Chapter 352 - The Seductress, Rangure
After he retrieved a map on his phone, Su Tao found the public transportation route and headed for the Intoxicated Countryside Pavilion. It wasn't because he was a miser who wouldn't spend a few dozen yuan to take a cab, he just wanted to gain an understanding of this unfamiliar city.
Every city has its unique ambiance that would affect the people here. In Business World, failure to acclimatise was often mentioned, and they mostly meant for foreign corporations that couldn't get used to China's politics, which affected their development. But as a matter of fact, he also had to analyse the situation in Huaibei Province, or the Three Flavour Hall's branch might fail to acclimatise.
Although the distance was only a few hundred kilometres, there were also small differences amongst common illnesses, which Su Tao managed to see all that in public transport.
Because of He City's high altitude, cold and flu here weren't the same as Hanzhou City. In Hanzhou City, cold and flu would show symptoms of heat, while for He City, it was more towards moisture. Thus, herbs that dissolve the moist aura in the body had to be added into prescriptions.
Marking a note in his heart, Su Tao pondered to prepare a few prescriptions to Zhao Jian that were suitable for those folks in He City. Aside from cold and flu, he also needed to prepare a prescription for rheumatism.
He noticed that the dozen on public transport tend to have joint ailments for those above thirty-five.
When they were young, they weren't bothered by it due to their good physique. But after reaching thirty-five, that pain would erupt.
When he got down from the public transport, Su Tao adjusted his robe. Yan Jing gave him a few sets, and this was the one that he liked the most. It was navy in colour and made of cotton cloth with extremely detailed workmanship. Not only was it warm, it was also cooling. Since he wore it often, there were creases on the robe. Thus, he had to pull it to straighten those creases.
Su Tao knew that wearing this outfit, he looked as if he had returned from shooting a film in the Republic of China era, and he attracted much attention when walking. Half of them would feel that Su Tao was pretending, while the other half felt that he was a fool.
Putting it in a nutshell, people generally felt that Su Tao had a high level of acting.
Occasionally, Su Tao would feel embarrassed. But there was nothing he could do, since he had to style himself in antiquity clothes to package himself. After all, this rotten idea was created by Yan Jing's planning team after over a month of work.
The planning team wanted to package Su Tao as a modern Wong Feihung!
The reason behind it was simple. Wong Feihung had a TCM pharmacy, and so did Su Tao.
In the beginning, Su Tao actually rejected this concept. But as time passed, his face gradually grew thicker and became numb to those judgemental gazes.
That also meant that Su Tao wasn't someone that emphasised on himself.
For the dreams of Yan Jing and the rest, he could sacrifice his own image and contribute everything.
When he entered the private room, Bai Fan had already been waiting there. It has been half a year since the two of them met, and the last time they met was during the Physician King Tournament's semi-finals. Meeting again, Su Tao noticed that the latter has undergone a drastic change.
Back then, he had a skinny frame and looked like a starved wolf in the desert with killing intent flickering in his eyes.
But now, he had a rosy complexion. Although his eyes were still sinister, there was also a faint smile on his lips that lightened the killing intent.
Bai Fan had changed from an assassin's role to a veteran merchant.
"Wow, I'm amazed to see you here, not to mention that you even came alone!" Bai Fan nodded his head with praise as he stood up and walked in the direction of Su Tao.
"Since someone is buying me a meal, how can I not turn up? We're in a lawful society, are you going to gobble me up?" Su Tao shook hands with Bai Fan.
Bai Fan's palm was cold, and Su Tao's palm was hot. As they touched, it represented a battle between fire and ice.
Bai Fan's face changed a little before he took a small step back and rubbed his own palm. The force behind that handshake was powerful, and he suffered a small defeat by Su Tao.
He had researched Su Tao, and he knew that this was someone who practiced martial arts. Although he had also touched on it, he wasn't on the same level as the latter. Thus, he took a deep breath to calm the rage in his heart and pointed at a seat nearby. "Please, have a seat!"
With a smile, Su Tao sat on that seat. As Bai Fan sat down after Su Tao, he said, "Please wait for a moment. Someone wants to meet you, and she's the one footing the bill today. I'm only a supporting character."
"To have the CEO of the Medicine Deity Corporation as a supporting role. It looks like the person buying the meal isn't someone ordinary." Su Tao was also interested in the backer of Bai Fan.
Suddenly, chuckles resounded from the door. Although Su Tao couldn't tell the reason for those waves of laughter, he felt a rush of excitement from that voice alone.
The door was pushed open and a foreigner with a robust figure and blue pupils walked in, donned in a black suit. After him, a blond foreign beauty walked in. The man first cautiously glanced around, as if he was determining if this room was safe. However, the foreign beauty waved her hand and said a few words, to which the man nodded his head and left.
Through this simple action, anyone could tell that the man was the lady's subordinate, and he was responsible for her safety.
"This is the person that wants to meet you, Ms. Rangure." Bai Fan stood up as she came to Bai Fan's side and introduced her.
As Su Tao examined Rangure, he had to admit that this lady was a seductress.
