“What do you want to say?” Song Family Steward asked with a half-smile, knowing this young man was always clever.

“I heard that this Mr. Thirteen is ruthless and cunning.” The young servant looked a bit scared and said in a trembling voice, “He won’t ambush us on the way, will he? I’ve heard that all the officials in Fengcheng have taken his money and call him brother. He can even cover up murder cases…”

“If you can think of it, do you think Young Master can’t?” Song Family Steward said with some disdain, “Young Master already warned us. This Mr. Thirteen is always ruthless. We embarrassed him, and with his influence in the government, he might just send people to ambush us…”

“Then we should take the small path.” The young servant looked even more frightened and said, “The Xuānfēng Valley entrance is a wide main road and the closest route to Xuancheng. They’ll definitely block us there… The small path is rough and hard to walk, but it’s better than losing our lives.”

“You, you’re smart, but not smart enough.” A smile appeared on Song Family Steward’s face. Looking at this young servant, he seemed to see his younger self. He couldn’t help but imitate Young Master’s manner and said leisurely, “This Mr. Thirteen is no ordinary man. If you can think of taking a detour, of course he can too. So now, nine times out of ten, Mr. Thirteen’s men are waiting to ambush us on that small path. But… they’re destined to wait in vain.”

“This…”

“Young Master said, ‘Truth and falsehood are hard to distinguish.’”

Song Family Steward laughed heartily and said, “People of the Song family should walk the grand avenue!”

The young servant’s fear immediately lessened.

Sure enough, their own Young Master was even more resourceful, having already anticipated the opponent’s move.

The others also burst into hearty laughter, full of joy.

But the laughter abruptly stopped.

Because up ahead on the main road, a burly figure appeared, face cold, clearly unfriendly.

“The Yellow Springs Road of the underworld is probably wider than this path.”

…

Inside the carriage.

Mr. Turner was trembling with fear.

Brian Zane looked calm, but suddenly showed a hint of a smile.

He had already anticipated using Qiányáng to block the road at Xuānfēng Valley.

“This Song family member is clever, but unfortunately, too clever for his own good.”

Brian Zane muttered to himself, “Though smart, he really can’t keep his cool. As soon as he broke my game in Xuancheng, he sent people to Fengcheng.”

This round just now was a test, and also a provocation.

The other side broke his setup in Xuancheng, and was clearly not satisfied, wanting to keep fighting.

And Brian Zane’s deeds in Xuancheng and Fengcheng were not exactly secret, especially in Xuancheng, where he had competed with several major families. As a member of the Song family, the other side must know him well enough.

It was precisely because they knew him well enough that they could break his setup in Xuancheng.

Someone who could break the game was certainly no fool, and could naturally deduce his style and make countermeasures.

But Brian Zane also anticipated that the other side would make countermeasures based on his style.

So he thought one step further.

That’s why he intercepted them at Xuānfēng Valley.

…

Xuancheng.

Song family.

In the courtyard.

Two people sat facing each other, a chessboard on the stone table between them.

Sweat had already appeared on the old man’s forehead; he was at a disadvantage.

The young man’s face was handsome and jade-like, with a gentle smile.

“Young Master, Third Steward hasn’t returned yet,” a servant came to report.

“If he hasn’t returned by now, he probably won’t be coming back.” The young man waved his hand and said, “You may go.”

“It seems this test was lost to the other side.” The old man sighed and said, “Back then, I was utterly defeated, and you…”

“It was just a test.” The young man smiled and said, “Grandfather, do you think this Mr. Thirteen broke my setup because he underestimated me, or because he took me seriously?”

“Well…” The old man hesitated.

“Generally, if someone offends him and is afraid of being ambushed, what would they do?” the young man asked.

“Most people would take the main road through Xuānfēng Valley and leave for Xuancheng immediately. But a clever person, worried about an ambush, would avoid the main road and take the small path back,” the old man replied.

“Exactly. Ordinary people take the main road, clever people take the small path.” The young man said, “But I figured he’d see me as a clever person and ambush the small path. So I did the opposite and sent people along the main road, but he still intercepted them…”

“Either he saw me as an ordinary person and ambushed me on the main road.”

“Or he saw me as extremely clever, knowing I’d guess he’d ambush the small path and so I’d take the main road instead—so he sent people to ambush me there.”

“I’ve broken his setup before, so he probably doesn’t underestimate me. So it must be the latter.”

“This man is truly not easy to deal with.”

The young man spoke slowly, but there was no heaviness in his tone, only a smile at the corner of his mouth.

“Mr. Thirteen is certainly not easy to deal with,” Old Master Song sighed. “Otherwise, why would I have bowed my head to a man in his twenties back then?”