Chapter 155: The Art of the Bluff

He Yu glanced at the two of us and called me out. “Hey, hey, hey, what’s the meaning of this? You two taking advantage of me just because I can’t read your signals, are you?”

I stood up, hooked an arm around his neck, and pulled him aside. “I have a plan, but it’s a last resort,” I said. “Just watch me work. Stand to the side with a dark face and act like you’re completely impatient.”

Next, I had Xiao Wu move a table and chairs. I told him to place the wooden table in the middle of the cabin with a stool on either side. I took one of the stools and sat down, positioned so I was directly facing the inner room where Liang Si would emerge. He Yu and Xiao Wu stood on either side of me, their expressions stiff and grim, looking like a pair of Yakshas^[1].

When Liang Si came out, Xiao Wu had just finished brewing the tea. Liang Si clearly hesitated at the sight of this sudden, formal setup, but having spent years navigating both the legal and illegal worlds, he remained remarkably composed. In contrast, the Short Old Man under his command looked utterly bewildered.

I gave a gentle smile and gestured toward Liang Si. “Old man, I’ve got the table set up. Let’s sit down and have a proper chat.”

Liang Si paused in his tracks. He knew I was clearly trying to play the negotiation card, but as the saying goes, one doesn’t strike a smiling face^[2]. He wasn’t one to act unrefined either, so he immediately returned my smile and calmly sat down across from me.

“So, has the Young Master finally thought things through? What do you want to talk about?” As soon as Liang Si opened his mouth, a wave of stale tobacco smell hit me. His calloused fingers gripped his teacup, and his eyes crinkled into crescents, making him look just like a fat, cunning merchant.

My heart was pounding, but I kept my composure intact, raising my tea to my lips with a smile. “It’s actually quite simple. My Fourth Brother just met with an accident, and now Yinggan Tang is already bickering over a split. If word of this gets out, neither of us will have any face left. There are so many people on this boat, and the Liu Family has ears everywhere. Getting into a conflict will only make us a laughingstock. Don’t you agree, old man?”

I watched Liang Si’s expression as I spoke. That single look gave me fifty percent confidence. His movements stalled for a fraction of a second, and he set down the tea he had been about to drink. “Young Master, are you trying to negotiate with me?”

“I am. It just depends on whether you’re willing to grant me the honor.” I stared at him innocently, without a trace of aggression in my eyes.

Liang Si chuckled. “Fine! Then, Young Master, how do you think we should resolve this matter?”

I cupped the tea saucer in my hands, thinking to myself that it was finally time to get down to business. “To be honest, I entered the trade late and have no seniority, so I’m not particularly interested in the position of head. You probably know better than I do just how many treasures are hidden in those Ship-Burial Coffins at the bottom of the river.”

The moment the words left my mouth, I felt Xiao Wu and He Yu shift simultaneously beside me. I hadn’t told them my plan beforehand, so they probably thought I’d lost my mind.

Strictly speaking, these words were completely out of line with the topic of our discussion, yet they were indispensable. People act in order to achieve specific goals. What Liang Si cared about was absolute authority over Yinggan Tang on this boat, because with that authority, he could lead his men down to scavenge for treasure without any restraint.

So, the primary goal was still to scavenge for treasure.

My words shifted the focus away from vying for authority and toward the Mingqi he valued so much. In a way, I was subtly hinting to him that I wasn’t his enemy, but rather someone he could form a mutually beneficial partnership with.

Liang Si hesitated, just as I’d hoped. He began to have serious doubts about my true purpose for this trip. “You’re actually thinking about the Mingqi down there, instead of trying to save your Fourth Brother first?”

I looked at him, offering no direct answer.

Liang Si burst into a loud laugh. When he finished, he leaned down and lowered his voice. “No wonder you’re a descendant of the Gan Clan—so practical at such a young age. You want the Mingqi down below too? Let me offer a partnership. First, we kick those Liu family people off the boat. Once we bring up the goods, we split them fifty-fifty. How about it?”

I took a sip of tea and shook my head.

“What? You’re not willing?” Liang Si asked.

“If we want to work together and successfully haul out the Mingqi, we can’t drive the Liu Family off the boat,” I said. “The Gan and Liu families are the ones running this operation, and the higher-ups are watching us. If we openly kick everyone from the Liu Family off, it’ll cause a massive stir. It might even alert the higher-ups. If the truth comes out then, neither of our heads will stay on our shoulders.”

Liang Si was completely taken in by my words. At the end of the day, he was just a small-town thug. The people around him were either left-behind elders or generations of farmers, not real Mojin Xiaowei, and he lacked the broad experience of someone like Hou Jinshan. Bluffing him was relatively easy.

“Then you tell me, how should we pull off this job?”

I put on a thoughtful look, set down my cup, and feigned deep consideration. “How about this: you take the lead on this boat and I’ll play second fiddle. We’ll each take half the men into the water to scout the area first. We survey the place, then figure out the rest.”

Liang Si suddenly stopped talking. I sat there waiting for his reply, but his silence lasted longer than before. Fearing he might catch on, my hand even began to tremble slightly, so I quickly swapped hands on the table.

“Heh heh. Young Master, you’re trying to con me, aren’t you? You don’t actually care about the Mingqi. You just don’t want me taking full control of Yinggan Tang. Me as the lead and you as the deputy? You have no seniority and no clout. If it weren’t for us, who in the trade would even recognize you as Young Master Gan? Everything you just said was a bluff. I’ve dealt with plenty of people who tried to play these games with me. You’re still too green to fool me!” Liang Si sneered.

My mind raced, and my expression darkened. I slammed my palm on the table and stood up, smashing the cup in my hand down with a violent crash. The glass shattered everywhere, and several shards scraped right past Liang Si’s belly. He clearly hadn’t expected me to turn hostile so fast and froze in shock.

He Yu and Xiao Wu looked at me too, completely baffled.

I gave a cold laugh, grabbed He Yu’s wrist to check the watch he was wearing, and then turned to Liang Si. “I’m bluffing you? What are you thinking, Old Man Liang? We’ve already wasted a lot of time. Is my time not worth anything? If you don’t want to cooperate, fine. Go ahead and kick the Liu Family off the boat right now. I’ll leave, and you can take your own men down into the water. If you manage to pull anything up, I’ll take your damn last name^[3]!”

With that, I made a move to head up to the cabin with Xiao Wu. Sensing something off in my words, Liang Si immediately signaled his men to block my path with fawning smiles.

“Wait, wait, wait! Young Master, Young Master! Let’s talk this through. Don’t be in such a rush!”

Liang Si pried my hand away from Xiao Wu’s and dragged me into a corner, whispering frantically, “Young Master, please be magnanimous. I was just taking precautions earlier; it was all my fault. Did you… did you find something out?”

I didn’t even spare him a glance, saying impatiently, “I already know where the entrance to the tomb is.”

Liang Si was deeply shocked and immediately began apologizing profusely.

“To tell you the truth,” I continued, “the Black Hoof Iron has been in my hands all along, but I didn’t want to bring it out on the boat and make things ugly. You should have heard about what happened with Qiao Sangui, right? Do I have the credentials? You should know the answer in your heart. Now I’m stooping down to act as your deputy, and you’re actually complaining? Old man, stop with all the probing and games. If you waste any more of my time or make things difficult for me, I won’t bother saving face for you anymore.”

I paused for a beat. “After all, without you, I can still haul up the Mingqi on my own.”