Back at the hotel, everyone sat down in the lobby.
Li Tianming asked, "So, are we having a celebration banquet tonight?"
Zhang Kuang yawned, "Let's rest. We've been busy these past few days, and I didn't get to sleep in today. Let's do it tomorrow."
"Tomorrow then. Alright, I'll book a restaurant."
Lu Daoxing turned to Qin Siyang and flashed a friendly smile again.
As if he had completely forgotten about asking for his bird during the ceremony.
"Little Qin, what are you planning to do with that crimson crystal of yours?"
Qin Siyang had already prepared an excuse, "That thing? I left it with the Zhao Chamber of Commerce in exchange for a Vice President position. If you want it, Professor Lu, you'll have to talk to Principal Zhao about how to split it."
Lu Daoxing chuckled, "Little Qin, at the end of the day, isn't that thing still yours? What's so great about being a Vice President? Give it to me, and I'll get you a Tier-5 God-Hunting artifact! That's way better than a Vice President title!"
"Besides, you were so dominant on stage today, you completely intimidated the three major Chamber of Commerces. What's there to be afraid of?"
Qin Siyang waved his hand, "Professor Lu, stop messing with me."
"It was Chu Xiao'ang, Yan Budong, and Qin Yingguang who suppressed the three major Chamber of Commerces today, not me."
"If you keep using assassination as a tactic, you'll eventually suffer backlash. It's not a long-term strategy."
"The reason I took the Vice President position was to have a strong backer, to make the three major Chamber of Commerces think twice before coming after me."
"In the Safe Zone, Zhao's family is the only one willing to protect me right now. If I make them my enemy too, how am I supposed to survive?"
Lu Daoxing thought for a moment before saying, "Little Qin, you could also go to Commander Chu. I heard you two have a pretty good relationship."
Chang Tianxiang sighed, "Old Lu, you'll say anything just to get Little Qin's crimson crystal, huh?"
"What's wrong with what I said?"
Chang Tianxiang had always liked speaking objectively, which made Qin Siyang have a good impression of Professor Chang.
"Old Lu, are you even familiar with Chu Xiao'ang?"
"No, but isn't that how it always starts? We weren't close before the apocalypse either."
Chang Tianxiang took off his glasses, wiped the lenses slowly, and said, "That's completely different. Our relationship is based on equal cooperation. We found each other reliable and built trust step by step."
"If Little Qin goes to Chu Xiao'ang, he'll just be at his mercy. How could things go as smoothly as they are now?"
"Besides, I think the Zhao family is pretty good. They follow rules, value loyalty, and have a moral bottom line."
"If there's trouble, Zhao Longfei will step in to protect and help us. A principal like that is truly rare."
"Of course, I'm not saying our old Principal Han from Central Glory was bad, he was a good person too. But he was too restrained and couldn't act as decisively as Zhao Longfei. That's why Old Li and Old Zhang ended up losing to Guo Jiuxiao and got completely removed."
"With Zhao Longfei, we don't have to worry about internal conflicts, we just focus on doing our work."
"To be honest, I'm very satisfied with Principal Zhao. Little Qin working with the Zhao family should lead to a good future."
"As for the military—"
"At the beginning of the apocalypse, there were at least dozens of military coups before the current great army emerged."
"Do you really think Chu Xiao'ang's moral standards are higher than Zhao Longfei's?"
"If Little Qin joins the military, who knows how Chu Xiao'ang will manipulate him."
Qin Siyang nodded.
Chang Tianxiang had spoken his mind.
An ordinary man is innocent, but harboring treasure invites trouble.
With all the precious items he had, it was inevitable that people would target him.
Zhao Longfei might be greedy, but he had never actually plotted any real harm against him.
He also remembered how Qin Siyang had saved Zhao Sifang.
Even though Zhao Longfei came from the black market, he had an undeniable sense of brotherhood and righteousness.
But Chu Xiao'ang was different.
That man had no bottom line.
He never played fair.
To him, there were only two kinds of people: his own and ants.
His own people had to be protected, and ants could be killed at will.
He was willing to kill Qin Siyang over a few Titan Foxtail Grass Leaf fragments.
If Qin Siyang joined Chu's Legion and revealed any valuable items, Chu Xiao'ang might just tie him up and torture him for them.
Joining the military? Absolutely not.
Unless he could also become one of Chu Xiao'ang's people. That would be a different story.
For now, though, he was fully committed to the Zhao family.
Lu Daoxing, hearing this, realized he had no argument left.
He muttered, "If Little Qin had a Tier-5 God-Hunting artifact, wouldn't he become way stronger too? I'm just thinking about his well-being."
Li Tianming asked, "Old Lu, you're always asking for materials. What exactly are you doing with them?"
"Little Qin has brought in so many rare things recently, from the Vine Core to the Crimson Crystal. I made sure you got the lion's share of them."
"Even during the Crimson Crystal negotiations, I prioritized your interests in all our deals with the different factions."
"Isn't all that enough for your research? Why do you still want more?"
"Old Lu, tell me the truth. Are you gambling?"
Qin Siyang silently took out his bird and turned on the lie detector.
Lu Daoxing exclaimed, "Old Li, what are you thinking?! I, Lu Daoxing, am sworn enemies with gambling, drugs, and vice!"
["Truth."]
Hearing this, Hao Liang clicked his tongue, "Old Lu, your moral stance is impressive. I wouldn't go that far. I'd only say I'm against gambling and drugs."
Wu Yu said calmly, "That's understandable. His wife is in the Fragrance Seeker sequence. Old Lu can't hide anything from her. I remember once, when he got caught getting a foot massage, his wife almost cut off his bird. He's been behaving ever since."
"No wonder…"
Lu Daoxing shouted at Wu Yu, "You sly bastard, what nonsense are you spouting? Stop slandering me!"
Wu Yu adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and shrugged, "If it makes you happy."
Li Tianming pressed on, "You don't lack money, so why are you hoarding so many high-level materials?"
Lu Daoxing's expression turned conflicted, as if there was something he couldn't say.
Li Tianming said, "Old Lu, if something's wrong, just say it. We're all here to help you."
Zhang Kuang added, "Yeah, don't carry the burden alone. Just tell us."
Lu Daoxing sighed deeply, his body sinking into the sofa like a deflated balloon.
"It's not about me. It's my wife."
"Your wife?"
"She lost a ton of money trading futures and ended up in massive debt."
"All these years, she's been with me since we had nothing. I have to help her pay it back."
["Truth."]
'Futures trading? In the Safe Zone?'
'Is the economy already that developed?'
Qin Siyang was genuinely surprised.
"She was trading futures, and you didn't stop her? You're not short on money."
Lu Daoxing looked miserable, "She did it behind my back. I only found out when I saw the debt collection notices by accident."
"She's a full-time housewife. She always felt guilty about not contributing, so she thought making some extra money would help ease my burden."
["Truth."]
Qin Siyang figured there was no need to keep the lie detector on, so he switched it off.
Lu Daoxing continued, "But she doesn't understand. My pressure has nothing to do with money."
"Our research is no different from an arms race before the apocalypse. No one can afford to fall behind, falling behind means total destruction. I never told her this because I didn't want her to stress out."
"I never expected her to pull something like this."
Qin Siyang frowned, "Futures trading? How much could she have lost? Professor Lu, couldn't you just sell a God-Hunting Weapons to cover it?"
Lu Daoxing gave a helpless smile, "The futures she was trading… were God-Hunting Weapons."
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