Brother Liu, who had been standing coldly to the side, finally made his presence known and spoke up, "If these were wine vats they had just purchased, that would be plausible, wouldn't it?"
"That's also true. The scale of them transporting wine out was quite large, which caused us to overlook the situation of them transporting wine vats back in. No, no, no... Yu Tao was shouting at those employees not to smash the wine vats!" The Brocade-Clad Young Master almost went off on the wrong train of thought.
"So the problem lies with the wine vats?" Jiang Yichen asked with a question.
"That's not right either. If these wine vats were to be transported to the Chrysanthemum Garden, they would definitely have to be opened and inspected one by one. How could they play tricks with the wine vats? Playing tricks with the wine itself is also impossible; given the methods of the Chrysanthemum Garden, they would be able to detect if there were any problems with the wine." The Brocade-Clad Young Master was a bit flustered, closing his Fan and tapping it against his forehead.
"No, that is exactly where the problem lies. The world always thinks the Heaven Prison is impregnable, yet there are always capable people who break out, and for a considerable period after that, the Heaven Prison is indeed impregnable again, until the next capable person breaks out." Brother Liu pointed out the crux of the problem.
"Are you saying that the Chrysanthemum Garden would have lapses during the inspection process?" The Brocade-Clad Young Master found it unbelievable. In his heart, the Chrysanthemum Garden was truly an impregnable place. With Old Man there, everything should be done flawlessly, without any mistakes.
"Hmm, Hong Yue's winery has been open in Jiangning Commandery for five years, and has been supplying Bamboo Wine to Taoyuan Town for three years. Now it supplies Bamboo Wine to the Chrysanthemum Garden. Even if the first, second, or even third cart were inspected vat by vat upon entering the garden, or if they were inspected one by one during the first, second, or third delivery, what about the fourth or fifth cart, or the fourth or fifth delivery?" Brother Liu reminded them again.
"You mean, Hong Yue would use Taoyuan Town's trust in the winery, and the Chrysanthemum Garden's trust in Taoyuan Town, to let the Chrysanthemum Garden relax its vigilance toward the winery? After time and again of good Cooperation, the Chrysanthemum Garden would have full trust in the winery, and then Hong Yue would strike a lethal blow?" The Brocade-Clad Young Master analyzed, following Brother Liu's train of thought.
"Correct. Trust is often the weapon that can cause the deepest wounds at the most critical moment!"
"Hong Yue and Yu Tao were both people with blood on their hands and notorious reputations in the Jianghu in their early years. Even after retiring from the Jianghu, I'm afraid they would still be sought out by many in the Enemy family. Let alone the fact that the two of them only washed their hands of the business, they didn't actually leave the Jianghu. Doing business so openly should have attracted many enemies. Not to say they would be kept in constant turmoil, but at least it shouldn't be calm after the storm. Yet for so many years, not only have they lived in peace, but their business has also become more and more prosperous. Don't you find that strange?" Brother Liu pointed out another suspicious point.
"Red Robe Cult, Sha Qing! When I first arrived in Gusu, I saw Sha Qing with that Hong Yue." Although Brother Liu was asking the Brocade-Clad Young Master, Jiang Yichen was likely the only one among the three who knew this information, so he replied.
"Oh, so that means for these past few years, the Red Robe Cult has been shielding Hong Yue's winery. That actually makes sense." The Brocade-Clad Young Master also knew what had happened on West Mountain Island; no wonder Jiang Yichen could recognize Sha Qing.
"This is indeed a very critical piece of information! We have been investigating, but we haven't uncovered this thread of the Red Robe Cult. I didn't expect that behind Hong Yue was actually the Red Robe Cult. It seems the Red Robe Cult intends to strike directly at the heart of the Righteousness Alliance." Brother Liu seemed to have gained much upon hearing this, but also felt deeply worried.
"Returning to the problem of the winery, I feel that the Bamboo Wine itself shouldn't have any problems. Even if the wine enters the Chrysanthemum Garden, there will definitely be specialized personnel to inspect it one by one. The Chrysanthemum Garden still guards this Checkpoint very strictly. Only when there are no problems with the food and wine will they allow the people inside the Chrysanthemum Garden to consume them."
"The problem must lie with the wine vats used to hold the wine. How can one play tricks on the wine vats so that even when they are all opened and inspected, they still look fine? I still can't figure out the trick with the wine vats." Brother Liu felt that the top priority was to clarify Hong Yue's Method.
"Brother Liu, what you said just now reminded me. How can one play tricks on the wine vats so that even when they are all opened and inspected, they still look fine?"
"The key lies in what Brother Jiang said earlier: the two stacks of large bowls piled up by the wine cellar door, and also, the bottom of the large bowl placed on the very top, which happens to have a hole the size of two fingers. Suppose, I'm just saying suppose, that the bottoms of all these large bowls have holes in the same situation?"
"Then, you can imagine, what if the rim of this large bowl is slightly larger than the mouth of the wine vat, or if there is a barb at the rim? Wouldn't that allow a person to hide inside the wine vat, then place or cover the large bowl on top, and then insert a Bamboo pole through that hole for ventilation, which also happens to plug the hole? At this point, if you pour the Bamboo Wine in, the wine will almost not leak downwards."
"Because the bowl is black, and there is indeed wine on top, if you also play some tricks with ventilation on the wine vat lid, then the conditions for a person to hide in the wine vat and still breathe freely are met. The wine vat can then both hold a person and hold wine."
