Chapter 128: The Five-Year Plan

After returning to the shop, Qin Li found that Bu Yunyan was still awake. Seeing Qin Li return, Bu Yunyan, like a gentle wife, brought the food to Qin Li. She carefully looked him over and, seeing that he was unharmed, felt relieved. In a soft, gentle voice, she asked, “How did it go today? Was everything smooth?”

Qin Li was indeed hungry. A lot had happened that day, and despite his excellent physical condition, he still felt tired. He devoured the food like a whirlwind, then let out a long breath and said, “Today’s food seems especially delicious. Our cook has improved!”

Bu Yunyan had been watching Qin Li eat with a smile. Hearing this, she pretended to scold him and laughed, “What cook? I made this! Don’t you see what time it is? The kitchen chef has long gone to sleep!”

“Oh…” Qin Li smiled awkwardly. “So it was Sister Bu’s cooking. No wonder. Well, it’s much better than Master Wang’s cooking!”

“You!” Bu Yunyan shot Qin Li a look and said with a smile, “Keep your voice down. Don’t let Master Wang hear. That old man is very stubborn. Be careful, or he might just quit on you. He used to be a head chef at a big restaurant, you know!”

Qin Li chuckled. Watching Bu Yunyan quickly clear away the dishes, he felt a strange sensation in his heart. Immediately, he reminded himself, thinking: Qin Li, you must not be fickle! Even if men in this world can have many wives and concubines, Shiyu is still waiting for you there!

At the thought of Shangguan Shiyu, Qin Li’s heart warmed slightly. Then he sighed. The Mysterious Island was thousands of miles away from here, and he didn’t know when they would meet again.

At that moment, Bu Yunyan came back in, and Qin Li told her about the events of the day.

Bu Yunyan widened her eyes, looking at Qin Li in disbelief. She couldn’t believe that so many changes had happened in just one day. What thrilled her the most was that Qin Li had gained the Emperor’s favor and was granted the title of Marquis!

This… For Bu Yunyan, who had grown up in the Azure Dragon Kingdom and always believed in the supremacy of imperial power, this was simply a joyous occasion!

When she heard about Qin Li’s experience with the Great Green Gang, Bu Yunyan stared at Qin Li with her charming, beautiful eyes, thinking to herself: This is what a true, upright man is like!

Finally, Qin Li mentioned the fight with the Crown Prince’s Heavenly Rank Protector, where the opponent lost a hand and escaped. He said with some concern, “Young Master, won’t this offend the Crown Prince too much? Two of his Heavenly Rank followers have fallen by your hand—one dead, one injured. This grudge is irreconcilable now!”

Qin Li sneered, “If it weren’t like this, would it be reconcilable? Hmph, he’s just a Crown Prince whose position isn’t that stable. Even if he were the Emperor of the Azure Dragon Kingdom, so what? On the Tianyuan Continent, countries like this are as numerous as the hairs on an ox. We can go anywhere, can’t we?”

Hearing this, Bu Yunyan felt a sweet sensation in her heart. In his heart, she finally occupied a place.

Thinking of this, she lifted her head and asked Qin Li, “Then, Young Master, do you think we should move into the mansion bestowed by the Emperor?”

“Move, of course we should move! Why not?” Qin Li chuckled lightly. “Not just us, but Leng Yao and Ahu will move in too! As for that kid Watermelon, let him stay with the gang for now. The Great Green Gang is basically in my hands. Sooner or later, he will rise to power! Not just us, but the girls from the shop will all move over! That mansion is so big. Why leave it empty? Don’t you think so? After we move in tomorrow, you can go buy some maids and servants. We must put on a show that we are settling in Azure Dragon City for the long term. This way, certain people will feel reassured.”

Bu Yunyan nodded with understanding and said, “That works. It’s good that this place isn’t too far from Vermilion Bird Street. The girls moving there will bring more liveliness and be safer too.”

Qin Li nodded and sighed softly. “Right now, we don’t only have enemies. The Crown Prince’s faction may dislike me, but the Second Prince and the neutral factions might not think the same way. Besides, the Great Green Gang is already under my control. We don’t need to worry about funds and sources of information anymore.”

“But Young Master, can you guarantee that the leader of the Great Green Gang will follow you wholeheartedly?”

“Haha, that man is a true fellow. I believe I didn’t misjudge him. Besides, he has no other choice but to follow me now!”

Bu Yunyan frowned slightly, blinked her eyes, and then said, “Then, do you think the Crown Prince, after failing to gain control of the Great Green Gang, might become furious and send troops to wipe them out?”

Qin Li thought for a moment, then gently shook his head. “No, Zhao Xinghe doesn’t know that Leng Ping is still alive. So, he will definitely scheme to regain control of the Great Green Gang. Don’t worry, tomorrow those retainers who originally belonged to the Great Green Gang will surely return.”

“Ah, then what should we do?”

“What do you mean, what should we do? Same as before!” Qin Li replied carelessly.

