Seeing the obvious look of guilt on Mrs. Zhuang's face that she couldn't hide no matter what, Zhaozhao was sure there must be something wrong with that wooden carving. Just as she was about to take a closer look, she met Lu Chukong's eyes. Lu Chukong shook his head slightly, signaling her not to act rashly.
"Madam is right. Let's first talk about business with Mr. Zhuang." Lu Chukong said with a gentle smile.
Zhaozhao had no choice but to follow them to the front hall first. As for the matter of the wooden carving, she would look for an opportunity to investigate it later.
The group soon arrived at the dining room of the Zhuang family. Mrs. Zhuang greeted them to sit down, then turned to instruct the nanny to go upstairs and invite Zhuang Ming's father down.
"Madam, Mr. Zhuang said he'll go up and change his clothes first and then come to entertain the guests."
"Got it. Serve the dishes first." Mrs. Zhuang nodded, then smiled apologetically at Zhaozhao and the others. "Sorry, masters, please bear with it. It's my husband's habit."
"Haha, it's okay. Madam Zhuang, don't worry about it." As always, Lu Chukong played the role of easing the atmosphere and casually waved his hand.
Not long after, footsteps sounded outside the dining room. It was Zhuang Ming's father.
Zhuang Ming's father looked very young, about in his thirties. Zhaozhao frowned as she looked at him. It was unexpected that such a man who had the heart to abandon his own son and marry a new wife soon after his wife's death should have such a gentle and handsome appearance.
"I heard from my wife that several masters have some business to discuss with me. I wonder if you could elaborate?" Zhuang Ming's father calmly pulled out a chair and sat down at the table. Every move of his seemed very amiable and refined, which showed a strong sense of disconnection and incongruity with his situation.
"No problem. Mr. Zhuang, please listen to me in detail." Lu Chukong said with a smile and repeated the whole thing to Zhuang Ming's father exactly as before.
After listening to Lu Chukong's words, Zhuang Ming's father's expression changed. He didn't rush to speak but fell silent for a moment.
I don't know how long it had passed. Until Mrs. Zhuang beside him couldn't wait any longer and gently nudged his arm under the table, he came to his senses, adjusted his glasses on his face and said, "The three masters are all capable and extraordinary people. I won't ask too many other questions. I just want to know why you three came to our Zhuang family?"
Lu Chukong had rehearsed the answer to this question in his mind hundreds of times, so he answered without hesitation, "As people who practice Taoism, we believe in fate. When the fate comes, we will naturally come to your door."
Hearing such a mysterious answer, Zhaozhao couldn't help giving Lu Chukong a thumbs - up in her heart. He really had a way!
However, Zhuang Ming's father was a businessman after all. Moreover, since he could even take his own son's luck, he would naturally not be convinced by such a simple sentence.
The golden light in his eyes flashed through the lenses. He looked back and forth among Zhaozhao and the other two for a while, and finally fixed his eyes on Lu Chukong. He asked softly, "Masters believe in fate, but our Zhuang family never troubles others for free. I wonder how we should repay you after the matter is accomplished?"
"I saw a wooden carving in the garden today and took a fancy to it at first sight. I heard from Mrs. Zhuang that it's a family heirloom of the Zhuang family. I wonder if Mr. Zhuang could part with it?" Zhaozhao said calmly and then looked up at Zhuang Ming's father.
Zhuang Ming's father never expected such a request. He was stunned for a moment. "You want that wooden carving of my family?"
"Yes." Zhaozhao stared directly into Zhuang Ming's father's eyes without flinching.
"Absolutely not." Zhuang Ming's father flatly and sternly refused Zhaozhao's request without thinking. His face flushed red, looking a bit angry, but there also seemed to be a bit of panic mixed in his anger. Then he left the table directly.
"Tingzheng!" Seeing this, Mrs. Zhuang quickly called out to her husband's back. Seeing that her husband didn't stop, she quickly turned around and said in a hurry, "Sorry, excuse me for a moment." Then she chased after him.
...
After the Zhuang couple left one after another, the dining room became extremely quiet for a while.
"Hiss, Zhaozhao, you didn't just anger him away with your words, did you? Is this deal just off?" Lu Chukong scratched his head, looking very distressed.
Cheng Sang's expression didn't change at all. Anyway, he had no say in this. He would just follow whatever his junior sister did.
"No." Zhaozhao said firmly, "I don't think he will give up such a great future and boundless wealth just because of this. If he really gives it up, it means there must be something wrong with that wooden carving!"
"Ouch, little miss, I know you want to find out the truth quickly, but you can't be this impatient! If you anger him now, we won't be able to ask anything. Then we won't even get the wooden carving. Isn't it like trying to steal a chicken but losing a handful of rice?!" Lu Chukong was almost worried to death. He should have stopped Zhaozhao from speaking earlier.
Zhaozhao looked puzzled at this. "Why can't we get it? If he doesn't agree, we can just grab it directly! Or we can find a fake one to replace it. Anyway, he definitely won't notice the difference for a while. And I really think he will agree."
With such bandit - like words and her righteous expression, Lu Chukong didn't know what to say.
"You... seem to have a point..."
They had been busy all day and hadn't eaten much. Cheng Sang, calm as ever, very considerately picked up a chicken wing and put it in his junior sister's bowl. "Zhaozhao is right. If they don't agree, senior brother will help you grab it."
"Thank you, senior brother Wu."
Lu Chukong: "..." What kind of master - disciple group was this? They had such a bold and tough style...
On the other side at this moment, Mrs. Zhuang and Zhuang Tingzheng were arguing fiercely.
"How long are you going to keep that piece of wood? I've told you not to be so greedy. Now such a great opportunity is right in front of you, but you don't cherish it. Instead, you want to let it go for a useless piece of wood? Zhuang Tingzheng, are you crazy?!"
"What do you know? You've seen how powerful that wooden carving is. How can we just give it away so easily?!" Zhuang Tingzheng firmly refused to use the wooden carving as an exchange. He was on the verge of losing his temper.
"Yes, that's exactly why I want you to get rid of it after seeing its power!" Mrs. Zhuang was so angry that her chest heaved up and down. "You tried to take luck from your son with its help. Did you succeed? That thing didn't even end up with you. You could only use this way to keep your own son here as your nourishment. Zhuang Tingzheng, wake up! That thing doesn't belong to you. It belongs to Zhuang Ming's mother! It belongs to Liang Yueshu!"
"I've had enough! I don't care what they want that wooden carving for. I only know that if we agree, wealth and honor will come, and Liang Yueshu won't haunt us anymore! Don't you forget the vicious oath she made before she died. I don't want to see the blood - covered woman in the mirror every morning anymore, Zhuang Tingzheng... I really can't take it anymore. She will kill us one day... We will be punished... Wuwuwu..."
Hearing his wife's desperate and frightened cries, Zhuang Tingzheng couldn't help but recall the fear of being tortured every night. Helpless and panicked, he tore at his own hair. "Bitch! She still won't let me go even after she's dead!"