"Why are you here!"
Irene Xu's face suddenly changed, startled—she didn't even have time to take the tissue Evan Lin handed her.
"This is the Wei family's place! You beat up Wade Wei last time—how do you even dare come here, oh my god!"
Irene glanced around nervously. Seeing no one was paying attention, she rushed over, grabbed Evan Lin's hand, and tried to drag him outside.
"Hurry up and get out of here—it's way too dangerous!"
Irene was visibly tense. They'd barely taken two steps when Evan turned and pulled her right back.
Irene panicked: "What are you doing!"
"Why are you so worked up? If trouble comes, I'll handle it. Besides, today, I'm here to smash the place."
Evan Lin actually smiled—a rare sight—with a hint of mischief in his expression.
Hearing this, Irene was stunned, her mind unable to process what he'd just said.
"Irene Xu! I told you to stand there and do your job as an etiquette hostess—is that really so hard? If you don't want to work, then get lost!" Manager Victor Zane, standing off to the side, suddenly noticed the commotion. Seeing Irene Xu pulling on a teenage boy, his face instantly darkened.
He strode over, cursing loudly. But before he could get close, Evan Lin spun and kicked him right in the stomach. Victor Zane flew straight into the wall with a loud crash, his head lolling as he passed out cold.
Everything happened so fast that the other hostesses just stood frozen in place, not daring to move for a long moment.
"You... I... You..."
Irene Xu stared at Evan Lin, stunned by how decisively he'd just kicked Victor Zane flying. They exchanged a look.
Evan Lin was already gripping Irene Xu's hand, striding straight into the Stonebird Teahouse.
Inside the doors of Stonebird Teahouse, a long brown stone path led through corridors that crisscrossed in a square pattern. There were flowers and plants growing along the way, and stone stools with tea sets placed on top.
At the front of the teahouse, the first group of bosses stood respectfully in the outer area, all their eyes fixed on the man seated at the place of honor by the main tea table.
"That's the legendary Master Greenwater. I can't believe we're actually seeing him in person today!" The short, chubby man beside Faye Parker stared at Master Greenwater, eyes full of excitement.
"Who's Master Greenwater?" Faye Parker looked curious. All the bosses here looked like they had money to burn, and as soon as they entered, they lined up to offer small boxes pulled from their bags, presenting them one by one.
Inside those little boxes were mostly top-grade jade pieces. Just a quick glance showed that every piece was worth at least hundreds of thousands.
But Master Greenwater just shook his head at every item, and the bosses who offered their jade walked away, heads hanging in disappointment.
"Master Greenwater is Master Baiyun's last disciple—a real immortal, basically. This time, before he came down the mountain, the Zhou and Wei families spread the word: anyone who can give Master Greenwater what he wants will get a personal promise from him. And besides that, he came down for one more reason—to kill someone." The tall, skinny man beside Martha Marsh gripped a jade pendant, explaining excitedly.
A promise from Master Greenwater would be enough to take their business to the next level.
"An immortal, huh?" Martha Marsh glanced over, seeing Harold Zhou and Walter Wei standing with their heads bowed beside Master Greenwater, looking so deferential it was almost scary.
"Who does Master Greenwater want to kill?" Faye Parker was very curious.
"No idea. But whoever pissed off Master Greenwater probably just doesn't know when to quit." The tall, skinny man sneered.
One by one, the people in line offered up their jade, then left disappointed.
Not a single jade could satisfy Master Greenwater.
While Faye Parker was still thinking about how she might get close to Master Greenwater, she caught sight of Irene Xu being led by the hand across the stone path at the main entrance.
Faye Parker's brows suddenly furrowed. She stepped forward, looked at Irene Xu, and smirked, "Oh, Miss Popular, what's up with you? Aren't you supposed to be working as an etiquette hostess today? Don't you know this isn't a place for the likes of you?"
Etiquette staff are only allowed in the outer areas of Stonebird Teahouse—yet here was Irene Xu, clearly heading inside.
Inside, whether it was the bosses or their women, everyone was dressed in expensive clothes. Faye's gaze locked onto the teenage boy beside Irene Xu.
"What's this? Who's this kid, anyway? You know this is Stonebird Teahouse, right? Not a place for random punks!" the short, chubby man grumbled in a rough voice.
Martha Marsh got even more dramatic, shouting, "Irene Xu, are you trying to seduce Master Greenwater with your looks? Get real! And you brought some kid in with you? Who is he, anyway? Which rich family does he belong to?"
Martha Marsh kept up her sarcastic, mocking tone.
Inside the teahouse, quite a few people turned to look toward the entrance.
All eyes were on them.
Irene Xu's cheeks flushed and her heart pounded with anxiety.
But Evan Lin, leading the way, looked as calm as ever. He swept his gaze around the room, pausing on each face, then smiled faintly. "A few days ago I slaughtered Aiden Green, and now it's Greenwater's turn. Once I bury you with my own hands, does that mean your cowardly master, Baiyun, will finally show himself?"
As soon as Evan Lin finished speaking, the atmosphere in the teahouse froze.
"You dare insult Master Greenwater? You're begging to die!" The short, chubby man next to Faye Parker was the first to react, shouting angrily to try and win favor with Master Greenwater.
But before he could finish, Evan Lin's cold, killing gaze swept over him, and the murderous intent in those eyes made the chubby man collapse to the ground in terror.
Faye Parker and Martha Marsh's faces changed instantly.
The bosses waiting to offer their jade all turned to look, eyes full of shock and suspicion.
Inside the teahouse, Walter Wei and Harold Zhou, standing beside Master Greenwater, looked up and, recognizing Evan Lin, lit up with excitement. They quickly spoke up: "Master Greenwater, that's him!"
"He's the one who crippled Young Master Wei at my White Crane Manor!"
"He's the one who stole your Law Seed!"
"He's the one who killed your junior disciple, Aiden Green!"
"It's that kid!"
Walter Wei and Harold Zhou fired off accusations one after another.
As soon as they finished, everyone was stunned.
Especially Faye Parker and Martha Marsh, whose faces went ghostly pale.
Irene Xu's eyes flickered with confusion. Suddenly, the boy in front of her seemed less aloof and more alive than ever.