Chapter 55: Chapter 27: Script
Boss Peng is also after the Hidden Moth, and his female companion should be an Operator from the 110 Command Center. They had once traced clues about the Hidden Moth to Gao Xue’e.
The information He Kao knew was different from Qian Guran’s judgment. He remembers in that recording, Peng Xian claimed to be a sorcerer from the "Official Promotion Sect". Later, when He Kao met Xiaowu and learned about the Magic Sect, he realized it was called the "Observing Body Sect".
Actually, He Kao had seen Peng Xian last time by the pool at the Bada Club. Peng Xian swam over as well, but He Kao and Xiaopang had already managed to get Gao Xue’e ashore. Wearing a wet swim cap, He Kao’s ears had some water inside, so he couldn’t hear things clearly.
Today, he listened very carefully, and President Peng’s voice was remarkably similar to the man in the recording! Subconsciously, He Kao just wanted Gao Xue’e to stay away from this person. Walking ahead, he effortlessly guided Gao Xue’e across the bridge.
This suspension bridge with wooden boards is more than three meters wide, and the rope railing is very high, so it’s actually quite safe to walk on. But if someone deliberately shakes things up or there are many people on the bridge, it can be quite scary, especially in the middle of the bridge.
Gao Xue’e was a bit scared, initially grabbing He Kao’s arm, but then she was almost hanging onto his arm.
Inside the Qile Manor are fifteen courtyards of varying sizes. Peng Xian reserved a medium-sized courtyard located deeper inside. Walking along a stone road that can accommodate vehicles, there are many fruit trees planted on either side, with several being ripe.
Every so often along the road, there are vertical banners on each side, still themed with the promotional image "Mountain · Encounter".
Given the vertical format and limited space, it has cropped out parts of the large promotional picture, mainly focusing on the photograph of the man and woman and the mountain scene above the picture.
In the bushes beside the road, there are speakers disguised as stones playing gentle songs. At first, they sound like foreign songs, but upon closer listen, they are understood, resembling dialects from border regions, roughly about love at first sight between a man and a woman.
Qian Guran, walking at the back of the group, couldn’t help but purse his lips. Sorcerers from the Xingshen Sect love sneaky little hints like this, but unfortunately, they don’t go well with roasted lamb!
The place is a single-story house with five rooms; if you want to stay overnight, it can accommodate a dozen people. The living room is large enough to place three tables, or you can play mahjong or cards.
The weather is nice, and everyone prefers to have a meal in the courtyard, with the pit for roasting the whole lamb and the rotating rack right in front of the courtyard, where everyone can watch the juicy scenes of the lamb sizzling with oil.
In the courtyard are long tables pushed together, and a swing set nearby. In a more secluded spot on the other side, there’s a square table and two leisure chairs specially placed. On the table, there’s a delicate set of tea utensils along with a plate each of wild yellow and red raspberries.
The wild raspberries in Qiyun Mountain are abundant, and many tourists love to pick them, so preparing them here is quite fitting.
Today’s gathering is hosted by Jinxing Media, but it seems only Boss Peng came, while the guests are the Cloud Living Business Group, led by Gao Xue’e.
If nothing unexpected happens, this table is meant for the two leaders to sit and chat over tea, with only two leisure chairs placed by the table, and others wouldn’t be oblivious.
At this moment, President E is already sitting by the table, but the other chair is occupied by an oblivious person—none other than He Kao.
Does He Kao not know how to read the room? On the contrary, he’s too good at it! Though he doesn’t have Old Qian’s skills and vision, he hazily guessed Peng Xian’s intentions behind the setup, and he knows that Peng Xian harbors ill intentions.
Isn’t it just a matter of thick skin? Huang Xiaopang can do it, so can he! The hot water kettle is ready by the table, and He Kao starts making tea, first serving half a cup to President E.
Gao Xue’e smiled and said, "You know how to brew tea!"
He Kao: "What’s there to know? Brewing tea isn’t that complicated."
Gao Xue’e picked up the cup and said, "Of course, it’s an art. I see your moves are quite stylish... Hmm, the tea is well-brewed too."
Qian Guran, seeing this scene, couldn’t help but want to laugh. Peng Xian was feeling quite displeased, as last time at the pool he intended to heroically save the beauty but was interrupted, and this time, thinking he had arranged everything perfectly, again he encountered a disruptor.
All those environmental hints were mere auxiliary and groundwork, the so-called "stepping through the threshold for an entry," while his main reliance was still the Spirit Awakening Skill, but he happened to be blocked by a sorcerer from the Qi Observation Sect beside him, making him unable to perform again.
Lately, Peng Xian has been feeling quite upset because just recently, his carefully designed promotion ceremony unfortunately failed!
What He Kao heard was "false information," but Qian Guran’s judgment was correct; he is indeed a sorcerer of the Xingshen Sect.
To ascend from a Tier Two Angler to a Tier Three Performer, the Xingshen Sect’s ceremony requires designing a public performance that can evoke strong resonance from the public.
The Magic Sect’s traditions say so. Some things aren’t spoken outright, but everyone understands; the ceremony is more a performance or rather a carefully orchestrated ruse.
The performance not only has to fool everyone but also inspire many to genuinely want to do something in response, which counts as successfully evoking strong resonance.
In ancient times, this was quite difficult. Many ancestors of the Xingshen Sect were traveling conjurers in the Jianghu, raising a group of apprentices to boast and create fame while sneakily engaging in deceit and fraud, often moving across multiple regions and performing many tricks to complete the ceremony.
These people were the easiest to face official suppression, as in the eyes of the traditional scholars of the Eastern Country, they often represented societal instability, and it so happens that in ancient Eastern Country, most officials were scholars.