High heels and thick makeup with delicate features paired along with her demonic figure. Despite the friendly smile on her face, her eyes were permeating with a temperament that kept others a thousand miles away.
Compared to her, Vera might also be cold; however, perhaps it was due to her mixed blood, but she would feel gentle after one gets to know her. On the other hand, Rangure was pure cold; it was something that Su Tao noticed with his eyesight, despite how she tried to hide it.
"Nice to meet you! I've been looking forward to meeting you for a long time now." Rangure smiled as she greeted.
Shrugging his shoulders, Su Tao replied, "Thanks for your attention, but why do you want to see me?"
With a smile creeping on her face, Rangure replied, "Let's have the dishes served first, then we can talk while we eat. How about it?"
"Nope!" Su Tao rejected as he continued, "I don't dare to eat if I don't know the motive behind the invitation. As the saying goes, accepting something undeserving will put you at a disadvantage."
"Yeah, you're right. You're exactly how I heard; you're a cautious person. You're afraid that the food might be drugged, right?" Rangure chuckled. Her voice was so melodious that it could itch anyone's heart.
Su Tao started to suspect if this woman had practiced any seduction art from Wuxia novels. Her every action would permeate a charm that would uncontrollably influence others.
Gravely nodding his head, Su Tao sighed, "I'm a timid person. Not to mention that I have no relationship with you, and my relationship with Bai Fan alone is terrible. To put it simply, there are surely ill intentions behind this meal."
"I never expected that you're so interesting." Rangure sat down as she waved her hand to the waiter for the dishes to be served.
The waiter had already prepared all the dishes, he was just waiting for her instructions to bring out the dishes. Soon, the dishes were all served and Rangure lifted her chopsticks to taste every single dish. When she tried every single dish, she took a sip of tea before looking at Su Tao with a smile. "Now, you can be more daring and eat, right?"
With a wry smile, Su Tao had to admit that this lady made him nervous. There was a mystery enveloped around her that could send a chill down his spine.
After Su Tao sat down, Bai Fan poured a cup of alcohol for Su Tao and filled his before bumping their cups. "I'll drink it first!"
Su Tao also drank, but he did not drink it in a hurry. But after he finished this cup, he placed his finger across the cup. "Now, you can tell me your motive for inviting me here, right?"
Seeing that Su Tao blocked the cup, Bai Fan placed down the porcelain bottle. Although the label was removed, Su Tao could taste that it's an authentic aged Maotai. Taking a glance at Rangure, Bai Fan turned to Su Tao and smiled. "Then I'll be more direct. I hope that the two of us can work together and develop…"
"According to what I know, you already have a partner." Su Tao did not wait for Bai Fan to finish as he interrupted. "May I ask if that partner of yours knows that you're trying to rope me in today?"
As Bai Fan laughed, the awkward atmosphere disappeared along with his laughter, "Humans will only partner up with the strong, and Wang Guofeng's era has passed. He's no longer the key figure in TCM now."
"So, I am the key figure now?" Su Tao asked with a smile.
"You are!" Bai Fan affirmed. "Ever since you became famous, you've never suffered a defeat. You're already publicly acknowledged as the leader amongst the younger generations in the TCM industry. With Song Sichen and Dou Fanggang by your side, your future is boundless."
"Since I'm so formidable, why should I partner with you?" Su Tao asked with a smile.
After a brief pause, Bai Fan slowly explained, "The Medicine Deity Corporation's foundation is the Medicine King Hall, and we have over a hundred outlets throughout the country. It's more mature than your Three Flavour Hall. Under Ms. Rangure's help, we've found a broker, and we will be listed in the stock market with a market value of roughly ¥200,000,000 within the next half-year. If you're willing to join, your Three Flavour Hall will be incorporated into our corporation's core asset, which would further increase the market value of the Medicine Deity Corporation. At the same time, you will receive the support of more funding. Isn't your Three Flavour Hall trying to expand? The Medicine King Hall is experienced in this manner, and we can use our channels to help you open up the market."
"Partnering on the surface, but it's actually swallowing up!" Su Tao poked through the vital matter before he continued, "You really do know how to make your calculations."
"It's not swallowing. If you're willing, you will be compensated with shares of the Medicine Deity Corporation, and I will also support you to be the Chairman." Bai Fan tempted step-by-step.
"I'm sorry, but I refuse!" Su Tao smiled as he ridiculed, "The Chairman of the Medicine Deity Corporation right now is Wang Guofeng, and just from the looks of it now, he's foolish as a Chairman. So the Chairman of the Medicine Deity Corporation is just a puppet, and you're the one making the actual decisions. If I agreed with you, wouldn't I be abandoned one day like Wang Guofeng?"
After a brief stun, Bai Fan sighed before he turned to Rangure. "I've tried my best!"
He was only acting as a middle-man to satisfy Rangure.
When he finished, the cup that he was fiddling with his fingers suddenly flew out and shattered on the floor.
All of a sudden, the door was pushed open and six people came in. All of them were holding onto a pistol and were engulfed in killing intent!