"You can say anything, as long as you let us go, we'll do anything you ask."
Seeing a chance to escape, the young man quickly promised Lin Xiaotian.
Xiao Ying's face also showed a glimmer of hope, and she hurriedly nodded, "Yes, Mr. Lin, it's the same for me. We are truly desperate now. If there were any other way, we wouldn't have even thought about the antiques in the shop."
"I understand your predicament. What I need you to do is not difficult. Just tell me exactly what the Duan family and Ciyun Pavilion discussed at the time, word for word, and then you can leave," Lin Xiaotian said calmly.
"What?"
The young man and Xiao Ying both looked shocked.
Old Zhou and Tang Jingde in the antique shop looked surprised. Why was Lin Xiaotian asking about the Duan family and Ciyun Pavilion? Was this matter related to him?
But that seemed impossible. How could an ordinary person get involved with such a terrifying place as Ciyun Pavilion?
Ciyun Pavilion was the largest entertainment venue in Songzhou City, involved with countless underground forces, and its power was extraordinary.
There was even a saying in Songzhou City: "Better to provoke the King of Hell than Ciyun Pavilion."
Anyone who offended people from Ciyun Pavilion met a terrible end.
Hearing Lin Xiaotian's request, the young man was extremely frightened and repeatedly shook his head, "Brother, I really can't say this. If I do, I'll lose my life."
"Will you keep your life if you don't say it?"
Lin Xiaotian's lips curved slightly, and he said casually, "If you don't speak, not only will you not be able to protect the woman you love, but your ultimate fate will also be to be hunted down by Ciyun Pavilion."
"If I'm not mistaken, you should know that people from Ciyun Pavilion are close to finding your trail, which is why you're so eager to escape, right?"
"I don't mind telling Ciyun Pavilion your whereabouts right now. How they deal with you will be entirely up to them."
"This..."
Upon hearing this, cold sweat poured down the young man's face.
He repeatedly shook his head at Lin Xiaotian and said directly, "Brother, please don't. I can tell you about the Duan family's affairs, but after you find the Duan family, you must not say that I was the one who told you the clue."
"As long as you promise me this, I will tell you everything I heard."
"That's no problem, go ahead and speak," Lin Xiaotian agreed without hesitation.
What he wanted to know was the secret between the Duan family and Ciyun Pavilion; he had no intention of targeting this young man specifically.
After a few seconds of thought, the young man finally nodded and agreed, saying directly, "Alright, I'll tell you. I was at the Duan family's place at the time and overheard the Duan family head and people from Ciyun Pavilion talking about needing one hundred virgin boys and girls in Songzhou City for the refinement of elixirs."
"The pavilion master of Ciyun Pavilion has the method for refining medicine, and the Duan family head is responsible for finding the virgin boys and girls. This matter is the highest secret within the Duan family, and no one knows about it except the Duan family head. I am the second person to know about it."
"The Duan family head is a ruthless killer. It was because I knew about this that I was hunted."
"One hundred virgin boys and girls? Are you telling the truth?"
Lin Xiaotian's heart trembled. He never expected the Duan family to be so heartless.
It seemed he had brought immense trouble upon himself by crippling Duan Feiyun last time.
If the Duan family sought revenge, they would surely join forces with Ciyun Pavilion.
"It's absolutely true. I'm telling you word for word. I hope you'll let me go, let Xiao Ying and me leave Songzhou City. We swear we'll never return," the young man nodded and promised.
"Good, I'll let you go. You can leave. If I find out you've been lying, I will definitely hunt you both down for revenge."
Lin Xiaotian finished speaking and had the security guards clear a path for them to leave.
Old Zhou still had some lingering worries. Seeing the two tentatively stand up to leave, he hurriedly approached Lin Xiaotian and said, "Mr. Lin, are you really going to let them go? If they come back for revenge later, it will be like nurturing a tiger that will bring disaster."
"With just the two of them, they can't cause much trouble. Let them go," Lin Xiaotian commanded dismissively. Old Zhou no longer objected and waved his hand, letting the two leave.
After they left, Lin Xiaotian's expression became solemn, and he fell into deep thought.
He was contemplating how to thwart the Duan family's plan. Even though the Duan family and Ciyun Pavilion were working together, Lin Xiaotian absolutely could not agree to them sacrificing a hundred lives.
Even if the Duan family was difficult to deal with, Lin Xiaotian was destined to be their sworn enemy.
As he was lost in thought, Tang Jingde gradually approached Lin Xiaotian and said with a smile, "Young friend Lin, since you are here today, I happen to have something I need your help with. I hope you can assist me."
"Oh? What is it?" Lin Xiaotian snapped back to attention and asked curiously.
"I recently acquired a plate in the countryside, and I'm unsure of its authenticity. I hope young friend Lin can help me take a look," Tang Jingde said directly.
"Antiques again?"
Lin Xiaotian looked at Tang Jingde with a sneer and couldn't help but say, "Old Tang's appraisal skills are really declining. Not only can you not tell the authenticity of the engravings, but you can't even distinguish a plate."
"I am truly ashamed, Elder Tang. Because the material of this plate is special, and it's something I've never seen before, I was temporarily unable to distinguish it. I fear that there are very few appraisers in this world who can determine its authenticity," Tang Jingde said earnestly.
"Don't take it too seriously, Elder Tang. I was just joking with you. If you can't appraise it, it must be something extremely precious and special. Of course, I have to take a look. Please lead the way."
Lin Xiaotian saw his serious expression, as if he had been truly mocked, and found it too amusing.
He gave a wry smile, then led the way for Lin Xiaotian, and they went upstairs together to his office.
Lin Xiaotian sat in a chair, leisurely drinking tea. A few seconds later, he saw Tang Jingde walk over with a redwood box.
He placed the box in front of Lin Xiaotian and carefully opened it. Immediately, a faint green light emanated from within.
Lin Xiaotian, who had been drinking tea, froze the moment his gaze fell upon the plate.
He stared intently at the plate, and at a glance, recognized its noble jade quality. It was suffused with a pale green light, as if a large drop of clear water had solidified, pure and flawless.
"Good jade, excellent jade! Elder Tang, your taste is indeed remarkable. The jade used for this plate is a very rare type of Dragon-Infused Spiritual Jade in the world."
"This kind of jade only existed during the Qin Dynasty. At that time, the imperial family used this jade to carve various tools for warding off evil spirits and protecting the household. This jade is extremely rare and priceless!"
Lin Xiaotian put down his teacup and couldn't help but praise.
Tang Jingde showed no surprise on his face. With his skills, he could naturally see the preciousness of the jade. However, no matter how good the jade was, its value was ultimately quantifiable.
What he was curious about were the strange carvings on it and a very peculiar indentation in the center.
If these two points could be confirmed, the value of this plate would likely rise to priceless.