7 - Host, You are insidious

Seeing that Jiang Hao didn't respond and simply focused on sipping his tea, occasionally glancing at his limited-edition Patek Philippe watch, Li Ye and Daozi understood immediately.

Realizing the dangerous shift in Li Ye's gaze, Daozi finally resigned himself to his fate.

Grabbing his own tongue with one hand and a switchblade with the other, Daozi trembled uncontrollably with fear. Summoning all his courage, he slashed down.

Squelch—

Blood splattered everywhere. The horrifying sight caused Gouzi, who was watching, to faint on the spot.

"Tsk, how troublesome."

Li Ye clicked his tongue. After motioning for Daozi to leave, he personally took up a blade and severed Gouzi's left hand.

"Or do you think the right hand would've been better?" Li Ye asked afterward.

"The right hand would've been ideal, but I'm in a hurry today, so let's leave it at that." Sitting calmly amidst the blood-stained room, Jiang Hao remained unperturbed, his tone steady.

"When will we finalize the deal?" Li Ye asked again.

Jiang Hao didn't respond directly. Instead, he walked over to the desk, took Li Ye's business card, and left.

"Wait for my call."

---

Vroom—

The sports car roared as it sped away under Jiang Hao's control.

Li Ye personally saw him off at the door, but didn't immediately return inside.

Today, Li Ye realized that rumors could be deceiving.

Few second-generation rich kids could maintain such composure in the face of the bloody scenes that had unfolded in his office.

Whether Jiang Hao was genuinely calm or merely pretending, Li Ye didn't care.

After all, even pretending was no easy feat.

"I'll have to be careful. This Young Master Jiang is no ordinary character." Muttering to himself, Li Ye began making calls to gather funds.

---

A kilometer away from the scene, Jiang Hao pulled his car over and darted into the bushes by the roadside.

"Urgh!"

The sound of retching echoed for several minutes.

After returning to the car, Jiang Hao kept chugging bottled water, though his face remained pale.

His demand for Daozi and Gouzi to pay a price wasn't out of petty vengeance but to intimidate Li Ye.

Li Ye wasn't an easy character to deal with. If Jiang Hao had shown any weakness today, not only would the deal have fallen through, but he might have also found himself bitten back in the future.

"Host, I have a question," the system's voice suddenly echoed in Jiang Hao's mind.

Startled, Jiang Hao raised an eyebrow.

He had long noticed that the system had its own thoughts, but he didn't expect it to be so direct.

"Ask away, but don't suddenly startle me like that again! You almost gave me a heart attack!" Jiang Hao rolled his eyes.

"Understood, Host. My question is: why did you ask Li Ye to look after Ye Feng? This behavior seems to conflict with your goal of rising to the top."

"Isn't the answer obvious?"

Jiang Hao sighed, took a deep breath, and explained, "Because I don't want to give Ye Feng any opportunities to show off and slap faces!"

It was as if the system had been enlightened.

In the original plot, Ye Feng's first major opponent was Li Ye. Taking Li Ye down was how Ye Feng made his name.

But if Li Ye didn't become his enemy, those plotlines wouldn't exist! Moreover, these were minor events that wouldn't trigger the world's will to correct them.

Sensing that Jiang Hao was approachable, the system grew bolder and asked another question, "Then when will you tell Xia Siyu about this?"

"Why would I tell her?"

"If you don't, Xia Siyu won't know. How will she be moved by your actions? How will you win her over?"

"System, your emotional intelligence seems a bit low."

Jiang Hao shook his head, a confident smile on his face.

"Siyu still dislikes me now. Even if she finds out, it'll only slightly change her impression of me. But if, at the right time and place, she suddenly discovers all the things I've done for her in secret, while realizing she misunderstood me all along, then..."

"Ah, I see! Host, you're so devious!"

"Shut up! This is strategy, not deceit. Xia Siyu is a tough nut to crack. How can I win her over without a plan?"

"So where are you heading now, Host?"

"Anping County!"

Anping County wasn't far from Liu City, just an hour's drive.

Jiang Hao remembered that Ye Feng's introduction to the story had two key points.

The first was the threatening letter that made him Xia Siyu's bodyguard.

Now, with Li Ye and Jiang Hao in an alliance and Xia Siyu as his fiancée, the threatening letter scenario was gone.

The second was a comrade's dying wish.

Ye Feng had been serving abroad in classified missions, so his domestic records were nearly non-existent.

Because of the nature of his missions, he and his comrades couldn't contact their families.

During one mission, a comrade who took a bullet for Ye Feng died. Before passing, he gave Ye Feng a photo and entrusted his only sister to him.

Yes, the storyline was that cliché and melodramatic.

But for readers new to web novels, such tropes created a sense of anticipation, sometimes even moving them to tears over the "brotherly bond."

Since Xia Siyu couldn't be won over for now, Jiang Hao decided to shift his focus temporarily.

He couldn't wait to see Ye Feng's reaction when he arrived at his comrade's home, only to find that his comrade's sister had already fallen madly in love with Jiang Hao.

"Ha ha!"

Just thinking about it made Jiang Hao laugh out loud.

Buzz buzz-

The vibrating phone interrupted his laughter. The call was from Jiang Hao's mother, Jiang Lan.

"Hao'er, your Uncle Xia personally delivered your sports car. Where are you now? Come back and meet him!" Jiang Lan's concerned voice came through.

Jiang Hao hadn't brought any bodyguards today and hadn't informed her of his plans, which made her worry.

Feeling a bit helpless toward his overprotective mother, Jiang Hao made up an excuse and quickly changed the topic. "Mom, do you remember that land in the northern part of the city?"

"The northern part?"

Jiang Lan was confused for a moment before realizing. "Are you talking about the land related to Wang Quezi?"

That piece of land had been a headache for the Jiang family. They decided to wait for Wang to collapse before developing it.

If Jiang Hao hadn't mentioned it, Jiang Lan might have completely forgotten about it.

"Yes, I sold it. Five hundred million!"

"...Really?" Jiang Lan sounded shocked.

"Yes. Once the transaction is finalized in a few days, I'll explain everything. I have something to take care of today, so I won't be back for dinner. Please pass on my regards to Uncle Xia."

"Wait, Hao'er, explain how you-"

Before Jiang Lan could finish, Jiang Hao hung up.

There was no other choice.

If Jiang Lan found out that her son had gone to an underground organization's headquarters alone without any bodyguards, she'd be scared out of her wits!