Price

Inside the airplane restroom.

Tian Nanxing and Squinty entered one after the other, both lowering their voices in unspoken agreement.

"Did he say anything?"

"No."

"If he acts strangely, text me right away. I sent you my American phone number."

"Got it. What about the money?"

"I'll transfer it to you once we reach San Francisco."

"Goodbye."

After that, the two quickly left the restroom.

Blondie, who had been keeping an eye on the area around the restroom, saw them come out and then pretended nothing was amiss as he went inside to relieve himself.

A few minutes later.

Tian Nanxing returned to her seat. She glanced at Li Qingye, who had his eyes closed and was resting, then took out her phone and opened her text messages.

[Taotao Net—Dingdang Bookstore's new release is here! Copy and paste the code: 372****** to claim a 30% discount...]

She casually copied the numbers in the code, added them to her contacts, and named the contact "Dingdang Cat."

Even without opening his eyes, Li Qingye could tell from Tian Nanxing's scent and the sound of her breathing that her heart was beating faster and her body temperature had risen slightly.

Sure enough, betrayal was only a matter of price.

As long as the price was right, what did a so-called classmate relationship matter? Even if you had once helped them out, they would still sell you out without hesitation. That was human nature!

It turned out that not returning to Pengcheng on impulse had been an absolutely correct decision.

After suffering one blow after another, Li Qingye had chosen to absorb many of his ancestors' memories. Those memories had long since left a deep mark on his personality.

Whether it was Du Shuping and Yang Haibo, who now held control of Xin Xin Group, Wu Hewang, who seemed like a kindly old man, or Su Ruoyu, who had always been loyal to his father, he found it difficult to trust any of them now.

While everyone aboard the plane was preoccupied with their own thoughts,

Yangcheng.

In a villa district in Panyu,

inside a sealed-off villa, a sprightly old man stood before a wooden dummy, practicing Wing Chun with steady, deliberate movements.

Suddenly, footsteps rang out in the training hall.

"Father, are you really going to let that kid go abroad without doing anything?"

The old man stopped, picked up a towel from beside him, and waved his hand. The two servants hurried out.

He tossed the towel onto the table. The sharp look in his eyes made the young man who had just spoken feel as though thorns were pricking his back. The old man took another sip of green tea.

"You're always rushing into things. How will you ever accomplish anything? Learn from your younger brother. Otherwise, you can go to Malaysia and look after the palm plantation!"

Gulping nervously at his father's reprimand, Yang Tiancheng hurriedly explained, "Father, I was just worried that kid might ruin our plans."

The old man slammed his teacup down on the table, his gaze as fierce as a tiger descending the mountain. "Hmph! You didn't even realize someone was using you as a pawn. Get your ass to Malaysia. Don't come back without my permission."

"What?" Yang Tiancheng was aghast.

He was about to continue explaining, but when he saw his father's increasingly hostile expression, he could only flee in a panic.

A short while later,

another young man appeared before the old man.

"Father, Big Brother meant well."

"Enough. With that brain of his, he'll get sold off one day and still help the buyer count the money." The old man snorted.

The young man was the old man's second son, Yang Tianci, and the president of New Nanyang Company. The old man was Yang Haibo, one of the founders of Xin Xin Group, where he currently served as vice president.

Yang Tianci didn't continue the previous topic. Instead, he brought up something else. "Father, that stubborn old bull refuses to let us acquire Xin Xin's supermarket business. It's going to be difficult."

"Tianci, you're still too young," Yang Haibo said calmly.

"Huh?" Yang Tianci hesitated. "Father, I talked to the old man. He wouldn't budge, whether I offered money or shares."

Yang Haibo shook his head. "Why did you go to him? His son's small company is the one we should be dealing with. When someone refuses to be swayed, you need to use strategy and know how to work around them. Understand?"

Yang Tianci immediately saw the light. "Father really is Father. I'm still too young."

