Chapter 939: Taking sides
Master Gu couldn't help but be stunned when he looked at the big man in front of him, his face blooming like autumn chrysanthemums and his smile brighter than the sun.
Is this Fan Jin and Fan Diansi?
He almost didn't recognize it...
Mo Hua also smiled and said: "Fan Diansi, long time no see."
"Long time no see, long time no see." Fan Diansi said cheerfully, then he bent down his tall body and extended his hand in a gesture of invitation, "Master Gu, please come inside."
"Fan Diansi is welcome." Mo Hua smiled.
"You're welcome, you're welcome."
Fan Diansi was in front, leading Mo Hua and Mo Hua into the inner hall. After sitting down, he called: "Come here."
The executive officer from before came over.
Fan Jin said: "Serve the tea." Then he was afraid that his subordinates would be stupid, and without blinking, he whispered again, "Serve the tea."
The executive was stunned for a moment, then asked in a low voice: "Diansi, is it...the tea in the top compartment? Last time Master Gu came..."
Fan Jin ordered him to shut up with his eyes and whispered, "Better."
The executive murmured: "It seems... there is nothing better..."
Fan Jin's old face turned red and he began to feel angry again.
This idiot's brain is really made of elm wood.
With such a subordinate on the stall, he really can't make any progress.
"There is a small box above, and there is a jade box in the box..."
The chief executive nodded and was suddenly startled, "That's not what the chief treasured..."
If it weren't for the distinguished guest, Fan Jin would have wanted to kick him.
"If I ask you to get it, just take it. Where's all this nonsense?"
Seeing that Fan Jin seemed a little angry, the executive director didn't dare to be verbose. He immediately said "yes" and ran down to steal tea.
Fan Jin sighed, turned his head, and saw Mo Hua's big clear eyes staring at him. He couldn't help but blush, and said with a smile:
"It's a remote country, and the men we recruit are also stupid, which makes the young master laugh."
"Fan Diansi is being humble," Mo Hua asked curiously, "But if you entertain me with the boss's tea and let your boss know about it, won't you blame me?"
"In other words," Fan Jin said with a smile, "if the boss knew that he could entertain Mr. Mo with these teas, it would be too late to be happy."
How could Fan Jin not know what kind of person this young master is in front of him?
The genius of the Eight Gates, the little monster of the Taixu Gate.
The last time he heard Mo Hua's name, Fan Jin had a guess in his mind.
Later, I tried my best to verify it and found that it was indeed true!
In the Tao Discussion Conference, with the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, he suppressed four sects, topped eight sects, suppressed thousands of qianxue sects, and became the leader of the "Array Dao Leader".
Originally, Fan Jin knew nothing about formations and didn't pay much attention to the formation conference.
But there was no way. The leader of the formation in the middle stage of foundation building was too "perverted". He was so perverted that he, Bian Diansi, who was far away in Gushan City and never cared about formations, had also heard of Mo Hua's name.
Such a person drinks the boss's tea.
If the boss goes out to brag, he will have plenty to talk about within three years.
Not only would he not blame himself, he might even thank himself.
After a while, the tea was served. The tea soup was bright and fragrant. It was indeed good tea.
Mo Hua took a sip and nodded.
Fan Jin observed the words and expressions, and nodded when he saw the ink painting, with a satisfied expression. He was relieved, and the smile on his face became wider:
"I wonder why the young master and Master Gu came here?"
Mo Hua glanced at Master Gu and said, "Master Gu and I went to Gushan. When we came back, we found some traces, like those left by tomb robbers. I thought there was something fishy about this matter, so I came to Daotingsi to inform Fan Diansi said "
"Tomb robbery?" Fan Jin was a little surprised.
"Fan Diansi didn't find any such signs before?"
"No," Fan Jin shook his head, a little puzzled, and muttered in his heart, "Gushan, a place where birds don't shit, why are you robbing tombs? I'm afraid it's not a trick in the brain..."
Of course, he did not dare to neglect the issues mentioned by Mo Hua, and immediately promised: "Don't worry, sir, I will conduct a strict investigation afterwards to prevent any nefarious people from plotting evil intentions."
