Chapter 4354 — A Conspiracy in the Shadows
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
In Qi Wenmo's presence, Cheng Qitian had never once come out ahead. That he was no match for Qi Wenmo was something even his own arrogance could not deny. Yet seen in this light, every creature has its nemesis: the swaggering Qi Wenmo was just as helpless before that old fox Wei Zhaotong.
"Come, we're going to the Hong Clan Trading Company," Cheng Qitian decided on the spot.
"Yes, yes—but Young Master Cheng, what are we going to the Hong Clan Trading Company for? Should we bring men?" Chen Zitiao hurried to answer.
"Bring men? Bring what men? We're not going there to stand up for Qi Wenmo. What would we want men at the Hong Clan Trading Company for?" Cheng Qitian said with a curl of his lip.
"Then we're going to…" For a moment Chen Zitiao could not follow Cheng Qitian's line of thought.
"You're hopeless, utterly hopeless!" Cheng Qitian kicked him, sending him sprawling face-first onto the ground before the eyes of all, then put on an air of profound cunning. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend. This move of mine, young master here calls killing with a borrowed knife."
"Yes, yes, Young Master Cheng is brilliant as ever!" Chen Zitiao hurried to fawn, scrambling up from the ground in a sorry state, though in his heart he was full of contempt: with the little wit you've got, going to deal with an old fox like Wei Zhaotong, you won't even know you've been sold—you'll probably be grinning and counting their money for them, and you call it killing with a borrowed knife?
Enough talk. Cheng Qitian took Chen Zitiao with him, and the two went straight to the Hong Clan Trading Company. Upon entering, they asked for Wei Zhaotong by name. He was, after all, the young master of the Poison Eye Mercenary Corps, and the most troublesome local snake in these parts; the clerks dared not be negligent, and at once respectfully ushered the two into the reception hall.
"Well now, Young Master Cheng, what a rare guest!" A moment later Wei Zhaotong came out to greet them, his face wreathed in smiles.
"Haha. Manager Wei, we haven't met in many days. I trust you've been well." Cheng Qitian cupped his hands with a chuckle.
Even as he smiled and exchanged pleasantries, Wei Zhaotong was inwardly puzzled: what could this fellow want, coming to see him so suddenly?
In the Weihu Sea, the Hong Clan Trading Company was an outside power, and had always remained neutral, each side keeping to its own waters. And because the Hong Clan Trading Company had backing far too formidable, even a local snake like the Poison Eye Mercenary Corps did not dare lightly set its sights on it. So the two had neither any dealings nor any feud between them—they were, by and large, on nodding terms.
"Might I ask what brings Young Master Cheng to our Hong Clan Trading Company this time?" Wei Zhaotong came straight to the point once the pleasantries were done.
"Nothing much, really. It's just that word has spread far and wide outside that you, Manager Wei, have bled the Qingtian Escort Agency dry. So I made a special trip to pay a visit," Cheng Qitian answered without the least concealment.
At that reply, even Chen Zitiao behind him could not help but raise a hand to his forehead, let alone Wei Zhaotong himself. Is there a hole in this fellow's brain? If you're not here to pick a fight, is that how you talk to a man's face?
"What is Young Master Cheng driving at?" Sure enough, Wei Zhaotong's face fell at once, his expression dark and unreadable. "It was the Qingtian Escort Agency that broke its own contract. This old man has done everything in accordance with the agreement. Such street gossip was put about by the Qingtian Escort Agency itself—and Young Master Cheng believes it? Or are you perhaps here to stand up for them? No, that can't be. From what this old man knows, Young Master Cheng and that Qi Wenmo have always been sworn enemies!"