Chapter 192: Chapter 177: Chess Dao Great Success, Gifting a Blade, and an Appointment

Although Chen Yi didn’t know the details of Xiao Wan’er’s conversation with the Old Master, he had a general idea of how the Old Master and certain members of the Xiao Family would react when he presented the proposal.

On one hand, the expansion of the Hundred Herbs Hall could significantly alleviate the Xiao Family’s financial burdens regarding silver coins and resolve some of the pressure from the Imperial Court, the Dingyuan Army, and other Noble Families.

On the other hand, the matter itself required no significant investment from the Xiao Family.

To be precise, by leveraging the connections the Xiao Family had built in Shu State over the years, they merely had to call in a few favors and give up a portion of the profits to ensure no one would give the Hundred Herbs Hall any trouble.

It was, in a way, giving the Xiao Family a channel to monetize their "connections."

Furthermore, they could use this opportunity to deepen their relationships with some of the Noble Families in the various prefectures and counties of Shu State.

It was a win-win situation for everyone involved.

Therefore, Chen Yi couldn’t think of any reason for the Old Master to refuse.

The only thing he was unsure about was what the Old Master’s intentions were for the Hundred Herbs Hall.

After all, a fifty percent cut of the profits seemed like a lot, but after accounting for all the social obligations and expenses, the Xiao Family would be left with thirty to forty percent at most.

Compared to the solid fifty percent that the Hundred Herbs Hall would be taking home.

Anyone in that position would inevitably feel a bit of an imbalance.

Additionally, the attitudes of certain other people in the Xiao Family also had to be considered.

The second branch, the third branch, and other side branches.

It was foreseeable that once the Xiao Family Medicine Hall started earning large sums of silver coins through the Hundred Herbs Hall, people like Xiao Wang and Xiao Shen would not just stand by and do nothing.

They might try to use some pretext to cause a scene, hoping to replace Xiao Wan’er as the Xiao Family’s general manager.

At the very least, they would fight for some benefits for their respective branches.

For example, increasing the monthly allowances, or planting some of their people in the Xiao Family Medicine Hall, or even the Hundred Herbs Hall.

Chen Yi had anticipated all of this and naturally had countermeasures in mind.

However, since the Hundred Herbs Hall’s expansion had not yet taken its first step, he didn’t need to worry about it for the time being.

Instead, the matter of the Bright Moon Building and the Hidden Guard "burning the summer grain of the Three Towns" was imminent, and he could not afford the slightest carelessness.

So, after leaving the Xiao Family, Chen Yi went directly to the residence in the West Market and instructed Wang Ji and Zhang Dabao to have Liu Lang come over after they returned.

However, he estimated it would take Liu Lang some time to investigate the Liu Family’s whereabouts, so he probably wouldn’t arrive so quickly.

Chen Yi wasn’t in a hurry. He sat quietly on the Grandmaster’s Chair in the main hall, his eyes fixed on the falling rain outside, but his mind was already focused on what was to come.

In his mind, black and white stones were placed on a Go board, then picked up again, constantly shifting and disrupting the situation on the board.

At that moment, the rain outside began to pick up.

SPLASH! The rain hammered against the roof tiles and stone slabs, creating a rapid, loud PATTER.

Mixed in were the sounds of raindrops hitting puddles, sending water splashing everywhere.

The dark clouds in the sky must have thickened, making the light inside the residence even dimmer.

A faint RUMBLE of thunder could be heard in the distance.

Then, flashes of lightning tore through the gloom, illuminating the slightly noisy main hall.

It also clearly lit up Chen Yi’s handsome profile, the face he used for his alias, "Chen Yu."

Even his bright eyes seemed to be veiled in a faint fluorescent light, piercing through layers of dark clouds and mist like lightning to see the final state of the game.

「About an hour later.」

Chen Yi unconsciously tapped his fingers twice on the back of the chair and muttered under his breath:

"Let’s do it that way, then."

He had sorted everything out. In the end, some people would have to pay a price, and others would have to be made fearful.

It was also a way of handing the Old Master a blade, allowing him to display the might of the Xiao Family.

This time, he not only wanted to alleviate the internal and external pressures on the Xiao Family, but more importantly, to create a comfortable environment for himself.

After all, by his count, he hadn’t gone fishing in four or five days.

