Linger stopped what she was doing. She was quite curious about this group of strange masked men.
Tai-shu Ying tilted her head and looked at the four of them. She also wanted to know their purpose.
Sang Hanshui's gaze fell on Chen Mu. He had no right to speak there.
He was a little puzzled. No matter how he looked at it, Qiao Yuan didn't seem like the kind of person who would easily agree to be a guest at someone else's house.
Wei-ah and Little Bu Mo didn't even raise their heads. The two of them had the same thought — to throw that kind of problem to Chen Mu.
So, everyone's gaze once again converged on Chen Mu.
Originally, he still wanted to think about how to answer, but Tai-shu Cheng asked directly, so he also answered directly, "I have come to find your esteemed family head, Tai-shu Yong, to discuss some matters."
Tai-shu Cheng's jaw dropped as he stared blankly at Chen Mu. Tai-shu Ying was dumbfounded, and Ling Ling couldn't help but look a little strange.
Seeing everyone's expressions, even a slow-witted guy like Chen Mu felt something wasn't right.
He didn't know what he said wrong, but he didn't panic and asked calmly.
"Oh, what's wrong?"
Tai-shu Cheng's expression quickly returned to normal. Smiling somewhat helplessly, he said, "I don't mean to make things difficult for you, brother, but even I haven't seen my father for four and a half months."
"Why?" Chen Mu didn't quite understand.
Tai-shu Cheng said indifferently, "Our Tai-shu Clan is an ancient aristocratic family, and we have some rather strange rules.
Speaking of which, this was related to the Patriarch's inheritance.
The head of the Tai-shu family was not determined by age.
Every son of the patriarch would be sent down to take over one of the family's businesses after they reached adulthood.
Whoever performs the best will have the highest chance of becoming the next Patriarch. "
"Oh." Chen Mu nodded, though he hadn't thought about how that had anything to do with his request.
"In order to better train people like us, not only will the old man not give us any help, he also forbade all relatives from providing us with any form of help.
We can only return to the Connected Heart Garden once every six months. Only then will the one with the best performance have a chance to meet the old man.
Normally, we don't have the right to communicate with the family. We have to do everything ourselves. "
Chen Mu was rather surprised. He had never had a good opinion of the aristocratic families.
However, he didn't expect that as a descendant of an aristocratic family, he would have to face such cruel competition.
Tai-shu Cheng casually said, "The winner will become the next clan leader.
As for the others, if they don't gain the trust of the new family head and enter the Elders Council, they will have to guard their property and gradually become a side branch of the Tai-shu family. "
Then, he said apologetically to Chen Mu, "There's still a month and a half before we can enter the Garden Above the Heart again.
Moreover, "he said with a bitter smile," even if I return to the Garden of My Heart, I can't guarantee that I will be able to see the old man, let alone recommend you. "
Chen Mu was silent. He hadn't thought things would suddenly become so troublesome.
Ling 'er, who was at the side, seemed to have sensed something as well. She lowered her head, thinking about something.
Tai-shu Ying, on the other hand, was pouting. If one listened carefully, they could hear that she was complaining about something.
Sang Hanshui couldn't help but frown, showing some displeasure.
He was a smart guy, and knowing so much inside information, he could only follow Qiao Yuan.
In other words, his honor and disgrace were already completely tied to Chen Mu's.
Compared to the other prestigious families, he had never heard of the Tai-shu family.
How could such a little-known family dare to be so arrogant?
Even at Moon Frost Island, 50th on the Black-Line Star Listing would be a top-notch figure. The Tai-shu family was too insensible.
He couldn't help but give a cold snort.
Sang Hanshui's cold snort abruptly made the atmosphere a little tense.
A trace of nervousness flashed through Tai-shu Ying's eyes. She had experienced Sang Hanshui's power before, and even Angie had secretly praised him as more awesome than Ma Hu!
Ma Hu was the top ace under Tai-shu Cheng, who held the position of the chief guard.
Tai-shu Cheng's face was smiling without the least bit of unnaturalness, as though he hadn't heard Sang Hanshui's cold snort.
The big man next to Ling 'er was looking at Sang Hanshui with some seriousness.
To be able to show such arrogance on such an occasion, he would never be a nobody.
Ling 'er came out to smooth things over, her voice crisp and sweet. "Don't be angry, sir.
Uncle Cheng isn't exaggerating. Not only is the Tai-shu family like this, but our Jiang family is no different.
I'm sure you all have extraordinary backgrounds. So, why don't you first reveal your identities? I think Uncle Cheng can think of something that way. "
She had long been curious about the identities of those people.
Chen Mu shook his head, denying Ling 'er's proposal. "My identity will be revealed when I see the patriarch."
He actually wanted to use Qiao Yuan's identity, which would make it easier for him to see Tai-shu Yong.
But that would undoubtedly expose the existence of Wei-ah and Little Bu Mo.
Moreover, Faya was probably itching to hack him into a thousand pieces.
It didn't matter if Tai-shu Yong knew his identity.
But if too many people knew and it leaked out, it would be a very troublesome matter.
Even if Faya had been ruthlessly attacked by Moon Frost Island, its power in the dark still couldn't be underestimated.
Moreover, if he refused to help Moon Frost Island, it would be hard to say whether or not Moon Frost Island would have a problem with him.
