Chapter 50: Subduing the Zhang Family
Just as the tip of the knife was about to pierce Zhao Dong, Han Chuxue stopped.
Her voice trembled, and so did her hands. "Why didn't you dodge?"
Zhao Dong said gravely, "If you think killing me is the only way to appease your hatred, then do it. This is my fault."
The fruit knife in Han Chuxue's hand clattered to the floor. She covered her face as tears streamed through her fingers, and she began to sob uncontrollably.
Zhao Dong sighed, gently patted her beautiful shoulder, and draped his clothes over her.
"If you run into any trouble in the future, or if your Han Family needs anything, just tell me. I will help."
"I never want to see you again! I hate you!"
Han Chuxue dressed, cast Zhao Dong a deeply resentful glance, and then turned and slammed the door behind her.
After she left, Zhao Dong sighed and called Xu Yafei.
On the other end, Xu Yafei's voice was as indifferent as ever. "You're awake?"
Zhao Dong replied bitterly, "Did you bring me here?"
"Yes. What about it?"
"Where is this?"
"My place."
"Then why was Han Chuxue... in the same bed with me?"
Xu Yafei feigned innocence. "You two were in the same bed? That's impossible. I put you in two different rooms." She then laughed. "You slept in the same bed? You didn't sleep with her, did you?"
Zhao Dong certainly didn't want to reveal this matter, as it concerned Han Chuxue's reputation. He immediately denied it. "No, of course not!"
"So you slept with her. Are you still trying to fool me? There's a camera in that room. Want to take a look later?"
"What the hell, there's a camera?"
Zhao Dong felt like he was about to fall apart. On the other end, Xu Yafei actually laughed out loud.
"You slept with her and you still don't dare to admit it. What a coward."
Zhao Dong said helplessly, "Fine, I admit I slept with her. It seems to have hit her pretty hard. Don't you want to check on her?"
"No need. Let her adjust on her own. Han Chuxue is a daughter of the Han Family. Sleeping with her is a great advantage for you. Now you can connect with the Han Family."
Zhao Dong rubbed his forehead. "I could have connected with the Han Family without sleeping with Han Chuxue. An old man from their family named Han Qingtian came to see me before. He said he wanted to be friends and even gave me ten million as a gift."
On the other end, Xu Yafei was stunned. A second later, she shot to her feet. "What did you say? Han Qingtian came to see you?"
"Yes. What's wrong?"
A strange expression crossed Xu Yafei's face. Zhao Dong had already made contact with the Han Family? Damn it! And I went and had him sleep with Han Chuxue! So he could have connected with the Han Family even if they hadn't slept together! For a moment, Xu Yafei didn't know whether to laugh or cry. What on earth have I done?
Well, what was done was done, and regret was useless. Xu Yafei coughed and said, "It's nothing. Since the Han Family has shown goodwill, you should interact with them more. After all, the Han Family is one of the four great clans. Although they can't compare to Hong Wu, on the surface, even Hong Wu has to show them some respect. Also, you need to comfort Chuxue properly. She's your woman now."
After hanging up, Zhao Dong rubbed his forehead. Damn it, I've inexplicably ended up with another woman! I, Zhao Dong, am no scumbag, so why do I keep getting involved with more and more women?
Zhao Dong sighed and looked at the bloodstain on the bedsheet, a bitter smile on his face. Forget it. Han Chuxue is a stunning beauty, even if she is quite cold. Besides, sleeping with her wasn't a loss. I'll just have to help her more in the future.
He then checked his physical condition and was immediately stunned; the next second, he was ecstatic. Just a few days ago, he had broken through to the early stage of the fourth layer of Qi Refinement. Now, he had broken through again!
He was now in the middle stage of the fourth layer of Qi Refinement. The Dantian inside him, once the size of a ping-pong ball, had grown larger. Moreover, his Spiritual Energy was several times denser than before. Zhao Dong's heart raced. His rate of progress was simply terrifying.
If I add the alchemy techniques from the Mystic Sky Technique and use alchemy to aid my cultivation, it won't be long before I become the top master in the East Sea!
After calming himself, Zhao Dong thought for a moment, then decided to leave and head to the Zhang Family. Since Zhang Longbo had hired someone to kill him, Zhao Dong would definitely not let him off. Besides, the Zhang Family was one of the four great clans of the East Sea. Zhao Dong had another reason for not going after Zhang Longbo immediately: he wanted to make the Zhang Family work for him.
At that moment, in the Zhang Family's villa estate, everyone had been summoned to the main hall by Zhang Longbo. Most of them were unaware of what had happened. Only Zhang Longbo knew that his family's doom was imminent. He sat there, pale and restless.
