Calamity Messenger-Chapter 62 - 49: Seeing Through the Token
Qian Gongyu was so eager to become a Tributor herself, as she couldn’t think of a reason to refuse such superior conditions. Though she was a bit reluctant, she still prayed in her heart that Jiang Shi would agree quickly, missing this opportunity would be like losing the boat!
"If I agree to become a Tributor," Jiang Shi didn’t refuse, but instead asked, "Will the five tokens be given to me immediately?"
Young Master Qun shook his head, "Of course not, they will be given to you according to your years of service, one per year, all delivered after five years."
"Then forget it, please leave." Jiang Shi turned to go back.
"Wait, if the five tokens are given to you immediately, would you be willing to become my family’s Tributor?"
Jiang Shi looked back at him, with neither joy nor anticipation in his voice, "Yes."
Young Master Qun looked at her for a while, then suddenly smiled helplessly, "It’s my first time meeting someone like you."
He took a Jade Pendant out of his pocket and handed it to Jiang Shi, "Let’s make it a transaction: if you can tell me all its powers, I’ll give it to you."
Shang Xinlei, Jie Yuan Shao, Jie Zilong and the others had glinting eyes, but said nothing, watching Jiang Shi take the Jade Pendant. Qian Gongyu vaguely sensed something was wrong, trying hard to signal Jiang Shi to refuse, yet Jiang Shi paid her no mind.
"The first power is the Body-Protecting Spirit Shield, which requires consuming three points of Spiritual Power to activate. After activation, three shields appear that can withstand any attack three times, but the shields last only for three seconds, and it takes another fifteen seconds before it can be used again."
"The second power is the Exploding Spirit Shield. If you activate the Guardian Jade Pendant again during the Body-Protecting Spirit Shield’s cooldown, it generates an Exploding Spirit Shield, dealing damage to the attacker. Both powers have a cool down period of sixty seconds."
Young Master Qun listened intently, and after Jiang Shi finished, he asked, "What does ’seconds’ mean?"
"Roughly the time of one breath."
"Got it." Young Master Qun nodded, "Thank you, the Jade Pendant is yours now."
With that, Young Master Qun took his leave, not only did he leave himself, but also sent the other guests away. Before leaving, Chen Linchuan gave Jiang Shi a deep look. He called over two guards and after instructing them, the two guards stood watch outside the Qian Family’s carriage.
After the unnecessary people left, Jiang Shi continued practicing with his sword, as if nothing had happened.
"Jiang Shi, you..." Shang Xinlei didn’t know what to say, "You just jumped right into such a big trap..."
"No need to say more," Jie Zilong interrupted, "Fourth Miss Shang, we ask the Shang Family to make a decision before the day after tomorrow. I will also expedite contacting the family."
"What’s going on, what’s going on?" Qian Gongyu asked with a puzzled face, "Why do you all seem more nervous than before?"
"Because the situation is more severe now. It’s not just about the small matter of Mansu Forest Land." Shang Xinlei looked at Jiang Shi, his expression unusually complex, "If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I never would have believed..."
"In this world, there really is someone who can see through the powers of tokens at a glance!"
...
...
"Why is Jiang Shi so weak!"
The first thing Young Master Qun did after sitting down was to complain, taking a big gulp from the wine pot, spilling wine over himself but paying no mind, lamenting to Chen Linchuan, "Even if she was at the second-turn, that would be fine, but she happens to be just a first-turn Messenger, what am I supposed to do? What can I do?"
"Young Master Qun, I’m not one of your followers, so I’m not in the habit of playing along with your complaints." Chen Linchuan walked to the cabinet, took out a crystal wine bottle, and poured the blood-red liquid into the nightlight cup, "Just say what you have to say, and if you have to fart, do it quickly."
As an elder of the Chen Family and a Third-Turn Messenger, Chen Linchuan didn’t need to care about Young Master Qun’s feelings. The reason Young Master Qun led the conversation at the banquet was that the two families had reached a tacit understanding to jointly oppose the Jie Family and the Shang Family—it didn’t mean the Chen Family was a subordinate of the Qun Family. Among the seven major families of the Upper Three Tiers, cooperation exists, but there is no hierarchy.
Young Master Qun wasn’t annoyed, spreading his hands and said, "In the past, there were also people like Jiang Shi, for instance, the ’Demon Suppressing Messenger’ two hundred years ago, a Fourth-Turn Foundation Establishment, who roamed the world before running off to the Outer Realm. In between, there was some interaction with the Qun Family. According to clan records, the Demon Suppressing Messenger would always be fully disguised before contacting the Qun Family and not only had personal tokens for calculation prevention but also limited any transactions to token assessment, regardless of the price offered by the Qun Family, he never agreed to help explore the Secret Realm."