Mo Hua nodded, lowered his head and took a sip of tea. Feeling the sweet aftertaste of the tea entering his throat, he felt better.
But when he looked up, he noticed that Fan Jin was pouring tea into his mouth like a cow chewing peonies. On the surface, he looked normal, but he was uneasy and seemed to be a little impetuous in his heart.
Mo Hua's mind was slightly moved and he asked: "Fan Diansi, could it be that the promotion is not going well?"
Fan Diansi was startled and said in surprise: "How did you figure this out?"
Mo Hua took a sip of tea and said nothing.
Fan Diansi didn't feel comfortable asking any more questions and sighed, "To be honest, young master, recently... everything has not been going well."
Mo Hua asked: "Fan Diansi should have made a lot of contributions in the last siege of the Demon Sect, right?"
A large part of the Mo Sect's information was "leaked" to Daotingsi after Mo Hua dug it out with thunder magnets.
Many of Daotingsi's plans are also clear in the ink paintings.
Although Fan Diansi did not make any great achievements in wiping out the Demon Sect, he worked conscientiously and was not afraid of hardship. Even if it was just ordinary small achievements, they would add up to a lot.
Mo Hua probably calculated that with Fan Diansi's hard work and his achievements, although he would not be promoted to the fifth rank Qianxue Daotingsi in one step, he would be promoted to the fourth rank, or to someone else who is slightly wealthy. There should be no problem with some third-level state boundaries.
Fan Jin felt aggrieved, and there was no one to talk to here in Gushan. As soon as the conversation started, he poured beans into his mouth and said to Mo Hua:
"To be honest, young master, my contribution should be enough. I even asked Gu Diansi for advice before. Gu Diansi said that according to the regulations of Daotingsi, generally speaking, there is no problem. Even if he is not promoted , at least it can be relocated. ”
"I was so happy that I just sat at home, waiting for the good news. But who knew that the process would go on and on, and at the end, I got stuck. It said that I was not qualified enough and still needed to be inspected. His grandmother's... …”
Fan Jin didn't pay attention and said dirty words.
Mo Hua asked: "Do you know who stuck you?"
Fan Jin smiled bitterly, "How can I, a small and powerless Diansi, know about this kind of promotion matter within the Daoting Division? I'm just like a chess piece, at the mercy of the superiors."
Mo Hua glanced at Fan Jin quietly.
As far as he knew, Daotingsi's appointment mostly depended on interests and connections, but the promotion of a small Diansi would not be blocked for no reason.
Maybe someone wants to keep Fan Diansi in Gushan City?
It is better to be still than to move.
Some people don’t want the Daoting Division of Gushan City to undergo personnel changes...
"Fan Diansi," Mo Hua asked, "Are you familiar with the Shen family?"
Fan Jin was slightly shocked, "Shen family?"
"Yeah."
Fan Jin thought for a moment, "I have had some interactions, but the threshold of the Shen family is too high. I can't make friends with them, and I don't know them well."
Mo Hua nodded and asked: "North of Gushan, there is a large area of the Shen family's hilltop. Is the Shen family still mining that hilltop?"
Fan Jin shook his head, "I don't know anything else, but it's absolutely impossible to mine that mountain top again. Back then, all the major families were like locusts crossing the border, wiping out everything that could be harvested in Gushan, and there was no soup left to drink. Now, How is it possible that there is still some mining?”
"Since there is nothing to collect, why do the Shen family still occupy that hilltop and prevent others from approaching?" Mo Hua was a little confused.
"This... is indeed a bit weird." Fan Jin frowned, "But the hilltop was bought by the Shen family after all. They can do whatever they want, and no one else can control it..."
Fan Jin said, glanced at Mo Hua suspiciously, and asked in a low voice: "Young Master, why are you... asking about the Shen family?"
"It's nothing," Mo Hua blinked and said casually, "I passed by and saw it. I was curious, so I asked by the way."
"Oh..."
Fan Jin was doubtful.
