The Young Are Formidable

Whoever benefited was whoever was suspicious...

Looking at the whole affair, who had benefited the most?

Without a doubt, it was Wang Ye!

Wang Ye was still overthinking things here, but in the eyes of outsiders, he might well have been the prime suspect in all this!

So, just as Khovchenko had said, was there any point in continuing to ask questions and investigate why Zhirinov had retired?

There was not!

What he needed to do now was seize the opportunity and do what he was supposed to do. He could not let Zhirinov's "sacrifice" become meaningless.

In fact, Wang Ye had done quite well. Though it had not been deliberate, his instinctive actions—such as making a deal with Gryzlov—had already brought considerable gains.

Presumably, that was also something that pleased the people "behind the scenes."

Wang Ye nodded and said sincerely, "I understand. That's why I made a small deal with Gryzlov..."

He told Khovchenko all about the terms of his deal with Gryzlov.

After hearing it, Khovchenko laughed heartily.

"Haha, Misha, you really were born for politics. You actually came up with an idea like that...

"Not bad, not bad. This way, even if Zhirinov retires, under your leadership, the influence of your third faction will not decline. On the contrary, it will only grow stronger and stronger.

"By the next Duma election, you might even be able to challenge the second faction.

"After that, who is the second faction and who is the third faction may not be so easy to say!"

Wang Ye revealed his trademark bashful smile and said modestly, "I wouldn't dare think that far ahead. I'll already be satisfied if, under my leadership, the third faction can maintain its current position. As for growing stronger, we'll take it one step at a