"Young Master Xin, the truth is, I was set up too."
On the way to the Thorn Gang, Huang Jingji recounted his experience to Lianshan Xin.
"Originally, I intended to spend my whole life with only my wife, two people together until the end."
Lianshan Xin interrupted Huang Jingji's boasting. "Get to the 'but.'"
"But these scions of established clans have far too many tricks up their sleeves, and they targeted my weak spot directly. I'm a man, after all, and what man isn't weak for women? Kong Sanlang actually used a honey trap on me! Who could withstand that?"
Lianshan Xin offered a faint smile. "I could."
Huang Jingji looked skeptical, but did not dare voice it.
Lianshan Xin could not be bothered to explain.
Just earlier, a princess of an immortal dynasty endowed with an innate internal charm physique had offered herself to him, and he had raised his blade and struck her down without hesitation.
He had every right to look down on a scumbag like Huang Jingji, who couldn't control the couple of ounces of meat between his legs.
"In short, a beauty's embrace is a hero's grave, and just like that, I fell."
Ignoring Huang Jingji's self-flattery about being a hero, Lianshan Xin seized on the core of the matter. "Kong Sanlang targeted you deliberately? Why? What did he see in you, or in the Thorn Gang?"
Huang Jingji spoke honestly. "It's probably my standing as a disciple of the Golden Scale Alliance. He only started scheming against me after I joined them."
"The Golden Scale Alliance... I've heard they straddle both sides of the law, and that they have ties to established clans as well?" Lianshan Xin mused thoughtfully.
Huang Jingji disclosed a piece of insider information. "Young Master Xin, I visited the Golden Scale Alliance's headquarters once, and I saw quite a few scions of established clans there."
"Oh?"
This was news to Lianshan Xin.
"Also, our Golden Scale Alliance isn't just expanding within Jiangzhou. We've already broadened our territory into other provinces. The Alliance Master... seems to harbor immense ambitions," Huang Jingji whispered.
Lianshan Xin gave Huang Jingji another surprised look. "You're selling out the Golden Scale Alliance just like that?"
Huang Jingji explained, "To the Nine Heavens, this is hardly a secret. You could find it out whenever you wished, Young Master Xin. Besides..."
He hesitated for a moment before voicing his misgivings. "I can't shake the feeling that the Alliance Master's plans for the alliance... are a bit too bold."
Though falling behind was the inevitable result of not advancing, the Golden Scale Alliance had not even reached the pinnacle of Jiangzhou's jianghu, yet they were already expanding operations into other provinces.
"To my eyes, Jiangzhou is already vast. But to the Alliance Master and the elders, Jiangzhou seems rather small."
Huang Jingji felt the situation slipping beyond his control.
Lianshan Xin also sensed that something was amiss.
There were many gangs in the jianghu, but very few that spanned multiple commanderies and provinces.
It was not unusual for a gang to grow powerful on its home turf; after all, it had local ties, geographical advantages, and familiar relations on its side.
Yet to step outside its home province and continue expanding meant becoming the Great Yu equivalent of a multinational conglomerate.
And Lianshan Xin knew full well just how immense the power of a multinational conglomerate could be.
Ordinary local authorities were nothing before such colossal syndicates; local magistrates often had to rely on them for investment.
"Without the backing of a Great Grandmaster, an ordinary gang could never step foot beyond a single province. The Golden Scale Alliance must have produced a Great Grandmaster," Lianshan Xin murmured.
Huang Jingji nodded silently. "That was my guess as well."
Yet the backing of a single Great Grandmaster was no guarantee of becoming an interprovincial syndicate.
For a dragon crossing the river to encroach on a local strongman's territory was exceptionally difficult.
"Even with a Great Grandmaster's support, blood will still be shed. Without a fight, you can never establish a foothold. And while the alliance plots to take others' territory, others are plotting against the alliance. I suspect Kong Sanlang came for the alliance's sake. Having received great favors from the Golden Scale Alliance, I naturally don't wish to betray my master for personal gain."
"So your reason for inviting me to the Thorn Gang's headquarters this time is to use my name to persuade your wife?"
"Yes. I must ask for your help, Young Master Xin. I only want the child. As for that woman on the side... if my wife is truly unhappy about it, she can do with her as she pleases."
