Chapter 90
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Chapter 90: The Banquet at Hongmen
After leaving the Qin family, Yu Jinghai immediately began to plot his own schemes.
Naturally, he wanted to take revenge on Ye Chen and reclaim the precious clam shell that Ye Chen had taken from him, but that alone was not enough!
This time he came to Jinling not only to establish his authority but also to recruit a group of followers to provide more support for his endeavors.
Thus, he devised a plan that he believed would serve both purposes.
He intended to use Ye Chen as a means to intimidate others and make the entire Jinling submit!
Ye Chen was unaware that the so-called Master Yu was plotting to use him as a sacrificial pawn.
In the evening, as he was preparing to buy groceries and cook, he suddenly received a call from Song Wanting.
Upon answering, Song Wanting spoke in a serious tone, directly telling Ye Chen, “Mr. Ye, that Yu Jinghai has invited some masters from the antique, feng shui, and metaphysics circles to hold a banquet at the Wang family. He asked me to see if you have time to attend.”
“The Wang family? Which Wang family?”
Song Wanting replied, “A medium-sized family. They have two male descendants, Wang Yunfei and Wang Yunkai.”
“Those two? Why would they choose to host it at their place?” Ye Chen asked, puzzled.
Song Wanting explained, “Recently, the Wang family has been facing difficulties. Their son Wang Yunkai and nephew Wang Yunfei have both encountered problems, and the family’s business has plummeted. So the head of the Wang family sought out Yu Jinghai to help them change their feng shui.”
Continuing, Song Wanting added, “But I think Yu Jinghai inviting a bunch of metaphysics masters might not just be about making some money from the Wang family; he probably has other intentions.”
Ye Chen chuckled, unconcerned, and said, “I snatched that clam shell at the auction and even gave him a hard time. It’s certain he wants revenge; I guess this time he set a trap for me!”
With a slight smile, Ye Chen continued, “However, I will go this time to see face-to-face what tricks he has up his sleeve.”
Seeing him agree, Song Wanting said, “Alright, the location is at the Wang family. Tomorrow morning, let’s go together; I’ll drive to pick you up.”
“Okay.”
…
The next morning, Song Wanting drove to pick up Ye Chen and head to the Wang family.
The Wang family’s villa was located on the hillside in the suburbs, surrounded by beautiful scenery.
The courtyard was filled with pavilions and towers, all built in a traditional style. The Wang family had spent over a hundred million on renovations, using it to host distinguished guests or entertain friends, making it quite grand.
Outside the pavilion by the lake, dozens of Huanghuali wood chairs were set up, and several invited guests were already seated, chatting and laughing.
Sitting at the main seat was a slightly plump middle-aged man, Wang Zhenggang, who was Wang Yunkai’s father.
Next to him was Master Yu Jinghai.
In addition to these two, Ye Chen also recognized two familiar faces: Li Tailai, the richest man in Haicheng, and his companion Guo Ming.
Upon seeing Ye Chen enter, Li Tailai and his companion nodded in acknowledgment.
Wang Zhenggang, however, cast a sidelong glance at him and snorted coldly.
It was clear he knew that Wang Yunkai and Wang Yunfei had suffered losses at Ye Chen’s hands, so he showed no friendly demeanor upon seeing Ye Chen.
Bao Fugui quickly stood up to greet them, saying, “Mr. Ye, Miss Song, you have arrived.”
Ye Chen nodded and smiled, “Just here to witness the talents of the masters.”
A middle-aged man in a long gown asked in surprise, “Is this the buyer who spent a billion at the auction to acquire the prized clam shell?”
Bao Fugui smiled and introduced, “Indeed, it’s Master Ye.”
“What? Master?” Wang Zhenggang sneered, glancing at Ye Chen, then laughed, “The title of ‘master’ is becoming worthless these days; any useless person can claim to be a master, while true masters like Master Yu remain so low-key.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd fell into an awkward silence.
It wasn’t that Wang Zhenggang intended to belittle him; it was simply that Ye Chen, in terms of age, attire, and demeanor, hardly qualified to be called a “master.”
The masters present were all prominent figures in the metaphysics community, and many felt uncomfortable at the thought of addressing a young man like Ye Chen as “Master Ye.”
Yu Jinghai stood up, calmly smiling, “No worries. I borrowed the Wang family’s venue to hold this banquet to meet everyone. As for who is the true master and who is merely seeking fame, that will become clear later.”
Hearing Yu Jinghai’s words, the crowd couldn’t help but show disdain towards Ye Chen.
This young upstart could hardly be anything but a fame-seeker.
Song Wanting frowned slightly; she knew Yu Jinghai would target Ye Chen, but she hadn’t expected the atmosphere to be so tense right from the start.
However, Ye Chen remained indifferent, walking straight to his chair and sitting down, seemingly oblivious to everything around him.
Once everyone had arrived, Wang Zhenggang spoke up, “Since everyone is here, let me explain. Today, Master Yu is using our Wang family’s venue for this banquet, partly to get to know everyone and partly to engage in some friendly competition.”
“How will we compete?” someone asked.
“Naturally, we will judge based on the level of our skills.”
At this moment, Yu Jinghai stepped forward to explain, “The rules are simple. As we all know, the metaphysics community encompasses five disciplines: mountain, medicine, fate, face, and divination. You can choose your area of expertise to select an opponent for the contest!”
“To make it official, the Wang family will sponsor the funds. Each contest will have a prize of five million; the winner takes home five million, and the loser will receive fifty thousand as travel expenses.”
This rule seemed reasonable, and with money to be made, many nodded in agreement.
Typically, practitioners in the metaphysics community operate independently, rarely revealing their trump cards. Today, those attending the banquet were all capable individuals, and gathering to compete not only allowed them to gauge each other’s abilities but also offered a chance to win money—two birds with one stone.
“Is it just for friendly competition?” Ye Chen scoffed slightly; he didn’t believe that Yu Jinghai was hosting today’s banquet merely to prove his own profound skills.
After Wang Zhenggang and others finished discussing, he continued, “However, merely setting up a prize might not ignite everyone’s enthusiasm, as everyone here is quite wealthy and doesn’t lack a few million.”
“So, to encourage more participation, there’s an additional condition: the winner can either take the five million prize or claim one item from the loser!”
“And the final victor will be recognized as the foremost authority in the metaphysics community of the South Guang region. From now on, all practitioners in the South Guang area will regard him as their leader, and any matters, big or small, will require the leader’s consent!”
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire courtyard fell silent.
After a moment, it erupted into a clamor, with many expressing their dissatisfaction and debating among themselves.
“What if the challenger chooses a discipline that the challenged is not skilled in?”
“Isn’t this just seizing territory under the guise of being the best in the South Guang metaphysics community?”
“Is this a joke? The metaphysics community in South Guang has always operated independently; now we are expected to obey someone else? This is absurd. Besides, aren’t there people here who aren’t from South Guang?”
The crowd buzzed with discussion, and no one had anticipated that this so-called banquet was actually a trap set by Yu Jinghai to unify the South Guang metaphysics community!
