Xu Fei’s words caught the Jiang matriarch’s attention, her eyes lighting up.
“Oh? You mean you can read it?”
“I’m no expert, but I know a thing or two.”
“Come up here and translate it for me!”
Xu Fei approached the matriarch, took the golden Buddha, and pretended to study it for a long while. Suddenly, his brow furrowed, and he let go, letting the Buddha crash to the floor with a loud thud.
“You! Are you trying to cause trouble? If that Buddha’s damaged, can you afford to replace it?” Jiang Tianlei shouted angrily.
Xu Fei, unfazed, turned to the matriarch, “Please forgive my rudeness. The inscriptions on the Buddha’s back are in Tibetan Buddhist script, but they’re not scriptures, they’re a curse! That’s why I didn’t dare hold it any longer!”
At this, the bustling banquet hall fell silent.
“A curse? What does it say?” the matriarch asked.
“The curse states that the golden Buddha was originally two-faced. If it’s split apart unjustly, those involved may face a bloody calamity!”
The matriarch’s face paled. Jiang Tianlei jumped in to defend himself, “You… you’re slandering me! This is all lies! Do you think the Jiang family is your personal stage? How do I know if you’re telling the truth? Who can prove it?”
Roaring, Jiang Tianlei was met with Xu Fei’s calm response, “I did lie about one thing, but the curse on the Buddha is real. This Buddha was first discovered by Mr. Wang Qiang, then stolen and split in two to be sold off. I was entrusted by Mr. Wang to track it down!”
Jiang Tianlei was dumbfounded. He had no idea the Buddha carried such a dark history.
“Wang Qiang? You’re so young, yet you know Wang Qiang? Someone, contact Mr. Wang immediately and verify this!” the matriarch ordered.
Minutes later, the butler returned, his face grim, “Matriarch, Mr. Wang Qiang has confirmed the matter. Mr. Xu Fei is indeed acting on his behalf. As for the construction site where the Buddha was found, several workers have inexplicably died…”
Jiang Tianlei collapsed to the floor, speechless.
“You, Tianlei! To think you’d stoop so low for the family fortune, plotting to harm me! Guards, tie him up!” the matriarch declared, as if passing judgment.
“No… no, Matriarch! He’s a liar, don’t believe him…” Jiang Tianlei protested loudly, unaware that security had already arrived and bound him tightly.
The matriarch had the butler fetch Jiang Tianlei’s records, “Look at your file! Nothing but debauchery and idleness your entire life, not a single worthwhile deed. I hereby sentence you to three years in Dingxiang Town! Reflect on your actions!”
Jiang Tianlei blinked, stunned, “Dingxiang Town? What’s that?”
The same crowd that had praised his filial piety and touted him as the next patriarch now piled on, “You don’t even know Dingxiang Town? That’s where our Jiang family’s mining operations are! A backwater with nothing!”
“Exactly! I must’ve been blind to think you could be patriarch. Go suffer and reflect there!”
