Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 32 The Younger Brother of a Prestigious Family

After leaving Azi's place, Jiang Mingzhe didn't return to his own small building, but went straight to the warehouse.

The Starry Sky Sect's warehouse was located in a large complex of buildings, where various useful items were displayed.

Jiang Mingzhe had been here once before, so this time he knew the way well and went straight to a small room—

It can be considered a property management center of the Xingxiu faction.

The disciple on duty in the small room was none other than the chubby Ouyang Baoyu.

The last time he assigned a room and cleaned for Jiang Mingzhe, this chubby guy was extremely attentive. Now that he saw Jiang Mingzhe coming, he was even more enthusiastic, bowing and scraping, and inviting Jiang Mingzhe inside to serve tea.

If it were an ordinary disciple who had just entered the sect, he would never have drunk this tea, considering his status. But Jiang Mingzhe smiled and said, "Alright, I was feeling thirsty after walking all this way. Thank you, Junior Brother Ouyang."

When Ouyang Baoyu saw that he remembered his name, he was even more delighted and didn't know what to do with his hands and feet.

He first invited Jiang Mingzhe to sit down, poured out the remaining tea from the earthenware pot, carefully washed the pot and teacup, took out a porcelain urn from the cabinet, and said ingratiatingly, "This is snow mountain water, the purest of all. If it weren't for my senior brother's arrival, no one would have thought of drinking this urn of snow water."

He poured the water into the earthenware pot, then took out a small jar, picked out some dark tea leaves, and said with a smile, "This is top-grade black tea from Dali Kingdom. Five catties can be exchanged for a fine horse. Senior brother, please try it and see if you can taste it."

He brewed the tea leaves along with the tea, and while waiting, he asked, "Senior brother, you came to find me. Is there something wrong with the place you're staying in?"

Jiang Mingzhe shook his head and said, "My room is fine, but there's a hole in Senior Sister Azi's door. I'd like to ask you to take a look and send someone to fix it."

Ouyang Baoyu nodded repeatedly: "It's just a small matter, why bother you to make the trip yourself, Senior Brother? Don't worry, Senior Brother, I'll arrange the manpower right away."

He immediately stood up, called out to a few people from somewhere, gave them a few instructions, and they nodded repeatedly before running off.

Ouyang Baoyu returned to the room and said with a smile, "The ones I arranged are the most skilled and meticulous among the disciples of our sect. Since the door is broken, there's no need to repair it. I'll have them choose a good door to replace it for Senior Sister Azi."

At this moment, the tea soup boiled, and Ouyang Baoyu quickly poured tea for Jiang Mingzhe. Jiang Mingzhe picked it up and saw that the tea soup was orange-red and bright. He brought it close to his nose and smelled it. It smelled slightly like longan and red dates. He blew on it, took a sip, and found it mellow and smooth. He moved his tongue slightly and found a distinct sweet aftertaste. He exclaimed in surprise, "This tea is quite good."

Ouyang Baoyu immediately said, "So it turns out that you are an expert in the art of tea, unlike me who can only guzzle tea. I know that expensive tea is good tea, but I don't know how to make it good. This tea is like a cow chewing on a peony when it's in my hands. Only when it comes to you, senior brother, will I feel that I have not lived this life in vain."

After saying that, he picked up the small jar and gently placed it beside Jiang Mingzhe's hand.

Jiang Mingzhe blinked, feeling that this scene was very familiar. Wasn't this the same method he used when he was a junior salesman, trying to get closer to customers by giving them small gifts?

He still remembers feeling uneasy at that time, afraid that his flattery was too blatant and that he would be looked down upon, and also afraid that others would find the gift too meager and refuse to accept it.

Looking at the chubby boy's humble, flustered smile and expectant, flickering eyes, I was afraid that I had looked just like that back then.

He smiled and nodded, "Alright, Brother Ouyang, I'll shamelessly accept your gift since I call you brother."

Ouyang Baoyu was overjoyed: "Brother Jiang, please drink as much as you like. When my family sends me some tea, I will offer it to you as a token of my respect."

This kid seized the opportunity and stopped calling me "senior brother" and started calling me "elder brother."

Jiang Mingzhe said, "We're brothers, shoulder to shoulder. What's the point of filial piety between brothers? We're all refined tea lovers, just sharing with each other. When I find some good tea, I'll invite you to try it too."

Ouyang Baoyu became increasingly agitated, nodding repeatedly with a wide grin. Suddenly, his lips twitched, his eyes reddened, and he was about to cry.

Jiang Mingzhe joked, "I'm the older brother, not a pretty older sister. Why are you so excited?"

Ouyang Baoyu shook his head repeatedly, his expression a mixture of bitterness and smile: "Brother, it's no wonder I'm so excited. I have the blood of a foreign ethnic group from the Western Regions. The people in the Xingxiu Sect are either Han Chinese, Tibetans, or people from the Western Xia. Therefore, they all look down on me and call me 'fat bastard' in private. Only you, brother, don't mind and love me so much."

Foreign blood from the Western Regions?
Jiang Mingzhe looked closely and indeed saw that the chubby boy had a high nose bridge, deep-set eyes with a slight blue tint, and somewhat brownish-yellow hair. However, because he was so fat and his face was chubby, his features were not very distinctive. Jiang Mingzhe thought that he came from the Western Regions and was probably one of the so-called Semu people, but since the Mongols had not yet risen to power, the term Semu did not exist.

He then laughed and said, "People of other races are not demons or monsters. As the ancient Han sages said, 'When one enters the land of China, one becomes Chinese; when one enters the land of barbarians, one becomes barbarian.' You speak Han language so well, so naturally you are also a Chinese."

