Chapter 144: The Mastermind Behind the Scenes

Seeing Jiang Xiaomu bring in a drunkard, she hurried forward to greet him.

"Brother, what's going on?"

Jiang Xiaoyu asked in a low voice.

Jiang Xiaomu waved his hand, signaling her to stay calm.

"This customer says he found a fly in our food and demands fifty taels of silver as compensation."

Hearing this, Jiang Xiaoyu furrowed her delicate brows, her gaze at the drunkard full of disgust.

"This is clearly extortion! Brother, ignore him!"

Hearing Jiang Xiaoyu's words, the drunkard instantly became displeased.

"You little brat, who are you calling an extortionist? I saw the fly with my own eyes!"

Jiang Xiaomu stopped the angry Jiang Xiaoyu from lashing out and said to the drunkard:

"Please don't be angry, sir; let's talk over there."

He led the drunkard to a secluded corner and whispered:

"Speak, who sent you?"

The drunkard staggered, his intoxication seeming to fade a bit.

"You… what are you saying? I don't understand."

Jiang Xiaomu gave a cold chuckle.

"Don't understand? Do you think I'm foolish? This fly was clearly placed by you yourself."

"Speak, who is the one behind you pulling the strings?"

"If you confess honestly, I can let bygones be bygones and even give you some benefits."

The drunkard put on a dazed look, his eyes wandering, and hiccuping drunkenly said:

"What sending or not sending, I just… hic… ate… ate a fly in the dish!"

Jiang Xiaomu's patience flickered like a candle in the wind, about to go out.

He gave a cold chuckle and said:

"Do you take me for a three-year-old?"

"The dishes at Mu Yu Lou are freshly purchased daily, and the kitchen is so clean not even an ant can be found."

"How could a fly appear out of nowhere? You'd better confess, or else…"

The drunkard continued to feign ignorance, his eyes darting, muttering.

"Fly… the fly… was in the dish…"

Jiang Xiaomu wasted no more words, he suddenly lifted his foot and struck the drunkard's abdomen.

The drunkard, caught off guard, let out a miserable scream, flying like a torn sack and slamming heavily against the backyard wall.

Before the drunkard could react, Jiang Xiaomu had already flashed to his side.

A flash of cold light, a sharp dagger was drawn and viciously nailed into the drunkard's palm, pinning him firmly to the wall.

"Ah—"

The drunkard emitted a pig-slaughtering wail, his voice piercing.

"Huh? Did you hear any sound?"

"What sound?"

"It sounded like a scream."

"No, maybe it's just someone butchering a pig, who cares, drink drink."

The guests upstairs enjoying complimentary food and drink faintly heard the wail; most thought it was their own auditory hallucination and didn't take it to heart.

Jiang Xiaoyu stood to the side, watching her brother's clean, swift movements, feeling a little afraid.

Although she disliked this drunkard, seeing him in such a miserable state still made her feel somewhat reluctant.

"Brother…"

Jiang Xiaomu didn't turn back, coldly asking:

"Are you scared?"

Jiang Xiaoyu bit her lip and firmly shook her head.

"Not afraid! But… wouldn't this be too…"

"Too what?" Jiang Xiaomu interrupted her.

"Too cruel? For this scum, mercy is unnecessary!"

"If we show weakness today, tomorrow more people will come to cause trouble."

"What will we do then? Let ourselves be slaughtered?"

Jiang Xiaoyu fell silent; in these chaotic times, the price of mercy is death.

Jiang Xiaomu crouched, his icy gaze fixed on the drunkard, his tone grim.

"Now, will you speak?"

The drunkard's face turned ashen from pain, cold sweat pouring down, yet he remained stubborn.

"I… I don't know what you're talking about…"

A glint of cold flashed in Jiang Xiaomu's eyes; he drew another dagger, waved it before the drunkard's eyes, the sharp blade reflecting icy light that made one's blood run cold.

"It seems you won't shed tears until you see the coffin."

Jiang Xiaomu's tone was icy.

"I'll give you one last chance—speak, who sent you?"

The sharp dagger kept turning in the drunkard's hand, his palm already stained red with blood, the intense pain nearly making him faint.

His face was deathly pale, sweat pouring like rain, his body trembling uncontrollably, and painful groans escaped his mouth.

"I... I..."

The drunkard spat out a few words in broken bursts, his voice so weak it was almost inaudible.

Jiang Xiaomu stopped turning the dagger, his gaze still icy.

"Speak! Who sent you?"

"It... it was a blind man..."

The drunkard was in so much pain he could barely speak.

"He... he gave me... some silver... to let me... to come cause trouble..."

"A blind man?"

Jiang Xiaomu frowned slightly, a blind man actually dared to provoke him?

"What kind of blind man? Tell me in detail!"

"He... he was tall... thin... dressed all in black... holding... a... very thick and long wooden staff."

The drunkard struggled to recall.

"His eyes... were grayish-white... like they were covered with a mist..."

Hearing this, Jiang Xiaomu's heart jolted—this build, these eyes... could it be him?!

"What else did he say?"

Jiang Xiaomu's voice grew even colder.

"He... he said... let me... as much as possible... ruin Mu Yu Lou's reputation..."

The drunkard's voice grew weaker and weaker, his consciousness beginning to blur.

"He also said... if... if I succeeded... then... then he'd give me more silver..."

Jiang Xiaomu took a deep breath, struggling to suppress the anger in his heart.

He drew the dagger, and the drunkard's palm instantly spurted blood.

Jiang Xiaomu coldly stared at him.

"One last time, I ask you—what's that blind man's name? Where does he live?"

The drunkard was in so much pain he had no strength left.

"I... I don't know what he's called... he... he only told me to call him... young master..."

"Young master?" Jiang Xiaomu snorted coldly.

"Looks like he really is quite mysterious."

"His residence... I... I really don't know..."

The drunkard's voice grew ever fainter, his eyelids growing heavier.

Jiang Xiaomu watched the drunkard writhing in pain, feeling not a shred of pity.

"Get lost!"

He kicked the drunkard in the buttocks, sending him stumbling.

"If I see you again, you're dead!"

The drunkard, as if pardoned, scrambled out of Mu Yu Lou's back door, crawling and rolling.

Jiang Xiaomu narrowed his eyes, watching the direction the drunkard disappeared.

A blind man... actually dared to provoke him?

It seems this blind man is probably the same person I had in mind.

Meanwhile, in the theater opposite Mu Yu Lou.

A blind man and a man bundled up tightly were sitting by the window, closely watching every move of Mu Yu Lou.

This blind man was Luo Shisan, dressed all in black, slim and tall, holding a thick wooden staff in his hand.

Although he was blind, his hearing was extraordinarily keen.

Beside him sat a short, stout man bundled up tightly, only his eyes showing—it was Jin Buhuan.

He nervously stared at Mu Yu Lou's back door, his heart in his throat.

"How is it? Did it work?"

Luo Shisan asked in a low voice, his grayish-white pupils moving.

"Nothing yet..."

Jin Buhuan wiped the sweat from his forehead, his heart uneasy.

Suddenly, a figure stumbled out of Mu Yu Lou's back door.