I Don't Agree to the Terms
Chapter 285 - 168: I’ll Be the Arrogant One Today!_2

Chapter 285: Chapter 168: I’ll Be the Arrogant One Today!_2

"How’s it going, real or fake?" Gu Shanhai sarcastically remarked; facing such a person, one must strike hard.

"Heh, I can buy a whole box of that junk with a little money," Fan Shi immediately denied. How could he possibly admit that it was real? That would turn him into a laughingstock. Besides, the other was not a foreigner; it surely must be fake.

"You’re right, you should buy a few more boxes then," Gu Shanhai didn’t argue with the other party but casually put the item away.

He could see the yearning in Fan Shi’s eyes for these items, even wishing he could replace him.

The patrons in the inn, having heard this exchange and seeing Fan Shi turn almost as sour as vinegar, couldn’t help but laugh. Here was a good-for-nothing, so poor he had nothing but walls to his name, still putting on airs of self-importance. They didn’t care about Fan Shi’s circumstances; watching the drama unfold was what truly mattered.

Fan Shi glared at Gu Shanhai with resentful eyes. He had only himself to thank for being the butt of the joke. If Gu Shanhai had simply admitted it was fake, he wouldn’t have had to endure such humiliation. He then scanned those laughing at him, imprinting each of their faces in his memory, vowing to spare none of them once his ship came in.

’Just you wait, once Lord Gu Nei arrives, I’ll have him flay your fake hide!’ Fan Shi thought viciously about how to regain his dignity and make the other beg for mercy. However, in reality, he left the inn looking utterly disheveled.

He wasn’t foolish enough to voice his thoughts aloud, knowing that would certainly get him beaten.

Gu Shanhai, too, had felt Fan Shi’s malice and deduced his thoughts using methods like detecting emotions. To this, he could only give Fan Shi a thumbs-up for his intelligence.

After all, if a dog gets beaten outside, it must go back to its master to seek justice.

’Now it seems that Fan Shi had made early contact with Gu Nei Zhenren. Perhaps he’s always been working for Luo Huaisong.’

’And the warmth he showed earlier was probably out of feeling surprisingly favored.’

Fan Shi likely knew about Gu Nei Zhenren and might have even met and known his identity, but on ordinary days could not speak to him, still with Luo Huaisong in the picture, there was no way to bypass Luo to contact Gu Nei Zhenren.

He was like a minion’s minion, his status only slightly above that of a dog’s, and dogs certainly can’t sit at the table to eat.

Otherwise, how could Fan Shi have been so surprised and delighted to be invited for drinks?

This also explained the basis for Fan Shi’s seeming privilege. Being lazy in this place would leave one starving; his entire household consisted of just himself. If he did not work, who would provide for him? Yet he managed to eat white rice and meat, which he likely gotten from Luo Mansion.

’So, there must be more to how Luo Mansion finances itself aside from just trading Tianzhou cultivation techniques and technology; otherwise, how could they possibly sustain such indulgent lifestyles?’

’What’s more important, what happened to those thieves in Hu Mountain Cave? Such a profitable den of iniquity would not just be abandoned, and what’s the deal with Liang Xing’s family’s death?’

’Could it be related to Gu Nei Zhenren?’

Gu Shanhai pondered many things, integrating numerous questions and clues into a fragmented chain.

Once complete, he would probably learn the causes and consequences, and maybe the ultimate answer to why Qingxian Town is also called Three-Life Town and seems to be stuck in a never-ending cycle of reincarnation.

’I hate solving puzzles, I hate investigations...’

Gu Shanhai had wanted to act rashly, but unfortunately, past rashness hadn’t gotten him what he wanted, so he had no choice but to take a deep breath and start over.

If only the final answer weren’t so costly to unlock, requiring additional fees to calibrate in these chaotic times to confirm the answer, he would have simply taken the answer by now.

"Mr. Liang, Mr. Luo invites you; hearing of your return from overseas, he has specially prepared a welcoming feast at his residence."

About fifteen minutes later, a young servant arrived, dusty from travel, his demeanor respectful.

It was clear that Fan Shi had gone to complain, and it might even be the case that Luo Huaisong had deliberately orchestrated Fan Shi’s visit as a probe.

