Chapter 57

After parting ways with Old Zhang, Feng Jueyu returned to the Shangguan Manor. On the way, he searched his memory and vaguely recalled that there was indeed a Zhang Manor on Wencheng Street, which seemed to be a large estate. It appeared that the old man had a distinguished background, at least from a prominent family.

Although he and Old Zhang had a shallow relationship, the old man's amiable and approachable personality made Feng Jueyu consider him a close friend. Since it was the old man's birthday, he needed to prepare a gift.

The old man's wealth was considerable, so what should he give?

Gold and silver? Too vulgar. Not to mention, he didn't have any, and even if he did, it might make people look down on him.

A gentleman's friendship is as light as water, so this gift was indeed a troublesome matter...

Ginseng? Deer antler? Snow lotus? Lingzhi?

Hmm, he had these valuable medicinal herbs, especially those grown in the Hongyuan Space, which had matured to over a hundred years in just a few days. However, from the look of Old Zhang, he didn't seem to be lacking...

First-class golden wound medicine?

It would be a bit gimmicky and could be a good opportunity to promote it, but unfortunately, Old Zhang was clearly not the type to use such things. What should he do?

While racking his brain for a gift for Old Zhang, he was nearing the gates of Shangguan Manor. Suddenly, an idea struck Feng Jueyu: "The old man seems to have a preference for chess. If I could give him a chess manual, he would probably be very happy."

Feng Jueyu's exceptional chess skills came from not only playing with his master when he was young but also from reading "Wang You Qing Le Ji" (The Book of Forgetful Joy and Pure Pleasure), the earliest known book on Go in the world, written by Li Yimin of the Song Dynasty. It was considered the first ancient Go manual and contained the experiences of several famous Go players, with exquisite and unparalleled chess positions.

Back then, Feng Jueyu's master had gone to great lengths to obtain the original "Wang You Qing Le Ji" and gave it to Feng Jueyu after reading it. Feng Jueyu, who was young at the time, read it day and night, memorizing every chess position and change. With his superhuman memory and exceptional understanding, he became equal to his master in just a few years. Later, he used it as a coaster.

It was only after his master discovered it and scolded him that he learned the book, which had no cover and looked like an old yellow book, was worth 100 million euros...

If he copied "Wang You Qing Le Ji" by hand and gave it to Old Zhang, the old man would definitely be very happy.

With this idea, Feng Jueyu finally had a plan. There was a chess shop not far away, so he ran over, bought a chessboard and pieces, and brought them home...

When he reached the gates of Shangguan Manor, he saw Old Zhao watching from a distance, probably looking for him...

Feng Jueyu walked over: "Old Three, what are you doing?"

Old Zhao turned around and saw Feng Jueyu, overjoyed: "My Lord Feng, we've been looking for you."

"Looking for me? Is there something?"

Old Zhao swallowed hard: "Didn't you ask us to gather information a while ago? Our gang has been established for a few days now, and we have about thirty to forty members. After ten days of investigation, we've gathered a lot of useful information. Today, the boss gathered us to compile and record it, but we realized that none of us can write. You know, we all come from poor backgrounds and can barely recognize a few words. We planned to ask Li Lao and Tong'er for help, but they are too busy at Qishi Fang. So, Brother Xiao sent me to ask you to find someone literate to help us copy the information."

After Old Zhao finished speaking, Feng Jueyu hung his head in exasperation. It was truly terrifying to lack education. With the background of Old Zhao's group, they must have gathered a lot of information.

"Where's Gongyang Yu? Can't he write? He could help us," Feng Jueyu thought of Gongyang Yu.

But Old Zhao glared and spat on the ground, cursing: "That old bastard, don't mention him. He only wrote for half a day and then complained of being tired, and then he ditched us. Damn, he's not professional at all."

"Half a day? What the hell? He didn't even finish in half a day?" Feng Jueyu was shocked. He had underestimated the energy of these ruffians.

Feng Jueyu thought for a moment and came up with a plan: "Alright, I'll take care of it. Go back and wait for me, I'll be there soon... Oh, and bring Gongyang Yu. Tell him to wait for me, and if he doesn't come, I won't treat his illness..."

"Alright, thank you, my lord!"

After parting ways with Old Zhao, Feng Jueyu returned to Shangguan Manor. He didn't go to his own residence but went straight to Shangguan Ruofan's courtyard.

Fortunately, he had a brother-in-law, and now he could use him.

"Ruofan, Ruofan..."

