Chapter 3965 — What Exactly Is Going On Between Them

The death of Meng Jueming had already been a heavy blow to Xu Lingchong. Now, because of Wei Zhao, not only had he lost Ma Jian as well, but he had suddenly discovered that the eldest young lady's attitude toward Wei Zhao had begun to turn murky as well. Blow after blow like this—even a young master like him could not help but feel dazed.

Shangguan Lan'er had always been his, Xu Lingchong's, exclusive prize. No one was permitted to lay a finger on her; the slightest sign of improper intent meant a fight to the death.

As for a bumpkin newcomer from the secular world like Wei Zhao, the gap between him and the eldest young lady was essentially that between a toad and a swan. He had assumed such a thing could never pose any threat to him—yet who would have thought that what was least likely to happen had now, inexplicably, shown the first faint, ominous sprout.

This concerned his grand plans for the future—nay, it concerned the Xu family's strategic interests for the next hundred years. Not the slightest carelessness could be tolerated.

Xu Lingchong panicked at once. Even a matter as vital as competing with Nantian Pass for the position of senior disciple in charge of the Chongtian Pavilion was temporarily cast aside as he mobilized his people for a full investigation. He had to find out as quickly as possible what exactly had happened between Shangguan Lan'er and Wei Zhao during this period.

Xu Lingchong was, after all, a young master of the Chongtian Pavilion with eyes and ears everywhere. If he truly wanted to know something, it was simplicity itself; within the Tri-Pavilion, few things could escape his notice. In barely a day, the matter had already come fully to light.

As expected, the information came from Kang Jingming.

Xu Lingchong would have liked to investigate from Shangguan Lan'er's side as well, but the eldest young lady's standing was too lofty. Unless he went in person, no one else could even get a word with her, and there was simply no way to trace what she had done before. To uncover any clue from her was easier said than done.

Besides, who would dare investigate her? She was a figure under the protection of the North Island Elders' Council; even Gongyang Jun would not dare to investigate her rashly.

In the end, therefore, Xu Lingchong could only pin his hopes on Wei Zhao. Even though Meng Jueming was now dead and his grip on the Qingyun Pavilion newcomers greatly weakened, this was still far easier than investigating Shangguan Lan'er directly.

In the Welcome Pavilion today, even without Meng Jueming, Xu Lingchong actually had no shortage of usable men—from Pavilion Master Hu Yunfeng on high to Kang Jingming and Zhong Yongliang below, all were his people.

Yet after much deliberation, the task ultimately fell to Kang Jingming. After all, Hu Yunfeng was, whatever else, the dignified Pavilion Master of the Welcome Pavilion; if he were seen poking into such a matter, it would be easy for others to seize upon as a handle against him. Kang Jingming was simply more convenient.

Upon receiving Xu Lingchong's handwritten letter, Kang Jingming did not find it troublesome at all—on the contrary, he was overjoyed.

With Meng Jueming's sudden death, the Qingyun Pavilion newcomers were now a complete mess, ripe for exploitation. With only his identity as a newcomer steward, he might not have inspired much awe, but armed with the halo of Young Master Xu, things would be very different indeed.

The Chongtian Pavilion newcomers, having clarified just whose backing each of them enjoyed, had long since begun to stir restlessly, intent on supplanting him. This had become especially obvious after he was crushed by Wei Zhao in the cross-pavilion challenge in an almost humiliating fashion—one might even say it was done without the slightest concealment.

Kang Jingming was well aware that even with Young Master Xu behind him, using that alone to overawe the other Chongtian Pavilion newcomers had become harder than it once was. They had all found their own formidable backers now, and like Shi Yuda before them, they no longer needed to tread carefully around him.

Unable to keep the Chongtian Pavilion newcomers in line, Kang Jingming could only settle for the next best thing and find ways to recruit followers elsewhere. Originally, because of Meng Jueming, however much his hands itched, he could not reach into the Qingyun Pavilion—Meng Jueming was Xu Lingchong's man too, so would that not be infighting? But now the situation was different!

To his eyes, the Qingyun Pavilion newcomers were now a piece of rich, dripping fat just waiting for him to sink his teeth into. Xu Lingchong's order had come at precisely the right moment.

With such thoughts in mind, Kang Jingming headed straight for the Qingyun Pavilion newcomers' caves, his target clear. He went directly to knock on the door of Murong Zhen's wooden hut.

To smoothly take over Meng Jueming's forces, he first had to win over his two chief henchmen—one was Meng Zhou, the other Murong Zhen. As for Wei Zhao, that went without saying.

And now Meng Zhou was still gravely injured and in seclusion recuperating, so the first target Kang Jingming needed to conquer naturally became Murong Zhen.

"Steward Kang gracing my humble wooden hut in person—truly my humble dwelling shines, a fortune of three lifetimes." Before Kang Jingming, Murong Zhen deliberately put on the demure air of a gentle lady, a faint smile on her lips, utterly enchanting.

Sure enough, this seductive display had Kang Jingming drooling three feet, nearly slavering outright—the very picture of a lecherous pig.

Having been on Cloud Terrace Island for over half a year without knowing what a woman was, an ordinary man before a beauty and stunner like Murong Zhen truly could not withstand the temptation.

Kang Jingming especially: back in the secular world, cowed by the might of Ancestor Xuanchen, he had been able to consort only with that ugly, scar-covered Little Eleven and dared not touch other women.

Fortunately, after being dazzled and dazed for a long while, Kang Jingming at last remembered the purpose of his visit. He forcibly steadied himself, then spoke: "Miss Murong, I have come this time to ask about a matter. If you know of it, I would be grateful for your guidance."

"Say whatever you wish, Steward Kang; I shall surely tell all I know and hold nothing back." Murong Zhen curtsied gracefully. The woman was used to such ways, and this being her own wooden hut, she was dressed rather sheer and scant, and Kang Jingming could not help feeling another surge of heat in his heart.

Licking his lips, dry-mouthed, Kang Jingming said: "Miss Murong, you live in this wooden hut, so you must see clearly what Wei Zhao comes and goes doing every day and whom he meets. Then, would you happen to know what has passed between Wei Zhao and the eldest young lady?"

"The eldest young lady?" Murong Zhen narrowed her eyes slightly. Within the Tri-Pavilion, there was only one person who could be called the eldest young lady—naturally, that was Shangguan Lan'er.

For a moment Murong Zhen hesitated. Kang Jingming had indeed asked the right person: she certainly knew what had passed between Wei Zhao and Shangguan Lan'er, but the affair at Half-Moon Lake in the back hills was not something she could easily tell Kang Jingming outright.

Kang Jingming's backer was Xu Lingchong, and Xu Lingchong had always been Shangguan Lan'er's foremost suitor. If her intention to kill Shangguan Lan'er ever reached Xu Lingchong's ears, what would become of her?