I'm Already the Richest Man, Why Did My System Just Arrive?

Chapter 309: Chapter 183: Secret

Xie Luohe took off her mask.

A wicked smile played on her lips as she squared her shoulders and walked up to Zheng Xiu.

"Tell me, do I look better with it on, or with it off?"

As Xie Luohe removed the mask, her stunning face was revealed. Her clear, bright eyes reflected Zheng Xiu’s astonished expression, and deeper within them, a faint, almost imperceptible glimmer of anticipation.

Zheng Xiu didn’t answer.

He felt this was one of those famous, no-win questions.

Seeing Zheng Xiu’s silence, Xie Luohe huffed softly, took another step closer, and asked again, "Tell me, do I look better when I dress like her, or when I don’t?"

Zheng Xiu hadn’t been sure a moment ago, but this confirmed it.

This wasn’t just a no-win question; it was a guillotine question.

Clearly, there was a standard answer to this kind of question.

Zheng Xiu answered with poise, "You’re beautiful."

This was a classic case of deflecting, focusing only on the main point.

Xie Luohe nodded in satisfaction and silently returned an arrow to her Quiver.

Seeing Xie Luohe "put away her tools," everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.

Xie Luohe’s Archery was plain for all to see.

Dugu Xiang, having experienced it firsthand, knew this better than anyone.

When she was holding an arrow, whatever she said was right.

"Let’s talk somewhere else."

Without a word, Dugu Xiang pressed a hidden mechanism on the floor. A stone slab rumbled aside, revealing a secret passage beneath it.

With that, Dugu Xiang stood to the side, gesturing for Xie Luohe and Cheng Xiao to enter with a welcoming motion.

Xie Luohe smiled at Zheng Xiu. "Look at him. He didn’t even ask why I came back."

Hearing this, Zheng Xiu pursed his lips, re-hooked the Luohe Brush to his waist, and said irritably, "How was I supposed to know if you two were in cahoots? Right, what about the others? Did you..." Zheng Xiu raised his hand and made a throat-slitting gesture.

Xie Luohe pouted. "Who do you take me for? Why would I kill people I have no quarrel with? They chased me to the foot of the mountain, so I tossed them the fake painting and let them fight over it."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Xiu had a sudden realization.

The classic "one peach kills three warriors" stratagem.

"Let’s go."

Zheng Xiu waved to Xiaotao, and she followed.

Xie Luohe, Zheng Xiu, Xiaotao, and Cheng Xiao filed inside in that order.

With Xie Luohe around, Zheng Xiu wasn’t the least bit worried about an ambush waiting below; he walked with a swagger.

But when Zhang Da’er lowered his head and tried to follow them down,

Dugu Xiang stretched out an arm to block him.

"Brother Zhang, please stay."

Dugu Xiang was all smiles. "Tonight’s art viewing ends here. Brother Zhang, you may take your leave."

"You’ve got some nerve, Dugu Xiang." Zhang Da’er gave a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, cursing him inwardly. But a plan quickly formed in his mind. Having figured it all out, he took two steps closer to Dugu Xiang and asked in a low voice, "I am well aware of Hero Dugu’s intentions."

"The real Plum Blossoms in the Snow is hidden down there. That’s where the real art viewing is."

"Cheng Xiao has the Spring Pond Willow Swallow Map, so he naturally has the right to be there."

"Xie Luohe led the others away, and even returned the painting she took, so she barely qualifies."

"And that Xiao Buping can tell a fake from a masterpiece at a glance, so his presence goes without saying."

"So, how about I, Old Zhang, trade you a secret for entry?"

Zhang Da’er spoke in a rapid-fire burst, then gave a sly chuckle. After his little speech, he pointed down at Zheng Xiu’s retreating back. "I, Old Zhang, can tell you who he is. This is a massive secret that no one in the Jianghu knows, and it’s directly related to the Four Seasons Map."

Dugu Xiang’s brow furrowed.

But little did he know, Xie Luohe’s cheerful laughter echoed up from below. "No need for you to say it! I’ll tell everyone right now. He’s not really Xiao Buping. He’s Gongsun Mo... Gongsun Mo of the Gongsun Family."

"You!"

The smile on Zhang Da’er’s face froze. His plans had just gone up in smoke.

Dugu Xiang regretfully made a "get lost" gesture.

Zhang Da’er’s eyes started darting around again.

He was itching with curiosity.

From below, Xie Luohe’s bell-like laughter rang out once more. "Hero Dugu, if you really want to find that place, you should let the chubby fellow in. You could say he’s the best-informed person in the entire world."

Dugu Xiang didn’t dare treat Xie Luohe’s words as a joke. He froze for a moment, his gaze turning grave as he stared intently at Zhang Da’er.

Hearing Xie Luohe expose his "identity," Zhang Da’er grumbled to himself but had no choice but to lay his cards on the table. "Since it has come to this, it would be rude of me to keep hiding."

Zhang Da’er reached into his robes and shook out a small, dainty fan made of white paper.

SWISH.

Eight small words were written on the fan’s surface: "Assume a hundred roles, know all worldly news."

Before Dugu Xiang, Zhang Da’er’s eyes narrowed slightly, his fat trembling as he smiled.

"I am a man of no great talent, merely somewhat well-informed. People call me: Jianghu Bai Xiaosheng."

Dugu Xiang was utterly astonished.

...

Beneath Hidden Sword Manor lay a network of many tunnels.

Several of these tunnels had been connected, hollowed out, and ventilated, situated directly beneath the hall where they had been viewing the painting.

Oil lamps were lit.

Two corridors extended from each of the four cardinal directions, and the sharp sound of wind whistled through the cavern.

In the small space, there was only a single round table.

In the center of the table sat a locked box.

One glance was enough to tell that this was no ordinary lock to be opened with a key.

The enormous lock featured a nine-square grid of mechanisms, arranged like a magic square, each square bearing the image of a different weapon.

"The Nine-Orifice Exquisite Lock." Seeing Zheng Xiu studying the lock, Xie Luohe was happy to explain. "The Nine-Orifice Exquisite Lock uses the arrangement of nine different weapons as its ’key’. The box is lined with white phosphorus powder. If the nine-orifice pattern is set incorrectly, it will strike a built-in flint, igniting the phosphorus and destroying the contents of the box in an instant."

Hearing this, Zheng Xiu understood. ’So that’s why Xie Luohe changed her plan at the last minute. She must have found out about this, realizing that if she tried to take it by force, Dugu Xiang would rather see it destroyed than let anyone else have it.’

The Nine-Orifice Exquisite Lock was the ancient equivalent of a combination lock, but one with nine digits. The permutations were in the tens of thousands; without knowing the combination, any attempt to force it open would end in complete failure.

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