Chapter 3: Kicking the Scene

  For a moment, Jiang Shihao felt that he couldn't see through the young man in front of him. At just over twenty years old, he looked like a simple country youth, with an harmless smile on his face, but yet always spoke words that shocked people.

  While feeling curious, Jiang Shihao glanced at the young man laughing loudly outside the next room and considered suggesting that Ning Yuan treat him to test his skills. However, thinking about it, he felt that he wasn't very familiar with the Qin family, and it was also his first day meeting Ning Yuan, so he gave up on the idea. He stretched out his hand and pointed inside the room: "Mr. Ning, please."

  Ningyuan didn't have the habit of going up to people to treat them anyway, and looking at the other person's appearance, they should have just experienced a great joyous event. At this time, he went up to tell the other person that you are ill, and it's very serious, in case death is imminent, the other party will probably beat him up. It's better not to make trouble, so he followed Jiang Shihao into the private room.

  This kind of restaurant, Ningyuan is the first time to come, can't help but say, very high-end, the soundproofing effect of the private room is also very good, when the door of the private room is closed, the loud laughter outside can't be heard at all.

  Three people entered the private room, Jiang Shihao invited Ning Yuan to take a seat, Ning Yuan pushed it away, and the three of them sat down casually. After sitting down and ordering food, Jiang Shihao asked tentatively: "Mr. Ning, where are you from? Is this your first time in Shangjiang City?"

  "Ah, first time here, my hometown is Pingyang." Ning Yuan nodded and smiled faintly.

  "Flat Sun!" Jiang Shihao was taken aback and smiled: "Pingyang is a place with famous mountains and rivers everywhere, it can be said that people are talented and the land is spiritual. No wonder Mr. Ning is so accomplished at such a young age."

  " Famous mountains and great rivers!" Ningyuan muttered to himself, but didn't say much more. Pingyang was a place with hills, but not famous ones, just some mediocre scenic spot in the north, with no water scenery to speak of. The local government had been trying to develop it into a tourist area for years, but couldn't find any real value in it. That's why those small Taoist temples were still preserved and hadn't been demolished.

  Thinking of the small Taoist temple on the mountain, Ningyuan couldn't help but think of his deceased master from years ago, thinking of that old man with white hair and a youthful face yet without any hint of an immortal's demeanor.

  He was taken as a disciple by the old man since he was a child, actually due to a high fever. They originally lived at the foot of the mountain in Pingyang City, and whenever someone in the village had a headache or fever, they would go to see the old man on the mountain for treatment.

  The old man's name was Qingping, who claimed to be a Taoist priest, but his medical skills were excellent. When Ningyuan was three years old, he had a high fever and fell into a coma, and was sent to the Taoist temple, from then on, he became a member of the mountain.

  His parents were young people who went to the countryside, and later they also returned to the big city, but he stayed in the Taoist temple. Until now, Ningyuan still can't understand what the old Taoist said to his parents at that time, and the two of them just left him in the Taoist temple with such peace of mind.

  His name was also changed by Lao Dao later, meaning "quiet and far-reaching", what his original name was, he couldn't remember either, anyway, for so many years he hadn't seen his parents much, but instead had a good relationship with Lao Dao.

  His parents were the same, just a few phone calls when nothing was going on, and they would come to visit him in the mountains a few times a year. Later, he heard that business was busy, and they came even less often.

  Ningyuan had always been puzzled about whether he was born to his parents or not, but later on, as he often went down the mountain with Lao Dao, he saw more things and let it go, knowing that many things were beyond one's control.

  He followed Lao Dao for over a decade, and Ning Yuan had also learned most of Lao Dao's skills. However, he still preferred to diagnose people's illnesses. Before coming to Shang Jiang, he had actually wanted to pass on the position of sect leader to his second senior brother who remained at the Taoist temple, but the other party refused, so he could only give up.

  Anyway, got sidetracked.

  Jiang Shihao just wanted to hear Ning Yuan's words, but he felt more and more that Ning Yuan was a bit inscrutable, not at all like a young man in his early twenties, but rather like someone who had experienced many hardships.

  Ningyuan is a seasoned person, although young, but also considered an old-timer, having seen some things that even Jiang Shihao may not have seen, and naturally pushed open.

  Jiang Shihao asked a couple of questions, but got no results, so he didn't ask anymore. The dishes were served, and several people started eating. While eating, he kept inviting Ning Yuan to visit his company after dinner.

  At this time, Jiang Shihao no longer regarded Ning Yuan as a young man, even if Ning Yuan didn't understand Fengshui, his ability to identify antiques alone was worth befriending.

  After dinner, Ningyuan couldn't get out of it and followed Jiang Shihao to the branch company of the Jiang Group. When they arrived at the building, Ningyuan took a casual glance and saw that the place was quite good. The layout at the entrance of the building was also very particular, probably designed by Gu Fenglin. He chuckled and patted Gu Fenglin on the shoulder, saying: "Little Wind, not bad! It seems you've learned seven or eight tenths of Second Brother's skills."

