Chapter 742: Chapter 566: Together Through Storm and Wind
After giving his orders, Yang Xiao went upstairs and used a key to open the door of a bedroom on the second floor. Inside, he saw a person curled up in a corner, bound by iron chains on his hands and feet, with a black hood over his head. On hearing footsteps approach, the person cowered in fear.
This man was none other than the member of the Resentment Sect who Xiao had kidnapped a while ago. This man wasn’t even an Angel Envoy. What truly drew Xiao to him was another identity, that of a lover of the Head of the Wounded Door, one of the Upper Three Gates of the Resentment Sect.
At first, Xiao had spared his life, thinking that one day he could make a deal with the Head of the Wounded Door and sell this man for a good price.
Now, with the situation in Xiang Ma Town becoming increasingly complicated, keeping this man longer would only lead to more trouble. It was time to find an opportunity to dispose of him.
As for what to exchange the man for, Xiao hadn’t decided yet. He walked over to check the man’s physical condition, as it had been so long since he’d last seen him.
He bent down, patted the man’s shoulder, and pinched the flesh on his body, only to be surprised to find that after being detained for so long, the man hadn’t lost weight but had actually gotten plumper. Xiao had never told Ling Yanyu to treat this man so well.
While Xiao was pondering, suddenly, a strange sensation came from his arm. The next second, a chilling scene unfolded. The hooded man raised his hand, gently stroked Xiao’s arm with the back of his hand, and before Xiao could react, the man turned around, flaunting his body, and lifted his buttocks, slightly swaying them towards Xiao.
"Motherfucker..." Xiao, like a startled rabbit, jumped up and kicked the flaunting man down. He then lifted his foot and began to fiercely kick the man, who emitted helpless whimpers and rolled and scrambled on the ground.
Unfortunately, restricted by the handcuffs and anklets, he couldn’t roll far, and Xiao caught up with him and gave him a good beating. When Ling Yanyu finished his tasks and returned, he pushed open the door only to see Xiao leaning against the wall, gasping for breath, while the man lay paralyzed on the ground, shoe prints on his clothes indicating what had just transpired.
"Had he... behaved that way to you before?" Xiao said, almost too ashamed to speak. He was straight, with a fondness for women, both mature ladies and young girls, with a preference for the former. As for the man before him, had it not been for his usefulness, Xiao might have killed him.
Seeing Yanyu’s expression, Xiao knew he had also suffered, but perhaps fearing he might accidentally kill or hurt the man and be unable to explain himself to Xiao, Yanyu had also held back from striking.
"Next time... next time he does that, beat him hard. If he dies, it’s on me," Xiao said intentionally louder for the man to hear clearly.
"Understood." Yanyu nodded, then went over and symbolically kicked the man a few times, playing out the scene convincingly.
After all was done, the two left the room, with Yanyu turning around to lock the door with the key, a habit for him by now.
Xiao walked over to sit on the sofa, gesturing for Yanyu to sit across from him after he had taken his seat. Over this period of engagement, Xiao had grown increasingly satisfied with this young man who could almost be considered his half-disciple. This person was decisive in killing, sharp-witted, and very loyal to Xiao, a promising talent indeed.
"Sect Hierarch, the bodies have been taken care of. They will be disposed of before dawn. The tricky part now is dealing with the mess left by Golden Snake," Yanyu reported.
"How do you think we should handle it?" Xiao asked, looking at him.
"Logically, having Guardian Yun deal with it would be the safest since she knows the ropes around Xiang Ma Town. But with Golden Snake dead, Guardian Yun’s family holds significant power inside the sect. If she swallows Golden Snake’s business too, I worry..." Yanyu trailed off, indicating that some things were better left unsaid.
"You’re worried that she will be hard to control in the future?" Xiao queried.
