Chapter 154: A Dead End

The cold sea breeze blew as everyone huddled together, holding their meals. I had come up late and was standing on the outer edge of the crowd. When He Yu saw me, he forced his way through several workers to clear a path, insisting I stand next to Liu Wan.

I hadn’t realized how intense it would be until I got there. My heart began to race as dozens of eyes fixed simultaneously on me and Liu Wan. Given my usual nerves, where even giving a school presentation required a period of internal panic, taking in all this scrutiny was going to take some time.

In contrast, Liu Wan had a blade hanging at her waist and one foot propped on a wooden stool. She remained completely composed, looking at the workers with a hint of impatience.

Once all the men in the water had been pulled back onto the ship, Liu Wan spoke with a stern expression. “I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors. Boss Chen took a team down this morning and ran into some trouble. He is currently unwell. Therefore, from this moment on, I will be in command of both research vessels. Gan Ji will take charge of Boss Chen’s men.”

As soon as Liu Wan finished speaking, a scruffy, burly little boss ordered his men to clear a path and stepped out from the crowd. I had seen him a few times before; his name was Liang Si, head of a Pankou in the western suburbs of Langling. He had entered the trade early and could be considered a minor Yuanliang^[1] on the streets.

He stepped forward and took a drag from his cigarette. “Sss… Boss Yu, Boss Chen is ill and can’t run the show. The men underneath understand that. But for you to just appoint some junior to manage us with a single word… that seems a bit inappropriate, don’t you think?”

I heard Liu Wan draw in a breath, but Liang Si continued. “Boss Yu, the way I see it, you’re a member of the Liu Family, so you don’t really have a say in who takes charge here. It’s best if you step aside to avoid conflict of interest. This is our family business; we’ll discuss it amongst ourselves. Once we’ve reached a decision, we’ll let you know. How does that sound?”

My brow furrowed as I listened. What’s this? I thought. Are they banking on the fact that I have no reputation or foundation in this trade to just bypass me? They clearly wanted to push forward some nobody of their own to replace Fourth Brother. Once they controlled the entire research vessel, they could order people to dive and scavenge treasures for their own Pankou.

He Yu reacted quickly, cutting in with a booming voice. “What? What exactly do you mean by that? Boss Chen has only just stepped aside, and you’re already refusing to let the legitimate Gan Clan junior take charge? Are you planning a mutiny or something? Discuss it? Bah! You’re just looking for someone to go down and grab treasures so you can pocket them all yourself!”

“Where did this guy come from? Which family are you from! Do you even have a right to speak here?” another Short Old Man jumped out from behind Liang Si and started shouting.

I took a step forward, shielding He Yu, my entire body alert. I thought to myself that if he dared to start a fight, I’d kick him straight into the sea. To my surprise, Liang Si proved to be somewhat civil; he grabbed the Short Old Man who was trying to charge forward and dragged him back.

However, I knew that these old men who avoided direct conflict were often the hardest to handle, especially since Liang Si was a Yuanliang with considerable status under Fourth Brother. I glanced around out of the corner of my eye and realized that at least twenty of the men on the ship were his.

Liang Si gave us a chuckle. “Young Master He, you’ve got it all wrong. We’re all Pankou under Yinggan Tang, and we’ve always relied on Boss Chen for our livelihoods. This time, Boss Chen called the brothers here to help. You’re right, the Gan Clan used to be the masters of Yinggan Tang, but that was in the past. For the past decade or more, Chen Si has been the one running things to keep Yinggan Tang afloat. The Young Master spends most of his time out of town and knows nothing of this trade. To have him command us during such a critical operation… it’s not going to sit well with the men, is it?”

“Besides, who knows if this Pankou will end up being named Chen or Gan in the future? Talking about a legitimate Gan Clan junior… it’s the twenty-first century. The Gan Clan died out long ago!”

As he finished, the twenty or so men behind him voiced their agreement. I was fuming. Damn it, this old fellow was full of malice, definitely trying to push me out.

But I couldn’t show weakness. My gaze instantly turned cold. I was about to speak when Liu Wan stopped me. She warned Liang Si, “I am still standing right here. You’d better watch your tongue. The Gan Clan is currently the head of the Five Masters. Boss Chen has been diligent and devoted, never harboring any intention of usurping their place. Don’t you dare dirty his years of hard work with your loose talk.”

It was clear this matter had to be settled today. If I backed down to keep the peace and let Liang Si take charge, my status on this ship would plummet. From then on, everyone would treat the Gan Clan like a pushover. Moreover, this involved the lives of Fourth Brother and Lu Ayao.

