Chapter 158: This Is the Proof!

Pei Qingzhi's expression also shifted. Ye Tianci was definitely neither a relative nor a friend of his, and had certainly never set foot in the Pei family residence!

"Little brother, how did you know there is a jade carving in my bedroom?"

"Could it really be that you possess heaven-defying divination arts?"

Pei Qingzhi was extremely astonished.

Feng Xiaoyan's eyes darted rapidly as she stepped forward and said, "Dad, don't listen to his bluff."

"Everyone knows you are the jade tycoon of Shucheng. Since you are in the jade business, it's only natural to keep jade carvings or other jade artifacts in your bedroom."

"Anyone with a sharp mind could easily guess that!"

"I think this fellow surnamed Ye is just a charlatan who loves to second-guess people's minds and resort to cheap tricks!"

Pei Yurou nodded in agreement, chiming in, "Grandfather, Aunt is right."

"An elderly man of your age is bound to have some physical ailments here and there. The moment he met you, he claimed your health was failing. I see right through him—he's just using your health as a pretext to extort a huge sum of money!"

Feng Xiaoyan immediately let out a cold laugh. "Yurou's analysis is spot on! That's exactly what it is!"

Pei Qingzhi nodded, feeling that both women made a lot of sense.

He glanced at Guo Jianglong lying at Ye Tianci's feet and said, "Little brother, Guo Jianglong at your feet is a fellow townsman of mine, and also one of my people. I hope you can give me some face and let him go."

Ye Tianci loosened his foot. Guo Jianglong scrambled up, stood behind Pei Qingzhi, glared at Ye Tianci, and said viciously, "President Pei, we absolutely cannot let this fellow surnamed Ye leave!"

"Give me five minutes, and I'll call all my brothers here. A single stream of urine from each of us would drown him to death!"

Right now, he looked almost identical to a dog seeing its master, barking with exceptional ferocity!

Pei Qingzhi stopped Guo Jianglong.

Because Pei Qingzhi caught sight of Shen Zun standing beside Ye Tianci, he recognized this young master of the Southern God of Wealth's family and assumed that Ye Tianci's backer was Shen Wanshan.

"We must not escalate matters further!"

"My Qingbao Jade Shop grew from nothing to something, from small to large, relying entirely on all sorts of connections. I would rather suffer a loss myself than offend a single soul!"

"Otherwise, how could I, Pei Qingzhi, have achieved what I have today?"

With that, Pei Qingzhi stepped aside to clear a path. "Little brother, please."

Feng Xiaoyan whispered a few words into Pei Yurou's ear, prompting Pei Yurou to anxiously step forward and block Pei Qingzhi's path. "Grandfather! We cannot let this Ye Tianci take the jade artifact away!"

"Rourou, my mind is made up, say no more!"

Pei Qingzhi waved his hand imperiously, then looked at Ye Tianci and said, "Little brother, I can see you are very clever, and quite skilled at gambling on rough stones. You must use your cleverness in the right places in the future, and you are bound to achieve great success."

"You don't need to trouble yourself worrying about that, old man."

Ye Tianci's rather indifferent attitude provoked Pei Yurou, who indignantly retorted, "My grandfather is kindly teaching you how to conduct yourself and handle matters, what are you acting so arrogant for?"

"In all my life, how could the actions of Ye Tianci ever require the guidance of others?!"

Ye Tianci stood with his hands behind his back, his expression brimming with supreme disdain.

"Talk about getting full of yourself just because someone praises you!"

Pei Yurou looked at Ye Tianci and snorted with utter contempt. "You don't need anyone's guidance? I, Pei Yurou, can guide you right now!"

"You used my grandfather's health as an excuse to fool people—wrong!"

"You spout nonsense without a shred of evidence, claiming there is a jade carving in my grandfather's bedroom, and that there's definitely some ghostly thing hidden inside it—wrong, wrong, wrong!"

"A person like you, whose mouth is full of lies and falsehoods, is nothing more than a giant swindler!"

Ye Tianci's gaze narrowed as he said coldly, "You don't believe me? Then do you dare to have the jade carving brought from your grandfather's bedroom?"

