Li Shan felt deeply ashamed.
This method wasn't his idea at all.
It was also something he could never have come up with.
The true solver was none other than the son-in-law they had mocked and dismissed!
Wasn't that absurd?
"Steward Li, you've helped the Lan family immensely this time! Forge it according to this idea, and I'll entrust this matter entirely to you."
Lan Xueyi also appeared very pleased.
She hadn't been this happy in a long time.
Li Shan looked at her, wanting to speak but hesitating.
He thought that if he told his young lady the truth, and let her know that the son-in-law was the one who helped her perfect the design, she would surely be even happier!
But the son-in-law had specifically instructed him not to tell anyone, which made Li Shan very conflicted.
Lan Xueyi misunderstood Li Shan.
She thought Li Shan was seeking a reward, so she smiled and said, "Steward Li, don't worry, I'll tell my father to credit you with the first merit for this!"
Li Shan cried out in shame, "Young lady, you misunderstand. I have no intention of seeking credit. In fact, the son-in-law... actually, the main credit also belongs to you. Without your creativity and design, this weapon wouldn't exist at all!"
Li Shan almost let the secret slip.
His disciple, Xie Jia, advised, "Master, stop being so modest. We are all contributors to the Lan family. You should accept it with grace. What does that useless son-in-law have to do with it? He's not only useless but also causes trouble everywhere. A complete waste..."
Before Xie Jia could finish, Li Shan, enraged, slapped him hard across the face.
"Slap!"
Xie Jia clutched his face, his mind blank from the blow.
"Nonsense! Don't let me hear you speak ill of the son-in-law again, or I'll expel you from the sect. How dare you slander the son-in-law!"
Seeing Li Shan's sudden fury, the others exchanged glances. Li Shan was known for his good temper, what was happening?
Why was he defending Ling Fan so fiercely today? He had slapped Xie Jia in front of so many people, and Xie Jia was Li Shan's most prized disciple!
...
Inside the Lan Manor.
Lan Junjie, however, was unaware of the interlude that had occurred in the weapon workshop.
He had searched the entire Lan Manor but couldn't find any trace of Ling Fan.
Ling Fan had already left the Lan Manor.
As he opened his twelve gold element meridians, his strength surged, catching up to the Qi Refining realm. The guards of the Lan Manor were like mere decorations before him. He easily broke through their defenses, yet they remained completely unaware.
...
Jiangnan City was a water town, crisscrossed by numerous rivers and dotted with many lakes.
Ling Fan stood beside a lake.
The Samsara Divine Cauldron floated out, casting a faint glow. The lake's surface rippled subtly as strands of spiritual energy were drawn out, and several drops of spiritual liquid appeared within the cauldron.
"Too little."
Ling Fan frowned slightly and murmured to himself.
According to the order of the five elements' mutual generation, after the gold element meridians, the next were the water element meridians. He had come out specifically to extract water spiritual liquid.
However, the result was slightly disappointing.
Before this, he had visited no less than ten large lakes and rivers, but the amount of water spiritual liquid extracted was pitifully small.
"The spiritual energy in the lower realm is still too thin. It seems this method won't work. I need to find spiritual items containing water element spiritual energy."
Ling Fan gave up on the idea of continuing to extract from rivers and lakes.
The streets were bustling with people, and all sorts of shops and businesses were thriving.
Passing by the weapon selling area, Ling Fan noticed that the Lan family's weapon shop had very dismal business. A few shop assistants stood idly at the entrance, looking dispirited.
In contrast, the Jin family's shop opposite was doing booming business. Any weapon they put on display, regardless of style, was immediately sold out.
"Hey, boss, hurry up and stock the top-tier weapons personally crafted by Master Zheng! You only bring out one or two items each time, and we can't get any!"
"My apologies, esteemed customer, but Master Zheng's works are sold in limited quantities!"
"Damn it!"
...
Ling Fan watched coldly.
With his abilities, he had plenty of ways to improve the quality of the Lan family's weapons and reverse this situation.
However, he would not intervene. If the Lan family couldn't overcome such difficulties, helping them once or twice would be useless. For a family to endure long-term, it had to rely on its own inherent strength.
Of course, if the Lan family faced a crisis of collapse, Ling Fan would indeed step in.
The primary reason was that Lan Tianxiong suited Ling Fan's taste and had earned his approval, so he would help.
Secondly, it was also to settle a karmic debt for this body and repay the Lan family's kindness.
Ling Fan watched for a while and then left.
On the way back to the Lan Manor, two people suddenly emerged from a nearby restaurant.
"Young Master Ling! Please wait, we've been waiting for you for days!"
The two called out, waving their hands.
Ling Fan looked towards the sound and saw two young men, one fat and one thin, resembling noble youths, running towards him.
Searching his memory.
These two were the drinking and feasting companions of the previous Ling Fan. The fat one was named Guo Hui, nicknamed Pig Hui, and the thin one was Wang Gan. Both were from minor families in Jiangnan City.
It was these two who had taken Ling Fan to a brothel on his wedding night, leading to the subsequent incident.
Ling Fan's mind raced. With his experience, he could tell that it was likely these two who had poisoned him, causing him to go mad and burn down the brothel.
Ling Fan stopped. He wanted to see what other tricks these two had up their sleeves.
"Young Master Ling, you've made us wait so long! After we parted ways with you that day, we never expected such a thing to happen! We were so worried. We've been staying around the Lan Manor these past few days, just to check on your condition. Knowing you're alright puts our minds at ease."
Wang Gan appeared very concerned.
Pig Hui nodded repeatedly beside him.
"Come, we'll treat you to some courtesan wine to calm your nerves! I know a very secluded and pleasant place. The wine there and the ladies who serve are exquisite!"
Without further ado, the two pushed and pulled Ling Fan into a very secluded alley, where not a soul could be seen.
"This is the place."
Wang Gan's eyes flashed with cold light as he said to Pig Hui.
Ling Fan's expression was calm. "Aren't you going to treat me to wine? Where is it?"
Pig Hui let out a scoffing laugh.
"What an idiot. He's about to die, and he's still in the dark!"
"Treating you to wine was just a pretense, to lure you here. In reality, we want to invite you to die!"
Pig Hui and Wang Gan dropped their pretense, revealing their sinister intentions.
Ling Fan remained unfazed, mockingly asking, "Aren't you my friends? Why do you want to harm me!"
"Tch, who would be friends with a live-in son-in-law like you? If you don't find it embarrassing, we do. We approached you only to set you up and deal with you. Do you think you're worthy of being our friend?"
"I've had enough of him for a long time. Why should such a waste be married to a goddess like Lan Xueyi? Ptooey!"
Pig Hui and Wang Gan chuckled coldly, crossing their arms with disdainful expressions.
"We'll be merciful and let you die with understanding. Actually, we were the ones who poisoned you, causing you to go mad and burn down the brothel. But you, kid, are truly long-lived. Not only did you not die from the poison, but you also didn't die in the fire. However, today, you won't escape this fate!"