Considering saying it like that might get him punished by the restaurant on the spot, Liu Zheng decided to butter him up differently.

"If I believed you, I still wouldn't be able to afford a house by now."

Niu Ma rolled his eyes.

"Sigh, I originally intended sincerity, but what a waste of effort. Here, the game console you wanted."

Liu Zheng tossed the game console to him.

"At least you have some conscience."

Niu Ma happily started examining the game console.

"Do you want me to teach you how to use it?"

"No need, if you can handle it, why can't I figure it out?"

Niu Ma refused without hesitation.

"Alright then."

He sat back on his small stool to play by himself.

After playing for a while, he suddenly heard a faint noise from the ceiling.

Liu Zheng looked up and sure enough, saw the sneaky figure of the Weaving Spider Lady.

"Squeak!"

The Weaving Spider Lady froze instantly under his gaze.

If it weren't for the webs holding her, she would have fallen to the ground on all fours.

"We've known each other for so long, and you're still socially awkward? You really are seriously ill."

Liu Zheng sighed and closed his eyes.

"Squeak, squeak!"

A moment later, the sound of the Weaving Spider Lady rang out again.

He opened his eyes, and she had already quickly vanished into the shadows.

Looking down, a gray cloak appeared on the ground.

The cloak looked plain and unadorned, with no patterns, not even the sheen that silk should have, like it was made from a large rag.

"This Weaving Spider Lady, didn't she switch the item on me?"

Seeing this situation, although Liu Zheng knew it was unlikely, he couldn't help but worry.

He picked up the cloak, and an item description immediately popped up.

"Name: Phoenix Five Virtues Cloak"

"Type: Equipment"

"Quality: Perfect"

"Effect 1: Gain the 'King of Hundred Birds' status when equipped."

"Effect 2: Randomly gain one 'Five Virtues' status matching the player for 24 hours, with a 24-hour cooldown."

"Note: A cloak made from the feathers of an adult Phoenix. Due to the creator's excellent craftsmanship and the enhancement of special materials, this item exhibits extraordinary power."

"Can be taken out of the instance: Yes"

"King of Hundred Birds: Enables communication with birds and exerts a suppressive effect on them, providing a temporary 20% increase to all attributes when using abilities or making checks against them."

"Awesome!"

Liu Zheng felt deeply remorseful for his previous suspicions.

Though the item's effects were reduced from three to two, the new effect was clearly top-notch.

The duration and cooldown are both 24 hours, effectively making it a permanent buff, just without the ability to refresh the desired buff at will.

Previously he nearly defeated Fei Shibu using only 'Benevolence' and 'Righteousness'. Although the opponent probably didn't use full strength, the power was evident.

Liu Zheng immediately donned the cloak and used effect two.

"Item effect successfully used. Player has gained the 'Gift of the Five Virtues' status."

The system notification sounded.

"Gift of the Five Virtues: When communicating or attacking, the more polite the attitude, the greater the effect bonus, up to a maximum of 100%."

"Alright then, greet the enemy's family while sending them to meet them, huh?"

He couldn't help but comment on the 'Gift of the Five Virtues' effect.

As expected from a system-converted item, its effects are always so abstract yet logical.

"Looks like I'd better find a book on diplomatic rhetoric."

Liu Zheng pondered to himself.

Impressionistically, those diplomatic spokespersons speak very politely and subtly. Without multiple layers of translation, it's hard to realize they're actually insulting someone.

With the 'Gift of the Five Virtues' status activated, the cloak's color turned black, featuring a golden, bizarre character.

This character was composed of two parts, with the outer part resembling a vessel and the inner part resembling two strings of jade rings.

This was a sacrificial vessel and offering for the gods, as the highest rite was originally intended for humans to pay homage to gods.

"You're something, getting all the lucky breaks, aren't you?"

Niu Ma said enviously.

"Why don't you mention how you managed to pick up a big gift while inspecting the border?"

Liu Zheng rolled his eyes.

"I've only done it once, you could do it almost every day, couldn't you?"

Niu Ma complained.

"Was I stepping in luck or... never mind, it's disgusting. Boss, why don't you try it and see what virtue you can activate?"

He took off the Five Virtues Cloak and tossed it to Niu Ma.

"Dream on, I won't give you a chance to laugh at me."

Niu Ma threw the Five Virtues Cloak back.

He was self-aware enough to know that given his usual behavior, Benevolence, Virtue, Courtesy, and Trust were out of the question, and even Righteousness would be difficult.

"Tch~"

Seeing his intention exposed, Liu Zheng had no choice but to reluctantly put away the Five Virtues Cloak.

After playing for a while, his phone rang.

Liu Zheng checked and saw it was a call from Li Ziming.

"Mr. Liu, something's wrong, Feng Mo Future is in trouble."

Li Ziming said urgently.

"Calm down and explain what happened."

He frowned and tried to speak as calmly as possible.

"Yes."

Seeing he didn't erupt in anger, Li Ziming relaxed a bit.

"During the break earlier, Li Xueqing, that student prodigy, collapsed suddenly in front of Feng Mo Future. Upon examination, the school doctor found a type of spice powder in his nasal cavity."

"This spice can induce a sleep state until its potency fades or one wakes with their own willpower."

"Forcing someone awake with other methods would definitely result in permanent brain damage."

"The school doctor also found the same spice powder in Feng Mo Future's fingers."

Li Ziming recounted the events.

"So now, Feng Mo Future is suspected of poisoning Li Xueqing."

Liu Zheng summarized.

"Yes, Mr. Liu."

"What does the school plan to do with her?"

He asked.

"The school has already detained Feng Mo Future and is debating whether to inform the Security Department and Li Xueqing's parents."

Li Ziming replied.

If this matter gets out, not only will Feng Mo Future's future be jeopardized, but the school's reputation will also suffer greatly.

"Security Department..."

Liu Zheng frowned deeply.

Handing Feng Mo Future over to the Security Department might turn out to be beneficial.

He had connections in the Security Department, and since Li Xueqing was merely asleep without any real harm, there was room for negotiation.

But the problem was if this incident was confirmed, Feng Mo Future couldn't return to her original school. Even transferring schools would greatly impact her mental state.

There's a crucial issue here.

Did Feng Mo Future really poison Li Xueqing?

Logically speaking, Li Xueqing often bullied Feng Mo Future, so retaliating out of self-defense or revenge would be normal for her.

And using spice to poison fits Feng Mo Future's identity, as the Fengmo Family is known for their killing incense as assassins.

Everything seemed logical, except it was out of character for Feng Mo Future to act in public view.

However, that alone wasn't enough to clear her of suspicion.

"Did she admit she poisoned him?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"No, but she didn't deny it either. Her classmates said that until she was taken away by the school, she just stared at Li Xueqing in a daze without saying anything."

"We don't know if she said anything to the school officials."

Li Ziming said.

"If you're not sure, go find out. I don't care how much it costs, I need to know what happened. I'll compensate you double, but if you find nothing, your end will be ten times worse than Li Xueqing's."

He stated coldly.

"Yes! I'll have them find out right away."

Li Ziming was startled by his tone.

Liu Zheng hung up and immediately called Yangzi.

"Yangzi, get Mr. Batiao on the line."

"Now, immediately, right away."

His tone was icy and resolute.