Ji Yang suspected that, in Nie Xu’s eyes, he no longer even counted as a person. At best, he was a target requiring wound debridement—or an object that happened to breathe.
The cotton swab passed precisely over each wound, removing dust and tiny fragments one by one. Ji Yang was given a perfect demonstration of what it meant to prioritize efficiency at the complete expense of the patient’s comfort.
Jiang Lei entered carrying some things. When he saw the scene inside, he instinctively stepped back. Then he remembered that this young master had publicly rolled up his pant leg in front of everyone. Clearly, he was no longer as uncomfortable with people seeing his injuries as he had been before.
He walked over.
“Is it serious?” he asked Nie Xu.
“Superficial abrasions.”
Nie Xu tossed the tweezers into a nearby tray, then casually picked up a moist wound-healing dressing and began peeling it open.
Jiang Lei let out a sigh of relief.
“You scared me. When I saw you treating him personally, I thought…”
“You thought I was about to fall to my death at the entrance of Building Four, adding a glorious chapter to your professional careers.”
Ji Yang spotted the newcomer and, sprawled weakly across the sofa, finished the sentence for him.
He had copied that line straight from Nie Xu.
Nie Xu glanced at him but said nothing.
Jiang Lei was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter.
Although he still had some doubts about Ji Yang, he replied with a smile, “It won’t come to that.”
He rested a hand on Nie Xu’s shoulder.
“This guy has a whole stack of first-aid certificates. There’s no way he’d let something like that happen right under his nose.”
“Did you need something?” Nie Xu asked Jiang Lei, apparently unconcerned that the two of them had struck up a conversation.
“Oh, right.” Jiang Lei came back to himself. He spread out the two documents he was holding and handed them over. “We’ve just finished verifying the qualifications for a business partnership. You need to sign these two.”
Nie Xu couldn’t free up his hands, so he gestured for Jiang Lei to put the documents on the coffee table first.
Ji Yang swore he wasn’t deliberately trying to look.
The documents had simply been left there so casually that he caught sight of them with a single glance. To his horror, the contents included words such as firearm brands, models, transfer conditions, and prices.
The moment he realized what kind of contracts they were, his entire body stiffened.
According to the book, the reason the Ji family poured so much manpower and money into the security business was that their dealings weren’t clean. Many of the shady transactions they couldn’t conduct openly were connected, in one way or another, to people with a status like Nie Xu’s.
Ji Yang’s understanding of dirty business was generally limited to the sorts of things described in novels: operating in both the legal and criminal worlds, involvement in organized crime, prostitution, or gambling.
He hadn’t known which of those areas Nie Xu was most heavily involved in.
Well, now he knew.
And this was far more exciting than he’d expected.
Perhaps his reaction had been too obvious. Nie Xu looked up and frowned.
“Don’t move.”
“I wouldn’t dare. I wouldn’t dare.”
Ji Yang had a vague idea of what the shipment Zhao Yuan was so determined to track might have contained. He stared blankly at the contracts and spoke slowly.
“In the presence of lawless criminals like you, who would dare move?”
At most, Ji Yang might sneak around and steal a chicken or a dog.
Nie Xu’s crowd, on the other hand, might be involved in prohibited smuggling and arms trafficking.
Ji Yang began seriously questioning whether the little advantage he had gained by knowing some of the story in advance was simply too insignificant to be of any use.
After all, he had no protagonist’s halo. And thanks to the original owner’s reputation for being malicious, people already had a terrible impression of him.
But Nie Xu hadn’t objected when he proposed becoming his assistant just now.
What on earth was going on?
“What lawless criminals?” Jiang Lei asked, confused.
Nie Xu, however, had noticed where Ji Yang was looking. He gave a mocking laugh.
“Only now are you afraid? Isn’t it a little late?”
“You mean these?” Jiang Lei caught on. He picked up the contracts and laughed, then pulled out the two documents underneath and handed them to Ji Yang.
“Take a look at these. If we were really doing something illegal, would we leave the evidence lying around here for you to see?”
Ji Yang stared at him blankly, took the documents, and flipped through them.
