Ningbing

Wei Rong paled in shock. Even Lianshan Xin silently thought, *Holy hell.* The relationships in this family were far more complicated than he had imagined. At least it seemed Wei Rong had been kept in the dark just like him. No sooner had the thought crossed Lianshan Xin's mind than Wei Rong bellowed in fury, "You've been seeing other men behind my back?!" Lianshan Xin: "..." Luo Panlan snapped, "What are you getting so angry for? You're not my husband." Wei Rong: "..." And with that, the little drama came to a close. Lianshan Xin covered his face with one hand, doing his best to steady his nerves. Credit where credit was due, he felt Luo Panlan's retort made perfect sense. Wei Rong truly had no right to be upset. Huang Jingji certainly did, though. Wait—Huang Jingji had been fooling around on the side, too. There really wasn't a single decent person in the entire Thorn Gang. Lianshan Xin felt that someone as noble and pure as himself was thoroughly out of place in a cesspool like this. "Madam, Madam, please say something," Huang Jingji pleaded, growing panicked when Luo Panlan remained silent. Branch Leader Luo was his direct superior and practically half a master to him. He genuinely didn't dare have a falling out with her. Of course, that hadn't stopped him from being ruled by his lower half and running completely off the rails. "Madam, I swear to you, you will always be first in my heart. I only want that child. If you truly cannot stomach this, I..." Luo Panlan raised a hand. "Don't say another word." Lianshan Xin could tell she had not yet figured out how to resolve the situation. That was only natural. Putting himself in her shoes, even Lianshan Xin wouldn't have known what to do. From his own perspective, of course, the puzzle was laughably simple. Having witnessed Luo Panlan's secret, and through her discovered Huang Jingji's secret, resolving the Thorn Gang's troubles was child's play. Seeing that Luo Panlan was still wavering, Lianshan Xin decided not to waste any more time. He would cut the Gordian knot and get on with his own business. "Madam Huang, allow me to say a fair word." Naturally, anyone who began with "allow me to say a fair word" was preparing to be completely unfair. "If Madam is angry that Gang Leader Huang has been fooling around outside, then however you punish him in private is entirely justified, and it would not be proper for an outsider like me to interfere. But if Madam's concern lies with the succession of the Thorn Gang, I can give you my word: the Thorn Gang will never, under any circumstances, be passed down to that bastard outside." "Young Master Xin, this..." Hearing Lianshan Xin's declaration, Huang Jingji immediately grew frantic. He genuinely wanted to pass the gang down to his son. Lianshan Xin shot him a sharp glare and said coldly, "Shut up." Huang Jingji fell silent instantly. Loving his son was one thing, but he couldn't afford to throw his own life away for it. Luo Panlan's expression softened considerably. She rose and performed a polite curtsy toward Lianshan Xin. "With Young Master Xin's word, I can finally set my mind at ease. I was truly worried there would be no place left for my daughters and me in the Thorn Gang in the days to come." Lianshan Xin offered a faint smile. "Madam Huang can rest assured. Gang Leader Huang would never be so heartless toward his own flesh and blood." Huang Jingji nodded repeatedly. "Madam, you are my first and principal wife, and our two daughters are my own children. How could I ever leave you with nowhere to turn?" Luo Panlan cast a glance at Huang Jingji that was three parts sorrow, three parts resentment, and ninety-four parts utter helplessness. "Things have already reached this point. For Young Master Xin's sake, I won't pursue the matter further. But I have one condition." Huang Jingji perked up. "Name it, Madam." "I want you to sever all ties with that woman completely." She had originally intended to demand the woman's death, but in front of Lianshan Xin, she didn't dare act so brazenly. If Nine Heavens decided to sweep the underworld clean, not even the Prefect of Jiangzhou would be able to stop them. Huang Jingji nodded hastily. "No problem at all. However, doing so will completely offend the third young master of the Kong clan." "Kong Sanlang... I suspect he has his sights set on the Golden Scale