In Xianxia City, at the Ju Xian Restaurant, the sounds of tables and chairs being smashed could be heard, occasionally accompanied by screams.
A man dressed in a brocade robe, about fifty years old, reeked of alcohol.
He pointed at several restaurant waiters and slurred, “Dare… dare to be… disrespectful to me, Eighth Master, hit them!”
“Crash!”
“Ah!”
Several waiters were badly beaten, and other guests were also hit.
The shopkeeper quickly apologized, “Eighth Master, they are new and didn’t know it was you, Eighth Master!”
The man pointed at the shopkeeper and said, “They are new, are… are you… new too? Hit him!”
Upon hearing this, several subordinates nearby walked over and gave the shopkeeper a good beating.
The shopkeeper screamed while shouting, “Tang Ba, we see each other often, don’t go too far!”
When Tang Ba heard his name called directly, the alcohol got to him again, and he roared, “Keep hitting!”
Tang Ba’s two thugs were about to deliver a second blow to the shopkeeper.
At some point, a young man appeared in the area.
“Bang! Bang!” With two kicks, the two men were sent flying, falling heavily to the ground.
When the shopkeeper saw the young man, he quickly shouted, “Escort Chief Chu, this Tang Ba is causing trouble while drunk, smashing the restaurant and hitting people.”
The young man smiled and said to the escort behind him, “Zhihai, sober up Eighth Master.”
Tang Ba was about to speak when the escort delivered a direct punch to his lower abdomen, making him vomit half of the food and drink he had consumed.
Before he could even speak, several more punches came, making Tang Ba scream like a pig in pain, his head covered in sweat.
Tang Ba’s subordinates all recognized the young man as Chu Xiaotian, the Chief Escort of Chu River Escort Agency, and no one dared to step forward to stop him.
Tang Ba was half sober now, all his previous arrogance gone.
Clutching his stomach, he shouted at the young man, “Chu Xiaotian, we see each other often, don’t go too far!”
Chu Xiaotian walked over and said, “Eighth Master Tang, sober now? The damages here amount to one hundred taels.”
Tang Ba angrily said, “You’re spouting nonsense, I, Tang Ba… Ah!”
Another punch landed on his stomach from Chu Zhihai.
Chu Xiaotian pointed at Tang Ba and said, “Take him back. Anyone who dares to cause trouble on Chu Family territory, whether you’re Tang Ba or Tang San, will be arrested.”
From Chu River Escort Agency, screams emanated!
In a room not far away, Chu Xiaotian sat at a desk, playing with two Spirit Stones in his hand.
Xianxia City is the territory of the Four Great Families, and Mortals are not unfamiliar with Spirit Stones.
One Spirit Stone can be exchanged for five hundred taels of silver, but it is very difficult to exchange silver for Spirit Stones.
These Spirit Stones were very beautiful, emitting a soft glow, and Chu Xiaotian often picked them up to play with when he had nothing to do.
Chu Zhihai ran over, interrupting Chu Xiaotian’s thoughts: “Chief, that old fellow is willing to pay one hundred taels of silver for compensation.”
“He only becomes honest after suffering,” Chu Xiaotian chuckled.
“Chief, what did the Tang Family say?” Chu Zhihai was a little worried.
“What’s there to fear? They pay to redeem him. If they don’t pay, we’ll break his dog legs!” Chu Xiaotian was never soft-hearted towards such people.
“Yes!” Chu Zhihai retreated.
With a “bang,” the large gate of the Escort Agency was kicked open, and several furious Tang Family members entered.
A burly man roared, “Chu Xiaotian, are you looking for death? How dare you arrest someone from our Miss Tang!”
Chu Xiaotian saw that Miss Tang had come in person and quickly stood up.
He didn’t have time to put away the Spirit Stones, so he directly threw them into an ancient cauldron on the table, covered it, and quickly walked out.
Chu Xiaotian said with a fawning smile, “So it’s Steward Tang, I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare. It’s just that this Tang Ba caused trouble while drunk on my Chu Family’s territory. He injured so many people and smashed the shop, it’s hard for me to explain!”
Steward Tang roared, “Stop babbling, release him.”
Chu Xiaotian feigned difficulty and said, “He can be released, but the medical expenses, the restaurant’s losses…”
“Stop wasting words, here’s one hundred taels, is that enough?!” a beautiful and heroic woman said.