They were certificates with titles such as Weapons and Equipment Scientific Research and Production Filing Certificate and Quality Management System Certification Certificate.
Jiang Lei continued, “Just because something involves the military industry doesn’t mean it’s illegal. Specialized materials and precision components, for instance, can all be manufactured through carefully segmented, legally established channels between enterprises and the government. Every deal that has passed through our hands over the years has been entirely lawful and compliant.”
Then he changed the subject, his tone becoming meaningful.
“Of course, Fan Prefecture really was chaotic in the early years. People like the eldest young lady’s fiancé, the Qi family, and the Lu family, who made their fortune in oil extraction, have all wanted to get involved. The profits are enormous, after all. There’s never a shortage of people willing to take risks for money.”
Ji Yang caught the hidden meaning in Jiang Lei’s words.
What was legal was Jianyuan. What wasn’t legal was the Ji family.
That was also why the Qi family was so eager to arrange a marriage alliance with the Jis.
Had Ji Mingyue agreed to it?
It seemed she hadn’t yet, Ji Yang mused to himself.
Just then, Nie Xu finished treating all his injuries and gestured for him to get up.
Nie Xu closed the first-aid kit, stood, and took the documents from Jiang Lei. He signed them in a few quick strokes as he said, “I received the latest order this morning. Every direct-line member of the Ji family is to be assigned an additional Class A escort. Finalize the list and send it to me no later than tonight.”
“Got it.” Jiang Lei nodded, glanced at Ji Yang, then continued, “You Li has to return to school. What about the personnel assigned to Fourth Young Master?”
“He doesn’t need anyone else.” Nie Xu handed him the closed folder. “The old master specifically emphasized that his health is poor, so he’s temporarily under my supervision. Twenty-four hours a day. I can handle it alone. I’ll be present at the business banquet three days from now. Han Biao will take over command, and you’ll provide support.”
Jiang Lei didn’t even bother to consider the fact that Ji Yang was sitting right there. He scoffed quietly.
“They promoted you, and now they’re already rushing to take your authority away?”
“They never intended to give it to me in the first place,” Nie Xu said.
The so-called promotion had merely been a stopgap measure forced upon them by circumstances. Now that the shipment had safely left port, this new order was entirely within his expectations.
And amid this entire chain of events, there was only one variable—
Nie Xu looked over.
Ji Yang was staring at him with wide eyes and an expression of utter disbelief.
“You received the order ages ago?! And you still let me ramble on about becoming your assistant? You were messing with me!”
Nie Xu seemed quite amused. “Weren’t you the one who proposed exchanging conditions? Besides, being an assistant is a rather novel career choice.”
Ji Yang’s face was covered in imaginary black lines.
This man had clearly had everything planned out from the beginning. He’d simply watched Ji Yang put on a one-man show for ages, even going so far as to seriously accuse him of wanting to destroy Jianyuan.
Talk about turning the tables! The man had a black heart through and through.
Ji Yang inspected his injuries. The original owner had been so self-conscious about his leg that very few people had probably ever seen it. Yet Nie Xu had remained completely unperturbed throughout the treatment. Even the dressing had been applied perfectly straight, without a single wrinkle.
There wasn’t even an excuse to find fault with him.
“Since you’ve agreed, shouldn’t you at least tell me what you need me to do?” Ji Yang asked.
He no longer believed that his little offer could genuinely have attracted Nie Xu’s interest.
In response, Nie Xu said, “Just preserve your status as a legitimate heir to the Ji family.”
Ji Yang froze for a moment, then understood.
Now he knew why Nie Xu, despite having spent so long laying the groundwork, had passed over Ji Chengyi—the novel’s main gong—and repeatedly refrained from rejecting Ji Yang’s proposals.
Ji Chengyi wasn’t a legitimate heir.
His status as an illegitimate child would create plenty of obstacles when it came to family trusts, receiving assets, transferring shares, and other related matters that might arise.
To put it more simply, as Wei Qiming had said, Nie Xu already had someone with whom he shared a childhood bond and a life-saving debt. And now he had someone like Ji Yang, who was even easier to make use of. Naturally, he wouldn’t choose the person he was reluctant to sacrifice.
