Chapter 565: Drunkenness

Five days later, in the evening, Lin’s Inn closed down. The staff went back to their rooms to rest, and once the front yard was empty of people, a man in black climbed over the wall and headed straight for Ma Chun’s room.
If the man’s mask were removed, Lin Dong and Yun Lan would surely recognize him—he was the burly man who had thrown stones at Lin Dong’s room some time ago.
This burly man had been hired by Liu Changman, the owner of Xingrong Restaurant, to pick up Ma Chun. He was well-acquainted with Lin’s Inn. Of course, this time was slightly different—the man had informed Lin Dong in advance, so Lin Dong knew he was coming.
Raising his arm, the man in black knocked gently a few times on Ma Chun’s door.
After a moment, the door creaked open slightly.
“Xinxing Xiangrong!” the man in black called out the prearranged code word.
Ma Chun opened the door fully, carefully closed it behind him, glanced around, and nodded at the man in black.
The two went to the bottom of the wall. The man in black grabbed Ma Chun’s arm, leaped, and crossed the three-meter-high wall.
After passing through the alley, a carriage was parked at one end of the street.
After leading Ma Chun to the carriage, the man in black disappeared in a flash.
“Manager Ma, please come in!” Liu Changman, the owner of Xingrong Restaurant, got off the carriage excitedly and gestured for Ma Chun to enter.
“I dare not, boss! Please go first!” Ma Chun quickly waved his hands.
“Manager Ma, please. Today, you are my most important guest.” Hearing Ma Chun not use “Liu” before his name, Liu Changman’s face turned red with excitement. He resolved to treat Ma Chun with respect, just as he had planned.
“Boss, how could I get on the carriage first? It’s already a great honor for me to ride in the same carriage as you,” Ma Chun replied, also determined to flatter Liu Changman.
“Manager Ma, please! Please!” Liu Changman kept insisting.
After arguing for a while, they finally entered the carriage together.
Inside, there was fine wine, delicious food, pearls, jade… This carriage was prepared by Liu Changman for meeting important guests—luxurious and comfortable. Normally, he wouldn’t dare use it for fear of damaging it. But for Ma Chun’s sake, he had reluctantly used it.
“Manager Ma, I’m sorry for pulling you out at night,” Liu Changman said as they sat down, bowing slightly to Ma Chun.
“Not at all. I was just grateful that you, despite our past rivalry, treated me, the manager of your rival restaurant, with sincerity,” Ma Chun replied with a bow.

“Manager Ma is incredibly intelligent. Having his help will surely give me a huge advantage. I’m not Manager Lin—who trusts those he employs and avoids those he doubts. I can assure you that I will trust Manager Ma wholeheartedly in the future,” said Liu Changman with a smile.

“If the boss gives Ma Chun another chance, I’ll do my utmost to repay him,” Ma Chun vowed earnestly.

“Manager Ma, come, have a drink.” Liu Changman personally picked up the wine pot, intending to pour one for Ma Chun.

“Let me do it!” Ma Chun quickly reached for the pot.

“No, no, no. As a guest now, it’s only right for me to pour the drink,” Liu Changman avoided Ma Chun’s outstretched hands.

After some more back-and-forth, Liu Changman prevailed. He poured a drink for Ma Chun and filled his own cup as well. Raising his cup, he said, “Manager Ma, I wish you a new beginning. I’ll drink first; you go ahead.”

With that, he downed the drink in one gulp, feeling incredibly refreshed. Ma Chun also raised his cup and drank it all at once. Taking advantage of the moment while Liu Changman was pouring, he said, “Being able to work for the boss is a fortune I earned in my past life. I will cherish it greatly.”

“Not at all. Having Manager Ma’s help is also a fortune for me, Liu Changman,” he said with a smile. “It’s a shame for Manager Lin—so blind that he fails to appreciate someone as outstanding as Manager Ma.”

“Him?” Ma Chun snorted and raised his cup toward Liu Changman. “Boss, I toast to you.”

“Great! Great!” Liu Changman was overjoyed.

Outside, the coachman swiftly waved the whip, and the wheels rolled smoothly down the quiet street at incredible speed, while inside, everything was calm and steady.

In the dead of night, the two continued drinking and chatting until the carriage finally stopped at Xingrong Restaurant.

Inside Xingrong Restaurant, the lights were bright, and rows of servants greeted them at the entrance. Seeing this, Ma Chun couldn’t help but be more polite to Liu Changman, though he felt a bit uneasy.

According to the note given by the informant, they should have gone to Liu’s residence. He couldn’t understand why they ended up at Xingrong Restaurant.

Liu Changman kept praising Ma Chun’s abilities with a smile. Initially, he indeed planned to host a banquet at Liu’s residence, but on a whim, wanting to give Ma Chun the greatest honor, he changed the location to Xingrong Restaurant.

In the Liu family’s residence, the only polite ones were the Liu family members and servants, who had little to do with Ma Chun. At Xingrong Restaurant, it was the staff, chefs, and accountants who treated Ma Chun with great respect, which made him even more determined to help Xingrong Restaurant. Having the family members join in offering compliments only added to the honor. Just thinking about it, Liu Changman felt that such humility and respect for others was truly moving.

