Chapter 95

Of course, Qi Xiang wouldn't just put the treasure on a high shelf; he had also thought about the effects of the Moonlight Water Pearl. Not only was it beneficial to drink regularly, but more importantly, it could be added to the spirit clay used for drawing talismans...

The Moonlight Water Pearl, when mixed with spirit clay, would certainly enhance the effectiveness of the talismans. Qi Xiang felt his idea was good, but unfortunately, he had no chance to verify it. After all, he was still missing a brush!

The brush was also a problem.

Qi Xiang sighed again, pinching his brow as he pondered whether he should make another trip to Shanlian. After much consideration, he decided that he would go, but not right now...

After all, the loss of the bead tray was not just a matter of Qiao Zhu stirring up trouble; the Dong family would certainly not let it go easily. Once things got chaotic, Shanlian would surely become a place of conflict.

Qi Xiang wasn't worried that someone would know it was he who had knocked out the young man and taken the bead tray. After all, he had stripped the young man and tied him up in a busy street, not just for revenge, but to muddy the waters and divert suspicion.

At the time, he had written a line on the young man's chest: "This is the consequence of not repaying debts."

Think about it, how many people did the young man owe money to? All of them had a motive to commit the crime. And those people weren't pushovers; would they just let it go if the investigation led to them?

In any case, it was clear that Shanlian would be quite lively for a while.

Qi Xiang, being a homebody, decided to stay at home and not join in the commotion. He could wait until the fuss died down before going. He was now very calm and didn't want to rush things...

While Qi Xiang was deep in thought, he suddenly felt a sense of alarm, sensing a strange force emerging. He was startled but reacted quickly, immediately reaching into his pocket and pulling out a black card.

This card was a relic left by the beautiful girl named Bai Lianhua in Shanlian. Qi Xiang had studied it carefully and knew it was unusual, but lacked enough information to understand its true mystery.

At that moment, he was surprised to see a layer of green smoke suddenly rise from the black card.

Qi Xiang was startled and instinctively flicked his fingers, throwing the card away. As soon as it hit the ground, something even stranger happened: a cloud of green smoke rose quickly and disappeared instantly.

"What's going on?" Qi Xiang was stunned, looking down at the card, only to see that the black card had already shattered into pieces.

Qi Xiang frowned, deep in thought: "This thing seems to be like a beacon, used to send signals and lock onto targets... Tsk, Bai Lianhua... is this how you repay me?"

Qi Xiang pondered for a moment and then waited patiently.

About an hour or two later, he received a call from the gate guard, saying that his package had arrived.

"A package?"

Qi Xiang was a bit surprised and asked the guard to bring the package. It was a common cardboard box with a seal and a label. However, the label was very simple, with no sender's information or recipient's name, only an address.

The address was the location of the estate, so as the owner of the estate, the package was naturally for him.

"Amazing, they locked onto my location so quickly..."

Qi Xiang waved the guard away, picked up the package, and weighed it. It felt very light, almost empty.

"Come on, I'm at least your benefactor, you wouldn't be trying to trick me, right?"

Qi Xiang turned the package around, examining it carefully, and found no signs of danger. He then tore off the seal and opened the cardboard box.

As soon as the box was opened, Qi Xiang's eyes caught a glimpse of a bright red and gold invitation inside.

"Huh?"

Seeing the invitation, Qi Xiang was momentarily stunned, feeling a bit confused. He had expected something like a check or a bank card. He was quite poor lately, and if someone was offering money, he wouldn't be picky and would happily accept it.

But it turned out to be an invitation.

Qi Xiang didn't think much about it and casually took out the invitation, then smelled a faint, elegant fragrance. The delicate and sturdy texture, similar to metal, clearly indicated that this invitation was very high-end, not something you could buy on the street.

Qi Xiang was curious and deftly opened the invitation.

"July 7th, Suzhou, Daming Mountain Resort, Flower and Tea Gathering!" Qi Xiang scanned the content and immediately frowned, unsure of the situation.

"Are they inviting me to a meal?" Qi Xiang thought for a moment but didn't think so. After all, a tea gathering usually meant a gathering of many people, not just two.

"But what's with the flowers and tea? Just admiring flowers and chatting?"

Qi Xiang pondered for a long time but couldn't guess the other party's intentions, so he decided not to guess. After all, it was only a few days until July 7th, and he would know what was going on when he got there.

Time flew by, and before he knew it, a few days had passed.

