Chapter 337: Reconciliation and Huang Gai
Sun Wentai paused for several seconds. Then, he suggested Huang Gongfu another idea.
[By chance, is that kid an exam participant?]
"Probably so."
[How is his strength from your point of view?]
"Very decent. He's about 20, but his strength is late 4th-stage, but his essence volume is quite unusual. I also detect several element Qi in there, but he hid them well."
[That's enough to get on his good side. Offer him a month of free stay in our best suite. Give him free food, drinks, and women. After that, send me his details. I want to know about his origins, name, and face. Also-*Drrrrr*-Ah, shit. Sorry, Gongfu. I've got another call from my brother. Will call you back later. I have several urgent matters to attend to.]
"Alright."
Huang Gongfu doubted if that was enough to please Miaomiao, but he had no choice.
After hanging up the call, the elder made another call to the hotel manager before he walked toward Miaomiao.
…
"Hmm?"
Seeing the approaching elder, Miaomiao wondered what he was scheming. He expected a good show.
"Junior. I'm sorry about before."
As expected, the elder had come to apologize. Miaomiao shrugged, "No harm's done. It's just business. I understand why you did that. You have a reputation to uphold there."
"Still, it was indeed an immature move on my part. You see, my boss has ordered me to compensate you for that last hand."
"Oh?"
Miaomiao grinned. Professional casinos in the modern world usually offered various perks to their whale customers when they lost a lot of money, and he had guessed that this place might do the same.
Huang Gongfu continued, "Say, are you participating in the annual assessment exam of Jiangdong White Tiger's sect tomorrow?"
"Yeah, but I won't be joining the sect, though. I want to join in for the fun."
The elder squinted his eyes as he was taken aback. No one had ever joined the sect's exam for FUN before, and Miaomiao's action was suspicious.
Had it been normal circumstances, Huang Gongfu would have taken Miaomiao into custody to investigate his motives or purposes for being here. Because of the recent game, the elder believed that Miaomiao was just being salty.
"How about this, junior? We will give you a month of free stay in one of our best suites. This includes unlimited food, free access for all our hotel facilities, and top bed warmers from our city's best brothels. The hotel will also gift you five essence cores worth of casino chips to play in our other games."
Miaomiao raised his eyebrows in astonishment. They were too generous for someone who had just lost only a couple of essence cores.
"Are you sure? That's quite excessive for compensation."
"Consider it as a payment to maintain my reputation as a dealer. I couldn't lose that game, or I might lose my job."
"Ah, I see. If that's the case, I'll gladly take that offer."
Huang Gongfu took a deep breath and sighed as if he was relieved, "Thanks, junior. By the way, what's your name?"
Without hesitation, Miaomiao used his alias again even though his identity had already been exposed, "This junior is Cao Mao."
"I see, Cao Mao. I haven't heard of the Cao Clan. Where are you from?"
Miaomiao paused for a moment. Then, he grinned, "Siren City."
Huang Gongju froze. He gave Miaomiao a disapproved look, "Be serious. A stupid joke like that can get you killed in this city. I can overlook this, but other people would have mistaken you for a spy. You know what we do to spies, don't you?"
Seeing that the elder didn't take it seriously, Miaomiao maintained his fa?ade, "Hah! Just kidding. I'm from Red Sun City."
"Hadn't the local cultivators migrated to either Red Sun Port or other cities?"
Miaomiao shrugged and opened his palms, "That's why I'm here."
"Do you want to move here? Want me to introduce you to a real estate agent? A promising youth like you will always be welcomed here even if you're not a part of the Sun Clan's sect."
"I'll think about it."
Huang Gongfu nodded and went back. A few minutes later, he returned and passed Miaomiao a new coin.
It was a coin with a mega-shark image, the Megalodon Token, which allowed Miaomiao to access all facilities of this hotel.
"Are you sure about this?" Miaomiao was surprised by the elder's decisiveness.
"You said you were a Megalodon. I believe you."
"What if I say I lied?"
"Nah, had you really lied about your wealth, you would have been frustrated from that game. Only someone who DOES have a lot of money could stay calm after losing a few essence cores."
"I could have been a wastrel who doesn't know the value of money, though."
