Inside a tranquil, mist-shrouded bamboo grove on the outskirts of the city, Adrian Li and Executive Vice Mayor Xu Guangxi sat opposite each other, quietly sipping premium tea.
Honestly, Adrian had always found the elaborate, performative ritual of tea to be an incredibly tedious waste of time. It was an aesthetic distraction that possessed absolutely zero real-world significance. However, since Secretary Xu had personally recommended this private retreat, he could hardly refuse the gesture.
Just like the calculation behind why he had let Acting Governor Yao Daping off the hook so easily: although Adrian's supreme lineage meant he could essentially get away with any catastrophic level of lawlessness in China, every game of power possessed its boundaries.
Playing around with beautiful women, orchestrating financial ruin for mid-tier merchants, or casually executing disposable commoners when he was bored was considered trivial to the ruling class. But if he were to directly, aggressively dismantle the state's top-tier political gears, the supreme players in the capital would begin to view him with dangerous suspicion. Yao Daping was a powerful, second-rank provincial governor backed by a massive web of allies and political patrons. Dragging him to the firing line would have been entirely too noisy.
So, the moment the Governor had broken his own nephew's legs and handed over the Qu family's dossiers as a blood offering, Adrian magnanimously closed the file.
"As for the Qu family... how exactly do you intend to dispose of them, Young Master?" Xu Guangxi asked, pouring a fresh cup of tea.
Adrian shrugged, taking a sip. "What is the standard administrative sentence for the crimes documented in Yao's files?"
Xu Guangxi possessed decades of experience in running state tribunals and managing silent executions; he understood the legal machinery infinitely better than the young billionaire.
"Based on the absolute, corrupt land biddings and organized crime ties Yao Daping documented," Xu Guangxi analyzed clinically, "we have more than enough leverage to sentence Qu Liancheng to immediate death by firing squad. Furthermore, through our corporate laundering channels, the entire multi-billion-yuan asset portfolio of the Qu Group can be directly, cleanly transferred into your private accounts, Young Master."
"Oh?" Adrian smiled, swirling the tea. "So, aside from Qu Liancheng, the rest of the family escapes the tribunal?"
"The modern legal system naturally avoids the ancient practice of executing entire clans," Xu Guangxi chuckled. "However, Qu Liancheng's useless son, Qu Lianjie, possesses a massive, violent rap sheet of corporate fraud and street racing. With the fatal head-on crash he caused this morning, sentencing him to twenty years to life in a maximum-security cell block is entirely trivial."
"And what of the daughter?" Adrian asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Qu Xiaoxiao is clean on paper," Xu Guangxi replied indifferently. "But the very second the Qu family empire collapses into bankruptcy, she will lose her status, her designer vanity, and her protection. No one in Shanghai will ever care who she is again. She will merely be a defenseless, penniless stray."
As a highly visible, positive political figure, Xu Guangxi naturally couldn't orchestrate the physical torture or forced prostitution of a clean civilian. But as he had cleanly stated: once her father was shot and her brother was locked away for life, Qu Xiaoxiao would have absolutely nothing left to shield her from Adrian's desires.
"I will leave the administrative logistics of the Qu Group entirely in your hands, Brother Xu," Adrian waved his hand dismissively. "I am a carefree predator; I possess absolutely zero interest in managing concrete companies."
He wanted the state elites to understand a very specific, non-threatening truth about his presence: his sole goal in this universe was to ruthlessly play with beautiful women. He had no desire to usurp their political thrones.
"Consider it done," Xu Guangxi nodded, checking the item off his mental list. "As for the Shengxuan Group... should I personally pay a visit to Tan Zongming and deliver a warning to Little Tan?"
To a powerful regional ruler like Xu Guangxi, the Qu family was merely an easily digestible appetizer. If they hadn't been politically shielded by Governor Yao Daping, a single phone call would have crushed their company months ago.
A simple county magistrate can ruin a household; a powerful prefect can systematically exterminate an entire clan.
Do not be fooled by the loud, arrogant extravagance of the wealthy merchant class. In this nation where absolute political officialdom reigned supreme, even the wealthiest tycoons were nothing more than fattened pigs and sheep waiting to be silently slaughtered at the whim of the state.
