Secretary Number 5

Xu Ji really couldn't bear to see him wash his hands of it.

Compared to those guys who only knew how to spend money chasing women—or even getting high—Young Master Zhang was already one of the few truly capable people in their circle.

Clearly, he wasn't particularly favored at home, yet he had carved out quite a reputation for himself in Azure Harbor's underworld through sheer effort.

Whenever friends from these circles got into trouble and didn't want their families finding out, they came to him for help. He always handled things properly, making him extremely popular among them.

Amid his surprise, Young Master Zhang gave a soft sigh. "You know, my mother was only my father's fourth mistress. Now that I'm grown up, I get a substantial monthly allowance, but the company shares and the Zhang Family estate have nothing to do with me."

"Besides, I was no good at school. Even though I paid my way into Qinggang University, I got expelled after breaking some little punk's leg. If I want to enter the company, the old man guards against me, and so does the eldest brother's son."

"I wanted to join the military, but my physical fitness wasn't up to standard."

"With no other choice, I believed those people's nonsense and thought maybe I could fight my way into a future in Azure Harbor's underworld."

"At first, I really did make something of myself. But the deeper I got into it, the more ridiculous it all felt."

"There's no future in the underworld. The road I took was just one where bottom-feeding bugs risked their lives for a chance to become rich people's dogs. Can you imagine how ridiculous that is?"

"I spent years in Azure Harbor's underworld and discovered that the best way out was to become a dog to the status I'd been born with..."

"So I've decided to quit."

"..."

Xu Ji had never considered such things. Hearing him put it that way, he was somewhat stunned.

As Zhang He spoke, a trace of disappointment appeared on his face. He sighed softly. "Xu Ji, you're an only child, and the Xu Family has foundations beyond anything we can imagine. You can't understand people like us."

"I can play with you now, but my children, and my children's children, are destined to never see your shadow even standing on tiptoe."

"But that isn't the most frightening part. The most frightening part is that we have no road left to take."

"The old men don't dare divide up the shares in their hands, so we have no iron rice bowl. And now, they're living longer and longer, getting healthier and healthier, and even becoming more and more fertile. They find girlfriends faster than I do."

"A few days ago, my mother came to me crying and said some things. That was when I knew I'd grown up and had to find a way out."

"Whether it's politics or entering a company, those high-level resources won't fall to me. So I traded everything I have now for a path. I'm preparing to work at the Administrative Hall."

"..."

After hearing all that, Xu Ji only found it strange. "Work at the Administrative Hall?"

"You can pass the bar exam?"

His face was full of disbelief. In his eyes, passing the bar exam was far harder than getting into the old man's company.

More importantly, after spending so long in the underworld, could he really clean up his background?

But Zhang He only shook his head slightly. "There's more than one way to get a job at the Administrative Hall. My grades are average, and I can't pass the exam either, so I'm planning to take another, more obscure route."

"I'm planning to..."

He fell silent for a moment, then said quietly, "Work for Secretary Number 5."

"Only this job can let me ignore the barriers within our great families and forge a path of my own."

"..."

Xu Ji was taken aback. "As I recall, the mayor only has four secretaries by his side?"

Even Han Su, who was observing their conversation through the camera not far away, froze slightly. The person with the greatest power in Qinggang City was naturally the mayor in the Administrative Hall.

The mayor had four secretaries by his side, assisting him with all matters concerning Qinggang City's politics, economy, public security, culture, and more.

The mayor's four secretaries were practically embodiments of power.

But everyone knew that the mayor only had four secretaries. What was this so-called Secretary Number 5?

"You only need to know that much."

Facing Xu Ji's question, Zhang He merely patted his shoulder and smiled. "The existence of Secretary Number 5 shouldn't be much of a secret to your family. Once you mature a little more, your old man will naturally tell you."

"I'm only looking for you now because I need to take this path, but I don't know what the outcome will be once I do."

"If one day I suddenly die of illness, die in a car accident, or get killed in some alley..."

He paused, looking seriously at Xu Ji. "I hope that, for the sake of our friendship, you'll look after my Younger Sister and my mother!"

Xu Ji stared at him blankly for a long while before saying in a low voice, "I'll look after them for you, but it'd be better if you did it yourself."

"Good. With those words from you, I have no more worries."

Zhang He smiled. "Tonight, let's have one hell of a time."

"We'll set off from here in a moment. Whoever reaches Lilac Courtyard first gets the first glass of whiskey. And that horse of mine you had your eye on—I'll let you ride her today."

"..."

As they spoke, the two of them walked toward the crowd.

