For a moment, Yu Lanchuan basically stopped breathing.

The corners of Gan Qing's curved eyes dropped low, her gaze falling onto the elegant grains of the wooden desk. In her heart, she understood that the person who sent this thing to her did not have good intentions. When she exposed herself in front of Travellers' Sect and Beggars' Sect and revealed Wan Mu Chun's knife, she was already prepared for other people's bad intentions. She could even guess who was the one who sent her this thing.

But yet… in the end, her emotions were still stirred.

When she was young, she didn't understand why her sect had the "single disciple" rule. She also didn't understand why her shifu had never been gratified no matter how hard she worked and only taught her half-heartedly. At that time, Wei Xiao told her that killing techniques would pollute a person's heart. A person obsessed with this path would become a puppet controlled by the knife. The chuuni Gan Qing had snorted disdainfully and thought that this old man must have memorised that line from some shitty comic book.

It was only later on, after she had experienced a great deal, that she understood that the old man was right.

"Three cun and two fen" was a shortcut that could eliminate all grudges and enmity at the fastest speed. There was no need to hang around and wait for the right time, no need to helplessly wait for the other person to receive the retribution they deserved… It was such a temptation.

The whole night, she had wrapped the cloth strip around her hand, then removed it; removed it, then wrapped it. Just like someone exhausting every bit of their rationality to resist a drug addiction.

"Fifteen years ago," Gan Qing said, "I left you in a landfill, played some tricks and had lots of fun. I led the group of Travellers' Sect people on a wild goose chase for ten kilometers and realised that there wasn't a single person in the group who could fight. So I thought that I was very powerful and was so smug that I forgot myself. I knocked out one Black Bat and wrote some words on his body calling Wang Jiusheng a cowardly tortoise and saying that even this group of losers dared rebel against him."

Yu Lanchuan had heard Han Dongsheng say that the person who saved him back then had martial arts skills that were still superficial and that their actions were a little "over-spirited." It was only now that he found out how "over-spirited" she was.

Gan Qing seemed to be chuckling. "Wang Jiusheng isn't useless."

Of course Wang Jiusheng was not useless. He had never practised the martial arts for children and had probably gone starving as a kid. When he grew up, he was busy going here and there to curry favour. His martial arts skills were probably very sloppy. Furthermore, he was already over sixty years of age and was no longer young or strong. Gan Qing probably wouldn't need more than one strike to kill him.

He had climbed up rung by rung from the very lowest level of society. Like a hunting dog on thin ice, he could keenly detect all sorts of smells in the air and was resolute when it came to the kill. He could always catch the waves of the era, riding ever higher.

Yu Lanchuan said, "If he was useless, we won't need to talk about him now."

Gan Qing rested both elbows on the armrest, leaning back lazily against the back of the wooden chair. She shrugged lightly. "Those people in the photos—other than Yang Ping and that Nine Pouch Elder from Beggars' Sect that I've seen once—I don't know any of them. Little Master Yu, some help please?"

Yu Lanchuan went through them and shook his head. "They didn't come to the Martial Arts General Assembly."

"Then, that means they have retired. A group of people retired from the sect and a person ousted from the sect." Gan Qing's left index finger tapped lightly on the back of her other hand. Her gaze swept across the photo showing Elder Tian's alarmed and vicious face. "A sect elder who doesn't know what's going on and looks like he can't tell his ass from his elbow, yet these few people could actually find their way to Mudpool Backlane. I believe Meizhen-jie's judgement. Wang Jiusheng is definitely behind them."

"So, it is very likely that he sent the photos to you. Other than the culprit behind the scenes, who would keep these things?" Yu Lanchuan pushed his glasses up. This person was only at his most polite when being businesslike. Once his spirits were high, they would soar until he was no longer speaking properly anymore. "It's a good thing that you're not completely dumb and not so impulsive that you immediately started following the addresses to hunt them down."

"Why would I be so impulsive? It's not like I've never been taught a lesson." It was not the first day Gan Qing knew him and she couldn't be bothered to quibble with him. She left out a soft laugh. Having said that, she suddenly paused. "But…"

But what if she hadn't been taught a lesson back then?

If she hadn't lost her temper with Wei Xiao, if she hadn't destroyed the sinews of her right arm in a moment of anger and insisted on turning herself in, the probability of the police catching her was practically nil. Wan Mu Chun were experts and other than the unique wound they left behind as proof to collect payment, there would be no other trace. Then, after getting a sweet taste of success, there would likely be no stopping her from then on.

Only a saint could transcend mortal desires. She was not a saint; she was only a drifter who dropped out of senior high school.

Yu Lanchuan asked, "Hmm?"

"Nothing." Gan Qing shook her head. Her tone changed and she said, "But this is not hard to guess. Won't Wang Jiusheng have considered, what if I don't have that kind of explosive temper and don't do as he wanted? What if, after receiving this, I go directly to him, the main culprit? After all, there's a former North Branch Master who's familiar with Travellers' Sect beside me and one of his running dogs has also shot his mouth off in front of me."

Yu Lanchuan fell silent for a few seconds. "If it was me, other than sending you a copy of the photos, I would also reveal your tracks to the people in the photos. That's the key point—the hunter has the right to make independent decisions but the hunted can only desperately grasp for survival. You may be calm but there's no way these people can be calm after finding out that Wan Mu Chun has a descendant and that the descendant will at any time seek revenge from them. They must be so anxious now that they can barely survive the day. Even if you don't look for them, they will not let you go."