It really was enough to make a person sick with envy.
Still, Ji Yang was willing to accept the arrangement. At least he had managed to secure a powerful ally.
Lying on the sofa, he began singing softly, so off-key that the melody had wandered eight hundred miles away from the original tune.
“I’m willing to brave fire and water for you. I’m willing to…”
Jiang Lei burst out laughing. He slammed his foot into the corner of the coffee table and nearly cried out in pain.
Ji Yang muttered, “If you didn’t get crippled on the boat, but got crippled here instead, I’d jump out of the fourth-floor window.”
Jiang Lei blinked. “Huh?”
Nie Xu glanced over and reminded him expressionlessly, “The windows are sealed shut.”
Ji Yang replied, “Then I’ll bang my head against the wall. I could always roll down the stairs instead.”
Somehow, the conversation had gone completely off the rails.
Nie Xu stared at Ji Yang for two seconds, then spoke to Jiang Lei.
“Have someone draw up an affiliation agreement.”
Jiang Lei nodded slowly. “R-right…”
Only then did Ji Yang’s expression finally relax.
As long as he could make this deal happen, his trip hadn’t been a waste.
Ji Yang rubbed his stomach and suddenly announced, “I’m hungry.”
At twelve-thirty in the afternoon, the second-floor cafeteria of Building Four was bustling with activity.
It was lunchtime, and plenty of people who had just finished training or returned from a shift were gathering there.
Compared with the fourth floor, which could only be reached by a single elevator, and the other highly restricted areas protected by fingerprints, iris scans, and metal detectors, the cafeteria was one of the liveliest places in Building Four.
However, the usually boisterous atmosphere was considerably subdued today.
At the far-left serving counter sat a young man whose pale skin seemed almost to glow in the light, his frail body making him look like a lump of white dough that had somehow been dropped into a pot of boiling oil.
It wasn’t quite right to say he looked like a company executive who had wandered into the staff cafeteria, nor was it entirely accurate to describe him as a rich young master who had suddenly descended into ordinary life.
That was because he was smiling at the woman behind the counter and saying, “You Li highly recommends the braised pork ribs from your counter. He said they’re the best thing he’s ever eaten in his life, so I came to try them.”
With just one sentence, he managed to charm the plump auntie, who had been wielding her serving spoon with the force of a warrior. She grinned so widely that her teeth disappeared from view. Her hand stopped shaking, her tone softened, and she plopped a generous, glistening spoonful of ribs onto his plate.
She even looked at him with concern.
“Oh, goodness! How did you get hurt? You’re just too thin, young master. The people in Building Four burn through so much energy every day. Cooking for them is a completely different matter from preparing meals in the villa kitchen. If you like the food here, come every day!”
“Sounds good,” the young master readily agreed.
His response earned a chorus of boos from the people around him.
But when they noticed Nie Xu, the chief, and Jiang Lei, the team leader, queuing behind him, they quietly swallowed their protests.
Seeing the situation, Jiang Lei nudged Nie Xu’s shoulder.
“With the way he behaves, he could charm anyone from a seventy- or eighty-year-old to a kid in kindergarten. One sweet word and they’re eating out of his hand.”
Nie Xu looked toward the serving counter and gave a cold laugh.
“You really think he’s that obedient?”
Would an obedient young master have angered Qi Yiming of the Qi family so badly that the man went home cursing him to everyone he met? Would he have gotten Wei Qiming dragged into the police station and entangled in so much trouble that he couldn’t get himself out? Would he have tested Nie Xu again and again, even taking the initiative to seek him out and negotiate terms?
Jiang Lei countered, “You’re a cunning old wolf yourself, and you haven’t exactly explained everything to him either. Just that status as a legitimate heir is enough to threaten how many people’s interests?”
“Which is why, professionally speaking, he’s now my employer and superior,” Nie Xu replied.
Jiang Lei fell silent.
He really couldn’t find a flaw in that argument.
Five minutes later, Ji Yang was sitting by the window on the left side of the cafeteria.
Nie Xu sat directly opposite him, with Jiang Lei beside Nie Xu.
