第38章 屎里淘金

The veteran was countered by a rookie?

A brief moment of stagnation followed.

As Ye Xiaojing prepared to move in again, Lan Junxian called a halt.

Lan Junxian, sitting to the side, set down his coffee cup. As he wiped his hands with a wet wipe, he sighed with genuine admiration: "Haha, brilliant! Look at our high-and-mighty combat expert, actually losing to a rookie in the First State!"

Hey, is there any need to stir up trouble, Teacher Lan? You're so gleeful that it makes me suspect you've been beaten by her too... Jiang Qian couldn't help but mutter to himself.

"Just putting what I've learned into practice," Jiang Qian said, his expression humble and composed.

Ye Xiaojing remained silent, not taking the bait.

Everything that had just happened occurred in a flash. Beyond surprise, she felt a sense of curiosity.

The final strike she had delivered was her signature kill move in the First State. At full power, it could have split a person in two.

Yet, Jiang Qian had stood his ground without dodging, then suddenly moved to meet the blade... Was this unconventional strategy based on the certainty that she wouldn't go all out?

If this victory were merely the result of luck and opportunism, it would be meaningless.

A real enemy would not hold back like this, nor would they be so familiar with her habits.

As his teacher, she felt it necessary to point this out.

"You calculated that I wouldn't deliver a lethal blow, didn't you?" Ye Xiaojing picked up the wooden blade and tossed it back into the rack.

Jiang Qian returned his wooden sword to its place as well: "I should say, I saw it coming."

"Saw it coming?"

A look of confusion flickered across Ye Xiaojing's frost-cold face, while Lan Junxian smiled in understanding.

Ever since Jiang Qian had undergone open-chest surgery and absorbed the Spider Cocoon to fight poison with poison, his Spirit Vision had been fully developed.

It had evolved from a single, macro-level perspective to a micro-level view that could peer from the surface into the interior of the body.

Now, after two days of inhumane torment, he had formed a macro-micro dynamic vision centered on Ye Xiaojing.

He could predict her next move based on her breathing rhythm, power-generation characteristics, and movement patterns—including her attack points, feints, and force.

Coupled with the high-intensity "feeding" of moves Ye Xiaojing had provided over the last two days, Jiang Qian, a rookie who knew nothing, had mastered many practical techniques.

In summary, Ye Xiaojing's style was: fast, accurate, and ruthless.

Her obsession with headshots, her almost obsessive-compulsive precision in targeting individual vital points, and the innocence and curiosity that occasionally flashed in her eyes when she ravaged an opponent—all of these had left Jiang Qian with a wealth of valuable experience.

If absorbing the Spider Cocoon was an upgrade to his Spirit Vision and Poison Resistance, then this grueling training was a tempering of his enhanced Spirit Vision and Snake Shadow Stealth.

If only I could steal her techniques for a few more days... Jiang Qian thought inadvertently.

"Oh, I forgot, your eyesight is extraordinary."

Ye Xiaojing seemed to have realized this and stopped dwelling on it, as if she didn't take being taken advantage of by a First State rookie to heart.

That didn't sound like her.

Jiang Qian quickly took the opportunity to step down: "Thank you, Teacher Ye, for putting a novice like me, who never knew how to fight, on the right track. In this last lesson, I was just lucky to seize the initiative. Please forgive me, Teacher Ye."

His sentence was almost up; he wanted to leave a good impression on his teacher before he left.

"Jiang Qian, you're being too modest. There aren't many people who can trade blows with Xiaojing and survive."

Lan Junxian reminded him at the perfect moment: "Besides, who said today was your last lesson?"

"?"

"Before the Peacock Spider case is closed, Xiaojing will secretly monitor your safety. You can spar whenever you like," Lan Junxian announced this wise decision cheerfully.

Jiang Qian fell silent instantly, memories of comminuted fractures flooding his mind.

Ye Xiaojing smoothed her long hair under her beret, stepped forward, and patted Jiang Qian on the shoulder. A subtle, imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of her mouth: "It's fine. I hope you'll be just as resilient next time, rookie."

"..."

Lan Junxian draped his arms around both their shoulders: "Alright! To celebrate your freedom, Jiang Qian, let's have a drink!"

That evening, a hot pot bubbled in the Safe House.

Lan Junxian, Ye Xiaojing, and Team Bear held a small farewell banquet for Jiang Qian.

