The four members of Huxiao Longyin knelt on one knee, staring at the ground, not daring to lift their heads.
Fubo Tianwang and Dangkou Tianwang stood on either side, bowing slightly, feeling very guilty.
A man draped in a black cape slowly turned around.
He held an account book in his hand, his expression extremely grim.
Flipping through it a few times, he casually tossed the account book into the arms of the financial director. "A complete mess!"
The financial director wore a mournful expression. "Tianwang, please quell your anger. When Chu Bai was in charge, this is how things were done. I was merely a subordinate—I dared to be angry, but I didn't dare to speak. Over the years, nine-tenths of the money from the branch halls has been embezzled by him."
"Hmm!?" The man let out a stern grunt.
The financial director quickly lowered his head, not daring to make another sound.
The man sat in the seat where Chu Bai once sat, looking down at the six people below with a dignified gaze.
Fubo Tianwang and Dangkou Tianwang were still glaring at each other, clearly unwilling to accept the other's authority.
Cheqi Tianwang said in a commanding tone, "The strategist sent you to deliver money to the Young Master. What exactly did you all do?"
Fubo Tianwang and Dangkou Tianwang both remained silent, still glaring at each other.
"You speak first!" Cheqi Tianwang pointed at Fubo Tianwang.
Fubo Tianwang hesitated before saying, "When I arrived at Xuecheng, by some mistake… purely by accident… with understandable circumstances… I misidentified the Young Master and gave the money to Lu Chengwen. And… and…"
Dangkou Tianwang sneered.
Fubo Tianwang steeled himself—since things had already reached this point, there was no point in hiding anything.
"And I also beat the Young Master a few times. Each time, I launched fierce attacks on his… backside. The Young Master probably hates me to death by now."
"Idiot!"
Cheqi Tianwang slammed his hand against the armrest. "You couldn't even handle such a simple task! You made such a ridiculous mistake, yet instead of correcting it, you continued to compound your errors! Are you trying to be a traitor!?"
Fubo Tianwang hurriedly said, "Tianwang, please quell your anger! I truly never had such thoughts!"
"Then why, after knowing that Long Aotian was the legitimate Young Master, did you still attack his backside? If that's not rebellion, what is it!?"
"This… I… I…"
At this moment, Ah Hu gritted his teeth, clasped his fists, and straightened up. "Reporting to Tianwang! The responsibility for misidentifying the Young Master does not lie entirely with Brother Fubo!"
"Oh? Are you saying you've been wronged?"
Ah Hu spoke with conviction:
"First! Our communication system itself has flaws! At least I knew the Young Master's name, but my brothers here didn't even know his name or what he looked like! The Young Master constantly changes his phone number and often turns it off for days at a time… In this situation, how could we possibly make a correct judgment?"
"Second! The Young Master's face can change! It was already extremely difficult to distinguish between him and Lu Chengwen. Back in Xuecheng's branch hall, the Four Great Kuo Kings, the strategist, and the branch master were all left utterly confused by their constant identity swaps."
"The Young Master would sometimes pretend to be Lu Chengwen, and Lu Chengwen would sometimes pretend to be the Young Master—they were switching identities with great enthusiasm! I believe the main responsibility for this situation lies with the Young Master himself!"
Cheqi Tianwang snorted. "So you're saying you bear no responsibility? Then why, after realizing the truth, did you still chase and attack the Young Master? He has never suffered such humiliation in his life!"
"Tianwang, please understand! It wasn't us chasing and attacking the Young Master—it was the Young Master chasing and attacking us! If we hadn't fought back, we would've been beaten to death! If you don't believe me, ask Ah Yin or Dangkou Tianwang!"
At that moment, Dangkou Tianwang felt a deep sense of admiration.
He had been struggling to think of how to respond if he were questioned. But this kid was clever!
Yes—blame it on Long Aotian!
At this moment, the two sides suddenly found common ground in their interests.
