Chapter 78: Dogfight
Tan Lin suddenly stepped forward and greeted Gu Mengzhong.
“Master Gu, about the Rank 1 beast appraiser you’ve mentioned. Were you perhaps referring to Lin Jin?” She had asked the question everyone was dying the know the answer to.
Tan Xun’s eyes sparkled as well as he looked at Gu Mengzhong.
Gu Mengzhong didn’t try to hide it either. He was specifically here to support Lin Jin anyway. He was furious when he heard from Liao Gu how Lin Jin’s consultation hall was shut down, which was mainly the reason why he had come here today.
“That’s right. I was talking about Lin Jin. When I got acquainted with him a few days ago, I was surprised to find out that Maple City has such a remarkable young man. Despite his young age, his mastery over beast appraisals is truly awe-inspiring.”
Upon hearing this, the crowd’s suspicions were confirmed.
“It really is Appraiser Lin!”
“That’s amazing. Even Appraiser Tan couldn’t figure out a way to form a blood pact with that ink monster but Lin Jin could. Is he really just a Rank 1 beast appraiser?”
“We’re in for a good show now. This Beast Appraisal a.s.sociation kept calling Appraiser Lin worthless. Now let’s see how they’ll deal with this.”
The most frightened person among the group was Zhang He.
Because he had spoken poorly of Lin Jin the most all this while. Now that Lin Jin’s reputation was increasingly positive, he was scared.
As if he had swallowed a fly, w.a.n.g Ji was just as uncomfortable. He was the mastermind behind defaming and oppressing Lin Jin, but the man’s shamelessness knew no bounds. “Who knew that our a.s.sociation’s Lin Jin is such a prodigy. As chief, I really don’t pay enough attention to him. From now on, I should set aside more time for focusing on him. As for the people in our a.s.sociation who are unskilled, have dreadful character, and envious of other people’s achievements to the point of spreading false rumors, I, w.a.n.g Ji, solemnly swear to investigate it thoroughly and teach these malicious individuals a lesson,” he declared.
Having said that, he shot a sideward glance at Zhang He.
‘F*ck, what are you looking at me for?’
In his heart, Zhang He cursed w.a.n.g Ji’s ancestors out of anger and frustration.
Needless to say, w.a.n.g Ji was planning to put all the blame on him. He could only imagine how tragic it would be for him. w.a.n.g Ji might even kick him out of the a.s.sociation just to cover up his own tracks.
More than this, Zhang He was confused. When he was affiliated with Lin Jin back then, the latter was just an average beast appraiser.
Could Lin Jin have intentionally hidden his prowess?
That was possible!
Zhang He regretted it. Had he known how incredible Lin Jin was, he would have never switched to another mentor.
“It really is time we took care of the wicked individuals within the a.s.sociation. Also, I heard that these rumors had something to do with Zhang He. Since this matter hurts our reputation pretty badly, I suggest that we punish him severely,” Nan Gongxian suddenly added.
He could read the atmosphere well. With Master Gu around, if the a.s.sociation didn’t take any action, Tan Xun and Tan Lin wouldn’t just leave them be.
Since that was the case, they had to put up a show to demonstrate their determination.
Reading between the lines, w.a.n.g Ji knew the stakes so he immediately wore a solemn look and said, “Elder Nan is right. Zhang He, you tried to sow discord and harmed others deliberately. As chief of the a.s.sociation, I hereby revoke your qualification as an apprentice. From today onward, you’re no longer a member of our a.s.sociation.”
Zhang He briefly lost his balance and almost fainted.
It took G.o.d knows how many years for him to become a beast appraiser, and just when he was finally producing results, he was mercilessly expelled by w.a.n.g Ji.
This was equivalent to destroying his career as a beast appraiser.
A surge of hatred immediately surfaced in his heart.
This man wasn’t a merciful guy. Had he been an honest person, Zhang He wouldn’t have ‘betrayed’ Lin Jin in the first place and made false accusations about him after that.
