Chapter 122: Performance

Watching Jiang Xincheng’s unhurried figure, Qi Licang’s face showed a bitter smile. Then his phone rang. He took it out and saw it was He Lin calling.

“Uncle Qi, why haven’t you come down yet? It’s been over half an hour.” He Lin’s voice held a note of complaint. “You didn’t beat him so badly he can’t get up, did you? Even though he’s useless, he’s still a member of the Flourishing Tang Empire. Let’s not go too far.”

“Ah…” Qi Licang was taken aback, then looked very awkward. “I didn’t teach him a lesson. He just finished eating and is brushing his teeth and washing his face. He’ll come down soon.”

“What? He’s still eating? And brushing his teeth and washing his face? Does he not know what time it is? We’re about to go to the transaction. This deal is crucial for the survival of our Zhengxin Group, and he has the mood to leisurely eat and brush his teeth? Is he crazy?” He Lin gritted her teeth, shouting in disbelief. Many Zhengxin Group members around who heard her looked at each other, equally speechless.

A bitter smile crossed Qi Licang’s face. It seemed Jiang Xincheng’s act of playing dumb was really convincing. Even the usually sharp and capable Miss He Lin hadn’t noticed anything wrong.

“Miss, there’s something I need to tell you. Please don’t be too surprised when you hear it,” Qi Licang said gravely.

His serious tone made the furious He Lin pause. Then, biting her lip, she said, “What is it? Tell me.”

“Don’t be too shocked, because this matter is closely related to our transaction,” Qi Licang reminded her. “Earlier, I was so angry with Jiang Xincheng that I fought him. But the result was that even though I used all my strength, I couldn’t harm Jiang Xincheng at all. Instead, he defeated me easily.”

“Ah…” He Lin’s face was full of shock. “He is…”

“Miss, it might be better if you keep your voice down,” Qi Licang quickly interrupted her. Although he wasn’t entirely convinced by Jiang Xincheng’s words, he decided it was best to keep the secret and not let He Lin say it out loud. So he cut off what she was about to say. “Jiang Xincheng is indeed playing dumb. Besides that, he told me there’s a traitor in our Zhengxin Group. He’s doing this to lull the enemy. When the transaction happens, it could have an unexpected effect. Also, Jiang Xincheng said the woman who makes coffee in our Zhengxin Group café is suspicious. She’s probably one of the traitors. He’s not sure about the others yet.”

He Lin took a deep breath and clenched her teeth. She wasn’t a fool and reacted quickly. After hearing Qi Licang’s words, she immediately knew what to do. “Alright, we’ll wait for him a bit longer. If he still doesn’t come down, you drag him out and give him a good lesson. Even if he’s a member of the Flourishing Tang Empire, he can’t be so reckless. He took this mission, so he has to be responsible.”

After saying this, He Lin hung up. A look of astonishment crossed her face. She knew Qi Licang wouldn’t lie about something like this. But she never imagined that the rookie Primordial Warrior from the Flourishing Tang Empire, who had made her furious and whom she had tried to kick out multiple times, was actually a deeply hidden expert playing dumb.

She knew Qi Licang’s strength very well. He was the top expert of the Zhengxin Group, a master at the Bone Tempering Late Stage, their ace against Lean Dog. Yet such a strong fighter was no match for Jiang Xincheng and was easily defeated. One could imagine how powerful Jiang Xincheng was.

Playing dumb, traitors, hidden plans… So this was Jiang Xincheng’s goal. That seemingly shameless rookie Primordial Warrior, a first-year college student, was actually a deep and skillful expert. Both she and her father had misjudged him.

A bitter smile touched He Lin’s lips. Amid her shock and shame, she inexplicably felt a wave of unprecedented safety. With such a powerful expert present, this transaction should be much safer.

Though she felt more at ease, He Lin still acted very angry. Clearly, she had taken Jiang Xincheng’s words to heart.

Twenty minutes later, He Lin and the others saw Qi Licang walking in front and Jiang Xincheng lazily following behind. Qi Licang looked furious, while Jiang Xincheng appeared completely indifferent. Everyone around who saw them understood what had happened.

This member of the Flourishing Tang Empire was really unreliable. He didn’t match the legend that the Flourishing Tang Empire had no weaklings. Almost all the Zhengxin Group members looked at Jiang Xincheng with disgust and disdain.

Jiang Xincheng ignored them and headed straight for the best car, where the beautiful He Lin was sitting. “I’ll ride in this car. Let’s go.”

“Jiang Xincheng, have you looked at the time? Do you know how long we’ve been waiting for you here?” He Lin gritted her teeth, shouting sharply at Jiang Xincheng. But Jiang Xincheng saw no trace of anger in her bright, sparkling eyes. Clearly, He Lin was clever. Just hearing from Qi Licang that there was a traitor in the Zhengxin Group, she immediately knew how to act.

Naturally, Jiang Xincheng knew what to do too. He said carelessly, “If you didn’t want to wait, you could have left without me. Why do I have to be with you? Can’t the transaction happen without me?”

“You…” He Lin’s face turned pale. “Our Zhengxin Group spent over thirty million Credit Points to hire you, and this is how you do your job? Don’t you have any sense of responsibility?”

Jiang Xincheng sneered, “Responsibility? Never heard of it. I’m going to sleep for a bit. I didn’t get enough rest today. Let’s go.”

With that, Jiang Xincheng sat in the front, lay back on the seat, and started sleeping. This made He Lin furious. “If we had known the Flourishing Tang Empire would send an irresponsible jerk like you, we would never have spent so much to post the mission.”

Jiang Xincheng acted as if he hadn’t heard, thick-skinned as ever. He closed his eyes, ignoring the noise from He Lin and the others, and focused on sleeping. Unrestrained discussions rose around them.

“I never thought the Flourishing Tang Empire had such trash. I always believed the Flourishing Tang Empire had no weaklings. Today, I learned something new. Taking money and not doing the work—even gangsters are better than that.”

“Exactly. If we had known, we really shouldn’t have spent those thirty million Credit Points. What a waste. But I guess it’s normal. The Flourishing Tang Empire has many members; they can’t all be elites. Having a few weaklings isn’t surprising. We’re just unlucky to have met one.”

“We can’t count on this Flourishing Tang Empire trash for this transaction. We all need to stay alert.”