"The Demon Suppressing Messenger guarded against every loophole, so the Qun Family could only treat him with respect, maintaining goodwill even if there was no bond."
"Besides the Demon Suppressing Messenger, throughout its hundreds of years of heritage, the Qun Family also encountered many talented geniuses. Some were like the Demon Suppressing Messenger, possessing the power to protect themselves before contacting the great families; some had nothing but talent and happily accepted the careful cultivation of the Qun Family, becoming the family’s non-bloodline elders."
"So, are there people with both talent and weakness who refuse the solicitation of noble families?"
"Yes, and plenty of them." Young Master Qun shook the wine pot, finishing the last drops and rubbing his temples as he said, "The magic Dao thieves still at large mostly belong to this category, being proud and unyielding."
"Proud and unyielding? I think they’re just holding out for better offers." Chen Linchuan shook his head and said, "From the moment she refused to attend the banquet, I saw through her strategy. She’s deliberately creating difficulties to force us to lower our heads. Once we lower our heads, the Jie Family and Shang Family will naturally feel the crisis, and they’re bound to offer better terms to win over Jiang Shi."
"In retrospect, this woman really has just the right moves, first making a name for herself in Mansu Forest Land. Even if she was not on the same team with people from the Jie Family and Shang Family, she would first contact their two families. By the time we got the news and came over, we’d have to deal with the Jie Family and Shang Family first, effectively helping Jiang Shi keep them in check. She doesn’t even need any effort or too much scheming because she uses our families’ rivalries to maximize her benefits. She seems reckless and ignorant, but is actually crafty at heart."
Hearing Chen Linchuan’s ’praise’ of Jiang Shi, Young Master Qun waved his hand, shaking his head repeatedly, and couldn’t help but clutch his belly and laugh out loud towards the end.
"Seems like Young Master Qun has a different opinion." Chen Linchuan said coldly, "Do you think a beauty wouldn’t have sinister thoughts? Does the rumor in Jiangnan about Young Master Qun being swindled of ten thousand Spiritual Jades by a courtesan hold no truth?"
"No, no, I am equal towards all, men and women alike, how could I think women can’t be bad?" Young Master Qun managed to hold back his laughter and said, "I too see that Jiang Shi isn’t a good person, but her misdeeds aren’t as complex as you imagine."
"Earlier, she specifically asked if becoming a Tributor meant immediately receiving five tokens, and when the answer was no, she refused my invitation."
Chen Linchuan was slightly startled, wearing a look of disbelief, "Do you mean to say she intends..."
"Indeed, it’s my first time meeting someone so wickedly honest." Young Master Qun chuckled, "If she could obtain five... no, even just one token, she would have agreed to become a Qun Family Tributor without hesitation! Just like when I proposed a transaction to appraise the Jade Pendant, she immediately agreed to it to get the Jade Pendant! So long as she gets her hands on the token, she doesn’t care about any outcome or fulfilling any responsibility!"
"So, just a shortsighted, ignorant country girl." Chen Linchuan’s eyes were filled with disdain, "There’s no need to waste our efforts on her, the Jie Family and Shang Family will definitely recruit her. Negotiating directly with the Jie Family and Shang Family is more practical."
"I hope so, dealing with the Jie Family and Shang Family, my family’s stubborn old folks are bound to be more cautious." Young Master Qun sighed deeply, "I only fear that if Jiang Shi rejects the Jie Family and Shang Family, it might arouse my uncles’ greed... I really don’t wish to have to use less honorable methods against her."
"Should such an opportunity arise, no need for you to act, the Chen Family is willing to take the trouble." Chen Linchuan opened the carriage door, signaling for the guest to leave, "I’m not afraid of offending an ignorant country girl."
Young Master Qun shrugged, patted his backside and left, even grabbing a bottle of wine from Chen Linchuan before leaving. Outside, he cast a glance towards the direction of the Qian Family carriage, and although it was far away, he vaguely saw a figure practicing with a sword.
"Shortsighted..." Young Master Qun murmured.
Willing to forsake reputation for a few tokens, heedless of long-term benefits, indeed a case of shortsightedness.
But the issue is, when realizing she can’t get the tokens immediately, she even gave up the position of Qun Family Tributor, a role that guarantees a lifetime of prosperity, without hesitation. Rather than shortsightedness, perhaps she just doesn’t care.
Doesn’t care for splendor and wealth.
Doesn’t care about status.
Doesn’t care about breaking promises.
Doesn’t care about life and death.
Doesn’t care about the future.
The only thing she cares about is the sword in her hand.
For some reason, a chill seeped through Young Master Qun, and his heart pounded strongly as if standing on the edge of a cliff, deeply feeling he was in a dangerous situation.
’I beg you, Jie Family, Shang Family, please be overbearing,’ he bitterly smiled, ’Please don’t give us the opportunity...’
