Do You Want to Be My First Love?

At that moment, in the Qin family's main residence. Just as Qiu Tu had predicted, the five branches of the Qin family had gathered behind closed doors, bickering without end. Among them, the fiercest argument raged between Qin Zhengguang and Fourth Master Qin. When he had first received word that the family was convening an urgent meeting to discuss matters concerning their future, Fourth Master Qin had been elated, assuming Qiu Tu had taken the money and delivered on his promise. Instead, when he heard from Qin Zhengguang that Qiu Tu had pinned all the incriminating evidence he had painstakingly gathered squarely on his own head, he was completely stunned. At that moment, he desperately wanted to cut Qin Zhengguang off and interrogate him: What? What did you say? Qiu Tu said I did all those things? Has Qiu Tu lost his mind?! Yet... he didn't dare. After all, to this moment, none of the branches knew that he was the traitor who had sold out the Qin family. Over the years, despite being rife with internal strife, the Qin family had strictly observed one bottom line: present a united front against outsiders. If it was exposed that he had handed the Qin family's incriminating evidence to Qiu Tu, he would become the target of everyone's fury in an instant, long before the Investigation Bureau could even lay a hand on him. So he could only sit in his chair in a daze, listening as Qin Zhengguang recounted what had transpired in Yan Chen's office. However, the moment Qin Zhengguang brought up the plan for him to shoulder all the blame, he could sit still no longer. He thrust out his paunch, feigning utter disbelief as he stared at Qin Zhengguang. "Second Brother! Did I hear that right? "You intend to make me take the fall for everything? "How many lives do you think I have to take the rap for all of that?! "I'm your own brother!" Hearing Fourth Master Qin's outburst, Qin Zhengguang's face was also wrought with conflict. He said with heavy earnestness, "Fourth Brother, you truly cannot blame me for this. "Right now, Qiu Tu is sinking his teeth into you. Even if we handed over someone from a collateral branch, the Bureau wouldn't buy it. "Since you're already caught in his jaws, taking all the blame is far better than everyone going down together, isn't it?" Fourth Master Qin slammed his hand onto the table with a loud crack, shooting to his feet. Glaring at Qin Zhengguang, he roared, "What kind of nonsense is that?! "So you're just going to watch with your own eyes as you shove your own brother into the fire?!" Saying so, he swept a glance over Qin Heng sitting at the head of the table, then glared back at Qin Zhengguang, fuming. "I saw through you two long ago! Ever since Father died, you and Eldest Brother have looked down on Third Brother and me. "After all, you're big-shot politicians, distinguished figures in Xinjie City. Third Brother and I are just two merchants. Especially me—I run the shady businesses. "You looked down on me in normal times, and I endured it. Who told Father to divide the family properties like that?! But now that trouble has come knocking, you want to push me out as the scapegoat? I refuse to accept this!" Seeing the two arguing, the Qin family head, Qin Heng, coughed twice behind his hand from the seat of honor, then said in a deep voice, "Enough, both of you. Less shouting." Having spoken, he turned to Fourth Master Qin and said gently, "Fourth Brother. Second Brother reported this to me at noon. We discussed it for a long time, and this truly is the best possible outcome. "Of course, I know you are being wronged in this. "But it is for the sake of this family, after all." Seeing Fourth Master Qin about to argue again, Qin Heng raised a hand to press down the protest, adding, "Rest assured. We know the contributions you have made to this family. "So as long as you shoulder this and see it through, I promise that when your two sons come of age, they will be granted posts of section chief or higher in either City Hall or the Investigation Bureau. "As for your businesses, a third of the legitimate businesses in Third Brother's hands will be given to your branch to secure your family's future expenses. "As for your safety... when I meet with Yan Chen tonight, I will demand a guarantee from him. "A guarantee that no torture will be used on you, and that your life will not be in any danger. "So stay in prison for a while for the family's sake. Once the heat dies down and the right opportunity arises, we'll find a way to get you out." Hearing Qin Heng's words, Fourth Master Qin's expression shifted rapidly. Just then, Qin Shu of the Third Branch abruptly stood up, protesting in dissatisfaction, "Wait a minute, Eldest Brother. Why should I have to foot the bill for what Second Brother and Fourth Brother did? "I'm running my businesses properly! Why should a third of my family property suddenly be carved off?! "I already hand over half my income to the family every year! What will I have left? "I don't