Gui Mei lowered his head to look at the whale rubber and asked in confusion:
"Even so, there's no need to embezzle public funds to buy something this controversial, is there? And why didn't the Holy Son tell His Holiness the Pope himself?"
"Because I'm still 'neglecting my duties for frivolous pursuits.'"
Feng Xinglie smiled and said:
"I'm sure Elder Ghost has heard about my founding the Heavenly Secret Pavilion. I'm so young, yet I've already taken control of Spirit Hall's two lifelines: its finances and intelligence. If I worked diligently every day, I'm afraid His Holiness the Pope wouldn't sleep easy."
Gui Mei suddenly understood.
Embezzling public funds to buy whale rubber wasn't considered a major offense on the Douluo Continent. Nearly every organization of any size had similar cases. Even if the matter were advertised to the world, it wouldn't have much impact; at most, it would become a topic of gossip over meals for a while. But if the organization's leaders brought it into the open, it wouldn't be so simple. To put it bluntly, Qian Daoliu could use it to purge the sect, and Bibi Dong could use it as an excuse to remove the Holy Son. Holding this leverage, they could cut off Feng Xinglie's head at any moment if they decided he might threaten them.
"Are you worried that your achievements will overshadow your master, so you're handing His Holiness the Pope a knife to use against you?"
Feng Xinglie only smiled and said nothing.
Seeing this, Gui Mei sighed and said:
"Since the Holy Son has made up his mind, I won't try to talk you out of it. Thank you for this credit."
Gui Mei gave the whale rubber in his hand a shake and headed out of the office. He naturally understood that Feng Xinglie was telling him all this because he truly considered him one of his own. And reporting the intelligence about the whale rubber would earn him credit, even though he hadn't uncovered it himself. Trust and benefit together made him feel even more warmly toward Feng Xinglie.
But what Gui Mei didn't know was that as soon as he left, Feng Xinglie took out another box of whale rubber and set it on the desk. Before long, a graceful figure burst in. Feng Xinglie repeated to Ling Yuan what he'd just told Gui Mei. When he watched Ling Yuan leave with the same grateful expression Gui Mei had worn, Feng Xinglie stretched contentedly:
"Hmm... One piece of intelligence has not only temporarily reassured Bibi Dong and Qian Daoliu, but also earned me the goodwill of two Titled Douluo. It adds to my merits while improving Spirit Hall's overall strength. Four birds with one stone. All that work wasn't for nothing."
Several years later, the Douluo Continent was thriving, with all things flourishing and vying to grow. At Feng Xinglie's suggestion, the Shadow Spider operated entirely on the model of the Imperial Guards. By then, Bibi Dong had brought all of Spirit Hall firmly under her control. Meanwhile, the Martial Soul Chamber of Commerce and the Heavenly Secret Pavilion had also grown, their influence covering almost the entire continent.
On this foundation, Feng Xinglie overhauled every Martial Soul Branch Hall. Besides adding newspaper sales, he also integrated the banking system into them. From then on, anyone or any organization that wasn't fully confident in their own strength deposited some of their wealth with Spirit Hall to earn interest. With the leading businesses in every industry within the chamber of commerce working together, Spirit Hall had even become strong enough to stand toe-to-toe with the wealthiest force in the world, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, when it came to money.
But compared with the power struggles between major factions, commoners were more interested in the Martial Soul Newspaper. After all, with his strength behind him, Feng Xinglie dared to write about anything. He even openly reported scandals involving the two great empires, giving the Martial Soul Newspaper tremendous authority in the market. Many forces tried to imitate it, but without movable type printing, they couldn't match its output through manual labor alone. Gradually, the Martial Soul Newspaper became the most authoritative and widely read media outlet on the Douluo Continent.
In a luxurious private room in Heaven Dou City, a man and a woman sat facing each other. The woman lounged elegantly against the sofa, her legs crossed and brimming with youthful vitality. The man sat much more upright, speaking animatedly about something:
"...And so, every year on the seventh day of the seventh month, the Cowherd and Weaver Girl meet on the Magpie Bridge and rekindle their love. Young Master, what do you think of the story?"
After hearing the story, Qian Renxue furrowed her brow, apparently displeased.
"What do I think? I don't like it. The Cowherd actually went to spy on the Seven Fairies while they were bathing, then stole the Weaver Girl's clothes and threatened her into marrying him. Isn't he just a lecherous hooligan?"
"Yes, yes... If you don't like it, Young Master, I'll tell you a better story next time."
Feng Xinglie responded cautiously, though inside he was already delighted:
That wasn't easy... By starting when she was young, I've finally cured this young lady of her love-struck foolishness...
Thinking back to those days, when he'd used business discussions as an excuse to visit Qian Renxue, who was disguised as Xue Qinghe, even the simplest little love story had made the girl's eyes shine with longing. It had worried Feng Xinglie so much that he'd nearly clawed at the wall. No wonder the original story had made Tang San play her like a monkey. From that day onward, Feng Xinglie moved the Martial Soul Chamber of Commerce's headquarters to Heaven Dou Imperial City and visited Qian Renxue from time to time under all sorts of pretexts, telling her stories that would help shape her values. After all this time, he'd told her more stories than there were in One Thousand and One Nights. Finally, today's test had shown results.
"All right, I'm not blaming you. Those rules in the imperial palace are driving me crazy. You're the only one who's come to see me regularly over all these years and told me stories to relieve my boredom."
Qian Renxue quickly reassured him. This proud, aloof beauty, who had originally spent more than twenty years undercover in Heaven Dou City, had become much more cheerful and gentle with a playmate around.
"But still, tell me fewer stories like that from now on. Marriage should be between people of equal standing. One is the daughter of the Queen Mother, and the other is a despicable, shameless thug. There's no way they could ever be together... Of course, you're a genuine Holy Son now, unlike that Cowherd."
"Yes, I owe that to the support of Young Master and the Great Enshrined."
"Hmph! Still calling me Young Master?"
It seemed his flattery had missed the mark. Feng Xinglie looked at Qian Renxue in puzzlement, not understanding why she'd suddenly become unhappy.
"But now that I think about it, why have you been telling me so many stories about bad men lately? I'm tired of them."
Seeing Qian Renxue change the subject, Feng Xinglie hurried to respond:
"Wasn't I worried that some unsavory fellow might lead Young Master astray? Love makes people lose their wits. Even people in high positions can get carried away, but acting on impulse usually ends in tragedy."
Feng Xinglie naturally had a purpose in doing this. Lately, he'd been deliberately telling stories that mirrored Yu Xiaogang and Qian Xunji, hoping to prepare her in advance so she wouldn't have a mental breakdown when she learned the truth one day.
"I... Is that so? Then you really were worrying for nothing. I'm the prince Xue Qinghe now. How could a man possibly lead me astray?"
Even as she said it, Qian Renxue's spirits were plainly lifted.
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