Chapter 2008 — So It Was Them?
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Of course, they had also heard that An Liwen had once been a member of the An family, one of the Five Minor Families—but compared with the Fire Wolf Gang, the An family's standing was the small sorcerer beside the great one, not worth a mention.
"So you're Li Biaohan. Not bad, you do look a proper tough one!" An Liwen glanced at Li Biaohan, well pleased by his deference and enthusiasm. Here was a man with an eye for the main chance, worth cultivating a little.
"Thank you for the praise, Brother Wen!" Li Biaohan said, then gestured to the two men beside him. "Let me introduce you, Brother Wen. Of these two, this one is the eldest young master of the Hidden Zhuang family, Zhuang Niaodao, and the future heir to the Hidden Zhuang family! And this one is the second young master of the Hidden You family, who has done considerable research into alchemy—barring mishaps, he will certainly be one of the Hidden You family's elders in the future."
An Liwen was somewhat taken aback to hear their identities. Both were from Hidden Families! Had he not been valued by the Fire Wolf Gang and risen so swiftly in standing, then as a mere peripheral contact of the Fire Wolf Gang and a member of the An family, one of the Five Minor Families, there would have been no chance at all of him associating with young masters of these Hidden Families.
But now An Liwen was no longer the man he had been; he felt nothing like being overwhelmed by the favor. He merely said lightly, "So it's Young Master Zhuang and Young Master You—I have long heard of you! This is my follower, Da Luozi. From now on we are all our own people, so let us grow close—who knows, I may have need of your help some day..."
"Surely, surely. We hear Brother Wen has a fine hand for making money, and both Young Master You and I have been thinking: if Brother Wen ever hits on a good money-making scheme and would take us along, we would be endlessly grateful..." Zhuang Niaodao was the future heir of the Hidden Zhuang family, and his purpose in coming to the school was to learn the knowledge of managing the family, so finding a bit of profitable business for the family was naturally for the best.
You Panhu, by contrast, was in it purely for the fun of it. He could practice alchemy—only low-grade pills, true, but they still sold for a fair sum, so he had never lacked pocket money.
"Hmm... the business I do, heh heh, is all illegal. I wonder whether you two are still interested?" A thought turned over in An Liwen's mind: if he brought these two young masters of Hidden Families in on a few ventures, it might not be a bad idea—borrowing their influence could yield twice the result with half the effort.
"Ha, we're all cultivators—what's there to fear!" Zhuang Niaodao waved a big hand and said with flair, "No problem at all. When Brother Wen has business, just give us a lift along the way!"
"In that case, surely, surely!" An Liwen nodded.
Then Li Biaohan said, "All right, let us sit down and talk. Brother Wen, please take your seat—you shall have the seat of honor!"
"Haha, then I shall not decline!" An Liwen laughed and sat down in the seat of honor.
Once An Liwen was settled, dishes were brought out in a flowing stream, and the men fell to talking. But because Zhuang Niaodao and You Panhu were at Li Biaohan's side, An Liwen did not say much that touched on the Fire Wolf Gang—some matters, after all, could not be let known to them.
After three rounds of wine, Li Biaohan suddenly received a phone call. He glanced at the caller display and made an apologetic gesture to An Liwen, saying, "One of our Fire Wolf Gang boys..."
With that, he answered the call. "Hello, this is Li Biaohan!"