Ouyang Baoyu said with a bitter face, "Brother, this is Tibet."

Jiang Mingzhe thought to himself, "Little Blackie has finally shown his true colors. Although he has some talent, he lacks experience. I used to speak to clients with utmost flattery."

He waved his hand and said, "That's not the point. But you say others look down on you, yet I see you bossing others around and everyone listens to you."

Ouyang Baoyu smiled bitterly and said, "Brother, you don't know this. Money can buy the devil to turn the millstone! My ancestor accompanied Ban Dingyuan on his mission to the Western Regions and was ordered to stay behind. Later, he married a Hu woman and passed down our branch of the family. Now we are a powerful family in the Western Regions and very wealthy. If you go to the Western Regions, just ask about the name White Camel Mountain Villa. Everyone knows it."

White Camel Mountain Villa?

Jiang Mingzhe was secretly surprised, thinking to himself, "So, is this little fat boy Ouyang Feng's grandfather or great-grandfather?"

Out of curiosity, he casually asked, "So, you're from a prestigious family, brother? I read in history books that Ban Dingyuan led thirty-six riders to awe the nations. Your grandfather was one of them, so he must have been an extremely powerful master. Why do you want to become a disciple of the Xingxiu Sect?"

Ouyang Baoyu got up, looked outside to make sure no one was there, then sat back down and said in a low voice, “Brother is right. My family was able to establish itself in the Western Regions precisely because of our family’s martial arts skills. However, ten years ago, my father led a caravan to Persia and unfortunately encountered the most ruthless lone bandit, Huo Shan, on this trade route. He was defeated and killed. Alas, my father was an only son, and I have no older brothers. I was only nine years old when my father died, and I only learned a few basic skills. Now we are barely managing to keep things afloat thanks to a few loyal old servants.”

He looked worried and sighed, “These old servants are still quite skilled in martial arts, but they are too old to be of any use. So I brought a lot of gifts to seek out my master’s disciples, hoping to learn some unique skills to support the Ouyang family. Unfortunately, I have limited talent and have not yet been able to become a member of the family.”

He glanced at Jiang Mingzhe with envy: "If I had even a tenth of your talent, I would have already become a disciple. The last time I saw you, you didn't know any martial arts. After only two days of training, you defeated Senior Brother Mingzhu. In just three days, you were able to break through the gate with a single claw and withstand the attack of Senior Brother. Now, it's widely rumored among the disciples that you must have been the number one master in the world in your past life. That's why you can understand any martial art at a glance and master it after just one practice. You truly deserve to be Master's... most prized disciple."

He almost blurted out the words "my own son," but then he thought, "Ding Chunqiu didn't say it, and Jiang Mingzhe didn't mention it either. How could I expose them?" So he quickly swallowed the words back down.

Jiang Mingzhe laughed and said, "Your information is really well-informed. Hehe, what kind of proud disciple am I? Don't you see that among the newly enrolled disciples, they all dislike me? Senior Brother especially sees me as a thorn in his side. Hmm, so you're quite bold. Knowing that I have offended Senior Brother, you still dare to call me brother?"

Ouyang Baoyu, however, was completely unconcerned and said, "In the eyes of our eldest brother, we are no different from insects, unless one day we are officially registered. As for the other senior brothers, I'm not just saying this out of spite, but it's just that Senior Brother Mingzhu is a bit stubborn. The other senior brothers are just hoping to see you fight with our eldest brother. They can make sarcastic remarks, but who would dare to provoke you personally?"

Jiang Mingzhe keenly noticed that he used the phrase "who dares" instead of "who would."

He couldn't help but wonder, "Even if I practice my skills quickly, my foundation is still too shallow. Why don't they dare to?"

Ouyang Baoyu sighed, thinking to himself, "In this Xingxiu Sect, if your foundation as the young sect leader is still shallow, then who can be considered profound?"

He laughed and said, "Brother, your talent is astonishing. If they really want to form an irreconcilable feud with you, aren't they afraid that you... will master your divine skills and cause them trouble?"

Jiang Mingzhe laughed and said, "Isn't Senior Brother afraid?"

Ouyang Baoyu looked at him strangely, wondering if he didn't know he was his master's son? Had his master not told him? Hmm, perhaps his master was deliberately trying to temper his will.

So he dared not say it outright, and only said, "Eldest brother has no way out. After all, you, you, you are too talented. If you grow up and take his position as eldest brother, given how many people he has offended in recent years, the outcome will probably be dire. He can only rely on the fact that Master has not yet officially announced... announced that you are his most favored disciple, to see if there is a chance to deal with you, or at least make Master think that you are not up to the task."

Even the cleverest Jiang Mingzhe couldn't have foreseen the rumors spread by Azi. Although he saw Ouyang Baoyu hesitate, he assumed that Ouyang Baoyu was just talking about Zhaixingzi behind his back and was feeling timid, so he just laughed it off.

He downed his tea in one gulp, stood up, and patted Ouyang Baoyu: "Master forbids disciples from passing on their skills to each other, but he didn't say we can't discuss martial arts. I have to go out on business tomorrow on Master's orders. When I return, come to my residence and we'll verify whether it's true or not. If most of the disciples who have registered are at the level of Mingzhuzi, then getting registered might not be that difficult."

After saying this, he took the tea leaves and went out. Ouyang Baoyu was extremely excited and bowed deeply, saying, "Respectfully seeing off Senior Brother Jiang."

Jiang Mingzhe went to the storeroom to collect some useful items before returning.

(End of this chapter)