Li Qianfan had brought Li Xiufang and seven other flag bearers from Li Family Village with him the last time he massacred the Du family and their affiliates.
Today, he was going to the Miao family—
It was the first day of the Lunar New Year, and he really couldn't bring himself to ask for more people from Li Family Village.
The operation in Black Water Forest had concluded, and Li Santiao and the others had returned, still staying at the “Socialite Discotheque.”
In a feudal society, Li Santiao and his ilk would be considered Li Qianfan's household retainers.
It would be most fitting for Li Qianfan to bring Santiao and his men with him on the first day of the Lunar New Year to raise his butcher's knife against the Miao family.
However.
He hadn't told Su Nanyin whom he was taking with him.
Su Nanyin, however, had guessed it.
“They're in position.”
Li Qianfan started the car, slowly turned it around, and sped away in the direction he came from under the gaze of hundreds of complex looks (from those who came to the compound to pay New Year's greetings). He said casually, “As expected of the Su Nanguanyin, whose intelligence is proportional to her beauty. You guessed immediately who I'm taking to the Miao family.”
Su Nanyin, sitting in the passenger seat, looked out the car window with a languid expression and said, “Even if you weren't flattering me, I’d still be happy if you killed for me on the first day of the Lunar New Year.”
“You've got that wrong.”
Li Qianfan said, “I'm not killing on the first day of the Lunar New Year to flatter you. It's because those toads dared to desecrate her in front of Chong Chong.”
Su Nanyin immediately asked, “In your heart, am I not as important as Chong Chong?”
“Nonsense!”
Li Qianfan blurted out, “My relationship with Chong Chong is that of a proper husband and wife. You? You're, at best, an old cabbage patch that drools when she sees her son-in-law.”
Damn it—
Su Nanyin grabbed his right leg, causing him to shiver with pain until she was satisfied and let go. “What did President Zhao say to you in his study?”
Li Qianfan countered, “What did you say to President Zhao when you spoke with him?”
“Heh heh.”
Su Nanyin sneered, “Do you think I'd tell you?”
Before she finished speaking, she realized something.
She reached out again, pinching the right leg of the male lead in the scandal, even harder this time.
Li Qianfan shook his head, ignoring her.
Women were like that.
Whether they were eighteen or eighty, they were basically the type who would allow officials to set fires but forbid commoners from lighting lamps.
Any man who tried to reason with a woman was surely pouring water onto a field that could irrigate an acre.
When that hand withdrew in resignation, Li Qianfan suddenly noticed something.
Whenever he was with Su Nanyin—
Whether it was playfully sticking paper on her forehead during a card game, or massaging her legs after they came down from the Great Wall, or when she, out of feminine instinct, initiated physical contact—
His 209, who was lustful by nature, had shown no reaction at all!
If Su Nanyin were replaced by his wife Ziyu, or Chong Chong, or Guai Guai, Li Qianfan's left hand would have already retaliated like a venomous snake.
What did this indicate?
It could only mean that 209 was reliable, knowing which women could be trifled with and which ones absolutely could not be touched!
“Good thing, this is definitely a good thing. Miraculous 209, I think even more highly of you now. It's strange, though, why did the left hand sneakily go to play with Su Maomao's leg several times last night? Oh, I get it! It must be that Su Maomao contributed her little mouth.”
As Li Qianfan thought of Maomao’s rosy lips, Su Nanyin asked, “You have a wicked grin all over your face. Are you blaspheming me in your heart?”
“Heh heh, you wish.”
Li Qianfan scoffed, and before she could get angry, he said, “Why did President Zhao suggest that I visit the Helan family and the Tang family for New Year's greetings before going to the Miao family?”
“President Zhao suggested you visit the Helan and Tang families first, then go to the Miao family?”
Su Nanyin was stunned for a moment. She curbed her alluring charm that made men dazed and began to think at high speed.
After a mere dozen seconds, she understood!
In any class struggle, there were four sides.
Our side, specifically Li Qianfan and the Su family of Sijiu (currently, he and the Su family were in the same boat).
Friendly side, specifically the Gao family of the Northwest, the Chu family of Hong Kong, and so on.
Enemy side, naturally the 11 influential families plus families like the Yao family.
The fourth side was the neutral faction, which helped no one.
The Helan family of Sijiu and the Tang family of Sijiu were the neutral factions who helped no one!
Current situation—
Because the scandal between Li Qianfan and Su Nanyin turned out to be true, he lost the strong support of the friendly side; even Ding Xiaolang maintained a precious silence on this matter (Xiaolang truly didn't want Li Qianfan to jeopardize the favorable situation he had just stabilized for Su Nanyin).
The silence of the friendly side made the enemy side feel more confident of victory.
Similarly!