Thinking of this, Chen Yi glanced outside, listened for a moment, and seeing that Liu Lang hadn’t arrived yet, he opened his status screen to take a look:

[Opportunity: 138]

In the last two days, he had witnessed Liu Wen scheming against Ma Liangcai and Black Tooth discussing important matters. One was a Yellow-level Top Grade event, the other Earth-level Middle Grade, yielding a bountiful harvest.

His Opportunity had once again surpassed one hundred, allowing him to raise one Dao to Great Success.

However, since only his Chess Dao was still at the Minor Success Realm, there was no need for other considerations.

Chen Yi immediately raised his Chess Dao to Great Success.

Before the myriad Profound Mysteries of the Chess Dao could fully settle in his mind, he lifted the red cloth from a nearby tray and picked up the long blade.

He now had a Profound Tier *Brocade Spring Saber Technique* and a *Carefree Travel* Zither Score that he could practice.

This would allow him to acquire the Saber Dao and the Zither Dao simultaneously.

Taking advantage of the free moment, Chen Yi drew the long blade and began practicing the Brocade Spring Saber Technique in the main hall.

「About fifteen minutes later.」 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

He finished a passable run-through of the Brocade Spring Saber Technique and immediately saw a line of large text float before his eyes:

[Successfully practiced Saber Technique: Brocade Spring Saber Technique (Profound Tier). Level: Initial Insight]

[Martial Arts: Blade - Uninitiated 0/1 (Upgradeable)]

Without pausing, Chen Yi sheathed the long blade and, repeating his previous action, picked up the Seven-Stringed Zither from another tray to play according to the *Carefree Travel* Zither Score.

However, he had overestimated his talent for music.

After all, when he practiced the Brocade Spring Saber Technique, he had a foundation in Martial Arts, so even if the moves were clumsy, his body could still perform the actions.

But when it came to zither skills, he couldn’t even read the sheet music, let alone play the corresponding notes.

A carefree and elegant zither piece became a fragmented, discordant mess in his hands, so awful that anyone who heard it would have instantly covered their ears.

After a few attempts, Chen Yi chose to give up.

Fortunately, there were no outsiders here. Otherwise, even with his thick skin, he estimated he would have blushed from embarrassment.

Chen Yi sullenly put away the Seven-Stringed Zither, muttering to himself about finding someone to teach him later, and then proceeded to raise his Saber Dao to Minor Success.

Instantly, in addition to the yet-to-be-digested Profound Mysteries of the Great Success Chess Dao, the entry-level and Minor Success Realm Profound Mysteries of the Saber Dao flooded his mind.

Even though his Cultivation had reached the Sixth Grade Realm, with his Forehead Acupoint Sea of Qi mastery and the Four Directions Divine Position to help absorb the influx, his brow still throbbed with pain from the contents of these two Daos.

Chen Yi rubbed the space between his eyebrows and rested for a moment before he started to feel better.

It had been a long time since his Medical Dao reached Great Success that he had felt this sensation of being overwhelmed by the Profound Mysteries of a Dao Realm.

「Not long after.」

Liu Lang rushed in.

Seeing Chen Yi’s appearance, he couldn’t help but ask with some confusion, "Boss, did you not sleep all night?"

Chen Yi ignored him, rubbing his brow as he asked, "Have you found the Liu Family’s whereabouts?"

Liu Lang sat down to the side and nodded. "Found it."

"Liu Wen and Liu Zhaoxue are currently staying on Kangning Street in North City. They aren’t living with Liu Hong."

"Only Liu Yu is staying at Liu Hong’s house."

"Also, in the few days since they arrived in Shu State, apart from visiting Liu Hong right at the beginning, Liu Wen and Liu Zhaoxue have just been wandering around the Prefecture City."

"In contrast, Liu Yu has been staying at Liu Hong’s house and hasn’t gone out ever since he visited the Dingyuan Marquis’s Mansion."

After hearing this, Chen Yi raised an eyebrow slightly. "So, you’re saying Liu Yu and the siblings Liu Wen and Liu Zhaoxue came to Shu State with different purposes?"

He remembered the initial information he’d heard from Liu Wen—that they wanted to propose a marriage to the Xiao Family.

For this reason, Liu Yu, the Chief Steward of the Liu Family’s second branch, had even made a special trip to the Xiao Family to mention it to the Old Master.

But the Old Master had rejected him outright.

