Chapter 231 - Dream Return

The official road connecting Hu Clan Mine Site to Green Sheep Town was simple and dilapidated.Because the mine was going to be abandoned, the people of Green Sheep Town naturally did not want to invest more in it.

Xizi Chu, accompanied by a disguised maid, strolled along, whispering and laughing softly, content and carefree.

At the other end of the official road, a person stood alone in the center.

Xizi Chu didn’t seem surprised, “Hu Shaomeng, even though you’re not at the mine, you still have a firm grasp on the situation there.”

“Cut the crap.” Hu Shaomeng, having waited for quite some time and already growing impatient, said, “What exactly are you after?”

“I should be asking you that,” Xizi Chu countered, “Hiring someone to assassinate the Zhong Xuan Family’s envoy, you really thought of a good one.

Do you think such an act could be pinned on the Xi Family?

Would the Zhong Xuan Family believe that?”

“You can eat whatever you want, but you must watch what you say.

Is it not the work of those five families working together to hire an assassin to murder the envoy of the Zhong Xuan Family?”

“Oh, oh,” Xizi Chu shook his head with a dismissive laugh, “Indeed.”

Hu Shaomeng suppressed the restlessness in his heart, “So, what exactly do you want to do?”

No one knew the truth better than he did.

Hiring someone to assassinate Jiang Wang was indeed his doing.

After the encounter, Jiang Wang’s refusal to immediately shut down the mine, and his resolute attitude, made Hu Shaomeng uneasy.

He even went as far as to embarrass Hu You by rejecting the suggestion of the Zhongxuan Clan member Hu You had invited.

As a result, Hu Shaomeng realized that anything he said would be counterproductive.

Jiang Wang might have suspected something, insisting on not leaving the Hu Clan Mine Site.

If one plan failed, he would come up with another.

Old Li was someone absolutely trustworthy, his man placed in Jia City, initially intended as a spy against the Xi Family.

Utilizing him now was most opportune.

World Building, the assassin organization that was an inaptitude to its name, was his carefully selected group.

Its headquarters being far in Cang Feng City alone, was sufficient to catch his attention.

It didn’t matter whether World Bulding could kill Jiang Wang or not.

If they could, all the better; the Zhong Xuan Family was far in Qi Country, and it would take time for them to send someone else to investigate.

What he needed was time, the gap after Jiang Wang’s death when the mine would be left in limbo.

If they couldn’t kill Jiang Wang, forcing him to leave would suffice.

Old Li, who appeared to hire the assassin, had already been sent out of the country by him.

After the assassination attempt, no matter which angle Jiang Wang started his investigation from, it would not alter the outcome.

If Jiang Wang went to Cang Feng City to confront World Building, let alone what the outcome might be, just the time spent going there and back would fulfill Hu Shaomeng’s goal.

And if he went after Old Li, that would be even more interesting.

Old Li would do everything in his power to flee, making the chase more difficult.

By the time Jiang Wang arrested Old Li with great effort, he would be surprised to “discover” that Old Li was with the Xi Family, working for them!

This plan was regarded as perfect, and as the deviser, Hu Shaomeng was also quite pleased with himself.

But the one thing he did not anticipate was that Jiang Wang would capture the assassin on the spot and extract information, yet instead of pursuing any leads, he firmly stayed at the mine site without budging.

No matter which direction Jiang Wang went, he could be manipulated.

But now that Jiang Wang had stopped moving, the threads used to lead him by the nose became useless decorations.

It was beyond his expectation that Xizi Chu would step forward to suppress the matter, having those smaller families’ principals bear the blame.

That especially made him uneasy.

“What are you trying to do?” Hu Shaomeng repeated once more.

Xizi Chu did not continue playing dumb, replying indifferently, “Whatever you want to do, that’s what I want to do.”

Even though Hu Shaomeng had a premonition when he learned of Xizi Chu’s sudden return to Jia City, he couldn’t help but turn pale, “You know everything?”

Whether it was killing that miner or the Transcendent cultivator stationed at the mine site, it was all to cover up a secret.

He had thought everything was airtight, but it turned out he had been exposed.

“Jia City belongs to the Xi Family.” Xizi Chu looked at him calmly.

“Here, there’s nothing that can be hidden from me.”

“But Green Sheep Town bears the Hu name.”

“What surname Green Sheep Town bears can be discussed after the Zhong Xuan Family has left,” Xizi Chu said, then asked, “Isn’t it better to have a two-way struggle than a three-way struggle?

Don’t you think?”

Hu Shaomeng, after all, was someone of significance and quickly weighed the pros and cons.

Since the situation couldn’t be salvaged, he could only choose the lesser of two evils.

He asked directly, “It won’t be as simple as you say with Jiang Wang; there will definitely be further investigation.

Are you sure those people can be relied upon?”

“Their entire clan’s lives are in my hands, and they know very well what they’re supposed to say.

Moreover, deep down, they believe this to be the true fact.

Thus, no matter how they’re questioned, there won’t be any issues.”

Hu Shaomeng’s complexion changed.

He knew very well what that implied.

Memory alteration!

This was not something a cultivator of the Ascending Dragon Realm could accomplish.

If it were just Xizi Chu himself, Hu Shaomeng believed he had a fighting chance with his trump cards.

But if his opponent had access to power on such a level, then everything he had done was in vain.

Driving out the Zhong Xuan Family would also be meaningless.

“You don’t need to be nervous.” In order to avoid further complications, Xizi Chu explained, “I used Return Dream Incense.

My master only gave me half a stick, and now it’s burned to a stub.”

He took out a burned-out stub of incense, which had only a faint residue left, incapable of producing effects anymore.

“You can take it back to check if you like.”

Hu Shaomeng took the stub of incense; the mysterious scent hadn’t entirely dissipated, confirming it was indeed Return Dream Incense.

He relaxed slightly but couldn’t afford to let down his guard completely.

Xizi Chu added, “You also know how precious this thing is.

To fill the hole you’ve dug, I had no choice but to use it.

Since I’ve paid such a price, I need to ensure my gains are satisfying.”

Hu Shaomeng snorted coldly, “The Hu family could have operated from this vein for another thirty years.

I have sacrificed no less than you.”

“It’s precisely because you’ve invested so heavily that I’m willing to gamble with you, Young Master Hu.”

Xizi Chu smiled, draping his arm around the maid disguised as a man, and strolled away leisurely.

There was one thing he didn’t say.

That is, sending those clan leaders to their deaths wasn’t just about covering up for Hu Shaomeng’s mistakes.

If it were solely for covering the tracks, there were other methods.

There was no need to use something as precious as Return Dream Incense.

The Xi Family had controlled Jia City for many years and could crush those small clans with a flick of the wrist.

They had not touched them ordinarily because they wanted to stabilize the heart of Yang Country’s Court, unwilling to bear the name of a land splitter, and they lacked a justifiable reason.

But if those people were killed by the Zhong Xuan Family, it would be different.

Those clans sought their own demise, and the Xi Family couldn’t be blamed.

He wasn’t worried about Hu Shaomeng causing more trouble; as long as he offered him a glimmer of hope, a gambler who had already bet so much wouldn’t cut his losses and leave the table.

The more one invests, the harder it is to let go.

Both he and Hu Shaomeng were clear that driving the Zhong Xuan Family away was their common goal.

What two people could feast on would leave everyone starving if an enormous entity like the Zhong Xuan Family joined in.