Due to the silence of the friendly side, how would the neutral factions, who already helped no one, view Li Qianfan?
“President Zhao's intention is—”
Su Nanyin said slowly, “He hopes that, outside of allies and enemies, you can win over the neutral factions to create your own influence! That way, even if you lose the support of influential families like the Gao family of the Northwest, you'll still have your own forces as a strong backing to firmly support your status as the heir of Longxu, ensuring it remains unaffected.”
As she said this, she slapped her thigh heavily.
She looked full of regret. “I’m so stupid! Why didn't I think that after losing the support of influential families like those in the Northwest, why didn't we try to rally the neutral factions to build our own strength?”
“Alas, you are indeed quite stupid.”
Li Qianfan sighed.
Su Nanyin looked displeased.
She could call herself stupid, but she didn't like being called that by that brat.
“If you weren’t stupid,”
Li Qianfan glanced at her and said, “When you were regretting your difficulty, why did you slap my leg instead of your own?”
Su Nanyin was taken aback—
No wonder she hadn't felt any pain when she slapped her thigh earlier!
*Slap!*
The woman slapped her thigh again, with even more force. “What, you wanted to put shackles on me. Is it not allowed for me to slap your leg?”
Tch.
Li Qianfan couldn’t be bothered with her.
Su Nanyin's eyes lit up. “Without a doubt, the Zhao family, which originally helped no one, supports you. After all, your Su Ziyu provided him with the greatest assistance when Zhao Tingshan went to Xitu for negotiations. So, if we can gain the strong support of the Helan family and the Tang family! We will have the Zhao family, the Su family, the Helan family, and the Tang family as the core of four major families. No one would dare to underestimate these four families. This will be crucial for you to inherit Longxu.”
“Women, the prettier they are, the more they love to dream.”
Li Qianfan began to pour cold water. “The current Su family, is it even worthy of boasting about being a major influential family? A pregnant woman can only be the CEO of Su's Pharmaceuticals. A useless Chong Chong who only knows how to call 'brother', a Yaoyao who only knows how to act cool. Plus a slut who is pointed at by everyone. Ah!”
You damned—
After hitting Li Qianfan's leg fiercely for the third time, Su Nanyin frowned again, turned to look out the car window, and bit her left thumb, accelerating her thoughts.
President Zhao had tactfully indicated that he would fully support Li Qianfan.
The Su family was even less of a problem; if necessary, all four beauties of the Su family would step up.
The Tang family—
Could the Tang family bet their family's fate on a young man who was infatuated with beauty, solely because Li Qianfan wanted to promote Tang Wenyuan?
The Helan family?
Su Nanyin thought of Helan Tingmei, whom she had taken a liking to, and the contemptuous glance she gave her when she left President Zhao's house.
She began to feel dejected.
Of the "four major families" she had spoken of, apart from having confidence in obtaining the Zhao family's support, the Su family was useless, and the Helan and Tang families had no real reason to wade into this muddy water.
The car slowly came to a stop.
Su Nanyin's rapidly turning thoughts also paused.
Only then did she realize that the car had arrived at the entrance of the Helan family's old residence.
Twelve o'clock sharp.
Although the number of people paying New Year's greetings outside the Helan family was far less than in the morning, there were still more than a dozen cars queuing up, waiting to enter and pay their respects to the head of the Helan family.
At the entrance.
There were also a few people from the Helan family standing there.
Li Qianfan immediately spotted Helan Longqi, whom he had seen on the day of Lan Yunhai's wedding.
The young man looked dapper and spirited.
“Qianfan, don't go.”
Su Nanyin looked at the entrance and said softly, “Your grandfather's generation, your father's generation, all had a love-hate relationship with the Sijiu Helan (Li Nanfang and Helan Xiaoxin, Li Xiao and Helan Xuejing. The key was that these two women were already married when they fell for the men of the Li family. Therefore, the Helan family was also secretly called the 'family of other people's wives' by busybodies). You'll probably just be met with disdain if you go.”
“If I don't go and face some disdain, how will I know for sure that I will be met with disdain?”
Li Qianfan, however, seemed indifferent. He opened the car door and got out. “You wait in the car and hide, lest people see you 'fooling around' with me and ruin my clean reputation.”
He rambled on, then slammed the car door shut.
He tidied his already neat Zhongshan suit in front of the car window before quickly striding toward the Helan family's entrance.
Just then.
A tall, cold-faced woman walked out of the courtyard.
It was Helan Tingmei, whom Li Qianfan had seen when he paid his respects to President Zhao.
He instinctively smiled and nodded at Helan Tingmei.
Helan Tingmei, after a slight pause, her gaze swept past his face lightly.
She said to Helan Longqi, “Longqi, the old man said: from now on, all guests surnamed Li or Su are to be politely refused.”