"Impossible," Bai Tian said with a grave expression, especially when mentioning the Glory Hall. "No one has ever become the eleventh councilor since the council was established. Ten is the maximum division of power. The Glory Hall would never allow it."
The Glory Hall was the highest honorific institution of Great Xia!
"It's a fact. When the council was first established, the Glory Hall explicitly stated that there could only be ten councilors. Any more would lead to severe power division and internal strife. In the very beginning, there were only eight," Murong Yuze sighed, his eyes filled with helplessness.
For the chief of the Youth Army to ascend, they would either have to force the Glory Hall with Glory Points or defeat one of the existing councilors and take their place. However, the former was practically impossible. Glory Points were issued by the Glory Hall; how could they be used to pressure it? Thus, only the latter remained.
"His strength is not enough to challenge them, and moreover, his strength does not match his ambition," Ye Longlin said slowly, the tea leaves swirling before him.
Murong Yuze and Bai Tian understood this well, but under his pressure, they had to take a side. Power struggles were often like this; even if one didn't want to choose a side, the people behind them would force them to, a price paid for power and status.
"Star City is not a place you should be in now. It has become the center of the storm. People from the capital are involved, and the situation here will definitely change due to the capital's affairs," Ye Longlin said after a moment of thought, a flicker of an unusual look in his eyes. The Ye family, at least, would not let this matter rest.
"I await your news. If you lose, I will side with him," Murong Yuze said after a period of silence. This was not just their choice, but the choice of the people behind them. It was an investment.
Bai Tian said helplessly, "Me too."
Ye Longlin looked at them and suddenly laughed, "Do you think he poses a threat to me?"
Regarding this... the two of them didn't know how to respond. It was the truth of the matter.
"Alright, if there's nothing else, you should leave Star City. Be careful in all things," Ye Longlin said earnestly, a hint of playfulness appearing on his lips.
The two men's hearts sank. They clearly understood something, and their faces turned grim.
Ye Longlin watched them leave with a smile. Yuan Gang appeared beside him, his expression somewhat displeased.
"Boss, what do they mean? Are they trying to force you into this power struggle?"
Ye Longlin scoffed, "Do you think they have the qualifications?"
Yuan Gang shook his head. "You are the Lord of the Dragon Pavilion and one of the counselors. The three great mountain councilors – they don't have the qualifications to force you to act. The person standing behind you, even just one person, could make them dare not pressure you."
"Yes, if they don't dare, then why are they appearing here?"
Yuan Gang's entire body trembled, and a look of shock appeared in his eyes! Could it be that the capital... had something happen? Otherwise, how could a chief of the lowest-ranking Youth Army dare to pressure the Lord of the Dragon Pavilion? The Dragon Pavilion was a legitimate armed institution! Even without his status as a counselor, a mere chief of the Youth Army could not pressure him. The only explanation was that something had happened in the capital!
"Investigate!"
"Yes!"
In the lake-view villa closest to the lake in the villa district, Mu Hanqi sat on the sofa with a serious expression, facing Mu Ye.
"Ye Longlin is a member of the Youth Army, which proves he is no minor figure in the military. Yet, our family's contacts in the military cannot find anything out, and even no one in the main family can investigate him. I suspect this is just his public identity. Great Xia has always been like this, liking to hide some things, and he is no exception. Therefore, this matter is definitely not as simple as it seems; his identity is definitely beyond our understanding."
Their branch of the family was once core members of the Murong family, but they lost the power struggle and were stripped of the Murong surname. Now, he saw hope of returning to the capital!
Mu Hanqi gasped, her eyes filled with shock. She hadn't thought that far, but it seemed her father's words made sense!
"What about Lin Tianai?" She still didn't want her best friend to be in trouble.
Mu Ye remained silent for a moment. "If that's truly the case, then Star City will definitely not be peaceful in the coming days. Many things will happen. Lin Tianai has long been tagged with Ye Longlin. If someone wants to deal with Ye Longlin, they will have to deal with Lin Tianai. You understand what I mean."
Mu Hanqi's eyelids twitched, and she looked in the direction of Jvling Group, filled with worry.
At the same time, within Jvling Group, Lin Tianai was indeed facing her greatest crisis, a crisis that was enough to drag the entire Jvling Group down with her.
"General Manager Lin, I am very sorry. This matter is purely due to our internal issues. The head office requires us to recall all loans issued in the past half-month, so I am very sorry. It's just your side that's left. Of course, due to our problems, we will not charge any interest and will compensate one million in liquidated damages," Mo Wudao said helplessly in the reception room of Jvling Group, clarifying that he was the one who issued the loans, but the recall was by the head office, which also made him feel helpless.
"Bank President Mo, please give us some time on this. Jvling Group cannot come up with so much money right now. Our current working capital is only one hundred million." Lin Tianai showed no emotion, only a cold expression. Today, Ye Longlin had made her grow up instantly, making her realize that relying on external factors was all fake; only one's own strength was real.
"General Manager Lin, I am truly very sorry, but I can't do anything about it." The person sitting next to Mo Wudao sneered, "General Manager Lin, you can consider bankruptcy liquidation. Our Meihua Group will take over everything, including your debts." Meihua Group, the negotiation team.
"Impossible. Even if we can't sustain it, I will not go for bankruptcy liquidation. Jvling Group is the culmination of two generations of the Lin family's efforts, so liquidation is absolutely impossible!" Lin Tianai immediately refused him and looked at him coldly, then suddenly sneered, "I understand now. You are working together to set up a scheme, all for Jvling Group, right? I can tell you, this is impossible. No matter how strong Meihua Group is, I will not do such a thing!"
At that moment, Mo Wudao interjected, "Miss Lin, I can give you two days to raise the money, but after two days, I won't be able to help you anymore. If you fail to repay the debt, the bank will freeze Jvling Group, and then..."
Lin Tianai's face instantly turned pale, and she trembled with anger. But suddenly, she seemed to remember something and turned to look at Mo Wudao.
"Bank President Mo, I want to know now why my loan was approved so smoothly. The first time, I remember it was rejected."
Mo Wudao remained silent for a moment. "Because of Ye Longlin, Mr. Ye."