Mo Hua took another sip of tea, then stood up and said goodbye, "It's getting late, I should go back."
Fan Jin panicked and said quickly: "Young Master has come all the way. You must let me fulfill my friendship as a landlord and entertain you well."
"Fan Diansi is too polite." Mo Hua excused himself.
Fan Jin begged: "Please do me a favor, young master."
He didn't want the "noble man" who came to his door to just leave. Wouldn't his work have been in vain?
At least we have to have a meal and have some friendship. Otherwise, if you miss this village, you won’t know if there is still this shop in your life.
Mo Hua hesitated.
It's not that he's being polite, but his time off is limited and he really has other things to investigate.
When Fan Jin saw this, he immediately said: "Young Master, I invite you to be a guest at the Hongyan Tower. This is the largest restaurant in Gushan City."
The biggest restaurant?
Mo Hua thought, "Is this dining room the property of the Shen family?"
"Exactly." Fan Jin said.
Mo Hua's eyes flashed slightly and he nodded, "Then let Fan Diansi spend the money."
"Where is it?" Fan Diansi was overjoyed and said with cupped hands, "Sir, please."
"Please."
Master Gu on the side saw this and muttered in his heart: "This Fan Datou is really willing to spend a lot of money... But then again, he can have such vision and enthusiasm for the business, if he is not really from a poor background, has no power and no connections. , he must have gotten out of it a long time ago.”
Afterwards, Fan Jin led the way. The group left Daotingsi and went to the largest restaurant located in the most prosperous area of Gushan City:
Hongyan Tower.
When they arrived in front of Hongyan Tower, Mo Hua looked up and was a little surprised.
This building is so grand.
A marginal and poor third-level immortal city, the dining buildings in the city are no less magnificent than some high-end dining buildings in Taixu City within the boundaries of the fifth-level state.
Sure enough, no matter how poor a place is, there are rich people.
On the other hand, it is precisely because in some places the rich are too rich that the poor become poorer.
"The Shen family..."
Mo Hua's eyes narrowed slightly.
Fan Jin booked a private room in Hongyan Tower and ordered a table of delicacies to treat Mo Hua.
During the dinner, Fan Jin kept adding wine and food to Mo Hua.
He is obviously a golden elixir and has a burly figure, but he is extremely skilled at doing these things, not much worse than his hammer-wielding demon-slaying cultivator. Mo Hua praised him as a talent.
After drinking for three rounds, the three of them exchanged pleasantries and gossip, and the atmosphere became quite familiar.
Mo Hua asked: "How many properties does the Shen family have in Gushan City?"
"That's natural." Fan Jin drank wine, his face was red, and he pointed to the roof, "This Hongyan Tower belongs to the Shen family. In addition, on the way here, we saw those Dan Pavilion, Weapon Refining Pavilion, and Shang Family. The pavilion... also belongs to the Shen family.”
There are also some things that are not suitable for children, but Fan Jin didn't mention them.
Those places of smoke and willows are mostly vulgar and vulgar, and are used to welcome people and discuss business.
The young master is as cool as the moon as he is, and he cannot tolerate these slanderous qualities.
Fan Jin said: "These are the properties that the Shen family built here in order to mine bright chalcopyrite when Gushan was prosperous."
"The Shen family bought a hilltop, mined the mines, made a lot of spiritual stones, bought a food, drink and entertainment industry, and made another lot of money."
Mo Hua frowned and remembered something: "As the saying goes, you can eat the mountain if you rely on the mountain. According to the general laws of the Taoist court, Gushan City is adjacent to Gushan, so the minerals in Gushan should be jointly owned by the monks in the city. Why was it sold to the Shen family? ?”
"This situation is more complicated..." Fan Jin was a little embarrassed to say.
Mo Hua poured him a glass of wine.
Fan Jin was immediately flattered, and finally sighed, "That's all, everyone with a discerning eye knows this kind of thing, and I won't hide it from the young master..."
"The regulations of the Taoist court are just regulations. The mines in Gushan are nominally occupied by all the monks in Gushan City. But in fact, who can occupy it, who can occupy more, and who can occupy less, there are too many doorways here. .”