Yanyu nodded. "After all, Sect Hierarch, you handle myriad affairs daily and can’t stay in Xiang Ma Town all the time. Guardian Yun is beyond reproach and loyal to you, but as the saying goes, ’you never really know what’s in a person’s heart.’ With Golden Snake’s precedent, we must be vigilant."
"You make a good point, so what’s your suggestion?" Xiao looked at Yanyu, curiosity glinting in his eyes.
"I hope the Sect Hierarch would bring in someone new, ideally someone who can stand equal to Guardian Yun, and let this person take over Golden Snake’s business," Yanyu said earnestly.
Yang Xiao sighed, "It’s not so simple. It’s easy to find a skilled person, but a loyal skilled person is rare. Bringing in someone carelessly might even attract more trouble."
"So what do you plan to do?" Yanyu asked quietly.
"Not much to do, I’ll put you in charge of Golden Snake’s situation. You’re the chief steward of the sect, and your position is not inferior to that of Guardian Yun. pIteme deserves it," Xiao stated as soon as he had finished speaking, Yanyu was about to express his gratitude when Xiao gestured him to stop, and what he said next wiped the smile off Yanyu’s face. Xiao picked up his tea cup, took a light sip, and said casually, "Yanyu, next time you want something, just tell me directly. I don’t like people who try to be overly clever."
Realizing Xiao wasn’t joking, beads of cold sweat rolled down Yanyu’s temples. He stiffly forced a smile, "Sect Hierarch, I don’t understand what you mean?"
Xiao smiled too, placed down his tea cup, and looked at him, "Yanyu, you know I wouldn’t casually bring in an outsider to take over Golden Snake’s business. Additionally, to prevent any one faction from becoming too powerful, Guardian Yun isn’t suitable either. Originally, there were a few clever stewards under Golden Snake, but unfortunately, you got rid of them first. Now tell me, besides you, who else could handle Golden Snake’s business?"
Upon hearing this, Ling Yanyu did not hesitate and knelt down before Yang Xiao with a thud, knocking his head on the ground, "Sect Hierarch is wise, those managers really wanted to stir up trouble; that’s why I had Guardian Yun take action. I have evidence, everyone saw it!"
Yang Xiao sighed, stood up from the sofa, and slowly walked over to Ling Yanyu, helping him up with one hand, "Yanyu, you are a smart man, just think about it, those managers are just ordinary people. With Guardian Yun there, how much trouble could they really cause?"
"Moreover, even if they were at fault, we could have just controlled them first and dealt with everything upon my return. Furthermore, killing one or two would have been enough to set an example. Was there really a need to kill all six managers?"
Yang Xiao smiled, "Golden Snake is not a fool; he understands the principle that more people mean more gossip. He wouldn’t discuss such a deadly matter with too many people. I am certain that most of these six managers were wrongfully killed; they had no idea that Golden Snake was going to turn traitor."
Upon hearing this, Ling Yanyu’s body began to tremble violently; his legs wobbled. He knew all too well the methods of the man before him, and he hadn’t expected that a small cunning move would ruin both his future and his fate.
"Why... Why didn’t you say these things in front of everyone just now? Did you not want to be known for killing two sect officials in one day?" Ling Yanyu mustered the courage to retort, reasoning that if his fate was sealed, he might as well die understanding why.
Yang Xiao shook his head and sighed, "Yanyu, you are wrong again. After all, you are the chief steward of the sect, and I personally promoted you. Embarrassing you in public is embarrassing myself. How would you manage to command respect from the sect members after that?"
"After all..." Ling Yanyu was stunned; despite his schemes being exposed, he hadn’t expected that there could still be an ’after all.’
Waving his hand for Ling Yanyu to sit down, Yang Xiao walked back to the sofa and sat down at the head, leaning back, and said with depth, "Yanyu, killing a few people is nothing serious. Wanting to secure this position and fight for one’s own interests is natural. I don’t blame you, but I dislike being deceived, especially by you."
