Chapter Thirty-Eight: Borrowing Momentum

  The old man spoke while gazing at Ning Yuan with a profound and meaningful look, somewhat implying that he was taking advantage of his age.

  Ning Yuan smiled faintly and said, "Old man, your words are not quite fair. Clearly someone had ruined my scene first. Although I'm not a native of Shangjiang, since I've come to Shangjiang City, I can't just let others bully me without fighting back or retorting."

  "You said someone smashed your stall, are you sure it was Ma Lao Da who did it?" the old man continued to ask with a smile.

  "I say, old master, let's not talk about such unproductive things. Why don't we discuss what comes next? We're all people of the jianghu, not the Six Panels Gate. Are you asking me to provide evidence for you?" Ning Yuan asked with a faint smile.

  "Cough, cough!" The old man didn't expect Ning Yuan to be so blunt and was choked into coughing twice. Ma Baocheng, who was standing beside him, timely let out a cold hum: "Ning Doctor, this is Old Man Qiao from Shangjiang City, a senior in the Taoist community. Although you're an outsider, you should still know how to show respect to your seniors. Old Man Qiao can talk to you and that's already giving you face. Do you really think people from Shangjiang City are made of mud?"

  Ma Baocheng is indeed a master of the Tao, with impeccable timing and a silver tongue that has won over the people of Shangjiang City, making it seem as if Ningyuan, an outsider, wants to drive out the locals.

  As expected, as soon as Ma Baocheng spoke these words, several old men on the side furrowed their brows and their faces turned somewhat unpleasant.

  Ning Yuan suddenly let out a cold laugh, stood up and said: "Old Master Ma, we have something to discuss, don't try to flatter me. These big shots are all invited by you, naturally they will speak in your favor. I, Ning Yuan, am an outsider, so I don't have any right to speak. You've ruined my reputation, what do you plan to do? Let's just be straightforward, there is no place for me, Ning Yuan, to stand in this city, and I can still flee to another land.

  While talking, Ning Yuan was also scanning Ma Baicheng with his eyes, the meaning was very clear: don't give me nonsense, I'm just a lone wolf, you have a family and a home, don't push me to desperation, at worst we'll both perish together.

  Ma Baocheng was seen by Ningyuan with some hair standing on end. To be honest, he invited so many people just because of his fear of Ningyuan's ability to fight. Last night, he had already witnessed it and didn't drag him down. If things really got out of hand, it would be hard to clean up the mess.

  Ma Baocheng himself rose to power with his fists, so he naturally knew how troublesome Ning Yuan was without any burdens. As Ning Yuan said, in the end, it would be no big deal if Ning Yuan left Shangjiang City, but the mess that remained would be Ma Baocheng's problem to clean up.

  "Hey, young man, no need to get so worked up." Old Cao saw that the atmosphere was getting a bit tense and spoke again: "We're just casually chatting, our goal is also to help you and Old Ma resolve your differences. We people from Jiang City aren't the kind who bully others with our power, after all, we're all brothers within the four seas."

  "Hehe, old man said it well." Ning Yuan smiled and nodded: "How things are, I won't say much. The night before last, my clinic was smashed. This can't be hidden from people. Whether or not I, Ning Yuan, am talking nonsense, everyone knows in their hearts. Who smashed it, I won't say either. Anyway, I smashed back at Old Ma's place. What does that mean? To put it bluntly, I, Ning Yuan, will continue."

  As he spoke, Ning Yuan's gaze suddenly fell on Li Chuanhe, who had been keeping his head down and silent, sipping tea, and smiled faintly: "Master Li, aren't you going to say a couple of fair words for me?"

  As soon as he entered the conference room, seeing Ningyuan sitting inside made Lichuan River feel a bit apprehensive. In Shangjiang City, he had quite a status, otherwise Ma Baocheng wouldn't have invited him to be a public figure. However, when facing Ningyuan, he didn't dare put on airs as a senior.