The Zhang Family was the weakest of the four great clans, with no real masters. Their two strongest members were only at the fifth layer of Inner Strength. To avenge Zhang Ze, he had specifically sought out Fang Yunshan. Fang Yunshan possessed the strength of the seventh layer of Inner Strength and was ranked seventh on the Earth Ranking. He had thought he could kill Zhao Dong with ease, but instead, Fang Yunshan was killed by Zhao Dong. This terrified Zhang Longbo.
How could he have known Zhao Dong was so strong? If he had, he wouldn't have dared to offend him, even if it cost him his life.
Now, knowing that Zhao Dong was about to arrive, Zhang Longbo looked to the sky and sighed, "The heavens want to destroy our Zhang Family!"
The assembled Zhang Family members were shocked. "Patriarch, what are you talking about?"
"Yes, why would someone want to destroy our family out of the blue? We are one of the four great clans!"
As they were discussing this, a figure appeared outside the main hall, and Zhao Dong's deep voice echoed through the air.
"Zhang Longbo, I've come to take your worthless life."
The members of the Zhang Family looked over, their faces filled with anger.
"Hey, who are you? Do you have a death wish, coming here to cause trouble?"
"Guards! Seize this brat! How dare he spout such nonsense at the Zhang estate! Kill him!"
Zhang Longbo shuddered in fear. Without a second thought, he roared at his family members, "All of you, get on your knees! Kneel!"
With that, he knelt himself. The faces of the Zhang Family members changed, and not daring to say another word, they hurriedly knelt as well.
Zhao Dong walked in step by step, taking in the lavishly decorated main hall. He remarked coolly, "Your Zhang Family seems to be living quite well. This villa estate must be worth a few hundred million, right?"
Zhang Longbo replied without hesitation, "Mr. Zhao, if you want this villa estate, it's yours."
Zhao Dong chuckled mockingly. "Oh? You think you can get rid of me with just this?"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Zhao Dong flashed in front of Zhang Longbo and grabbed him by the throat. "You hired someone to kill me. Do you think I won't kill you?"
Zhang Longbo was so frightened that tears streamed down his face. He begged, "Mr. Zhao, if you must kill someone, kill me. I'm willing to trade my life for the safety of the Zhang Family."
Zhao Dong sneered. "You make it sound so simple. Is your worthless life really that valuable?"
Zhang Longbo kowtowed repeatedly, his face streaked with tears and snot. "Mr. Zhao, I beg you, please spare our Zhang Family."
Zhao Dong narrowed his eyes, his mind racing as he calculated his options. Zhang Longbo is the Patriarch of the Zhang Family, after all. Killing him would undoubtedly attract the attention of the East Sea officials. It would also create a lot of enemies, since something like this can't be hidden. But if I let him live... he could be useful to me.
With this in mind, Zhao Dong said coldly, "Today, I'm feeling merciful. I'll spare your worthless life and give the Zhang Family a chance to survive, but I have one demand!"
Tears of joy streamed down Zhang Longbo's face. He kowtowed frantically. "Mr. Zhao, please, just name it!"
"My demand is simple! From now on, I am the master of the Zhang Family. I want half of all your family's assets and resources."
The Zhang Family members were stunned. Their family's assets were worth tens of billions. To just give away half?
Kneeling on the ground, Zhang Longbo said to Zhao Dong, word by word, "Mr. Zhao! From this day forward, you are the master behind the scenes of the Zhang Family!"
Zhao Dong nodded. "It's good that you're smart. You can continue to operate your businesses as usual, just give me my share of the profits every month. And remember, don't try to pull any tricks. I'm not known for my patience."
"Yes, I understand, Mr. Zhao!"
"Also, no one is to ever mention the matter of Fang Yunshan! If anyone dares to leak a word, I will kill you!" Zhao Dong sent this message directly to Zhang Longbo via voice transmission, a skill unique to cultivators.
Zhang Longbo's pupils shrank. He was utterly shocked and nodded hastily in agreement.
Only then did Zhao Dong nod in satisfaction before turning to leave.
Now that the Zhang Family matter was settled, the steady monthly income meant he could buy medicinal ingredients in bulk. Medicinal ingredients were essential for cultivation, and he also needed them for alchemy. The Zhang Family had just solved this problem for him.
Content, Zhao Dong left the Zhang estate and returned to his small courtyard. He realized he had returned home but still hadn't treated his parents to a good time. Now that he had nearly ten million, Zhao Dong decided to take his parents out that night, buy some property for them, get them some nice clothes, and buy them a small car.
Just as he reached his gate and was about to enter the courtyard, a beautiful woman emerged from the yard next door. The woman wore a pleated skirt that revealed a pair of long, fair legs. She had a black hair clip in her hair, her skin was like snow, her features were delicate, and she was fashionably dressed. She was clearly a beauty.
Zhao Dong's gaze met hers.
They stared at each other, both of them stunned.
"Wang Han?"
"Zhao Dong?"