“Why wouldn’t the men follow him? We all listen to the Young Master!” Xiao Wu, having finished tending to Fourth Brother, immediately led his twenty-odd men over to back me up.

Instantly, the people on the ship split into two major factions: one supporting me, and the other supporting Liang Si. However, Liang Si had several old lackeys with him, making it clear they intended to cling to the issue of seniority. They saw that I no longer had the experienced Yin Pozi by my side and that Fourth Brother wasn’t there to keep them in line, so they were trying to walk all over me.

Just as I was considering whether to pull out the Black Hoof Iron^[2] to assert dominance, Bai Shenxian suddenly ran up from the lower cabins and signaled for us to come down. Liu Wan immediately pushed through the crowd and headed into the cabin. Fearing he might miss something, Liang Si didn’t have time to keep arguing with me and followed her inside.

He Yu and I exchanged a look before hurrying through the crowd. Bai Shenxian came up beside me without me noticing and tapped my shoulder, whispering, “Lu Ayao is awake. He called for you. You’d better hurry up and figure out how to break this deadlock. I’ll buy you some time.”

He then entered the inner room of the cabin. I quickly understood his intent. Bai Shenxian had intentionally led Liang Si and the others to Fourth Brother’s side to give me time to think of a way to take those old geezers down.

Whether it was Bai Shenxian, Liu Wan, or He Yu, they all knew one thing: the person in charge of Yinggan Tang had to be me. But one was a doctor with no authority, and the other two were from different families and couldn’t interfere. As for me, relying solely on the Black Hoof Iron in my pocket wouldn’t be enough to truly command respect.

My thoughts were a mess. I walked over to Lu Ayao’s bed, intending to tuck him in, but as soon as I reached out, he grabbed my hand. I was startled; God only knew how someone who had been poisoned could still have such strength.

His lips were pale, and he struggled to open his eyes. I knew he had something to say, so I leaned closer.

Lu Ayao’s voice was flat, his words rapid. “The Tomb-guarding Beast is directly beneath the survey vessel. You can enter the beast’s head through the ears. I’ve seen the terrain; the tomb complex is most likely beneath the beast. There should be a hidden Spirit Path if you swim down from the head, but we couldn’t find the mechanism. Chen Si didn’t want you risking your life in the water, so we turned back halfway to make other plans.”

I asked him, “What can I do for you now?”

Lu Ayao lowered his eyes in thought for a moment. “It’s too dangerous down there. You must not go into the water alone. The beast’s head is full of traps, and the walls are likely coated in potent poison. My constitution is unique; I should be able to pull through if I hold on. But your Fourth Brother… it’s hard to say.”

He Yu spoke up quickly, “Old Lu, even if the poison was diluted by the water and you can survive it, it’ll take at least three or four days to recover. Right now, it’s not just Chen Si who’s in danger; Xiao Yao can’t wait that long for you. That old bastard Liang Si is dead set on challenging Xiao Yao. He won’t let us lead a team down to find the source of the poison. If we don’t find a way to suppress him soon and he keeps dragging this out, there’s no telling if Chen Si’s life can be saved.”

Lu Ayao coughed a few times, trying to prop himself up, but the toxin left him too weak to even get up. He looked at me and asked, “I wonder if your blood still has its detoxifying properties.”

I gazed at Lu Ayao’s pale face as he lay on the bed. The wound on his shoulder was already showing signs of festering because he hadn’t received proper treatment. Even in such a state, he had insisted on trying to help me. Nearby, He Yu paced back and forth restlessly. They were both in this condition because of me.

At that moment, my previous reservations began to shift. I understood that there were some things I truly had to face alone.

If anyone was to blame, it was Liang Si for pushing me this hard. He thought that by driving me into a corner, I would simply surrender. He didn’t realize that I have always been the type to choose mutual destruction over defeat. It was the same when I used the Blood Jade to interrogate Lu Ayao, and it was the same now.

Seeing me sitting there in silence, Lu Ayao gave my wrist a gentle squeeze. I turned to look at him, then glanced at the frantic He Yu. Speaking with a quiet calm, I said, “I know how to solve this, but I have to lead a team down there one more time to find that Tomb-guarding Beast.”

“Huh? Xiao Yao, what kind of solution is that? Are you going to negotiate with him?” He Yu asked. I remained silent and didn’t answer him, mostly because I didn’t know how to put my thoughts into words.

Lu Ayao watched me with half-lidded eyes for a moment. His insight was so keen it bordered on the incomprehensible. Even though I hadn’t said a word, he could likely guess the gist of it just from my expression. I didn’t know if he had truly seen through my plan or if he had simply accepted my decision.

“If you’re confident, then do it,” he told me. “Just be careful. There are many traps down there.”