Chapter 213 - 211: Foreign Forces

When Ye Xuan walked past the security guard, the guard’s heart leaped into his throat. His body trembled uncontrollably.

It wasn’t until Ye Xuan and his group had been inside the bar for quite a while that the guard finally snapped out of it. With jelly-like legs, he slumped onto the ground at the bar’s entrance. Seeing him in such a state, none of the other security personnel stepped forward to help him up. They all knew this man was no longer one of them. Even if Ye Xuan hadn’t mentioned the security issue to the King of the Underworld, the King of the Underworld would definitely conduct a thorough investigation afterward. If the guard dared to stay at Lanshan Bar, he would be courting death.

"What the hell is the deal with Xiang Huaqiang? I remember Xiang Qishan only had two wives. And his only son was born to his first wife. It’s only been five years since I left Jingcheng. How does Xiang Qishan suddenly have another concubine and a son this old?" Seated on a sofa in a private booth, Ye Xuan casually chatted with the King of the Underworld.

Xiang Qishan was the current Patriarch of the Xiang family and Xiang Huaqiang’s father. The Xiang family had a decent relationship with the Four Palaces, primarily because Madam Xiang was a kind-hearted woman who had helped Ye Xuan quite a bit in the past. Although Xiang Qishan had taken a second wife, he still had a solid relationship with Madam Xiang. He had promised her that he would only ever have a son with her, which was why Xiang Long was supposed to be his only male heir. So, the sudden appearance of Xiang Huaqiang and some "third wife" naturally piqued Ye Xuan’s curiosity.

The King of the Underworld revealed a profound smile upon hearing Ye Xuan’s words.

"How devoted do you really expect a man with two wives to be?

"Back when Madam Xiang and Xiang Qishan were getting married, Xiang Qishan actually had a first love.

"Madam Xiang’s maiden family laid down the law: if Xiang Qishan didn’t break it off with his first love, they wouldn’t marry their daughter to him.

"To secure the backing of Madam Xiang’s family, Xiang Qishan had no choice but to abandon that first love.

"Later on, Xiang Qishan built his fortune with the help of Madam Xiang’s family. As his business empire grew, he gradually slipped out of her control.

"First, he took a second wife who bore him two daughters. Then, his first love suddenly popped back into the picture, claiming she was pregnant when Xiang Qishan broke up with her all those years ago.

"After a paternity test confirmed Xiang Huaqiang was his, Xiang Qishan immediately decided to bring the mother and son back to the Xiang family."

Listening to the King of the Underworld’s explanation, Ye Xuan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Back when Xiang Qishan wanted to take a second wife, Madam Xiang had only made one demand: apart from Xiang Long, there could not be a second young master in the Xiang family. Now that Xiang Qishan had failed to honor even that, Madam Xiang’s heart must be utterly shattered.

"What about Madam Xiang, then? Would she just agree to Xiang Qishan bringing Xiang Huaqiang and his mother back into the family?" the Vermilion Bird asked curiously from the side.

The King of the Underworld picked up his glass, took a sip of wine, and sighed softly. "What does it matter if she doesn’t agree? Do you think Xiang Qishan is still controlled by Madam Xiang’s maiden family?"

After hearing this, the Vermilion Bird, Ye Xuan, and the others fell silent.

"Sigh, let’s not waste our breath worrying about other people’s family drama. Drink up, drink up." Seeing the atmosphere cool down, the King of the Underworld hurriedly poured wine for Ye Xuan and the others to change the subject.

Ye Xuan sighed, took the glass the King of the Underworld handed him, and downed a large gulp. Over these past five years, far too many things had happened in Jingcheng.

"Cyan Dragon Chief?! Is it really you? I never expected to run into you here!" After they had been drinking for a while, Wang Siming suddenly walked over with a wine glass, looking at Ye Xuan with unbridled joy.

"Wang Siming, what are you doing running around here instead of staying home with your wife and kid? Are you trying to fool around behind your wife’s back?" The King of the Underworld, seeing it was Wang Siming, patted him on the shoulder and teased.

"Brother King of the Underworld, please don’t tease me. How would I dare? I’m just here entertaining clients. I really had no choice." Wang Siming smiled bitterly and pointed to a booth not far away, a trace of exhaustion in his tone.

"Oh? Did you run into some trouble?" Judging by his tone, the King of the Underworld guessed that this business deal was likely a tough nut to crack.

"I wouldn’t call it trouble, exactly. It’s just that the clients this time are Yang Country People, and they’re quite difficult to deal with." Just thinking about it gave Wang Siming a headache. It was bad enough that these Yang Country People were lowballing the price, but they also deliberately made tricky demands. He had been negotiating this deal for nearly three months without any success. If his company didn’t desperately need this opportunity to break into the Yang Country market, he would never have wasted so much time with them.

"Yang Country People?" Hearing these words, the King of the Underworld couldn’t help but shoot a few extra glances in that direction.

He saw four or five short, scrawny men with small mustaches currently surrounded by a group of heavily made-up hostesses. Every single one of them had a face full of greed and lust.

"You’d better keep your guard up when doing business with them. Yang Country People are notoriously treacherous," Ye Xuan warned Wang Siming kindly after casting a sideways glance at the men.

"Naturally. Thank you for your concern, Cyan Dragon Chief. Let me toast you, and then I’ll head back. Enjoy your evening." After saying that, Wang Siming tilted his head back and downed all the wine in his glass. He nodded apologetically to Ye Xuan and the others before returning to his booth.

He had only come over to find Ye Xuan and his group as an excuse to slip away and get a breather. The tastes of those Yang Country People were truly bizarre; not only did they force him to drink, but they also pressured him to mess around with the hostesses. Although Wang Siming was no stranger to these entertainment venues, he was extremely loyal to his wife. He never did anything out of line. This time, he was pushed so hard by those Yang Country People that he had no other choice but to bite the bullet and come over to greet Ye Xuan’s group.

"Those Yang Country People don’t look like ordinary businessmen," Ye Xuan said mildly to the King of the Underworld, taking a sip of wine and withdrawing his gaze from the men.

The King of the Underworld’s eyes darkened as he nodded. "Yeah, they’re all Martial Artists."

"Did you receive any news about their arrival in Jingcheng?" Ye Xuan swirled the wine glass in his hand, his gaze much more serious than before.

"No, I haven’t received a single whisper of it." The King of the Underworld shook his head, a trace of coldness in his eyes. He controlled the entire underground world of Jingcheng. If foreign Martial Artists entered Jingcheng, his side would undoubtedly receive the news immediately. Yet this time, these Yang Country People had slipped past his informants and sneaked into Jingcheng unnoticed.

That left only two possibilities.

First, these Yang Country People were exceptionally formidable, capable of evading all of the King of the Underworld’s eyes and ears. Second, someone within the King of the Underworld’s organization had deliberately looked the other way, helping them successfully infiltrate Jingcheng.

The first possibility was virtually zero. The King of the Underworld’s forces and informants blanketed nearly every corner of Jingcheng. His intelligence network was sometimes even more well-informed than the intelligence bureau. Therefore, it was utterly impossible for these Yang Country People to bypass his surveillance entirely.

That left only the second possibility: someone inside the organization was coordinating with them. For the King of the Underworld, this was absolutely not a good sign.