"Brother Wutong, what are you spacing out for?" Seeing Wutong stunned, Erlin and Sanmu, who had been gleefully ridiculing Nie Kong, couldn't help but call out.

"This... this..." Wutong snapped back to attention with a jolt, his hand clutching the small jade vial trembling slightly. He stared at Nie Kong in disbelief—how could he possibly have obtained authentic Spring Rejuvenation Dew?

"What 'this this'? Hand it over!"

Seeing this, Nie Fengxing's heart immediately stirred with a sense of foreboding. He hissed the command softly. Wutong dared not delay, quickly handing the vial over.

A delicate fragrance wafted into the nostrils; the bottle contained a milky-white liquid, exactly the appearance of "Spring Rejuvenation Dew."

No need to sample it. Just from the potent spiritual energy emanating from the bottle's opening, Nie Fengxing knew this "Spring Rejuvenation Dew" was genuine, and its quality was even superior to the bottle he had given to Huamei. A bottle of this quality, if sold, could fetch at least fifteen thousand Gold Coins.

Could it be that today would end in failure again? Nie Fengxing’s face turned pale, and a more violent rage burned in his chest, the knuckles of the hand gripping the jade vial turning slightly white.

Crossing one long leg over the other, Nie Kong sat casually on the edge of the bed, smiling meaningfully as he reminded them, "Gently now, if you crush the bottle, I won't take responsibility."

"Good, very good!"

Nie Fengxing forced the words out through clenched teeth, giving Nie Kong a fierce glare before shifting his attention to Wutong and the others, his expression exceptionally hostile.

Nie Fengxing had been thoroughly enjoying watching Nie Kong gradually adopt a subservient posture, but the appearance of this Spring Rejuvenation Dew made him suddenly realize that in front of Nie Kong, he and his cronies looked like nothing more than monkeys jumping about, smugly flashing their red posteriors.

Wutong and the other two had completely lost their previous arrogance. Under Nie Fengxing's furious, near-murderous gaze, they were all struck dumb, not daring to draw a full breath, bracing themselves to receive the Young Master’s inevitable storm. They vividly recalled their earlier boasts that Nie Kong absolutely could not produce ten thousand Gold Coins to purchase the Spring Rejuvenation Dew. Now that the Young Master had been thwarted, he would surely vent his frustration upon them.

"Nie Kong, I truly underestimated you." Unexpectedly, Nie Fengxing’s gaze quickly returned to Nie Kong, and he broke into a smile.

"You flatter me."

Nie Kong remained calm.

He understood perfectly well that in the eyes of the original Nie Fengxing, he was like a fish lying on a chopping block, waiting to be slaughtered. But now, when Nie Fengxing brought down the knife, not only had the fish remained intact, but it had splashed fishy water all over his face. How could he possibly let this go?

As expected, Nie Fengxing’s expression immediately soured, his voice chilling as if blowing from a gust of cold wind out of the Nine Hells: "Too bad. Even if you return the 'Spring Rejuvenation Dew,' it’s useless. I still have the IOU that Huamei wrote when she borrowed the 'Spring Rejuvenation Dew.' It's in black and white; who can deny it?"

Nie Fengxing unfolded a sheet of white paper scrawled with crooked handwriting, brandishing it roughly toward Nie Kong, then signaled Wutong: "Read it aloud to him."

What a twist of fate!

"Yes!"

Wutong, overjoyed, quickly took the paper from Nie Fengxing’s hand and read loudly: "Hereby borrowing one bottle of 'Spring Rejuvenation Dew' from Nie Fengxing. If not returned within three days, I shall pledge myself as collateral, to be a servant or a maid, completely at Nie Fengxing’s disposal! Huamei! Celestial Spirit Calendar Year 9997, Ninth Month, Twenty-third Day."

Nie Fengxing narrowed his eyes: "Wutong, what is today’s date?"

Wutong glanced at Nie Kong, then bent over with a grin: "Replying to Third Young Master, today is the twenty-eighth; two days past the deadline."

