Are You the Boss or Am I the Boss?

This private hospital in District 16 was an industry under Prism.

Naturally, the portrait displayed in the lobby was that of the group's current leader.

Xie Qingyan.

The instant Xu Shi caught that information, everything clicked.

She was behind this!

This wasn't a baseless guess, but a conclusion supported by evidence.

While something like "He Yuqiang becoming One-Ear" had never happened in the original story, Shark Tooth's internal situation had always been rather chaotic.

Shark Tooth's current head, He Jiayuan, had three children.

He Yuqiang was merely the youngest. Above him were his eldest brother, He Yuzhao, and second sister, He Yuxia.

From what Xu Shi knew of the plot, He Yuxia was devoted to art and had little interest in inheriting the conglomerate. But both He Yuzhao and He Yuqiang had their eyes fixed on the group's top position.

As an only child himself, Xu Shi was still constrained by old fossils like Lin Wenhua. One could imagine how much more intense the struggle between those two brothers would be.

And now that He Jiayuan was already nearing the end of his life, Shark Tooth's internal chaos would only worsen.

Under such circumstances, He Yuzhao and He Yuqiang naturally each had their own schemes.

His good brother, He Laosan, had sought cooperation with Shen He's Spark, while He Yuzhao's chosen partner was his own fiancée—the ruler of Prism, Xie Qingyan.

By comparison, the gap between the two seemed obvious... though that was also because He Yuqiang was in a weaker position. With Xie Qingyan's strength, she wouldn't think much of him.

The outcome was equally dramatic—under the influence of Shen He's protagonist halo, even though He Yuzhao and Xie Qingyan joined forces, they still couldn't bring down He Yuqiang. Instead, they suffered setback after setback.

In the end, He Yuqiang successfully turned the tables on his elder brother and smoothly inherited Shark Tooth.

Although that didn't change the fact that He Laosan would ultimately meet an ending much like Xu Shi's own, the grudge between Xie Qingyan and Shen He had gradually accumulated throughout this process.

Thinking about it that way, everything made sense.

He Yuzhao and Xie Qingyan would definitely be watching He Yuqiang's every move, and they certainly wouldn't want to see him reconcile with Spark. That was why they had done this.

As for why Xu Shi was certain that Xie Qingyan, rather than He Yuzhao, was the mastermind... what nonsense. If it had been He Yuzhao, He Yuqiang would have lost not an ear, but his life.

Xie Qingyan, on the other hand, might have been cooperating with He Yuzhao, but that woman might not necessarily want to see his family dominate alone.

It would benefit her most if the two brothers fought each other to the bitter end.

She might even have room to maneuver when the time was right.

Well, well. You really were something, you wicked woman!

Having figured everything out, Xu Shi couldn't help feeling a little emotional—and a little annoyed with the fiancée he hadn't seen in a long time.

Because, to a certain extent, their thoughts had coincided perfectly.

Although he was trying to intensify the conflict between He Yuqiang and Shen He, Xu Shi didn't actually want anything to happen to his good brother. At least, not yet—and if something did happen, it couldn't be at someone else's hands.

On one hand, he needed He Yuqiang to pay back his debts. On the other, he also hoped to ensure that He Yuqiang inherited the conglomerate smoothly while remaining under his control.

That way, before Xu Shi's own strength reached the required level, Shark Tooth's destabilizing factors could be eliminated as much as possible. And once he was strong enough, it would be easier to absorb it naturally.

Yes, this bastard had big ambitions.

One military-industrial company in Night City was enough. Why would there need to be two?

But the current situation was rather troublesome—He Yuqiang's injury wasn't serious, and Xie Qingyan's move was more like a warning.

The problem was that his good brother had been disfigured... a conglomerate would never allow someone with a damaged image to serve as its public face. This undoubtedly weakened his competitiveness considerably.

On top of that, He Jiayuan himself was a conservative who favored a single military-industrial direction rather than integrated Mechanical Ascension. That meant if his good brother wanted to use a bionic organ to muddle through this, things would only get worse.

That was also why He Jiayuan had ignored everything after He Yuqiang's accident. The old man had already treated his youngest son as a discarded piece... at least until his death, this situation would be difficult to change.

And if they really waited until he died, He Yuzhao's position would already have been secured, leaving He Yuqiang with little chance of turning things around.

Xu Shi couldn't help suspecting that his fiancée had acted based precisely on such calculations.