"Bring it then! You truly refuse to shed tears until you see the coffin!"

Saying this indignantly, Pei Yurou immediately made a phone call to have someone retrieve the item.

In less than five minutes, two servants carried a jade carving over thirty centimeters tall to Pei Yurou's side.

It was a jade carving of Guanyin.

Both servants walked with extreme caution, terrified of accidentally dropping and shattering the Guanyin carving.

Pei Yurou sneered as she looked at Ye Tianci. "The jade carving from my grandfather's bedroom has been brought here. Where is this ghostly thing you spoke of?"

Upon seeing the jade carving, Feng Xiaoyan appeared somewhat nervous and blurted out, "Yurou! Quickly have them move the jade carving back! This jade carving is worth tens of millions, don't let it get broken by accident!"

Ye Tianci looked at her coldly. "Feng Xiaoyan, what are you nervous about?"

Feng Xiaoyan glared at him and viciously snapped, "What do I have to be nervous about? Even if I am nervous, it's out of concern that this Guanyin jade carving might get smashed."

However, no sooner had her words fallen than Ye Tianci flicked his finger.

"Ouch!"

The two servants cried out in alarm simultaneously, subconsciously letting go. By the time they reacted and reached out to catch the jade carving, it was already too late!

"Crash!"

The Guanyin jade carving slammed onto the ground, shattering into countless pieces!

The numerous onlookers around them all gasped in unison!

They weren't gasping because a jade carving worth tens of millions had broken, but because of the object that had tumbled out from inside it!

They saw that across the white floorboards, jade fragments were scattered everywhere!

Among the hundreds of shards, a black doll exuding a foul, nauseating stench stood out with striking clarity!

The doll was larger than an adult's fist, complete with a nose and eyes, and possessed a hideous appearance!

"What on earth is this thing?"

"It looks so terrifying!"

"I never expected there would actually be something hidden inside this jade carving! This young man surnamed Ye was right after all, how miraculous!"

"This is definitely a true master deity! Today we've truly opened our eyes!"

The onlookers chattered amongst themselves, filled with shock and amazement.

Not only were they shocked, but Pei Yurou and Pei Qingzhi were even more stunned. Moreover, apart from astonishment, an intense expression of horror filled both of their faces!

Could it be that everything had turned out precisely as Ye Tianci had described?!

Feng Xiaoyan lunged forward in a flash, raising her foot with the intent to kick the terrifying doll away.

Ye Tianci flicked his finger once more.

"Ouch!"

With a cry of pain, Feng Xiaoyan tumbled to the ground, her hand brushing directly against the terrifying ghostly puppet.

"Ah, ah, ah!"

Seeming utterly terrified of the object, Feng Xiaoyan shrieked frantically and shook her hand violently. Some black dust clung to her skin, making it look as though she had wiped her hand across the bottom of a cooking pot.

"No! No! I don't want to die!" Feng Xiaoyan screamed in terror.

"Such eagerness to kick it away—were you trying to destroy the evidence?"

Ye Tianci's voice was frigid. He looked at Pei Yurou and said, "Miss Pei, open your noble eyes wide and take a good look."

Pei Yurou's pretty eyes widened into perfect circles as she blurted out, "What kind of ghost is this?"

"Didn't you want evidence? This is the evidence!"

"This thing is called a ghost puppet. It is crafted by soaking dead human bones in corpse oil for forty-nine days, then treating them with special medicinal herbs for seven days and seven nights, and finally carving them. It can remain undecayed for a thousand years!"

"If anyone is approached by this ghost puppet, they will be contaminated by the aura of death it emits. Over time, they will inevitably meet a sudden and violent death!"

"If I'm not mistaken, this shattered jade carving concealing the ghost puppet has been sitting in your grandfather's bedroom for at least five full years!"

"The reason your grandfather has not met his demise until now is because his martial arts cultivation in his youth was profound, but that cultivation has been entirely depleted by the aura of death over these past five years!"

"Elder Pei, your cultivation is completely gone! Your body has also been weakened to the absolute extreme! Am I wrong?"

With a cold and detached expression, Ye Tianci looked toward Pei Qingzhi.