Wei Changtian had been thinking about how to establish his own power for several days.
He didn’t originally plan to rush into it, but after hearing Wei Xianzhi’s words that morning, he decided to do two things at once.
The bookstore would be in the open, while the gang-like underground organization would be in the shadows.
One Li Yang would be the frontman, and one Wang Er would be the frontman.
As for himself, he would definitely try to stay behind the scenes.
It wasn’t that he was afraid of trouble, but a villain’s scope had to be grand.
“Brother Wei, although I don’t know what you’re planning, since you asked me, I’ll definitely help you!”
Li Yang’s answer was within expectations.
After gazing deeply at the two men sitting upright in front of him, Wei Changtian finally spoke up:
“I plan to establish a secret society that is completely loyal to me, and the bookstore will serve as a front.”
“Although I have the backing of the Wei family, there are many things that aren’t convenient to do through the Hang Mirror Agency, so I must grasp this power that belongs to me.”
“Brother Li, Wang Er, you two are the ones I trust the most. This time, I need your help…”
The study room was silent, with half an hour passing unnoticed.
Because Wei Changtian had greeted Qiuyun and Yuan’er, they didn’t come in to serve them, not even to refill the candles when they burned out.
“Pfft~”
The last candle finally flickered out, plunging the entire room into darkness, with only the faint moonlight shining through the window onto the solemn faces of the three men.
“Brother Wei, this matter…”
From noble mtl dot come
Li Yang’s voice trembled.
Although he was a typical spoiled rich kid, he was different from Wei Changtian.
Li Yang was, after all, a lawyer, while Wei Xianzhi was a special agent.
Perhaps it was due to their different family upbringings that Li Yang hadn’t done many harmful things.
So, when he heard this conversation, especially after he understood Wei Changtian’s ultimate goal, his back immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
Brother Wei wasn’t joking; this could really get them killed…
The darkness enveloped them, and the sound of rapid breathing was clear.
Wei Changtian didn’t respond, only waiting silently.
Until Li Yang gritted his teeth and spat out a sentence.
“Brother Wei, I’m in!”
“…”
With a sigh of relief, he stood up, lit a new candle, and the light reappeared.
Only then did Wei Changtian look at Li Yang and sincerely say a sentence.
“Thanks, Brother Li.”
The two men locked eyes for a few seconds, and their friendship, built on their shared experiences, was elevated to a bond of “going through thick and thin” together.
Although this scene had a somewhat sinister tone, Wei Changtian didn’t think there was anything wrong with it.
At least compared to hypocrites who claimed to share the same ideals, true scoundrels who shared the same evil intentions were more trustworthy.
The atmosphere in the study room gradually returned to normal, and the three men chatted for a while before Wang Er suddenly remembered something.
“Master, since we’re establishing a society, we should give it a name, right?”
“Right, I almost forgot that.”
Li Yang, who had transformed his anxiety into excitement, enthusiastically suggested, “Why not call it the Changtian Society?”
Wei Changtian: “……”
Are you afraid that people won’t realize this has something to do with me?
“Cough, I’ve already thought of a name.”
“Oh? What is it?”
“Called…”
Under Li Yang and Wang Er’s expectant gazes, Wei Changtian slowly spoke out a name filled with malice.
“The Gongji Society.”
…
The day changed.
August 15th, Mid-Autumn Festival.
Li Yang and Wang Er had already started busy preparing for the “Chunshen Bookstore” and the “Gongji Association”, while Wei Changtian went to the Xuanjing Office as usual.
The name “Chunshen” was chosen by Lu Jingyao, derived from the famous phrase “Reading books, unaware of the spring’s depth, every inch of time is every inch of gold”.
Wei Changtian didn’t care about it, as long as it was better than Li Yang’s “Jubao”.
It was just to increase Lu Jingyao’s sense of participation in the bookstore.
In the morning, they practiced martial arts in the training hall, and in the afternoon, they took a break at the Xuanjing Office for the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Except for some personnel on duty, everyone else could go home half a day early to reunite with their families.
Wei Changtian, of course, didn’t “qualify” to be on the duty list, so he had to go back to the Wei Manor early.
He played with Wei Qiaoling for a while, telling her the story of “Journey to the West” that he hadn’t finished last night, and before he knew it, it was already evening.
The hazy full moon had risen from the east, and the orange sunset had not yet fallen, marking the time when the sun and moon shone together. Two family servants came to call Wei Changtian to eat the reunion dinner.
Last year, there were four people eating together, and this year, Lu Jingyao had joined them.
At the table, Wei Qiaoling was still focused on eating, while Wei Xianzhi and his son drank happily. Only the atmosphere between Qin Caijuan and Lu Jingyao was slightly different.
“Jiaoyao, you’ve been in the Wei family for a while now. Can you tell me if your menstruation has been normal recently?”
“I, I…”
“Oh, look at you, scared stiff. It’s not a big deal if you’re not pregnant yet. This matter can’t be rushed.”
“I know, Mother-in-law…”
“But we still need to make early plans. You don’t practice martial arts, so it’s better to have children early… Jiaoyao, why do you look like that?”
“Ah? I, I’m fine…”
“You honestly tell me, how often do you and Changtian do that thing?”
“……”
It was the initial hour of the tenth month, and dinner was over.
Wei Changtian originally wanted to stay for a while, but was chased away by Qin Caijuan, who also gave Lu Jingyao a meaningful glance as he left.
“What did my mother say to you during dinner?”
As they walked back, Wei Changtian curiously asked.
“N-nothing…”
Lu Jingyao lowered her head, remaining silent for a while before suddenly saying something like she had a brain short circuit.
“M-mother-in-law told us to rest early…”
“Oh.”
Wei Changtian nodded indifferently: “She’s quite thorough.”
“……”
Lu Jingyao stole a glance at Wei Changtian’s extremely handsome profile in the moonlight, feeling a bit annoyed.
She was angry at herself for not being strong enough, and also at Wei Changtian’s cold attitude.
Didn’t he want to get close to her before? Why was he like this now…
If you were a bit stronger, I might have given in…
Lu Jingyao thought more and more, feeling more and more stifled, so she didn’t speak again.
The two of them walked separately, until they saw Wang Er waiting at the gate.
“Madam.”
Wang Er first greeted Lu Jingyao, then whispered to Wei Changtian: “Young Master, the carriage is ready.”
“Good, I’ll go change my clothes and leave.”
Wei Changtian responded with a single sound, while Lu Jingyao was somewhat surprised upon hearing it.
“Are you going out?”
“Yes, I have something to take care of.”
“Oh.”
Lu Jingyao’s initial reaction was that Wei Changtian was going to a brothel, but she quickly denied that thought.
Today was Mid-Autumn Festival, and he shouldn’t be going to such a place, right?
Besides, it didn’t seem like he was going to engage in any improper behavior…
She let out a light sigh, feeling a bit relieved.
However, she had misjudged this time.
Wei Changtian’s target for tonight was very clear—
Visiting the pleasure quarters! Taking a flower boat ride! Playing with courtesans!