Huang Jingji spoke with utter heartlessness.
Yet Lianshan Xin did not condemn him.
That was not what he cared about.
"You want to sever ties with the Kong clan?"
"Yes."
"It seems the Kong clan really was deeply implicated by the Demon Cult this time."
Lianshan Xin did not believe for a second that Huang Jingji merely had scruples against being a thrice-serving turncoat and jumping ship to the Kong clan.
It was simply that word had spread of Bailudong Academy's Vice Headmaster being Thousand Faces, one of the Four Great Elders of the Demon Cult. With Kong Ningyuan having taken him as a master at the academy, the Kong clan was now under glaring suspicion of colluding with the demons.
At a time like this, drawing a line between oneself and the Kong clan was only natural.
Even the Demon Cult feared being targeted by the Nine Heavens, let alone small fry like him.
"Is Kong Ningyuan in a precarious situation within the Kong clan?" Lianshan Xin asked suddenly.
Huang Jingji shook his head. "You worry too much, Young Master Xin. One step ahead, every step ahead—the sixth young master of the Kong clan is already far ahead of his peers within the clan. Even though suspicion hangs over him now, his friendship with you is no secret. From what I understand, he has already reconciled with his father, and his standing in the Kong clan remains as secure as ever."
Lianshan Xin nodded faintly.
That was good.
His bond with Kong Ningyuan had lasted more than a year or two, and Lianshan Xin naturally hoped Kong Ningyuan would have a bright future.
"We have arrived."
Huang Jingji came to a halt.
They stood before the headquarters of the Thorn Gang.
"Please put in a few good words on my behalf shortly, Young Master Xin."
A moment later, Lianshan Xin saw a man and a woman emerge to greet them.
The man was imposing and robust; even his loose robes could hardly conceal the explosive musculature underneath.
Yet Huang Jingji introduced him as the Thorn Gang's strategist, Wei Rong.
Lianshan Xin considered it and found it entirely reasonable.
How could one be a strategist if one couldn't fight?
The woman was Huang Jingji's primary wife, Luo Panlan. Though petite, she possessed considerable charm.
One should not look upon what was improper, so Lianshan Xin did not linger on her.
Luo Panlan and Wei Rong took the initiative to greet Lianshan Xin.
Polite pleasantries required little elaboration.
Before long, Huang Jingji led Lianshan Xin into the main hall. Once they were seated, he turned to the matter at hand.
Huang Jingji grasped Luo Panlan's hand and said earnestly, "Wife, there is something I must tell you."
"Just say it. Why are you acting so solemn?"
Huang Jingji's expression grew even more grave. "Wife, you know that our Huang family has only ever had a single heir per generation. Before my father passed away, he specifically exhorted me to branch out and spread the family line to carry on our incense. Yet my affection for you runs deep, and I have never entertained any unfaithful thoughts. Even though I kept myself pure, scoundrels on the outside harbored sinister ambitions and deliberately laid a trap for me."
Huang Jingji recounted the story of how Kong Sanlang had ensnared him with a honey trap, before adding with deep emotion, "That woman said that if I don't elevate her to the status of primary wife, she will tell you everything. Wife, I wanted you to hear it from me, not from her. Wife, can you forgive me?"
Lianshan Xin had no interest in this melodramatic domestic dispute, and out of propriety, he had not closely observed Luo Panlan's reaction.
Seeing Wei Rong looking at him with curiosity, Lianshan Xin nodded in acknowledgment.
As their gazes met, Lianshan Xin suddenly felt the refractory period of his innate ability come to an end.
Through Wei Rong, another little drama played out before his eyes:
Luo Panlan and Wei Rong were speaking inside a room.
Wei Rong sat while Luo Panlan paced back and forth, looking fraught with anxiety.
"What do we do? That woman bore Huang Jingji a son, and now he's coming to lay his cards on the table with me!"
Wei Rong also looked troubled. "Huang Jingji has dreamed of having a son day and night. This really is quite troublesome."
Luo Panlan stamped her foot. "That's not the problem! The problem is that Huang Jingji doesn't know the cultivation technique my father gave him causes automatic sterility! But how could I ever dare tell him that? I've borne him two daughters myself!"
Chapter 42