Liu Ying picked up the teapot and poured tea for Yan Shouyi and the others, then asked,
“How did you determine that I knew your identities?”
“A guess.”
“You guessed so accurately?”
“Storytellers know everything under heaven and possess great insight into people. I just came down from Mount Longhu. The Luo Tian Grand Ceremony and the death of the Old Celestial Master caused such a stir. I don’t believe a storyteller would not have received the news. And if you had looked into it, you would have surely heard of my name… If you didn’t know me, there would be no need for me to come looking for you today.”
Liu Ying secretly marveled that this Yan Shouyi truly lived up to his reputation.
Last year, this young folk successor had thrown Rongcheng into chaos, and later shone brightly at the Luo Tian Grand Ceremony, almost becoming the successor Celestial Master.
Upon meeting him today, Liu Ying found that Yan Shouyi was not only powerful but also meticulous in his thinking.
It was no wonder someone like this could obtain the Longhu Secret Text.
Yan Shouyi also had his own analysis. In truth, he wasn’t entirely sure if Liu Ying knew him. However, as a storyteller, if Liu Ying didn’t know him, it would mean the storyteller’s sources were not that well-informed, and his visit today would have been in vain.
Fortunately, Liu Ying knew Yan Shouyi, upholding the storyteller’s reputation.
At this point, Liu Ying raised her teacup and toasted Yan Shouyi, “Storyteller, Liu Ying!” Da Feng Fiction Network
This was considered an exchange of introductions, laying everything bare.
Yan Shouyi revealed a slight smile and inquired, “I heard this place has always been Mr. Yin’s, why has it been taken over by Miss Liu recently?”
“Mr. Yin is my master. He has been critically ill lately and cannot tell stories, so he called me back from out of town to temporarily take over his venue.”
“Oh? What illness does Mr. Yin have? Does he need me to visit?”
Liu Ying replied, “Yan Shouyi, you don’t need to test me. I am Mr. Yin’s disciple. If you don’t believe me, you can have the night watchman beside you contact Grandma Shen right now to ask for clarification.”
Long Feicheng, Weng Qianxiang, and Xu Qian, who were standing by, were bewildered.
How could they not understand anything in the conversation between these two?
Brother Yan clearly didn’t suspect Miss Liu, so why did Miss Liu suddenly get angry?
Yan Shouyi did not ask Xu Qian, but instead looked at Wei Changqing.
The taciturn Wei Changqing simply shook his head, “She is not one of Li Genmiao’s people.”
Only then did Yan Shouyi feel relieved and apologize to Liu Ying, “I’m sorry. This world is not what it used to be, so I have some suspicions.”
Liu Ying suddenly understood, “So you suspected I was from the New Xuan Mountain Sect.”
“A storyteller is indeed well-informed.”
Shen Shuzhen and the others didn’t know about Li Genmiao’s affairs yet, but Liu Ying seemed to know everything, which made Yan Shouyi admire her.
Seeing how smoothly Liu Ying handled things, coupled with Liu Ying’s apparent intention to get acquainted with him, and the sudden serious illness of the original storyteller Mr. Yin, all these circumstances combined made Yan Shouyi suspect that Liu Ying was Li Genmiao’s person.
After all, when Li Genmiao left Mount Longhu, he had made a stern threat, saying that to eliminate Mount Longhu, one must first eliminate the Yan family.
Therefore, Yan Shouyi had to guard against it.
Liu Ying smiled, “Li Genmiao can win over any folk sect, but he can’t do anything to us storytellers. His information is not as well-informed as ours, and storytellers are just storytellers. We don’t have the five burdens and three deficiencies, so Li Genmiao holds no temptation for us.”
Wei Changqing nodded silently.
Seeing this, Yan Shouyi was finally convinced of Liu Ying.
Liu Ying held her tea and gently blew on the Longjing tea leaves in the cup, asking,
“You came to see the storyteller, you must have something to ask. Given that you saved my life before, I can answer one question for free. As for the rest…”
Liu Ying extended three fingers, rubbing them together and narrowing her eyes as she said, “It will cost extra.”
“Well said, ‘Pay-Extra Hermit’!” Long Feicheng laughed, “Can I ask anything?”
“Don’t ask about lottery winning numbers, we are storytellers, not fortune tellers,” Liu Ying replied.
Long Feicheng: “…Are you a demon?”
His usual tactics that were always effective against swindlers were completely ineffective against Liu Ying, and he was even mocked by her.
Liu Ying smiled slightly, “No. Alright, the free question has been answered, we are even. Everything else from now on is a paid service.”
Yan Shouyi and Long Feicheng exchanged glances, their expressions gradually turning ferocious. Long Feicheng said aggrievedly, “Brother Yan, this isn’t my fault. This woman is no good!”
Yan Shouyi took a deep breath. He truly had no way to deal with such an extreme teammate as Long Feicheng. Although Long Feicheng hadn’t improved much over this time, Yan Shouyi still kept him by his side. The biggest reason was Long Feicheng’s optimistic and humorous personality, which could alleviate troubles and worries along the way.
Of course, at the same time, this guy also created more troubles and worries…
“We plan to intervene in the affairs between the Qiantang folk sects and the Five Great Ghost King families.” Yan Shouyi stated directly.
Upon hearing this, Liu Ying couldn’t help but stroke her delicate and small chin, “You’ve brought me some explosive news. This piece of news is worth five hundred thousand.”
“Can I exchange this five hundred thousand for a piece of news?” Yan Shouyi asked.
“Of course.”
Yan Shouyi thought for a moment and asked, “I want to know a secret of the Yao family.”
“Any particular direction?”
“Any secret will do.”
Liu Ying pinched her fingers, as if calculating something. After a moment, she said,
“The current Ghost King of the Yao family is named Yao Zhenming. The current head of the Yao family, Yao Fu, is his great-grandson. Yao Fu has a son who is said to have gone north to seek immortality and enlightenment. Twenty years have passed with no news. But coincidentally, we storytellers recently received news that Yao Fu’s son, Yao Tianming, is at Mount Mao.”
“Even more coincidentally, Yao Fu came to Yue Lu Tea House a few days ago and bought this piece of news.”
Yan Shouyi rubbed his nose.
He seemed to understand why the Yao family’s Ghost King had acted to save Han San.
“This piece of news is worth five hundred thousand,” Yan Shouyi said with a smile.
Liu Ying proudly raised her chin, “Storytellers’ news is absolutely genuine, fair to all.”
“I still want to ask more questions.”
“Then you will need more secrets.”
Yan Shouyi did know quite a few secrets, but revealing any of them would likely stir up a bloody storm, so he had to carefully consider them before exchanging them with Liu Ying.
Long Feicheng laughed, “I like sleeping naked, does that count as a secret?”
“It does,” Liu Ying said, “but it’s not worth much.”
“Damn… Then I just blurted out a secret for nothing?” Long Feicheng said glumly.
Weng Qianxiang patted Long Feicheng on the shoulder and comforted him, “Brother Long, don’t worry, no one cares about this secret of yours.”