Yan Xiao smiled upon hearing Mo Antong's disciple's words, but showed no intention of responding. She continued to stare at Mo Antong, patiently waiting for his reply.
At this moment, Mo Antong finally made a move. He first waved his hand to signal his apprentice to go out and watch the shop. After his apprentice left, he turned his attention back to Yan Xiao.
"How did you know my true identity, Madam? I don't think I did anything wrong."
Mo Antong's decision not to deny it but to admit it directly surprised Yan Xiao.
But this is good, as the two of them can speak frankly and openly without wasting time.
"To be honest, Master Mo, I actually knew your identity a long time ago. As for how I found out, that's my secret, and I'm sorry I can't tell you."
Mo Antong was surprised by this answer, and a look of surprise flashed across his face, but he did not seem angry.
He paused for a moment before replying in a deep voice:
"Now that you know my identity, you should understand why I am hiding my identity."
In my early years, I was too reckless. I ignored my parents' advice and insisted on learning those harmful mechanical arts, which led to the tragic deaths of my entire family.
These past years, I've spent every moment in regret, regretting my youthful arrogance and hating my ignorance and ignorance.
Mo Antong paused briefly at this point before looking at Yan Xiao and earnestly requesting:
"Now I just want to live a peaceful life with my daughter. Please grant me that wish, madam."
Yan Xiao shook her head slightly, her face full of disagreement, and said before Mo Antong's expression changed:
“Master Mo, your thinking was wrong from the beginning. Why do you blame yourself for all the mistakes of others? The art of mechanisms itself is not harmful, and there is nothing wrong with you learning the art of mechanisms. The one who is wrong is the person who had evil intentions to harm you.”
When I first heard your story, I thought you were a truly upright man, able to avenge your family. But now you're content to cower in one place as a carpenter and blacksmith, wasting your skills. Won't you regret it a hundred years from now?
The Qing Kingdom of today is no longer the Qing Kingdom of the past. In Jiangbei City, no one will hold you accountable for the massacre of the Duke's entire family back then.
You were so obsessed with mechanical arts back then, are you really willing to waste your life like this? Have you forgotten your original intention and ideal of leaving your hometown to study mechanical arts?
Why let someone else's mistakes trap you for your entire life? Isn't this world, in fact, an opportunity for someone like you?
Now that the world is in chaos and various forces rule their own territories, no one knows who the emperor is anymore, and no one cares about the massacre of the Duke's family back then.
Talented individuals like Mo Antong are treasures to all factions. Yan Xiao believes that if Mo Antong knows how to utilize this, he can certainly make a name for himself and his daughter.
If one had actively chosen the right patron and followed the right leader, one wouldn't have ended up being threatened and forced to serve others, ultimately failing to protect one's daughter despite all one's efforts.
Upon hearing Yan Xiao's words, Mo Antong's expression changed slightly, but he quickly returned to his original wooden demeanor.
"Madam is joking. The price was too high. A hobby from my youth has been stained with the blood of my entire family. The price was really too high. I have long forgotten about it."
"If you've come for the molds, I will do my utmost to make them for you. But if you've come for something else, please don't mention it again."
"Mr. Mo, there's no need to be so quick to reject me. Perhaps we can talk about something else, like your poor daughter."
Yan Xiao realized that this man was now completely unreasonable and stubborn, and reasoning with him was useless. No wonder Qi Chengfeng did not choose to surrender but instead threatened him with his daughter.
She couldn't directly tell him that hiding was useless, that someone would use his daughter to threaten him in the future, and that in the end, the father and daughter would still be unable to escape unscathed, and would instead meet a terrible end.
Now that his identity has been revealed, given his current mindset, he'll probably start planning to move his whole family away, a move commonly known as "running away."
She didn't want anyone watching Mo Antong 24 hours a day. Besides, if she did that, the man would feel like he was forcing him to submit, which would be a losing proposition.
Now it seems that the only option left is to go with her daughter, as originally planned.
Of course, she's just greedy, not a pervert. She won't be like that pervert Qi Chengfeng, threatening someone's intellectually disabled daughter to do something short-sighted like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.
She firmly believes that only sufficient mutual benefit can make relationships between people stable and lasting.
When Mo Antong heard Yan Xiao suddenly mention his daughter, his expression immediately turned fierce, his eyes were full of defensiveness, and his hand had already touched an inconspicuous piece of wood on his side.
His tone was so cold it could melt ice crystals:
"what you up to?"
Yan Xiao had been observing Mo Antong's actions and naturally discerned his intentions.
As an excellent mechanic, Mo Antong would never believe that his residence was not protected by mechanisms, and his actions at this moment must mean that he intended to kill her.
Yan Xiao wasn't surprised that someone like Mo Antong, who could endure years of hardship and annihilate an entire family to avenge his relatives, would do anything to protect his only remaining daughter.
She remained calmly seated, her tone as usual:
"Mr. Mo, please don't be so nervous. I have no ill intentions. The fact that I chose to risk coming here alone to talk to you today already proves my sincerity."
This is Jiangbei City. If I had even the slightest ulterior motive, I wouldn't have put myself in this danger. I could have taken you down when you were completely unprepared.
"And no matter how ingenious the mechanisms in your room are, they're completely useless if someone is prepared to catch you off guard. Am I right?"
Yan Xiao's words eased the anger on Mo Antong's face slightly, but he did not withdraw his hand from touching the mechanism.
A multitude of thoughts flashed quickly across his eyes, before finally settling into calm. He simply said:
"Madam, please speak your mind. As you said, this is Jiangbei City. Now that I have caught your eye, I will certainly not be able to leave unscathed unless you agree."
"But madam, don't push your luck too far. My daughter is my life. If you dare to lay a hand on her, I will die with you right here today."
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