At the table across the aisle sat Deng Jiao, Han Biao, and several others—seven or eight people in all.
They had stopped chatting casually. Whenever someone spoke, it was usually about their respective work.
The thing that finally broke the subdued atmosphere was the phone Ji Yang had placed at the edge of the table.
Its ringtone was cheerful.
Ji Yang had been concentrating on his meal. When he picked it up and looked at the screen, he saw an unfamiliar number.
“Hello?” he answered, chewing on a rib.
The other person remained silent for several seconds.
Ji Yang was wondering who it could be when a voice finally came through the receiver.
“Xiao Yang, guess who I ran into today?”
Ji Yang continued chewing. Recognizing the voice, he frowned slightly.
“Wei Qiming? Are the police really that slow? You still haven’t been locked up?”
A sudden crash came from the other end of the line, as though someone had smashed something.
Upon hearing that it was Wei Qiming, Nie Xu gestured for Ji Yang to place the phone on the table and turn on the speaker.
Ji Yang did as instructed.
The moment he set it down, they heard what sounded like a vase shattering.
Wei Qiming was apparently speaking to someone beside him.
“Xiao Yang told me before that this is the antique auction house you frequent. What a coincidence that we’ve run into each other here, right? Is this the item you were planning to buy for one of your business partners? Sorry about that. Shall I compensate you?”
Ji Yang’s movements stopped.
He had a bad feeling about this.
He’d been wondering why life had been suspiciously peaceful over the past few days.
A clear, furious voice came through the phone.
“What exactly do you want? I’m calling for help!”
Wei Qiming replied, “I know the bodyguards don’t follow you inside places like this. I’m not trying to do anything. We can go somewhere else and talk…”
Ji Chengyi sounded as though he were gritting his teeth when he interrupted.
“Did Ji Yang tell you that the bodyguards can’t come in, too?”
Wei Qiming answered, “Of course. He promised me ages ago that he’d introduce us.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
Ji Yang was dumbfounded, too.
Ji Chengyi did indeed have some rather refined hobbies, which counted as one of his more appealing character traits. But Wei Qiming directly approaching Ji Chengyi should have happened much later in the original story.
Had getting Wei Qiming sent to the police station driven him crazy enough to act out ahead of schedule?
Wei Qiming turned his attention back to Ji Yang.
“Xiao Yang, why don’t you explain to your Third Brother what you promised me back then? He’s getting a little worked up.”
Ji Yang: “…”
“Let’s go,” someone across the table said, already getting to his feet.
Everyone else stood up as well.
Ji Yang still had a small bulge in his cheek from the piece of cartilage he was chewing. He looked up at them.
“I… have to go, too?”
“Of course you do, don’t you?” someone sitting opposite Deng Jiao at the neighboring table blurted out, apparently unable to hold his tongue. “We all heard you were the one who arranged for someone to set up Third Young Master.”
He had barely finished speaking before Deng Jiao smacked him on the head.
She turned to Nie Xu and said quietly, “Boss, I’ll contact the personnel on duty first and have them check the auction hall.”
“Mm.” Nie Xu nodded. “The auction should be over by now. If no one’s left inside, have them seal off the exits immediately.”
“Understood.”
Crack!
Ji Yang bit through the cartilage in his mouth, and everyone turned to look at him.
Nie Xu tapped the table and simply asked, “Haven’t you finished eating?”
Wei Qiming seemed to hear the noise. Snapping out of his agitation over encountering Ji Chengyi, he asked, “Xiao Yang, are there a lot of people with you?”
“Yes, yes. Lots of people.”
The sort of people you’d have to be spectacularly unlucky to call at precisely this moment.
Ji Yang smiled, picked up a napkin, and wiped his mouth. Then he crumpled it into a ball and flicked it toward a distant trash can.
It landed perfectly inside.
He grabbed his phone and was the first to turn around and leave.
As he walked, he brought the microphone close to his mouth and forced a smile into his voice.
“Wei Qiming, you’re finished. Seriously.”
The kind of “finished” where anyone who touched Ji Chengyi would have their hands broken, and anyone who looked into his eyes would have them gouged out.