Chapter 405: Just Caught a Small Thief

After resting all night, Lin Dong set off again early the next morning to open another branch. After five days, when the last branch was smoothly integrated into the inn system, Lin Dong let out a long sigh of relief.

Returning to Lin Ji Inn in Lingnan City, he asked Ma Chun. Since losing thirty paintings of ladies, Fenglin Restaurant’s popularity had dropped significantly. As a result, Lin Ji Inn, which ranked second only to Fenglin Restaurant in terms of advantages in Lingnan City, saw its business surge as Fenglin’s fortunes declined. Daily, the number of reserved tables returned to its previous level. Meanwhile, the number of wealthy customers on the second and third floors increased due to the upcoming autumn competitions at Lin Ji Gymnasium. The inn now had over 350 tables of guests each day.

Lin Dong was fairly satisfied with this. The only thing that worried him was the upgrade task. Everything was ready for a counterattack against Fenglin Restaurant; all that remained was to complete the upgrade task.

With the cold wind blowing and bare trees withering, as noon approached, several strong horses moved slowly along the increasingly deserted streets. On one of the horses, Yun Lan was anxious to hurry, but she didn’t dare show it, fearing Qin Mengtai beside her might catch evidence of it.

On the other side, Qin Mengtai was also eager to reach Lin Ji Inn to see if Feng Zhengyang had been injured. With three fantasy pills, he was 99% confident that Feng Zhengyang could complete the task. But he couldn’t guarantee that Feng Zhengyang wouldn’t face dangers after the effects of the pills wore off.

Feng Zhengyang was his proudest disciple, to whom he had devoted twenty years of effort. He didn’t want anything to happen to him. Yet he feared that his contradictory decisions might draw Yun Lan’s attention and link her to Lin Dong’s murder.

Old Ding kept one eye closed, sitting behind Mo Jianchen. He swayed unsteadily, as if about to fall at any moment, drunkenly pouring wine from a jar into his mouth. Like Yun Lan and Qin Mengtai, he also wanted to reach Lin Ji Inn as quickly as possible. After all, Lin Ji Inn had fifty jars of top-quality wine, as promised by Lin Dong.

Unfortunately, he had to ensure that Qin Mengtai wouldn’t force Yun Lan back to Tianjian Sect. And Yun Lan had to slow down her journey.

In front of Old Ding, Mo Jianchen was uneasy. Unlike Yun Lan and the others, he didn’t want to reach Lin Ji Inn—living on the road for the rest of his life would be better for him.

He knew about Qin Mengtai’s plan for Feng Zhengyang to assassinate Lin Dong. But aside from guilt and anxiety, he didn’t dare to protest or reveal this to Yun Lan.

Throughout the journey, he had been suffering greatly. He was afraid that once they entered Lin Ji Inn, he would see Yun Lan upset and angry. In his view, that sadness and anger were partly his fault.

A short distance in front of Mo Jianchen, Liang Liren, like Mo Jianchen, didn’t want to arrive at Lin Ji Inn so quickly. He didn’t like Qin Mengtai’s style, but he had grown up accustomed to tolerating this domineering senior brother. Over more than fifty years, he had long forgotten what it meant to resist or oppose Qin Mengtai.

Without resistance or opposition, all that remained was to try to fix things later.

What troubled Liang Liren most was that he hadn’t figured out how to fix things.

Liang Liren felt guilty about Lin Dong’s death, but that guilt paled in comparison to Yun Lan’s reaction once she found out. That was the problem that had troubled him for months.

If Yun Lan discovered that Lin Dong’s death was related to Qin Mengtai, Liang Liren was sure that the future hopes of Tianjian Sect would surely turn into enmity with Qin Mengtai. And Yun Cangqiong, the sect leader whose pride had been hurt, would undoubtedly side with Yun Lan.

Unfortunately, Yun Cangqiong was rarely in Tianjian Sect, spending most of the year traveling outside. All sect affairs were handled by Qin Mengtai. Over the years, in terms of prestige, no one could compare to Yun Cangqiong, but when it came to influence within Tianjian Sect, Qin Mengtai was equally unmatched. Aside from Yun Cangqiong, who dared to draw his sword against Qin Mengtai at the age of four or five, no one in Tianjian Sect, not even the elders, dared to defy Qin Mengtai’s orders.

One was the spiritual leader and actual ruler of Tianjian Sect, the other was the spiritual leader and actual ruler it would have in thirty to fifty years—both in conflict with the powerful eldest elder. Liang Liren believed the outcome would surely be severe damage to Tianjian Sect.

Tianjian Sect was the most important thing in Liang Liren’s eyes. He felt he must find a way to completely cover up the trouble Qin Mengtai had caused.

Yet, no wall is airtight; such a solution was almost impossible to exist.

Liang Liren couldn’t imagine the consequences if Yun Cangqiong, in a fit of anger, ignored the interests of Tianjian Sect.

Five people, five different thoughts.

The sound of horse hooves finally stopped outside the inn.

“Elder, Miss Yun! You’re finally back.” Upon hearing the news, Ma Chun rushed out from behind the counter at once.

Seeing the bustling hall, so different from the desolate streets, Qin Mengtai was surprised.

No crying or wailing—no funeral hall. Why?

“We’re back. Is Lin Boy here?” Old Ding was the first to step into the hall.

