From Evil Sect Leader to Doctor-Chapter 401 - 375: A Pleasant Surprise

Master Xie drank that glass of wine, Xu Chunliang smiled and looked at Liu Kui, saying, "If we had called the police that night at the warehouse, wouldn’t your losses have been greater? Although we’re not familiar with each other, you really can’t distinguish between important matters and personal vendettas without considering the consequences."

Liu Kui’s face turned green. At the time, he indeed didn’t think much, believing that with Pu Jian in his hands, his cousin wouldn’t dare call the police. Many items in the warehouse belonged to Xie Zhiyuan, which meant they were also Master Xie’s. If the police were really called and losses occurred, Master Xie would never let him off.

Xu Chunliang came up to Liu Kui, picked up the glass of wine in front of him, and filled it up: "For the sake of Master Xie and Master Huang San, I offer you this drink!"

Liu Kui took the glass, ready to gulp it down, but noticed the wine had turned green, frightening him so much that he threw the glass to the ground.

Everyone was stunned, and Huang Wanglin said displeasedly, "Let bygones be bygones, even if you don’t want to drink, you don’t have to go that far."

Master Xie glared at Liu Kui in anger, not understanding the situation. He only saw Liu Kui break the glass, turning something reasonable into a disadvantage. Could this fool have a screw loose in his head? What’s with the unnecessary anger at this time?

Xu Chunliang, however, showed great tolerance, smiling, "It’s okay, slipping is a common thing."

Liu Kui pointed at the glass on the ground, stammering, "There was... there was..." He wanted to say poison but doubted whether he had hallucinated earlier and swallowed the word poison back.

Xu Chunliang asked the waiter to bring two new glasses, filled them, drank one in one gulp, then picked up the other and offered it to Liu Kui with both hands.

After being offered the drink twice, Master Xie thought that Liu Kui should count his blessings. This kid has quite a temper, it’s lucky I’m here, so he has to show some restraint, otherwise, he would never lower his head to apologize.

Liu Kui reluctantly took the wine glass, everyone noticed his hands were shaking.

Xie Zhiyuan sighed inwardly, with Liu Kui’s lack of courage, he is of little use. He needed to investigate what was going on, was Xu Chunliang really this intimidating to frighten Liu Kui to this extent?

Liu Kui held the glass of wine, seeing the transparent color, no trace of green, probably he had been mistaken.

Xu Chunliang said, "Brother Liu, drink this glass, and our past grievances will be forgiven."

Liu Kui steadied himself, looked at the wine again, made sure there were no problems, then summoned his courage to bring it to his lips. The moment the wine touched his lips, the color changed instantly, this time not green, but pink.

Liu Kui was so scared he threw the glass on the ground again, "Poison!"

This time even Master Xie couldn’t stand it, glaring at Liu Kui. Breaking two of their glasses and claiming the wine was poisoned—this guy really doesn’t know how to take a hint. Xu Chunliang might beat him up, and even Master Xie felt the urge to smack him.

Xu Chunliang said, "Liu Kui, it’s one thing not to give me face, but don’t falsely accuse. This meal is hosted by Master Huang San, saying that is just pointless."

Huang Wanglin was also displeased, saying coldly, "This wine was brought by me, are you suggesting I poisoned it?"

Master Xie slapped the table, "Apologize to Master Huang San right now!"

Liu Kui, face long, looked down at the spilled wine on the ground—no color. Could it really have been a hallucination?

With Huang Wanglin hosting, breaking two glasses was highly disrespectful. Liu Kui could only offer a smiling face and present two glasses of wine to Huang Wanglin. Now, no one mentioned having Xu Chunliang serve him any more, because even if he did, Liu Kui wouldn’t dare drink.

Huang Wanglin didn’t forget the main topic of the day, generously offering a toast with two glasses, "From today on, let bygones be bygones, spend more time thinking about making money, if you really can’t, improve your business skills. What’s the point in all this conflict?"

Liu Kui nodded repeatedly, already a startled bird by now, not daring to say a word, sneaking a glance at Xu Chunliang. The more he thought about it, the more bizarre it seemed, this person was too strange, someone he couldn’t afford to provoke.

Huang Wanglin continued, "I have an old friend who opened a hotel north of Beijing, needing some high-quality imitation antique decorations. Liu Kui, here is his card, contact him, say I sent you."

Master Xie quietly admired Huang Wanglin; he was essentially compensating Liu Kui. Though not necessarily matching Liu Kui’s losses, the money was clean. Nowadays, many hotels need high-quality fake antiques, spending little to raise their status significantly. It’s no wonder Huang Wanglin has such a reputation in the industry; this act alone shows it well, not only compensating Liu Kui’s loss but also maintaining his own dignity.

Pu Jian was extremely grateful to Huang Wanglin, who, without any personal gain, had helped him greatly, leaving Liu Kui with nothing more to say.

Liu Kui took the card, "Thank you, Third Master!"

Master Xie drank a glass of wine with Huang Wanglin, "Master Huang San, come across any great finds lately?"

Huang Wanglin smiled, "Where can you find great deals now? Aren’t you aware of the market? I only buy things at auctions now." The market is full of fakes, thanks to unscrupulous merchants like Master Xie.

