Chapter 4446 — Secret Backing
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
"Heh. One mountain cannot hold two tigers." Hai Wuliang lifted his eyelids slightly. This was no surprise at all. Those in the same trade were natural enemies; two escort agencies squeezed into one place—it would be strange if they could live in harmony!
As for this Poison Eye Mercenary Corps, there was an unwritten rule in the South Continent's sea regions: all so-called mercenary corps were in fact pirate bands that had laundered their identities. As such, they generally shared blood-deep feuds with the local escort agencies, and being at daggers drawn was the most natural thing in the world.
"That is not all. My only son, Qitian, died at the hands of Qingtian Escort Agency—murdered by this Ling Yi. Tell me, Chief Escort Hai, how could I possibly let this bastard off?" Cheng Haonan ground his teeth as he added this from the side.
"Oh? There is such a thing?" Hai Wuliang was visibly moved. The hatred of a murdered son was irreconcilable with heaven itself, and from the look of Cheng Haonan it was impossible he would make light of such a matter.
"In the presence of Chief Escort Hai, I would not dare utter a single false word. So to avenge this great wrong of my son's murder, I earnestly beg Chief Escort Hai to open this one door of convenience and let me slay my enemy with my own hand. Cheng would be endlessly grateful," Cheng Haonan said, his emotions running high. He was a clever man; he no longer spoke of the feud between the Four Seas Escort Agency and Ling Yi, but transferred the matter onto his own shoulders.
"Your request is not unreasonable..." Hai Wuliang's face was unreadable. Long Kuiba and the other two thought he was about to agree and were overjoyed—then his tone suddenly shifted. "However, though the Four Seas Escort Agency has suffered some setbacks at this grand meet, that does not mean we shall stoop to private vengeance. To sacrifice the public good for private spite is a great taboo. I will never let the fairness of the South Continent Escort Agency Grand Meet be destroyed at my hands—not before, not now, and not ever!"
This fine, high-sounding official reply left Long Kuiba and the other two utterly dumbstruck. They exchanged bewildered looks. Was there ever such a swift turnabout of face?
Seeing that Hai Wuliang still wore an air of righteous severity, and did not appear to be putting it on, the three felt as though a basin of cold water had been poured over their heads, and their disappointment was complete. All three had already resigned themselves to being knives, had come forward of their own accord to let him do the borrowed-killing—and yet the man simply would not take up the knife. What kind of game was this?
Across the whole South Continent Escort Agency Grand Meet, the only ones with the opportunity to pull strings openly and legitimately were the five judges drawn from the five great escort agencies; no one else came remotely close to qualifying.
It was a pity that Cheng Haonan and Wu Baoliang, the two outsiders, hardly bore mentioning—even Long Kuiba himself, because the Longzhou Escort Agency had always been weak, could scarcely cling to the coattails of those five great agencies. Now they had finally found a chance in the person of Ling Yi, their common enemy, and had thought they could enlist Hai Wuliang's help, only to run into a wall after all.
Matters having come to this, lingering any longer would merely make them a laughingstock. Long Kuiba and the other two exchanged glances, and could only cup their hands to Hai Wuliang with diminished spirits. "Since that is how it is, we shall intrude no further on Chief Escort Hai. We take our leave."
"Hold on." Hai Wuliang suddenly barred their way. "Out of public duty, it is absolutely impossible for me to seek private revenge, and I never shall. But in light of the blood-deep hatred among you, this matter admits of some mercy. I can agree to give you a little backing in secret—but I cannot lean too far in your favor. You understand?"