Of course, if a pig managed to grow into a monstrous, national "King of Pigs," even the state butchers had to carefully calculate the economic impact before swinging the axe.
Shengxuan Group was undeniably qualified to be called a King of Pigs.
Unlike the small-scale, localized operations of the Qu Group, Tan Zongming consistently ranked among the top ten richest billionaires in the nation, and his conglomerate commanded massive international investments. The financial web surrounding him was highly complex and global. Even with Xu Guangxi's immense provincial authority, completely dismantling Shengxuan Group would trigger a massive economic tremor.
Of course, if Adrian's supreme, untouchable grandfather in Beijing chose to issue an imperial decree, not only would the Shengxuan Group be instantly erased from the earth, but the entire municipal leadership of Shanghai would be reduced to ash. But executing such a massive political nuke would completely ruin the delicate fun of the game.
"Forget about Tan Zongming for now. Do not alert him," Adrian replied after a moment of cold calculation. He shook his head. "I will personally engineer the capture of Andy He myself."
According to the canonical timeline of Ode to Joy, Tan Zongming harbored a deep, repressed romantic devotion to the brilliant, mentally fragile Andy. Given Tan's immense wealth and protective instincts, if the state began aggressively targeting her, he wouldn't hesitate to immediately charter a private jet and smuggle her back to the safety of the United States. Adrian didn't want to risk his target fleeing his territory.
'Of the five primary targets in the Ode to Joy complex,' Adrian calculated, 'Fan Shengmei is already a completely broken, submissive slave. Qu Xiaoxiao's family is currently stepping onto the scaffold, meaning her capture is only a matter of time. As for the naive idiots Qiu Yingying and Guan Juer, they are completely defenseless prey. Once Andy He is isolated, the entire floor will be mine.'
"Since you have already mapped out the details, Young Master, I will not interfere," Xu Guangxi stood up, preparing to return to his municipal duties. He was, after all, an incredibly busy ruler.
"By the way... I heard a rumor that Brother Xu keeps a highly sophisticated mistress on the side?" Adrian asked casually, setting his teacup down with a soft click.
Xu Guangxi froze mid-stride. A tense silence descended upon the bamboo pavilion as the Vice Mayor slowly sat back down, a strained, highly diplomatic wry smile plastering itself onto his face.
"Young Master... has Xiaoping somehow managed to offend your interests?"
For a man of his supreme administrative rank, keeping a few high-end mistresses hidden in private villas was a completely normal perk of power; no one in the party possessed the audacity to nitpick his personal life. However, he knew with absolute certainty that Adrian Li would never casually bring up his secret woman without a highly specific, dangerous motive.
"No, not at all," Adrian smiled darkly. "I merely wanted to clarify a detail. Is Ye Chuanping's adoptive son, Gu Yuan... actually your biological son, Brother Xu?"
Hearing the question, Xu Guangxi let out a silent, massive sigh of relief. Although he was deeply fond of the sophisticated middle-aged woman, he wasn't stupid enough to jeopardize his political backing for the sake of a mistress—let alone her pretentious, arrogant adoptive son!
"If that useless brat Gu Yuan has somehow managed to anger you, Young Master," Xu Guangxi offered instantly, his voice dead and ruthless, "I will have the municipal police break both of his legs and throw him into a dark cell tonight."
Clatter.
Kneeling silently on the bamboo floor directly beside the low table, Nan Xiang—who was completely naked save for the thin red silk string tied around her waist and the gold rings newly pierced through her blood-seeping nipples—violently trembled, nearly dropping the porcelain teapot.
Her heart hammered against her ribs in pure, unadulterated horror.
Gu Yuan? Gu Li's wealthy, untouchable boyfriend?
Nan Xiang stared at the floor, her mind spinning as she processed the terrifying reality of the conversation. In her former, naive high-society circle, Gu Yuan and Gu Li were considered the absolute rulers of Shanghai's elite youth, untouchable gods who commanded infinite wealth.
Yet, sitting in this quiet bamboo pavilion, the survival of the great heir Gu Yuan was being discussed by these two men as if he were nothing more than a stray dog whose legs could be broken with a casual wave of a hand.
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Give me powerstones.
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