  In his heart, he didn't like Ning Yuan, and stabbing him in the back was no big deal, but once it came to light, Ning Yuan was a senior, and he had to acknowledge him, whether he liked it or not. If word got out, even He Xiye, the leader of the Shan Lian Sect, would be at fault.

  So he entered the conference room, Li Chuanhe remained silent, bowed his head to drink tea, and did not plan to get involved in this matter. He was also nervous and prayed that Ning would not notice him, but this prayer obviously didn't work very well.

  As soon as Ningyuan said this, the people in the conference room all looked at Lichuan River. Ma Baocheng and Qiao Old Head were both somewhat surprised, not expecting that Ningyuan actually had a connection with Lichuan River.

  Among this group of people, although Li Chuanhe is seated in the fourth position, in terms of current influence, Li Chuanhe is absolutely the number one person. Old Master Qiao is old and has a high seniority, but he has also retired for many years. Everyone just gives him face and respectfully calls him "Old Master Qiao". In fact, this old man is just a slightly wealthy old man with no great power.

  However, Li Chuan River is different. He is a well-known master in Shangjiang City, and even the three major wealthy families of Qin and Jiang in Shangjiang City do not want to offend him, let alone these hoodlums.

  He was named by Ningyuan, and Lichuan River could no longer pretend not to know Ningyuan, nor could he remain silent. He had to stand up, look at Ningyuan with a bitter smile, and say: "Lichuan River has seen Senior Ningyuan. This time, I only heard it through the grapevine, and I don't dare to express my opinion casually."

  "Boom!"

  Li Chuan River opened his mouth, and the words that came out were like a thunderbolt, stunning everyone present, making them dizzy for a long time, unable to come back to their senses, sitting stupidly on the spot.

  Ma Baocheng, standing not far from Ningyuan, opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word. Old man Qiao, who was originally curious, now had wide eyes and an incredulous expression on his face.

  Everyone present was stunned, each and every one of them thought they had misheard.

  What did Ningyuan call Lichuan River?

  "Is it Elder Ning?"

  This scene left everyone present feeling incredulous and unbelievable, still incredulous and unbelievable.

  In the Jianghu, it is emphasized to respect seniority and hierarchy. When a junior meets a senior, regardless of whether they are willing or not, they must be polite in front of others. Even if it's just pretending, they still have to put on a show; otherwise, they will lose credibility and won't be able to stand firm in the Tao.

  The people who mix on the road are mostly those who have been through thick and thin, and when they were young, they were even more fierce. As they grow old, if they let newcomers bully them easily, wouldn't that be a waste of their whole life? After struggling for a lifetime, in the end, being trampled underfoot is something nobody wants to see. It's precisely because of this that those who mix on the rivers and lakes attach great importance to seniority. Once they encounter someone who doesn't know how to respect their elders, it often triggers public outrage, and everyone will gang up to attack them.

  Li Chuanhe has been in Shangjiang City for so many years, and is naturally considered a senior. Although most people don't know that Li Chuanhe comes from the Shan Lian Sect, based on his age, he also has a high status.

  However, it was this person who, at this time, bowed with a fist to a young man in his early twenties on the opposite side and called him "senior".

  In the Jianghu, there are also young seniors, teachers and apprentices, and ancestral masters who have not yet left their homes. This phrase is not a recent creation; however, it is still difficult for people to accept this fact.

  After being stunned, several old men were at a loss, neither sitting nor standing. These people are mostly of the same age as Li Chuanhe, and Li Chuanhe calls Ning Yuan "senior". What about these people?

  Just as everyone was in an awkward situation, Ning Yuan smiled faintly and said to Li Chuan, "Master Li doesn't need to be polite. Although our two families have some connections, this is Shangjiang City, so we don't need to stand on ceremony. Everyone can just do their own thing. Master Li can just call me Brother Ning."

  "I don't dare, I don't dare. If I do, I'll be presumptuous and call you Master Ning or Brother Ning, which is absolutely out of the question." Lichuan River hastily waved his hand, although he clearly knew that Ningyuan was using his influence to intimidate these big shots from Shangjiang City, but still had to acknowledge him, after all, who made him have an awesome master?

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