Chapter 191: Chapter 190: Is There Any Other Possibility?
"Where are the oranges?"
At the book stall, seeing that White Night returned empty-handed, Qing Lan asked curiously.
"I ate them on the way here," White Night shrugged. "Are you done listening? Let’s go."
Qing Lan stood up and held his hand, "You didn’t go to buy oranges at all."
"Then what do you think I was doing?"
"Meeting a woman in secret?"
"Nonsense." White Night said confidently, "Why would I meet in secret? If I had another woman, I’d surely bring her home to sleep with us..."
As Qing Lan listened, she felt increasingly uncomfortable. She gently pressed her delicate fingers on White Night’s waist and gave it a sharp twist!
White Night winced and shook off Qing Lan’s hand, saying angrily, "What are you doing! You get mad at me seeing other women too? Who do you think you are?"
"Of course I’m mad!" Qing Lan said, fuming, "Just hearing you say it makes me angry! I’m already feeling terrible! Do you expect me to just endure it?!"
"I may not have the right to be mad at you, and maybe I’m not anyone to you, but I am mad, and I hate it when you don’t care about me like this!"
In the background, Mi Die sensed trouble and quickly stepped forward, intending to mediate the couple, filled with complaints:
Master, you used to be so respectful to Qing Lan. Why do you show your true colors after winning her over?
Women in love are easy to appease. Say a few sweet words and she’ll willingly do anything for you. Why say things that make women jealous?
Talking about seeing other women... You can barely handle just Qing Lan, I’ve seen you putting goji berries in your Five-Flower Tea, so why boast about things you clearly can’t do?
And Qing Lan too, she used to put on airs of insecurity and self-pity. I thought she was already prepared for it.
After all, with the status of a Jing Family patriarch, it’s impossible to have only one wife. Even the disciplined Jing Qingfu had three wives and an illegitimate child outside. It’s common for patriarchs of other merchant associations to have a dozen or more concubines. Powerful individuals naturally have many concubines, everyone knows this.
Moreover, Qing Lan’s status isn’t suitable for a main wife; she doesn’t even compare to Feiwei—though Feiwei is a servant, she at least grew up in the Jing Family and remains untarnished.
Even if the master loves her to death, the most she could be is a minor concubine. How did she become so clueless overnight, causing such a fuss—does she really expect the master to be exclusively hers for life?
Just as Mi Die was walking over, White Night, who had been wearing a scowl, suddenly grinned, patted Qing Lan’s little forehead, and wiped away her slight tears.
"Remember what you just said," White Night said. "You’re already an independent girl. Speak with strength. Next time, if I say something out of line again, make sure you twist my ear and tell me off."
"Never let anyone force you to choose between two options. If someone does, just walk away from them."
"Don’t be someone’s backup plan, even if that someone is me."
Watching the two of them sweetly continue their stroll, Mi Die shook her head, feeling truly old and out of touch with the times.
Not far away, Wen Hong hid at the corner of the wall, watching their departing figures with a hint of confusion on her face.
...
...
That evening, the sign "In Consultation" hung outside Wen Hong’s clinic. Yin Minghong and Mu Qingmei came in, attempting to keep a low profile.
"What’s up? I’m quite busy, so let’s get this over with quickly," Yin Minghong said casually as he sat down, adopting the demeanor of a busy big boss.
But in reality, he was just a 996 office worker.
These days, Yin Minghong was riding high. Although the Linhai Army had temporarily halted Jing Zhengwei’s hunt for Jing Family members, just the removal of Jing Suoke as the manager of the Redneck Tobacco Industry was enough for Yin Minghong to process for a while.
Yes, Jing Zhengwei temporarily assigned the tobacco industry to Yin Minghong, suggesting that he quickly clear out those "loyal parasites" of Jing Suoke from the tobacco factory family, which Yin Minghong naturally did. In just a couple of days, he had ousted several supervisors and supported a few factory cadres, one of whom was a White Night Walker.
Yin Minghong wanted to fill key positions with White Night members, but there weren’t many White Night Walkers in the tobacco factory.
If Star Engraving County was the limit of White Night, everyone in the county understood White Night.
Then Xuanzhu County was the lower limit of White Night.
Joining White Night? No interest, not familiar, farewell!
Furthermore, Yin Minghong had to heed his previous statements about promoting capable cadres. If he showed favoritism, wouldn’t the factory workers see him as no different from Jing Suoke?
Apart from that, Yin Minghong had a few indefinable, unspoken, and somewhat odd personal thoughts.
He genuinely wished the reforms wouldn’t negatively affect the tobacco factory’s revenue.
Because while he managed the factory’s revenue, he had the autonomy to improve workers’ benefits. If revenue decreased, those benefits would disappear.
Ultimately, he did all of this just to offer the common people a "better" life.
Moreover...
