Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'-Chapter 674 - 463 Hong Ying’s Eyes_4

Li Banfeng couldn’t think of anything for a moment. Hong Ying, rubbing her Peach, said, "Qi Lang, that projector of yours is no simple item. He is a master from our Taoist Sect, and his cultivation level might be above mine."

"You’re saying the projector is a Traveling Cultivator?" Li Banfeng didn’t believe it.

"His Technique can turn imaginary things into real people. Although its combat power isn’t strong, it does bear some resemblance to the Fake Moving Skill."

Li Banfeng waved his hand. "We can’t make wild guesses. I’ll ask him some other day."

Hong Ying scoffed. "Even if you ask, do you think he would tell the truth?"

Li Banfeng didn’t respond and went directly to the Fifth Room to fetch the Projector.

Hong Ying thought the matter would be confronted head-on and immediately gathered her imposing aura.

The Phonograph scolded, "Don’t act recklessly! Wait for Husband’s instructions."

Li Banfeng looked at the Projector and asked, "Brother, have you seen Pan Dehai?"

The Projector responded, "I have his image."

The Projector indeed had a recording of Pan Dehai. Seeing Pan Dehai’s appearance, Li Banfeng told the Clock Pendulum, "Just imitate this look."

Hong Ying looked at the projection on the wall and sighed. "He wasn’t handsome to begin with. Won’t he look even uglier like this?"

Li Banfeng looked at the Phonograph and smiled. "Continue striking!"

Amidst the crisp sounds of the wooden board, the Clock Pendulum quickly applied makeup to Li Banfeng. Looking in the mirror, he saw a seventy to eighty percent resemblance.

The wife chuckled. "Beloved husband, this makeup could fool ordinary people, but if you encounter someone with a high cultivation level, they might spot the flaws."

"A few flaws don’t matter. I’m not trying to impersonate Pan Dehai, just so long as others can’t recognize me."

"Husband, this Little Servant has recently learned some new disguise techniques; we might as well give them a try. We’ll still need Sister Blood-Thirsty’s help."

The Blood-Thirsty Pendulum naturally understood and hastily paid her respects. "To learn skills from the Lady is my good fortune."

The Phonograph mixed clay with paint to create a paste. Then, imitating Pan Dehai’s image, she and the Clock Pendulum meticulously helped Li Banfeng apply the makeup, stroke by stroke.

After the outlining was complete, the Phonograph exhaled a puff of Steam towards Li Banfeng, and the clay adhered to his face like real flesh.

Li Banfeng looked at himself in the mirror: a broad face, a large nose, a wide mouth. After attaching a small mustache, he was the spitting image of Pan Dehai.

"Beloved husband, use this Little Servant’s Technique to change your voice now," she said.

Li Banfeng cleared his throat, recalled Pan Dehai’s voice, and said, "I am a Person of Great Virtue."

The Projector remarked, "Seventh Guide, it’s close but not quite. Raise the pitch a bit. Pan Dehai speaks with more confidence!"

After a few adjustments, the voice was practically identical.

The wife quickly fashioned a long gown from some fabric and added a small, round-topped hat. With these, Li Banfeng looked like the spitting image of Pan Dehai, brought to life.

"Husband, your build is much slimmer than that old fellow’s; you’ll need some padding," she mentioned.

The wife then stuffed some clay into Li Banfeng’s clothes. Unless someone was extremely familiar with Pan Dehai, they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference at all.

But what if he encountered Peeping Cultivation?

"Don’t worry, Husband. Peeping Cultivators below the Sixth Layer won’t find any flaws. Even if you encounter those above the Sixth Layer, you needn’t be too concerned. Home Cultivation is inconspicuous, so they won’t notice a few small imperfections," she assured.

The Phonograph took a piece of wood, scraped it, whittled it, aged it, and crafted a walking stick for Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng went out, leaning on the walking stick, and headed to another small building.

When he knocked on the door, an elderly man of about sixty emerged and asked, "Whom are you looking for?"

"I’m looking for Song Shilong, Boss Song. I’ve come to buy some coal."

The old man was none other than Song Shilong. He quickly gestured him inside. "Please, come in."