"If that was the case, you would have flaunted your wealth and wasted all your money after that loss. Also, even the smartest or boldest young masters of some rich clans could never maintain their composure when they played a high-stake game. On the other hand, you were calm and collect throughout hundreds of games, and you didn't flinch when you bet all your money. That means, your words and actions made sense. Me, as a professional gambler, I want to bet on your words that you told the truth."
The elder seemed smart as he had already deducted Miaomiao's character like a poker master.
Miaomiao was impressed by the former's insight, "You're something, senior."
"I've seen every kind of customer here. It's easy to spot a real dragon among the heaps of lizards."
"Haha! Nice comparison!"
…
Both Miaomiao and the elder chatted about random stuff until dawn. At 7 AM, the elder excused himself.
"I'll be heading toward the exam site now. I'm one of the sect's elders, so I need to help the others manage the event. I hope to see you there, Junior Cao."
"See you later, Senior Huang."
Miaomiao had learned the elder's name during the conversation. As usual, he ran into another counterpart of a famous historical person.
Huang Gongfu was the counterpart of Huang Gai, one of the veteran generals of the Sun Family. In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he played a major role in the Battle of Chibi, and he was responsible for burning Cao Cao's fleets.
Huang Gai and Huang Gongfu were similar in certain parts, their intelligence and their wits. They were quick on the uptakes – Their flexibility and adaptability were top class, which made them scary in mind games and tactical battles.
Now, in this cultivation world, offending a smart and strong expert wasn't a good idea. Although most cultivators were straightforward about their strength, cunning cultivators were hard to deal with, especially old foxes, since Miaomiao couldn't predict what they were up to.
His life experience in Poseidon Spa House taught him the hard way not to trust cunning cultivators. He almost became Xu Xiuying's slave during his early days. Hadn't he had the dual-cultivation abilities, he would have been enslaved by her goons long ago.
'I guess I have to be careful around him. His cultivation base might be a bit weak compared to Jia Shan and Ma Ping, but his real strength is his wits and his leadership. I don't know what he is hiding. If he is one of the guys in novels that can hide their cultivation strength, he might be a dangerous opponent.'
Miaomiao decided to be on guard against Huang Gongfu from now on. But for now, he needed to play along with Huang Gongfu's moves.
After changing his mindset, Miaomiao returned to the 1st-floor lobby and visited the clerk, following the elder's instruction.
He showed the Megalodon Token and returned the Shrimp Token.
"I'm here to claim my exam registration ID and the chips that elder Huang has deposited for me."
The clerk and workers behind the counter widened their eyes and dropped their jaws when they saw the mega-shark token. They bowed 90 degrees and ran back into their office in frantic.
A few seconds later, the hotel manager, a refined middle-aged woman in a modern black suit, came out and presented Miaomiao with a tray of green chips, a new hotel key card, a golden business card of a brothel, and a metal plate with Cao Mao's name on it.
"The plate is your ID for the exam. As for the business card, you can call the number there and order any woman from the brothel for free. The hotel will foot the bills," explained the woman.
"You guys are quite generous for a lowly customer like me."
"No, no. This is our standard service for all… important customers."
"If you say so," Miaomiao deposited all items into his dummy spatial ring. He turned to the manager again, "Where is the exam taking place? This is my first time here, and I don't know the way."
"We have a carriage prepared for you. Please board the carriage, and we shall take you to the exam site. We shall depart immediately since the exam will start soon."
"Oh?"
The manager led Miaomiao to the front of the hotel, where several horse carriages had been parked there as if they had been waiting for their VIP customers.
As Miaomiao was walking toward one of the carriages, he heard a loud voice of a forgotten goon.
"BOSS! WAIT FOR ME!!"
It was Gan Ning. This rude guy sprinted toward Miaomiao. Dark and stinky stains around the crotch parts seemed like he had wet his pants, but the smell told another story.
As Miaomiao had guessed, Gan Ning had sex all night with the three hookers that he had brought. Just now, the guy remembered that he had an exam today, and he rushed to the first floor with his old clothes, which were still dirty because of last night's deeds.
The manager, hotel workers, and customers in the lobby gave Gan Ning a disgusted look. They covered their noses and kept their distance from the maniac.
Miaomiao rolled his eyes as he brought out a set of new clothes for the idiot, "Discard your pants and wear these. Also, have you taken a bath today?"