Elder Tian and the rest knew that she lived at No. 110 Courtyard. Gan Qing had also received their addresses. Wang Jiusheng had shone a searchlight over here and exposed both sides to the light.

It was as though both sides had taken out their guns and were aiming them right at the other side's vital points. Everyone had agreed—One, two, three, put down the gun—but after counting to three, no one would really lower their weapon.

"Wang Jiusheng has a large household and a large business. No one can say for sure how much wealth he has. Apparently, he has so many houses that he can sleep in a different spot each night in Yanning. If you want to look for him directly, I'm afraid it would take you some time," Yu Lanchuan said calmly. "You are only one person while Beggars' Sect and Travellers' Sect have numerous informants. It is definitely easier for them to lock on to you than it is for you to lock on to Wang Jiusheng. If you don't get rid of all these people in the photos, it would be as though you are skipping the checkpoints and going straight for the boss fight. Not only can you not get to him, you might even have enemies at both your front and your back."

"So, if I'm an impulsive person, I would jump into his trap right off the bat." Gan Qing let out a bitter laugh. "If I'm not, when I have thought it through, I would realise that I have no choice but to jump into his trap."

No wonder certain other people could thrive and prosper, and have money and power. Meanwhile, she could only hoodwink high school students in a little shady shop.

The old man had been right to keep telling her to study hard. But she had not listened. Hence, after she grew up, she became someone who had achieved nothing other than being able to play tricks with small blades.

Yu Lanchuan looked through all the photos. Then, he carefully studied the addresses sandwiched between the photos. Finally, he locked on to Yang Ping.

He picked out Yang Ping's photo. "Out of all these people, only Yang Ping's address is unclear. Furthermore, out of all these photos, only this one shows bloodstains. I remember you had once said that at that time, Senior Wei Xiao's death was handled as a case of sudden heart failure. In that case, his body must have been very clean. If it was a one-against-many fight, there would definitely be a lot of unintentional marks and it would be much harder to disguise it. Keeping this in mind while studying the other photos, you will notice that everyone else has very strange expressions. They're either confused or shocked, and some are even a little terrified. So, Yang Ping must be the main offender."

"These people have retired. Right now, they are probably either joining public square dances or bringing up their grandkids." Gan Qing reached out and spread out the other photos. Then, she pointed out Tian Zhanpeng. "This person was pushed to the front to be used as a tool by someone, he's completely dumbstruck. Yang Ping's the only one left who's not easy to handle. That day when Beggars' Sect were fighting internally, I followed one of their disciples and overheard some things. Yang Ping is colluding with Travellers' Sect and is the one who started this round of internal conflict in Beggars' Sect. Wang Jiusheng knows that Yang Ping will definitely make a grand appearance before long."

"So, Yang Ping will surely be your first target," Yu Lanchuan said. "Even if you leave No. 110 immediately after getting the news and hide yourself, Wang Jiusheng can foresee your movements. If that is the case, then my guess is that Yang Ping definitely also has these photos while the other people all have one each."

Gan Qing didn't immediately understand. "Hm, why is that?"

"This way, he can continue being an ignorant pawn unaware of the situation and continue being the one standing out from the group. Meanwhile, the other people who have received a photo will naturally come to the conclusion the photo they get is Yang Ping blackmailing them so that they will stand on his side and help him return to Beggars' Sect. If they don't, he will borrow Wan Mu Chun's knife and disturb them until they have no peace in their lives," Yu Lanchuan said. "A weak person will surrender when they are threatened but a group of people… even if they're not particularly strong-willed, they will naturally form a team."

"Makes sense." Gan Qing inclined her head. "And after they form a team?"

"Elder Tian is a Beggars' Sect Nine Pouch Elder. He has disciples under him and he has resources. This person will become the main leader," Yu Lanchuan said. "If it's him, he will first make use of Beggars' Sect that has informants everywhere and hide his companions and their families. He will pretend to break away from the other sect elders and support Yang Ping. The best case would be if he could make Yang Ping stand out and attract attention. Then, he will find a chance to reveal the 'truth' to you—a tooth for a tooth—and let you look for Yang Ping to settle the score. The best would be if neither of you win and both suffer losses instead. They can then be the oriole swooping in from behind. I have interacted with Tian Zhanpeng for a bit. I don't know him well but judging from what he has gone through all these years, I think that this person is not very intelligent and there is also a limit to what he can observe. This is a reasonable guess on his line of thought."

The only thing these people did not foresee was likely the sudden crackdown targeting Beggars' Sect and Traveller's Sect.

Gan Qing, "..."

In the future, she must never ever play mahjong or cards with Yu Lanchuan. Otherwise, before the game was half over, he could use his understanding of the other people's intelligence to guess most of her cards.

Yu Lanchuan pretended not to notice her look of amazement but in his heart, he was so pleased that his metaphorical tail was pointing straight at the ceiling. Yet, he still purposely acted aloof and raised an eyebrow as though he did not understand. "Why, is there a problem?"

Gan Qing looked at him and let out a sudden sigh. "No, I just suddenly feel that life is so difficult."

All at once, Yu Lanchuan's ego bloomed and he felt that he could hold up the sky and support the earth. His desire to protect and his sense of power exploded, and the shamelessly boastful line "This is nothing, if there's anything you can't understand, you can come look for me anytime" was on the verge of coming out of his mouth.

Then, he heard Gan Qing continue to say, "A man of talent like Little Master Yu also has to walk to work every day for the sake of his house loan, and has to wake up early in the morning and crawl back late at night, what more other people… Ai, it's really too difficult."

Yu Lanchuan, "..."

This woman was really too annoying. This would not do, he should switch to someone else.