Chapter 3996 — Pressing the Question Again
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Across a distance of nearly twenty zhang, Wei Zhao and Hong Zhong exchanged a look from afar and nodded to each other in perfect understanding; no words were needed.
Seeing Hong Zhong himself step forward to vouch for Wei Zhao, even Xu Lingchong was left dumbstruck this time.
Facing Steward Linghua earlier, Xu Lingchong had at least entertained some notion of testing his strength; but facing Hong Zhong, a magnate of the Hong Chamber of Commerce, he truly lacked the nerve to voice any doubt.
As the plenipotentiary agent of the Hong Chamber of Commerce on North Island, Hong Zhong's power and standing were hardly inferior to those of any elder or high-ranking figure of the Tri-Stack Pavilion; even compared with his own grandfather, Xu Yuanzheng, he was in no way outmatched.
Even if Xu Lingchong had been lent a few more guts, he would never dare question Hong Zhong openly before such a great crowd and in the presence of so many august personages. If he dared do so, there could be only one outcome: humiliating himself for nothing.
Still, the fact that he could not challenge Hong Zhong to his face did not mean he would let Wei Zhao off so easily.
A flash of inspiration struck Xu Lingchong, and he said to Wei Zhao, "Since Elder Hong has come forward in person to testify, then I will no longer doubt the authenticity or the origin of these two top-grade Foundation Establishment golden pills. But I would rather like to hear this: you, Wei Zhao, are nothing but a newcomer of the Azure Cloud Pavilion—where did you get so many spirit jades to buy these two top-grade Foundation Establishment golden pills?"
This question, without a plausible explanation, was equally lethal.
Generally speaking, a newcomer had only two sources of spirit jades: first, the monthly stipend issued by the Welcome Pavilion—a mere single piece; second, what could be earned through low-level tasks, such as mining in the Spirit Jade Hall. Such returns, though somewhat higher than the stipend, were likewise pitifully meager.
Two top-grade Foundation Establishment golden pills were priced at no less than several thousand spirit jades; a newcomer's income could never suffice to buy them. And Wei Zhao was a grass-roots newcomer of the Azure Cloud Pavilion, one who had come up from the mortal world with no background or backing to speak of. Where had this enormous sum of spirit jades for purchasing top-grade Foundation Establishment golden pills come from? There had to be something suspicious hidden in it.
Yet Wei Zhao was burning with fury! If only he possessed real strength, and were not a mere newcomer, who would dare question him like this? So many others gave gifts, and no one inquired into their origins, nor into the source of the spirit jades used to buy those gifts. But now Xu Lingchong was harassing him again and again, relying on his status as the chief steward senior brother and on his grandfather's influence, while few dared to intervene.
Hong Zhong had intended to see the good deed through and help Wei Zhao fend off this question as well; after all, if Wei Zhao were to fall on this point, all his earlier intercession would have been in vain, and he himself might even be dragged into it.
But before he could speak, Wei Zhao had already answered without the slightest hesitation, "That? Well, earlier Meng Jueming organized a whole crowd of people from top to bottom to come running to me out of the blue offering spirit jades, three for one, four for one, saying my spirit jades were fine and could be used to carve some kind of spirit jade sculpture for Miss Shangguan. With so many people rushing to bring me spirit jades, naturally I had more and more on hand."
Xu Lingchong was instantly stunned. He had vaguely heard his subordinates mention this matter before, but had paid it no mind at the time and had never asked Meng Jueming for the specifics.