On that day, Qi Xiang got up early and took a car to Suzhou.

As the capital of a province and a national historical city, Suzhou had been a prosperous place for over two thousand years. Whether in terms of economy or culture, it was very prominent and distinct.

Especially the gardens of Suzhou, known for their beautiful mountains and water, and elegant gardens, are praised as the best in the Jiangnan region.

Daming Mountain Resort, though called a resort, is actually a garden.

The resort is located outside the city of Suzhou, in a place with green mountains and clear waters. The entire estate spans several hills and includes a lake at the foot of the mountains.

In general, the architecture of Suzhou gardens is designed to create a grand effect in a small space, using artificial hills and ponds, along with pavilions and terraces, to create a sense of vastness and changing scenery.

However, Daming Mountain Resort is an exception. It has the style of Suzhou gardens, with a well-designed layout that integrates lakes, mountains, trees, and buildings into a harmonious and exquisite whole.

But the entire resort also exudes a grand and majestic atmosphere, like a fortress on a mountain, with a magnificent presence.

After asking for directions and a bit of travel, Qi Xiang finally arrived at the entrance of Daming Mountain Resort. He got out of the car and saw the buildings of the resort peeking through the lush flowers and trees, half-hidden and half-revealed, creating a charming scene.

It's worth noting that Daming Mountain Resort is not a private garden but a commercial venue open to the public. In other words, it's a leisure center for people to eat, drink, and enjoy themselves.

Qi Xiang walked up the steps into the resort and found it very lively.

Teahouses, cafes, and ice cream shops were scattered throughout the resort, each filled with people coming and going, bustling with activity.

Looking around, Qi Xiang was immediately puzzled.

In his imagination, this gathering should have been a private event, which is why an invitation was needed. But it didn't seem to be the case now.

Qi Xiang scratched his head, feeling a bit lost, and continued up the mountain.

Upon arriving, he found the resort even more expansive than he had imagined. It was divided into stages, with each level seamlessly connected. At the foot of the mountain, by the lake, was a concentration of leisure and entertainment areas.

On the mountain, there were elegant pavilions, bamboo houses, and buildings.

These small, exquisite structures were scattered among the cliffs on the mountain, seemingly precarious but actually very sturdy and well-structured, blending naturally with the landscape, creating a beautiful and dramatic scene.

As he climbed higher, Qi Xiang noticed that the closer he got to the peak, the fewer people and tourists there were, and some were even turning back.

An elderly man, who was quite kind-hearted, came down the mountain and, as he passed Qi Xiang, warned him, "Young man, don't go up any further, the mountain is closed!"

"Closed?" Qi Xiang was taken aback.

"Yes," the elderly man said as he walked, "They say they are doing repairs and will close the mountain for two days before reopening."

"Oh..."

Qi Xiang's eyes brightened, thanked the elderly man, and then walked up the mountain with a lighter step.

The elderly man didn't mind, as even if the mountain was closed, there were still many scenic spots to enjoy along the way. Enjoying the scenery and then turning back wouldn't be a waste of time.

The mountain was high and the path was long, with narrow, winding trails leading to secluded and changing scenery.

However, Qi Xiang had no time to appreciate the mountain scenery and quickened his pace. Soon, he reached the top of Daming Mountain Resort.

The resort is named Daming, which means "famous tea." Therefore, many tea plants are naturally grown around the resort.

But what makes the resort unique is not the tea plants by the roadside, but the tea flowers at the mountain's peak.

At the top of the resort, clusters of tea flowers bloomed, covering the mountain. Pink, white, and yellow, they were a riot of colors, blooming in the wind, fragrant, and very charming.

Among the tens of thousands of tea flowers, there was a row of magnificent palaces.

As expected, this row of golden palaces was the core of Daming Mountain Resort. The magnificent palaces were likely ancient-style grand hotels, specifically for hosting wealthy and powerful guests.

Qi Xiang squinted and saw the resort staff setting up barriers around the palaces, knowing that this must be his destination.

"At least I wasn't misled..."

Feeling reassured, Qi Xiang followed a winding cobblestone path toward the palaces.

Before he could get close, a staff member appeared, blocking his way politely, "I'm sorry, sir, we are closing the mountain for three days for maintenance. We cannot accommodate outside guests. Please understand."

"I'm not an outside guest..." Qi Xiang smiled and showed his invitation.

The staff member's eyes lit up immediately, not even bothering to check the invitation, and his attitude became very respectful, "Welcome, sir, please follow me..."

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