The smug look on Zhao Longfei's face vanished. His wine glass froze in midair, and for a moment he looked like a stone statue.
After standing there in a daze for a while, Qin Siyang stammered, "Ah... no... um... District Chief Kafu, what... what did you say?"
"I said I'm prepared to pledge allegiance to Mr. Qin. I wonder whether Mr. Qin is willing to accept me."
Zhao Longfei was completely dumbfounded.
He had thought Kafu would tell him tonight that he would follow the Zhao family's orders from now on, and that this dinner was a celebration of the Zhao family's unification of District 7.
How had Kafu ended up saying he wanted to pledge allegiance to Qin Siyang?
"District Chief Kafu, you want to pledge allegiance to Qin Siyang? Are you serious? You're not joking, are you?"
Qin Siyang was equally surprised as he stared at Kafu, feeling as if he were dreaming.
"Of course I'm serious," Kafu put away his smile and nodded solemnly.
"I sincerely hope Mr. Qin will accept me."
Zhao Longfei still looked completely unable to believe it as he slowly turned to Qin Siyang.
"You brat, did you drug him?"
Qin Siyang also stared with his mouth open, "I thought you were the one who drugged him!"
Kafu shook his head, "No one threatened me, and no one controlled me. This is the conclusion I reached after thinking it over again and again."
"Thought it over again and again? District Chief Kafu, it's not that I don't believe you. It's just that your decision has really opened my eyes. Why don't you tell Little Qin and me exactly how you arrived at it?"
"All right."
Kafu spoke calmly and unhurriedly.
"Actually, even before last night, someone had already advised me not to fall out with Mr. Qin, and to help Mr. Qin whenever I had the chance. He told me that Mr. Qin was the young man with the greatest potential he had ever seen."
Hearing someone praise him so highly behind his back, Qin Siyang could not help feeling curious.
"May I ask who that person was?"
"The governor of State 14, Jonathan."
"You know Jonathan?"
"More than that," A nostalgic smile appeared at the corner of Kafu's mouth, "We attended the same university, studied the same major, played on the university football team, and even started a band together, so we knew each other very well. Up until the apocalypse, our families often invited each other over."
"So that's how it is. But Governor Jonathan's words alone don't seem enough to make you decide to throw in your lot with a kid like me who's just turned eighteen, do they?"
"Indeed, his recommendation alone couldn't make me wager everything. But what he said made me pay more attention to you and observe your every move."
"You observed me? When?"
Zhao Longfei also frowned, wanting to hear how Kafu had monitored Qin Siyang, who had been staying inside South Glory University all this time.
Kafu answered frankly, "South Glory University is under Principal Zhao's authority. Planting people in the middle and upper ranks is especially difficult. But slipping a few informants into the ordinary cleaning staff and student body to provide real-time information isn't difficult."
As Qin Siyang listened, he kept nodding.
Fu Wanli's deceased girlfriends had already proven that South Glory University was not an untouched paradise.
It also happened to confirm that Kafu was telling the truth.
Kafu continued, "Although because of you my highly trusted subordinate Dadova disappeared, I have to admit that both your personal ability and your character are first-rate."
When Kafu spoke of Dadova, he did not use the word "death," but instead said "disappeared."
Even though everyone knew that Dadova had been killed by Qin Siyang, Kafu still chose his words carefully, avoiding giving Qin Siyang the impression that tonight's pledge of allegiance was fake while secretly recording evidence was the real purpose.
Zhao Longfei undid the buttons on his shirt, tore off the striped tie he had carefully chosen for today, and asked coldly, "I don't understand whether you're holding a grudge and trying to insult the Zhao family, or whether you're trying to kill Little Qin with praise. District Chief Kafu, do you think our Zhao family is inferior to Little Qin alone?"
"Of course not," Kafu denied it with a smile, "The Zhao family is one of the foremost families in the safe zone. Naturally, I wouldn't look down on it. But Principal Zhao, have you considered that if I wanted to join a family, why wouldn't I choose the Jiang family, whose strength appears even greater?"
"What are you trying to say? You were originally planning to join the Jiang family?"
"There's no need for such hostility, Principal Zhao. I'm only discussing this rationally with you," Kafu took another sip of red wine, maintaining his usual gentle demeanor.
"In my eyes, whether it's the Jiang family or the Zhao family, they're nothing more than a larger Richard family. As long as it's a family, profit will always be its absolute priority. I held an important position in the United Government and was a core member of the Richard family, yet I was still abandoned. If I were to join the Jiang family or the Zhao family, how could I expect you to treat me sincerely or look upon me differently?"
Zhao Longfei snorted, "So you're saying Little Qin won't put profit first, and that's why he can give you better protection? Give me a break. He's just a student. How could he possibly protect a district chief like you?"
Kafu shook his head, "I don't expect him to protect me. Even Yan Budong could be casually killed and the blame flawlessly pinned on our family. There's even less point expecting protection from anyone else."
"There are three reasons I'm pledging allegiance to Mr. Qin. First, I value his future and potential. At my age, I basically don't dare stake everything on a gamble. But my family cast me out and forced me back to square one to start over. If I want to make a comeback, I have to bet on the outcome with the greatest return. Looking across the entire safe zone, there's no investment more worthwhile than Mr. Qin, who stands alone yet possesses astonishing strength."
"Second, I gave everything to my family, only to be thrown out in the end. The resentment and grievance in my heart simply can't be resolved. As I pledge allegiance to a new master, the thing I care about most is the word 'fairness.' It's not difficult to see in everyday life that Mr. Qin still has the heart of a young man. He always repays kindness with kindness and never lets down the goodwill others show him."
"Third, aside from his future potential, his current strength is also remarkable. Mr. Qin was able to obtain four votes in favor at the thesis hearing. I can't think of anyone else in the safe zone who could make four standing council members from different backgrounds, different positions, and different interests all vote in favor."
"His future is full of promise, he is rising in the present, and his character is plain for all to see. To be honest, I believe that if I don't pledge allegiance to Mr. Qin now, powerful people will soon surround him, and there will no longer be a place for me."
Zhao Longfei frowned, "So what you're saying is that you want to cooperate with Little Qin?"
"No, not cooperate. Pledge allegiance!", Kafu denied it firmly, "If I get that concept wrong, then my coming here tonight will have been for nothing."
"So, you intend to obey Little Qin's orders?"
Kafu nodded, "That's right. That's exactly what I mean. Right now, whether it's your Zhao family, the Gu family, or even my friend Jonathan, all of them have cooperative relationships with Mr. Qin. There isn't a single person of status or position who directly takes orders from him."
His gaze was unwavering, "I'm staking everything I have to become the first!"
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