agree to this!" And just like that, another round of arguing erupted... What none of them knew, however, was that while the argument raged, Fourth Master Qin's communicator buzzed twice. Fourth Master Qin surreptitiously pulled out his communicator and took a glance. In that instant, his face darkened drastically, though it quickly returned to normal... Brewing a Cataclysm potion was both complicated and simple. The complicated part was that the potioneer had to understand the medicinal properties of every Cataclysm material and ingredient thoroughly, knowing the timing, synergy, and mutual restraint of the four categories of ingredients—Star, Moon, King, and Minister—by heart. They had to know when to add which ingredients, when to stir, and when to take it off the heat. The simple part was that as long as those steps were kept in mind, the brewing process was largely automated for most of the time, requiring no constant supervision from the potioneer. Thus, Shen Lingshuang had plenty of time to pester Qiu Tu. After setting an alarm for the next stirring, Shen Lingshuang tiptoed into the living room, cocking her head to look at Qiu Tu. At the moment, Qiu Tu was sitting on the sofa with his hands clasped behind his head, seemingly lost in thought. Shen Lingshuang watched quietly for a while. Feeling a bit bored, she took the initiative to speak. "Hey, Qiu Tu~" Snapping out of his thoughts, Qiu Tu turned his head toward her. Shen Lingshuang asked, "What are you thinking about?" Qiu Tu gave a perfunctory reply. "Things." Shen Lingshuang's eyes darted around. "Then let's chat for a bit?" Qiu Tu asked, "About what?" Shen Lingshuang grinned, revealing two cute little canine teeth. "Do you have a girlfriend?" Qiu Tu paused for a moment, then cast a deeply meaningful glance at her. "That depends on whether you're looking for an opportunity or an answer." Qiu Tu's playboy quip nearly fried Shen Lingshuang's CPU. Her eyes glazed over as her brain spun at full speed, and then... she couldn't make heads or tails of it. Craning her neck forward, she asked cautiously, "Then did you have girlfriends before?" More than a dozen girlfriends from his past life flashed through Qiu Tu's mind before he shook his head. "No. "They were just good friends I hung out with back then. "They served as my love mentors for a time. "Later on, our worldviews clashed, so we stopped hanging out." At that point, Qiu Tu raised an eyebrow. "Why? Do you want to be my first love?" Shen Lingshuang's eyes went completely blank, and white steam practically began venting from her overloaded head. She could understand every single word Qiu Tu said, but strung together, they made no sense to her at all. Love mentors? Good friends who hung out? What on earth was all that supposed to mean?! And so, without even answering Qiu Tu's question, she covered her burning face and fled back into the bedroom to continue refining the potion. Watching the girl scurry away in defeat, Qiu Tu let out a soft chuckle. It really was fun teasing such an innocent girl. Then, clasping his hands behind his head again, he continued to wait patiently for the Qin family's situation to unfold... Tick, tock... tick, tock. As the pendulum clock on the wall swayed, time ticked away second by second. Just as Shen Lingshuang was halfway through brewing the potion, the urgent ring of a communicator finally broke the silence in the apartment. Ring, ring, ring! Qiu Tu pulled the communicator from his pocket, glanced at the screen, and smiled. As expected, the call he had been waiting for had arrived. With that thought, he answered. Before he could even utter a greeting, Fourth Master Qin's furious barrage of curses blasted through the receiver: "Qiu Tu, you motherfucking #%@! "I'll #%#@ your...! "You @&#...!" Gang bosses inevitably had nasty tempers, so Qiu Tu didn't take offense, merely listening in silence. After letting Fourth Master Qin vent for a full minute, Qiu Tu spoke up during a pause in his panting. "Done cursing, Fourth Master? Would you like a few more minutes? "Even if you curse at me every day, every month, can you curse me to death?" Hearing Qiu Tu's words, the anger Fourth Master Qin had just managed to swallow flared up again. "Fuck your @&#&!" This time, however, Qiu Tu indulged him no further and hung up directly. After ending the call, Qiu Tu didn't put the communicator down. Holding it in his hand, he counted down with a grin, "Three, two, one..." Right as the countdown ended, the ringing sounded once again. Qiu Tu picked up the call once more and said with a chuckle, "Calm down, Fourth Master. I know you're furious right now, but hold your temper for a second. "Let's have a proper talk. "Things might not be as bad as you think." Perhaps Qiu Tu hanging up on him had finally forced Fourth Master Qin to face reality. Or perhaps venting for over a minute had finally taken the edge off his volatility. After two seconds of silence, he finally stopped hurling abuse. Gradually regaining the demeanor of an underworld