The furnishings in Song Shilong’s home were largely similar to those in Hu Man Chun’s. After tea was poured, the two began to discuss business. Song Shilong asked first, "May I ask how I should address you?"

Li Banfeng had no intention of impersonating Pan Dehai, so he invented a name on the spot: "My surname is Wu. Call me Wu Dade. I’m from Hai Chi Ridge."

"You’ve come all this way to my place to buy coal?"

Li Banfeng nodded. "I heard from a friend that Boss Song is a man of virtue. Doing business with a virtuous person puts my mind at ease."

Song Shilong clasped his fists. "You flatter me. I dare not claim such virtue, but I uphold the basic principles of business. Let me be upfront, though: I can’t supply large quantities. At most, I can manage to get you some loose coal."

This statement sounded very familiar.

Hu Man Chun had said the same thing.

"Loose coal will do."

"Please examine the coal sample first!"

It was no different from the sample at Hu Man Chun’s house. Li Banfeng selected two cartloads of top-quality smoking coal and had a Contract Book drawn up. Song Shilong declined a down payment, opting to collect the money at the train station.

As he was about to leave, Song Shilong first invited him for a meal, and then to listen to some music.

Li Banfeng waved his hand. "When I conduct business, virtue comes first. Such matters should not be broached with me."

Song Shilong smiled. "Boss Wu, you misunderstand. Miss Qin merely sings; she does not accompany guests overnight. It’s just to lift your spirits."

Li Banfeng politely declined and left Song Shilong’s home.

Another honest and straightforward person. Their manner of speaking was so similar; it was as if they were all taught by the same master.

Following that, Li Banfeng visited more than a dozen households, changing his disguise five times. No matter how he altered his appearance, the coal mine owners he met all stuck to the same story.

Could business really be this straightforward? Were the local customs truly so simple?

After leaving North Bridge, Li Banfeng saw a Coachman on the side of the street eyeing him intently.

Li Banfeng greeted him cheerfully, "Greetings, Coachman! Are you heading to Hai Chi Ridge?"

The Coachman wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Brother, you gave me a fright! I thought that unvirtuous scoundrel had shown up. Hop in quickly, let’s talk. Are you coming back from North Bridge?"

"Yes."

"Did you find the one causing trouble?"

"Almost. We’ll see when the goods are collected tomorrow night."

The Coachman took Li Banfeng back to the mine. The next evening, Li Banfeng asked Ma Wu to collect the goods while he and the Coachman waited outside.

Upon arriving at the station entrance, Ma Wu first encountered Hu Man Chun.

Hu Man Chun brought two cartloads of high-quality smoking coal; the quality was good, and the price was reasonable.

With money and goods exchanged, the deal was done. Hu Man Chun didn’t forget the pleasantries: "Shall we go listen to a song from Miss Qin?"

Ma Wu was indeed tempted, but he couldn’t neglect his important duties. "Let’s consider this transaction a good start. We can get together for that next time our business brings us here."

Hu Man Chun smiled. "As I said before, I can’t handle large deals. I can only earn a little spare silver this way."

Ma Wu bid farewell with a clasped fist salute and went on to collect coal from other sellers.

Over the course of the night, he collected more than twenty cartloads of coal. Each seller offered the same quality, the same price, and told the same story.

Ma Wu was a businessman; he knew things shouldn’t be this coincidental.

He left the station and found Li Banfeng and the Coachman in a nearby abandoned restaurant. "The troublemaker is either one of them or connected to all of them," Ma Wu declared. "They’re definitely in cahoots; otherwise, their stories wouldn’t be so similar."

Li Banfeng said nothing, while the Coachman chimed in, "We can’t kill them all, can we? North Bridge is all that’s left of the human energy on Loess Bridge. If we kill them all, it’ll truly become Old Land."

Ma Wu asked, "What about these twenty-odd cartloads of coal?"

Li Qi replied, "Sell them, of course. Isn’t our business just getting started?"

"What about the coal from the mine?"

"Sell that too!" Li Banfeng said, lowering the brim of his hat. "I’ll think of a way to lure out this Confused Cultivator."