Now, with Liu Yu staying at Liu Hong’s house while Liu Wen and Liu Zhaoxue were out wandering, it was obvious they had their own separate agendas.

Chen Yi speculated internally, ’Liu Yu is probably here to coordinate with Liu Hong, or perhaps to urge him to resolve the dispute with the Xiao Family.’

’His marriage proposal to the Xiao Family might have just been a secondary objective, or maybe it was just him taking the first step on Liu Wen’s behalf.’

’As for the siblings Liu Wen and Liu Zhaoxue... I can’t quite see their intentions yet.’

With these thoughts in mind, Chen Yi gave an order. "In that case, go deliver a message to Liu Wen tonight, in Black Tooth’s name."

Liu Lang was taken aback, pointing to himself. "Me? In Black Tooth’s name?"

"Yes. You don’t need to say much. Just tell him that on the night after tomorrow, Black Tooth will pay him a visit to discuss an important matter."

"But Black Tooth..."

Seeing that he still didn’t get it, Chen Yi raised a hand to cut him off. "I’ll be the one going, of course."

"Are you thinking of sending a message to the real Black Tooth and telling him to go see Liu Wen?"

The realization dawned on Liu Lang, and he laughed awkwardly a couple of times, though he still didn’t quite understand why Chen Yi was doing this.

"Boss, I know what I need to do."

"But can you tell me why we have to go through all this trouble to see Liu Wen, and why you’re doing it in Black Tooth’s name?"

Chen Yi shot him a glare and said irritably, "You’ll understand when you come with me, won’t you?"

It wasn’t that he couldn’t tell Liu Lang.

It was just that with Liu Lang’s mind, knowing too much wouldn’t do him any good.

If he went to deliver the message to Liu Wen and someone tricked him into revealing something, that would be a huge problem.

Liu Lang thought about it and agreed, nodding his head.

"Do you have any other instructions?"

Chen Yi was about to say there was nothing else when he suddenly remembered something. He pointed to the long blade on the table, which was covered by a red cloth, and said, "The thing I promised you."

Liu Lang went over and lifted the cloth, his eyes lighting up. "A blade?"

Looking at the long blade with its simple, unadorned scabbard and grand appearance, he eagerly drew it from its sheath.

A sharp gleam of light flashed from the blade.

Liu Lang’s face broke into a wide grin. He unfastened the Broken Blade from his waist and hung the new one in its place, fiddling with it fondly.

"Thank you for the blade, Boss."

"As long as you’re satisfied."

Seeing Liu Lang endlessly drawing and sheathing the long blade, Chen Yi waved a hand to dismiss him.

Before he left, Chen Yi didn’t forget to remind Liu Lang about his task for the night.

"Remember not to get entangled with Liu Wen. Just deliver the message."

"And remember to hide yourself well. Don’t run into any of Black Tooth’s men, or you might ruin the plan."

Liu Lang nodded in agreement, then walked out, still preoccupied with drawing and sheathing his new blade.

Seeing this, Chen Yi secretly shook his head. He could only hope that Liu Lang would handle tonight’s task with the same care he was showing that long blade.

If he failed to draw Liu Wen into the scheme, it would truly be a pity.

Once the residence fell quiet again, Chen Yi removed his disguise, changed back into a long robe, and headed back to the Xiao Family under an Oil Paper Umbrella.

Although it was a rainy day, his mood had lightened considerably after setting his plans in motion.

On the way back, he not only bought some food to fill his stomach,

but he also made a special trip to a zither shop to buy two zither scores, which he would use later when he found a teacher to instruct him in the Zither Dao.

After all, for someone like him with a bit of a compulsive streak, he either didn’t start something at all, or he had to do it perfectly.

He couldn’t just let that copy of *Carefree Travel* sit there unlearned.

Walking and stopping along the way, he spent two hours before finally returning to the Spring Lotus Garden.

Before he could call for Xiaodie to bring water for him to wash up and change, Shen Huatang came looking for him.

"Young Master, the Young Miss invites you to dinner."

"..."

Chen Yi rubbed his stomach, which was already seventy or eighty percent full, and replied, "Is it okay if I don’t go?"

Shen Huatang paused for a second, then curtsied. "Please forgive me, Young Master."

"Fine, I’ll go after I change my clothes..."

’If I’d known, I wouldn’t have eaten out,’ he thought. ’Now I’ll miss out on a good meal.’