"Err, no. I bathed in women's sweat and squirted pee, though."
"This is no time for jokes. I'll give you 10 breaths to change the clothes."
"10 breaths? You mean, I have to change here?" Gan Ning dryly laughed.
"Where else? You're pretty much half-naked all the time. What are the differences between having your ragged pants and being naked? Just get it done, so we can depart now."
"YES, BOSS!!"
Shamelessly, Gan Ning stripped and changed his clothes in front of the hotel and many eyes. Several female clerks looked away while men took out their phones to take pictures of Gan Ning's hairy junk to post on their social media.
While Gan Ning was putting on his clothes, Miaomiao circulated his water element Qi and created a bubble of soap water. Then, he controlled the bubble to swallow Gan Ning and wash the grime, after which he manipulated the dirty bubble to the flower garden in front of the hotel and discarded the dark water there.
The plants, flowers, and trimmed bushes withered as soon as their roots touched the dirty water. Fortunately, Miaomiao sent his wood Qi to the withered plants and restored them before the workers could complain about his action.
Gan Ning stared at Miaomiao in shock after he had taken a quick bath with the soap bubble. He was amazed by the utility of the water element Qi.
"BOSS! YOU'RE AWESOME!! I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE CAN USE WATER QI THIS WAY!!"
"Pipe it down. Put on your pants and robes. How long are you going to keep it dangling?"
"Oh, right."
Gan Ning finally put on his clothes even though they were wet because of Miaomiao's soap water. Strangely, the wet parts dried as soon as they touched Gan Ning's skin.
Miaomiao noticed the anomaly, but he kept it quiet since he didn't want to pressure Gan Ning about his secrets at the moment. After all, he might be able to learn about this guy's real strength soon.
…
Their carriage brought both men outside the city and parked in front of a signboard, [JIANGDONG ASSESSMENT TEST, WAITING SITE]. About ten thousand people from various clans, organizations, and cities gathered here, forming groups as they waited for the sect's elders to arrive.
Many carriages had arrived here before them, and they also parked here. Thus, Miaomiao and Gan Ning blended in with the local people, and nobody paid attention to them.
"What's next?" Miaomiao left the carriage and looked at Gan Ning.
However, the carriage driver also got down and cupped his fist to Miaomiao, "Young Master Cao. Because of your token, your exam site is elsewhere. Please follow me."
"Huh?"
Miaomiao squinted his eyes as he stared at the driver. He pointed at Gan Ning, "What about him?"
"Of course, your entourage will also take the exam together with you. Please follow me."
"Oh, okay. Bring us there."
Miaomiao had gotten used to taking shortcuts, taking bribes, and cheating. He didn't mind if the hotel might try to cheat the exam for him since he didn't care about the sect.
He came here for gathering intelligence about the Jiangdong White Tiger Sect's movements and negotiating for a truce. Miaomiao wouldn't stay here for long.
As the driver led the group away from the crowd, they went to another place with a large boulder and a bigger signboard.
[Examinees with Recommended Letters Only!]
Under the giant words, a small-sized sentence was barely visible from afar.
[Essence Gathering Realm Cultivators Under 20 Years of Age May Register Here!]
Sure enough, the sect offered preferential treatments for their close friends, wealthy folks, and the talented. Though the last category was hidden for some reasons.
In front of the special registration site, 10 exam takers had already gathered there. A group of six men and a group of four women stared at Miaomiao, inspecting the newcomers.
The driver gestured that Miaomiao should report himself to the giant boulder next to the signboard. A muscular elder had been sitting on the rock and looking at Miaomiao's company.
The elder was someone Miaomiao knew. He was Huang Gongfu.
'The world is so small. That guy is back here again.'
Miaomiao snickered as he walked toward the giant boulder. Then, he cupped his fist and bowed, "Junior Cao Mao is here to take the assessment exam, but I don't know the procedure. Please guide this lowly junior, elder."
The group of men snickered, mocking Miaomiao for being a country bumpkin. However, the four women ignored Miaomiao's manner and paid attention to his cultivation and dense volume of essence.
Among the crowd, there were old acquaintances that Miaomiao had met during his days in Poseidon Spa House, but he hadn't noticed them yet.
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