46 The Ultimate Charlatan (1/2)

Li Changqiu exhaled a deep breath and did not speak a single word, but his eyes gave him away.

Yun Yang began to explain himself, “I was able to apprehend you because I took the time to understand you. I know that death holds no fear for you, but I had to capture you alive and prevent you from taking your own life. I had to give you a reason to live, so I intentionally mentioned the School of Dastardly Poison and the Soul Reaping Smoke. Those were merely excuses for you to forget about falling on your dagger.”

“Ironically, despite the fact that I am your most hated enemy, I sincerely believe that no one else in this world understands you better than I do. Sadly, for you, I am your only confidant. I have not examined your person, but if I were to do so, I would undoubtedly discover a lot of things, including what I asked of you earlier - which day of which month are you?”

Yun Yang stared at Li Changqiu quizzically. “Yet, I did not do so. First, I intend that you proclaim it yourself – as a sign of respect for me, this confidant of yours. Second, although you are most assuredly a strong character, I didn’t want to put you in an overly tough spot.”

Li Changqiu’s expression wavered slightly in light of Yun Yang’s explanation.

“Even if I eventually resort to torture extort the information I need, I would still wish to maintain the respect that is befitting a powerful martial artist.”

Yun Yang spoke sincerely, “That is why I dissected your psychology, your motive, everything about you. Because I wanted you to know that one, I respect you; two, losing to me under such circumstances… can’t be considered as losing after all.”

Li Changqiu heaved a very long sigh, at a loss for words. In the beginning, he had intended to be defensive and remain silent but listening to Yun Yang, he suddenly felt that all his stubbornness seemed to be a childish waste of energy. The opposing party had already studied him to such a degree, what else was there to hide?

Wouldn’t it be easier to just be direct and save himself the dignity of a practicing martial artist?

Faced with such an individual, any attempts at denial or lies would be futile.As he had said, losing to him was indeed not an injustice. Unconsciously, Yun Yang’s words had controlled the tempo of this conversation and even the flow of Li Changqiu’s inner thoughts.

“Incredible!” Li Changqiu’s hostile glare mellowed and asked, “Who are you really?”

Yun Yang’s eyes beamed when he spoke, “I spoke that truth when I said that I am not from the imperial officials, nor am I from the military.”

Li Changqiu replied disdainfully, “I came to that conclusion ages ago.”

Yun Yang continued, “May I ask Great Sir Li if any part of my earlier analysis rang false?”

Li Changqiu closed his eyes. “No, you were absolutely correct.”

Yun Yang then said confidently, ”Then, there is no longer any doubt that you hail from the Four Seasons Tower!”

Li Changqiu huffed, “Why do you still ask when you already know the answer?”

Yun Yang nodded in agreement and asked, “Then which day of which month are you?”

Li Changqiu said slowly, “I’m the nineteenth of the first month.”

Yun Yang replied, “Nineteenth of the first month… According to what I know, although the Four Seasons Tower’s Hall of Spring is a hall, everyone is in charge of different things. Even if they’re in the same month, they’re not really affiliated.”

Li Changqiu looked up towards Yun Yang in bewilderment, “Who are you really? How do you know so much about the Four Seasons Tower?”

Yun Yang did not answer him but continued to speak, “However, when there is an important undertaking, a contact person will appear. This contact person will usually be a connecting link between the superiors and the followers.”

Li Changqiu retorted, “You can continue to blather away.”

Yun Yang’s heart sang a quiet song of triumph.

Success!

It was all pure deception of course; he was shooting in the dark, placing layer upon layer of guesswork in as confident a tone as possible.

Contact person - any organization would need a contact person; so would any operation. If this contact person was not a connecting link between superiors and followers, how could the person be a contact point? It was a moot point.

As Li Changiu had listened to Yun Yang explain his reasoning, as well as listing out his illicit information, it was easy for Li Changqiu to fall into the common misperception of Yun Yang being a “know-it-all”.

“But according to what I know, you, Li Changqiu, are not the contact person,” Yun Yang said with a straight face.

Li Changqiu raised his head at once, his gaze sharp as he asked, “How did you know?”

Yun Yang answered confidently, “I just do.”

Li Changqiu kept quiet, his gaze clear and focused, his thoughts an absolute mystery.

“Moreover, not only do I know that you’re not a contact person, I also know that you are an important person and a key player in this entire affair.”

It was another line that could be understood either way and would make sense no matter how one looked at it. Looking at the perplexed expression on Li Changqiu’s face, he quickly added, “You, Li Changqiu, may look like someone of a lower status, but you’re someone important in the Four Seasons Tower. At least, you’re someone who could make decisions on behalf of those from the Four Seasons Tower in Tiantang City.”

Li Changqiu’s surprise could not have been more palpable. It only served to bolster the impression of Yun Yang’s intelligence as he continued attacking with ambiguous sentences while looking at the shock in Li Changqiu’s eyes. “You’re an impressive martial artist, you’re not afraid of death, you have dignity.You have to be someone like a chief of a small team.”

Li Changqiu’s face was pale as he mumbled, “It shouldn’t be possible for you to know this. Could it be that there’s a traitor among us?”

Yun Yang did not deny the accusation as he continued, “As for the rest, I still know a bit but I’m tired of talking. Li Changqiu, I do not wish to take your life. You should know what I mean.”

Li Changqiu was confused. You do not wish to take my life? I should know what you mean?

What should I understand from you man?