Yin Minghong didn’t want to disappoint Jing Zhengwei.
That’s right, although he knew Jing Zhengwei was an evil Silver Blood merchant, a capitalist capable of any atrocity, and an exploiter of tens of thousands of workers.
But.
Jing Zhengwei had genuinely offered him unimaginable trust.
Yin Minghong could clearly sense that Jing Zhengwei’s words to him weren’t false; he truly hoped Yin Minghong would seize the opportunity, willing to enact reforms, cease nepotism, and promote talented individuals, even agreeing to Yin Minghong’s request to "increase wages to motivate workers."
White Night members, in some respects, were quite straightforward. Alternatively, in Xuanzhu County’s current situation, those who still worked for White Night were mostly idealists.
And idealists, their greatest weakness was not being able to betray their own conscience.
Jing Zhengwei’s kindness to Yin Minghong surpassed the moral standard of Xuanzhu County by leaps and bounds.
Reciprocate a gesture of a king with the treatment of a king.
If Yin Minghong didn’t bear no resemblance to Jing Zhengwei at all, he would’ve suspected that he was a Jing Family illegitimate child or that his never-seen father had cuckolded Jing Qingfu.
Occasionally, when reporting to Jing Zhengwei, Yin Minghong would even feel a sense of guilt.
He even pondered whether he should invite Jing Zhengwei into the warm family of White Night, but a shred of sanity stopped him.
Although Yin Minghong had long decided to remain forever loyal to White Night, Jing Zhengwei’s trust left him internally conflicted.
Therefore, he resolved that before White Night overthrew Xuanzhu County as long as Jing Zhengwei didn’t order him to exploit the workers and still trusted him, he would wholeheartedly serve Jing Zhengwei.
If Jing Zhengwei ceased his wickedness, Yin Minghong was even willing to protect him with his life in the future.
Of course, that is if White Night truly liberated Xuanzhu County and if Yin Minghong lived to see that day.
"I’m not busy," Mu Qingmei said, sipping tea. "I already finished the draft for this week’s edition."
Wen Hong glanced at her, "The unscrupulous story of a ’Martial Artist Mrs. Bai secretly cheating on her husband’?"
Mu Qingmei blushed and hurriedly said, "Sister Wen, what exactly did you call us here for?"
Wen Hong didn’t tease Mu Qingmei, she directly said, "Today I exchanged information with the ’Shadow Whisper’..."
"What? The ’Shadow Whisper’ contacted us again?" Yin Minghong was dumbfounded, "How come I didn’t know?"
"Don’t worry about it, the last time we met, she gave me a special contact method." Wen Hong said, "In any case, the Silver Blood Association is currently under threat from the Linhai Army..."
She briefly spoke about the Silver Blood meetings, the negotiation group’s trip to the Linhai Army, and said, "This information is still top secret at the moment, but we need to be prepared. If the assassination fails, causing the Linhai Army’s fury to point their troops at Xuanzhu, we need to seize the opportunity to raise a force under the premise of resisting foreign enemies."
Yin Minghong rubbed his chin, "The Silver Blood meeting is such classified information, and the ’Shadow Whisper’ can know it...?"
Mu Qingmei scratched her head and said, "Shouldn’t we help the Linhai Army? Send someone to inform the Linhai Army to kill the entire negotiation group, wouldn’t that wipe out the younger generation of the Silver Blood Association?"
"Absolutely not." Wen Hong quickly said, "First of all, Blue Flame is a life-and-death enemy to the White Night as well. If the Silver Blood Association can assassinate him, it would also be beneficial to the White Night."
"Besides,"
Wen Hong paused, "the ’Shadow Whisper’ told me that if Jing Zhengwei can successfully return and become the president of the Silver Blood Association, then she is confident she can persuade Jing Zhengwei to cooperate with us."
"What!?"
The most intense reaction came from Yin Minghong, he exclaimed with delight, "Jing Zhengwei can join the White Night?"
"Don’t get so excited." Wen Hong said, "Didn’t you hear that there are many prerequisites? First, Jing Zhengwei has to return alive, then become president, and the ’Shadow Whisper’ has to successfully persuade him."
"Even so, whether Jing Zhengwei will join is another question; he might just want to use the White Night to gain benefits and eliminate dissent. Of course, even in that case, the White Night will undoubtedly grow rapidly because of it."
Yin Minghong asked confusedly, "Why can’t we persuade now?"
"Because Jing Zhengwei may not be able to return alive."
"Then persuade him not to go!"
"That is Jing Zhengwei’s own decision, the ’Shadow Whisper’ also has no ability..."
"I’ll persuade him!" Yin Minghong said, "Or I can go in his place! Even if I return alive, there’s no way I can become the president of the Silver Blood Association, that position will surely still go to Jing Zhengwei."