After the chefs, accountants, and the original managers of Xingrong Restaurant showed their reverence, the entire Liu family came out to greet them.

This situation made Ma Chun quietly breathe a sigh of relief—now that Liu Changman’s family had arrived, he could complete his task.

Surrounded by everyone’s admiration and flattery, Ma Chun followed Liu Changman to the large round table at the head of the hall.

Liu Changman had many wives and concubines, as well as numerous children. After much hesitation, Ma Chun finally sat down beside him at Liu Changman’s insistence.

The dishes served were extremely lavish.

Clearly, Liu Changman had already arranged everything. His family members and the chefs and staff of Xingrong Restaurant took turns coming forward to toast him, offering ever-new compliments, none repeated. With so many toasting him, it would have been proper for Ma Chun to just take small sips, but he accepted every drink and drank it all in one gulp. This generosity delighted Liu Changman greatly.

The more he drank, the more drunk he became. Once drunk, he surely wouldn’t suggest returning to Linji Inn before dawn. As long as he didn’t return to Linji Inn by morning, by the time Ma Chun sobered up and realized it would be impossible to cover up what had happened, his only option would be to break ties with Linji Inn.

With a complete break, Liu Changman believed Ma Chun would surely choose his Xingrong Restaurant.

After all the toasts, Ma Chun’s face was completely red. Without Liu Changman pouring more wine for him, he started pouring it himself and filling his cup. His tongue grew heavy, and his speech became slurred.

Eager, Liu Changman downed several cups in a row. He was convinced that as long as other restaurants didn’t offer Ma Chun larger sums of silver, Ma Chun staying at Xingrong Restaurant was a certainty. Originally, he had planned to introduce Xingrong Restaurant thoroughly and offer Ma Chun generous rewards to keep him there, but now… that step was no longer necessary.

“Liu… Liu Changman!” Ma Chun tremulously took out a stone from his clothes and slammed it on the table. Putting one hand on Liu Changman’s arm, he asked, “Is… is this stone yours?”

Ma Chun called him by his name, and Liu Changman wasn’t displeased at all; instead, he was convinced that Ma Chun was already very drunk. He naturally didn’t believe Ma Chun’s earlier references to “boss” were sincere—those were just polite words. Calling Liu Changman by his name showed true sincerity.
“Stone?” Liu Changman looked at the stone Ma Chun took out in confusion, smiled, assuming it was just drunken talk, and said, “This stone is nice.”
“Of course it is! It’s a treasure. Look at its shape—there’s no other like it…” Ma Chun said, slurring slightly.
“A treasure?” This time, Liu Changman thought Ma Chun probably didn’t have a stone hidden on him, so he picked up the stone on the table to take a look. It seemed nothing special.
“Yes, a treasure!” Ma Chun leaned on Liu Changman’s shoulder, dazedly saying, “This stone… the shopkeeper gave it to me, along with a very small note…”
After listening for a while, Liu Changman finally understood: the stone on the table was something Lin Dong had brought along with a complaint note to confront Ma Chun. Ma Chun loved collecting stones of this strange material and shape, so he immediately took a liking to it. He brought it this time to ask if Liu Changman had given the note, and if so, he would be extremely grateful if he could find more.
The note indeed was sent by Liu Changman, and the stone was indeed his doing. But he had found it on the ground when he went out and picked it up casually to add weight to the note.
“Drink first. There are plenty of such stones in my yard. I’ll take you there tomorrow—as many as you want,” Liu Changman said, patting Ma Chun’s shoulder to comfort him.
“Really?” Ma Chun looked up.
“Really!” Liu Changman affirmed.
“Really?” Ma Chun asked again, dazedly.
“Really!” Liu Changman’s voice remained firm.
“Let’s go now! I want a whole house—no, two houses full of stones!” Ma Chun suddenly stood up.
“Drink first. We’ll go tomorrow,” Liu Changman quickly tried to pull Ma Chun back.
“No, it’s too late. Let’s go now!” Ma Chun glared, ready to fight if anyone disagreed.
Liu Changman couldn’t resist. Fortunately, after several rounds of drinking, Ma Chun was already drunk and had achieved his goal. He immediately ordered people to carry Ma Chun, along with his family, straight to the Liu family’s residence.
Once at the Liu family’s house, the group headed straight to Liu Changman’s study.
“Here are the stones, Manager Ma. Take a look.” Liu Changman picked up a stone from the ground and ordered someone to carry it to Ma Chun with a lantern.

With a snap, Ma Chun broke free from one of the men’s grasp and slapped the stone out of Liu Changman’s hands.
“Liu, Liu Changman, do you think I, Ma Chun, have just idly watched these stones for over twenty years?” Ma Chun cursed drunkenly. “Using some crappy stone to fool me—just because it’s not a Light Powder Stone doesn’t mean it’s anything special! Get lost…”
“Light Powder Stone?”
Liu Changman was completely confused. He had never heard of a stone with such a name. Looking at the people around him, they all shook their heads; clearly, they had never heard of it either.