“Yes, I’ve finished dealing with opening branches and returned a few days ago,” Ma Chun said calmly.
Qin Mengtai was somewhat disappointed—it seemed Feng Zhengyang had missed him. Mo Jianchen and Liang Liren, on the other hand, seemed overjoyed.
Had they been worrying needlessly for four or five months?
Under Ma Chun’s escort, the group headed to the back yard. Along the way, Lin Dong, who had been sent ahead by the staff, rushed out to meet them.
“Elder, Yunlan…” Lin Dong greeted them cheerfully. After more than five months, Yunlan had finally returned.
“Young Lin, where’s my wine?” Old Ding asked impatiently.
“It’s in your room, waiting for you to turn those jars empty,” Lin Dong replied with a smile.
Old Ding smacked his lips and rushed straight to his room. His speed once again surprised Qin Mengtai and Liang Liren. The first time they met Yunlan, they had suffered greatly from his speed as they tried to force her to go back.
Old Ding could ignore everything to get his favorite fine wine, but Lin Dong couldn’t.
“Ma Chun, prepare tea!”
Ma Chun rushed off, while Lin Dong led Qin Mengtai and the others to sit around the stone table. They chatted amiably—neither Lin Dong nor Qin Mengtai wanted to create tension in front of Yunlan.
Soon, the tea was served.
Qin Mengtai picked up his cup and took a sip, hoping to end these formalities quickly so he could find out where Feng Zhengyang was. Suddenly, a scream came from a room next to the storage area.
“Zhengyang?”
Qin Mengtai stood up abruptly, staring in shock at the room from which the scream came.
“Weren’t Lord Feng with Elder Qin and the others?” Lin Dong asked with a smile. “It’s just a small thief inside; he disturbed Elder Qin.”
Yunlan glanced at Qin Mengtai, her crescent-shaped eyebrows slightly furrowed.
“A small thief?” Qin Mengtai stared at Lin Dong, clearly not believing him, as his mind raced.
Liang Liren’s heart pounded as he looked at Yunlan, only to see no emotion in her eyes—seemingly unaware that Feng Zhengyang had also come to Lingnan City.
Qin Mengtai, however, had no time to consider Yunlan’s thoughts. His mind rushed into the room, entering the man in black whose leg was being twisted by Qiao Tianhao’s two fingers.
The next moment, Qin Mengtai stood up abruptly.
“It’s Zhengyang!”
Those words were like a thunderbolt, causing Liang Liren and Mo Jianchen to stand up as well, staring at Lin Dong in horror.
Lin Dong and Yunlan remained motionless.

“Elder Qin, Young Master Feng is clearly with you. How could he possibly be at our Lin’s Inn?” Lin Dong said nonchalantly, “In that room is just a sneaky thief trying to hide and assassinate me at Lin’s Inn. If you don’t believe it, shall I have someone bring him over for Elder Qin to see?”
Qin Mengtai clenched his fists tightly, his violent energy surging rapidly.
Yun Lan remained motionless, while Lan Chen Sword appeared instantly in his palm.
Lin Dong smiled, completely unfazed by Qin Mengtai’s fierce anger. He believed Qin Mengtai wouldn’t dare act in front of Yun Lan.
Mo Jianchen was stunned by the tense situation, his lips moving but unable to utter a word.
“Shopkeeper Lin, I was wondering if you could bring that thief over?” Liang Liren was clearly much calmer than Mo Jianchen. Though shocked, he quickly stepped in to defuse the situation.
Lin Dong gazed at Qin Mengtai until his terrifying aura subsided slightly before calmly saying, “Qiao Tianhao, bring him over.”
Inside the room, Qiao Tianhao had been listening to everything. Upon hearing the order, he immediately released his grip on Feng Zhengyang’s thigh, wiped his fingers on Feng’s clothes, then used a black iron kitchen knife to lift Feng Zhengyang’s chin before stepping out of the room.
Ugh…
With his spiritual energy restrained and his throat blocked by the black iron knife, Feng Zhengyang mumbled incoherently. Seeing Qin Mengtai outside, excitement flashed in his eyes, and his muffled voice grew louder.
Slam!
As he approached the group, Qiao Tianhao shook his wrist, causing Feng Zhengyang to fall to the ground hard. This action immediately drew Qin Mengtai’s murderous gaze. In response, Qiao Tianhao stepped forward and stamped hard on Feng Zhengyang’s head.
“Master, master, save me, master, save me…”
After several days, Feng Zhengyang no longer had any backbone left. Compared to Qiao Tianhao’s cunning, Cheng Bao was far more straightforward—but also far more ruthless.
Fight without any tricks, as long as there were no internal injuries—this was Cheng Bao’s only attitude toward Feng Zhengyang. No wasted words, no unnecessary movements.
If it were Feng Yue, he might not frown even after three to five hundred years. But Feng Zhengyang… had already been spoiled by Qin Mengtai.
In the Sky Sword Sect, even in front of Yun Cangqiong, Qin Mengtai always wore a grim expression, drinking when he wanted to and shouting when he wanted to. As for other disciples or even elders, he could hit or scold them at will.
Only Yun Lan and Feng Zhengyang were never treated harshly, let alone beaten or scolded.

Yun Lan was so because Qin Mengtai did not dare to truly anger Yun Cangqiong, while Feng Zhengyang was the disciple he placed great hopes on, painstakingly cultivating to surpass Yun Cangqiong. Pills, spiritual artifacts, spiritual techniques… almost anything Feng Zhengyang asked for, Qin Mengtai would agree to without hesitation. Even so, he would smile at him a few times a year.
The smile from Qin Mengtai—only Feng Zhengyang in the entire Tianjian Sect had ever seen it.
Unlike Yun Cangqiong’s favoritism, Qin Mengtai had never forced Feng Zhengyang to complete any mental training; all he wanted was for Feng Zhengyang’s strength to meet his expectations. As for Yun Cangqiong, aside from insisting on completion of mental training, he had never forced Yun Lan to accomplish anything else.
Coupled with his extraordinary talent, this shaped Feng Zhengyang’s personality—appearing arrogant, cold, and dismissive of everyone on the surface, yet secretly having a resilience only slightly above that of disciples from smaller sects.