The decoration of Jinhua Villa was quite understated, with just an arch-style gate at the entrance and trees surrounding the rest. Security guards manned the gate, and when Bai Yuze entered, he appeared to show some kind of card, suggesting that the villa operated on a membership basis.
Tracking Bai Yuze was to find trouble with Uncle Zhao; surely the villa’s guards couldn’t stop him. Lin Tian climbed over the side wall into the villa, evading the cameras that couldn’t capture his image.
Inside the villa was a different scene altogether, with bright lights, small bridges over running water, and winding paths leading through an elegant environment. Bai Yuze and his two companions stopped in front of a small building as a middle-aged man came out to greet them.
"Haha, Mr. Bai, long time no see. We rarely see you at the villa. What brings you out today?" The middle-aged man let out a hearty laugh upon seeing Bai Yuze, indicating a close relationship.
"Don’t even mention it, I’ve been chasing a woman for two years and still haven’t caught her. Just now, I got so riled up; I came here to cool down," Bai Yuze, shaking his head in frustration, then asked, "What about Lady Yage? Is she not available today?"
The middle-aged man motioned him inside, then replied, "What are you talking about, Mr. Bai? As soon as you arrive, she’ll be available. Who would dare fight Mr. Bai over someone?"
Looking for a woman, huh? That Bai Yuze, Lin Tian thought disdainfully, hidden behind a tree. It seemed Bai Yuze’s gentlemanly demeanor in front of Manxue was just an act.
They came out shortly after they had entered. The woman who came out with Bai Yuze was very beautiful with a stunning figure, and notably, despite such a figure, she had a face of innocence. Lin Tian found her somewhat familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.
After a moment, he remembered; she seemed to have acted in a TV series and was a minor celebrity at that time. Back then, Lin Tian and his roommate, Liu Wenxing, both thought she was quite the innocent girl. To think she had now become a rich man’s canary. Lin Tian wondered what expression Liu Wenxing would have if he knew this fact.
"Uncle Zhao, it’s the usual; I’ll gamble at the back. You don’t need to follow me. Just arrange it yourself," Bai Yuze greeted Uncle Zhao and followed the middle-aged man towards the back of the villa.
Uncle Zhao and another subordinate exchanged a look that carried an all-too-familiar sleazy implication to any man. After parting ways with the man, Uncle Zhao took a familiar path and soon reached another wooden building.
Following Uncle Zhao, Lin Tian was puzzled. The old guy was probably around fifty years old; did he also have someone he was cozy with here?
The woman who came out to greet Uncle Zhao was a mature lady still retaining her charm; it was obvious that she had been extremely attractive in her youth. Uncle Zhao wrapped his arm around the woman, his hands roaming as he teased her into giggles, making Lin Tian’s skin crawl.
Damn it, I can’t watch this anymore, time to take care of you, Lin Tian cursed silently and appeared behind them like a specter. With a light touch to the woman’s neck, she fainted to the ground.
The situation had escalated so quickly that Uncle Zhao hadn’t even had time to react before Lin Tian grabbed him by the neck. Startled, he attempted to punch back, but Lin Tian’s other hand jolted his spine, causing Uncle Zhao to collapse, yet he remained conscious.
Gripping Uncle Zhao, Lin Tian sped to a small grove. It was already dark and no one could detect them in the woods.
"Uncle Zhao, hello again. We meet once more, remember me?" Lin Tian dropped him on the ground and joked.
"You, you’re Lin Tian!" Uncle Zhao struggled to talk, managing only a faint voice that stuttered, "Why... why the ambush? What do... what do you want?"
"Ambush you? Do I need to resort to an ambush with you? As for why I captured you, you know exactly why, and soon I will let you die in clarity," Lin Tian squatted down, speaking disdainfully.
Last time, Uncle Zhao was one of the masterminds behind plotting against him, even providing the dissolve power medicine. If Lin Tian hadn’t overheard them by chance, if he were just an ordinary Ancient Martial Artist, he would have been poisoned long ago, suffering a fate worse than death.
Uncle Zhao’s eyes shifted a few times, but he feigned innocence and said, "Lin Tian, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Let me go quickly. I’m a Tribute hired by the Bai Family at a high price. If anything happens to me, the Bai Family won’t let you off the hook."
Still so defiant in the face of death, even trying to use the Bai Family to scare someone. Lin Tian took a ring out of his pocket and waved it in front of Uncle Zhao, teasingly said, "Recognize what this is?"
"A ring! How could it be with you..." Uncle Zhao cut his own words off, quickly shutting up.
"Hehe, go on, keep talking. Why mute all of a sudden? If you don’t speak up, I might just have to try it myself to see what this ring is truly for," Lin Tian chuckled menacingly, moving the ring close to Uncle Zhao’s forehead, causing him to shiver all over.
"I’ll talk, I’ll talk," Uncle Zhao’s forehead broke out in large beads of sweat as he trembled, "It was the Second Young Master’s idea. He said you had offended him, wanted to... to cripple you, make you beg for life but unable to die."
Oh, how ruthless, Lin Tian’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous gleam flickering through them. Indeed, crippling the martial arts of an Ancient Martial Artist was akin to a fate worse than death.
"Why were you at the Xiao Family today?" Lin Tian asked again.
Upon hearing this, a quick, unnatural flash passed through Uncle Zhao’s eyes before he returned to normal. Although he masked it well, he couldn’t escape Lin Tian’s keen observation.
"It was the Eldest Young Master who helped transport a large batch of jadeite raw stones. Actually, his goal was to get close to Miss Xiao of the Xiao Family," said Uncle Zhao, his eyes not daring to meet Lin Tian’s.
Something was amiss with Uncle Zhao’s words. Recalling his unnatural look just moments ago, Lin Tian sensed something off. Pursuing Miss Xiao wasn’t something secretive, so why the unnatural look in his eyes?
"Really? Giving you one last chance to tell the truth!" Lin Tian threatened, moving the ring gently across Uncle Zhao’s forehead, causing him to tremble even more fiercely.
As an Ancient Martial Artist, his greatest fear was having his True Qi destroyed, turning him into a cripple. Uncle Zhao hesitated for a long time before he finally stammered out, "The Bai Family is planning a major move against the Xiao Family, but I don’t know the specifics. Only the core members of the Bai Family have that information."
Being a Tribute, in other words a high-level bodyguard for the Bai Family, Uncle Zhao did not count as core. Exactly what the Bai Family was planning, and whether it had any connection to the kidnapping of Manxuan, Lin Tian couldn’t figure it out immediately.
Besides, with Manxue being such a dominant figure, having screamed and fought at their first meeting, let the affairs of the Xiao Family bother her. Why should he care? Lin Tian thought resentfully.
He put the ring back into his pocket, and just as Uncle Zhao breathed a sigh of relief, Lin Tian grabbed him. The corners of his mouth curling into a cold sneer, in the terrified eyes of Uncle Zhao, two zombie fangs extended and bit into his neck.
The blood of an Ancient Martial Artist, would it taste any different?
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