Chapter 2598 — Li Cihua's Departure
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
In Songshan City, Li Cihua received a warning from Zou Tiandi. At first Li Cihua wanted to fly into a rage—a piddling Zou family, a third-rate clan in Songshan City at best, was nothing compared to him, no more than the sort of figure Zhong Fabai had once been!
But behind Zou Tiandi stood Wei Zhao, and Li Cihua could not quite gauge Zou Tiandi's intent, so he questioned him closely—and at the first round of questions, he was startled half to death! It was indeed Wei Zhao's will; moreover, Wei Zhao had arranged for another of his underlings, the Hidden Zhuang family, to come to Songshan City and take over some of Li Cihua's business!
This left Li Cihua utterly despondent! How had the Hidden Zhuang family become Wei Zhao's underlings? Had it been only Zou Tiandi, Li Cihua could still have stood his ground—after all, he had seen for himself that Wei Zhao was not especially close to the Zou family, and that the Zou family had merely volunteered to play the running dog. But with the Hidden Zhuang family in the picture, this was no longer something Li Cihua could contend with alone. So after ending his call with Zou Tiandi, Li Cihua immediately reported the matter to Zhao Qibing and asked him to decide.
"Hello?" Zhao Qibing was in excellent spirits, having gained another early Earth-rank enforcer. Though he himself was an early Earth-rank expert, his fighting strength was markedly inferior—built up entirely by piling on pills, and gravely lacking in real combat experience—so he considered Zhu the Second's addition a fine thing indeed. At this moment his mood was buoyant. "Cihua, is something the matter?"
"Young Master Bing, Zou Tiandi came to see me just now..." Li Cihua then recounted to Zhao Qibing how Zou Tiandi, on behalf of Wei Zhao and the Hidden Zhuang family, meant to take over the business in Songshan City. In the past, in Songshan City's entertainment trade, Li Cihua had held shares here and there; though he took no part in running things, he had never stinted on collecting his cut for doing nothing, and to simply pull out now would leave him most reluctant.
"What? The Hidden Zhuang family has become Wei Zhao's underlings too?" Zhao Qibing was both shocked and furious at Li Cihua's report. He had never imagined that the Hidden Zhuang family would throw in their lot with Wei Zhao! It struck him as somewhat fantastical. "Is this news true or false?"
"I am not entirely certain either, but Zou Tiandi swore to it most solemnly. Surely he would not dare joke about a matter concerning Wei Zhao and the Hidden Zhuang family? He does not have the nerve for it—he can afford to offend neither of the two!" Li Cihua said. This too was why he had not flown into a rage: given Zou Tiandi's timidity, he ought not to speak wildly about such things.
"Hmm... Very well, let me make some inquiries and I will get back to you." Zhao Qibing hung up, then immediately dialed Zhuang Niaodao.
At that moment, Zhuang Niaodao had already received the family's decision and formally become Wei Zhao's underling. Zhuang Niaoqiang quietly wiped the cold sweat from his brow—thank goodness he had not offended Wei Zhao during this time. Though he had dined a few times with You Panhu and Li Biaohan, he had taken no part in any move against Wei Zhao; ever since the clash at the start of the term, he could say with a clear conscience that he had never crossed Wei Zhao, and that was a relief.
Although he was the future young patriarch of the Hidden Zhuang family, he knew his own measure. He was not a ** practitioner of any particularly high rank, and relied mostly on his two younger brothers; and if Wei Zhao did not acknowledge him, his claim to the patriarch's seat would be a hundred and twenty percent down the drain!