Chapter 186: One of us!

Yang Tiejiang felt his brain was taking root and sprouting.

And Chen Wuji was now quite confused.

What merit and ability does he really have!

"Those few people were dumped on you, I don't care anymore." Chen Wuji said, "They're such high officials; if they really insist on holding onto me, I don't know what to do."

Let's just take it step by step; worst case, we'll blast it.

He lacks the ability to wrestle with these local bigwigs, but he's not short of the bloody courage to turn their old nest into a wasteland; if he can't settle it within the rules, he'll step outside the rules and take them on.

Chen Xingyuan lounged in his chair, languid, waved at Chen Wuji, and said, "Got it. If you have something to do, go attend to it; I'll handle this."

"I originally wanted to throw my weight around and act big, but now there's no show to put on." Chen Wuji shook his head with regret, looked at Yang Tiejiang, and said, "Old Yang, I think I've messed things up."

Yang Tiejiang choked angrily, "You're only telling me this now?"

"Don't overthink it; I just noticed your mood seemed off, so I took responsibility—though the one who acted was you." Chen Wuji smiled, "There shouldn't be anything you can't let go of, right?"

Yang Tiejiang stared, stunned, "You damn... how did you suddenly become so shameless?"

Chen Wuji gave a laugh, waved at Chen Xingyuan, and left the office with Yang Tiejiang before speaking seriously: "I didn't expect the other side's background to be this big. If there's something you can't let go of, we can discuss it together; it's just a minor quarrel, not a situation with no room for maneuver. Are you worried this will affect the shop and the clan's younger members?"

Yang Tiejiang glanced at Chen Wuji, "Damn it, the one who can't let go of this is you!"

Who the hell are you, really?

"Don't worry, this matter isn't enough to weigh on my mind." Yang Tiejiang said in a low voice.

"In this city, countless people have deeper backgrounds than ours; I wouldn't casually run into even a little trouble, yet I'm terrified of heaven and earth, panicking. I agreed to kill someone without asking why, so do you really think this small matter could worry me?"

"Even if you don't provoke them, I never intended to give them a pleasant face, to seize by force and bully excessively; my backbone isn't that soft yet, and I couldn't just hand over what you've worked hard to obtain."

Chen Wuji chuckled, "Actually I think the same way, but you're really coming across as dull and gloomy."

That's because I've been damn thinking about you.

Yang Tiejiang cursed silently, then said wistfully, "I feel like I've jumped onto your pirate ship; I have no problem helping you, but I want to know what your goal is—this shouldn't put you in a difficult position, should it?"

"My goal?" This question caught Chen Wuji off guard. "I feel like I don't really have a goal; if I must name one, it would be to make big money—I don't want to live those poor days anymore."

Yang Tiejiang's eyes were deep, he spoke calmly, "If you have unspeakable difficulties, I won't press you; we two are now like grasshoppers on the same rope. But if I discover you're using me, don't blame me for my knife being too sharp. At that point, there will be no such thing as old affection."

Chen Wuji suddenly looked at Yang Tiejiang.

His attitude was a bit strange.

"Did you misunderstand something? Is it because of Drunken Eight Immortals?" Chen Wuji asked.

"Yes and no." Yang Tiejiang's already fierce face grew a bit colder.

Chen Wuji knew this manner all too well; when they first met, he was exactly that unapproachable, ghostly type.

Chen Wuji could clearly feel that a rift had arisen between them at this moment.

After carefully reviewing recent events, Chen Wuji suddenly laughed, "Do you suspect I'm someone from the officialdom?"

Yang Tiejiang didn't speak, but that amounted to tacit agreement.

Seeing him like that, Chen Wuji understood, "I have no official position, but I know someone who does; Drunken Eight Immortals helped me because our interests aligned, and I'm going after the Zhang family."

"As for Constable Chen, as you can see, we both share the Chen surname. So do you still have any doubts? Old Yang, you can ask me directly about anything; there's no need to scare me—I'm timid."

Yang Tiejiang clenched his face; that fierce, menacing look of his was now somewhat flushed.

He had been holding in that fury for a while, then suddenly said, "I once rebelled, following the Western King; I served as a general under him. After that dog of a Western King surrendered to the court, I led six hundred hometown brothers across Shenxian Ling and have been hiding my name here."

"That old coot at the coffin shop was the Western King's chief strategist back then; he came to Yunan to make coffins, not because he liked it, but because he vowed to spend his lifetime making a coffin for the Western King."

Chen Wuji flicked his ears, "This secret is hard to hear; damn, I'm actually doing business with a rebel leader—another death penalty added."

"The only reason I agreed to you so quickly is that I'm short on silver." Yang Tiejiang ignored Chen Wuji's muttering and continued.

"Of those six hundred hometown brothers who followed me down from Shenxian Ling, fewer than four hundred remain. I brought them here, responsible for their livelihoods and even more for the families of those who died in battle. I'm short on money, and what you give can earn a profit."

"I know, I know, quit nagging—I'm really afraid of living too long!" Chen Wuji said.

Yang Tiejiang glanced at Chen Wuji, "Some things really need to be frank; we're basically grasshoppers on the same rope right now, and coincidentally, I know how the Chen clan works."

"It's all in the past; now you and I are just humble commoners." Chen Wuji gave a slight grin, "Bullied by a lackey, and still have to worry about how to deal with it—just humble commoners."

Yang Tiejiang said indifferently, "No problem—if the Zhangs are gone, the Lus can be just as finished. We humble commoners all know Yunan is a den of bandits, yet those court officials seem unaware."

"If we were merely slaughter-ready livestock, who would leave home and travel a thousand miles to get here?"

Chen Wuji laughed.

This feeling of shared purpose—well, it's actually quite nice.

The rift that had appeared less than a quarter hour ago disappeared.

Nowadays, whether Chen Wuji or Yang Tiejiang looks at the other, they seem more like comrades.

"It's almost noon—let's find somewhere to eat; the goods from Hengtong Business Business Business Business Business have been delivered!" Chen Wuji said.

Yang Tiejiang said, "Why spend that silver? You could just cook yourself."

"It's precisely because I don't want to cook!" Chen Wuji said earnestly.

"Then let Fuwa do it!"

"That works—let's make some jar liquor and have a drink."

Yang Tiejiang nodded heavily in agreement, "We should have a drink; I'll go call that old coot at the coffin shop—our headache of a matter shouldn't be a big deal for him."

"For such a small matter, to summon a chief strategist to plan—is that appropriate?" Chen Wuji asked.

Yang Tiejiang gave a soft snort, "What a joke of a chief strategist—he's just a coffin maker now!"