Chapter 180: Chapter 179: Be Prepared
The white-haired assassin.
Le Yu almost thought Yin Yinyin had come back from the dead.
But he took a closer look and realized that this white-haired assassin looked quite different from Yin Yinyin—in short, he wasn’t so damn effeminate.
"Maybe it was because all white-haired assassins just didn’t get any sun, spent years in darkness, suffered through painful cultivation techniques until they lost their appetites, and grew a full head of white hair. So white-haired assassins always ended up fitting that skinny, pale, and youthful pretty-boy aesthetic, which made them all look pretty much the same."
Ting Gu suddenly started coughing violently, so Ting Jiu quickly helped him put his mouthpiece back and introduced, "This is Mr. Chen."
He didn’t bother giving any further introduction, since just seeing Chen’s white hair was more than enough for everyone.
As a ’strategic partner’ of the Silver Blood Association, most of its members already knew quite a bit about the assassin organization—after all, a sizable chunk of their ’membership dues’ and ’Silver Blood tax’ went directly to hiring assassins to kill off the competition.
For Xuanzhu to rise as the Shining City’s number one industrial zone, it needed two basic conditions: market access and technical prowess.
If other areas started producing products of the same level or a mountain of cheap knockoffs, just send over a white-haired assassin to kill the boss and the plant manager, spark some chaos, and the Xuanzhu merchants would swoop in to cut a deal and snatch the market for themselves.
Or if some place turned out an even better product, just have the white-haired assassin get rid of the boss, then take the chance to poach the core tech or the old master craftsmen. If they refused, send in the assassin to sabotage their production line or rough up the master craftsmen.
Basically, nobody was allowed to compete with the Silver Blood for business, and nobody could have tech the Silver Blood didn’t—otherwise ’someone else’ would soon become ’no one at all.’
The business world operated like a battlefield; directly and efficiently destroying the competition was the quickest way to win, hands down.
The reason the Silver Blood Association and the assassin organization could be so brazen came down to this: merchants had the lowest status in the Shining City, mostly just a bunch of rich folks’ purse-holders from noble clans—if one died, they’d just swap in a new one. No one was going to make a fuss about it.
It’s not like nobody wanted to go up against Silver Blood, but they had turned Xuanzhu County into a steel fortress. Even White Night couldn’t stir up a storm, never mind other merchants from outside, and even the nobles themselves couldn’t touch Silver Blood at all.
As for hiring the assassin organization to go after Silver Blood—forget it; no matter how much money you spent, it was off the table.
The assassin organization never took jobs against Silver Blood for more than one reason. Sure, Silver Blood spent a fortune supporting the assassins in the first place, but there was an even bigger reason: apart from the Imperial Court, Silver Blood was the richest potential client. If they took money to kill Silver Blood’s own, Silver Blood would never hire them again. "Wouldn’t that be the dumbest business move ever?"
The assassination market was a buyer’s market anyway—these days, most killings were handled personally, and clients who could afford to hire real assassins were rare. Golden clients like Silver Blood? Only an idiot would go against them.
Ting Jiu said, "Mr. Chen, I’ll leave the next part to you, all right?"
Chen nodded and said calmly, "The one leading the Linhai Army to invade Dongyang was Chief General Lan Yan, newly promoted by Lv Zhong. The Linhai front lines just overcame the Sea Barbarians’ ’Midyear Grand Sacrifice,’ so for the time being, all three defense lines aren’t facing any external threats. Lv Zhong pulled troops from all three lines and quickly merged them for the operation—a sharp-blade tactic: he sent five thousand shock troops to launch a night raid on Nanyang Pass, took it overnight, and totally caught the Heyang Army off guard."
Lan Yan...
After months of not hearing that name, Le Yu felt a strange sense of deja vu.
"Le Yu’s feelings about this man were more complicated than ever. He sure as hell didn’t like the guy; as the ultimate puppet master behind Star Engraving County, Lan Yan had basically toyed with Le Yu at every turn. Honestly, both times Le Yu had to take the fall for Qian Yuliu and Yin Yinyin, Lan Yan was the one behind it all."
"Still, because Le Yu wasn’t either of those two, he’d never fully embraced their messy ties to Lan Yan, and that allowed him to step back and judge Lan Yan’s actions for what they were."
"The man was powerful. Calculated as hell. Just those two traits were enough to earn respect, never mind his looks and his natural charisma, his way with people, and the way he handled his subordinates."
"Back when Le Yu was with the Statistical Department, almost all the rank and file were diehard Lan Yan fans. There were even some crazed groupies talking about having his babies, if that said anything about his personal charm."