All he could say was that when two highly ambitious people collided, things always became more complicated.

Compared with that, Shen He's whereabouts could be put off for the moment.

After all, although He Yuqiang had kept trying to conceal things, Xu Shi knew perfectly well that he didn't have the power to truly kill Shen He.

Because Shen He had something in his possession.

"Beacon."

It was Shen Tianhong's Ascendant Ability—a special item created at the cost of his own lifespan. When activated as needed, it could ignore distance and teleport its user to a preset anchor point.

In the backstory, Shen Tianhong had used Beacon during the destruction of his family to create a chance of survival for Shen He and his younger sister, while he himself voluntarily gave up the opportunity and went to his death.

And in the early stages of the plot, Shen He had relied on Beacon to escape danger time and time again when backed into desperate situations.

This time would surely be no exception. Otherwise, it would have been difficult for him to escape He Yuqiang's encirclement alone.

If Xu Shi remembered correctly, the item could be used three times when the story began. That meant Shen He still had two such chances left.

Damn it, are you the Boss or am I the Boss?

I have to burn through three of your lives before I can kill you?

Still, Shen He definitely wasn't doing well now—after two consecutive defeats and Shark Tooth's pursuit, with quite a few of his capable agents having been removed by Xu Shi, less than a tenth of his strength probably remained.

The only thing he could do now was likely take those remnants and find a new patron.

And even then, he would have to consider how much influence his ability could still exert over his subordinates after one failure after another.

Xu Shi understood this well: trust had to be grounded in reality.

If someone kept making empty promises, then lost every time they took action, nobody could accept that situation unless they had an SS-class ability like personality erasure or mental overwriting to hold everything together.

Just like in the original story, even someone like Su Lin would ultimately be disappointed beyond measure in the original host.

So, all Xu Shi needed to do regarding Shen He was add fuel to the fire while he was badly weakened.

Xie Qingyan, on the other hand, required more consideration... Although Xu Shi hadn't wanted to make contact or clash with his fiancée this early, he absolutely couldn't let her act so arrogantly.

She already dared to disrupt Old Master Xu's arrangements. He didn't even dare imagine what she might do in the future.

So, if he wanted to get a hold over her, he needed to offer something she couldn't refuse.

For example, the Overlimit Project.

Xu Shi knew exactly how tempting that was. With that bargaining chip, he wasn't afraid she wouldn't be moved.

And in truth, Xie Qingyan herself was one of the partners he had considered—indeed, the most important one.

It couldn't be helped. The Overlimit Project required biotechnology support, and within Night Sin City, only Prism possessed the necessary capabilities.

That was why monopolies were so profitable. The ancients truly hadn't deceived him.

But Xu Shi also understood that he had to keep the initiative firmly in his own hands in a matter like this, especially when facing a woman like Xie Qingyan.

Cooperating with her was dangerous to begin with. One misstep, and she would devour him without leaving even bones behind.

So before formal negotiations, he needed to give her a little Serpent Coil shock.

Sigh, what a hassle.

Being a villain was exhausting. Boohoo, he was going to cry.

Just as he was thinking that, Su Lin handed him a cup of coffee at the perfect moment. "Young Master, what are you thinking about? Have something to drink."

"...Alright, thank you."

Xu Shi accepted it with a smile and pulled her over to sit on a bench nearby.

Fortunately, he still had someone thoughtful by his side.

Perhaps the two were simply too familiar with each other, or perhaps Xu Shi's recent changes had truly pleased Miss Su Lin.

In any case, the barrier between them was growing thinner and thinner. Su Lin felt no aversion at all toward Xu Shi's intentional or unintentional physical contact.

If it had been anyone else, she would have slammed them to the ground and dislocated their arm.

She also didn't care whether Xu Shi would use his ability on her. The loyalty carved into her bones wouldn't allow her to think about such messy things.

She even occasionally found herself looking forward to it... though she didn't know why such an unprecedented emotion had arisen within her.

It left Su Lin's heart in a muddle, and she could only ease the awkwardness by taking sips of coffee.

Seeing that Xu Shi remained silent, she had even learned to take the initiative in breaking the silence. "Young Master, shall I take you back now?"

"No rush."

Xu Shi waved his hand and stood up. "Xia Ke'an is here too. Let's go see her first."

He just didn't know whether Xia Wuyou was here as well. If she was, that would be even better.

After all, he happened to have another task to assign her.