Master Xie replied, "Auction prices are inflated."

Huang Wanglin said, "Have you acquired any treasures lately? Let me have a look!" He knew Master Xie had many connections, not only selling fakes, but also possessing many antiques of unknown origin.

Master Xie said, "What treasures could I have? Everything comes in the left hand and goes out the right. I can’t hold onto anything. By the way, you’re quite knowledgeable about oracle bone script. I came to consult you on something."

Huang Wanglin did have quite a collection of dragon bones, but in terms of studying oracle bone script, he was just a beginner, not a professional.

Huang Wanglin thought to himself, what a coincidence, there’s already an expert here,

Master Xie took a small cloth bag from his pocket. After opening it, he revealed a palm-sized piece of dragon bone: "Third Master, take a look. What exactly is written on this?"

Huang Wanglin picked up the dragon bone and looked at it. He could only recognize three of the characters; he wasn’t sure about most of them. He handed the dragon bone to Xu Chunliang, saying, "Xiaoxu, you’re an expert in this area. Have a look." Xu Chunliang had demonstrated profound knowledge in ancient scripts when he first arrived at Linzheng Hall.

Master Xie was extremely surprised. Huang Wanglin seemed to hold a young man in such high regard. However, he understood that every field has its specialist, and maybe this young man was indeed a specialist in oracle bone script.

Xu Chunliang took the dragon bone and just from one glance, he could determine that this dragon bone should be related to the "Heavenly Nourishment" Chapter of the Inner Canon of Huangdi. In other words, this dragon bone might be one of the pieces his grandfather had once donated. But why was it now in Master Xie’s possession? Could Master Xie also be connected to that event from back then?

He had obtained concealed dragon bone information from Xue Anliang, from which he deduced the first Chapter of "Heavenly Nourishment" and mastered the method of channeling through marrow. Yet, the second Chapter of "Heavenly Nourishment" remained lost. Only by finding it could the Book of Changes and the marrow be replenished, returning to the Innate state.

Xu Chunliang could conclude that the content recorded on this dragon bone was not in Bai Mushan’s data collection. It was unclear whether Xue Anliang’s provided data had omissions, or if this dragon bone had always been lost outside.

With a calm expression, Xu Chunliang looked at it for a while and said, "I recognize part of it."

Master Xie’s eyes lit up: "What is written on it?"

Xu Chunliang said, "It should be related to medicine, but just this one dragon bone alone is not enough to determine."

Huang Wanglin said, "Does Master Xie have any other dragon bones?"

Master Xie said, "To be honest, I do have a few."

Xu Chunliang was overjoyed. It was truly like finding something without effort after searching far and wide; this meal was definitely worth it.

Master Xie said, "Third Master, in your opinion, how much is this dragon bone worth?"

Huang Wanglin said, "The value of a dragon bone relates to the script upon it. Already discovered script isn’t worth much; the more undiscovered or uncracked it is, the more valuable it becomes. Of course, part of the value also depends on the content."

Although he was interested in collecting dragon bones, he wasn’t much interested in dealing with Master Xie. Most of Master Xie’s possessions were likely obtained through illicit means, making it certain that Huang Wanglin wouldn’t involve himself at his current standing in the industry. Master Xie, in fact, understood the market for oracle bones pretty well. Their value depends on their content.

Xu Chunliang said, "If Master Xie could bring the rest, I could help translate it for you."

Master Xie looked at Xu Chunliang, full of skepticism.

Huang Wanglin said, "Xiaoxu is deeply knowledgeable in oracle bone script, more so than I could ever claim to be."

Hearing this from Huang Wanglin, Master Xie knew it wasn’t a mere modest statement. It seemed this young man indeed had a knack for it.

Master Xie said, "These things aren’t with me. Third Master, do you remember Sun Lao Nian?"

Huang Wanglin nodded. Sun Lao Nian came from a family of thieves. In his youth, he resorted to stealing, cheating, tomb raiding, and all manner of illicit activities, leading to his arrest and imprisonment. He and Master Xie were cellmates, with Master Xie serving seven years before being released, while Sun Lao Nian served a full twelve years.

After Master Xie’s release, he declared he was turning over a new leaf, retreating into the background. As for Sun Lao Nian, he resumed his old ways shortly after getting out, frequently finding himself back in prison.

Master Xie said, "Sun Lao Nian died last month. When I went to pay my respects at his house, his son brought out this item asking if it was easy to sell, hoping to get a good price. There are about thirty-two pieces in total."

Huang Wanglin asked, "How much does he want for it?"

Master Xie said, "He wants to exchange it for a two-bedroom apartment in the Capital City."

Huang Wanglin shook his head. Even a modest apartment in the Capital City costs millions. Frankly, he didn’t believe these could be worth that much. Thirty-two pieces, with around ten characters each, totaling about four hundred characters—hardly a complete text.

Huang Wanglin said, "If these items don’t have a problematic background, we could go through auction channels and maybe get a pleasant surprise."

Knowing what he was worried about, Master Xie confidently said, "Third Master, I assure you this batch of dragon bones won’t have any issues. I asked around, but auction houses aren’t very interested in these things."