"Even if they were enemies now, Le Yu had to admit: Lan Yan was a perfectly terrifying and worthy rival."
"Le Yu had no desire to face off with Lan Yan again, but if he had to go up against him, he wouldn’t mind—hell, he’d probably get a kick out of it."
"That was just the kind of man Lan Yan was. Losing to him didn’t make you despair, but beating him would give you that real thrill of conquering another man (?). At least, that was how Le Yu saw it."
What mattered even more was that Le Yu had already lost to Yin Yinyin, but he’d never get another shot at revenge.
But with Lan Yan—he still had a chance to settle the score!
"The Heyang Army didn’t lose just because they suck," Chen continued, "Sure, Heyang’s equipment was better, but Dongyang’s defenses weren’t Sea Barbarian territory, so the Heyang troops didn’t have anywhere near the real combat experience of the Linhai Army. Losing was practically inevitable."
"But the Linhai Army was really the result of merging three separate forces. Years of old grudges and shady rivalries made it almost impossible to unify them. According to our intel, Chief General Lan Yan was the linchpin. Without him, there’s no way the three could have been commanded together."
"The moment Lan Yan dies, those three vice generals will fall back into infighting over power, and with Lv Zhong worrying that someone else will snatch the military command, you can bet he’ll force a retreat. Crisis: solved."
The Silver Blood members’ faces lit up—some even let out long sighs of relief, as if they’d set down a heavy burden and now could sip their tea in peace.
Only Le Yu blinked slowly.
Assassinate Lan Yan?
The hundreds of dead Backlight Particles of Star Engraving County would totally give you all a thumbs up.
"It wasn’t that Le Yu looked down on them—it’s just that he knew Yin Yinyin. Yin Yinyin wasn’t the type to quietly play pawn for anyone. Even when Lan Yan thought he had him, Yin Yinyin was busy figuring out how to stick it to him in return."
"In the end, though, Yin Yinyin still went right on acting the perfect tool."
"If he’d actually had a shot at winning, who wouldn’t want to smash in their enemy’s head?"
"It’s just that Lan Yan is careful and cunning as hell and tough as nails. Even our Hidden Sword assassins have to get up close to have a shot at killing him, and even then, he probably keeps a light source on him at all times. Chances are, our Hidden Sword Assassins would still lose."
"But the Silver Blood Association is paying big this time, so the boss gave me this..."
Chen pulled out a pale-purple veil from inside his coat.
The veil was thin as a cicada’s wing and looked like stuff meant for some sultry rich lady’s face, but the second the Silver Blood members laid eyes on it, a wave of burning rage shot through their bodies.
Not lust—rage.
At that moment, Iron Wrist’s hand began trembling ever so slightly. Le Yu narrowed his eyes, already guessing where this veil had come from—
"Extreme Divine Weapon: Veil of Strife." Chen tucked the veil away again and said flatly, "It can create a zone of absolute darkness. Paired with our Hidden Sword Assassins’ skills, it’s enough to kill Lan Yan ten times over."
"So the question now is, does the Silver Blood Association have a way for me to get close to Lan Yan?"
"We do."
Ting Gu took several heavy drags of black vapor, finally catching his breath. He said coldly, "Aside from demanding enormous material support from Dongyang, the Linhai commander also asked to meet face-to-face with the Silver Blood president."
"We’ll prepare one batch of supplies, making it clear that collecting funds and food isn’t easy, so deliveries will have to come in stages. This first shipment can go straight to the Linhai Army—and if Lan Yan actually dies, odds are those guys will start fighting over the profits, too."
"All you have to do is follow the Silver Blood president to the Linhai Army, and you’ll definitely get your chance to see Lan Yan."
Chen nodded and asked, "But, President, are you sure your body can handle such a long ordeal, or are you already prepared not to make it back?"
"Don’t worry, I’m ready."
Ting Gu took a long, deep drag on his smoky hookah and asked, almost lazily, "So, who’s for assassinating Lan Yan, and who’s against?"
"For!" everyone shouted in unison, their eyes shining with respect and admiration for President Ting Gu.
Ooooh, who would have thought the president was so noble? He’s the very model of a merchant for us!
Ting Gu for ten thousand lifetimes!
We’ll never forget your sacrifice!
Ting Gu nodded and said, "Good, then let’s move to the second item on the agenda—"
"Choosing a new president."
He coughed twice, pressed his hand to his lower back, and gave a deep sigh. "This old body just can’t handle rushing around anymore. Saving Silver Blood is a task fit for you young folks."
"I’m fully prepared to step down and let someone else take over."
Le Yu: "..."
Silver Blood members: "..."
"By ’prepared,’ did he mean getting ready to shove this shit job off onto the next guy?"