Mu Qingmei angrily said, "Stop, stop, stop, Yin Minghong, do you know what you’re saying? You want to risk your life for that scoundrel Jing Zhengwei?"
"But if he’s willing to join the White Night, the impact he can make is much greater than mine!" Yin Minghong said, "To be honest, I feel Jing Zhengwei has changed recently, I’ve even considered bringing him into the White Night, he indeed possesses qualities I think White Night Walkers need."
"And Qing Mei, haven’t you noticed anything?" Yin Minghong turned to look at Mu Qingmei, "I’ve also read the ’Youth Daily’, and I often interact with the workers, I understand the influence of the ’Youth Daily’ on them — they become disillusioned, full of resentment, indignant, and jealous."
"They’ve become unwilling to accept fate."
"But—"
"Mu Qingmei! I don’t know how much prejudice you still hold against him, but I only care about the matter, not the person." Yin Minghong said loudly, "Jing Zhengwei has changed! He might stand with us!"
"Why are you shouting so loudly!"
Mu Qingmei suddenly stood up, and Yin Minghong immediately tensed up and stepped back, assuming a defensive posture.
Knock knock.
At this moment, there was a knock on the door, and Wen Hong said, "Who?"
"Frost Needle." Glory, dressed in coarse clothing like a young worker, pushed the door open and entered, pretending not to see Mu Qingmei and Yin Minghong’s little drama, and asked, "Medical Officer Wen, what did you call me for?"
"I have a task for you." Wen Hong said, "Arrange a secret route from Xuanzhu County to Yanjing. In the next few days, there might be a need to arrange for an important person to leave."
Glory asked, "How many people? Male or female? Age? Appearance?"
"A beautiful woman around eighteen years old."
"Understood, anything else?"
"That’s all, you can leave first."
After Glory left, Mu Qingmei and Yin Minghong exchanged glances, silently looking at Wen Hong.
Wen Hong didn’t keep them in suspense: "This was requested by the ’Shadow Whisper’. She said that if Jing Zhengwei dies, then she loses the meaning of continuing to hide, and she hopes to leave here and start anew in Yanjing."
Yin Minghong’s expression changed: "So the ’Shadow Whisper’ is really..."
Mu Qingmei picked up the thread: "Chief Editor Qing Lan? No wonder she knows even the secrets of the Silver Blood meetings — hmph, scoundrels like Jing Zhengwei really love to boast to women."
"So, you don’t need to persuade Jing Zhengwei anymore." Wen Hong said, "Even his companion can’t persuade him, do you think you, a rough henchman, can shake Jing Zhengwei’s decision?"
"I can die in his place—"
"But you can’t become the president of the Silver Blood Association in his place."
Wen Hong shook her head: "It’s not enough to just return to become president, you also need to successfully ally with Chenfeng Blue Flame. This is something you can’t do, only the heir of the top ten merchant groups is qualified to negotiate with Blue Flame."
Yin Minghong sat down dejectedly.
"Why must he become president to draw Jing Zhengwei in? If the ’Shadow Whisper’ could get Jing Zhengwei to join us, the White Night, earlier—"
Wen Hong sneered, "If you hope everyone will voluntarily join the White Night, then I suggest you go to bed early, you can dream of anything."
"Furthermore, it makes sense for Jing Zhengwei to cooperate with the White Night only after becoming president."
"If he’s just the Patriarch of the Jing Family, all he can do is try to take care of the Jing Family’s workers and give space for the White Night’s development. Once the Silver Blood Association discovers his actions, it will be the downfall of both the Jing Family and the White Night."
"But after becoming president, he has many means to provide space for the growth of the working class without affecting himself, and even cooperate with us to force other Silver Blood merchant groups to gradually improve worker treatment."
"We might even succeed in overthrowing the Silver Blood Association without bloodshed... or rather, only the blood of the ruling class."
Mu Qingmei suddenly said, "So, Qing Lan is ’Shadow Whisper’, and there is no other ’Shadow Whisper’?"
Wen Hong curiously asked, "No, why do you ask?"
"I always feel like she has another lover..." Mu Qingmei said painfully, "I used to think ’Shadow Whisper’ was Qing Lan’s lover, but now that Qing Lan is ’Shadow Whisper’, then who is her lover?"
Wen Hong’s eyes glinted, "That’s not the main point. By the way, Mu Qingmei, you should pay more attention to protecting Qing Lan every day, but there’s no need to greet her specially, she absolutely cannot reveal her relationship with the White Night in public, just act as usual."
"If Jing Zhengwei really doesn’t come back, you should escort the ’Shadow Whisper’ away with Glory to Yanjing."
Mu Qingmei hesitated and nodded, but felt something was off inside.
"I still feel like ’Shadow Whisper’ isn’t Qing Lan," she said.
"Then what else?"
Wen Hong asked back:
"Other than being Qing Lan, is there any other possibility for ’Shadow Whisper’?"