“Oh my, Miss Tang has graced us with her presence, my apologies, my apologies.” Chu Xiaotian feigned surprise and said, “Zhihai, hurry up and invite Eighth Master Tang out.”
Chu Zhihai and another escort supported Tang Ba and brought him into the courtyard.
As soon as Tang Ba saw Miss Tang, he immediately ran over and cried, “Miss Tang, this Chu Xiaotian tortured me and demanded one hundred taels in compensation. That broken restaurant is not worth one hundred taels at all, he’s clearly extorting me.”
Upon seeing Tang Ba’s miserable state, Miss Tang was furious.
She was about to teach Chu Xiaotian a lesson, but suddenly she stopped. She glared at Chu Xiaotian, suppressed her anger, and said, “Let’s go!”
Chu Xiaotian still shouted in an neither humble nor arrogant tone, “Farewell, Miss Tang!”
After watching the Tang Family members leave, Chu Xiaotian took out the one-hundred-tael silver note. He turned around and said, “Zhihai, take this to compensate the injured Family members and the shop’s losses, and the rest is for the brothers to drink.”
Chu Zhihai’s face was filled with joy, and he said, “Chief, I’ll handle it perfectly, and I’ll bring you good wine tonight.”
After speaking, he quickly waved at the escorts to go out and have fun.
After the Tang Family left, Chu Xiaotian returned to his room; he couldn't be bothered to dwell on such matters.
He opened the ancient cauldron, wanting to retrieve the two Spirit Stones.
When he opened the lid, he was stunned; the two Spirit Stones were gone! Inside, there was only a black Medicinal Pill.
Someone had stolen his Spirit Stones in such a short time, that was too audacious, daring to steal from the Escort Agency!
He searched the entire desk, but nothing.
He turned the entire room upside down, still nothing.
He almost dug three feet deep, and still nothing!
He was certain that someone had come in and stolen them, and this thief was highly skilled.
What was even more infuriating was that not only did they steal the Spirit Stones, but they also intentionally threw a Medicinal Pill inside.
The harm was not great, but the insult was immense, as if to remind him, 'I just stole it, what can you do to me?'
Chu Xiaotian felt that the person’s purpose was to humiliate him.
Chu Xiaotian pondered about those who were at odds with him.
However, none of them fit; those with the courage didn’t have the strength.
He picked up the ancient cauldron. This ancient cauldron was tattered and even missing a leg. What was strange, though, was that this cauldron actually had a lid.
More than ten years ago, Chu River Escort Agency suffered a robbery during an escort mission.
After the bandits swept away the goods, they threw some worthless items, including this ancient cauldron.
Chu Xiaotian’s father also died in that incident.
When Chu Xiaotian grew up, he placed this ancient cauldron on his desk as a memento.
He picked up the Medicinal Pill again. He looked at it for a long time, trying to discover something. The Medicinal Pill was round and full, with an unusually smooth surface.
He smelled it, and there was a faint Medicinal fragrance. If it were poison, it would usually have a fishy smell.
This Medicinal fragrance made one feel refreshed and made one want to swallow it in one gulp.
After looking at it for a long time, he couldn’t resist licking it, but to his surprise, the Medicinal Pill melted upon contact with his tongue and went straight down his throat.
Chu Xiaotian was scared, and quickly coughed a few times, but nothing came out.
Soon, he felt his whole body heating up, veins bulging. A surge of hot Qi coursed wildly through his body, like drinking a bowl of strong liquor in winter.
This hot Qi couldn’t find an outlet and crashed wildly through his meridians. Chu Xiaotian writhed on the ground in pain.
Based on his years of experience in the Jianghu, he knew he had been poisoned, and it was a potent poison.
This poison was too powerful; it melted as soon as his tongue touched it and went entirely down his throat, catching him off guard.
Now he couldn’t even shout, unless someone came in and saw him, but all the escorts had gone out to drink.
Other low-ranking individuals could not enter his room without his summons.
This pain lasted for an hour before disappearing, and Chu Xiaotian was also exhausted, lying motionless on the ground.
After finally recovering, Chu Xiaotian got up.
He smelled a foul odor in the room, and upon closer inspection, it was coming from his own body. He quickly went to clean himself.
Curiosity really killed the cat; he almost sent himself to the King of Hell.