"Listen to Young Master Xin, Doctor Lianshan! Please, you mustn't stand on ceremony with me. You must give me a chance to make amends!"
Huang Jingji looked ready to weep.
If he failed to deliver this gift, he would be the one living in constant dread.
Seeing that the benefactor had put it that way, Lianshan Jingcheng could only "reluctantly" agree.
"Very well. Gang Leader Huang, you are putting yourself to great expense."
"Not at all, not at all—it's only what I ought to do!" Huang Jingji said hurriedly.
Even up to this moment, he had been speaking to Lianshan Jingcheng on his knees.
Lianshan Jingcheng was visibly a little flustered, yet unable to conceal a spark of smug pride.
His son, raised by his own hand, had made something of himself—how could he not feel proud?
To avoid losing himself in conceit or letting his head swell was already proof of his formidable self-cultivation.
Lianshan Xin felt that his father was quite impressive indeed.
Unlike himself, who was visibly indulging in a bit of youthful arrogance.
Then again, he was deliberately giving free rein to that arrogance.
When someone from Shandong wanted to get ahead within the system, they could be more cautious than the slickest old bureaucratic hand.
Yet Qi Shiyun had remarked that Great Yu had its own national realities, so he had decided to adapt to the local customs.
In a high-martial feudal dynasty, a youth riding fine steeds in splendid attire and speaking grandly of the realm was something everyone could understand—and great figures even expected to see it.
Yet if you appeared worldly and prematurely seasoned in your youth, those who truly held power might not be so inclined to understand you.
Impulsiveness and rash bravado were the natural temperament of youth, as well as a young man's protective coloration.
"Gang Leader Huang, get up. If you keep kneeling while talking to us, outsiders might think I'm bullying you with my influence."
In truth, Lianshan Xin had no intention of throwing his weight around.
Had Huang Jingji not been so adept at reading the room, Xin would not have bothered granting him this favor.
Indeed, he was doing Huang Jingji a favor.
Any discerning observer could see it.
Those who had originally harbored designs against Huang Jingji would now reconsider carefully before causing him any trouble.
Huang Jingji climbed to his feet, visibly loosening up.
Glancing at Lianshan Jingcheng, he hesitated slightly.
Xin noticed his hesitation and said flatly, "If you have something to say, spit it out."
Huang Jingji hesitated no longer. Cupping his hands, he said, "Young Master Xin, the reason I came today was also to pay respects in my capacity as a disciple of the Golden Scale Alliance. Would Young Master Xin be willing to accompany this lowly one to sit for a while at the Thorn Gang headquarters? The branch leader sent word saying he wishes to make your acquaintance."
Lianshan Xin looked slightly surprised. "You're a disciple of the Golden Scale Alliance?"
Huang Jingji nodded. "I wouldn't dare deceive Young Master Xin. After founding the Thorn Gang, this lowly one was invited to join the Golden Scale Alliance as a disciple."
Lianshan Xin immediately grasped the essence of it:
A commercial franchise!
It certainly aligned with what he knew of the Golden Scale Alliance.
The Golden Scale Alliance was among the top five jianghu factions in Jiangzhou. Though considered a jianghu society, it straddled both the lawful and criminal underworlds, harboring good and bad alike—an alliance neither purely righteous nor wholly evil.
In terms of raw strength, the Golden Scale Alliance was nothing extraordinary in Jiangzhou's martial world. But in terms of sheer numbers, it boasted the largest membership in Jiangzhou.
Whenever a local power grew to a certain size, the Golden Scale Alliance would invite them to join. Compared to the ancient factions with centuries of heritage, the Golden Scale Alliance was an upstart, so its barrier to entry was low.
Yet it was precisely this low franchise threshold that had allowed its headcount and influence to balloon rapidly in a short span.
However, in Great Yu, quantity rarely superseded quality. Although the Golden Scale Alliance had expanded swiftly, it had not drawn undue scrutiny.
"A branch leader of the Golden Scale Alliance wishes to make friends with me?"
"Indeed. My wife is the branch leader's daughter; she told me so herself."
"Aren't they afraid that befriending me will offend the Demon Cult?" Lianshan Xin asked.
