Bai Zhengchu unexpectedly got involved with that batch of fraudulent jadeite raw stones, and just after the Xiao Family had finished punishing a mole, the timing was too coincidental. Lin Tian didn’t need to think hard to know that the Bai Family was shirking responsibility. Watching his impeccably sincere expression, Lin Tian couldn’t help but admire the old guy’s acting skills.
Indeed, every businessman was a superb actor; this was true of the Xiao Family’s "second brother" and Bai Zhengchu alike. Compared to them, professional actors were simply amateurs.
"Mrs. Xiao, Miss Xiao, it was our idea to purchase those fraudulent jadeite raw stones for the Xiao Family. Blinded by money, we tampered with the stones and passed off inferior goods as superior ones in order to swindle money from the Xiao Family. The Bai Family was completely unaware; this was a mistake made out of our own selfishness. Mrs. Xiao, we accept any punishnt you te out, please do not misunderstand the Bai Family." A middle-aged man recounted with seemingly genuine remorse on his face.
Mrs. Xiao furrowed her brows, astonished by how quickly the Bai Family acted; they’d already found scapegoats before she could confront them. How could she possibly believe this man’s tall tales? But this had been the Bai Family’s preemptive plan all along: if anything went wrong, these scapegoats would take the bla, leaving the Xiao Family without any leverage.
Bai Zhengchu looked deeply pained and said somberly, "These two masters have been ritorious figures in the Bai Family for many years; it’s regrettable that they committed such an act. However, for the sake of the long-standing relationship between our two families and to demonstrate the Bai Family’s integrity, I brought them here myself, bound and at your disposal."
Damn, so righteous and upright, the Bai Family is! They were just betting on Mrs. Xiao’s softheartedness, knowing full well she wouldn’t push them to a dead end, thus they shalessly had them self-admit their guilt.
Lin Tian sneered and stepped forward to say, "Old Bai’s righteousness in dealing with his own kin is truly touching, but you say you’ve brought them bound, yet I see them standing here unbound. In ancient tis, people would request punishnt with thorns on their backs. This shows a complete lack of sincerity. Or are you saying the ropes you used to bind them were invisible?"
Bai Zhengchu was just putting on a façade, then offering pleasantries; he knew Mrs. Xiao wouldn’t truly care about these details. However, he hadn’t expected to encounter an uncompromising figure like Lin Tian, who wouldn’t engage in such hollow civilities.
"Yuze, what’s this about? Didn’t I instruct you to bind them before coming here? Why have you untied them? What kind of work is this! I’ll tie you up when we get back so you rember this lesson, daring to disobey my orders!" Bai Zhengchu was an old cunning fox too, reversing the situation to scold his grandson.
Bai Yuze behind them was also taken aback, obviously not having received such instructions, yet suddenly had the bla shifted onto him. Then, Bai Yuanhao nudged him with an elbow, and Bai Yuze soon realized what was happening.
Lowering his head, he said, "Grandfather, it was my fault. I thought they were too old to withstand being bound for a long ti, so I had them untied."
What a grand performance the grandfather and grandson duo put on, Lin Tian had truly opened his eyes. The two middle-aged n were only in their forties or fifties—how old could they be? Besides, they were in good health and robust. To spin such an obvious lie so effortlessly, their skin had to be extraordinarily thick.
"Mrs. Xiao, please decide how to handle this matter; I have no objections," Bai Zhengchu had learned to avoid talking to Lin Tian.
He avoided talking to Lin Tian, but Lin Tian wanted to speak; this Bai Family man only knew how to bully won. Especially you, Bai Zhengchu, old with white hair, yet still have the gall to lay hands on a defenseless woman, so ’man’ you are.
"Old Bai, according to you, any way of handling this matter is fine, right?" Lin Tian blocked in front of Mrs. Xiao, challenging the old man.
"Of course, whatever Mrs. Xiao suggests, any way she wants to handle it is fine," Bai Zhengchu wasn’t a fool; he knew better than to deal with Lin Tian, knowing it wouldn’t end well.
"Old Bai, sothing happened in the Xiao Family today, and I’m not feeling very well, so I’ll hand this matter over to Lin Tian to handle. I won’t oppose any decision he makes," Mrs. Xiao wasn’t straightforward either, knowing she couldn’t take drastic asures, it was better to leave it all to Lin Tian.
This left Bai Zhengchu without any recourse, as last ti he had sent his hired thugs to invite Lin Tian over, not only did the invitation fail, but the thugs ended up being arrested. They had carried heavy weapons, leading to either execution on the spot or life imprisonnt; a significant loss of good n. The only consolation was that the Bai Family wasn’t implicated, but soon after, the Ghost dissociated from him, and since then, Bai Zhengchu knew Lin Tian was not to be trifled with.
"What is Mr. Lin’s opinion then?" Bai Zhengchu no longer dared to call him Xiao Tian or similar diminutives, as Lin Tian’s reputation was now on par with the Bai Family. Although Lin Tian was still a student, his societal status was now that of a master jade gambler.
He leisurely looked at the two middle-aged n, his smile harmless, yet his words were stunning: "Gentlen, gambling on jade is like gambling on money; if your skills are high enough, and nobody can detect your cheating, nor is it discovered afterwards, that doesn’t count as cheating. In fact, others will even regard you as a gambling king or a gambling god. But unfortunately..."
Lin Tian paused after the ’but,’ allowing them ti to digest his words. Bai Zhengchu and his entourage all furrowed their brows, clearly understanding his point, which is exactly why they were unhappy about it.
"Unfortunately, we’ve already found out, so you’ll have to accept it. I do things by the book, not only do we demand you compensate us at the original price, we also require an additional fifty percent as a hush fee. That’s the rule in our line of business, right?" Lin Tian learned much from Elder Zhou, and he was quite familiar with these unwritten rules of the Jade Industry’s gambling circles.
With the hush fee paid, the matter could be settled privately, otherwise, the consequences would be more severe. However, the total amount of the compensation plus the hush fee was astronomical; if the Bai Family didn’t pay for them, these two middle-aged n definitely couldn’t afford it. Besides, they were just scapegoats; they wouldn’t be foolish enough to pay out of their own pockets.
Bai Zhengchu was at a loss, thinking that the matter would have been easy to fudge over, but now that Lin Tian had spoken, it suddenly beca incredibly difficult.
"If you don’t speak, it ans you disagree with my way of handling this, so, by the rules, each of you leaves an arm and you’re free to go," Lin Tian said coldly, devoid of his previous smile.
The situation had developed in a way that the Bai Family didn’t expect, and Bai Zhengchu realized that as soon as he entered the gates of the Xiao Family villa, things seed to have already spiraled out of his control. All of this was because of the young man in front of him, whose cold and callous thods made him feel as if he were a rabbit and the other party a hawk.
"Old Bai, this..." The two middle-aged n looked to Bai Zhengchu for help, unwilling to agree to this, whether it ant paying a hefty sum or losing an arm, both were unacceptable to them.
Before coming here, Bai Zhengchu had assured them that the situation at worst would an they could no longer mingle in the Jade Industry, but now, they were being asked to leave an arm!
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