Heaven Dou City, Affluent District
Inside a lavishly decorated mansion oozing luxury from every corner, two elderly men in ornate robes were sipping tea at their leisure. Seated across from them was a middle-aged man with a hairless face, whose entire presence radiated a certain effeminate chill.
If a powerful Spirit master had been present, they would have immediately noticed that the two guards stationed outside the door weren't ordinary—they were both Spirit Sages.
The effeminate man gently sipped his tea, then gave a sly, serpentine smile.
"The latest intel says that the Holy Son has entered the city. Gentlemen, now's the time to stay calm. Once we make it through this ordeal, the rewards will be more than worth it."
The two robed elders exchanged a silent glance, then one of them asked:
"Eunuch Gui, we've gone to great lengths this time, made a big show of it just to smash a few shops. What's the point of all this, really?"
Eunuch Gui shot the speaker a cold glance, his voice sharp and nasal:
"His Highness the Prince has his own plans. I can't disclose too much, but I can assure you—stick with His Highness, and benefits will naturally follow."
The other robed elder couldn't help but press further:
"Then may I ask, when will His Highness fulfill his promise to our two chambers? We've risked offending Spirit Hall by siding with him on this."
Gui's smile remained cold.
"Don't worry. His Highness will not go back on his word. So long as we can suppress the Li family this time, everything will fall into place. As for entering the top five chambers of commerce—that's a guarantee."
With that, Eunuch Gui rose to his feet and strode away. Though he appeared middle-aged, his movements were sharp and agile—clearly, he was a spirit master of no small ability.
The twin guards followed him out without a word. It was evident that all three of them were part of Prince Xue Xing's inner circle.
After Gui left, the elder of the two remaining men—his hair snow-white, his demeanor exuding undeniable authority—snorted heavily and slammed his cane on the ground.
"Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!"
"Our Ye Chamber of Commerce and your Wang Chamber of Commerce are ranked sixth and seventh on the continent! Xue Xing may be a prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, but that doesn't give him the right to treat us like this!"
The elder from the Wang family gave a long sigh.
"Old Ye, we've already crossed the line. We offended the Holy Son—there's no turning back now. Spirit Hall may be powerful, but the Heaven Dou Empire is no pushover. Our choice might not be wrong."
Over the past few years, the Li family had risen rapidly, already climbing to the eighth position among the continent's top chambers of commerce. That was precisely why Prince Xue Xing's proposal to suppress them was met with such quick agreement.
Sure, aligning with the prince could help push their own rankings into the top five—but more importantly, the Li family was simply too much of a threat.
As old-money chambers, the Ye and Wang families were deeply traditional. They looked down on commoners and never saw eye to eye with Spirit Hall's policies. That ideological clash was another reason they chose to side with Prince Xue Xing.
To them, nobility was nobility. The Li family had no pedigree, no heritage—how dare they rise above them?
And so, the Ye and Wang chambers, together with Prince Xue Xing, orchestrated a grand scheme—to force the Li Chamber of Commerce out of Heaven Dou City.
For Prince Xue Xing, it was about politics—paving the way for his nephew Xue Beng. For the two chambers, it was about power and prestige. Each had their own reasons, but they needed one another.
Together, they had everything—official connections, money, manpower. With such a lineup plotting behind the scenes in Heaven Dou City, crushing the Li family was entirely within reach.
After all, they were counting on one thing: that Li Chang'an wouldn't dare abuse his public position for personal gain, wouldn't dare mobilize the colossal Spirit Hall for private revenge.
That was their true confidence.
With the meeting adjourned, the three parties dispersed. These were no amateurs—they'd thought through every angle, leaving almost no holes in their plan. As long as they could endure Li Chang'an's retaliation, everything would be settled.
'You may be Spirit Hall's Holy Son in name,' they thought, 'but we still know how to move in the shadows. What can you do about it? Swallow your grievances and move on.'
---
Meanwhile, in the office of the Li Family's hotel...
Li Chang'an sat behind his desk, replaying countless crime-solving scenes from Detective Conan in his head. After a few minutes, he let out a bitter sigh.
"Nope. I'm just not cut out for this brainwork."
As the saying goes: no matter how many episodes of Conan you watch, you still never know who the culprit is next time.
That was exactly what Li Chang'an was facing right now.
This time, the enemy had moved with surgical precision. Their tactics were practically flawless. But instead of despair, the corner of his lips curved into a faint grin.
"If brains won't cut it... then screw it."
"Dad," he called out, glancing at his father who was calmly sipping tea nearby, "how many suspects do you think are behind this mess?"
"Huh? What suspects?" Father Li blinked, caught completely off guard.
"Cough... I mean, which forces do you think might be targeting us?"
"Oh, that." Father Li put his teacup down and fell into thought. His mind swiftly began sorting through troves of intel.
Li Chang'an passed him a sheet of paper and a pen, motioning for him to jot it down.
Father Li didn't hesitate. First, he wrote down: Zhang Chamber of Commerce, then continued with: Ye Chamber, Wang Chamber...
By the time he was done, the list included five different chambers of commerce, three noble families, then after a pause, he added Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and Prince Xue Xing's Estate.
"All of these are possible culprits. The chambers are competing with us for profits. The noble houses either resent Spirit Hall or clash with our business interests."
"As for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, they've always been close to the imperial family. We, on the other hand, are marked as Spirit Hall allies—and with serious potential, especially since we've partnered with the Hong Chamber."
"As for Prince Xue Xing, well, there's bad blood from before. We never paid our respects to his estate, remember?"
Li Chang'an stared at the growing list of enemies, the corners of his mouth twitching.
"Damn... we're really that impressive, huh?"
But he didn't dwell on it. He wasn't here to mope—he was here to solve a problem.
Calmly, he copied each of the names onto separate slips of paper, folded them, mixed them up, and began shaking them in his hand.
That's right. He didn't have any leads.
But so what?
Li Chang'an had hacks.
Let's not forget—his Luck stat was maxed out to absurd levels. It might not show all the time, but the fact he'd never truly been in danger so far? That was luck at work.
And so, he decided to let fate pick his target. Whichever name he pulled out—that would be the mastermind.
Sounded superstitious? Unreliable?
Maybe to others.
But not to Li Chang'an.
Max Luck ain't no joke!
"You've got brains?" he smirked. "Well, I've got hacks. Let's see who wins this round!"
A few seconds later, three paper slips dropped from his hands.
___
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