Dangkou Tianwang clasped his fists and said, "Reporting to Tianwang! That is exactly the truth! I was following the strategist's strict orders—recognizing only the secret code, not the person! This was to avoid the repeated mistakes we had made before by misidentifying people. But unexpectedly, the Young Master himself couldn't even keep the secret code secure, allowing Lu Chengwen to learn it as well."
"That day, the entire farmer's market was filled with people carrying white roses. And Lu Chengwen was the first to exchange the secret code with me. I had no choice. Given how many people had already misidentified him before, I had to be cautious—extremely cautious! I could only conclude that he was the Young Master!"
"Even later, when I wanted to recognize the Young Master and return to his side, he still pursued me relentlessly, attacking without mercy! I truly had no way out!"
Cheqi Tianwang's face remained stern. "Are you telling the truth?"
Ah Yin lifted his head, his expression full of grief and indignation. "I cannot acknowledge him as the Young Master anymore! I'd rather return to the organization! That bastard is truly heartless! I… I was the most loyal to him, yet he singled me out and tried to kill me! If my brothers hadn't protected me, I would have died at my own Young Master's hands!"
Cheqi Tianwang asked, "Then why did you all start fighting each other later on?"
Fubo Tianwang hesitated. "Uh…"
Ah Hu quickly interjected, "There was no real grudge between us and Dangkou Tianwang! It was just that we all realized we had made a huge mistake, and we wanted to make up for it and earn some merit… so we started competing for credit."
"Fools!" Cheqi Tianwang slammed the armrest again. "A bunch of idiots!"
Ah Long spoke up, "Tianwang, this really isn't our fault. The five of us have gone over everything from start to finish, analyzed and reanalyzed every detail, and from a logical standpoint, there is absolutely nothing wrong! Lu Chengwen should have been the Young Master, and Long Aotian should have been Lu Chengwen. Even now, I still suspect—"
Ah Yin and Ah Xiao quickly interrupted him. "Ah Long, that's enough, that's enough… The more you talk, the more confusing this gets."
Cheqi Tianwang glanced at them. "I came here this time with two orders from the branch master and the strategist, and I must choose one to execute."
"First, eliminate all of you useless fools! Then go to Lu Chengwen and retrieve the money—part of it will be handed over to headquarters, and the rest will go to the Young Master."
Several people were very nervous.
"The second option… is for you to redeem yourselves by making amends. Get our money back, as well as the branch's money! Then take out Lu Chengwen, and finally, follow the Young Master to accomplish great things."
After saying this, he looked at them with authority. "Which one do you choose?"
No one made a sound.
Choosing the first option was obviously insane.
Choosing the second? Who knew if it would eventually turn into the first option anyway?
At this moment, Ahu stepped forward and spoke slowly:
"Persuading the Heavenly King, 'kill' should not be spoken lightly;Let Ahu recount the tale from the beginning!
Lu Chengwen was originally the descendant of the Lu family,Living in Snow City, wealth overflowing.He outwitted Aotian with his cunning tactics,Toying with heroes as if they were monkeys.
His master, Tiangang Laotou, was simply too formidable,Beating us as easily as hitting a hockey puck,With supernatural skills reaching the heavens,The battle of the chicken coop struck fear into gods and ghosts alike.
His personal guard, Xue Ning, was even more exceptional,Moving as fast as lightning, accustomed to striking at the throat.If provoked, she attacks immediately—Who dares demand money when her fury ignites?
He takes Qingqiu as his queen,And there's Xue Jiao plotting behind the scenes…"
Cheqi Tianwang was completely dumbfounded.
Pointing at Ahu, he asked Fubo Tianwang, "Has this bastard always been like this?"
Fubo Tianwang looked embarrassed. "Just recently… This mission got to him…"
Fubo went over to console him:
"Ahu, Ahu, don't be like this, Ahu. Ahu, you have to look at the bigger picture, Ahu. Ahu, pull yourself together, Ahu…"
Ahu said, "Tianwang! Lu Chengwen is actually interested in working with our organization. The esteemed gentleman said that as long as you surrender…"
"What!?"