  "Little Shu Shu, don't laugh at me, this little skill of mine is probably not even worth looking at in your eyes." Gu Feng Lin chuckled and said to Ning Yuan, surprisingly without his usual effeminate tone.

  As for Gu Fenglin, Ning Yuan's relationship with him was relatively good. Gu Fenglin had also stayed on the mountain for over a decade and was the youngest at that time. He took care of Ning Yuan very much. Although according to seniority, he should be addressed as "Shifu", in his heart, Ning Yuan always regarded Gu Fenglin as an uncle and wasn't used to Gu Fenglin addressing him with honorifics.

  However, he also knew that Gu Fenglin was intimidated by his second brother. This second brother of his was extremely stubborn and rarely smiled, insisting on being right. To be honest, Gu Fenglin himself was a bit afraid of him.

  "Mr. Ning, take a look at this place, how is it?" As Ning Yuan and Gu Fenglin were chatting and laughing, Jiang Shihao also timely inserted a sentence.

  Ning Yuan smiled faintly and said, "Very good, Xiao Feng's layout is very particular."

  Jiang Shihao was still waiting to hear more of Ning Yuan's lofty words, but unexpectedly Ning Yuan just said this one sentence that was neither here nor there and then stopped talking, leaving Jiang Shihao feeling slightly depressed again. He smiled awkwardly: "Mr. Ning, let's go up and take a look."

  Three people were talking and about to walk in, when suddenly three people walked out of the company entrance. The first one was over 50 years old, wearing a Tang suit, looking elegant and refined, with two middle-aged men in their 40s following him.

  Seeing the three people walking out, Gu Fenglin and Jiang Shihao's faces changed, they stopped in their tracks. Ning Yuan also stood silently on the side, coldly observing with a hint of surprise in his heart, he had not expected that upon arriving at Shangjiang City, he would encounter fellow disciples who practiced the same secret technique.

  The middle-aged man walking in front, wearing a Tang suit, looked ordinary and unremarkable, even a bit pretentious in his attire, but Ning Yuan could sense a faint aura emanating from him, which was precisely the sign of having just entered the threshold of the Xuanmen secret method.

  The "qi" referred to here is not the "air", but a special atmosphere. The inheritance of Chinese civilization for five thousand years, naturally has many mysterious and unsolved mysteries. This "qi" in the mysterious culture refers to a kind of intangible "subtle substance" that has not been recognized by modern science. This subtle substance cannot be clearly stated or explained, but it is truly existent.

  In ancient China, there were practitioners of Qi, also known as Fangshi. To ordinary people, these are myths or feudal superstitions, but to Ningyuan, they are not, because he himself is a half-baked Fangshi.

  Of course, Fang Shi wasn't as mysterious as the legend had it, but he was more mysterious than ordinary people. Ning Yuan had also asked Lao Dao if there were really immortals in this world. Lao Dao just smiled and said casually, "Immortals have always been human, where can you find their traces?"

  All along, Ningyuan thought that Lao Dao's words were pretentious, but after following Lao Dao and witnessing many mysterious things, he himself stepped into the doorway and no longer thought so. Whether or not there are immortals, he didn't know, but in this world, there absolutely exist things that modern science cannot explain.

  The culture of Huaxia starts from ignorance, the first thing to come into contact with is the natural world, as the saying goes, all things are born in heaven and earth, nature is the most mysterious, the more people know, the more ignorant they become.

  Ningyuan also learned from Lao Dao that nowadays, people who can cultivate secret methods are becoming fewer and fewer, almost extinct. He never thought that the first time he came to Shangjiang City, he would meet one.

  Although the person in front of him was only at the entrance to the secret method, it was enough to shock Ningyuan. The cultivation of the secret method is different from martial arts, and it's not something that can be achieved through diligent study and bitter practice alone. It also requires a chance encounter, or in simpler terms, it needs to resonate with nature. He himself had only entered this realm two years ago by chance, while Gu Fenglin still hadn't even reached the entrance.

  Just as Ningyuan was surprised, the three people had already arrived in front of Jiang Shihao. The middle-aged man in a suit who followed Tang Yizhong smiled and said to Jiang Shihao: "Third Brother, I heard that you have been setting up a branch company recently. I came over to take a look. You won't mind, will you?"

  "Lao Si, you can come and take a look, I'm so happy that I haven't had time to react yet, how could I mind?" Jiang Shihao said with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. Then he turned to the middle-aged man in Tang Yi's group and said politely: "Master Li, you also have some free time to come over, it's really an honor."

  It can be seen that the relationship between these two brothers is not harmonious.

  "Director Jiang has been polite, I owe Fourth Master a favor, and I accepted his invitation to take a look." The middle-aged man said with a slight nod, in a somewhat arrogant tone.

  Listening to the middle-aged man's words, Gu Fenglin suddenly changed his face. To know that everything is about rules, since he has already taken over Jiang Shihao's branch company, this piece is his responsibility. The middle-aged man came over so recklessly, no doubt kicking the scene and slapping him in the face. If the other party goes up and says that his layout is all wrong, won't Gu Fenglin lose face in Shanghai?