"Mr. Luo from your household? Introduce him to me. Don’t think that any random Tom, Dick, or Harry who comes to invite me, I would just go," Gu Shanhai’s demeanor became arrogant, revealing a kind of lofty air that one develops after a long tenure in high position, which immediately put pressure on the young servant and even the people in the inn.

He was indeed an idler within The Sun Never Sets Dynasty, but that did not mean he truly had nothing. After all, he was a Marquis and was organized in both internal and external affairs. Moreover, with the natural markings bearing grace and the crushing difference in attributes, his cultivated air was quite impressive.

"My master, he..."

The young servant, struggling under the pressure, gave a brief introduction.

"So, he’s a local gentry from the town. And here I thought he was a noble," Gu Shanhai said with disdain.

This caused a slight change in the expressions of those around them. To call someone a local gentry was a high EQ way of speaking, but coupled with Gu Shanhai’s contemptuous manner, it clearly implied that the individual was nothing more than a countryside tycoon.

"Let’s meet then and see what sort of air this Mr. Luo carries about him." As Gu Shanhai stood up, the pressure on everyone instantly dissipated.

The young servant quickly straightened up and led the way, speaking in a sycophantic tone, "The carriage has already been prepared for Mr. Liang, please come this way."

As Gu Shanhai walked by, he deliberately covered his nose and mouth, speaking with a hint of disgust, "The countryside is indeed the countryside, still using these beasts."

The servant could only respond with a grin and agree.

’Finally, I’ve taken the initiative into my own hands. As long as I maintain my identity, there shouldn’t be too many problems with the subsequent plan.’

Gu Shanhai had actually considered performing a Soul Search directly, but it was not that he was unwilling, rather he discovered that these people’s memories only spanned the day itself, and while they did have memories beyond today, he was unable to access them. It was as if all data were saved in the cloud, while the hard disk itself had just been reset.

This prevented Gu Shanhai from conducting a Soul Search, probably related to the cycles of reincarnation.

On the way to Luo Mansion, Gu Shanhai was contemplating how to best deceive Luo Huaisong.

Clearly, the other party would not be as ignorant as Fan Shi, having had plenty of interaction with Gu Nei Zhenren, he definitely knew more, so Gu Shanhai needed to employ more convincing deception techniques.

Of course, deception was just one aspect; the real situation was whether he could find what he wanted through more righteous methods.

Luo Mansion was quickly reached, and the welcoming party was not inferior to that which would receive Gu Nei Zhenren the next day.

Once inside Luo Mansion and led by the maids to the main hall, Luo Huaisong had already prepared the banquet. Seeing Gu Shanhai’s attire and aura, his heart became even more certain that this man was indeed someone who had gone overseas and come back.

"Hahaha, I have long heard of Mr. Liang’s grand reputation, and it’s truly an honor to finally meet you today," Luo Huaisong started by flattering Gu Shanhai outright.

"Mr. Luo, please don’t flatter me too much, I do not indulge in such things," Gu Shanhai shook his head and then produced a glass bottle of drink, "It’s not good to come empty-handed, so I brought some Western specialties."

Luo Huaisong’s eyes lit up at this, recognizing that anything contained in glass must be extraordinary.

In the outside world, glass bottles were nothing special, but here, after countless cycles of reincarnations, both technology and knowledge—which were at best equivalent to those from the era when the royal court first emerged—had hardly advanced, and the mass production of glass was simply non-existent.

"Mr. Liang, you are too kind, please come in," said Luo Huaisong, as he took the bottle, but then he noticed a hint of mockery in Gu Shanhai’s eyes and felt embarrassed, though he soon relaxed.

An outsider indeed had more knowledge, and even if they looked down on him, it did not matter. He had to find a way to get a piece of that one million silver coins, which indicated true wealth.

He might not know what silver coins were, but he guessed that they might be the currency of The Sun Never Sets Dynasty, made of pure silver. The inn’s shopkeeper had personally verified this.

Luo Huaisong was greedy but also far-sighted. How much could he rob by killing Gu Shanhai? Such a large sum of silver coins would definitely not be carried on one’s person, and must be on the way here, so he decided to first probe and then wait for Gu Nei Zhenren’s arrival the next day to discuss what to do.