"You are a person I value highly. I regard you as half a disciple and the first friend I made in Xiang Ma Town—the person I trust the most here. Yet, to think that you would scheme against me for such trivial gains, Yanyu, you deeply disappoint me," Yang Xiao sighed.
With a thud, Ling Yanyu knelt down again, a lecture from his leader bringing tears to his eyes. He kept kowtowing to Yang Xiao until his forehead bled, "Sect Hierarch, I was wrong. I have let you down; I have betrayed your trust..."
After dozens of bows, Yang Xiao finally got up, helped him to his feet, and looking at Ling Yanyu’s remorsefully ashamed face, Yang Xiao patted his arm, "Alright, let’s not speak of these matters anymore. Come with me."
Puzzled, Ling Yanyu followed Yang Xiao to a nearby table. On the table, there was a backpack. Opening it, Yang Xiao took out three magic artifacts: a square enamel teacup, a paper fan, and a telescoping walking stick—all recent spoils of war.
"These are..." Ling Yanyu recognized the paper fan as Golden Snake’s magic artifact immediately.
"Yanyu, I had intended to promote you before, but you are just a regular person. Seeing your significant contributions within the sect, I thought of finding a fine magic artifact for you. With it, you would become an Angel Envoy, possessing strength to match Guardian Yun. Then, everything else would be easier to discuss, wouldn’t it?" Yang Xiao said with a slight smile.
Moved to the verge of tears, Ling Yanyu started to kneel and kowtow again, but before he could kneel, Yang Xiao held him up, "You and I are master and disciple; there’s no need for such formalities."
Pointing downwards, Yang Xiao continued, "They, after all, are outsiders, but you, you are my man. Do you understand this relationship?"
"I understand!" Ling Yanyu nodded repeatedly, disregarding Yang Xiao’s support and insisted on kneeling on the floor, striking his head heavily on the ground, and refusing to rise, "Sect Hierarch, your profound kindness I shall never forget. I, Ling Yanyu, am willing to die for you!"
"Good, I, too, will never mistreat you in the future. As master and disciple, we will face all storms together," Yang Xiao stood erect and accepted this bow from Ling Yanyu.
"Also, Guardian Yun is not a simple person; you should be more cautious," Yang Xiao cautioned, "As for the Golden Snake matter, it’s not certain she was unaware beforehand."
"What?!" It was now Ling Yanyu’s turn to be shocked.
Yang Xiao took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across the window, "I’ve examined the corpses that lay on the ground earlier; they were all ordinary people, not a single Angel Envoy among them. What does this signify?"
"Only ordinary people can’t contend with us, especially with Guardian Yun here, unless..." Ling Yanyu understood immediately, his pupils sharply constricting, "Guardian Yun knew about this. She, like Golden Snake, has betrayed us!"
"That’s right, I can only think of this reason too. However, she didn’t expect that Peace Hotel would stand on our side, nor did she imagine that the group hiding in Qinghe Town would fail to kill me, so she dared not make a move," Yang Xiao analyzed, "Moreover, Guardian Yun and Golden Snake are operating on separate tracks; Golden Snake is visible while Guardian Yun stays hidden. Golden Snake didn’t know about Guardian Yun’s involvement; otherwise, under severe torture, he wouldn’t have stayed silent."
Pausing for a moment, a hint of murderous intent flashed in Ling Yanyu’s eyes, "So, what should we do now? Do we get rid of her?"
"No," Yang Xiao shook his head, "Let’s keep her for now. We have no one else to rely on, and with her here, we still have someone to uphold the sect’s facade. After this incident, she must be very scared, unsure of my relationship with the hotel, and unclear about my true strength. She certainly won’t dare make a move in the near future."
After finishing, Yang Xiao turned his head and instructed, "I can’t show my hand in this matter. Find a chance to give her a warning, but remember, don’t make it too obvious; imply what you mean."
"Understood!" Ling Yanyu nodded emphatically.