"Oh, no, the esteemed gentleman…"
"Who the hell is 'the esteemed gentleman'!? What's wrong with this bastard!?"
Ahu said, "He's willing to return one million to us and even work together with us, Tianwang!"
Cheqi Tianwang felt his temples throbbing.
"What the hell am I supposed to cooperate with him for!? Are you out of your damn mind? Are you!?"
Ahu started crying. "Tianwang, I've practically been holding this whole mission together on my own! You could say that for this mission, I was basically controlling the entire situation!"
"You controlled jack shit! Let me just ask you all—are you following me, or am I taking you out first!?"
The group fell silent.
Dangkou Tianwang was the first to speak up: "I'm willing to follow you, Big Brother. It's just… I'm worried about the Young Master…"
"You don't need to worry about the Young Master. He'll give me at least a little face."
Dangkou Tianwang didn't say anything else and quickly replied, "Then I'll follow you, no questions asked."
But the five others were in a tough spot.
If they agreed, Long Aotian would definitely settle the score later.
Even if Cheqi Tianwang didn't wipe them out, Long Aotian wouldn't let them go.
If they refused?
They'd have to turn against him right now.
And everyone had heard of Cheqi Tianwang's skills. Plus, with Dangkou Tianwang already on his side, the five of them weren't even sure they could win against the two of them.
Helplessly, they could only agree for now.
Fubo Tianwang said, "We can go back and assist the Young Master, but… given the current situation, does the Young Master still have a chance of winning?"
"Hahahaha!" Cheqi Tianwang laughed wildly. "The Young Master still holds the final trump card!"
Ahu was stunned: What!? Long Aotian still has a trump card!?
He quickly asked, "What trump card!?"
Fubo Tianwang sneered, "His personal guard, Luo Shiyin, known as the Jade-Eyed Enchantress, is the inheritor of the power of the Five-Colored Illusionary Flower Eyes. No matter how brilliantly Lu Chengwen has played his hand, in the end, as long as Luo Shiyin appears, everything will belong to the Young Master. Do you understand?"
The group looked at each other.
Fubo Tianwang continued, "So, whose side is Luo Shiyin really on?"
"The Young Master's, obviously! You idiots!"
A Xiao shook his head. "No, no way, Shiyin isn't that kind of woman. You're all misunderstanding her. She doesn't truly love Long Aotian. I know! I just know!"
Cheqi Tianwang stared at A Xiao, his expression twitching:
"What's wrong with you now!? Seriously, Fubo, what the hell is up with your subordinates? I tolerated Long and Hu, but this one is still dreaming, doubting that Lu Chengwen is actually the Young Master and that Long Aotian is Lu Chengwen…"
"Ahu started reciting goddamn opera lines halfway through, and I'm really starting to question his loyalty!"
"And now this guy!? What's his deal!?"
A Xiao looked at Cheqi Tianwang. "You don't understand her! You don't understand!"
"I don't understand YOU! I don't understand any of you! What the hell is going on!?"
Everyone grimaced, signaling him not to provoke A Xiao—he was mentally unstable right now.
Cheqi Tianwang said in exasperation, "In any case, let's go back and clear things up with the Young Master first."
"I'm not going!" A Yin swung his arm furiously. "Whoever wants to go can go! I can't beat him now, but give me ten years! I'll stab him to death with my sword!"
Cheqi Tianwang pointed at A Yin. "What's his problem now? Do you guys actually think I won't kill you!? You think I won't!? You looking down on me!?"
"I've been holding back this whole time! One of you is still dazed, can't even figure out who the Young Master is. Another one suddenly bursts into song, defending Lu Chengwen at every turn. This guy over here gets all weird and dazed whenever a woman is mentioned, making me uncomfortable as hell. And this one? Keeps trying to stage a goddamn coup… What the hell is wrong with you all!?"
Fubo Tianwang's eyes welled up with tears. "Tianwang… This whole journey… has been rough for us…"
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