Chapter 4366 — Crashing the Party

Wang Xinyan was equally torn. Like Huang Xiaotao, she naturally wanted to settle Wei Zhao's score with Wei Zhaotong before leaving, but to go to their master with such a request would only put her in an awkward position. What was to be done?

"Ha, you two are both overthinking it. Who ever said dealing with Wei Zhaotong requires your master to step in? A man of his caliber—does he even deserve to have a patriarch of the Genesis Stage lift a finger against him?" Wei Zhao said with a laugh, watching the two women fret from the sidelines.

"But what can the three of us do alone—just storm their gates by force? Without some respectable pretext, the Hong Merchant Guild won't be so easy to enter. Wei Zhaotong is a cunning old fox; he might just turn around and bite us instead," Wang Xinyan said with some concern.

She knew that even a branch office of the Hong Merchant Guild would have skilled retainers guarding it, and one could not simply barge in. Without a legitimate cause, once the matter blew up, the three of them might well find themselves outmaneuvered by Wei Zhaotong.

"That's not necessarily so. The academy may not be able to touch a creature like Wei Zhaotong, but I can," Wei Zhao said with a knowing smile.

"Eh?" Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao were stunned, exchanging bewildered glances.

"Xiaotao, have you forgotten? I believe I mentioned it to you before—I'm no outsider at the Hong Merchant Guild. I'm one of their own, through and through. I'm their honorary vice-chairman!" Wei Zhao said with a grin.

"That's right!" Huang Xiaotao suddenly remembered. It was only an empty title, of no use in daily life, and if Wei Zhao had not brought it up, she would never have recalled it.

"Honorary vice-chairman?" Wang Xinyan's eyes lit up, and she too brightened with delight. "That's wonderful! The position carries no real authority, but the standing it confers is unmistakable, and the right to speak is beyond question. With these pieces of evidence in hand, it's perfectly suited for dealing with a branch manager like Wei Zhaotong!"

"Exactly. Wei Zhaotong has committed outrages against heaven and reason; he can't be allowed to run wild any longer. Even from the standpoint of an honorary vice-chairman, I owe the Hong Merchant Guild some measure of responsibility," Wei Zhao said, resolve settling into his voice. "To deal with Wei Zhaotong, the first thing we must do is take the Weihu branch office out of his hands. That's a bit beyond my strength alone, so I need you two to help."

"How do we help?" Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao asked eagerly. Neither was of a warlike temperament, but to help Wei Zhao deal with Wei Zhaotong, they were fairly itching to begin.

"Simple. Take on the skilled retainers there with me. Barring surprises, Wei Zhaotong himself is a Nascent Soul expert, and he certainly won't surrender meekly. He'll surely stir up the other retainers against us. To keep things from spiraling out of control, we must strike swiftly and finish the fight as quickly as possible," Wei Zhao analyzed.

"All right!" Huang Xiaotao nodded happily without a second thought. She had long since fallen into the habit of doing whatever Wei Zhao said. Never mind merely seizing control of the Weihu branch—if he had told her to burn it to the ground, she would likely have done that too.

"Mm, understood." Wang Xinyan thought it over briefly, then nodded as well. Her mind was more sensitive than Huang Xiaotao's, so she naturally weighed more—how feasible the plan was, what consequences it might bring for Wei Zhao.

Of course, Wei Zhao's business was her business, and she would never stand by and watch. Still, she needed to think things through before acting, and all things considered, the method Wei Zhao proposed was likely the most direct and effective.

Huang Xiaotao had told her before that the combined martial technique she and Wei Zhao could unleash was enough to instantly kill a Nascent Soul expert, and Wang Xinyan herself, as an early Nascent Soul expert and the cherished personal disciple of the East Sea Divine Nun, was likewise more than capable of slaying one.

By common reckoning, the skilled retainers the Hong Merchant Guild assigned to each branch were Nascent Soul experts, but never many. Even a large branch like the one on North Island had only four; a small branch in waters like Weihu could have two at most. So barring surprises, the chances of a swift victory were high.

Beyond that, Morning Star Academy was a school of tigers and wolves. It never forbade its disciples from coming to blows, at any time or on any occasion. On the contrary, every rule and regulation seemed designed to encourage competition among disciples—and that so-called competition, put another way, meant stirring up trouble.

Encouraged by such an atmosphere, Morning Star disciples caused trouble out in the world by the score. So long as they did not poke a hole in the sky itself, so long as they could bear the responsibility for their actions, the academy never reproached them.

Compared with those disciples who grew restless if a single day passed without a fight, Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao were absolute model children. An occasional spot of trouble was only fitting to the academy's character.

Besides, even if they did take action, the East Sea Divine Nun stood behind them like a towering tree, and there would be no problem at all. In a sense, the moment the two of them joined Wei Zhao in battle, they drew him under the East Sea Divine Nun's protection as well. Even if something went wrong, there would be no worries afterward.

Wei Zhao was always a man of action. Once the three had settled on a plan, he merely had the guards outside pass a word to Qi Wenmo—without saying what it was about—and headed straight for the Hong Merchant Guild.

By then it was dark and there were no customers about; the Hong Merchant Guild was just preparing to close for the night when Wei Zhao charged in with the two women at his back.

"Honored guests, the shop is closing. Please come back in the morning," the clerk hurriedly said, barring their way.

"Come back in the morning?" Wei Zhao laughed at that, casting the clerk a glance. "Does crashing a place require picking a time and standing in line? This is none of your business—fetch Wei Zhaotong at once. What's happening tonight is beyond your handling!"

"Crashing the place?" The clerk was stunned. In all his years at the Hong Merchant Guild, he had never seen anyone dare to wreck their premises—not even the Poison Eye Mercenary Corps, the most notorious outfit in these parts, would have dared.

But sensing the aura of experts radiating from Wei Zhao and the two women, the clerk dared not waste another word. This was indeed beyond his handling. He scurried off into the inner hall and brought Wei Zhaotong out.

Wei Zhaotong had been drinking tea to settle his nerves. What had happened earlier at the Sky-Bearing Escort Agency had truly frightened him witless—especially when Ling Yuanqing flew into a rage at the end. He, a dignified branch manager of the Hong Merchant Guild, had gone weak in the knees with terror and nearly dropped to the ground on the spot. That day's outing had been a genuine brush with death. (** yuren22, additions welcome!) (To be continued..)