Major Good News

At the same time, his instincts told Xu Yi that this gaze was the same kind of presence as the two divine lights that had hovered three feet above his head the first time he went to Jing Tao's house.

"Was it You who followed me to Jing Tao's house back then and kept watch over me?"

"But... why?"

"Surely Mr. Ye couldn't have asked You to protect me..."

Fortunately, the Hundred Night Miasma couldn't appear in daylight, so although Xu Yi was wary, he wasn't afraid.

Before entering the teahouse, Xu Yi had already held his breath for ten seconds and shut off his spiritual vision.

"Master! I'm back!"

The moment Mr. Ye saw Xu Yi, his expression shifted several times.

Surprise, disappointment, distaste... In the end, only confusion remained.

This kid actually came back alive?

Mr. Ye set down his teacup and looked at Xu Yi.

"Mm... How did things go with the Jing Family?"

Mr. Ye was thoroughly perplexed. Given the vicious relatives in the Jing Family, how had they let a boy like this get away?

Xu Yi didn't answer Mr. Ye's question.

All his attention had been drawn to the Elephant God Cup on Mr. Ye's tea table.

He stared at the cup as if entranced, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter.

Xu Yi caught a whiff of an intensely rich, cloying spicy aroma.

The pungent scent was laced with a bloodiness that made him tremble. Within that bloodiness lurked a sinister allure, which fermented in the cloying, spicy aroma until, by the time it reached Xu Yi's nostrils, it had become a strange, distinctive fragrance.

It smelled like...

Curry?

Xu Yi felt awful.

He loved fragrances, but he didn't like this impure scent. It was "deliberate" and "seductive," clearly drawing near with some particular aim in mind.

It was like a Ganges floozy, all coquettish poses, dancing the "Circling Dance" around him. He could see that she was pretty, but he couldn't bring himself to admire her. Instead, the curry smell wafting off her filled him with revulsion.

"Ahem."

Mr. Ye's pointed reminder pulled Xu Yi back from the scent of the Elephant God Cup.

This kid knows his stuff. He can tell what's valuable!

Xu Yi collected himself and touched the soft jade in his pocket, the one Jing Tao had given him. Though he couldn't smell its fragrance and his spirituality hadn't settled, his mood still grew a little calmer. He was no longer continually drawn to the Elephant God Cup's scent.

Xu Yi then told Mr. Ye what had happened in the Jing Family.

He mentioned Duan Hu's help, but left out his relationship with Jing Tao. He said nothing about anything related to spirituality, and skipped over the part about Ji Xiao as well.

As Mr. Ye listened, his expression barely changed, though a stir rose inside him.

This little rascal actually pulled it off!

How did he get Duan Hu to help? What did he offer? Since when was that greedy bastard so easy to persuade?!

Mr. Ye didn't know that Xu Yi had become the Night Roaming God, much less that Xu Yi had used that Spirit Remains incense stick to strike a deal with Duan Hu.

He's become security for Lingtong Hall... What a fool! He couldn't even seize such a golden opportunity. He should've taken the chance to plant his own people in Lingtong Hall's management!

If he'd planted his people, he'd be far more than just security in the future!

Although Mr. Ye thought all this, he didn't say it aloud.

The persona he maintained in front of Xu Yi was that of a "righteous man."

Taking advantage of the power vacuum in Lingtong Hall to plant people in management would mean exploiting them when they were down.

That would be "unrighteous."

Two or three days have already passed. With Jing Hesheng's abilities, Lingtong Hall must have settled down by now.

There's no opening to make a move for the time being.

Mr. Ye felt a pang of regret.

Mr. Ye had once surveyed the factories in the Big Factory District of the 38th Shop District. He had selected several that interested him greatly, including Lingtong Hall, owned by Jing Hesheng's family.

He had looked into them and made inquiries from all sides. Once Puxi City established a securities exchange—which was all but certain to happen in a few years—factories like Lingtong Hall, with ample cash flow, a very low debt-to-asset ratio, years of growing gross margins, and a consistently high return on equity, would be exceptionally high-quality assets.

Once it went public, its share price was bound to keep climbing.

Unfortunately, whether under Jing Hesheng's management or under the Jing Family's relatives, Lingtong Hall had been difficult to infiltrate.

When Jing Hesheng was still healthy, he had been a master at working every angle and had connections everywhere. Not only did he have ties in the Constabulary, he could also get a word in with Puxi City's political circles.

Back then, if Mr. Ye had tried to seize Lingtong Hall by force, the cost would have been too high. It wouldn't have been worth it.

After the Jing Family had crumbled from within, the relatives took over Lingtong Hall. Those vicious, foolish people were detestable, and their methods were dirtier than a gang's.

They didn't value human lives, so Mr. Ye couldn't afford to risk a life-or-death struggle with them.

And because they shared the same surname, their interests were bound together; they were as united as a solid wall. There was no way to divide them from within.

After hearing Xu Yi out, Mr. Ye needed only a brief moment to grasp the key to Xu Yi's victory—

Before the battle had even begun, he'd taken a risky move, defeated them one by one, and won by catching them off guard!

When Xu Yi finished speaking, Mr. Ye sat in his wicker chair and slowly breathed out.

The younger generation really has no sense of honor.

He forced a smile.

"You did well this time!"

As Mr. Ye spoke, Xu Yi kept his eyes on the Elephant God Cup.

His feelings were tangled: ten parts confusion, five parts disgust, and one part anticipation.

It must be some kind of Spirit Remains.

Thinking this, Xu Yi turned his attention back to his conversation with Mr. Ye.

At that moment, Lu Bolin, who had quietly returned to the teahouse entrance, heard Mr. Ye praise Xu Yi. He couldn't help but grow a little wary.

As he watched Xu Yi maintain a humble posture, an idea slowly formed in Mr. Ye's mind—

Now that Xu Yi was in charge of security at Lingtong Hall, perhaps he'd have a chance to gain control of the place in the future. Maybe he could find a way in through that young Jing Family girl...

"Do a good job at Lingtong Hall. If an opportunity comes along, you might be able to move up another step."

Mr. Ye looked at Xu Yi and spoke gravely.

"Puxi City's been in turmoil lately. To deal with these chaotic times, the Constabulary in the British Concession has started hiring more people.

"I'll see if I can get you an official position there."

Lu Bolin grew sharply wary when he heard this.

Mr. Ye was talking about the Constabulary in the foreign concession, not the Police Bureau in the Chinese Settlement!

A constable in the concession didn't have enormous power, but it was certainly no small amount, either. During Lu Bolin's recent field assignment, Mr. Ye had already arranged for concession constables to handle several tricky matters. With constables helping him, everything had gone much more smoothly.

If Xu Yi joined the Constabulary in the concession and became a constable, anyone wanting to do business with England in the future would have to deal with him.

At that thought, Lu Bolin's brow furrowed tight.

He didn't yet know whether Mr. Ye's idea would benefit him or not. But remembering the sight of Ye Miao clinging to Xu Yi made him feel intensely uncomfortable with Xu Yi.

Xu Yi knew his master liked to make empty promises, but this time was different.

If he could become a constable in the concession, he'd be able to enter it openly and look for a chance to quietly kill that Incense-Addicted Murderer, Stevenson Griffin!