"The local small family has ancestral property and can occupy a small piece of hilltop."
"Rogue cultivators who come from the same clan and have the same surname can also mine on fixed hills."
"There are also some scattered mines for homeless monks to make a living by mining."
"Of course, Daotingsi can also occupy a piece..."
"Although the overall situation is chaotic, it is relatively reasonable. Everyone can have something to eat, and the entire Gushan mineral resources are enough to feed the people of this city."
Fan Jin shook his head and sighed: "But later, when various aristocratic families, especially the Shen family, came, things were different..."
"Most casual cultivators are ignorant and short-sighted. The Shen family came over and wanted to buy the mines at a high price. Many of them were greedy and sold them immediately."
"Those who don't sell will be persecuted by the Shen family."
"Some people want to gather a crowd to resist the Shen family. But people's hearts are different. Some are greedy for money, some are greedy for sex, and some want to cling to them. Once they are secretly used by the Shen family, they are divided and can't make a difference."
"After this back and forth, a large area of the mountain was sold to the Shen family."
Mo Hua frowned slightly, "Now that the mines have been sold, how can the monks of Gushan City still rely on them to make a living?"
Fan Jin said: "The Shen family promised that after they bought the mine, they would still recruit casual cultivators to mine for them, and the promised price was not low."
Fan Jin couldn't help but sneer. He didn't know whether he was sneering at the Shen family or the casual cultivators.
"As a result, once the mine is sold, if you try to get the Shen family to fulfill their promise, others will ignore you."
"A family like the Shen family has a developed industry, builds large spiritual weapons, and uses formations to mine, just like running water. Where do we need those low-level casual cultivators who work hard, hammering and hammering?"
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"The casual cultivators know that they have been fooled, and it will be useless to try to cause trouble. The mine already belongs to someone else. It is clearly written in the spiritual contract."
"Even though there were several fights between aristocratic families and casual cultivators later on due to disputes over the mines, how could the arm be twisted past the thigh?"
"After a few bloodsheds and a few people died, the casual cultivators became nothing more than a piece of loose sand..."
"What's next..." Fan Jin looked out the window at the withered Gushan. "After the family mined the mines, they took the rich minerals and withdrew directly, leaving behind the tattered Gushan. The monks in Gushan City had no way to make a living. Ben, he died, he fled, and the population of Gushan City fell sharply, becoming what it is now..."
After Fan Jin finished speaking, he looked sad. Master Gu also felt emotional.
The atmosphere was a little dull for a while.
Mo Hua thought for a moment, his eyes flickered, and he said to Fan Jin: "When it comes to this matter, Dao Tingsi has something to do with it, right?"
The aristocratic family coerced and lured the loose cultivators, signed spiritual contracts, annexed the mines, and then suppressed the rebellion of the loose cultivators.
There is no need to think about it, Daotingsi must be adding fuel to the fire.
Otherwise, the Shen family would not be able to do many things regarding rules and regulations.
Mo Hua looked at Fan Jin silently.
Fan Jin was flustered by the sight of Mo Hua, and he quickly waved his hands and said: "It has nothing to do with me."
The ink painting is noncommittal.
Fan Jin said helplessly: "This is all a matter of the last Dao Tingsi. At that time, I had not even joined the Dao Tingsi, and I didn't know the specific ins and outs."
"What about the people from the previous Dao Tingsi?" Mo Hua asked.
"Promoted."
"Promoted?" Mo Hua looked a little complicated.
Fan Jin sighed: "They helped the Shen family, annexed the mines, mined so much ore, and earned so many spiritual stones, which made Gushan City 'prosperous' for a time. On the bright side, this is naturally a great achievement. With this, Due to his merits and the fact that the Shen family operated from it, Dian Si was naturally promoted early and became famous. ”
"By the time I became a pawnbroker, it was already a mess. I didn't even have a chance to 'help the tyrants do evil'."
He was honest and said what was on his mind.