Zhang He casually pulled a young woman from the crowd, dressed revealingly with a slender waist and skin dazzlingly white, and shoved her into his car.

Then he leaned out from the driver's seat, snatched a firework, and set it off into the sky. Immediately after, he got back into the car, floored the accelerator, and the Steel Toad shot out with a low roar.

"Damn it, trying to take advantage of me one last time?"

Xu Ji grew anxious at once and rushed toward his own car.

Quite a few exquisitely dressed women eagerly crowded forward, but Xu Ji gripped the car door with one hand while shouting anxiously at Han Su, "Brother, get in."

"..."

Han Su casually shut off the camera and climbed into the car amid the envious gazes of the eager girls.

Xu Ji liked taking him along when racing because Han Su had once displayed astonishing reflexes before him. At a critical moment, Han Su's timely use of the handbrake and control of the steering wheel had helped Xu Ji avoid a bridge pier, leaving him deeply impressed ever since.

But this time, it was because of some instinct. Han Su genuinely wanted to race with him too.

He was still thinking, What kind of job was Zhang He talking about?

In the ecosystem of this supercity, these people already stand at heights ordinary people can never reach. Why do they still seem so pessimistic?

But...

The curiosity had barely arisen before he dismissed it himself. What fucking use is there in thinking about this?

Going by the pattern of those intervals, I'll probably be taken back again in less than half a month. Whether I can escape again is anyone's guess...

Promotion or whatever—what does that have to do with me?

For someone counting down every day, class barriers don't exist...

"..."

While he was thinking about all this, Xu Ji had already floored the accelerator. The headlights blazed as the car surged onto the abandoned road overgrown with weeds.

Though this guy radiated loser energy, his spoiled-rich-kid habits had been cultivated with real money. His driving skills were excellent, so Han Su didn't need to worry about safety.

Besides, they weren't idiots. Someone had already come to inspect this racing route beforehand.

As Xu Ji stomped on the gas, the weeds and trees on either side flashed past the windows. But Zhang He had gotten the jump on them, and perhaps because he wanted to enjoy this final race to the fullest, he never slowed down. Xu Ji actually couldn't catch him.

The other car's taillights were like ghostly eyes, flickering in and out of sight in the night as they grew farther and farther away.

Looks like we won't catch him...

Han Su considered whether he should try to persuade Xu Ji.

But just then, he happened to raise his head and look at the hazy blur outside the car.

In the depths of the night, thick fog had somehow risen, wrapping everything around them in dense, shifting layers.

A sense of foreboding rose in him. "You guys don't check the weather forecast before racing in the mountains?"

Xu Ji had noticed that visibility was getting worse and worse too. But he was anxious and hadn't slowed down yet. Feeling increasingly frustrated, he said, "We're just a bunch of car-loving posers. You think we're professionals?"

Though he was unwilling to accept it, the visibility outside truly was getting worse, so he could only reduce his speed and watch helplessly as Zhang He continued speeding ahead.

By now, Zhang He had followed the winding mountain road to the mountainside opposite them.

They could vaguely see two beams from his headlights racing through the pitch-black mountains, as though they were watching another parallel world.

Xu Ji muttered, "Zhang He really has gone insane..."

From the way that guy had spoken, they probably wouldn't play like this together again. If he won this last time, then so be it...

Just as he was thinking that, he suddenly sensed something was wrong. At the same instant, Han Su in the passenger seat jerked his head up as well.

On the mountain across from them, facing the headlights of Zhang He's car, two opposing beams of light suddenly flared to life.

Those headlights flickered incessantly, as though they had come from the underworld. They were utterly abrupt, rapidly closing in on Zhang He's car.

They were moving too fast for anyone to react. The lights of both vehicles collided in an instant.

Flames erupted into the sky. Even from so far away, Han Su and Xu Ji seemed able to hear the crash and the screams. The car had become a mangled fireball. The people inside were surely dead.

"Fuck..."

Xu Ji slammed on the brakes. Amid the violent shaking and fishtailing of the car, he forcibly brought it to a stop, staring wide-eyed at the mountain road opposite them.

He stood frozen, only muttering, "It's over, it's over. How did this happen?"

"Someone was guarding the other side. They shouldn't have let any cars come up..."

"That was a living person..."

"How could this happen? How could it..."

"..."

He repeated himself meaninglessly, his face as white as paper, as though his soul had completely left him.

But at that same moment, every hair on Han Su's body seemed to stand on end. His heart thudded as his eyes locked onto the window outside.

"It's here!"