Chapter 458: Rumors Have It
Swan Hunt.
It was a comical name, but no one laughed. Especially the one most involved—Lu Jinci. He knew that the innocent-sounding Big White Swan was nothing to fuck with.
He had never fought her before, but a ninth-grade light resonance was enough of a name to have him scared shitless.
“We need to do one thing in this plan.”
Guo Jiufeng gently tapped the table. “We need to make the Enlightened Sage College become Jiang Qing’e’s number one target. She must want to come hunt Lu Jinci. That will make our plan much easier to execute.”
Lu Jinci winced. What had he done to offend the vice principal recently?
“Vice Principal, I haven’t offended her at all. Why would she come after me?”
“Well, go offend her, then.”
Lu Jinci groaned. “I’m not good at that. Besides, she’ll probably ignore me.”
Guo Jiufeng smirked. “Well, I expect as much. Which is why I’m leaving this task…” he turned to Jing Taixu. “To you.”
Jing Taixu nodded reluctantly. “Well, if the school orders it, I’ll give it a try. I guess I do want to size her up as well.”
“Do your best,” Guo Jiufeng told him. “But it’s not a must. It just makes the plan much smoother. If it doesn’t work, we’ll just have to hustle harder in other ways. And now, time is of the essence, so go quickly.” He waved them off.
“Oh, and bring Lu Jinci with you. So they recognize each other.”
Jing Taixu and Lu Jinci left the tower.
“Junior Jing, what’s the plan?” Lu Jinci asked.
Jing Taixu shrugged. “You follow me to the Astral Sage College’s tower, then we go looking for Jiang Qing’e.”
“Just like that? Why would she even bother?” Lu Jinci asked.
“Ah, which is why I will start a fire first.” Jing Taixu pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket sphere and handed it over to Lu Jinci, whose jaw dropped.
He stared at the words on the paper in disbelief.
“Breaking news!”
“Rumors that the Enlightened Sage College’s Jing Taixu has a history with Jiang Qing’e! Their parents have already arranged an engagement!”
“Junior Jing, this doesn’t seem very believable,” Lu Jinci said doubtfully.
“It’s just to draw some attention, stir some interest. Every school has sent scouts out to keep their ears to the ground. All kinds of fake news are flying everywhere. Besides, it isn’t all fake. My father did mention before that he knew the Xia Kingdom’s Li Taixuan back in the day and offered a marriage arrangement after learning that he had an outstanding female disciple. Still, the offer was completely ignored.” Jing Taixu grinned.
“So you plan to spread that rumor?” Lu Jinci asked.
Jing Taixu nodded. “Jiang Qing’e will definitely hear of it. And then I can bring you over to meet her. She’ll definitely consent to meet us then, I think. Get her to know about us, and the mission can be considered accomplished.”
Lu Jinci stared at him suspiciously. “Somehow I feel like you’re the one who wants to meet her.”
Jing Taixu flinched, but he recovered quickly with a smile. “Hey, it’s only normal to want to see pretty girls, right? Especially strong ones. Nothing unusual there.”
“That’s not the best way to make a first impression though,” Lu Jinci noted.
“Well, can’t be helped. It’s the school’s command… Then again, a rocky start can sometimes be turned for the better. It’s more important that she knows me well at first, rather than think well of me. There’ll be chances in the future.”
“You’re truly a veteran in these things, huh,” Lu Jinci marveled. “No wonder I hear that you already have a dozen girls on your plate in your first year.”
“Thanks, Senior.”
Jing Taixu waved over a One Star Hall student and passed the paper to him, then he passed five more golden dragon notes worth 100,000 skygold each. “Here, hide your identity and get some unsavory types to spread these things.”
“Lazy moves.”
“Just getting the basics covered.” Jing Taixu grinned.
The One Star Hall student hurried off.
“Alright, now we wait for the information to reach Jiang Qing’e’s ears, then we move.”
Lu Jinci nodded doubtfully.
The Enlightened Sage College student returned to his room to put on a hood and mask. Satisfied that he looked dodgy enough, he made straight for where he knew people gathered.
It was a large plaza where many schools had come to look for information.
Of course, true or false, no one could tell.
The Enlightened Sage College student looked around for someone suitable. He didn’t want anyone who looked too smart; otherwise, his own identity might be unraveled.
About half an hour later, he finally saw someone suitable.
A young man sitting on a ledge, staring out at the lake with a vacant expression. He didn’t look particularly bright, daydreaming in the middle of one of the most important events for all schools. Plain clothes, scraggly, scruffy expression, probably in need of money.
He moved towards the young man with a bright smile. “Brother, want to take a job?”
The tired and hungry Yu Lang looked up at him grumpily, only to see a dodgy-looking person dressed all in black and in a mask. He was just about to brush him off when the guy handed him a piece of paper. It was a golden dragon note for 100,000 skygold.
“Spread some news for me, brother, and this 100,000 skygold bill is yours.”
Yu Lang perked up immediately, and the note disappeared into his pocket. “Brother, you have a good eye. You immediately spotted me out of all the people here. You speak my language.” He grinned.
The Enlightened Sage College student wasn’t interested, and he turned and left.
Yu Lang first stowed the note properly, then glanced at the information.
His eyes widened as he read it again.
“Son of a b*tch, trying to sabotage my brother Luo?!”
He chased after the student in black and caught hold of him.
“Hey, what are you doing?!”
“Brother, can you give me all these kinds of jobs that you have? You’re looking for more people, right? But give me all of it, and I promise I’ll deliver!” Yu Lang said greedily.
“Heh, you’re crazy greedy. Do this one well, and I’ll think about it.”
Yu Lang groaned. “I know what you’re saying,” he whispered knowingly. “How about this: I’ll give you a 50 percent discount. I’ll do all the dirty work for you!”
The student in black was astonished. He was the employer, and he was getting a discount?! What in the world was this business model? What a great lad.
The student in black grinned. Well, Jing Taixu had told him to get the word out, but he hadn’t specified how far. And this greedy kid was super eager.
He handed all the slips to Yu Lang to pass out, then he put another golden dragon note on top.
500,000, and he made 300,000. What a great way of doing business.
“Do a good job, man.”
He clapped Yu Lang on the shoulder, then walked away whistling.
Yu Lang simpered and bowed until he was out of sight, then he hurriedly found a deserted corner and pulled out a pen. He copied the writing style on the messages exactly, modifying them accordingly.
“Breaking news, part two!
“But the marriage arrangement eventually fell apart when the Jing family revealed that Jing Taixu has had an erection problem since he was young!”