"Moreover, it's not just Daotingsi who has been promoted." Fan Jin's eyes darkened, "The Gushan mineral deposit is a symbol of the rise of the Shen family. The Shen family relies on the wealth they made in Gushan to operate everywhere. This step by step With today’s status ”
"Some side branches of the Shen family also made huge profits due to the operation of the mine, and became the core of the family."
Fan Jin kept shaking his head when he said these words, not knowing whether it was envy or jealousy.
Master Gu said nothing, but his expression was obviously angry.
It's just that the Shen family is too powerful, and monks like them dare not speak out even if they are dissatisfied.
The ink paintings also show deep contemplation.
The banquet ended in a slightly dull atmosphere.
Fan Jin breathed a sigh of relief. At least his goal was initially achieved.
He invited Mr. Mo to dinner and told so many secrets.
This friendship is somewhat deep. If I have the opportunity in the future, I will help this young master with a small favor. As time goes by, the friendship becomes deeper.
Finally, I can hug someone with extraordinary origins.
After eating, the three of them left the private room and walked along the gorgeous corridor outside the building. They met a group of people, currently a young man from an aristocratic family, followed by three or four people.
The two sides passed each other. Mo Hua was thinking about something and only glanced at it briefly, but didn't pay much attention.
But before he had taken a few steps, he suddenly heard someone shouting at him:
"Stop!"
The sound stopped so suddenly that everyone was stunned for a moment.
Mo Hua turned his head and found that the person who asked him to "stop" was the young master from the aristocratic family opposite.
This young man from an aristocratic family is dressed in rich clothes and has an arrogant expression.
But Mo Hua had no impression of him, and seemed unfamiliar with him. He didn't understand what this person was doing, so he stopped him when he had nothing to do.
"I recognize you, you are Mo Hua." The young master from the aristocratic family said.
"Oh..."
Mo Hua responded casually.
He is now considered a "celebrity", and it seems normal to be recognized while walking on the street.
Mo Hua has gradually adapted to it.
"You don't know me?" The young man from aristocratic family said with a cold face.
Mo Hua wanted to say that he didn't know him, but he felt it was not polite, so he said tactfully, "You are..."
The ink painting was so "arrogant" that a trace of hostility appeared in the eyes of the young master of this family, "On New Year's Eve, in Qingzhou City, you and I met once, and I was behind Mr. Linshu..."
Mo Hua remembered it and suddenly realized:
"You are the follower."
Follower...
Standing in the middle of the crowd, the young man from an aristocratic family, being held in high esteem by the stars, immediately turned pale.
It is true that he is Shen Linshu's "follower", but not everyone is qualified to say this "follower".
I dare not say it in other places, but this is in the remote Gushan City. He, the master of the Shen family, has everything he wants to do, and he always does whatever he wants.
No one has ever dared to call him a "follower".
"Things with eyes but no eyes..." The young man from aristocratic family looked ugly and ordered the people behind him, "Go, tear his mouth open and dig out his eyes..."
Behind the young master, a Jin Dan stepped forward immediately, with a murderous look on his body.
Master Gu's expression was stern, and he immediately stood in front of Mo Hua without thinking, with the golden elixir aura exuding.
"Golden elixir?" The noble master sneered, "Are you going to compete with me in Gushan City?"
Before he finished speaking, another Jin Dan stood up behind him, with hands as sharp as claws and a sinister smile on his face.
Another golden elixir appeared on the opposite side.
At this time, the other Jin Dan behind Mo Hua was a little at a loss and didn't know whether he should step forward or not.
"No, what is going on..."
Fan Jin broke into cold sweat on his forehead.
I just wanted to hug my thigh, and nothing happened yet. I just drank tea and had a meal. In the blink of an eye, would I face such a severe test of "standing in line" like a mountain of swords and a sea of fire?
On one side is the ink painting, on the other is the Shen family.
Take action and offend the Shen family.
If you don't take action, you will offend Mo Hua.
Doesn't this cost his life?
Fan Jin was numb.
This fucking world of cultivation is too difficult...
He just wants to hug his thigh, why is it so difficult? !
(End of chapter)