Yang Haibo continued to advise him. "And don't go alone. Have those other families go with you, too. If you agreed to stand together through thick and thin, then see it through."

"Yes, I understand, Father."

"As for that kid, don't get involved. We can't be the only ones doing the dirty work. They've taken more than we have, and if that kid wants revenge, they'll be his first target."

Yang Tianci nodded.

Meanwhile, in Pengcheng, Du Shuping, Wu Hewang, Su Ruoyu, and the others were also swept up in the undercurrents.

The infighting within Xin Xin Group, along with pressure from outside, had left many people in a desperate scramble.

As for Li Qingye, who was crossing the ocean, no one took him seriously. After all, he hadn't even dared to return to Pengcheng and had fled like a stray dog. That only made them look down on him more.

Seeing that Li Qingye knew his place, those people didn't want to make things too ugly at such a critical moment.

They were busy carving up Xin Xin Group and dealing with all the various forces. For now, they had no intention of going after Li Qingye.

Aboard the plane,

Li Qingye had already switched off Super Senses and begun to rest, even making a point of snoring loudly.

Of course, only his primary personality had gone dormant. Another personality remained alert.

This alternate personality had emerged because he had voluntarily absorbed his ancestors' memories and needed to cope with the side effects.

The alternate personality on guard now was [Bloodblade], a personality derived from his grandfather's memories.

Bloodblade leaned toward combat, while Li Qingye's own primary personality leaned toward scientific research.

In truth, his ancestors' memories were a tremendous treasure, because they made up for what Li Qingye lacked in other areas.

His father's business experience, his mother's management skills, his grandfather's combat techniques, his grandmother's metallurgical knowledge...

Anyone whose genes had been passed down through the generations had to have had prosperous ancestors. His own ancestors were a branch of the Longxi Li Clan.

According to the fragments of memory passed down through his genes,

his ancestors in the Western Zhou dynasty had followed King Wu of Zhou to defeat King Tang of Shang; his ancestors in the Spring and Autumn period had served as senior ministers in Jin; his ancestors in the Warring States period had guarded Hedong for the king of Wei;

his ancestors in the Western Han had ridden horses along the northern frontier; those in the Three Kingdoms period had survived in Hanzhong; those in the Northern and Southern dynasties had fought and allied with the Xianbei;

his ancestors in the Tang dynasty had become one of the great aristocratic clans; those in the Song dynasties had moved near Dongting Lake; those in the Ming dynasty had been enthusiastic about the imperial examinations...

His ancestors had held all sorts of occupations. Modern people might know more than their ancient ancestors, but that didn't mean they could beat them in every way.

For instance, in strategy, political maneuvering, and social relations, the average modern person would struggle to match the Confucian elites who had passed the imperial examinations in ancient times.

As for why Li Qingye's ancestors were so impressive, that was actually a blind spot in many people's thinking.

It was because modern people in East Asia all had ancestors who had once prospered.

After all, over the course of thousands of years, the people most likely to survive through successive dynasties were members of great clans, royal families, or, at the very least, wealthy landowners.

You're saying your ancestors were poor farmers for generations? Who would believe that?

Ever heard the saying, "Poverty doesn't last three generations"? If a family remained poor for three generations, there was a good chance it would die out. If they died out, how could their genes have been passed down?

Poor farmers in ancient times couldn't even find wives. When disasters and man-made calamities struck, countless people died. Did that sound like the kind of people who could pass down their genes?

Just look at the number of people in China with the surnames Li, Liu, Zhao, and Wang. Where did they all come from? They were the surnames of the royal families of three dynasties, while the Wang Clan was one of the great aristocratic clans.

Anyone whose genes had been passed down through the generations had to have come from a family that was doing reasonably well. If they were ordinary people in modern times, their family might simply have fallen on hard times.

That was why Li Qingye had such a wealth of ancestral memories.

Thank you all for your support! If you're planning to invest in the book, hurry—its contract status may be confirmed in the next few days.