to our shop today?"

At that, Nan Tianyong drained the cup of precious tea in one gulp, making the attendant beside him twitch at the corner of his mouth and curse inwardly at such waste of a fine thing. Only then did Nan Tianyong give a cold snort and say, "Long ago I heard that a rather sizable Hong Clan Trading Company had opened on the inner street of the market, but I never found the time to come have a look. So today I took a moment to drop by—and while I'm at it, to demand justice for that good-for-nothing disciple of mine!"

As he spoke, Nan Tianyong's powerful aura poured out without the slightest restraint. Every table, chair, and ornament in the private room trembled in its wake; had the attendants not been standing by, several precious porcelains would surely have been shattered outright.

"Justice? Might I ask your disciple's name, and what grievance he has with the Hong Clan Trading Company?" Hong Zhong's face went abruptly cold.

As the branch manager of the Hong Clan Trading Company, he was all for harmony in the pursuit of wealth, but he was still a person of some standing. If a man came to patronize his business, he would of course greet him with a smile; but since this one had plainly come to wreck the place, there was no need for him to bow and scrape.

On this trifling North Island, the Hong Clan Trading Company did not lightly make enemies where it could be avoided, but given their power and their backing, if they truly ran afoul of some foe, there was still no need for them to bow their heads to anyone.

To dare bare your fangs at the Hong Clan Trading Company, you had first to possess a fine set of teeth—and from what Hong Zhong knew, there were no more than three people on all of North Island with such teeth.

Nan Tianyong, however, paid his expression no mind at all. He crossed his legs at his ease and said, his face unfriendly, "My disciple's surname is Yu, given name Zhe."

Yu Jiang? Hong Zhong frowned. Still no impression came. Unless it was a VIP like Wei Zhao, who could casually produce two top-grade Foundation-Breaking Pills, he never troubled himself with ordinary customers' names; naturally he had no idea what sort of personage this Yu Jiang might be.

Seeing Hong Zhong still silent, Nan Tianyong snorted and went on: "A couple of days ago my disciple came to your place and took a fancy to some worthless rock. He meant in good faith to do business with you, yet not only did he fail to buy it, he ended up in a brawl and was left half dead. He's still lying in bed, and we don't even know if he'll recover. This happened at your Hong Clan Trading Company, so you owe me an explanation!"

So it was the man who had competed with Lin Er over the Star-Ink Stone!

Only now did Hong Zhong understand. He had not known the name Yu Jiang, but the man himself had left a deep impression. With his eye for people, he had seen through Yu Jiang's disguise despite how well the man had played his part.

That young man from the Soaring Heaven Pavilion was a master of masking himself and putting others at ease—a truly deep and calculating sort. Any rival of his own level with a little less experience would surely have fallen into his trap.

Yet what truly startled Hong Zhong was not that, but the meaning behind Nan Tianyong's few sentences.

This calculating Yu Jiang had clearly had his eye on the Star-Ink Stone in Lin Er's hands. And he was a mid-stage Foundation Establishment expert, while Lin Er was only at the peak of the early stage—a full grade apart. Add to that his feigned shallowness to lull his opponent, and in theory Lin Er should have had almost no chance of escaping his pursuit.

Even though Hong Zhong had deliberately let drop a hint at the time, in his view that Lin Er had, for some unknown reason, not taken it much to heart, and the way things were going he was all but bound to come off the worse. But he was only a merchant; he could not speak too plainly, or he would be courting offense of his own making—a cardinal sin in the world of business.

Yet from Nan Tianyong's few short words, it appeared that Yu Jiang had not only failed to take advantage of Lin Er, but had been beaten half dead himself and suffered a heavy loss!

So it seemed that though he had already rated this mysterious Lin Er highly, he had in fact still underestimated him—a man who could casually produce two top-grade Foundation-Breaking Pills as if it were nothing, and who could even kill a powerful, cunning enemy of a higher stage in return.

This unremarkable-looking Lin Er was the one truly harboring his depths—a formidable man indeed!

Having reasoned this out, Hong Zhong could not help feeling somewhat relieved. Clearly that spirit-jade card had not been given to the wrong man. Lin Er was unquestionably a top-tier prospect worth investing in and courting!

After all, every spirit-jade card issued by the Merchant Alliance was, across all five islands of the Heaven Tier, a symbol of status and standing. Even someone of Hong Zhong's rank as a Hong Clan Trading Company manager received few of them; their preciousness was beyond doubt.

To Hong Zhong, every spirit-jade card handed out was a major investment. Some vanished like a stone dropped into the sea, never to be heard from again—a loss. Others became key clients who brought enormous profit ever after—a gain.

Applied to this so-called Lin Er, though the man could casually produce two top-grade Foundation-Breaking Pills, which in Hong Zhong's eyes made him a key client without question, if he were to walk out the door and be casually killed by Yu Jiang, then for Hong Zhong it would still be a thoroughly failed investment.

A dead man, after all, no matter how formidable in life, could bring him no profit after death.

But now it appeared this Lin Er was no creature of the common pond. To have seized the moment and placed his bet on him—looking back, it was a stroke of rare good judgment.

Seeing Hong Zhong silent, Nan Tianyong said angrily, "You're the manager here. Tell me, how does this stand? What—afraid to speak? Or struck dumb?"

As he spoke, Nan Tianyong looked about to fly into a rage. Only then did Hong Zhong answer in a low voice, "My apologies. My shop is here simply to do business. The one who had a grievance with your disciple was not my shop, but someone else entirely. So I do not believe I owe you any explanation."

"What? Nothing to do with you?" Nan Tianyong laughed in a fury. "Nothing to do with you? Then who is it to do with? My disciple came to grief because he came here to buy something—and you say it's nothing to do with you?"

With that, Nan Tianyong shot to his feet and slammed the table, sneering, "I've seen plenty of crooked merchants like you. Hah—you dare play the big shop bullying the customer with me? Blind, the lot of you! That trick may work on ordinary folk, but against me—heh heh—did you never bother to ask around about who I am? An inspector of the Soaring Heaven Pavilion—do you think I'd fear the likes of you?"