Since he could betray Lin Jin back then, today, he could betray w.a.n.g Ji as well.
Seeing that all the blame was being s.h.i.+fted to him and his ident.i.ty as a beast appraiser was being taken away, Zhang He had nothing else to lose.
“w.a.n.g Ji, you’re just trying to get rid of me now that I’m no longer useful to you. I, Zhang He, have been serving you like a dog and helped you with so many of your heinous deeds. Yet, you wouldn’t even show me an ounce of compa.s.sion at such a moment. Fine. If you want to chase me out and destroy my future, I won’t let you be any better off. On the topic of oppressing Lin Jin, you’re the real mastermind. For the sake of that woman, Jia Qian, you wanted to chase Lin Jin out so you could recommend her instead. Then, you conspired together with Nan Gongxian…”
Before he could finish, Zhang He was knocked over by a violent beast and fainted.
It was obviously w.a.n.g Ji’s pet beast.
The claims Zhang He had blurted out in public was akin to burning w.a.n.g Ji with fire. How could w.a.n.g Ji endure it?
“This Zhang He is truly vicious and immoral. Not only has he defamed Appraiser Lin, but he’s also trying to do the same unto Elder Nan and me. but he is also trying to slander Elder Nan and me. As chief of Maple City’s Beast Appraisal a.s.sociation, I am truly ashamed for not being able to educate my subordinates properly,” w.a.n.g Ji spoke words of self-reflection while looking sorrowful and furious.
Despite his attempt to subvert public opinion about himself, the crowd reserved their opinions.
This w.a.n.g Ji might not be any more innocent than Zhang He.
However, since he held the status and ident.i.ty as chief of the a.s.sociation, damage done to the a.s.sociation’s reputation due to insubordination was not enough to endanger w.a.n.g Ji’s position.
Tan Xun knew this, and so did his daughter.
Tan Xun in particular was still impressed by w.a.n.g Ji. At least the latter had made some achievements in his beast appraising career. A case example would be the evaluation reports he produced for the City Lord Manor’s batch of mutant eggs.
Hence, Tan Xun didn’t want to pursue the matter anymore. He didn’t want to see such a ruckus during his time here so it was best to end this incident as soon as possible.
“Chief w.a.n.g, as chief of an a.s.sociation, it is a fact that you’ve been careless. You have to pay more attention to your subordinates in the future and not just focus on honing your skills. Also, you must remain impartial no matter what,” Tan Xun said.
While this sounded like a lecture, it was in fact a declaration to everyone that things should end here.
w.a.n.g Ji naturally understood the implications. Since Appraiser Tan was offering him a way out, he immediately accepted it by saying, “I understand your teachings, Elder Tan. I will definitely reflect on this and ensure that incidents like this don’t happen again.”
On the inside, he let out a long sigh in relief, musing at how he finally made it through this ordeal.
What a close shave.
Tan Lin frowned. However, since her father had spoken, she shouldn’t say otherwise.
w.a.n.g Ji snapped, “Quick, inform Appraiser Lin that the misunderstanding from before has been cleared up. Appraiser Tan Lin has restored his qualification as a certified beast appraiser so there’s no need for him to take the exam. Right, Appraiser Lin’s consultation hall also needs to be reopened. Get the logistic department’s manager to choose a bigger hall for Appraiser Lin.”
Admittedly, w.a.n.g Ji was quick to patch things up. At least, after Tan Xun heard his arrangements, he nodded in acknowledgment and Tan Lin sighed without pressing the matter.
Tan Xun then approached Gu Mengzhong and said with a smile, “Master Gu, it’s been so long since we’ve met. When Lin Jin comes out later, let’s have a drink together!”
Gu Mengzhong nodded. He had planned to introduce Lin Jin to Tan Xun too in hopes of broadening Lin Jin’s network.
“Right, Master Gu, you probably don’t know this, but I got one of your genuine paintings here at Maple City.”