Except for Ye Xiaojing, everyone had a bit to drink.

Amidst the clinking of glasses, Jiang Qian silently observed these official License Holders he had been living with recently.

Lan Junxian was refined and humorous, maintaining his usual gentlemanly demeanor. He only took sips of his drink, yet everything he said was spot on.

Team Bear was a typical Northerner—he could hold his liquor, and his personality was as round and amiable as his physique, often making people feel as comfortable as if they were at home.

"Jiang Qian, your entry into the Wanzhong Group has been arranged. Just get familiar with the environment in my brother's department first."

Team Bear thoughtfully updated Jiang Qian on the upcoming arrangements:

"Within the group, License Holders have their own circle. They use an independent set of communication tools called Card Player, or CP for short. Tomorrow, HR will teach you how to download it on your phone..."

As Jiang Qian listened to Team Bear ramble, he asked casually: "Can I see the IDs of other License Holders within the group?"

"You can check them in the CP system. Your Security Department is specifically there to serve the License Holders within the company. Whenever people run into trouble, they love contacting the Security Department. By the way, haha, if you go there, the Security Department's workload might see a sudden surge..."

Our Security Department...

If I go there, the workload will surge?

"Why?"

"Because you're handsome," Ye Xiaojing said, expressionless, as she sipped her drink.

So you were so ruthless in our training because you were jealous of my beauty, right... Jiang Qian looked at her in disbelief: "Teacher Ye, can we agree on one thing?"

"Speak."

"Don't hit the face next time."

"Oh, are you sure?" Ye Xiaojing's gaze shifted, sweeping over Jiang Qian as if searching for a new target.

"Forget it, do whatever you like," Jiang Qian gave up struggling immediately.

"By the way, once Jiang Qian officially joins, he'll be one of Ji Ming's men, right..." Lan Junxian suddenly sighed.

The mention of the name Ji Ming immediately drew the intense attention of Team Bear and Ye Xiaojing.

Jiang Qian ate his food in silence, observing from the shadows.

"I haven't seen Ji Ming these past few days. Hasn't he returned yet?" Lan Junxian looked at Team Bear.

"Oh, it's like this. After the Minister received his appointment from the headquarters, he went to visit the major families in the North. He's currently in Beijing and will return to Jinping in a few days. I expect you won't have left by then."

"He's in Beijing?"

Lan Junxian frowned slightly, sensing something that shouldn't be probed further.

"Yes, the last stop of his pre-appointment tour was the Beijing Headquarters. You had just arrived in Jinping at that time, and he specifically instructed us to cooperate with your work in every way."

At this point, Team Bear paused: "Teacher Lan, haven't you two communicated?"

"He hasn't reached out to me," Lan Junxian's expression turned cold. "I suppose he did something he shouldn't have to his teacher and is too ashamed to face me."

At this moment, Ye Xiaojing also realized: "Boss, do you suspect that Ji Ming is the one who intercepted the deal?"

"It must be him! Ah, it's the work of the Predator Family... Sending Jiang Qian to the grassroots level under the guise of protecting talent, when in reality, it's to keep him within Ji Ming's jurisdiction!"

Lan Junxian had drunk a bit, his cheeks flushed, and it took him a while to suppress his anger.

Afterward, half-confused and half-sober, he looked at Ye Xiaojing: "What does 'intercepting the deal' mean?"

"Boss, don't you play mahjong?"

"Mahjong again..."

"Intercepting the deal means you and the player before you both win on the same tile." Ye Xiaojing thought for a moment and pointed at Jiang Qian, "And the tile being won should be this one."

Three days ago, Beijing.

A black-diamond private room in a high-end club.

A young man with red suit shoulders and pure gold-dyed hair sat on a leather sofa, listening to a call on his phone.

His features were fair and handsome, and a silver lion-patterned eyepatch covered his left eye, adding a touch of ferocity and rebellion to his face.

After a long while, the man curled his lips into a cold sneer: "The quality of today's License Holders is like panning for gold in excrement. What kind of talent makes you all go to such lengths?"

He fell silent for a moment.

"Fine. Mr. Lan will think I snatched his person."

The call ended.

The man stood up and walked to the window, looking out at the bustling night view of Beijing. Beneath his golden hair, his right eye was dull and lusterless.

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