Entering the courtyard, Feng Jueyu called out Shangguan Ruofan's name. Shangguan Ruofan, who was practicing swordsmanship in the back yard, ran over with a sword in hand, drenched in sweat, excitedly saying: "Brother-in-law, you're here. Look, I've created a new sword technique, and I've mastered the ones you taught me..."

He was a martial arts fanatic.

Feng Jueyu was taken aback and quickly interrupted Shangguan Ruofan: "Stop, don't talk about that now. Come with me, I have a good job for you."

"What job? Is it more important than practicing swordsmanship?" Shangguan Ruofan pouted, unhappy.

Feng Jueyu's eyes twinkled: "Will you come with me? It's time to improve your sword skills. If you don't come, you'll regret it."

"What? Improve my sword skills? Where? With whom?" Hearing that he could improve his sword skills, Shangguan Ruofan was full of spirit and immediately followed Feng Jueyu to the south of the city without changing his clothes.

...

When they arrived at Xiao Yuanshan's residence, they heard a lot of noise before even entering the courtyard. Stepping inside, they saw more than thirty people gathered around, throwing dice.

"Big, big, big... Damn, lost again."

"Ha, all in." Zhao Laoer, half-naked, was crazily collecting copper coins, with Xiao Yuanshan cheering him on.

...

Seeing the situation, Feng Jueyu shouted: "Everyone, stop what you're doing..."

His voice was loud, and the ruffians were startled, turning to look.

Seeing Feng Jueyu, Xiao Yuanshan immediately jumped off the table and shouted at the ruffians: "Put everything away, stand in line."

Whoosh!

More than thirty people hurriedly formed a small group, staring at Feng Jueyu in confusion, wondering who this person was, making even the boss look nervous.

Xiao Yuanshan ran over, followed by the Zhao brothers, with a fawning expression.

"Lord, you finally came..."

Saying this, Xiao Yuanshan exuded a domineering aura, pointing at Feng Jueyu and shouting at the ruffians: "All of you, call him boss."

"Boss..."

The courtyard erupted in a loud chorus, making Shangguan Ruofan step back, looking at Feng Jueyu with a strange expression, wondering when his brother-in-law had become the boss of these ruffians and looked so imposing.

Feng Jueyu scanned the ruffians and saw Gongyang Yu meditating in a corner, nodding slightly. He turned to Shangguan Ruofan and said: "Ruofan, starting today, you'll practice swordsmanship here. But I have a task for you. Every day, you'll listen to the information these people gather and record it. It will take three hours a day. See that old man over there? He was once a Tianwu Realm expert. If you complete the task, your brother-in-law will have him spar with you every day..."

At first, Shangguan Ruofan was unhappy with Feng Jueyu's request, thinking his brother-in-law was tricking him into writing instead of practicing swordsmanship. But when he heard the last part, his eyes lit up.

A Tianwu Realm expert would have decades or even a lifetime of combat experience. In the entire Shangguan Manor, only his grandfather was at the initial Tianwu Realm, and he rarely showed his skills. If he had an expert of similar strength sparring with him, he would surely improve rapidly...

"Are you serious?" Shangguan Ruofan, fearing Feng Jueyu would change his mind, extended his little finger: "Let's pinky promise."

Feng Jueyu was speechless but had to pinky promise, saying it would last a hundred years...

The ruffians were delighted. Honestly, they had gathered too much information, and it was uncomfortable to keep it all in their heads. Seeing Feng Jueyu bring a cute young boy, they immediately surrounded him.

"Ha, this kid looks pretty likable..."

"Kid, how old are you? Uncle will take you to a brothel..."

"Damn, don't corrupt the kid, get lost. Hey, kid, want Uncle to introduce you to a girl..."

...

Shangguan Ruofan's face turned red as he saw the ruffians surrounding him. Suddenly, he flicked his thumb, and with a "clang," his sword was out, a thick white aura enveloping his body, scaring the ruffians back.

It was surprising how determined this kid was. In less than a month, he had advanced from the high Xuwu Realm to the mid-Qiwu Realm, which was quite impressive.

Feng Jueyu glanced back and walked over to Gongyang Yu...

Gongyang Yu, hearing Feng Jueyu's name, was so angry that his mouth was twisted and his eyes were askew. Before Feng Jueyu could speak, he said: "You brat, you always push all the dirty and tiring jobs onto me. Damn, I'm a bodyguard, not a nanny..."

Feng Jueyu knew Gongyang Yu would be angry but wasn't displeased: "You're just idle anyway. Can't you help out? Besides, that kid won't disappoint you. If you refuse, you'll be a Xuanwu Realm expert for the rest of your life."

"Damn, you're ruthless." Gongyang Yu knew he would lose to this guy and didn't bother to argue further...

...