Chen Mu couldn't help but smile bitterly. It hadn't been easy for him to earn some reputation, but he had just discovered that he had no way to display its value for a while.
Although most of it had been caused by his revenge against the Madam of Faya, he would still make the same choice if he were to do it all over again.
If he didn't do some things, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
The matter was a little troublesome, but since he had arrived at the Tai-shu family, he certainly wouldn't give up.
The verdant tattoo on his hand was a constant reminder of his situation.
"What do you suggest, Mr. Cheng?" Chen Mu asked calmly.
It was basically impossible to seize it by force. Chen Mu didn't need to think to guess that the gold-mottled liquid-soft fungus was certainly in the garden above his heart.
It would be extremely difficult to sneak into the garden above his heart.
Not to mention, he still didn't know where it was.
Everyone hadn't thought Chen Mu would still refuse to reveal his identity at that time, which deepened the doubts in their hearts.
Even Sang Hanshui didn't understand why Chen Mu would do that.
He firmly believed that as long as Chen Mu revealed his name, it would be too easy for him to see Tai-shu Yong.
Tai-shu Cheng took a deep look at Chen Mu and said in a low voice, "What are you good at, brother?"
Chen Mu calmly said, "My fighting skills aren't bad." Sang Hanshui wanted to roll his eyes. Is that not bad?
What about me?
Tai-shu Cheng suddenly asked, "What do you think of the guards under me, brother?"
"Terrible." Chen Mu didn't hold back in his evaluation. Those guards had left a bad impression on him.
Tai-shu Cheng chuckled, not minding it at all. "Please, brother, make a few comments."
Chen Mu calmly replied, "No willpower, no discipline, just a pile of loose sand, a motley crew."
Ling Ling covered her mouth and couldn't stop giggling.
The big fellow next to her couldn't help but reveal a smile.
To criticize the other party's guards so rudely in front of them, that person was really direct.
"Well said!" Tai-shu Cheng clapped his hands in admiration. "I've spent so much money to raise a bunch of good-for-nothings, which is really a failure.
I have a suggestion. What do you think, brother? "
"What suggestion?"
"Brother, help me win the Dongrui Matchup. I don't ask for much, just to get into the top four.
If you can do that, brother, I'm confident I can see the old man in a month and a half.
When the time comes, I will certainly recommend you to the old man. As for why you're looking for the old man, I don't care.
How about it? "Tai-shu Cheng said with a smile.
"The Dongrui Matchup?" Chen Mu raised his head.
Tai-shu Cheng explained, "In Dongrui, there are countless children of aristocratic families like us.
We hold such a matchup once every year.
The matchup is divided into group battles and individual battles.
In group battles, each team is made up of 40 card artisans, whose perceptual strength can't exceed level six.
In individual battles, there are no requirements.
The final ranking will be calculated by combining the results of both teams. "
Chen Mu immediately understood that the so-called matchup was probably an evaluation of the martial prowess of the children of the aristocratic families.
Those so-called aristocratic families really put a lot of thought into cultivating their children.
It was no wonder that the children raised under such a competitive system could hold their own.
Tai-shu Cheng added, "In individual battles, there is no requirement to reveal your identity." He could see that Chen Mu didn't seem to want to reveal his identity.
"OK." Chen Mu nodded. "But I'll pick the people, and you can't interfere."
"No problem!"
Tai-shu Cheng smiled happily. "From now on, you will have full authority to lead all the guards, including Ma Hu. He will listen to your command."
Tai-shu Ying and Little Ling were looking at Tai-shu Cheng in astonishment. They didn't understand why he would hand over such an important matter to someone he'd just met and didn't know anything about.
Chen Mu didn't know what the so-called matchup was, but they understood its importance.
The results of the matchup would directly affect Tai-shu Cheng's evaluation that year, which would also affect his position in the Tai-shu household.
How could he so easily hand over such an important matter to someone he didn't know anything about?
"OK!" Chen Mu got up. "Let's get started."
A look of appreciation flashed through Tai-shu Cheng's eyes. He really liked that kind of swift and decisive style.
That also showed from another perspective that his adversary was someone with real ability and wasn't timid at all.
"Angie, from today on, you will be responsible for this gentleman's logistics.
Whatever he needs, you will provide.
If there's a problem you can't solve, come find me, "Tai-shu Cheng instructed, who was also a decisive person.
He immediately thought of something. "Little Ying, you should also follow Angie and learn more things. Don't be naughty every day."
Tai-shu Ying stuck out her tongue.
Little Ling suddenly opened her mouth. "Uncle Cheng, Little Ling also wants to follow and take a look."
Tai-shu Cheng couldn't help laughing. "Your Jiang family is a lot stronger than our Tai-shu family in that regard.
Since you're interested, there's nothing you can't do.
But, you have to help me look after Little Ying and don't let her be naughty. "Little Ling's father had a deep friendship with Tai-shu Cheng and was his most important ally.
Hearing that, Tai-shu Ying made a face at her father with dissatisfaction.
Seeing that they had finished, Chen Mu said, "Let's go." Angie and the others rushed to follow him.
In an instant, only Tai-shu Cheng was left in the room.
He sat there in a daze, clutching the empty teacup in his hand as he was lost in thought.
That year was the most important year in the fight for the head of the household!
He remembered the information the elder had secretly sent him not long ago, and his heart was churning endlessly.
If he didn't fight then, he was afraid he wouldn't have another chance later!