"Pfft."

Watching their synchronized performance, Nie Kong couldn't help but laugh, coughing a few times. "Third Young Master, are you sure this IOU was written by my sister-in-law herself?"

Nie Fengxing snatched the IOU back and shook it in front of Nie Kong, sneering: "Can the handwriting be fake? Even if the writing is fake, can the handprint be forged?"

Wutong chimed in supportively: "With the IOU here, Huamei belongs to the Third Young Master from now on. Even if we take this to the Elder Council, nothing will change."

Nie Kong showed no signs of anxiety and smiled gently: "I'll ask one more time, did my sister-in-law truly write this with her own hand?" Nie Kong emphasized the word "own hand."

"Naturally."

Nie Fengxing looked completely confident, certain of victory.

Nie Kong looked at Nie Fengxing with pitying eyes and said with a teasing smile: "Third Young Master, you forgot to tell you, my sister-in-law suffered from amnesia before marrying into our family. She forgot a lot of things from the past, even forgetting how to write. Now, the only thing she can write is the name 'Huamei'."

"What?"

Nie Fengxing's expression shifted drastically. Wutong, Erlin, and Sanmu were also dumbfounded; their most potent piece of evidence had just been reduced to a scrap of useless paper.

Wutong weakly argued: "You say she can't write, so she can't write? Who would believe that?"

Nie Kong kindly added: "Even the Ninth Elder, who officiated my brother and sister-in-law's wedding, knows this. Third Young Master, perhaps you could go and ask the venerable elder to verify it."

The Ninth Elder?

Hearing those three words, Wutong, who had been ready to retort, immediately shut up.

Nie Fengxing’s face cycled through shades of green and red. He shot up abruptly, saying in a sinister tone, "Nie Kong, you have guts. In my twenty-plus years, this is the first time I've suffered such a massive loss."

Nie Kong stopped being polite, sneering back: "Of course, I have guts, unlike some people who trick my sister-in-law into signing her name and pressing her thumbprint onto a blank sheet of paper, and then, without even bothering to check the details, forge some supposed IOU based on the handwriting of those two characters. Is your head filled with dog excrement?"

"You!"

Nie Fengxing had never been insulted like this; his vision actually darkened with rage, his face swelling up like a monkey's backside.

Wutong secretly rejoiced at the sight and quickly played the part of a lackey, snarling fiercely: "Nie Kong, how dare you insult the Third Young Master?"

Erlin and Sanmu began to clench their fists and roll up their sleeves, eager for a fight.

"What, you want to fight?"

Nie Kong scoffed, and the atmosphere in the room grew tense, poised to explode.

"Haha, what lively excitement you have here."

A burst of hearty laughter echoed as a sturdy middle-aged man covered in a thick beard walked in through the doorway—it was Nie Qingfeng, the guard posted at the entrance of the Spirit Herb Hall.

Nie Kong was somewhat surprised. He rose and cupped his hands in greeting: "Greetings, Clan Uncle Qingfeng." Wutong and his two companions, however, were startled and scurried behind Nie Fengxing in a flash.

Nie Fengxing had initially hoped to let Wutong and the others cause trouble and deliver a severe beating to Nie Kong, accepting a scolding later. But Nie Qingfeng’s sudden appearance dashed any hope of achieving his goal, causing his frustration to mount even further. This time, he had truly been utterly defeated.

"Let's go!"

Nie Fengxing took a deep breath, his face dark, and strode toward the door. As he left, he cast a cold, sidelong glance at Nie Kong, a faint murderous intent lingering in his eyes.

Wutong, Erlin, and Sanmu followed meekly behind him.

At the courtyard gate, watching the enraged Nie Fengxing and the obediently trailing Wutong and the others disappear around the corner of the alley, Huamei, who had just returned from shopping, paused for a moment. Then, a look of panic and anxiety flashed across her face. Lifting the hem of her skirt with her delicate hand, she took two steps where one would suffice, hurrying toward Nie Kong’s bedroom.