371: Chapter 370: Do You Miss Me or Wish Me Dead?
371: Chapter 370: Do You Miss Me or Wish Me Dead?
“Hurry over, the legendary Ninth Master has returned, he’s right over there!”
“Is that the legend from the underworld of Zhonghai?”
“Let’s go, today we can finally see the true face of Ninth Master!”
Although it was Fan Zhongliang’s wedding banquet, due to Ning Fan’s arrival, all the guests in the venue flooded toward where Ning Fan was.
Everyone flocked there, eager to see the true face of Ninth Master.
The legend of Ninth Master had been heard countless times, but regrettably, he had been away for several years, and many had never witnessed his legendary presence.
Now that Ninth Master himself was on the scene and officially returned, how could they not be excited?
The crowd surged towards Ning Fan, and in an instant, Fan Zhongliang’s area became much quieter.
As the original star of the banquet, Fan Zhongliang’s face showed no change, and he slowly made his way over.
Now that someone had called out for Ninth Master, Fan Zhongliang couldn’t pretend he hadn’t seen it.
Both for emotional and rational reasons, he had to go forward to greet him.
“Ni— Ninth— Ninth Master?!”
At the banquet, among the four powers of Zhonghai besides the owner of the Ninth Principle Arena, Fan Zhongliang, there was also the old eagle from Dragon Eagle Hall, but also Zi Hongyu of Six Fan Gate was present.
Upon hearing of Ninth Master’s arrival, Zi Hongyu was greatly startled, his wrist shook, and he directly dropped the wine glass in his hands onto the ground.
The matter concerning Gu Leng remained fresh in Zi Hongyu’s memory.
Now with Ning Fan again appearing close to him, Zi Hongyu became flustered.
Zi Hongyu subconsciously swallowed, then hurriedly ran over.
“Make way, all of you make way!”
Zi Hongyu shouted urgently, rudely pushing through the people in front of him.
A wave of complaints suddenly arose within the crowd, but when they saw that the one shoving was Zi Hongyu, they could only close their mouths in resentment.
Zi Hongyu pushed through everyone in front of him and directly reached Ning Fan and Old Eagle, a flattering smile hanging on his face.
“Disperse, all of you.
Ninth Master isn’t someone you can approach; don’t disturb Ninth Master!”
Zi Hongyu began to shoo the people away, and just then Ning Fan and Old Eagle’s gaze fell upon him.
He stiffened for a moment, looking somewhat guilty.
The warning from Gu Leng echoed again in his mind.
Zi Hongyu’s face turned pale, and then he eagerly said to Ning Fan, “Ninth Master, you’ve finally arrived!”
Ning Fan nodded, and at the same time, Fan Zhongliang also came over.
Compared to Zi Hongyu, Fan Zhongliang appeared much more relaxed, his expression tranquil, with a smile on his face.
“Ninth Master, it’s been many years since we last saw each other, I’ve missed you to death!”
As if he was expressing nostalgia, Fan Zhongliang looked at Ning Fan without showing any irregularity.
Ning Fan maintained a smile on his face and replied with a meaningful tone, “Is it that you’ve missed me to death, or you wish me dead?”
As soon as those words were spoken, the whole place fell into a dead silence, and the atmosphere immediately became awkward.
Now Ning Fan and Fan Zhongliang were at loggerheads, and the others dared not speak at this moment, fearing being involved in the conflict.
Old Eagle’s expression was indifferent, and he looked at Fan Zhongliang and Zi Hongyu with a cold demeanor; it was clear that he stood on Ning Fan’s side.
At this point, however, Zi Hongyu acted like a neutral party, laughing and saying, “Ninth Master is still as humorous as ever, always liking to joke around!
Hahaha!”
“Ninth Master really has a sense of humor…”
“Yes, he’s quite humorous!”
Someone immediately chimed in, significantly relieving the awkwardness in the air.
Fan Zhongliang’s face still bore a smile, showing no signs of change, but when Ning Fan uttered that “joke” just now, a nearly imperceptible flicker passed through the depths of his eyes.
“Ninth Master is still the same as before.
Today is my joyous day, and taking this opportunity, it is also to welcome Ninth Master back and dust off the journey.
I have already prepared a private room; I won’t accompany the rest of you as we brothers haven’t gathered in years!”
Fan Zhongliang told everyone and then gestured to Ning Fan to follow him.
The others also knew to step aside, slowly clearing a path for Ning Fan and his group.
“Ninth Master, after you,” Fan Zhongliang reminded.
After speaking, Fan Zhongliang turned and headed towards the private room.
Eagle was about to speak but was silenced by a look from Ning Fan.
Ning Fan stepped forward to follow Fan Zhongliang, while Eagle, stopping mid-sentence, followed suit, and Zi Hongyu also hurriedly trailed behind them cautiously.
The four men eventually disappeared from everyone’s view; some began to sense something and couldn’t help but sigh.
After arriving in the private room prepared by Fan Zhongliang, the host opened with, “Eagle, Zi Hongyu, how many years has it been since we last gathered together like this?”
Eagle, glancing at Ning Fan, who maintained a serene smile, replied, “It seems like we haven’t since Ninth Master left…”
The words carried a heavy implication.
Zi Hongyu, sitting in the middle, felt his heart skip a beat, sensing trouble, and quickly stood up.
Opening a bottle of wine, he first poured for Ning Fan, and then started with Eagle, serving everyone in turn.
“It’s a good thing that Ninth Master has returned, so let’s not talk about the unhappy stuff.
Let’s drink up; I’d like to propose a toast to Ninth Master first!”
Zi Hongyu was quite the smooth operator, not offending either Ning Fan’s party or Fan Zhongliang and attempting to defuse the current awkward atmosphere.
Ning Fan smiled without a word, raised his glass, and drank down the wine in one gulp.
“Fan Zhongliang, you old rascal, you’ve got quite the skill, about to marry your third wife.
Can your body handle it?”
Zi Hongyu, seeing Ning Fan’s silence, tried to ease the tension with a jest at Fan Zhongliang and under closer inspection, one could see a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead.
“I could handle ten more!” Fan Zhongliang declared boastfully.
Zi Hongyu, Eagle, and Fan Zhongliang chatted about random things, reminiscing about the past and about the years after Ning Fan had left.
But as they kept chatting, Ning Fan barely spoke, and despite Zi Hongyu’s attempts to lighten the mood, the situation remained somewhat awkward.
Then, Fan Zhongliang stood up, took his wine glass, walked over to Ning Fan, and with a snap of his fingers, the door to the private room clicked open, and a beautiful woman dressed in a traditional Chinese gown entered.
“Ninth Master, this is my third junior wife, what do you think?”
To ease the atmosphere, Fan Zhongliang specially introduced his junior wife to Ning Fan.
Ning Fan glanced at the stunning woman sending him flirtatious looks, feeling a bitter smile in his heart, but his face remained impassive, and he nodded his head, saying, “Very nice, you’ve always had great taste.”
“Hahaha, there you go, Ninth Master is praising you, hurry up and thank him!”
“Thank you, Ninth Master!”
The woman’s eyes were charming, seemingly trying to seduce Ning Fan intentionally.