In Panjiayuan, the first thing they did was trick Lao Hu into going tomb raiding.

Zhang Qishan?

Master Zhang?

Su Mo looked at the elderly man in the Zhongshan suit opposite her with suspicion and uncertainty.

The old man, known to everyone as "Qishan," looked bitter. "Youth has its advantages in boxing. Don't laugh, this kid is incredibly skilled. Not to mention me, none of you old folks can beat him!"

"Yo?"

The group was quite surprised. They all knew Zhang Qishan's temperament. After all, he was a powerful and ambitious man in his youth, and few people could catch his eye. Now, they were praising this young man so highly, which meant that he must have some ability.

"Young man, let me give you a try..."

A lean old man easily arrived beside Su Mo with a flying crane spread its wings, moving very fast and close to Su Mo's body.

Tai Chi?

Su Mo was surprised, because Tai Chi is all about using minimal force to overcome great strength.

The lean old man in front of him was clearly a master of this art. As he moved closer to Su Mo, afterimages were already appearing around him.

"what…"

Su Mo laughed, "If I didn't also know a few moves of Tai Chi, I might have really fallen for your trick!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Su Mo's eyes turned cold, and he suddenly reached out with his left hand and grabbed the man's wrist.

"what!"

The man let out a scream, quickly pulled his other hand away, and swung his right leg in a sudden horizontal sweep.

Su Mo grabbed the man's wrist and slammed him to the ground.

"Great, I'll give it a try too!"

An old man lunged forward. Su Mo narrowed his eyes, his right hand suddenly shot out, and before the man could land, he grabbed the man's ankle, easily lifted him up, and then flung him away, sending him crashing heavily to the ground.

A dull thud!

The man was thrown around in a daze, his head hitting the wall and causing him excruciating pain, but he dared not cry out because it was too damn embarrassing.

Zhang Qishan made a quick decision, "Brothers, let's all attack together!"

Zhang Rishan leaped forward, and the remaining few dared not be careless towards Su Mo in the slightest. They all used their best skills and joined the siege against Su Mo!

Tai Chi!

Iron Buddha Legs!

Baguazhang!

Arhat form!

Who are these people? Their kung fu is amazing!

Su Mo became increasingly alarmed as he fought, after all, he was in Zhongnanhai, and he dared not cause any deaths, so he dared not risk his life.

With six experts, including "Qishan," joining forces to attack him, Su Mo quickly found himself at a disadvantage.

"Hahaha…"

A burst of hearty laughter rang out, and the experts immediately separated and stood aside obediently.

"You old folks, stop acting like you're superior just because you're senior. Even I, a complete novice, can see that this young comrade is being accommodating to you..."

Outside the door, an elderly man in a green military uniform stood smiling at everyone.

"Mr. Queer..."

"Mr. Queer..."

The old men who had been so arrogant just moments before were now unusually quiet.

Li Jiacheng was fortunate enough to be received by the leader, but he never expected to have such an honor today.

Su Mo bowed slightly, paying his respects to the great chief architect, "Master Kui..."

"Su Mo, right..."

The leader spoke with a thick Sichuan accent, which made Su Mo feel a sense of familiarity. "Zhang Qishan has mentioned you many times, young comrade. Thank you for your immortal contribution to the return of national cultural relics..."

That was indeed Zhang Dafoye!

Su Mo immediately understood, but hearing the leader's praise, he dared not be presumptuous and hurriedly said, "You're too kind, it's all I should do..."

"Ha ha…"

The leader spread his hands, a slight glint of wisdom appearing on his forehead. "Young comrade, don't feel pressured..."

"I've been watching what you've been doing lately, and it's been excellent. Your Su's Auction House business has expanded to major international cities like Hong Kong and New York, which is truly remarkable..."

The leader gave Su Mo a thumbs up.

"..."

Su Mo smiled, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

"gentlemen…"

A clerical secretary approached from outside and whispered, "Mrs. Shacher wants to speak with you on the phone..."

The leader scratched the back of his head, somewhat regretfully, "Qishan, could you entertain the young comrade for me..."

"Secretary Liu, please give your phone number to this young man. If his Su's Auction House encounters any trouble in the future, you should contact him immediately..."

"Yes!"

After saying this, the leader smiled kindly and slowly walked out of the banquet hall.

After the leader left, Su Mo and the others felt a great sense of relief.