boss, he said in a deep voice, "Qiu Tu, you certainly played a brilliant hand. "You took my money, took my clues, and turned right around to sell me out. Your heart is black enough. Aren't you afraid I'll drag you down with me?!" Hearing Fourth Master Qin's words, Qiu Tu chuckled twice and replied, "You joke, Fourth Master. "The clues were found and investigated by me; the money was a bribe you offered so I wouldn't investigate you. I'm an agent, and you're a gang leader. We were never on the same side, so how can you talk about being sold out? "Every detail of our interactions was reported to the Director long ago. So... you can't threaten me with any of that." Here, Qiu Tu paused, adding mockingly, "Besides, would you dare make any of this public? "You can barely protect yourself as it is. If the Qin family found out that you're the mole who betrayed the clan, would there be any way out for you?" Heavy, ragged breathing came from the other end of the line. Fourth Master Qin took several deep breaths, then let out an angry scoff. "Good, good, good! As expected of Agent Qiu—no, Section Chief Qiu! Truly splendid methods." With that, he barked, "Since you already sold me out, why did you send me a text message?!" Qiu Tu said in an earnest tone, "Fourth Master, you've misunderstood. "In truth... I never betrayed you, nor did I forget our deal. "It's just that... I felt your previous idea was far too fanciful. So I simply changed the plan." He continued, "If I'm not mistaken, you weren't scheming and driving this entire plan all by yourself, were you? "Your partner is Third Master, isn't he?" Fourth Master Qin's breath audibly hitched on the other end. Qiu Tu smiled. "No need to be surprised. Nobody betrayed you either. "It's a very simple deduction. "Director Qin is in poor health and has no sons, making it difficult for his line to carry everything forward for the Qin family. "That's why Old Master Qin paved the way for Division Chief Qin Zhengguang before he died, connecting him to Director Yan. "That way, the Qin family had two fallbacks. "If Director Qin recovered his health, he would continue to lead the Qin family, with Division Chief Qin Zhengguang assisting him. "If Director Qin failed to recover, they would support Division Chief Qin Zhengguang to inherit the family legacy. "Old Master Qin's plans were made from the perspective of the entire Qin family, but he forgot that human nature is inherently selfish. "You and Third Master are both sons of Old Master Qin. Why should the First and Second Branches get to be successors, while you two are relegated to mere foils and side branches?! "So you refused to accept it, and you were unwilling to submit! "You wanted to take control of the Qin family yourselves! That's why you wanted to pull Division Chief Qin Zhengguang down. "And coincidentally, he... gave you that exact opportunity." Pausing, Qiu Tu analyzed further, "Before Old Master Qin died, he must have warned you not to have any more dealings with the Reform United Front. But the profits along that Reform United Front channel were simply too enormous. "Division Chief Qin Zhengguang couldn't bring himself to sever that connection. "So you took advantage of the situation, drawing Division Chief Qin Zhengguang along to continue cooperating with the Reform United Front while secretly gathering evidence. "You knew that as long as you could bring Division Chief Qin Zhengguang down, Director Qin would inevitably have to select another successor to secure the Qin family's future. "And Director Qin's only direct blood relatives are you and Third Master, so whichever of you took over, your objective would be achieved. "However, this plan had a critical timing constraint: it had to be carried out during the initial establishment of Xinjie City. "With Xinjie City newly founded, the hierarchy of power isn't firmly fixed yet, and many posts remain vacant. As an established local power, the Qin family still holds considerable sway right now, and both City Hall and the Investigation Bureau have to show the family respect. Therefore, even if the successor is swapped out, the Qin family could arrange it smoothly. "Yet once these couple of years pass and the governance of City Hall and the Investigation Bureau solidifies, with most positions claimed by various factions, pulling Qin Zhengguang down would not earn you those corresponding posts; it might even drag the Qin family into decline. "Therefore, you've been searching for the right opportunity and a scapegoat to bear Director Qin's fury. "And so... I entered your sights." Finishing his piece, Qiu Tu asked with a chuckle, "Am I right, Fourth Master?" Even at this point, Fourth Master Qin on the other end of the line refused to acknowledge the scheme. Snorting coldly, he replied, "I don't know what you're talking about. "I called you purely because of the message you sent me." With that, Fourth Master Qin steered the conversation back to business and asked, "You said in your message that you can save me?"