The Golden Scale Alliance carried some weight in Jiangzhou, and barely a fraction across the realm.
The Demon Cult, on the other hand, was the supreme villain of the entire martial world.
Naturally, the Golden Scale Alliance was in no position to compare.
Yet Huang Jingji saw things clearly: "Young Master Xin, having beaten Qu's brother-in-law to death, this lowly one has already burned his bridges."
Lianshan Xin chuckled softly.
"Besides, no matter how powerful the Demon Cult is, it cannot be mentioned in the same breath as Nine Heavens."
Lianshan Xin nodded slightly.
"Making friends is fine, but visiting your headquarters—"
"I beg Young Master Xin to give this lowly one some face. The truth is, I have another favor to ask."
Huang Jingji flushed slightly and confessed, "My wife bore me two children, but both are daughters. I have always yearned for a son, so I kept an outer mistress. Now, she has given birth to a child—a boy—but she is demanding formal status."
Lianshan Xin frowned. "Whether studying literature or practicing martial arts, talent alone matters, not gender. Gang Leader Huang, you should count yourself fortunate to live in Great Yu."
If this were his previous life, the sisters online would have flamed you until you couldn't care for yourself.
"And she demands formal status, just like that, and you listen to her? Since when are you so easy to talk to, Gang Leader Huang?" Lianshan Xin questioned.
Huang Jingji gave a self-conscious laugh. "Young Master Xin might not know, but my mistress... is the cousin of Kong Sanlang's study attendant."
Lianshan Xin: "... Gang Leader Huang, you certainly know how to play the angles."
Huang Jingji continued to laugh sheepishly.
"So you want to drag me along to settle your domestic squabble?"
Lianshan Xin was amused by him. "You certainly know how to calculate your odds. Do you take me for someone with time to waste?"
"Naturally, I wouldn't ask Young Master Xin to make a trip for nothing. I heard that your esteemed mother requires snow lotus to nourish her body, so I specially prepared a fifty-year-old Tianshan snow lotus for Young Master Xin."
Lianshan Xin: "..."
Now it truly was awkward to refuse.
He could hardly go around publicly announcing that He Miaojun's health had suddenly made a miraculous recovery.
"Furthermore, Young Master Xin, from now on, this lowly one is willing to follow your every lead."
Lianshan Xin cast him a glance and muttered, "Your wife is the daughter of a Golden Scale Alliance branch leader. By keeping an outer mistress behind her back, you offended your father-in-law, and now you're looking for a fallback? Even so, you ought to turn to the Kong clan."
Huang Jingji flattered him shamelessly, "The Kong clan is prestigious, but Young Master Xin's future is truly boundless."
Lianshan Xin acted as if he had heard nothing.
A cunning hare maintains three burrows. This was the survival wisdom of petty figures, as well as great clans.
Hence, he felt no contempt for Huang Jingji.
Like him, Huang Jingji was merely an ambitious climber striving to make upward progress; in essence, they were no different.
"The cousin of Kong Sanlang's study attendant, and the daughter of a Golden Scale Alliance branch leader..."
Recalling what Qi Shiyun had mentioned about Nine Heavens' grand ambitions for this expedition to Jiangzhou, Lianshan Xin took another look at Huang Jingji.
Perhaps the Thorn Gang could serve as his fulcrum to leverage both Jiangzhou's martial world and its established clans.
Give him a fulcrum, and he was confident he could pull off something big.
For the Dragon Subduing lineage to advance, it also needed him to make major moves.
"Brother Jiu, send word to the academy."
"Then we'll head over to the Thorn Gang headquarters together for a visit."
Since the opportunity had knocked on his door, he decided to take a hand in it.
Huang Jingji was overjoyed. "Many thanks, Young Master Xin!"
"Don't mention it. Gang Leader Huang, you've put in plenty of effort yourself."
A gang boss from the underworld had managed to bed both his superior's daughter and the cousin of an elite scion's personal study attendant.
Who could say he wasn't a man of talent?
What many petty figures needed was merely an opportunity.
Just as the Golden Scale Alliance's motto went:
How could a golden scale remain a creature of the pond? Encountering wind and clouds, it transforms into a dragon!
Chapter 40