Chapter 255
Chapter 255
Yuan Fei slowly began explaining the “big job” he had mentioned…
Just as Old Cao had said, Yuan Fei had never married. He was over forty, with no wife or children, and lived a carefree life on his own.
He lived in Guxin Town, next to Lianghe Town, but often roamed all over Fubei County.
Sometimes he would even spend a while in neighboring counties and cities, or in the main urban district.
In short, he wandered everywhere!
As a result, Yuan Fei had made quite a few friends in the esoteric circles of eastern Sichuan and western Yu, although Old Cao and I jokingly called all of them his disreputable cronies.
Whatever we called them, those “cronies” kept Yuan Fei extremely well informed on every front. Old Cao and I were different. We kept a low profile and lived quietly…
This time, the news and the job had come from one of Yuan Fei’s friends.
His friend’s name was Ni Yang.
He and Yuan Fei had known each other since childhood. Back in Guxin Town, he had been an idle young delinquent, a small-time hoodlum, in other words. He was not terribly wicked, but he was no decent man either.
Unexpectedly, when Ni Yang grew a little older, a passing old-school conjurer discovered that he had some aptitude for cultivation! He had the talent to make a living from the conjuring arts.
In those days, unless someone adopted a young child and raised him as both foster son and disciple, it was quite difficult to find anyone to inherit one’s teachings and craft…
So even though the old-school conjurer knew that Ni Yang was not of especially good character and liked to play tricks and rely on petty cleverness, the conjurer stayed in Guxin Town and took the young man as a disciple.
Just like that, an undisciplined delinquent transformed into a member of the esoteric world.
And to be fair, Ni Yang was rather talented.
After studying under the old-school conjurer for five years, he had become quite accomplished!
From time to time, master and disciple traveled to the surrounding towns or to wealthy households in Fubei County to perform for their entertainment…
Conjurers were one of the more prosperous branches of the eclectic arts!
In fact, they were doing even better than they had in ancient times.
Why?
People in ancient times were superstitious and therefore believed even more strongly in ghosts, gods, and other mysterious things. Setting aside the famous orthodox schools of Buddhism and Daoism, most folk esoteric trades were actually held in considerable esteem.
But as the age and technology advanced, some trades and crafts gradually declined. Some even faced suppression to varying degrees.
Old-school conjuring, however, resembled stage magic!
It was far more impressive than ordinary magic, and advanced conjuring required a certain amount of qi to drive it. As a result, it became a favorite among high society and wealthy households.
At a rich family’s birthday celebration, a gathering of friends, a business banquet, or similar event… the more important and private the occasion, the more prestige came from hiring an old-school conjurer to perform. An ordinary magician could not compare!
The trade therefore paid well. In modern times, it was even more popular than the work of coffin bearers and funerary-paper artisans like Old Cao.
After all, people certainly did not die as often as wealthy families sought entertainment.
Ni Yang already knew Yuan Fei, and now that he had entered the esoteric world, the two of them saw each other more frequently than before…
Perhaps the old conjurer had accumulated hidden injuries while traveling from place to place to make a living in earlier years. After living in Guxin Town for seven or eight years, the old conjurer passed away.
Ni Yang was already eighteen at the time. He had learned most of his Master’s skills. Although he had not mastered everything, he was no longer nervous about performing old-school conjuring by himself for wealthy families.
Unexpectedly, another two or three years later, his parents died one after the other as well.
Thinking about it, the man really had suffered a rather tragic life!
But once Ni Yang no longer had his Master or his parents to teach and restrain him, the negative parts of his personality began to reemerge…
He had been a petty thief and troublemaker as a child, held in check only by the old conjurer.
Now, with no one left to restrain him, he relied on his money and extraordinary abilities to run wild in Guxin Town!
He did not go so far as to become an evildoing “rogue cultivator.” If he had, Yuan Fei might have been forced to strike him down for the greater good despite their personal ties.
But every day, Ni Yang would seduce married women, harass unmarried girls, or, whenever someone displeased him, either beat them up or play tricks on them…
He committed one infuriating act after another.
At last, he provoked someone he could not afford to offend by sleeping with the wife of an influential local figure in Guxin Town. The man sent people to ambush him. More than a dozen people caught Ni Yang outside town, launched a surprise attack, and gave him a brutal beating.
If Yuan Fei had not rushed over to stop them and used his good reputation in town to talk them down, Ni Yang might have been beaten to death or ended up crippled!
He spent two or three months in a bed at the town clinic. Once he recovered, he said that he no longer wanted to stay in such a small place and intended to seek his fortune in a big city.
So Ni Yang went to make his way in Yu City…
More than ten years passed like that.
Yuan Fei saw him less often as well, perhaps only once every two or three years.
Not long ago, Ni Yang returned from the city in grand style!
Not only was he dressed head to toe in designer clothing, he also wore a luxury watch and a gold chain. He came back with three black Mercedes-Benz cars, along with people who looked like drivers and assistants.
Rumor had it that he had even dined with the deputy mayor of Guxin Town!
Some people who knew Ni Yang were astonished.
Had this fellow struck it rich in the city?
One after another, they put on fawning faces and tried to curry favor with him…
Yuan Fei naturally did not join the crowd, even though he had once saved Ni Yang and the two had known each other since childhood.
But two or three days later, Ni Yang came to find him of his own accord.
He said he had a “big job” to discuss. After they talked for a while, Yuan Fei finally learned what had happened.
Ni Yang had not become a wealthy boss himself. Instead, he had latched on to a powerful businessman in Yu City and become the man’s private retainer!
As it happened, this wealthy businessman had also come from a poor family.
He had been born in the countryside where Guxin Town and Lianghe Town met. Decades earlier, he had gone to the city. With courage and social savvy, he had started as a bricklayer… and worked his way up until he became a construction and real-estate magnate!
His net worth had surpassed one hundred million yuan.
In 2001, that unquestionably made him a tycoon.
Ni Yang met the tycoon at a gathering of wealthy people, where he performed many astonishing feats of conjuring. In truth, his act already had the feel of real magic.
The tycoon was delighted with his performance and later approached Ni Yang in private.
Ni Yang initially thought the man merely wanted to become acquainted with him. But after the tycoon invited Ni Yang to meet at his villa, the very first thing he said was,
“Master Ni, that conjuring of yours isn’t ordinary, is it? You know actual magic, don’t you? This isn’t just sleight of hand.”
The question left Ni Yang momentarily dumbfounded.
Under normal circumstances, wealthy businessmen did not ask that kind of question.