Alliance," Luo Panlan remarked. "That is my suspicion as well. The Kong clan is, after all, an old, established clan in Jiangzhou. Madam, you should still write a letter to your father to lay out the stakes clearly. The Kong clan has very likely aligned itself against our Golden Scale Alliance," Huang Jingji cautioned. Luo Panlan's expression turned solemn. "Indeed, we must guard against this." "Since you two have reached an understanding, I can take my leave with a clean conscience." Lianshan Xin clapped his hands and looked at Huang Jingji. "Gang Leader Huang, I believe in seeing a good deed through to the end. Just as you suggested earlier, I will accompany you to that secondary residence of yours. Madam, you may rest easy. With me watching over him, I will ensure he cuts all ties with that woman once and for all." Huang Jingji froze for a moment. He had never asked Lianshan Xin to accompany him to the residence. How could he possibly have had the gall to drag Lianshan Xin into handling such a petty personal matter? Yet since Lianshan Xin had phrased it that way, Huang Jingji quickly caught on and chimed in, "Then I must trouble Young Master Xin." "It's no trouble at all. Just make sure Gang Leader Huang looks out for my father's business in the future." "Of course, naturally! From now on, Huichun Hall shall be the designated clinic for all disciples of the Thorn Gang. Every three months, I will have the disciples go to Huichun Hall for a health examination, and I will advance a full year's silver to Huichun Hall upfront." Huang Jingji dared not delay, practically tripping over himself to shower them with money. Neither Luo Panlan nor Wei Rong felt the slightest bit of regret; to them, it was an unexpected windfall. While it was paying silver to curry favor, others wouldn't have even found the door to do so. None of them had imagined Huang Jingji would manage to establish such good relations with Lianshan Xin. Internally, Luo Panlan's estimation of Huang Jingji rose considerably. "Young Master Xin, please wait a moment." Luo Panlan stepped forward of her own accord. Her gait held an alluring grace, but Lianshan Xin didn't dare look too closely—this woman was far too dangerous to provoke. Besides, his innate ability had entered its refractory period once again. In the future, he would have to decipher the pattern governing how his innate ability activated. It would be ideal if it could evolve into an active skill. He wondered if Nine Heavens possessed any records concerning an ability like his. Lianshan Xin suspected that in the great era of cultivating immortality a thousand years ago, his talent would have shone even brighter—perhaps on par with legendary gifts like the Double Pupils or the Supreme Bone. Regrettably, after a millennium of cosmic upheavals, it had been reduced to a passive skill for peeking at people's secrets. Surely this wasn't how his talent was meant to manifest; after all, he was a gentleman of noble character who had no interest in prying into others' private lives. Pondering the trigger conditions and evolutionary path of his innate ability, Lianshan Xin waited for Luo Panlan to speak. "Does Madam have something to discuss?" "Nothing of great importance. I only wished to mention that the daughter of my father's immediate superior, Elder Zeng, was also admitted to Bailudong Academy this year, so she will soon be Young Master Xin's classmate. If she should ever show any disrespect to Young Master Xin at the academy, I ask that you be magnanimous and not lower yourself to her level." "Zeng Ningbing entered Bailudong Academy this year?!" Huang Jingji exclaimed in shock. Lianshan Xin raised an eyebrow slightly. He had heard that name before. The Jiangzhou jianghu was neither particularly large nor terribly small, and it naturally had its share of celebrities. Grandmasters were far too detached from the common folk, whereas figures of the younger generation drew the attention of ordinary citizens much more readily. Fairy Ningbing was one of the most famous figures among the younger generation in the Jiangzhou jianghu, as well as a leading figure among the youth of the Golden Scale Alliance. Of course, there was only one real reason her fame was so widespread: she had an endless horde of simps! Even so, the first time Lianshan Xin had ever heard the name had been from the lips of Kong Ningyuan.