Chapter 81

"My lord!"

The servant who had just been giving Lei Tang advice.

Now beaming with a smile, like a fly rubbing its hands, staring at Mei Yongning before him.

"Don't worry, as long as you do your job well, you won't lack money."

Outside the back gate, Mei Yongning pulled out a money bag and tossed it over.

"Thank you, my lord! Thank you, my lord!"

He hurriedly caught it.

After feeling the weight of the money bag, his smile became dazzling, nodding repeatedly.

Clearly, an ordinary servant could never have thought of such a plan, nor spoken so clearly—everything had been instructed by Mei Yongning.

You get what kind of master, you get what kind of servant.

Lei Tang valued money greatly; none of the servants in the mansion disliked money, easily bought with a few coins.

"Go back to work. If I need you again, I'll come find you."

"Yes, yes, yes! I'll go back right away!"

Without daring to argue, he tucked the money bag away and left cautiously.

,,,

Mei Yongning did not linger, walking swiftly under the moonlight toward a direction where a carriage waited.

When he drew near, Mei Yongning spoke softly.

"Boss, it's all arranged."

"Mm."

From inside the carriage came Ye Tian's voice.

"Let's go."

Since everything was set, there was no need to stay here any longer.

Mei Yongning skillfully climbed into the carriage and took on the role of driver; after they had moved farther away, he still couldn't suppress his curiosity and asked toward the carriage behind.

"Boss, don't we need to silence him?"

Although Ye Tian hadn't shown his face himself, those who heard Mei Yongning's words would easily connect them to Ye Tian.

"No rush!"

Ye Tian naturally understood that dead men keep secrets.

Only—

"If Lei Tang cleans things up too thoroughly, this servant becomes the most valuable witness. Killing him now would be a waste."

Even if they must deal with him, it should only be after he's lost all usefulness.

Mei Yongning's expression cleared—he truly was a mastermind. He himself still fell short by just a little.

But then Mei Yongning thought of something and asked again.

"What if Lei Tang still lacks the courage to act?"

Lei Tang was arrogant, self-satisfied, foolish, and conceited—but also a bully who cowered before the strong. He might not dare to commit such a crime against his superior.

He's only angry now, but once time passes and his temper cools, he'll likely lose all desire to deal with Sēn Lǎo.

"Then we must make sure his anger never cools."

"Such people grow more reckless the more they panic—and panic makes them make the stupidest decisions."

He's already gone so far as to eliminate his own Fist Master. If he's worked up, what won't he do?

"I heard Chi Hu has been provoking Lei Tang lately?"

Seeing Ye Tian shift topic suddenly to Chi Hu,

Mei Yongning immediately understood.

Having spent so long with Ye Tian, he'd learned plenty about thick skin and a black heart—he instantly guessed Ye Tian's plan.

"Boss, leave it to me."

"Mm."

Ye Tian asked no further. If every task required his own personal oversight, what was the point of having a team of subordinates?

"If you need anything, go straight to Tie Quan and the others—say it's my order. They'll obey."

Ye Tian never doubted their absolute loyalty.

"I won't let you down, Boss."

This was his chance to act independently for Ye Tian—Mei Yongning certainly didn't want to mess it up.

,,,

"Why are you here?"

Early the next morning, Ye Tian's mansion received an unexpected guest.

Seeing Lei Yan in the courtyard, Ye Tian was surprised.

"Dad told me to get along with you?"

Lei Yan shrugged—he wasn't one to hide his thoughts—and spoke plainly.

"Got any water? I'm parched from walking."

He sat down right in the courtyard; anyone unaware would think Lei Yan was the master of the mansion.

Ye Tian gave a quiet laugh.

He glanced at Xiao Cao, who stood nearby, eyes wide with curiosity.

"Have someone bring a pot of hot tea."

"Mm, Young Master."

Xiao Cao obediently nodded, but before leaving, she was still looking at Lei Yan with curious eyes, seemingly very eager to know this woman's exact identity.

While waiting for the tea, Lei Yan casually leaned back.

She looked toward Ye Tian beside her.

Though they had only just met, Lei Yan just felt good about Ye Tian, as if they were friends who had known each other for a long time.

"Tell me, is money really that important?"

Lei Yan couldn't figure it out.

Even though she didn't dislike Ye Tian, the matter of Lei Yushan forcing her to marry still made Lei Yan feel uncomfortable inside.

Could the development of the money house really be that important?

With this much money already, wouldn't it be better to just find some hidden place and live a peaceful life?

"..."

Those born into noble and wealthy families all tend to think this way, lacking a proper awareness of the dangers of the jianghu.

Ye Tian wasn't surprised either.

"Do you really want to become an inner disciple of Yueshan Sect?"

"Of course."

Lei Yan answered without the slightest hesitation — if she didn't want it, why would she have worked so hard?

"Then after becoming an inner disciple, would you want to go further — for instance, become the Gang Leader of Yueshan Sect?"

Bāngzhǔ? That's way too far off, isn't it.

But after thinking for a while, Lei Yan still nodded.

"I do."

"See, isn't that easy to understand?"

"?"

Lei Yan was stunned at first, then fell into thought.

People never know when to be content — once they get something good, they want something better.

"Desire is like a boulder on a high mountain — once it starts rolling, it cannot be stopped."

"..."

Lei Yan said nothing, just stared blankly at Ye Tian, probably not expecting Ye Tian to put things so bluntly, so cruelly.

Seeing that look on Lei Yan's face, Ye Tian smiled.

"From now on, following me, you'll see more things like this — consider it a bit of mental preparation in advance."

"..."

What the heck.

She grumbled a couple of times inside but didn't speak up to argue.

At that moment, Xiao Cao happened to bring the hot tea over.

"Right, didn't you say you have a forge under you? How about it — any decent weapons? Can you let me take a look?"

No matter how poised and easygoing she was, she was still a woman — discussing such topics still made her embarrassed.

She immediately turned her attention to the matter of weapons.

Ye Tian didn't refuse, but beckoned to Iron Fist.

Mei Yongning wasn't there — early that morning, he had taken Jin Qian Shu and Fei Yu away, clearly to arrange the matters Ye Tian had assigned the night before. Ye Tian didn't ask what Mei Yongning's specific plan was either.

Sometimes, letting go and leaving things to the people under you to handle brings unexpected pleasant surprises instead.

Besides, even if something went wrong, Ye Tian had other arrangements.

In a short while, Iron Fist brought over a Bǎi Duàn Dāo. The very first batch had yielded a hundred Bǎi Duàn Dāo, but after this string of consumption, the stock was already running low.

But gifting one to Lei Yan was still no problem at all.

,,,,,,,