Top Soldier Pursued by a Beauty

Huo Gang sneered, "Even if I don't judge people by their appearance, ask the family! Who among them approves of him?!"

At his words, the members of the Huo Family all shook their heads.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Xu Zhen fanned the flames. "Hongyan, our entire family looks down on this swindler. Why are you still keeping him around?"

"Hurry up and kick him out!"

"That's right! Get out! Get out right now!" Huo Gang began to shout, even lunging forward to grab Zhao Dong.

"Shut up! All of you, shut up!"

The incessant chattering finally drove Huo Hongyan into a rage.

She glared at Huo Gang and snapped, "I'll say this one last time: Mr. Zhao is a distinguished guest whom I invited! He must inspect these medicinal herbs today!"

Upon hearing this, Huo Gang laughed sarcastically.

"Wow, cousin, you really are something else. On one hand, you have your fiancé, the head of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Association and a member of the Alchemy Pavilion. On the other, you have a nameless, poor kid—a swindler, no less! Yet you insist on letting this nobody inspect the herbs. Could it be you don't trust your fiancé? Do you think he's the one with the problem?!"

"I..." Huo Hongyan's expression froze in embarrassment.

Seeing this, Xu Zhen immediately struck while the iron was hot. He put on a look of angry grief and bellowed, "Hongyan! I've been so good to you, yet you'd rather trust an outsider than me! Are you suggesting I'm the one sabotaging things behind the scenes?!"

"No, that's not what I meant, I..." Huo Hongyan panicked, rushing to explain.

Huo Gang cut her off coldly. "If that's not what you mean, then what do you mean? It's perfectly clear that's what you mean! Xu Zhen has already said there's nothing wrong with this batch. If you insist on having this kid inspect it, you're saying you don't trust Xu Zhen!"

"I..." Huo Hongyan looked torn.

With Huo Gang pressing her so aggressively, if nothing turned up, she'd inevitably dishearten both Xu Zhen and the rest of the Huo Family.

"This batch of medicinal herbs has a problem."

At that moment, Zhao Dong's calm voice suddenly cut through the noise. Everyone's expression changed dramatically as they all turned to stare at him.

"How audacious!" Xu Zhen roared, "You're just a swindler who knows nothing! How dare you spout such baseless nonsense?!"

"This is the Huo Family, kid, not a place for you to run wild! Get out now!" Huo Gang berated him.

The surrounding Huo Family members also glared at him with cold expressions.

"This kid is unbelievably arrogant. Does he really think he can do as he pleases just because no one's stopping him?"

"You haven't even touched the herbs, kid. On what grounds do you claim there's a problem?"

"He's just a swindler who makes things up as he goes. Of course he doesn't need to touch them."

Ignoring their mockery, Zhao Dong stated calmly, "This batch isn't entirely counterfeit. It's a mixture of real and fake herbs."

"That's hilarious! A mix of real and fake?" Xu Zhen jeered, laughing so hard he could barely speak, "You can't determine the efficacy of these herbs without using them. If you're going to make up an excuse, at least find a credible one!"

At his words, the Huo Family's derisive laughter grew even louder.

Huo Hongyan's face flushed with shame. "Mr. Zhao, I'm sorry," she said guiltily. "I... I didn't expect this..."

"It's nothing," Zhao Dong said, waving his hand dismissively before turning to Xu Zhen. "You're right. The efficacy of these medicinal herbs can't be determined without using them. But their authenticity isn't solely related to efficacy. No matter how well-made a counterfeit is, besides being less effective than the genuine article, its color, aroma, and taste will have discrepancies."

As he spoke, Zhao Dong walked over to the pile of herbs and casually picked up two that looked identical.

"Take this Thousand Leaf Grass, for example," he said. "The one in my left hand is real, while the one in my right is fake."

"Nonsense!" Huo Gang shouted angrily. "Those two are clearly identical! How could one be fake?"

"Heh." Zhao Dong sneered, his gaze turning icy. "Some people won't shed a tear until they see the coffin. Thousand Leaf Grass is named for its many leaves on a single stem. Using grafting techniques, the forgers managed to make this fake look exactly like the real thing."

"However, they overlooked the most important detail!"

"You..." Huo Gang started to lash out, but Huo Tiexia interrupted him.

"Overlooked what?" Huo Tiexia's sharp, aged eyes were fixated on Zhao Dong.

Huo Tiexia was, after all, an old fox. Seeing Zhao Dong dare to speak up with such confidence when no one trusted him, a seed of doubt was planted in his mind.

"Grandfather, you..." Huo Gang began to protest anxiously.

"Silence!" Huo Tiexia huffed coldly. "Are you the one in charge of the Huo Family?"

His words made Huo Gang's face turn deathly pale. Defying a superior was a major taboo in the Huo Family.

"Continue, young man," Huo Tiexia said, nodding at Zhao Dong.

Zhao Dong ignored Huo Gang and went on, "The forgers overlooked that the leaves of a Thousand Leaf Grass display different colors under different lighting conditions.

"Furthermore, when exposed to high heat, it emits a foul odor, but in extreme cold, it gives off a fragrant scent.

"Of course, the forgers may have considered this, but they simply don't have the ability to replicate these properties."

Hearing this, the surrounding crowd was stunned.

"He sounds so sure of himself. Maybe he actually knows something about herbs!"

"You talk a good game, kid, but can you prove it!?"

"Of course." Zhao Dong smiled faintly. He took the two stalks of Thousand Leaf Grass to the villa's entrance and held them up.

Under the sunlight, the grass in his left hand, originally green, instantly turned purple! The one in his right hand, however, didn't change at all.

Seeing this, everyone gasped.

"How is that possible?! Is it really a fake!?"

"It must be an anomaly! It has to be! There have been cases where Thousand Leaf Grass doesn't change color!"

"Right, right! It must be an anomaly!"

The Huo Family members were shocked, but they were still unwilling to accept it.

Zhao Dong smiled faintly again, then took out a lighter and began to heat both herbs.

Just as he said!

Under the flame, the Thousand Leaf Grass in his left hand immediately let out a foul stench! The one in his right hand, however, remained completely odorless.

Next, Zhao Dong took the herbs to the refrigerator to test them. The result was, once again, exactly as he had described.

By now, the members of the Huo Family could only stare with wide eyes, their faces etched with utter shock.

"Xu Zhen! Give me an explanation!" Huo Tiexia's face had turned completely dark, his cold eyes piercing through Xu Zhen.

Xu Zhen panicked and scrambled for an excuse. "An anomaly! It must be an anomaly! That kid must have pulled a trick during the test! I couldn't possibly have misjudged!"

Zhao Dong laughed, his voice dripping with contempt.

He tossed the herbs onto the table and said coolly, "The esteemed Huo Family must know quite a few experts on medicinal herbs, correct? Since you don't trust me, feel free to call a few of them to inspect these again. You'll know if they're real or fake with a single test!"

Hearing this, the panic in Xu Zhen and Huo Gang's eyes intensified.

But before they could object, Huo Tiexia waved his hand. "Mr. Zhao is right. We'll find out the truth once we have someone else take a look."