Zhang Qishan introduced Su Mo, "This is the grand-disciple of Tai Chi master Yang Yingchan!"

"This is the youngest son of Master Huo from Tianjin!"

"This is Gong Baotian's last disciple from the late Qing Dynasty!"

"Apart from me, all these people were the leader's bodyguards back then!"

Good guy!

Su Mo was shocked. He hadn't expected that these people had such impressive backgrounds, with their ancestors being masters of martial arts. No wonder their kung fu was so amazing.

Su Mo clasped his hands in apology and said, "Masters, I apologize for my rudeness just now!"

The elderly men shook their heads and laughed, "Young man, what amazing skills!"

"Yes, in a duel, you are no match for the rest of us, but if it comes to life and death, you could easily kill us!"

Zhang Qishan interrupted everyone with a smile, "Alright, alright, let's talk about the formalities another day. The leader asked me to discuss something with Su Mo..."

The martial arts masters nodded without saying much, and left without hesitation.

Only Su and Zhang remained in the huge banquet hall.

"young people…"

Zhang Rishan possessed an unyielding demeanor, like a powerful warlord. "Do you know me?"

Su Mo said, "Master Zhang, the head of the Nine Gates, your reputation is legendary among us!"

Chapter 161: Master Zhang's Request

"Master Zhang, the head of the Nine Gates, your reputation is legendary among us juniors!"

Su Mo subtly flattered Zhang Dafoye.

Unexpectedly, Master Zhang was completely unmoved by this, remaining calm and composed as he continued, "During the last raid on the Wang family's stronghold, besides the antiques, did you gain anything else?"

Other takeaways?

Although he understood Zhang Dafoye's implied meaning, Su Mo pretended to be confused, "No, besides antiques, there's nothing..."

"Is that so..."

Zhang Dafoye didn't say much, but stared intently at Su Mo, his eyes suddenly sharpening. "Su Mo, do you know why Master Kui summoned you today?"

This really stumped Su Mo. In recent years, Su Mo has been dealing with business matters and has had little contact with the Nine Gates and the Wang family.

Today, he was suddenly invited to Zhongnanhai. He racked his brains but still couldn't figure out what Mr. Kui was doing.

Master Zhang said in a deep voice, "The leader has already sent people to discuss with the people of the 'Empire on which the sun never sets.' With Hong Kong's return to China imminent, many antiques belonging to China are being secretly replaced by those foreigners using 'theft and substitution' techniques..."

"I've heard that your Su's Auction House has a lot of influence in Hong Kong, so the Chief wants to use you to protect the safety of these national treasures!"

What?

Su Mo was completely stunned; he hadn't expected his Su Family Auction House to take on such a task.

"..."

Su Mo hesitated for a long time, "Wouldn't it be better to let the Nine Gates handle this? Protecting antiques and authenticating national treasures, the Nine Gates should be capable of that..."

Serving the country is Su Mo's duty, but he always maintains a degree of vigilance towards Zhang Dafoye.

Decades ago, when Zhang Dafoye was in Changsha, everyone regarded him as the leader of the Nine Gates. Zhang Dafoye did not disappoint everyone's expectations, leading the Nine Gates to fight against Japan and protect Changsha.

However, in recent years, Zhang Dafoye has repeatedly purged the people of the Nine Gates and planned the largest official tomb raiding in history, resulting in countless deaths and injuries to the once glorious and prosperous Nine Gates, and a talent gap has also emerged.

Wu Laogou fled to Hangzhou, while Qi Tiezui, an expert in fortune telling, faked his death and escaped.

Everyone says that Master Xie is Zhang Dafoye's money bag, but since the 70s, Master Xie and Zhang Dafoye have been estranged, which is common knowledge in the underworld.

Master Zhang said, "The Nine Gates cannot intervene in this matter..."

Su Mo asked, puzzled, "Why?"

"........."

Master Zhang was silent for a moment, then explained, "Therefore, the person who smuggled the national treasure in Hong Kong this time was a guy named 'Jude Kao,' and the Nine Gates have a long-standing feud with him..."

“If the Nine Gates get involved in this matter, Jude Kao will definitely be alerted. At that point, I'll be in the open while the enemy is in the shadows, and the situation will only get worse…”

Jude Kao?

Good people don't live long, but evil people live for a thousand years. This old scoundrel is so old, yet he's still stirring up trouble.