I asked, "When was the first time you watched porn?"
Old Fei said, "12 years old. I didn't look on purpose, the neighbor let me peek twice."
"Two years earlier than me."
Old Fei: "..."
I patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, "Don't worry, I'll keep your secret."
This little incident made us all much more relaxed. We had now arrived at the first martial arts training hall, where Zhang Qing and Dong Ping were each leading a group of children in lessons, occasionally calling a few students out to practice. Although the children were young, they were all composed and steady, their punches and kicks moving with great speed. Fei Sankou watched with great admiration, saying, "I've only ever witnessed Shi Qian's prowess in the Liangshan Club before; I never imagined the others were so skilled."
With a serious expression, I said, "Old Fei, can I trust you?"
Fei Sankou gave me a strange look and said, "What kind of talk is that?"
I said, "There's a huge secret I've thought about, and it's time to tell you. But I don't know if it counts as a secret to you."
Fei Sankou, quick-witted, blinked and laughed, "I understand—I'm talking to you as a personal friend right now. As long as it doesn't harm national security, I'll pretend I never heard of even the biggest secret."
I pondered for a while: did my entertaining clients endanger national security? It seems not. Although the Liangshan heroes were bandits, they had no intention of returning to the mountains. Leaving aside the scholars, only the emperors were particularly sensitive, but it seems they had no intention of reviving their "dreams" within a year. Even if the two traitors, Qin Hui and Wu Sangui, wanted to betray their country, there was nothing to reveal—Qin Hui certainly knew many state secrets from 1000 years ago; could he sell that information at a discounted price?
Also, I feel it's time to really clear things up with Fei Sankou. He represents the country, and in another month or so, all the heroes will be gone. I need to give the investors an explanation, right? As things stand, I also need his help with the antiques matter.
I lit a cigarette and said, "I won't blame you if you don't believe me when I tell you this—I'll just make up another lie."
Fei Sankou: "...You go first."
I said casually, "Do you remember when we first met?"
Old Fei chuckled and said, "Speaking of which, it's all fate. That encounter left a deep impression on me. You went to the train station to pick up the Liangshan Club members, holding a sign in your hand. When those people came out, I was dumbfounded. They all looked exactly like them, even more so than the characters in the TV series."
I asked, troubled, "What would you do if I told you that it's not just a copy, it's the original cast?"
Old Fei was momentarily confused and asked, "The original cast? The same production team? Which version of Water Margin did they film?"
I grabbed my hair and said, "The 11th edition."
"……What's the meaning?"
"They really are the heroes of Liangshan. That big, dark-skinned guy who looks like a director is Li Kui, and the one who helped you steal the cauldron last time was the real Shi Qian. Back then, Wu Yong and Lu Junyi were also in our group..."
Fei Sankou kept waving his hands and said, "Wait, wait, speak slowly. My intelligence is less than 130."
I said, "No wonder you don't believe it. If you were 75 or 80 like me, you probably would have believed it by now. Think about it, besides the heroes of Liangshan, which group in the world today can sweep all the Sanda gold medals? Who can climb up and down the 8th floor like Spider-Man? Who can just sit there and not be a teacher and go smash up gangsters?"
Fei Sankou listened blankly, then suddenly said, "Indeed, during the competition in Singapore, I noticed that many of them didn't behave like modern people. I remember you said you found these people in the mountains, but who would be interested in forming a club right after leaving the mountains? I've been thinking about this. Now it seems your explanation is the most reasonable—but I still find it hard to believe."
I said, "I understand, I didn't believe it at first either. Now we just have one less old charlatan who could turn you into a woman."
It's really hard to believe something like this without external help. I originally planned to use mind-reading on Lao Fei to force him to believe it, but then I thought that this kind of thing shouldn't be used indiscriminately, especially on people in certain professions. In fact, who among ordinary people would want you to be able to read their mind? So, apart from Liu Laoliu and He Tiandou knowing the inside story, I didn't tell anyone about mind-reading.
Just then, I saw a man walk past us, and I shouted, "Mao Sui, Mao Sui!"
Mao Sui looked over in surprise, and when he saw it was me, he walked over with a smile and said, "What is it, Principal Xiao?"
I pointed at Lao Fei and said to him, "Aren't you a lobbyist? Tell him everything you know about who you are and how you got here, and make sure he believes you."
Mao Sui politely bowed to Fei Sankou and said, "Please follow me."
I told Lao Fei, "Go with him. If he's not convinced, I'll figure something out. Right now, I need to go clean my car."
I poured a basin of water, grabbed two strong young boys from the school who were learning archery from Hua Rong, and together we cleaned my car until it looked like it was secondhand (it used to look like it had been used eight times).
Less than half an hour later, Fei Sankou emerged, accompanied by Mao Sui. Fei Sankou still looked somewhat excited, while Mao Sui simply smiled slightly, remaining perfectly calm. Fei Sankou grasped my hand and said, "I believe it now, I understand everything."
I glanced at Mao Sui with suspicion and whispered to Fei Sankou, "He didn't threaten you, did he?" I was afraid that if Mao Sui couldn't reach an agreement, he would resort to the "bloodshed" tactic against Fei Sankou as well.
Fei San laughed: "No."
"So what did he tell you?" I was even more curious.
"Mr. Mao gave me a few examples. All your businesses were built with the help of people from Yucai School, and these people did not seek fame or fortune. This is enough to show that they do not belong to this era."
I said disdainfully, "What are you talking about? Can't this era produce a few people who are selfless and devoted to others?"
It has to be said that Mao Sui is truly resourceful; he found an entry point I never even considered. The five-star juniper and herbal teas on the market are incredibly lucrative projects, yet their developers and founders are virtually unknown. This is perplexing; those unaware would naturally speculate how much I spent to acquire the secret formulas. However, Fei Sankou readily understands that these people are content to be my "teachers" at my school—the wine and herbal teas themselves speak volumes. There are simply too many miracles at Yucai, and they've blossomed in seemingly unrelated areas—something Fei Sankou is well aware of. Clearly, Mao Sui is adept at understanding people's psychology. Perhaps we could have him teach psychology or sales, and have Li Shimin and the others teach business management. Then, our Yucai production and sales chain could be entirely staffed by our own people…
Chapter 72 It Never Ends
Fei Sankou was stunned for a long time. I said, "Now you should understand why those people are fighting so desperately, right?"
"I understand the general idea, but what exactly are those things...?"
"Those costumes were either Liu Bang's imperial robes or those worn by Li Shishi. That knife was used by Jing Ke to assassinate the King of Qin, and that golden armor was Xiang Yu's personal armor."
Old Fei gasped, then suddenly asked, "So, that Comrade Ying who helped us find the Qin King's tomb..."
That's Qin Shi Huang!
Old Fei lit a cigarette with trembling hands and muttered, "No wonder, no wonder."
I said, "Fortunately, those people only know that these things are valuable, but they don't know why they are valuable. Otherwise, I'm afraid those mafia members with temples wouldn't be able to keep quiet."
Old Fei stubbed out his cigarette after taking a puff and said, "You're absolutely right. At that point, it won't just be the Mafia; governments from all over the world will want a piece of the pie, and the world will be in chaos!" He quickly walked to his car, took out all the things he had acquired yesterday, and solemnly handed them to me, saying, "Take all of these things back with you, and make sure they take everything with them when they leave."
I said, puzzled, "I thought you were going to ask me to donate it to the country."