"At that time, as long as they win enough trust from the Chrysanthemum Garden, even when they open the vats for inspection, they will likely only be roughly inspected. It would be very difficult to discover the strange nature of the wine vats, and even harder to know that these wine vats are only half full of wine, while the other half is a living person!" The Brocade-Clad Young Master meticulously broke down the most likely situation. Jiang Yichen and Brother Liu also opened their eyes as if the clouds had parted, gaining new knowledge.
"Amazing! It must be like this. The diameter of the square bamboo pole is thin enough. It is not difficult to find square bamboo with a diameter of two fingers in the Thousand Bamboo Forest. If you add some camouflage to the pole, and with the black bowl filled with wine, it would be impossible to discover the anomaly within under normal line of sight. The red silk on the wine vat lid is the most normal thing, but at this time, it can also be used to confuse people's line of sight, making it difficult to detect any anomaly at the rim of the wine vat."
"If they do it more meticulously, they can completely make the wine vat containing wine and a person have the same weight as a wine vat containing only wine. In this way, even if the people from the Chrysanthemum Garden come to lift the wine, they will not be suspicious because of the weight."
"Beforehand, as long as they prepare enough food and wine for the person in the wine vat, staying inside for ten days or half a month is not a problem. Ten days or so, from the winery to Taoyuan Town, and then from Taoyuan Town to the Chrysanthemum Garden, even if they are delayed in Taoyuan Town for a few days, it is more than enough! It is truly a good plan." Brother Liu also gradually realized the various details, becoming more shocked the more he pondered.
"It's more than just a clever plan; such a detailed Plan can be called 'stealing the sky and changing the sun'! Once they enter the Chrysanthemum Garden, who knows what kind of waves they will stir up? If there are no problems in the Chrysanthemum Garden, that's fine, but if there are also accidental situations inside the Chrysanthemum Garden, then..." The Brocade-Clad Young Master said this in a meaningful way.
"Yes! If we didn't know about these strange things, something big would really happen. Fortunately, the young brother discovered it. How fortunate, how fortunate!" Liu Menghen was an Old hand after all, and he reacted quickly, immediately replying the moment the Brocade-Clad Young Master paused.
"But I also beat the grass and startled the snake. After I stirred things up, they won't carry out their original plan, right?" Jiang Yichen was not stupid either. Listening to the two of them having a conversation that tried to cover up the truth, he also guessed that there might be an enemy Inside informant within the Chrysanthemum Garden. If so, Old Man was truly being attacked from front and back.
"Not at all, not at all. Hong Yue will guard against us. After all, we have been competing with each other openly and secretly for five years, and everyone's methods are more or less clear. But they don't know you. Perhaps they think you are just a small youngster, and they won't change a long-planned Plan because of an insignificant person."
"Originally, they might have been able to guard against you, but I bet that Sha Qing would never mention you in front of Hong Yue. A grown man would never go around talking about the embarrassing incident of almost being killed by a youngster on West Mountain Island, let alone talk about it in front of a woman. So to Hong Yue, and regarding this matter, you are just a surprise troop they didn't expect. This is also why Old Shen chose to let you do this investigation Mission." The Brocade-Clad Young Master was analyzing this for Jiang Yichen, and also giving him encouragement.
"Correct. Hong Yue and the others will most likely strengthen their defenses afterwards, but they will not change their original plan." Brother Liu originally felt a bit of disdain for Jiang Yichen's lack of vigilance and poor alcohol tolerance, but after the Brocade-Clad Young Master repeatedly encouraged Jiang Yichen in secret, he also tasted the meaning behind it. He realized that he had too much worldly ways and was being too argumentative with a Youth who had just left the island and was just past the age of tied hair. At this moment, he could be considered to be saying some good words to let him relax.
"Alright, young brother, we've said so much and haven't introduced ourselves yet. I am Liu Menghen. The one next to me is the eldest young master of the Gusu Murong Family, Murong Jing, one of the main people in charge of information communication between Gusu City and Jiangning Commandery for the Righteousness Alliance." Liu Menghen once again showed enthusiasm.
Jiang Yichen also politely got off the bed, stood up, and bowed to show respect. However, he was speechless about the name Murong Jing. Murong 'Quiet'? Where is it quiet? But he was able to keep this thought to himself.
"Hey, hey, hey, why mention the Murong Family? Nowadays, what reputation does a family have? Each one is in ruins in this Jianghu turbulence. There is nothing to be proud of. Better not to mention it, better not to mention it." Murong Jing waved his hands at Liu Menghen to indicate that he needed to be low-key.
Liu Menghen was quite speechless. He didn't say the family was amazing; he just didn't know what other words to use to introduce Murong Jing. This person was just pretending to be low-key and wanted to save face. Hmph!
"This Brother Liu Menghen here is truly amazing. In the Jianghu, he is known as the 'Folding Moon Saber'. His Folding Moon Saber Techniques are rarely matched in the Jiangnan area. It is also because of him that Taoyuan Town has been peaceful and harmonious for the past ten years. It's a pity that you use a sword, otherwise, he could teach you a few moves." Once Murong Jing started his chatterbox mode, he simply couldn't stop.
Jiang Yichen bowed again to show respect to the two, but he was still very worried about Old Man's situation, and what other backup plans Hong Yue and the Red Robe Cult might have. He spoke up to stop Murong Jing's chatter, "I am still more worried about the winery. I wonder if the two of you already have a Countermeasure?"
"For this matter, it is only appropriate to play into their hands!" A voice with Profound energy resounded outside the room.
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