Bu Yunyan thought for a while, then suddenly smiled. “I understand. Young Master means that for now, we don’t want to offend those noble families. We’ll give them some benefits while ensuring the Crown Prince’s side can’t control the Great Green Gang and can’t send troops to destroy it. Because if he did, even his own people wouldn’t agree, right?”

Qin Li looked at Bu Yunyan with approval, reached out, and gently tapped her nose. He laughed, “Sister Bu is indeed clever!” A delicate sensation traveled from his fingertip. After doing this, Qin Li felt it was somewhat inappropriate. His mental age was already over thirty, and Bu Yunyan, in her twenties, was just a cute young girl in his eyes. Calling her “Sister Bu” was mostly teasing. But Bu Yunyan didn’t see it that way!

Sure enough, a blush quietly spread across Bu Yunyan’s cheeks. She lowered her head, stood up, and said softly, “I’m going to sleep. Young Master, you should rest early too.”

After saying that, she fled in a fluster.

Qin Li put his finger to the tip of his nose and gently sniffed. A faint, refreshing fragrance wafted into his senses. He couldn’t help but smile wryly.

…

Early the next morning, Qin Li brought Bu Yunyan to Vermilion Bird Street. Looking at the mansion that now belonged to him, Qin Li suddenly remembered the Zichen Garden of the Qin Family. Compared to this magnificent mansion before him, the Zichen Garden seemed too petty and shabby. Moreover, that place had long since become a pile of broken bricks and rubble.

The once-glorious Qin Family no longer existed. Thinking of the two descendants of the Qin Family still at the Imperial Academy, Qin Li thought: It seems I should find time to go see them. It appears I still hold the title of Senior Lecturer at the Imperial Academy.

Thinking of this, Qin Li smiled self-deprecatingly. As a former gang leader, he now had to teach classes one day. Where… could he find even a hint of a teacher’s demeanor?

Bu Yunyan was very excited. She directly brought along Duoduo, the shop’s manager. She sent a carriage to pick up Leng Yao and Ahu, then took Duoduo with her to select maids and servants.

Qin Li wandered alone through the mansion. The environment was beautiful and very natural, with very few artificial touches. It seemed this was related to the fact that Celestial Rank Attendants had lived here in the past.

As the saying goes, all paths lead to the same destination. When one’s strength reaches a certain level and stage, the things they pursue are actually quite similar.

Qin Li’s mind drifted to last night’s battle with Shadow. At the critical moment, Qin Li had used the ancient Taiji Fist from Huaxia to achieve a surprising victory. He felt satisfied that, at the Earth Rank level, he had defeated a Heavenly Rank assassin and severely wounded him.

Because Shadow didn’t dare to fully unleash his Heavenly Rank aura for fear of drawing attention. By the time he wanted to erupt at the final moment, it was already too late. Shadow probably died without understanding where Qin Li had learned these strange Combat Techniques.

In fact, Qin Li himself was filled with gratitude toward the Old Taoist Priest who had adopted him since childhood. Without the Old Taoist Priest’s training back then, Qin Li probably wouldn’t have been able to survive in this environment, even if he had come to the Tianyuan Continent.

Even if he could survive, it would be a miserable existence!

Even now, he would still be living under the scorn and sarcasm of others.

Actually, deep in Qin Li’s memories of the past, there weren’t many scenes of being bullied. More often, it was about being looked down upon and mocked.

Everyone has self-respect. Even though the former Qin Li was just a child, he still had his own dignity. Growing up in such an environment was truly difficult for him.

Moreover, his mother was very weak in the beginning. She only reached the Heavenly Rank level in recent years. To prevent the man she loved from facing any possible threats, Qin Hanyue had no choice but to let her child suffer. Probably, she had thought about leaving many times, but how would the Qin Family allow such an embarrassing mother and son to leave their sight? If they used force, the secret of Qin Li’s biological father would be completely exposed. The two Heavenly Rank Ancestors of the Qin Family were not good people. How would they let Qin Hanyue, a weak woman, go?

Qin Li stood still in the courtyard and sighed softly, thinking to himself: Fortunately, all of this is in the past! The future truly belongs to me!

By evening, Leng Yao and Ahu had arrived. Bu Yunyan and Duoduo had bought over twenty maids and more than ten servants, all carefully selected. Together with the servants from the previous residence, Marquis Qin’s mansion suddenly became lively.

Leng Yao hadn’t seen Qin Li for some time. She never expected that in such a short period, Qin Li would be granted the title of Marquis. Although Leng Yao had never held imperial authority in high regard before, she couldn’t help but feel proud of Qin Li’s achievements.

In the room, only Leng Yao, Bu Yunyan, Ahu, and Qin Li were present.

Qin Li looked at the three of them and said seriously, “We’ve taken our first step. Money is no longer a problem. What we need to do next is, first, strengthen our influence! Second, improve our personal strength. All of you need to be prepared to train hard. Sister Leng Yao, see which Alchemical Pill is most effective for boosting strength. List the required medicinal herbs. If we can buy them, buy them. If we can’t, we’ll go find them ourselves! In short, I want all of you to reach the Heavenly Rank level within five years!”